Going Dutch Episode 3 Set Up A Future Romance Between 2 Characters (& The Colonel Is Going To Hate It)

3 hours ago 13

Going Dutch is about the tense relationship between U.S. Army Colonel Patrick Quinn (Denis Leary) and his estranged daughter, Captain Maggie Quinn (Taylor Misiak), when the former is reassigned to the latter's service base in the Netherlands. Colonel Quinn is accompanied by his right-hand man, Executive Officer Major Abraham Shah (Danny Pudi), whose job is to anticipate the Colonel's needs and fix any problems. In Going Dutch episode 3, "CIA," Quinn learns Maggie is dating a man in the CIA and assumes CIA Special Agent Rick Silver (Parker Young) is using her for a covert mission.

Like in some of the best military TV shows, things get tricky during an ill-advised mission; in this case, Shah aids Quinn when he decides to break into Rick's room to search for evidence. Quinn is driven by his need to prove to Maggie he is right, but Shah, played by Community's Danny Pudi, drops several hints that he is protective of Maggie. Thus, Going Dutch is laying the groundwork for a future romance between the Colonel’s second-in-command and his daughter, which would be the Colonel's worst nightmare.

Danny Pudi's Major Shah Seemed Jealous Of Maggie's Boyfriend In Going Dutch Episode 3

Shah Helps The Colonel Investigate Maggie's Boyfriend For Personal Reasons

Colonel Quinn is determined to find proof that Special Agent Rick is up to something nefarious because, as an Army man, Quinn distrusts anyone in the CIA. Danny Pudi has struggled to find roles since Community, but he shines as Shah, the loyal lieutenant supporting Quinn when he plans to steal a U.S. tank in Going Dutch episode 2 and during Quinn's Korfball mission in episode 4. Shah helps break into Rick's apartment but then implies that he is also emotionally invested in the Colonel's daughter.

Going Dutch Main Characters

Character

Actor

Best Known Role

Colonel Patrick Quinn	Denis Leary	Tommy Gavin in Rescue Me
Captain Maggie Quinn	Taylor Misiak	Ally in Dave
Executive Officer Major Abraham Shah	Danny Pudi	Abed Nadir in Community
Master Sergeant Dana Conway	Laci Mosley	Jayla in Florida Girls
Corporal Elias Papadakis	Hal Cumpston	Zach Marconi in Nine Perfect Strangers
Private Anthony "BA" Chapman	Dempsey Bryk	Airk Tantalus in Willow
Dr. Katja Vanderhoff	Catherine Tate	Donna Noble in Doctor Who, Nellie Betram in The Office

When Quinn is spying on Maggie and Rick, Shah tells him: "Maggie is too special to wind up with [Rick]." Later, when they are in Rick's room, Shah says he wants to find something to "prove to Maggie the dirtbag isn't worth her time." Quinn is too focused on his petty mission to read between the lines, but these comments hint that Shah's dislike of Rick stems from jealousy over Maggie rather than loyalty to Quinn. Shah is one of the quieter personalities in the unit, so these small admissions carry a lot of weight.

How The Colonel Would React To A Romance Between His Daughter & His Second-In-Command

Shah Would Be Put In An Extremely Compromising Position Between The Colonel & The Captain

Shah and Maggie out of uniform in Going Dutch

Quinn sees Shah as an extension of himself, a man he can always rely on to get things done quietly and efficiently. Shah understands and respects Quinn so much that he has tied his military career to Quinn's, but love can conflict with duty. The very premise of Going Dutch is that the Colonel desperately wants to get away from Stroopsdorf, while Maggie is fiercely proud of the service work her oddball troop has accomplished there, and Shah will have to choose between the two if Quinn achieves the goal Shah is helping him work towards.

Romance is a characteristic of the best sitcoms, but one between Shah and Maggie would be destabilizing for Colonel Quinn, who would feel betrayed by his right-hand man. Quinn has been slowly bonding with Maggie after years of estrangement, so a romance with Shah would complicate the relationship they have been rebuilding. Shah has been something of a translator for the father-daughter pair, who often seem to misunderstand or see the worst in each other. However, as Going Dutch season 1 is only at its midpoint, it is exciting to see where Shah's crush will go.

New episodes of Going Dutch air on Thursdays at 9:30 p.m. Eastern on FOX and stream the next day on Hulu.

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