The Roman Holiday is the fourth episode of The Savages' second season and the twelfth episode overall. It premiered on June 13, 2016.
Trae returns to Philadelphia for a Christmas family gathering, but he realizes blood isn't thicker than water. Meanwhile, Carl avoids Christmas break once his family is forced to celebrate Christmas with Eli, so he, Gina, Lily, and Zachary get trapped in a mall. The Moneybags throw a party in Felix's honor, but problems arise once Sydney finds closure with Andrew.
Plot[]
In a flashback scene, a tipsy Felix, just an hour and a half before his death, arrives at a hospital to visit Trae to make a truce. Despite rough banter between the two, it is revealed that the two dated before they were rivals; however, Trae admitted that they didn't work well together because he felt pressured and he wasn't open about his sexuality. Felix admits to Trae that his family went bankrupt and he's aware and has used his anger and carelessness to mask his pain. To make amends, the two share one last kiss before Felix leaves.
In present time, set away from James A. Masters High School during winter break, Trae and his mother Stacey go on a flight from Seattle to Philadelphia to spend Christmas with their family members. Aside from having anxiety attacks from being on the plane, and off-key singing from his mother, Trae becomes more concerned about the outcome of being reunited with his estranged family.
As the two settle on the plane, Trae receives a mysterious message that hints that he is the new target for the series of scarlet letters. Meanwhile, Trae and Stacey arrive at Pittsburgh, awaiting Trae's aunt Brenda, the youngest sister of Stacey, to pick them up from the airport; the three attempt to make up lost time.
Back in Seattle, Carl is stuck at home with not only his family, but Eli Hawk, who continues to overwelcome his stay. Uncomfortable by his presence and worrisome about what he may do, Carl tries to FaceTime Alex to ask if he could spend Christmas with him and his family. Aware that Eli is a guest, Alex advises Carl to "feel him out" before making assumptions. Little did Carl know, Eli was eavesdropping in their conversation.
Later, Lily wants to go to the mall, after realizing winter's arrival and her need for new clothes. However, her mother Kate (portrayed by Allison Janney) complains about Lily's poor spending habits and refuses to give her more money to waste. In the sense, Lily manages to convince her even further to allow her to go to the mall, so Kate approves hesitantly and puts her on a budget; she warns her to not overspend.
The Moneybags, meanwhile, figure out a way to help with Felix's funeral costs and arrangements; ideas, however, are terrible to Kyler, who later approves to throw a Christmas party, inviting all of the James A. Masters High School students with a price of $5. Aware of this, Sydney gets a personal invite and agrees to go instead of going to the mall with The Savages. During a group call, Lily, Carl, Gina and Zachary all agree to go with Lily to the mall.
In Philadelphia, Trae attempts to adapt to returning to his hometown, while Stacey faces ongoing tensions with her relatives, including her stepfather J.B. who harbors resentment towards his stepdaughter for leaving Philadelphia and dating Trae's father. Trae's grandmother, Juanita, meanwhile, seems happy to see the both of them for Christmas time.
When questions are asked to Trae about school, relationships and love life, as well as racial stereotypes, Trae pulls his mother aside to tell her not to tell anyone that he's dating Zachary, especially his judgmental, pompous uncle Shawn, who is also known for being a pathological liar. Tensions arise for Trae even further when Shawn, his wife Angie and Trae's cousins Darrell and Rashad arrive to visit.
As they visit, Trae is forced to reestablish his relationship with Darrell and Rashad, who become rather intrusive in his love life, which forces Trae to lie and claim that he's dating Iesha to cover up his relationship with another boy. Meanwhile, during dinner, tensions arise between Stacey and her college-educated sister Gail who holds a vendetta towards Stacey for stealing her dream of being in the limelight. Their relationship becomes obviously damaged during a family dinner that becomes uncomfortable for Trae when Darrell reveals that he is dating Iesha to the family.
Before Trae could explain, Stacey's favorite sister and everyone's favorite family member Wendy arrives to shake things up by bringing a karaoke machine for the family. Stacey, Gail, Wendy and Brenda perform All Night Long, and Trae, Darrell and Rashad perform Motownphilly. Later that night, Trae attempts to read the scarlet letter that he was sent via phone; however, he notices his grandmother in a very confusing situation.
Back in Seattle, Carl asks his mother if he could go to the mall to buy his father a gift. When is mother approves, Eli pulls Carl aside and gives him $200 to spend. Meanwhile, Lily, Gina and Zachary all arrive at the mall with individual intentions. Lily, of course, overspends at the mall despite being warned. Gina, Carl and Zachary shoplift frivolous items different departments of the mall, easily getting caught in the act.
