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asatasiman
Reviews
9-1-1: Love Is in the Air (2023)
Love is in the air, but not the viewers' love toward the show!
I'm not sure if watching for Eddie is worth it at this point if he's going to have nothing going on, a bit of scenes with Buck and Christopher and then getting shoved into a love interest as a bargaining chip for having those scenes.
I'll start with the Madney stuff since it's possibly the best part of the episode. There's a neat conversation Maddie has with Hen considering how Hen applied a standard on Maddie that she couldn't even achieve the first time either (cough) CHEATING ON HER WIFE FOR A FLIMSIER REASON THAN LEAVING BECAUSE OF A LITERAL DEPRESSION (cough), and the way Maddie isn't actually surprised finding the ring and in the end she's the one proposing is a neat and logical way to close the already long and winded proposal plot.
Now, let's move on to the mess that is Buck and Eddie, starting with Eddie. Not even Madney can save bad writings coming from these two blockheads.
The flip flop between Eddie and Shannon's relationship starts again. They established that the reason why Eddie and Shannon got married was because she was pregnant. On THIS episode he's selling the relationship as if it's magical as if we haven't seen them not getting along or cannot agree with a lot of thing, the only thing binding them together is the great sex they have. And then they want to sell him meeting Marisol as something magical and "exactly what he's looking for" (real cute there using those exact words on the limited conversation they have /derogatory) after a chat with Bobby about how he met Athena, as if he didn't already make a remark at Buck on how dating someone they met from an emergency was going to work. It's already an Eddie and Ana rehash after we've got nothing much going on for Eddie. It's Season 4 all over again.
And then Buck... (sigh)
At this point the showruners doesn't understand how to write Buck other than objectifying him. We've got a sex joke with the ring cutter, and then Lucy barging in on his date with Natalia with a joke about the cheating plot they've had in the last season which is gross btw (at least silver lining it's much less likely for Lucy to return, THANK GOD), Taylor Kelly jumpscare on her writing her experience with the 118 (basically grifting), Buck suddenly losing his math skills during his date with Natalia because apparently he's too enamored he's tongue-tied in front of her (pfft) and then Natalia embarrassingly having to go away after she learned he made a sperm donation on a family because he's "full of life" as if the death doula is attracted to death itself. And then why was Kameron in Buck's apartment? Doesn't she have other friends? How close was she and Connor with Buck to the point that she can barge in to his apartment and ask for a place to stay just because her husband can be contacted? Oh that's right, PLOT CONVENIENCE. And I swear if the glance Buck has on Kameron sleeping is any indication of them ending up together, it's gonna be the worst storyline of the SHOW. PERIOD. Either way, Buck has been sloppily written this season but this episode just takes the cake. Jeez.
The move to ABC means nothing if nothing else is done to change everything else. The last-minute love interest plot for Buck and Eddie has been overdone and beaten to death it gets boring for loyal viewers super fast. At this point Buck and Eddie makes more sense dating each other regardless of gender because not one love interest has been as important for their development other than their interaction with each other. Kristen Reidel needs to be demoted from her current position like yesterday.
9-1-1: Survivors (2021)
Works mostly because of Buck, Eddie, and Christopher, but dragged down by Buck too.
A retroactive watch on this episode makes me realize that all the things that I like in this episode come from different combinations of these three.
GOOD
* Everything regarding the shooting that revolves around Buck, Eddie, and Christopher ONLY, is the highlight, more on that later. The intense rescue when Buck brings Eddie to the firetruck driving to the hospital, Buck telling Christopher his dad was shot with Christopher in turn comforting Buck when he gets the news Eddie survives the surgery, Buck and Eddie's bright faces when they meet again at the hospital after the shooting, and of course the infamous will scene. All hit the intended emotional beats and are acted very well by Oliver, Ryan, and Gavin. A shame that the will was apparently not important enough for Kristen to be discussed again, but bringing a woman for a stupid love triangle plot is much more necessary.
* Maddie's PPD. It's still nice to see the buildup to Maddie's story. It's just a shame that the resolution has to happen in one episode, and the aftermath is kind of there.
BAD
* The sniper story, which should've been the main focus, ends on a whimper. The reveal feels empty because the culprit is not someone the viewers had seen, Bobby getting shot ends up not contributing much to the plot other than Athena being a badass as usual, and the exploration on the case itself is kind of lacking partly because of time constraint.
* Buck and Taylor getting together. Lack of buildup on Taylor's feeling, gross kiss because kissing someone during a bad moment in someone's life when you're not together yet is creepy, Taylor's 180 degree characterization from wanting things casual to "you didn't chase after me," Buck having to settle (which we know takes a whole season with stupid failure of a love triangle plot and addition of a useless character) for this to work, and being set in an episode where Eddie makes Buck Christopher's legal guardian which despite them (Buck and Eddie) not together as a couple is more impactful and positive to Buck's character than whatever they're trying to cook up with Buck and Taylor. This relationship is set to fail, yet it takes a long time for it to end.
