Off Campus Recap Season 1 Episode 5 ‘The Cold Turkey’
- May 27
- 3 min read
Where the past couple of episodes dealt with Hannah’s trauma, this time, it was Garrett’s complicated relationship with his father that got the spotlight. Garrett and Hannah officially became a couple following Hanna’s grand gesture at the hockey rink. Soon enough, Thanksgiving was around the corner, and people were making plans.
Hannah had no plans of going home. The guy who assaulted her happened to be the mayor’s son. When she pressed charges, the people did not believe her. He was also a hockey player, and his whole team testified against her at court. So that was why she did not like hockey pre-Garrett.
Garrett also had no plans of going home, until his father reached out. His fiancee wanted to meet Garrett before the wedding. Garrett thought his father seemed different, and with Hannah’s support, he decided to give in to his father’s request. Hannah assured him they could leave at any point, and they worked out a signal – one hand squeeze meant they were good, two meant they should leave.
The homecoming began well. His father’s fiancee, Cindy, was warm and kind. Garrett watched the game with his father, and they had a good talk; his father was supportive of his decision not to go pro yet, to actually get his degree. At dinner, Cindy made mac and cheese with bread crumbs the way Garrett’s mother used to make it, which Garrett seemed to genuinely appreciate. They held hands as they said grace, and that was when things went wrong.
Cindy wore a loose sweater, and the sleeves went up just enough to see the bruises on her wrist. Garrett immediately knew what this was about; his father was abusive toward him and his mother too. As a child, he saw the bruises on his mother. Garrett squeezed Hannah’s hand, and when Phil made a casual remark, edged with danger, that Cindy should get a different sweater, Garrett stood up, his fury barely controlled.
With Garrett unable to speak, Hannah took over. She claimed she was not feeling well, and asked to go. Outside, she made Garrett give her his car keys, another good small detail in a show that tends to pay attention to details. Cindy caught up with them with their coats, apologetic for ruining dinner. Like many victims of domestic abuse, she was full of excuses. Garrett told her it was not an accident, that she should leave, that of course it would happen again. Cindy merely said it was complicated, and returned to her prison.
As Hannah drove, she could feel how upset Garrett was, and she pulled over so they could talk. He spoke of how he could not protect his mother. He verbalised his fear that he might be like his father. He noticed how, when he stood up at dinner, Cindy looked frightened of him. Hannah tenderly assured him he was not like his father, that Cindy did not know him. She asked what he needed, again, a sensitive line choice. Garrett just wanted to go home. The two of them ended up eating cold sandwiches at Malone’s, and later joined a group call with their friends.
The portrayal of Garrett’s background of abuse was sensitively done. Structurally, however, it felt like a box that needed to be ticked to forward the story, to finally give context to Garrett’s past refusal to have a relationship with his father. When we went from an exploration of Hannah’s trauma and healing, straight to Garrett’s familial background and domestic abuse on the very next episode, it felt like we skipped a step or two. And, by the end of the episode, the show seemed to pivot already, to Dean and Allie in a bedroom in New York. Don’t get me wrong, I think Mika Abdalla is a vibrant presence on screen as Allie – and I do look forward to Allie/ Dean – I just think the story of Garrett and Hannah was rushed a tiny bit here.
In any case, fun was still had, and we will do a quick roundup on some stories on Strays. See you on the next one!
Rating: B
Strays
🌸Hannah’s mother was so nice to Garrett, aw.
🌸Lol Garrett called Justin ‘Joey’ here, let’s add that to ‘Jacob’ and ‘Jordan’. I’m enjoying this level of petty from an otherwise nice guy.
🌸Logan (John) and Jules’s mother was in rehab, again. Logan initially did not want to join Jules in bringing her Thanksgiving food but he eventually relented.
🌸Tucker had an elaborate plan for Friendsgiving, which went out the window when more people than he expected showed up, and he burnt the turkey. They ended up using burnt turkey parts as pucks on the ice.
Episode 5 Title: The Cold Turkey
Episode Teleplay: Nick Bragg
Episode Director: Erica Dunton
Original Release Date: May 13, 2026