TVFAN

Word. Did anyone else think the doctor was far more Jamie's type than the partner?

I thought the main story was touching. (I never imagined a reformed hit man could bring a tear to my eye!) But why would Danny and Steve ever be foolish enough to pay ransom? That storyline made no sense to me. And is it over now that Danny shot the bad guy? Or is there someone higher up?

I really like all 4 finalists as people, but their designs simply do nothing for me. Sean - The designer I just don't "get" usually wins, which should make Sean the winner. I don't get why or where anyone would wear one of the designs he showed tonight. That white toga thing looks like something I could whip up with a curtain. (I felt the same way about the white dress he made last week.) I adore clothes and make a conscious effort to buy things that make my body look its best. I don't find his styles flattering to a woman's shape. Kini - I'm hoping poor, sweet, talented Kini can turn this thing around. His styles were not just old lady--they were old lady dressed for a funeral. There was no joy to his collection. But he could turn things around. As Nina said, that white top was darling. Pair it with a cute pair of pants or shorts, and I would wear it. Char - I would love to see her win. If she had the training of the others, I think she would be unstoppable. I love the fact that she actually used color. But Tim is right. She needs to keep working on the less is more concept. As Nina would say, she needs to edit. Amanda - I'm far from Boho, but I would actually wear some of her pieces. (I do wish that she and every other designer on the show would somehow accept that real women typically wear bras and fit the tops of their garments accordingly.) I fear she may have shot herself in the foot with her limited color palette, but I really could see her winning.

I thought this was one of the best episodes ever of Nashville. All of the story lines were solid, and Juliette and Avery were pure gold. I can see exactly where each is coming from in terms of their emotions. I wanted to smack Avery for breaking Juliette's heart, but I wanted to hug him because his own heart is broken, too. Now, that is powerful acting!

It was nice to see some character growth on the part of Penny. She was the grown up of the group and that's a huge step for her.

The best soaps (and let's be honest Nashville is a soap) have always involved situations in which the characters were not put in silos--they interact with lots of other characters, not just one or two. Seeing people in lots of different situations is how you build a character-driven drama. Nashville has improved, but it still has way too many silos. Teddy is a great example. He interacts with Rayna, the girls, and Deacon, but that's about it. What if Teddy started dating Juliette's assistant, Emily? She too is in a silo. I know she is just a minor character for now, but I'd like to know more about her. Putting Teddy and Emily together would give him the opportunity to interact with Juliette, Avery, etc, and would bring Emily over to the Rayna side of the canvas. Instead of adding new characters with no connection to anyone, I would like to see the show more fully develop its existing characters. That doesn't mean you can't have a new character or two. But I bet you could name lots of different characters on the show who should cross paths.

Just this once, can Juliette have a happy ending? Can she have a happy, healthy baby to love? Pretty please? (I want her to have Avery, too, but I'll settle for the baby.)

I hope this is the right spot to post this. I apologize if it is not. A new Chloe video is up on YouTube. It seems the dance wear company for which she is modeling has started a new "Nobody is You" program featuring Chloe. After watching poor Chloe suffer through tonight's episode, I needed just what the video offered.

I enjoyed this episode, too. It was nice to see Jaime and Erin featured more. Am I the only one who sees no chemistry whatsoever between Jaime and Eddie? I can't put my finger on exactly what's missing, but I think he needs someone who shares his sensitive nature.

Korina was eliminated, but they are bringing back some of the designers who have not made it to assist those who remain on the next project.

I have watched this show almost from its beginning, and I have never been happier to see a designer escape elimination. There is so much more to being successful than having raw talent. Grace under pressure, respect for others, and civility are every bit as important. Char accepted the added challenge without complaint, collaborated nicely with her partner, and produced a stunning garment. She was made of win tonight. I would hire her in a heartbeat.