* Buck and Bobby's conversation feels off. Bobby is written like he doesn't understand that what happens to Eddie is greatly affecting Buck yet instead of gentle reassurance that Eddie will be fine or it's not Buck's fault and a request for Buck to not be reckless anymore, we get this...
Seeing two negative points above, you know where this goes? Too much focus on Buck who is not injured compared to Eddie who has little scenes. Mind you, those scenes with Eddie are impactful, but why do we need to see TAYLOR KELLY, who doesn't end up having emotional scenes with Eddie, having screentime with Buck and dedicate it to BUCK and Taylor getting together? Where are people's reaction to Eddie getting shot? WE HAD THAT IN THE TRAILER WHEN HEN AND CHIMNEY LISTENED TO THE RADIO. For a show that pushes on the found family aspect of it, they seem quite unfazed with one of them injured, no?
This episode turns out to not be as good as I first watch it for the first time, and it's good to me mostly because of some characters' interactions with each other.
9-1-1: What's Your Fantasy? (2022)
How can an episode that talks about fantasies be meh?
At this point I don't know what's happening at the writing team because I'm not really feeling it this episode. Andrew who usually put good episodes is doing bad this season, I don't know why.
Good:
* Buck's montage taking care of Jee is cute actually. We haven't seen Buck being an uncle so.this is a decent treat. I think the show is exploring Buck's relationships with kids and their parents so it's nice to see.
* May's subplot, despite it revolving around a "nice guy," is where we see Corinne and Angela shine. This subplot is actually the best part of the episode for me, because it's been a while since we've seen quick-witted May and combining it with Sergeant Grant works well even though May being involved in a hostage situation like that as a civilian is a less likely scenario. Rest In Peace for lesbian May believers (she can still be bisexual) but that's beside the point.
* Eddie and Christopher about the dance and it's nice to see how the topic of "first crush" is handled. The gender is never specified (no default heteronormativity), Eddie doesn't really pursue the matter on Christopher further and give him breathing room to explore, and the talk about Eddie being told about managing expectations but Christopher is at the age where he reaches a milestone for adulthood is yet another important message. It may look like a disability inspirational porn for some people, but it's still heartwarming to see. Also, Eddie's bright smile when he looks at Christopher looking at his friends? You can't not melt and swoon at that.
Bad:
* The emergency, my goodness. 11 minutes for that bee sting emergency, we've spent too much time with the employee who fantasizes about murdering his boss, and then the fantasy of having sex on the fire engine. We used to have some emergencies that ties back to the first responders at work. We have some with Maddie and last episode with Eddie (the execution was a bit lackluster), but this time? Not much. The inclusion of Buck and Hen at the aftermath of the bee sting may be cute and fun, but it's a bit forced. The fire engine sex switching back and forth with the firefam talking creates a bad mood change, especially when a brunt of that talk is Christopher possibly having his first crushes, which is weird. May's subplot, as far as it's entertaining to watch, doesn't have a good bearing over the series plot aside from update on May's college life (which we may not have big plot related to it anytime soon because Corinne herself is still in college). They are setting new lows.
* Buck and Eddie's distance is getting more obvious than before. Fine, Buck shows some concern about Christopher dating, but it feels like they're deliberately separated by their own subplots on purpose. The inclusion of Denny in that bee sting emergency aftermath feels too forced and like a cheap attempt at emulating Buck-Eddie-Christopher at the equine therapy back in season 5, both of which have a different gravity of importance but they try to write them as if they're equal. Buck could also have more involvement instead of Carla about the school dance since he's been involved in a lot of the Diaz lives past seasons. Better yet, how about involving Maddie? Eddie and Maddie haven't had scenes of their own, and this is one of the chances for them to interact. Some people suspect that Kristen doesn't want Buck and Eddie's interaction to be misinterpreted, but not giving them scenes together is a wrong move that shows she doesn't know how to write. Don't get me wrong, Tim is also at fault for leaving the show in someone clearly not capable, but the fact that Kristen is the one making decisions remains. Buck and Eddie are best friends, and best friends hang out outside of work too. Don't give us tell-don't-show as a proof they're still friends just because you want to explore new dynamics. Hell, even your explorations of the new dynamics are not really good. Buck and Hen's appearance are not consistent in terms of quality (I'm still holding that masturbation joke in front of the writers' faces), while Chimney and Eddie are more like comic reliefs and I don't like the implication of that.
* What the hell is happening with Maddie and Chimney? Buck takes care of Jee-Yun because they're apartment hunting but their presence on the episode are kind of there. We do have them watching movies together with Jee, but at the expense of their subplot not resolved satisfyingly, again.
We're nearing the midseason finale, but so far nothing of importance is happening for the characters. The pacing is horrible, a good chunk of characters have no meaningful plot of their own (Bobby and Chimney), some of them have plot but for one or a few episodes and then nothing (Athena, Hen, and Maddie), some have good but largely disjointed subplots (Eddie), while someone has been given a season-long arc but it's not well-written for various reasons (Buck). Four writings staffs have no meaning when the quality stays around the same level of bad.
