black-ish Recap: Wanda Sykes Is Dre's New Boss; Charlie Leaves His Job
Welcome to this week's black-ish recap for Season 2, Episode 9 “Man At Work” (air date: December 2, 2015). Dre's childhood friend Sha (guest star Faizon Love) comes to stay at the house for a few days, and Bow thinks he is taking advantage of Dre’s generosity. Meanwhile, Daphne Lido (Wanda Sykes), ex-wife of Stevens & Lido’s founding partner, gains control of half of the company. When Daphne starts wondering whether Charlie (Deon Cole) should have a job, Dre must decide who he remains loyal to.
For a special treat, we've got an extended version of this episode, and you can watch right here: black-ish "Man at Work: Longer-ish Extended Cut"
The New Boss
Stevens has gathered everyone together to meet Philip Lido -- the Lido in Stevens & Lido. But instead, Lido's ex-wife Daphne shows up, and it turns out she got Philip's share of the company in the divorce. She says she's not planning on shaking things up at the company, but Stevens is very, very shaken up:
Meanwhile, Dre's buddy Sha has been crashing on the Johnson family couch, and so far he's been mooching money and sleeping for about 18 hours a day. He's an artist, you see, and sleep is his "prime visualization time." Jack and Diane are pretty sure he's just a bum, but Dre maintains that you take care of your own.
WATCH FULL EPISODES: Watch black-ish Season 2, Episode 9 "Man At Work"
Charlie Not in Charge
One thing Daphne definitely wants to shake up: Charlie's job. As in, she doesn't want it to be his anymore. Dre swings by Charlie's office to let him know that Daphne is looking to fire him, and finds Charlie napping -- complete with CPAP device -- which doesn't help his case:
At home, Bow asks Dre if Charlie is a good employee. Dre can think of a million crazy reasons that he's not, but that's beside the point. He's Dre's friend, and you have to back your friends. Back at the office, Daphne (Wanda Sykes) overhears Charlie giving medical advice to a client, and she's ready to pull the plug:
The complication: She asks Dre to fire him. When he protests, Daphne makes it clear: Either Dre or Charlie is getting fired.
WATCH FULL EPISODES: Watch black-ish Season 2, Episode 8 "Chop Shop"
Goodbye Charlie
True to his word, Dre sticks by Charlie and compiles actual work-related reasons for keeping Charlie. (Meanwhile back at home, Sha has gotten his work into the Museum of Contemporary Art -- more evidence for taking care of your own.) Fresh off convincing Daphne that Charlie is worth keeping at the company, Dre runs to Charlie to give him the good news:
The thing is, hearing that he was in danger of losing his job made Charlie realize he wasn't fully appreciated at Stevens & Lido, so he found a new gig -- and he's leaving today. He promises to check in on Dre, as they two share a surprisingly sweet goodbye.
See the black-ish Guest Stars: Michael Strahan | Zendaya | Amber Rose
So Charlie is moving on -- at least for the time being -- but Daphne now knows that Dre will fight when he needs to, and that can only help him going forward.
Watch black-ish ABC WEDNESDAYS 9:30|8:30c.
More black-ish recaps:
black-ish recap Season 2, Episode 8 "Chop Shop"
black-ish recap Season 2, Episode 7 "Charlie in Charge"
black-ish recap Season 2, Episode 6 "Jacked O' Lantern"
black-ish recap Season 2, Episode 5 "Churched"
black-ish recap Season 2, Episode 4 "Daddy's Day"
black-ish recap Season 2, Episode 3 "Dr. Hell No"
black-ish recap Season 2, Episode 2 "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Gun"
