When we start the episode, the Cohens are very excited to be talking about Ryan turning eighteen and becoming a man. You could say that him having a Bar Mitzvah already made him into a man, but the eighteenth birthday may be even more symbolic. You can vote, you can smoke, and you can sign up for the military. And with Ryan's family history, he is probably also aware that if he gets in trouble with the law, he could go to an actual jail instead of just juvie. It also means that should he decide to pout about how awful his life is in Newport, nobody can stop him from taking jobs in construction or on fishing boats.

Everybody wants to throw Ryan party to celebrate his milestone, but he is uninterested. He doesn't have fond memories of birthdays because his mom stopped taking him to the zoo and baking cakes and spent the time she saved getting drunk. The Cohens promise that it won't be a big to-do, which is sort of obvious because Ryan doesn't have a lot of friends, which is kind of surprising because he just seems to light up a room whenever he enters. I mean, who wouldn't want to be friends with somebody who is telling you what to do all the time and making you feel bad for acting your age?

At school, Summer is really worried about Marissa. Marissa hasn't been taking the breakup very well, and she has had trouble sleeping. Summer was also bothered by the fact that Marissa wasn't eating a lot, although I am not really sure how she was able to tell. And let's be honest, Summer isn't exactly asked to do the truffle shuffle (well, I hope not, but you never know with a dirty mind like Seth's) so her complaints that Marissa has eaten only four peanuts and a banana over the last couple of days don't seem that relevant. If Summer was so worried about Marissa eating properly why not set a good example and perhaps use that coffee she buys every morning to wash down a bran muffin or a granola bar?