9-1-1: Cursed (2022)
Eddie! Eddie! Eddie!
Another good episode for Eddie? Seeing that it's written by Taylor Wong who already made something good about him with Dumb Luck, I should've expected it. Then again, Eddie saves the episode when he's given decent screen time.
Good:
* Eddie, to no one's surprise. We get funny Eddie teasing Chimney and Hen about believing in curses, sexy Eddie in his black tanktop, Eddie having a reminiscence about his life after Shannon's death and Christopher almost dying from tsunami, Eddie and another glimpse into his family, rare interaction between Eddie and Bobby/Athena (even rarer for the latter), competent Eddie thinking of alternative to the last emergency, and a hook that may involve Christopher next episode (which from the released synopsis involve school dancing). Definitely a huge treat for Eddie fans.
* The firefam and their fear for the superstitions except for Eddie gets a nice showing this episode. They're very funny being like this. Eddie throwing the bracelet to scare Chimney off is the cream of the crop. We also get some flirty moments between Bobby and Athena at the aftermath of the incident. It's a bit of a mixture between Ocean's 9-1-1 and Jinx, which overall looks pleasing. I personally miss this hijinks last Halloween when they made sure to include as much Taylor Kelly as possible even though Hen and Karen's closure is necessary.
Bad:
* BUCK. They're intending to drag his story for very long, aren't they? And they way they drag it? Masturbation joke, making the reveal to the crew more of a joke even thought Oliver teases about the gravity of the decisions in his interviews, and a bit of unnecessary stunt action where he runs to the clinic. This is a divisive subplot for the fanbase, so taking this in a comedic route this episode will kind of confuse people who do enjoy the storyline and make those who dislike it hate this even more because it feels like they're not taking this seriously. We also have to talk about how Connor and his wife come to Buck's firehouse and ask for an explanation on why Buck hadn't made the appointment yet, in a rather forceful and loud manner I must add, as if they're cornering him to make sure he makes the appointment already. I can understand a bit that they're very excited and they're afraid Buck's walking out on them, but if they believe Buck is doing that despite acknowledging his kindness IS THE ENTIRE REASON THEY CHOSE BUCK, then do they really think Buck is kind or they're just being selfish? Is this Buck's character arc the whole season? I hope this have an emotional payoff because three seasons and they can't seemingly give him decent storylines that don't feel dragged out. This is embarrassing. Also, Buck seems to be quite goofy but in a negative way this episode so I checked the writing staff and it has Nicole in it, and somehow I'm not surprised. She wrote him as intersted in crypto in FOMO, his question about Karen's well-being is voiced like he doesn't know what spleen is, and now this. Forget about not knowing where to take his story. I doubt this current set of writers knows Buck other than some fanservice dumb jock. That's not what make people love him in the first place, Taylor Stacey Nadia Nicole KRISTEN. WHERE'S HIS CHARACTER DEPTH?
* I get that they use the same performers/characters for this episode for the sake of plot (and possibly money to press budget*cough*), but I don't really find the acting very compelling. The emergency is still nothing to write home about too which is getting problematic since this is a procedural show. Also, what's up with that Alexis subplot of buying from the artifact fraud cheaper from what she sold Felisa and then she gets to bless Felisa's new house as if it's easily resolved, again? I said they want to emulate Ocean's 9-1-1 but the execution is suboptimal at best.
Overall, good but dragged down by the usual suspects. I'm waiting for Christopher's school dance next week and the Diazes potentially saving the episode again.
9-1-1: Tomorrow (2022)
Aisha and Tracie together is magic on screen
Everybody say thanks to Chimney for setting Hen and Karen together!
This is a more character-driven episode so I don't expect the emergency to be the main focus, Kristen didn't need to pretend this episode's emergency is on an unimaginable magnitude (technically it's correct since the emergency for all purpose is quite iunimaginably vague, but it's more as a device to tell the story). Just sell us how Hen, Karen, and Denny are a very beautiful family because they are.
I particularly love how they retell Eva needing Hen to take care of Denny and that becomes the start of their fracture, and it makes Karen's line to Evan "All the people I love belong to you first" even more devastating, and Hen's primary motivation in adopting Denny is so that someone in Eva's life can have a happy ending. I also love that they each sacrifices their personal dream to be with each other, Karen being an astronaut and Hen being a doctor (although from cynical stand point it's never gonna work without quitting especially if she's aiming for a general surgeon, it's a tough warzone!). It shows that while they can be supportive for each other, they have to know where their biggest priority lies.
Next episode should be more of a filler with superstition-related, but we're following up with Buck's sperm donor storyline, right? Right...?
