USOT Recap: College Tara Returns

"You must be that part of her that shoots bullets at the birds." —Dr. Hattaras

Thus spake Hattaras to Buck in last night's episode whimsically entitled "The Electrifying and Magnanimous Return of Beaverlamp." Buck accosts the good doctor at his office to try and persuade him to take Tara back on as a patient/project, after Hattaras ditches her following his former patient Kite Boy's regression and consequent suicide. It turns out the mystery alter is getting a bit out of hand with the physical attacks on Tara's person, and Buck is concerned. An "accidental" cut while chopping vegetables evolves into a self-inflicted gash with a broken beer bottle by the end of the episode. Yikes! What's worse is that Tara is still unaware of this added threat currently residing in her psyche. The alters know, though. They even have discussions about it and take turns watching out for Tara's safety. Some recent developments are definitely angering this Other Personality (OP), and I'm willing to bet it is Tara's recent emancipation, such as it is.

Meanwhile, Marshall is trying very hard to unearth even more drama, intrigue and dysfunction in his family and Max in particular. It seems he might suffer from that common affliction of young aspiring artists: wishing to become the type of tortured soul that he thinks is a requirement for creating good art. Too bad his parents loved him too much and he's too well-adjusted for that. But wait! He is gay, after all, so naturally, the only thing left to do is pay Lionel a booty call, which, for at least two reasons obvious to everyone but Marshall, is a Bad Idea. On the other hand, any Lionel sighting makes me happy lately, so I'll take it; I enjoy the little reminders that even the Lionels of the world have feelings, and even the Marshalls of the world can occasionally act like total dicks.

Aside from the aforementioned exceptions, things at the Gregson house are rather peachy. Tara is being fun and positive, planning parties and raving about yoga. Max is getting his college band (Beaverlamp) back together for his birthday, even Kate is back on top, having finally managed to ensnare her dweeby new crush, who, it turns out, is no longer married but does have a kid. I don't think Evan realizes yet that Kate isn't much more than a kid herself, but there's something about that guy that I don't trust. Then again, maybe I'm just reading too much into his BTK-killer glasses.

The only character who's been truly miserable this week is poor Dr. Hattaras, who, incidentally, also appears to be a bit of a stress eater (and cheese connoisseur). He's had a rough week, what with Kite Boy's demise and his psychiatric work coming under scrutiny as a result. Luckily, Eddie Izzard makes even despair look hilarious, and I've actually been eager to delve a little deeper into his character this season. So far, this has been the first episode where we actually see him as a standalone person as opposed to just another member of Tara's entourage. Next week looks exciting, with a direct encounter between Hattaras and the OP, who has presumably killed Chicken. Could this be only the first in a series of pseudo-homicides?