Off Campus Episode 5 recap: Hannah and Garrett kill the “just friends” act

Off Campus Episode 5 "The Cold Turkey" finally gave Hannah and Garrett THE MOMENT we all saw coming (and let's be honest, we wanted to see this coming). So yes, the two of them finally kiss, and they drop the "just friends" act. Safe to say, this era is officially dead and over.

In Episode 5, Garrett finally admits that he craves something real and honest, and Hannah agrees to drop the weird contracts that they've built around each other.

All of a sudden, with this decision, the episode shifts from flirty college romance to something a lot more vulnerable.

And the best part? Off Campus Episode 5 does not really stay stuck in the honeymoon phase for long. Between the awkward family dinners, surprise hookups, and Tucker nearly destroying Thanksgiving dinner, Episode 5 truly balances emotional breakdowns with complete nonsense in the most entertaining way possible.

Spoiler Alert for: Off Campus Episode 5.

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Off Campus Episode 5 recap: Hannah and Garrett kill the “just friends” act

One kiss from Hannah and Garrett is already done for

The opening scene of Off Campus Episode 5 has made us feel things vicariously, and we're all here for it. Garrett and Hannah finally stop beating around the bush and finally admit to what this relationship really is all about.

After the two of them share a kiss, Garrett admits that he does not want to keep pretending that they're only just friends. Hannah agrees to this, but not before sprinkling in one final condition into their conversation.

There will be no more random sexy Snapchats, no more complications with Justin, and no more loopholes pretending that feelings aren't involved.

The scene also feels pretty natural as there is no giant speech, and there's no dramatic pause either. It is just two people who've realized that they already crossed the line emotionally a long, long time ago.

From there on out, Off Campus Episode 5 highlights their new relationship dynamic, and soon enough, they turn into one of those couples that everyone around them notices immediately.

Hannah starts to show up to Garrett’s hockey games, and Garrett cannot stop smiling whenever she is near him. She cooks for the boys at the house, and they settle into each other’s routines extremely fast.

Even the smaller scenes make it extremely obvious how attached they already are. Garrett talks to Hannah’s mother on the phone like he has known the family forever, and she even looks a lot more relaxed around him than she has the entire season.

There is a softness to both of them that was missing before.

Meanwhile, Logan starts to notice everything. During the ad campaign shoot with Garrett, it becomes painfully obvious that he is struggling to watch Hannah and Garrett together, and the disappointment on his face says it all. Off Campus Episode 5 wisely does not turn this into drama just yet, but we know Logan's waiting to explode.

The funniest thing about Garrett in Episode 5 is how obvious he becomes. The guy genuinely cannot function normally anymore, and every scene around Hannah turns him into the happiest person alive on Earth. This also helps because the relationship on-screen is believable instead of being overly polished.

The romance feels exciting, but it also feels comfortable to watch because the two of them turn into each other’s safe space.

We're here for it.

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Cindy's bruise at Thanksgiving dinner changes Garrett’s mood

Now, we get to Garrett agreeing to visit his father for Thanksgiving in Episode 5 of Off Campus. Earlier in the episode, Phil reached out and claimed that he wants to repair their relationship. He talks about changing himself, and he invites Garrett over for dinner. And with the way he acts so calm? Garrett almost even believes him.

Before the trip, Hannah also opens up more about why she struggles with the hockey culture in the first place. She explains how the hockey player who assaulted her destroyed not only her sense of safety but also her family’s reputation back at home.

Garrett listens to her instead of trying to overpower the conversation, and you can see how furious he is, but he keeps the focus on her words instead.

When Garrett asks Hannah to come with him for Thanksgiving, the invitation is a lot bigger than just a dinner with his father. He clearly needs all the emotional backup he can get before even walking into that house.

On the drive there in Off Campus Episode 5, Garrett becomes visibly stressed the closer they get. Hannah notices this behavior and tells him to signal her if he wants to leave at any point in time.

At first, dinner feels normal. Cindy is pretty welcoming, and Hannah looks through Garrett’s childhood photos while talking to her. Garrett also tries to act relaxed. Phil behaves himself long enough to create the illusion that maybe things really are different now.

However, Off Campus Episode 5 presents signs that something underneath the surface is extremely wrong.