EDIT: I've seen the vow renewal photo and they intentionally cut Ravi and then put Karen behind another photo to make it look symmetrical, but it still look asymmetrical because Athena/Angela Bassett is on the center. The length Kristen does to make sure Ravi isn't there while pushing aher badly written self-insert... hope Lucy's supposed.return in 6B is met with disdain from every corner of media. Whoever complicit in this (I'm looking at you, feminist writer Nicole Keim) is just as bad. Anirudh deserves better than this.
9-1-1: Home Invasion (2022)
Hen and Karen's big story doesn't deserve to be set up by a boring episode
Nadia Abbas-Madden's work in this show is rather up and down. This one fits the latter category. This week's episode, aside from a few things, are quite dull.
Positive:
* Love Hen and Karen. They're given a lot of focus this season, and they deserve it since we don't get to see much of Tracie because she's a guest cast on the show. Aisha and Tracie have very good chemistry they play the role of loving wives to each other very convincingly. This episode is no exception with how supportive and proud Karen is she arranges the schedule so that Hen can have time to study for her practical exam, and then arranges a celebration party when Hen passes with Bobby's help. Let's just say Eddie's bright smile when Hen and Karen are affectionate with each other represents my feeling watching them whenever they're on screen.
* The Hoover situation is quite funny.
Negative:
* While the emergency has been quite boring since Season 4, this one takes the cake. The opening emergency, while it's a setup for the main story this episode, is anticlimactic. The DIY emergency is nothing to write home about, and that's probably it. It's like they're not even trying this episode when the emergencies were one of the biggest draw for the show.
* The dispatch subplot. People already think the scene where Maddie shows herself logging in to her account to Noah is a setup for disaster, but it's too predictable not to mention repetitive after what they tried with Jonah last season. I understand it's hard to make dispatch-related story given the setting, but when you're hired because you have experience working at dispatch but someone else can write better dispatch-related story alone (May Day by Juan Carlos Coto) without multiple episodes of setup, this doesn't speak well on your credibility Nadia. I'd rather they replace the previous setup with Maddie talking with Chimney because last episode has two wasted opportunities that could've been used talking with each other. Oh, did I also mention that Noah is handcuffed and escorted despite confessing to everything with a motive where he's basically coerced, after this show had an episode revolving around how police handles crime within black community (The Devil Among Us two episodes ago)? Shouldn't have been surprised since the one on the showrunner seat, Kristen Reidel, is THAT kind of cop story writer and her tag team with Nadia (First Responders, Season 4 Episode 11) lacks tact in similar subject by putting Buck and Taylor, two white people, on the spot light, but she had to pitch "cop being badass" in, didn't she?
* After an episode of Maddie and Chimney not talking with each other, we get... this plot about a nanny hijacking their place. Offscreen resolution, barely there plot, geez. At least we have Buckley-Han family picnic on the house, but they deserve so much better.
Miscelaneous:
* They're getting too obvious in separating Buck and Eddie because they don't want people to think they have a chance of being together, demonstrated by how they show Hoover being relayed to each other but conveniently miss the part where Eddie gives Hoover to Buck and how Eddie makes petty remark about the lawsuit (while in-character in term of pettiness, is kind of unnecessary). They're overcorrecting in the way that they don't even look like best friends, which is especially jarring given what they've undergone together.
* Did I also mention that the DIY girl and her brother (Marisol and Vincent) act too much like lovers to be a sibling? Because without context Marisol and Vincent act too much like lovers to be a sibling. The funny thing is that Marisol's actress posted on her social media that she was brought back in "to cry some more," implying the incest energy was THE RESHOOT. I don't know if this is purely the director Marita doing a very bad job directing even with second chance or they (Kristen and Marita) think it's OK to show borderline incest undertones, but two guys being interpreted as having a progressively romantic undertones is a big no for them.
* The party, the flashback, Hen passing the practical exam with her professor showing her the surgery room, we're probably nearing the line whether Hen's character is staying or not. My stance in that is always clear: I don't want her to go away, because I love seeing her and Karen on screen together too much.
* While we're here, 5 episodes in and no mention of beloved character Ravi at all while despised character Lucy get an explanation why she can't be on the first half of the season? The bias is showing on Kristen's part, and I don't like her even more for that.
Next episode should be intense with how the trailer goes. Nicole Keim wrote Hen and Karen on FOMO well (despite the overall episode being mediocre), so I hope they get the respect they deserve. I really don't want to give low score to an episode with good Hen and Karen content but here we are...
9-1-1: Animal Instincts (2022)
Diaz Family stealing the spotlight again. Quick, act surprised!
And I mean it in a good way for them, because while Buck has the biggest story this episode, Eddie's end up as the most well-written one.
Let's go over the positives first, shall we?
* Eddie's parenting arc is the highlight of this episode, and it has quite a good amount of depth to it. Eddie seeking Ramon's advice is a continuation of how they try to mend their relationship with each other as father and son, which is a good way to bring up past plot point. The topic of the conversation/problem is also an important thing people often overlook when they have disabled kids, that the kids need independence and trust from the parents to partly handle the world on their own, and the way it's discussed when Eddie and Christopher have a confrontation about is is done very well. It's time for Eddie to realize that he need to set compromise between protecting Christopher and letting Christopher grow as a person. I also note that Eddie quickly change after he raises his voice on Christopher and move into a more supportive approach, it shows yet again Eddie is serious in becoming a good parent for him. Also credit for the writer for making Christopher act like a realistic sassy pre-teen. Compact yet precise, this plot is written well.
