CNN
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Saying goodbye is never easy, but the Goldberg family is doing their best in the new season of “The Goldbergs.”
The show wasted no time in addressing Jeff Garlin’s exit from the sitcom, mentioning in the opening moments of Wednesday’s season premiere that patriarch Murray died “just a few months ago” and went on to show that the family is still processing their grief.
Adam and Barry worked through some of their feelings in a plot inspired by “Field of Dreams.” But the real punch was a plot involving Erica (Hayley Orrantia) and Geoff (Sam Lerner) enlisting the help of Beverly (Wendi McLendon-Covey) to prepare their nursery.
The process forces Beverly to deal with Murray’s absence and inability to go through some of her remaining belongings. She finally decides it’s time to do it, cleaning out a closet full of her clothes and getting rid of her old chair.
The empty space in the living room proves too much for her to handle, and she goes on a mission to retrieve the item, however learning that it has been taken from the sidewalk where it was left.
Efforts to find him are futile, but Erica sets out to help her mother through the moment.
“He will always be in our hearts – chair or no chair,” she told Beverly.
Afterwards, they enter the nursery, only to find that the chair has been taken by Pop-Pop (Judd Hirsch) and turned into a rocking chair for the baby’s room.
“This piece is finally perfect,” says Erica.
Someone pass the tissues?
“The Goldbergs” airs Wednesdays on ABC.