Will & Grace Review: Grandpa Jack Is Everything We Hoped He Would Be

There are a lot of things you can say about Jack McFarland. Jack McFarland is fabulous, Jack McFarland is poised even in a bathrobe, Jack McFarland is bright and shiny 365 of however many years old he says he is this week. Though we can never quite fit Jack into the category of parental figure. Years ago on Will & Grace, Jack did discover that he had a son born from artificial insemination. Now we find out that not only does Jack retain the title of Dad, he has another new role to fill: Grandpa.

Catching up on the time we missed, we learn that Jack and his son Eliot had a falling out when Eliot moved to Texas and married a conservative woman. This explains why Eliot never told Jack about his child. Jack is rightfully confused about why Skip would seek him out, until he realizes Skip is just like him, pajama party position and all.  Grandpa title aside, Jack is ecstatic to have such a relatable grandson. Skip is as obsessed with Lady Gaga as his grandpa, and he’s just a really nice little boy in general. Eliot and his wife show up and quickly put an end to the bonding to take Skip away to a conversion camp. So while Karen is trying to get Grace’s natural tendencies flowing again, Eliot is trying to suppress Skip’s.

It’s up to Will and Jack to save Skip from Camp Straight-Narrow, led by the fabulous and ironically placed Jane Lynch and Andre Rannells. Rannells looked like he was on Cloud 9 getting to interact with Will, at least before his “wife” electroshocked him. Lawyers are good with words, but Will’s loquacious persuasion has never been so important than it was to buy Jack time with Skip. Jack has no legal rights where Skip is concerned, but that doesn’t stop him from caring about his flesh and blood. Jack needs to tell Skip that he is perfect just the way he is, and that one day things will get better. It seems easy for Jack to say because he is an adult who can make his own choices, while Skip must live in a house that doesn’t tolerate who he is at his core. Once Eliot realizes that his actions are hurting instead of helping his child, he has to bend. Maybe Eliot will change his conservative stance, maybe he’ll only bend to protect Skip, but what he can’t do is deny his son the love he deserves. That includes pushing Jack out of their lives. That just hurts everyone.

Who else wants to see more of Grandpa Jack?