I thought this episode was much better than last week's. We saw more characters, and the story lines moved along nicely. Score one for Juliette! Actually, score several for Juliette. She nailed her audition, kept her dignity with slimy Jeff, and stopped apologizing to Avery. I love Avery and like him with Juliette, but the truth is Juliette was dead right about his role in all this. He was supposed to be in a committed relationship with Juliette, but he spent the night with Scarlett in the hospital without even telling Juliette where he would be. Avery wanted to run around playing white knight for Scarlett because it stoked his ego. He could and should have supported Scarlett with Juliette by his side. He may not have cheated on her physically, but he did cheat on her emotionally. Granted, Juliette's drunken night with Jeff was wrong, but after tonight's episode, Avery will be throwing stones from inside his glass house if he brings it up again. Luke is not my favorite character, but he too scored some points with me tonight. If Rayna goes into her "I was rich but had such a tough life" lament one more time, I'm going to scream. And after skewering Lamar for not giving his girls enough attention because of his business interests, she does exactly the same thing to her girls. (And by the way, she didn't have a nanny because she had a Teddy!) Luke tried to point out the advantages she had without being mean to her, and he was refreshingly honest about how his lack of money as a child prompted him to make all he could as an adult. Deacon and Maddy's scenes were realistic. The poor soul simply had no idea what taking on a teenage girl would mean! I like Will, but his marriage to Layla has disconnected him from the main story lines. I wish they would send her off somewhere and pull him closer to Rayna, Juliette, etc.

Was the plot totally beyond belief? Yes. Did I enjoy the episode thoroughly? Yes! Friday night is made for pure escapism. The bad guys all went down, the scenery was stunning, and, best of all, the entire cast was featured.

I would have given the win to Kini. His look was adorable and really suited his client. Korina just makes the same thing every week. Plus, her attitude annoys the heck out of me. Please make her go away! I like Amanda, but I would not wear that particular ensemble to take out my garbage. I liked Emily's look, but it was just too busy. Those sleeves took away from the beauty of the skirt. Shar's look did nothing for her client. I would have eliminated her and kept poor Alexander. No one is blowing me away this year.

I enjoyed the show a lot, and I suspect that it will only improve as the characters become more fully developed. I hope ABC gives the show the time to do just that. This is the best attempt I've seen to fill the 9:30 slot.

Can they please just let Juliette be pregnant without a "Who's the Daddy?" arc? Make it Avery's and be done with it. Let the focus be on whether the two of them can repair their relationship or at least find a way to co-parent. Let Juliette deal with the realities of impending motherhood and with jump-starting her career. And please let her stop apologizing for everything! Rayna needs to go five minutes without a man. It would do her and her girls a world of good! And here is a horrible confession. I like Teddy. I always have. He has been a great father to both girls. And he actually gave Rayna the stability at home that she needed to make a go of her career. She had a stronger partner in him than she has in Luke or Deacon. Is he perfect? No. But his flaws have not bugged me the way they have some others. Love, love, love Deacon, but he and Rayna are just poison together.

I personally have no plans to purchase a gift for Jill and Derick's baby. But in fairness to them, they have not asked me to do so. Nor have they asked me to look at their registry. It's there for people who want to give them something, and I'm sure there are many people who for whatever reason wish to do so. What's wrong with letting those people who wish to give know what they would find useful? As I think someone upthread noted, it's that or get 1,000 pairs of booties. Their choice to create a registry is not exactly my cup of tea, but it doesn't make them bad people.

I like both Mary and Edith and have found it surprisingly easy not to take sides in their quarrels. A lot of factors come into their issues. First and foremost, they have completely different approaches to life. Siblings can be as different as night and day. The Padmuk incident aside, Mary is extremely conventional. She believes in following the "rules." They are reshowing Season 3 in my city, and I just watched her refuse to throw Lavinia under the bus to get Matthew back. Why? Because she did not think it would be cricket. I think she and Sybil, my favorite of the sisters, got along because Sybil followed the rules, too. They were not Mary's rules, but they were rules. Neither ever waffled from doing what they felt to be the "right" thing. Sybil believed that marrying Tom was the right thing--she followed the marry for love rule--and she owned what she did. Mary could respect that. In contrast, Edith follows her heart. She's twice had an affair with a married man. She did something she believed was outside the rules, and she has not been able to "own" it. She even said something last season like, "If Sybil had a baby out of wedlock, she would be fine with being ostracized by society, but that's not me." Second, birth order and the family dynamic do come into play. Mary is in many ways just like Robert, which explains why she is the apple of his eye. Sybil was in many ways just like Cora--not a stuffy bone in their bodies--which explains why Sybil was Cora's favorite. Poor Edith just doesn't seem to have a lot in common with either parent. It's not that they don't love her, they just don't get her. And she doesn't get them either. She doesn't know how to approach them. Mary may be Robert's favorite, but Sybil, the baby, could win him over with her sweetness every time.

