‘Anger Management’ Review: “Charlie & The Secret Gigolo”

‘Anger Management’ continues on its 90-episode, two-year run with its 33rd overall episode “Charlie & The Secret Gigolo,” as Charlie reluctantly accepts Jen's boyfriend Sean (Brian Austin Green) into his therapy group, while Patrick and Ed attempt to make the best of their new living arrangement.

Last Thursday’s episode, “Charlie and Kate Start A Sex Study,” saw Charlie and Kate attempting to put aside their differences for an experiment, while Lacey recruited the others to help her get fired from a job, so what will the latest episode bring?  Are there more laughs to be had in the thirty-third half-hour of ‘Anger Management,’ or does it fail miserably?

Read on for your in-depth recap of everything you need to know about ‘Anger Management’ episode 33, “Charlie & The Secret Gigolo"!

In session, Ed and Patrick continue to argue over their newfound living situation, particularly Ed’s insomnia from Patrick refusing to own a TV. Jen arrives as Charlie breaks up the session, asking Charlie to help her bail her mooching boyfriend Sean out of jail after he punched someone on the subway for grabbing her.

Returning to Jen’s place with Sean in tow, Charlie makes his disdain for Sean well-known as Jen asks Charlie to take Sean on for court-mandated anger management therapy. The next day, Charlie flirts with his new tech support girlfriend over the phone, before beginning his new session with Sean added to the group. Sean shirks the responsibility and flow of the session at every turn, for which Charlie throws him out and threatens to tell his probation officer.

That night at Patrick’s, Ed’s loud milkshake blending keeps them both awake, before the two surprisingly begin to bond over similar issues with their exes. The following morning, Charlie entertains his tech support girlfriend before Sean drops by asking to be let back into group. Sean confesses that the man on the subway called Sean a “boytoy,” arousing some issues with his past as a gigolo he’d kept hidden from Jen, and Charlie agrees to take him back.

Kate and Charlie observe a couple in their sex study, but Charlie finds himself preoccupied with Brian’s revelation and what it means for Jen, though Kate reminds him confidentiality binds his hands on the matter. Elsewhere, Ed returns to Patrick’s apartment to find Patrick bought a TV as a compromise, but when Ed suggests they continue talking about their exes, Patrick quickly finds himself sucked back into a trashy reality show.

Charlie takes Jen to a round of trivia at the bar and pays off the quizmaster to use his own modified questions. When the round begins, Charlie attempts to nudge Jen in the right direction with question answers like ‘American Gigolo,' Ford Escort, and increasingly obvious wordplay, but Jen dismisses his behavior. When Jen walks away, Sean appears having lost money at his poker game, and quickly realizes Charlie’s ruse to tell Jen about his escort past. Sean insults Charlie’s own previous loss of Jen, before the two quickly come to blows.

Both sit handcuffed on the sidewalk a short while later, as Charlie laments his practice will be ruined. Sean reveals that he actual won poker money to pay Jen back and had intended to surprise her, before offering to take the fall for Charlie. Charlie goes to spare Sean as well, until he sees the bar tab from Sean and has the officers haul him off.

So far as we know, tonight will mark the last occasion in which 'Anger Management' will air on FOX Mondays, keeping to its usual Thursday FX slot from here on out. A shame perhaps, considering that tonight's episode contained some of the more lightheartedly entertaining jokes in weeks, even with the usual structural problems.

We enjoyed getting to see some depth added to Brian Austin Green's character, given we've missed the actor as a leading presence since the days of 'Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.' Similarly enjoyable to watch was the odd-couple pairing of Ed and Patrick, though no real resolution came of the subplot. Finally, the less said about Charlie's new tech support girlfriend, the better. Where did that come from?

Did you enjoy the latest from ‘Anger Management’s ongoing run, or did it make you burn with rage? Join us this Thursday for another all-new ‘Anger Management’ episode recap of “Charlie and His New Friend With Benefits” on FX!