As they try to escape trouble, the group eats at the food court, where Gina and Zachary discuss Trae's relationship with Zachary. Zachary admits that their relationship is going well so far, but he predicts that it won't last long because of the secrets Zachary is keeping from him, as well as the secrets he is keeping from the father who shot Trae. Gina gives him advice on how Trae is and assures him that things will be fine between them. However, things go awry for the group when mall security catches their shoplifting antics on camera and holds them hostage in the office.
Back in Philadelphia, Trae tries to keep in touch with Zachary around the same time that they get in trouble, and it leaves Trae in anxiety. To pass time, Trae finally opens up his scarlet letter, which hints awareness of Trae's fear of being disowned by a homophobic family. Simultaneously, Darrell, who has already became suspicious of his cousin, asks to use his phone, but he uses it to find evidence that Trae is hiding something. He finds a picture of him and Zachary on his phone and uses this as proof.
During another family dinner, more disagreements and arguments develop between Stacey and Gail when Stacey becomes fed up with Gail's constant belittling, indirect jabs at her. The truth comes out when Stacey confronts her for being bitter about Trae's father wanting her over Gail, knowing that Trae's father abandoned them. Gail claimed that Trae's father promised her a career and she was in love with her, yet Stacey took it from her.
Situations worsen when Darrell outs Trae during dinner about his relationship with Zachary, forcing Trae to come out to his family at a bad time. Trae's uncle Shawn, and other family members do not take this lightly, calling Trae out of his name and making homophobic slurs. However, Trae stands up for himself and gets into a physical altercation with Shawn. Stacey comes to Trae's defense and attacks everyone for their ignorant views on how she raised Trae to be.
In the heat of the moment, everyone leaves dinner abruptly and Juanita tries to talk to Stacey and reveals her acceptance of Trae's sexuality. J.B. then reveals that Juanita was diagnosed with dementia and blames Stacey for not reaching out and seeing her family in their time of need. Yet, Stacey confronts J.B. for pushing her away from the family. She also realizes Trae was right for not wanting to go to Seattle.
With that, Wendy and Brenda both pitch in to give Stacey and Trae another plane ticket back to Seattle, and admits to accepting Trae's sexuality and loving him the way he is. During this conversation, their bonds with each other grow closer. In the end, both Stacey and Trae arrive home and Trae decides to go to Carl's house for their traditional egg nog and Home Alone viewing; however, Trae discovers and recognizes that Eli is living with them, leaving Trae in shock as he joins in the festivities.
Songs[]
| Song Title | Original Artist | Performer(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Material Girl | Madonna | Lily Blossom |
| All Night Long | Mary Jane Girls | Brenda Hendricks, Gail Hendricks, Stacey Ventura and Wendy Hendricks |
| Motownphilly | Boyz II Men | Darrell Hendricks, Rashad Hendricks and Trae Ventura |
| Wreck The Malls | Bob Rivers | Carl Touché, Gina Woods, Lily Blossom and Zachary Foxx |
| Mr. Brightside | The Killers | The Moneybags |
| You Oughta Know | Alanis Morisette | Sydney Prescott |
Background Songs[]
- Window Seat by Erykah Badu. Used while Trae and Stacey are on the plane to Philadelphia. Trae listens to the song on his earphones.
- Love by Musiq Soulchild. Used while Trae and Stacey are on the plane to Philadelphia. Stacey listens and sings the song on her earphones.
Trivia[]
- Many of the actors who appear in this episode have worked alongside each other in various films and shows:
- Actor James Earl Jones (J.B. Hendricks) and Margaret Avery appeared together in the 2008 film Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins.
- Actresses Vanessa L. Williams (Gail Hendricks) and Jasmine Guy (Wendy Hendricks) appeared alongside each other in the 1992 film Stompin' at the Savoy.
- Although not seen together in the episode, Tisha Campbell-Martin (Wendy Hendricks) and Hayley Kiyoko (Claudia Wu both worked alongside each other in the 2011 TV film Lemonade Mouth.
- This episode features the first vocal performances of Brenda, Darrell, Gail, Rashad, Stacey and Wendy.
- This episode features The Moneybags' first standalone group performance.
- This episode features Sydney's first solo of the season and second of the series, since Art of War in the first season episode The Boomerang Effect.
Guest Cast[]
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