We understand this just when Hannah notices the damage inside Garrett’s old bedroom. The hole in the wall tells her more about his childhood than any conversation with him ever could. Episode 5 handles this scene carefully, and even though no character over-explains it, Hannah simply understands the situation the best she can.

The entire atmosphere during dinner becomes increasingly uncomfortable after that. Garrett watches Phil too carefully, and every conversation feels a little bit too forced.

Then Garrett notices the bruises on Cindy’s arm.

This scene in Off Campus Episode 5 completely destroys whatever stability Garrett had been trying to hold onto all evening.

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Hannah becomes Garrett’s escape plan the second dinner turns ugly

Once Garrett sees the bruise on Cindy’s arm in Off Campus Episode 5, the entire episode changes its tone. Everything he's buried about his childhood comes rushing back immediately, right in that very scene.

The smartest thing the show does here is not making Garrett explode in anger. Instead, he shuts down. He panics, and you can see him trying to hold himself together while mentally falling apart at the same time.

Hannah also notices this.

Instead of creating a huge dramatic scene, Hannah helps them leave dinner before things spiral any further. The hand signal payoff works incredibly well because the episode has established it earlier so naturally. Garrett squeezes her hand twice, and she immediately understands that it's now time to leave.

Outside the house, Garrett tries talking to Cindy alone for a minute. Here, he begs her not to stay with Phil. He tells her that she can still leave while she has the chance.

If we pay enough attention, the scene clearly is not only about Cindy. Garrett is also talking to the version of himself that could never protect his own mother growing up.

That emotional overlap is what makes the conversation feel so overwhelming to watch.

The drive back home is also perhaps the strongest stretch of Off Campus Episode 5. Garrett tries to pretend that he is fine, but we (as well as Hannah) can see how he is barely holding himself together. Eventually, Hannah pulls over so he can finally stop putting up this façade of himself being okay.

Garrett has a breakdown, and he admits that he still blames himself for what happened to his mother. He worries that he might eventually become exactly like Phil. Hearing him say that out loud explains so much about why he constantly pushes himself so hard everywhere else in life.

Hannah reassures Garrett and says that he is nothing like his father and lets him cry without any sense of judgment. The simplicity of the scene is what makes it 10 times stronger.

Later that night, the two end up sitting together at Malone’s, eating leftover turkey sandwiches instead of having a normal Thanksgiving dinner like other normal families would. Hannah gives Garrett an old photograph of his mother that she found earlier in his childhood bedroom.

For most of Off Campus Episode 5, Garrett spends his time being extremely terrified that his past is what defines him even today. However, Hannah giving him that photo feels like proof that somebody finally does see him outside of his childhood trauma.

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Tucker turns Thanksgiving into a full-blown hockey house disaster

While Garrett and Hannah are emotionally suffering through Thanksgiving in Off Campus Episode 5, the hockey house arc goes completely off the rails in the funniest way possible.

Tucker decides that he wants to create the perfect Friends-giving meal, which turns into a full-blown disaster because he treats cooking like it's a military operation. The stress absolutely destroys him, because he plans every single detail pretty obsessively while nobody else around him takes the situation all that seriously.

The funniest part is how quickly the guest list keeps growing out of control. Tucker thinks he is cooking for a small group, then suddenly, more people keep showing up, and everything falls apart.

Logan agrees to help without understanding how intense Tucker’s cooking process actually is. Meanwhile, Jules keeps pushing Logan to reconnect with their mother while he continues to resist every single attempt to do so.

Eventually, Logan still shows up with food for his mother after spending the entire episode refusing to go in a pretty nice and soft scene.

Back at the house, Thanksgiving dinner in Off Campus Episode 5 completely falls apart after the turkey gets ruined. Instead of trying to save the meal like normal people, the boys decide to take the destroyed turkey to the ice rink and basically turn it into sports equipment.

The final scene in of Episode 5 also sets up some future drama. During the Thanksgiving calls, the group checks in with Dean, who casually answers from the bed, shirtless. Then the reveal drops that Allie is secretly there with him.

Episode 5 does not over-complicate the reveal either, and it just leaves everyone sitting there trying to process what they saw.

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