* Maddie's handling of the domestic abuse call is great. It's within Jennifer Love Hewitt's ballpark and she devours it like it's her breakfast. It's glad to see that Maddie uses her experience to help the daughter and follows up on the mother and daughter to give them the help they need. I'm also glad that the abusive father is a white guy because they could've easily fallen into the trap other shows' been doing and make the abusive husband not latino. The show has been trying so hard dismantling negative stereotypes surrounding latinx community starting from making Eddie a good father, and it's a blessing that people need to realize more.
* Bobby getting a dog to fill Athena and his house's emptiness is cute and funny.
And now, the clear negatives.
* This is the point where we reach oversaturation for Buck's character. Buck's a clear winner in terms of screen time this episode, but it's not something enjoyable to watch when the material with him is not good. We've had like 6 scenes surrounding his story this episode; Buck telling Maddie about the terrible self-help book he's been reading (seriously, go to therapy, Buck. Self-help books aren't useful when you still don't know where your problem lies), Buck meeting his college friend and his wife, Buck being shaken over the couple's request that goes along with Eddie discussing his problem with Christopher, Buck and Connor having another talk in Buck's loft, Buck asking Hen for advice, and then him saying yes at the end of the episode. These don't count that Buck appears in every firefighter-related emergencies, even the one when he's supposedly off-duty because he happens to be with Hen, who is also off-duty, because the on-duty team needs her help and she's with Buck in that moment, and we haven't even discussed his plot itself. So his college roommate whom he hasn't seen for three years suddenly asks to eat together and then drops this bombshell, said college roommate then go to Buck's loft and use all this manipulation tactics (taking advantages of his kindness, using reverse psychology by saying "you don't have to do this," and tells how this incident makes him feel like a failure) to make Buck says yes, and despite Hen's stern yet good advice that Buck won't be in the kid's life he says yes anyway. There are so many problems I see with this progression. 1) It's still within his character for Buck to say yes, but it's frustrating that we're looking at a guy who makes the same mistake again because apparently being with someone he doesn't fall in love with for a year he cheats and lies about it is not enough of a lesson for him 2) The show currently overlooks Buckley family history with Daniel that should discourage him from making donation. The fact that Hen doesn't bring this into their conversation despite her being in a medical school doesn't give me confidence in showing whether they're serious in exploring Hen's medical school arc. 3) The show overlooks that they make Connor and his wife an interracial couple where the father is a person of color, yet seek a white man to be their sperm donor. It sends another bad implication to the couple and it will create problems when the baby grows up (assuming the process goes smoothly) because the kid will wonder why they look different from their father, defeating the "donor, not dad" point in the process. 4) Buck doesn't seek other people's opinion regarding this, especially Maddie and Eddie, two of the closest people in his life currently. I don't fault Buck for going to Hen because Hen and Karen are probably the most qualified person to give advice to him, but he needs more people's opinion especially for a life-changing decision like this. Maddie can give perspective on Buckley family history (again, another wasted opportunity Hen doesn't bring this up) while Chimney, Eddie, and Bobby can give their perspective as fathers to emphasize Hen's point on the "Donor, not father." We're meant to see it as Buck making bad decisions, but all the things that has to be (not) done to make this works makes the writing team look incompetent for this part and Buck look immature and rash for being too quick with this decision. They want to fit Buck in into this episode as much as they can, probably because the next two episodes will feature him less especially episode six, but they don't make the effort in plotting this story properly. Also, this would've been better if they space this out for a few episode and it ultimately ends with no. This man needs to make decision for himself whenever a life-altering event happens.
* I don't really like how they write Chimney and Maddie this episode. After the effort of making Maddie and Chimney go back as being lovers, the show makes little effort in showing them as one. Chimney is kidnapped by a drunk driver but they misses the chance of making Maddie the dispatch operator for some "Are you OK?" moment. Maddie has a call that brings up her past traumatic experience but they make her discuss it with Noah the new dispatcher. Granted it also makes sense because Noah helps Maddie find the caller's real address but giving this conversation to Maddie and Chimney is as valid as it makes sense. Two obvious opportunities wasted.
