After eating fried chicken and crying in her car, Ma heads home. Together with Pua, her best friend, and her cousin Liz, Ma gets ready for a Mean Maori Mean costume party.

Ma agrees to dinner with Henare's sister; Taaps tries to connect with Heps, but is kept at arms length; Tawhiti reveals his next protest's plans.

The gang crash Ma's weekly whanau dinner. Over the evening, Ma clashes with her mum, Pua gets drunk, and there is an incident involving Taaps, Tawhiti and a water blaster.

Liz attempts to impress her whanau by singing at karaoke, but it makes her feel like an outsider. Taaps, feeling sympathetic, helps her learn a waiata to sing at her Aunty Bella's party.

Hep looks back to growing up in Wainuiomata while working at the Ministry of Justice, and he comes across research that sends him into a downward spiral.

The crew go camping but the trip is a bit of a disaster. Ma and Heps aren't talking, Taaps brings the wrong tent, Liz has finally made friends, and Pua brings her cat along.