Kidding season 2 premiere recap: The Cleanest Liver in Columbus, Ohio

In the season 2 premiere of Showtime’s Kidding, Jeff faces the consequences of hitting Pete with a car. However, was Jeff’s true self really behind the wheel?

Previously on Kidding, Kid’s TV show host Jeff “Pickles” Piccirillo (Jim Carrey) delivered a career-damaging speech at a Christmas tree lighting and tragedy struck…or, rather, Jeff tragically struck down Peter (Justin Kirk) with his vehicle. The question is, how much of it was accidental and how much was intentional? Jeff was under a lot of stress, and not only because Pete was with his wife, Jill (Judy Greer).

Though Jeff Pickles was on TV for 30 years, he felt the need to make his show more “real” rather than just a corporate brand. This would have included dealing with heavier topics, such as the death of his son, Phil (Cole Allen). This also put him at odds with his father and executive producer, Sebastian (Frank Langella). Will, Jeff’s other son (and twin brother to Phil, also played by Cole Allen), had been lashing out at him, and even smoked pot regularly.

Season 2 of Kidding picks up right as Jeff hits Pete with the car. Almost immediately afterward, Jeff gets a cheerful Christmas call from Bobby Belongo (Matt Gourley), further establishing an awkward tone. Jill, bless her heart, doesn’t suspect Jeff at all, believing that Pete must have taken an Ambien and walked in front of Jeff’s vehicle.

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They put Pete on a toboggan and speed to the hospital, and she proves helpful, being a trained nurse. Intermittently, Jeff has flashbacks of driving Jill to the hospital to birth their twins. Soon, after Dierdre (Catherine Keener) tells Maddy (Juliet Morris) that she’ll be divorcing Scott (Bernard White), Jeff texts Dierdre: “I think I killed Peter.” Fittingly, Maddy gets an ax for Christmas.

Jeff the murderer?

When Dierdre gets to the hospital, Jeff says he tried to hit Peter with his car. Dierdre immediately advises him to make the criminal choice of not confessing, especially if Peter dies. Meanwhile, Will and his pals talk about Jeff being a murderer. Others still see Jeff differently. In the hospital, Jill even apologizes to Jeff for Pete wandering into traffic and ruining his Christmas! Dr. Hernandez (Marcelo Tubert) says that Pete’s in critical condition but stable, and Jeff offers to donate blood. When Jeff brings Jill home, he almost confesses to creepily moving in next door to her, and possibly even that he may have run Pete down on purpose. However, Jill asks him to stay the night, which shuts him up.

No place like home for the holidays?

Kidding keeps things awkward as Jill is forced to call Pete’s mom (Myra Turley) to break the news, even though his family is against Pete for being a lapsed Mormon. Dierdre then texts Jeff: “Is he dead yet?” Jeff does his best to reinstate normalcy, baking cookies in the morning. He also assures Will that buying the house next door was a “romantic gesture,” so he could stay close to him and his mother. Will humorously asks Jeff if was a sniper in Lebanon during the Reagan years. Jeff says he would have been 16 years old. Also, after Will swears, Jeff says to “only use a bad word when no good word will do.”

It turns out that, to make things Christmassy, Jeff gift-wrapped items found around the house, including the family dog. However, things get a little more serious back at the hospital. Pete needs a liver donor. At first, Pete’s brother Bart (Derek Mehn) offers to donate his, but he consumed alcohol within the last 24 hours. Then, after Jeff has some flashbacks, he quietly confesses to Jill that Pete didn’t walk into traffic and that he “f***ed up” (using a bad word because no good on would do). Deciding that it’s important to do the right thing, Jeff decides to donate his liver. Before surgery, Jeff gets another Happy Holiday phonecall from the “Pickle Platoon.”

What are your thoughts on Kidding? Let us know in the comments!