The focus of this episode of The Fosters was divided between all the Adams-Foster kids. They continue to grow and evolve as individuals and as a family with each new episode. To momentarily step away from all the legal drama Callie has been facing, this episode saw the completion (finally!) of her senior project. Callie was able to present a heartbreakingly beautiful art piece on her experiences with being in juvie and more specifically how being placed in solitary confinement has affected her. Callie was able to educate her peers on the injustices of a corrupt system and affected them so deeply, that they stood up for her when her projected was barred from being presented at the school open house. But as Callie’s triumphs never last too long, the end of the episode revealed that because Troy Johnson won’t take the settlement, Callie will have to face a jury in court.
An important milestone for the show saw Emma at Planned Parenthood making the decision to have an abortion. It was an interesting choice to make Brandon the person Emma has confided in when Jesus cannot be there for her. It was so great to see the writers show Emma and all her humanity. The show revealed the complicated path to this decision, Emma did not make it without reservations but ultimately it was one she had to make for herself.
The bulk of the episode, as the title suggests, dealt with Jude continuing to explore what it means to be a sexual being. A health class that teaches the students a strictly heteronormative way of navigating their sexual health brought up a really interesting conversation between Jude and his moms. Lena brings the issue of having a space for LGBT kids to learn about their sexual health to Monte, one that is immediately shut down based on the fear that parents will not approve. The very lack of resources that Jude encounters leads him on a dangerous path during the episode, one that involves joining a dating app for gay men and attempting to meet up with one of the men he meets online. The moms confront a pretty shaken Jude when they find out what he has been up to. Their conversation leads Lena to create a health class for LGBT kids. A class that will grant them access to resources and a safe space to ask questions, one they do not have at school.
These episodes of The Fosters continue to do what the show does best, have honest and open conversations about the real issues all kinds of teenagers face as they grow up. Film and television really is a place of truth, a place where people can find the space to discover their own truth.
