There’s trouble in paradise after last week’s episode of The Neighborhood on CBS that featured our favorite sport, pickleball.

In part one, the neighborhood discovers new neighbors moving in across the street and something feels peculiar about this new couple. 

And it’s not just that they’re avid pickleball players, waking up the whole neighborhood every morning at 6 a.m. with their driveway pickleball games. It’s also that this is a “throuple,” Meaning three people in one relationship. In this case, Zak, Sara, and Allison. 

The neighborhood is not only surprised by their pickleball obsession, but their unconventional relationship dynamic as well. 

Episode two titled “In a Pickle” begins right after the neighborhood discovers the three-person relationship. Neighbors Calvin (played by Cedric the Entertainer) and Dave (played by Max Greenfield) try to understand this relationship. 

Calvin’s wife Tina (played by Tichina Arnold) declares she doesn’t want Calvin playing pickleball anymore. 

But Dave still wants to play. 

Clad in a FILA orange, white, and blue pickleball outfit including sweat bands, Dave goes over to the pickleballer’s house and asks to keep playing. While there, Allison asks Dave if his friend Calvin would be interested in joining their off-court activities. 

After some humorous shenanigans, it’s revealed that Allison feels like the odd one out in her three-person relationship because she doesn’t play pickleball, which to me feels like a deal breaker in any kind of relationship. You don’t play pickleball? Well, we don't have much in common then. 

“All you and Zak ever do is play pickleball. I hate that stupid game,” said Allison.

This is even more shocking to me that anyone could possibly hate pickleball, but perhaps she’s a former tennis player? 

“Why didn’t you talk to us?” asked Sara. 

“I can’t talk to you. You spend all day on this court,” whined Allison. 

And girl, I get it. If I had a pickleball court in my backyard I would be playing nonstop too. Allison doesn’t understand how lucky they are to have an open court at their leisure. 

Then, the throuple starts bickering on the court and a verbal spat ensues. At least there wasn’t a full-on brawl like we’ve seen in real life. But there was certainly a whole lot of tension on the court. 

It makes me want to send them a copy of “In A Pickle: How to Master Love and Pickleball and Not Kill Each Other.” Maybe then they could work out their complicated romantic partnerships on the court.

Given the anatomy of a sitcom where the storylines only last one episode long, I’m curious to see if pickleball will make another appearance in the show. After all, Calvin and Dave had a lot of fun playing and genuinely got hooked on the sport. Dave liked playing so much that he invested in some FILA sets and those aren’t cheap. And he wore them all episode… So maybe he likes the outfits more than the game itself? Either way, he’d make the best dressed list. 

But it seems like the lesson from the episode is clear: You just can’t play pickleball with three people.