I never understood why Andy ended up with Helen either. I never saw any spark between them at all. It wasn't the fault of the actress. The character was written as being so stodgy. And my view may have been influenced by the fact that she was around so much in the post-Barney years when Andy seemed far less happy. Peggy would probably have been my choice. They seemed to have fun together. I still remember a scene in one of Peggy's episodes where she was setting Andy's table while happily humming away. I can't picture Helen humming.

Word. Poor Juliette is so like Lady Edith on Downton Abbey. She can't catch a break. Rayna gets pregnant out of wedlock and still has men lined up to marry her. Juliette will be forced to wear a scarlet letter and apologize to everyone in Nashville. I don't dispute that Juliette is incredibly self destructive, but Avery was at fault on this one, too. He should have told Juliette that he was spending the night at the hospital. For that matter, he shouldn't have spent the night at the hospital with his former girlfriend.

Wow. This has been a disappointing season. There's usually someone I would watch in the mix, but not this year. Why don't they let some of the contestants from "Chopped" have a shot? At least they have mad cooking skills. I think they have things turned around. They look for people with personality and hope they can cook. I would start by assembling the best chefs I could find, and the competition would then revolve around finding one of those great cooks who can teach as well as he/she can cook.

Christine's meltdown made me think about how the family dynamic is changing. With the exception of Robyn's (maybe?), all of the nests are emptying. In three years, Meri will have 0 children at home, Janelle will have only 2 at home, and Christine will have only 3 at home. I wouldn't be surprised to see all three of them in school or at work by then.

I wonder if perhaps Christine is starting to feel what Meri has felt for so long? Am I wrong in thinking they said after Truely was born that she should not have any more children? She may be unhappy that now she is the one looking on while someone else adds the to the family. Perhaps that's why she spoke up so strongly about the importance of Meri finding something that made her feel whole. She may be thinking that as her children leave one by one, she is going to need something for Christine. Thoughts?

I think the show has gotten off to a very good start, but like every other show will need to evolve to survive. I like all the characters, including Farkle, who was not my favorite in episode 1. I agree with those who say Lucas and Maya should be endgame. (And given their ages, endgame should be a long way down the road!) They play incredibly well off one another. I also agree with those who say that Topanga needs to be more than the Mom. It would be nice to see her in her work environment. Maybe the show could do a take your daughter to work day? My key suggestion for change is to make Cory grow up. Mr. Feeney would never have tolerated the behavior of the students that Cory permits. Running in and out of class because you're upset is okay. Really??? You can leave detention when you've learned your lesson. Really??? They are writing Cory as if he is a student not a teacher and a father. He wants to be everyone's friend, and that's not his job. Corey and the others learned from Mr. Feeney because he did not let them off the hook. He acted like an adult. I think that's the biggest issue. The show does not have any adults. Cory and Topanga both have a way of still acting like they are part of the gang. On Boy Meets World, Cory's parents acted like grownups as did his teachers. (Granted, they jumped the shark with Eric and Feeney a bit.) I would love to see them bring in another adult, perhaps a vice principal or principal, who would whip Cory into shape as a teacher and serve as a Feeney to the students. Again, I think the show has gotten off to the a good start, but it still needs to find itself.

I think the expected reception food is very much a cultural and regional thing. I'm from a small city in the Midwest, and I didn't attend a wedding where dinner was served until I was in college! The normal fare was cake and non-alcoholic punch, and the normal venue was the church hall. Things have changed even here, and receptions have become more grand, but I could see the ladies at my church putting pickles on the table.