As we settle in for the first episode of Sweet Magnolias season 5, we’re taken not to the serene town of Serenity but to the Big Apple! We open the season with Maddie, Helen, and Dana Sue enjoying some time in New York for Nell’s book signing and quickly come to learn that six months have passed since the events of the season 4 finale.
Our Magnolias enjoy taking in the sights and sounds of the city, and we eventually end up at Central Park. Maddie brings her friends to the Alice in Wonderland statue in the park where she comes for inspiration. After their trip to the park, the Magnolias grab some lunch, and Dana Sue talks with the chef about his process for making pizza. After he talks her through how he cooks from his heart, she admits to Maddie and Helen that she’s put in a bid on a property for her teaching kitchen.
As their NYC adventure continues, Helen and Dana Sue help Maddie get things ready for Nell’s book signing. Maddie is worried about her boss, Lucas, not liking things. It turns out Lucas doesn’t believe in signings and loves social media, so she persuaded him this would be a party where books would just get signed and that the party would go viral. She has a lot riding on the party and needs everything to go well to help change his mind.
When Lucas arrives, he admits to being impressed, especially with how she managed to come under budget in pulling the event together.
After the book signing, Helen goes to try on some wedding dresses but can’t seem to find the right one. She wants to get this right after waiting all this time and working through a lot to find her dream man. She wants her dream wedding to be flawless, but she’s worried about something going wrong, as Dana Sue assures her every wedding has some bumps in the road and encourages her not to worry.
Following the party, Maddie is called in to see Lucas, and he mentions they’ve been acquired by a new publishing house and severe cuts are coming. While his and Maddie’s jobs are safe, the rest will be set free, as he puts it. Maddie wonders about Stacy, an unpublished author she’s been working with, and tries to convince him to proceed with her book. Lucas makes it clear that Maddie needs to focus on the select few and let go of the other “assets.” She suggests that without Davids, the Goliaths would win without a fight as she tries to get him to fight for their authors. He asks whose side she’s on, and she points out that she’s with the authors. Much to her surprise, this remark leads Lucas to firing Maddie right on the spot.
As the episode draws to a close, Maddie joins Dana Sue and Helen for what were intended to be celebratory drinks as her friends gift her with a mirror to remind her that she is the art. As Helen tells her the world is at her feet, Maddie reveals the news about her firing as her friends pull her in for a hug and the episode comes to a close.
Elsewhere back in Serenity…
With Maddie away in New York, Cal has truly become Mr. Mom and has stepped up to take care of Katie and Kyle. When we first return to Serenity, Cal, Kyle, and Paula are helping Katie with a solar system project that is coming in right under the wire. Cal is feeling like he’s failing in not getting the project done until so late as Paula reminds him he’s a great parent and that many of the kids’ projects were not completed until the wee hours of the night before their due dates.
We learn that Isaac and Michael are still going strong and are about to celebrate their six-month anniversary, which Isaac has forgotten until Michael mentions it while on his way out of town for a work trip. Isaac doesn’t have too long to stress about it in the moment as we learn that the Sullivan's crew has been hearing footsteps in the kitchen and fears it might be raccoons. Erik heads out to meet with a DJ for the wedding as Cal and the guys assure him they’ll look into things and take care of it.
Speaking of keeping busy, Ronnie is working hard with Jeremy to grow their e-bike business. A little too hard actually. The guys come by to see Ronnie after he misses their latest basketball game, and he admits to feeling the pressure of making sure the business works, which is leading him to spend a little too much time at the office.
Courtney is thinking about how to franchise the bike shop, and Ronnie suggests they look to grow by adding an assistant to help with bookings and maintenance. Jeremy suggests Ronnie set some boundaries with Courtney, clearly worried that Ronnie might be getting caught up in her big dreams and failing to give himself time to focus on non-work-related tasks. Jeremy and Noreen invite Ronnie to dinner, but he declines the offer to stay behind to work on books.
The premiere makes it clear that this storyline is going to factor heavily into Ronnie’s arc this season and definitely gives fans reason for concern – after all, we know Dana Sue and Ronnie haven’t traveled the smoothest road in their relationship, especially when it comes to his priorities.
Elsewhere in the premiere, we learn that Annie and Ty have been on-again, off-again since the events of the finale when he asked her to defer college to join him in Europe. Ty promised to come back from Copenhagen for graduation, but Annie isn’t letting him dampen her graduation as it becomes clear he’s been making a lot of promises he hasn’t been able to keep.
As Isaac tries to figure out how to celebrate his and Michael’s anniversary, we learn Erik would like Cal and Isaac to be his groomsmen... and that he has a third individual on his list whose identity we’ll have to wait to learn.
Finally, Kyle is working to adjust to all the changes in life by embracing living in the now and throwing himself into the summer production of The Taming of the Shrew. He’s hoping to finally land the leading role and also convinces Lily to try her hand at theater to connect before she heads off to college in the fall.
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