* I'm aware that this is yet another negative point to Buck's storyline (I really don't like it, sorry), but I also don't like how the distance between Buck and Eddie is created in this episode. Aside from the father perspective mentioned above, Eddie is one of the closest people Buck has in his life and after they and Christopher share a meal in Buck's loft while he shares his grievances about the interim captain situation at the premiere, it feels weird now seeing Buck keeps this from Eddie. Kristen probably tries very hard to dissuade Buck and Eddie shippers from thinking it's happening (forgive me for being bias in this regard), but the way they've been in each other's life just makes the effort much more noticeable especially when Ramon's opening advice is the same as Buck's in the episode they built a custom skateboard for Christopher. I also notice that they're trying to use the same concept during one of the scenes where they make Buck sit far from the team as when Eddie sits far away after the kidnapping in Season 5 Episode 6, so I assume Buck is going to undergo similar mental breakdown as Eddie. However, the vehicle they're using to bring Buck to that point is flawed from a narrative perspective and disjointed for the past 4 episodes while Eddie's more natural with what's been happening to him. You can't just slap what makes one story successful to another story and call it a day, it doesn't work like that. Scratch that, this has been how Kristen operates since season 4 forward; making bad copies of what makes the show good. That comparison shot I just mentioned is a clear example of this because BUCK'S PROBLEM IS SOMETHING THAT CAN AND SHOULD BE COMMUNICATED.
And then, miscellaneous parts that doesn't really fit everything:
* The way they're writing Hen and Chimney, I fear that they're going to go sooner than later. While Hen has her proper story that may or may not determine whether she'll be around, Chimney lacks anything cohesive other than being Maddie's boyfriend and the comic relief of the show with how severely underutilized he's been as if the show's trying to ease him out of it by giving him less presence. Hen and Chimney's friendship has been one of the show's biggest highlight and seeing it potentially go will make me sad. We have to see Kenneth and Aisha's decision with this, but the way everything has been going I can't help but feel worried.
* If Buck receives bad stories upon bad stories, I can see Oliver leaving soon. He loves the character and he's probably not satisfied with how it has been played out for the past 2-3 seasons.
Tl;dr: Eddie's plot is the best, Maddie and Hen get decent screentime, Bobby and Athena's short addition is sweet, Chimney is underutilized, and Buck is an oversaturated mess.
9-1-1: Starting Over (2022)
Filler Finale
Majority of this review will contain rant, so apology in advance and beware.
Kristen Reidel wants a "lighter" finale where everything is calm and everyone gets to have fun. However, it felt like she mistook "calm" as "monotonous and boring."
* This episode has multiple emergencies. People love multiple emergencies in one episode and some of the finale certainly has used this format, Season 2 comes to mind. However, we have three emergencies in this episodes and only one of them is remotely interesting and/or relevant to the episode title. The cliffisde truck emergency ends on a weirdly underwhelming note considering the slot it has on the advertisement; no injury to the 118 crew, no clear resolution, nothing? If they want to pull some sort of metaphor with it, at least make it look interesting for casual viewers. That maggot emergency... Looks like Kristen has weird maggot fascination considering she was the one giving idea to the botfly emergency in Season 2 finale. It's fascinating the first time, it loses its charm on the second. The pregnant lady emergency is cute and heartwarming, but the show gives too much time for the couple's flashback. We have something similar in "Buck, Actually"'s elderly gay couple Thomas and Mitchell and both of these emergencies lead to Buck's love epiphany, but the flashback on "Buck, Actually" is more fitting since they're telling a love story that spans decades, not seven (I think they say the amnesia couple has been married for seven years, but the point still stands).
* Eddie and May's arc for the season ends on a whimper in this episode. Given that they made sure to mention them making a decision for the future in the synopsis, at the very least the show could do is allowing them to make the decision onscreen. Instead, we first hear about May's on a passing when someone tries to derail a conversation and Eddie's decision is depicted on him sliding down the fireman's pole on a wide shot where he's at the back of the group. This is frustrating since May's arc is at the center of this season's best episode (May Day) and Eddie's arc is arguably THE best arc of the entire season. No another heart-to-heart discussion between May and Athena about May finally trusting Athena and Bobby to be safe with their work? No Eddie telling Buck he's coming back to the 118 soon and Buck's overjoyed reaction as they patch Eddie's wall? No long-overdue 118 group hug after all their core members are officially back? No mention of the team not named Bobby and Buck acknowledging and knowing what Eddie went through? That small talk with Christopher is cute, however.
* I like the concept of Hen and Karen's vow renewal, even though it's yet another "kids having to forgive their parents for something terrible said parents did" kind of story (Toni admitting being wrong for not coming at all is still good). The crew seemed to be having fun with the amount of behind-the-scene contents they posted after the episode aired, but the actual product could've been longer. Slow dancing, hearing the actual vow, people congratulating on their vow renewal, surprise emergency, so much content could've fit this scene. Instead we get like 45 seconds of it.
* Buck and Taylor's breakup feels anticlimactic after a full season of agony watching two people who are not romantically compatible together. What's funny is that Eddie and Buck's breakups with their respective girlfriends were supposed to be written by Kristen, yet the quality can't be more different. Sure there are some interesting parallel between the two like how both of them are staying in the relationship because they felt like they had to, the characters having blue and green clothing, Buck and Eddie barely reacting to their exes trying to give comforting touches, and the breakup showcasing the girls' negative trait (Ana's ignorance regarding disability and Taylor's unethical journalism and her unapologetic behavior about it) yet it feels different in a bad way. Eddie and Ana's breakup is more well-acted, well-directed, and emotional, which is a huge feat to accomplish for a relationship so skeletal in storytelling. It almost feels like Buck and Taylor's is allegedly a cheap attempt at copying it. Also, the amicable shot at the end when Taylor put the place where Buck works on in a huge inconvenience? Undeserved.
