‘Atlanta’ Recap: Van and Earn Clash

Earn and Van travel to Fastnacht.

The episode opens with Earn and Van engaged in an intimate moment. The only sounds heard are Van’s moans.

Afterwards, they’re seen driving. While smoking a blunt, Van asks why he looks paranoid. He says he isn’t, but she casually presses the issue.

Van feels Earn won’t like the event they’re going to; Fastnacht. Fastnacht is a traditional German celebration. Earn tells Van if they don’t like the festivities, they can go back to the lodge to do “lodge stuff.”

While driving, a wild boar is in the middle of the road eating trash. They suddenly stop before they hit the boar. Eventually, Van and Earn get to the lodge.

An excited Van schools Earn to tips on how to impress the other Fastnacht participants. Earn says they’re going to be the only black people there.

Van is dressed in the festival attire and excited to be in a dance. She also warns Earn that some will be in blackface, as part of tradition. The black face is to honor a Moor character.

Earn asks Van if she used to feel weird being at an event like Fastnacht.

“Umm… I used to. But I’m kind of like the Serena Williams of the festivities. They hate but they can’t deny the stats.” – Van

Van notices Earn isn’t getting into the festivities.

When Earn and Van get to the Fastnacht hall, they are greeted by Dave and his girlfriend Christina. Christina is another black person at the event. Dave asks him why isn’t he dressed up. He says he isn’t into the dressing up.

Eventually, Earn sees a “demon thief” called a Schnappviecher. The costumed character “steals” something from an unsuspecting participant. A random white woman comes over and pinches Earn’s face. His stern look scares her off and Earn gets Dave’s mask.

Next Earn and Van play a game called Hootz-Kootz. They pass a tennis ball around while in a seated circle and try to throw it into cut open gallon jugs. Van tries to get Earn excited into playing, but he isn’t very enthused.

In fact, Earn stops the game when he leans over and drops the balls into a jug. The announcer stops the game and says, I’ve never seen anyone do that.”

Earn frustratingly says, “I just dropped them in there.”

This impresses everyone and they start cheering for Earn. Van notices Earn isn’t trying to have a good time.

Next, they walk to get a drink. Van tells him he needs to listen to her next time.

“You’re starting to sound like Serena Williams’ dad.” – Earn

When a bartender comes up to them while they’re at a bar, Van begins speaking in German. While she’s talking, Earn makes no effort to catch onto what they’re saying. Meanwhile, the Demon Thief is upon them both and gets on Earn’s nerves.

Earn makes Van angry.

Later on, everyone at the Fastnacht event is dancing to traditional music, except for Earn and Dave. Earn tells Dave, “Sometimes, I think she wants me to be lame.”

Dave tells Earn, “She just… wants to spend more time with you. And that’s what girls do. They just want twist their life up with yours.”

Van walks over to Earn and tells him it’s almost time for him to dance. She asks him if he wants to go over moves with her.

Earn takes her aside, and takes her over to a ping pong table to play. He tells her, “it’s the only white game,” he knows.

Van plays him best out of 3. If she wins, he can’t complain anymore. The game doesn’t last long as Van beats him 2 out of 3. However, Earn gets salty he lost the way he did. Randomly, he points out a strange man in a mask staring at him.

Van brushes this off and tries to get him to dance. But Earn matter of factly says he doesn’t want to do it. When Van insists, he says, “Fine. I’ll do it if I f***ing have to.”

This pisses Van off, who said, “You don’t have to do s***.”

Van brings up how she wants to spend time with him and he calls it lame. She says that she didn’t want to go to the strip club and doesn’t like going to Paper Boi’s shows every weekend.

“Don’t s*** on that. It pays your bills.” – Earn

This quiets Van for a moment, who then calls Earn mean.

“You can be real mean, man.” – Van

When Van leaves, Earn turns to the guy in the mask, telling him, “F*** you.”

Van’s conversation with Christina reveals she’s bi-racial.

After the argument, Vans walks over to talk to Christina. However, they get interrupted by Christina’s white friend Flo. Van gets frustrated when Christina introduces Van as Lottie’s mom.

This frustrates Van who tells Flo “she’s in-between things” when asked her profession.

Next, Van angrily pulls Christina aside. She’s frustrated with being introduced as Lottie’s mom. Christina tells her that she makes being a mom “look good.”

Things get interesting when Christina brings up their childhood together. Apparently, Van didn’t hang out with Christina’s white friends while Christina dated white men, ending up with Dave. Christina says Van only hung out with black people. She felt Van only desired to hang out with one side of her.

“It’s like you needed that identity.” – Christina

Van points out that Melanie never liked her and Christina just pandered to white people. Christina interjects Van never invited her to hang out or party. Van then mentions Christina always made awkward comments about their blackness. She points how Christina would say she wanted kinky hair, but always straightened hers.

Dave interrupts the conversation with a dancing trophy. He wants a photo but she lost her phone.

Suddenly, the “Witching Hour” is announced, with Dave pointing out Van’s been swiped.

Van realizes it won’t work with Earn.

When everyone is leaving, Van meets up with the bartender. The bartender notices issues between Van and Earn.

Van tells him she and Earn are good together, when they have to be.

“And I’m slowly figuring out that maybe we don’t have to.” – Van

“I think love is what you make of it. It’s not up to [Earn] to define it for you. You should start a relationship with yourself, if you really want to learn to love someone.” – Bartender

Van runs off to pee, and Earn doesn’t go behind her. Instead, he walks off. When she tries to pee behind a garbage can, she gets spooked by a bottle rolling. She gathers herself, and heads back to the group, but the Demon Thief stands behind her menacingly. Van notices and knocks it out with her lit lantern.

Van walks over to the dumpster where the Demon Thief’s head lies. She sees her phone with a message from Earn asking to talk. Daniel notices, calling everyone back. When Van turns around to walk back on the path, she notices everyone around cheering her on because she “slayed” the Demon Thief character.

Finally, when Van gets back to the hall, she sees Earn in front of the ping-pong table.

She asks him straight up what he wants from their relationship.

“This feels like a trap.” – Earn

She tells him it’s not a trap and asks him what he wants again. He can’t answer, so she tells him what she wants.

“I want to be in a committed relationship where I’m valued as a human being, and not as an accessory you can f***.” – Van

Earn rubs his head and says, “That’s a good answer.”

“I don’t know what I want. I know… this arrangement works for me.” – Earn

“So you don’t want to change anything?” – Van

“What does this feel like a trap?” – Earn

Van knows this isn’t going anywhere and tells him she doesn’t want to keep waiting around for him.

She then challenges him to a best out of 5 ping pong match. If he wins, their arrangement stays the same. If she wins, he can only communicate with Van if it’s about child support or Lottie.

They play and of course, Van beats him easily.

The episode ends with the two quietly packing the car with their bags after sleeping quietly. Their backs were turned away from one another while sleeping, which is a far cry from how the episode started.

On the way back, Earn is in the passenger seat, smoking a blunt. He offers a hit to Van, who declines. When they get back to the house, the episode ends with Van quietly closing the door to her place with Earn outside.

He walks off out of the complex with his duffel bag.

What did you think of the episode?