(S02E02) There's nothing united about Tara's states right now. After all the time away in therapy and the realization that her shattered persona was not the result of what happened at school when she was a teenager, the reality emerging is that something is askew in her psyche that cannot be fixed... The lid on the pot is shaking and ready to explode. More on that and Marshall's gay-size shorts after the jump.

Could there be a more stark image of Tara's psychosis running amok than her waking up in bed with another woman? She had no idea where she was or who she was with. Running from the house was akin to running away from the problem. Everyone in the family is doing that, too, because nobody has figured out what Tara has. She's losing time and the meds aren't working.

The scene with Toni Collette in the closet, talking to her handycam and crying about what's going wrong was shattering. Tara was traumatized because she thought she was better. She believed it. But reality is what it is and she has no idea what triggered it or why Buck has been taking over her body.

Pammy, the bartender who was Buck's one-night-stand, should have listened when Tara apologized and said she was trouble. But as the later scene showed, Pammy is getting an emotional -- and sexual -- satisfaction from Buck. He's romanced her and she likes Buck.

It could be that because Buck is caught up with Pammy, because it's not just a hell-raising thing or acting out, that Tara can't control her body. Maybe the trigger is emotional and Buck's love for Pammy was stronger than Tara love of herself and staying in control?

The Marshall situation is very interesting. Was he attracted to Courtney enough to kiss her? My thought was that he was still fixated on Lionel, but was trying to convince himself that he was 'I' for independent. The bottom line is that poor Courtney's going to get hurt in the end. Just you watch. She can be like Neil. He's also going to get crapped on by Charmaine.

Other points of interest

-- Charmaine was on cloud nine with her princess cut ring. The sight of her sleeping with the ring pursed to her lips said it all. She's a perfect case of being more in love with the idea of being in love than she is a marriage to Nick.

-- Could Max really not pick up on Tara being missing most of the night? Maybe they should put a bell around her neck.

-- The Air Supply moment, "I'm All Out of Love," could be Tara's swan song to Max. She doesn't want it to be, but it's slipping away.

-- You have to hand it to Kate, she's ambitious all of a sudden. Getting $5,000 out of big-fish debtor Linda P. Frazier by tracking her down at her home in Kansas City was ballsy. Now she's completely fascinated by the woman.

-- It was cool how Buck just showed up during the family dinner. Tara will not be able to keep her alters in check and from the family much longer.