* I know people are tired of talking about it, but Lucy's overall addition to the show is a waste of production cost. Her hyped up role as someone who made Buck felt alive is a huge flop even for Facebook fans her scenes had to be cut because none of the things Arielle teased would be coming exist. What we got as a consequence of that is NOT a "Breath of Fresh Air" since either it's a trait someone already has (the first emergency in "Fear-o-phobia" has her act like Buck with the random trivia) or it's a storyline that fit someone else's story better (The rescue at "Dumb Luck" befits Ravi's more as a probie). The forced confrontation with Taylor about Buck is cringeworthy because of the missing context, although the context and that whole story line should've never made it outside the writers' room in the first place but I digress. The teased story about being a firefighter in a family of cops has a huge potential as a letdown since "Desperate Measure" shows a bias toward cops that feels insensitive after what's been happening with the force lately in real life, although a more serious version of Red vs Blue where Lucy's family as the representation for cops are finally portrayed in a bad light for covering for to cover Lucy's crime (as her exit from the show) may be interesting to be explored next season. At the end, Chimney's comment as the writer's representation about the 118 loving Lucy does not match what the viewers have seen about the character thus making it feel very hollow and unearned. To be frank, I don't want her back.
Season 5 for some parts felt very underwhelming. Some character's storyline was unimpressive for majority of the part (Especially Buck's storyline that doesn't include Eddie and/or Christopher. Seriously, that relationship is such a painful thing to go through, the way they tried to spice things up with a pseudo love triangle crashes and burns in the most horrible way, that conflict with Chimney is so unsatisfying the way they made them talk it out offscreen, where's the "Fun Buck," Oliver?!), some have interesting concept but needs better execution (Maddie and Chimney's, although it's more of the production trying to accommodate her absence for pregnancy and post-pregnancy but Chimney missing for half of the first half of the season feels so wrong), while some has good execution and concept but lacks a feeling of closure (the way they put May's decision to go for college from offhand comment and no fanfare for the 118 finally being complete now that Eddie officially rejoins the team and Chimney's back from bringing Maddie home? Really?) the only one with decent and interesting screentime being Hen despite some hiccups (his advice toward Buck kissing another woman is baaaaad). The weakest part is that majority of the emergencies lack the surprise factor the show used to have and the setup for the one-off characters are too long for something to be interesting (the spider emergency for example spends too much time with the pet sitter and the spiders).
The show needs to let go of their sense of complacency and make an effort to be better. One of the first things I suggest is to demote Kristen from the co-showrunner seat and put someone more competent to replace her. She may have written some good episodes, but her run as a co-showrunner has been... less than stellar for the past 2 seasons. Yes, she's been taking some portions of the showrunning in Season 4 and yes, while we have some good episodes in that season it still feels like a downgrade Season 5 only takes that further downhill.
9-1-1: Fear-o-Phobia (2022)
Someone Please Pay Eddie's Back Pain Therapy for Carrying This Episode On His Back
Let's get the negative out of the way.
NEGATIVE:
- The mess that is Buck and Taylor's relationship. Even if they want to go with "An insecure and lonely girl who wants to be seen as a strong woman," Taylor's writing is off. She has no friend despite being work-driven in a field that requires networking? She says "I'm not sure if I really need to know that(the cheating)" despite putting emphasis on the truth being everything 5-6 episodes ago? Buck not telling the complete truth about the girl he kissed at the bar? Are they really trying to keep this relationship, which is almost devoid of proper communication and understanding between the two, so that they can have a cheap and overused love triangle drama between Buck, Taylor, and Lucy? Way to make the "flirting and poking" comment Kristen, Arielle, and Oliver seem to be excited about during their interviews even more gross. Oh, and I've seen fandom's analysis about it but general audience who don't like this story don't have that patience to analyze and wait.
- Lucy and Jonah haven't warmed up to me as people I want to care for. Lucy chiming in during paramedics' discussion, being awkward with Buck, and commenting about Chimney's height feel unnecessary, and I don't think that's the moment with the 118 Arielle's talking about because they don't excite me. That spider emergency having the patient suddenly having cardiac arrest and Jonah solving the problem quicker than Hen makes me suspicious of him instead. I know it's too early to judge, but the effort is still lacking.
- A lot of things that can be an interesting plot point happens offscreen. Offscreen Maddie and Chimney breakup. Offscreen Eddie apologizing to Bobby. Offscreen Chimney and Buck talking about the punch. Instead we're stuck with a character that serves minimal plot importance (Lucy and Jonah) and the painfully dull Buck and Taylor's drama.
