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The Fosters Recap: Locked Up

The Fosters

Dream A Little Dream
Season 4 Episode 12
Editor’s Rating 3 stars

The Fosters

Dream A Little Dream
Season 4 Episode 12
Editor’s Rating 3 stars
Maia Mitchell as Callie. Photo: Eric McCandless/Freeform

Brace yourselves, Fosters fam. “Dream a Little Dream†takes us on a journey through one of the scariest places imaginable: the teenage subconscious. Take a deep breath. We’ll get through this together.

As Jesus 2 fights to wake up from his medically induced coma, The Fosters gives us a glimpse inside his head. If you’ve been paying attention to the series for the past four seasons, the kid’s fears and insecurities are pretty obvious: Mainly, he feels guilty and pressured in regards to protecting Mariana and he worries that he isn’t good enough for Emma. There are a few scary images tossed in, like Nick shooting Mariana while wearing a Santa Claus suit, and Emma hooking up with Brandon, neither of which will be easily scrubbed from my brain. For the most part, it’s your run-of-the-mill subconscious dream stuff, and though I’m always in favor of a Jesus 2 story, it seems like the time could’ve been used more productively, considering the Adams Foster family is basically burning to the ground at the moment.

Obviously, I’m referring to the latest debacle Callie has gotten herself mixed up in. It’s a doozy.

Last we saw Callie, she had gone to the police station by herself to give a statement about the hit-and-run accident she fled in order to escape from Troy. Little did she know that fleeing the scene of an accident is a felony, even if you were only a passenger. To make matters worse, shady Detective Gray is hovering over the interrogation room, attempting to ensure that Callie’s story about the Martha Johnson murder doesn’t gain any traction. Detective Gray gets a little assist in the matter when Troy Johnson finally pops up with his lawyer, ready to give his own statement about the accident. Callie and Troy tell completely opposite versions of the same story. Callie’s is what we know to be the truth, while Troy paints Callie as a crazy person obsessed with getting a murderer out of prison. It’s all very he-said, she-said. As Gray reminds the detective assigned to the case, the “she said†of it all has an extensive rap sheet, while Troy Johnson hasn’t even had a parking ticket. One of the saddest things this story line examines — and there is so much that’s sad here — is how Callie is immediately written off because of her past. The cards are always stacked against her.

Some of that truly is her own fault, though. After hours of being questioned, why doesn’t she let someone, anyone, know what she’s doing? It’s infuriating. HELP ME HELP YOU, CALLIE. Thankfully, Hot Dad Mike gets word that Callie is at the police station without Stef, and he attempts to alert his ex-wife to the situation. Of course, Stef is a little preoccupied what with there being a bolt inserted into her son’s swelling brain. By the time she gets Mike’s messages and arrives at the police station looking to crack some skulls, it is too late.

Callie is tricked into signing her official statement — one in which she takes the blame for getting into Troy’s car — and it’s enough to arrest her for vehicular assault and a felony hit-and-run. And here I thought that detective was on our side! Stef is right, he is in fact “Gray’s bitch.†For shame, dude.

There’s nothing Stef can do as Callie gets shipped off to a high-security juvenile-detention center. She holds her daughter close, tells her to keep her head down, and she’ll get her out. Mother and daughter are torn apart one more time.

As much as I find Callie’s behavior frustrating, it’s heart-wrenching to watch this whole thing go down. For someone who always seems hesitant to admit she can’t handle something on her own, Callie looks truly frightened as she’s pulled away from Stef. Suddenly, she’s back in juvie, where we first met her. Callie gets processed — a situation she’s very familiar with — and hunkers down for a night in lock up.

There is very obviously some shady stuff going down in juvie. That night, as Callie tries to make herself as invisible as possible, a guard wakes up Callie’s neighbor and takes her away. The very next morning, that prisoner invites Callie to “the party†that night. Callie stays away, but I have a sneaking suspicion that whatever is going down in this prison will eventually affect Callie. I am not at all here for that. Callie’s been through so much! If prison abuse gets tossed into the mix, I’m going to have some issues.

Unfortunately, when Callie’s detention hearing goes poorly, my suspicion seems all the more likely. The hearing is supposed to determine where Callie will stay until she has to appear in court. Stef hoped the judge would realize Callie didn’t know leaving the scene of an accident was a crime and would release her into their custody. Stef forgot that nothing ever goes right for Callie. Since Callie has a record and has run away from her family before, the judge orders her back into juvie. Furthermore, Callie is ordered to have a fitness trial, where they’ll decide whether or not she can be charged as an adult. This is real bad, you guys. Even for Callie.

There has to be some good news for the Adams Fosters among this whole mess, right? There is … sort of. After lots of worry about fevers and brain infections, our little Jesus 2 hears his mamas whispering for him to wake up, and does just that. Jesus is up and his brain swelling is down! There is a catch, of course: When he opens his mouth to speak, only gibberish comes out. You’d think having Teri Polo and Sherri Saum hold you and tell you that you’re safe would solve all your problems, now and forever, but alas — Jesus 2 has a long road to recovery ahead of him.

Another day, another issue for the Adams Fosters to tackle together.

In Other Family News…

• The Jude ’tude is out of control. He’s giving a lot of lip service to Mariana and being generally rude to his siblings. It’s tough to take Brandon seriously as he admonishes Jude, but the guy does have a Ph.D. in bad choices, so if nothing else, Brandon can act as a cautionary tale. And it works! By the end of the episode, Jude is washing dishes like the polite little nail-polish-loving boy he was before he fell for the pastor’s son.

• In all fairness, I do feel for B. Watching him erase that congratulatory chalkboard message was brutal. Now that he knows his spot is gone and Juilliard is over, here’s hoping this kid gets some kind of redemption story line. Brandon needs a win.

• Same goes for Mariana, another Adams Foster who is having a time. She makes up with Mat, but even their first time sleeping together isn’t drama-free: Mariana has Emma buy her a pregnancy test at the hospital. Brandon sees the whole thing, so you know he’ll have something to say about it.

• What in the hell is up with Lena’s story line? She has a very nice scene with that old lady, who tries to comfort her as she breaks down under the weight of her children’s terrible choices … and then the woman is a ghost? What? Follow-up: WHY?

• Speaking of the ghost lady, she has some great lessons to share. My favorites were her comparison of teenagers to toddlers: “They have no impulse control. It’s like the terrible twos, only now they can drive,†and the always relevant gem, “Kind kids make kind adults.†Okay, I’m convinced. Bring the ghost lady back!

The Fosters Recap: Locked Up