Sweet Magnolias season 3 recap guide: All 10 episodes explained

Sweet Magnolias season 3 episode 4 recap

Following the bombshell that was dropped on the town at the end of the Forage Festival, Peggy reveals that Trent has disappeared. Basically, it seems like he was stealing funds from the town and now has made off into the night with the money. Hoping to get to the bottom of things, Peggy asks Dana Sue for help keeping an ear out for any gossip or news she might hear from Sullivan’s customers knowing the restaurant is the heart of the town.

Speaking of Sullivan’s, things get heated — literally — when Helen arrives to pick up her lunch creating a clear distraction for Erik who is still trying to process things, and icing her out. After giving Helen her lunch order, Erik burns himself in the kitchen and Dana Sue pulls him aside to check in on him.

She attempts to extend an olive branch not wanting their friendship and working partnership to be affected by what’s going on with him and Helen, but Erik tells her that he needs to take some time away from Sullivan’s to regain his focus. While he walks away, Dana Sue makes sure he knows that he still has a home at Sullivan’s and tells him to come back whenever he’s ready.

What we never saw coming was Erik’s decision to take a break from Sullivan’s sending him running to Kathy, but that’s exactly what he does as he accepts her proposal to accept the gig at Z’s.

While Dana Sue loses her life with her righthand man at the restaurant walking away, she gets a pleasant surprise later in the episode when Ronnie shows up at Sullivan’s and asks her to marry him. It’s a bold and sweeping gesture that sweeps Dana Sue off her feet, as she accepts the offer hinting at a vow renewal to come later in the season!

While Dana Sue and Ronnie are doing better than ever, things are still a bit shaky for Helen and Ryan. Ryan accepts a substitute teacher job as part of his first steps to putting down roots. However, it begins to become clear he’s got a ways to go when he mentioned at dinner how grateful he was that Miss Frances supported how he was only happy while on the move.

Helen picks up on the comment and questions later whether he’s actually happy. That’s when Ryan flips things back around and points out how Helen was so quick to forget how she had forgotten to ask for his opinion when offering to allow CeCe to live with her (more on that to come). As Helen assures him she’s just getting used to things and having a partner, he does the same in assuring her he has no plans on leaving.

Finally, things remain a bit quiet on the Maddie front during this episode. What becomes clear in this episode is that Maddie is developing a genuine friendship with Pastor June as the two sign up to take an art class. While it’s innocent enough, there are hints among Dana Sue and Helen that the pair might be a bit envious of sharing their friend.

Odds and Ends From the Episode

• Between everything going on with Erik and Ronnie, Dana Sue also finally gets some answers about why Miss Frances left her the check. As we discover, Miss Frances loved Dana Sue’s dad and always saw Dana Sue as a daughter in her heart and that she was her legacy. That’s why she left her the money because Dana Sue is the keeper of her vision and hope for feeding Serenity through all she does for the community.
• Cece comes to Helen to ask to be emancipated because her dad is moving to North Carolina for a new job, with her siblings being sent to Kentucky to live with family as they settle in. Rather than proceed with emancipation, Helen offers to allow CeCe to move in with her after meeting with CeCe’s parents.
• When a woman mistakes Noreen as being a member of the Corner Spa’s daycare team, Trotter suggests to Maddie that they begin offering childcare for parents hinting at Noreen being a perfect candidate for the job.
• Jackon begins ghosting Annie and later tells her his family is moving and that he’ll be transferring schools. Perhaps it’s her ongoing boy problem that makes Annie realize the gift she truly wants for her birthday is finding sisters like those Dana Sue has found in Maddie and Helen.
• As Ty continues to struggle with figuring out what he wants to do with his life, he and Maddie start working through college pamphlets as he takes the first step in figuring out what life without baseball would look like.
• Peggy catches up with Helen to inform her about the ongoing scandal with the mayor and how she’s determined to get to the bottom of things. Seeing the spark in Peggy, Helen suggests she run for mayor.