Now let's go with the good things.
POSITIVE:
- Eddie's storyline. Eddie's trigger to the breakdown being the comrades he pulled out during the helicopter crash all dead is unexpectedly heartbreaking. The teased breakdown is awesome, sad, and surprisingly deep (poor Christopher). Eddie finally starts opening up to someone after being defensive during his session with Frank. This storyline looks more properly written and thought-out. Ryan, Oliver, and Gavin did AMAZING in that scene despite only having 3 minutes of screentime.
- Maddie finally confronting her fear. The offscreen breakup sucks especially after an episode dedicated to them, but Maddie does need to confront her issue alone, and it's a short callback to what happens with the Doug situation, Maddie approaching the bathtub doing which is something similar she did after what happened with Doug. Her talk with Albert is refreshing. Chimney finding Madding giving bath to Jee is heartwarming.
- That scene of Chimney visiting 118. It's great to see the banter between him, Bobby, Hen, and Ravi and the talk about fish is kinda funny I have to admit.
- Gas n Sip Ruth making comeback is a delightful surprise.
Final thought: It's unfortunate that they have to mix the positives with what I personally hate. However, I refuse to give bad rating because that breakdown scene doesn't deserve to be dragged down by the ugly parts of the episode.
I WANT MORE PROPER STORY FOR EDDIE, CHIMNEY, HEN AND RAVI. STOP WITH OVERUSED AND CHEAP DRAMA THAT IS LOVE TRIANGLE. STOP ADDING MORE PEOPLE WHEN YOU STRUGGLE JUGGLING CHARACTERS' SCREENTIME AS IT IS.
The Pass (2016)
Chamber Sports-Related Movie With A Closeted Gay and Timeskip.
*WARNING*: This review will contain spoilers. I relatively don't hold back when giving away spoilers. This is also rather lenghty.
So yeah, from the title, you can guess the ending. If a gay movie contains one of the above, they usually have either downer or bittersweet endings. It's kind of pattern I notice when watching this type of movie. Then again, it's because I don't watch much and when I decided to, well...
Back to the review. This movie is divided into three timelines in three different hotel rooms; One night before Jason and Ade's first football match in a team, five years after that, and another five-year skip. The first part is of course filled with interactions from the two boys which end with boundaries crossed with hints that Jason is attracted to Ade before the kiss. The point after this is where their path diverge. Jason go on to become famous football player living in luxury while Ade takes a plumber job. Both have ups and downs, which is revealed when they finally meet ten years later. Ade may not work within the field he had been dreaming of anymore, but he has a stable life. Jason may live in luxury, but he feels nothing but emptiness from a career that demands public image filled majorly with people who suck up to you because you're famous but talk crap behind your backs as demonstrated by the bellboy Harry which cost him his mental health, sense of self (in this case being honest about himself especially his sexuality) and by extension his chances to pursue the one he truly loves, not to mention a knee injury (which ironically may or may not be contributed by a humorous knee-hitting scene at the beginning of the second timeline) and scandals that sooner or later will force him to retire. Jason tries to "mend" his choice by inviting Ade over after years of not returning Ade's "pass." That, having a man who loves him, and Jason's not making a sincere-sounding attempt at trying to rekindle their relationship, cause Ade to unsurprisingly leaves Jason alone, thus making this film's conclusion another case of missing out on true love.
Being a chamber movie with timeskips, there are two possible justifications; This is a low-budget movie, and this is an adaptation from stage play, and it shows. The dialogue can be a bit pretentious for the lack of more appropriate term. The lack of fund prevents them to actually show life outside the hotel room like public's reaction toward their performance in the field which could enhance the basic premise they are trying to sell. As for the ending, one side of me want Ade to see that no matter how Jason has ignored him for years and how horrible he is when they meet again (insulting his ordinary life and failed football career), the alcohol, painkiller addiction, and insomnia clearly show that he needs help even as a friend. The movie could also use another timeskip to see Jason and Ade after this, especially Jason at the lowest point of his life to show how the lifestyle affect those involved, and how they will interact after seeing each other (but that means we wouldn't have been able to use a hotel room anymore if that had happened, right?). On the other hand, however, it is only logical for the movie to end that way.
Gripes with story aside, this is a relatively well-made. We are taking the brunt of reality check that that choices in your life in general have their consequences. In Jason's case, he chose to pursue his career despite his promise to help Ade, and as shown his life is in downward spiral as the movie progresses. During those transitions, Russell Tovey's acting as Jason, which is important in this type of movies especially when it revolves around his character, is very convincing and feels alive it becomes the biggest highlight of this film. Seeing that he reprises the role from its original 2014 play, this is not a surprise. He's also gay too so that's an added advantage.
Bottomline: The chamber and stageplay-adaptation nature of this movie makes the story progression a bit slow, expository, and tedious. The ending may not make most people in the target demographic happy. This movie is watchable nonetheless. I still wish the movie had ended in a more positive note. Now excuse me if I go watching movies with happier ending now.