“Before It's Too Late This Could All Disappear”

Yes, I know it's now the month of May, but I figured I'd keep the Avril lyrics going for a while. Maybe until I go on semi-hiatus for the summer, but no guarantees.

Anyway, tonight's “Mother!” is likely to be the final chance this season to see Alex play a part in a story (giving bad news of some sort to her mother, which is the main theme of the Dunphy story tonight). Whether or not it's the last chance to see Alex at all remains to be seen (I still think it's highly unlikely she'll miss both of the final two episodes, but the chance is not zero).

Anticipation Level: High. This is another week when this level isn't all good news – yes Alex being in a story is good, but the fact she has to give bad news to her mother is worrisome. Is it a big deal (i.e. something that will seriously affect Alex's life as well), or is it relatively minor? And how bad is her news in relation to everyone else's? In other words, yes I'm looking forward to tonight, but there is some trepidation there too.

Emotional Moment Potential: Medium. There is a group hug moment in the promo photos so there is bound to be some emotion, if it shows up at the end of the episode. But it could also be just the prelude to everyone dropping their bombshells on Claire (i.e. make her feel better before making her feel worse).

Game Changing Potential: Medium to High. Again, it's a question of just what Alex's bad news ends up being - worst case scenario it could be something that makes her own life a lot different (i.e. something that involves her academic life). This is definitely one of those nights when I'll actually be rooting for potential to not be fulfilled.

Are There Any Other Questions? So, just how much chance is there that this could be Alex's last appearance of the season? Again, right now it's not zero, but it's close (I'd say less than 1 percent).

While next week is problematical, I seriously doubt they'd keep her (or anybody) out of the season finale, so I expect her to be there, even if it's only in a minimal role (it could still be better than that, of course).