agathapenny

Bobby's episodes always break my heart. Have we ever met Bobby's brother? Because I feel like that would be fascinating. I feel like, since the network change, they've missed the mark on the big musical moments. One would have worked in this episode. I thought the song choice was wrong during Bobby and Athena's reunion after the cruise ship sinking.

It would make more sense if there had been any indication that Shannon and Eddie had some kind of epic love, but that's not at all what we've been shown of their relationship. They were terrible together, and spent more time apart than together. This obsession is just annoying and wreaks of trying to rewrite history — and Eddie's character. What we've seen of him for five seasons — he'd never behave like this. I hate when a show wrecks one of my favourite characters in a way that's unrecoverable. Because not only is Eddie acting like a jerk, the doppelgänger story is creepy as hell.

Obviously they've never seen/read Anne of Green Gables.

Yeah, I don't find that at all unrealistic. Even on this very show we had Athena's husband Michael just figuring out he is completely gay.

This show has the worst B-plots in the history of television, lol.

You make a good point about following Eddie and Tommy's relationship from Buck's perspective, but I don't know. I just think it make so much sense as Eddie's story. BiBuck makes perfect sense to me, too, but this particular story seemed tailor made for Eddie. The fact that both of them could make sense to me as bi is why I think it's even a possibility. Plus the fact that it would be ABC's way of putting their stamp on the show. Otherwise, I totally agree it seems very unlikely from a historical TV perspective to make both your main hunky males into each other (though frankly I'm convinced Carlos/TK on the spinoff is a direct result of the popularity of the Buck/Eddie ship). Anyhow, I'm not diehard that Eddie has to be with Buck (I have fan fiction for that), but as my favourite character I do want Eddie not to be stuck in this horrible storyline that makes his character creepy and unlikeable. That's where my main objection lies. I just want to see him have a good story, with or without a Buck romance. And right now, his character is being assassinated in the worst way.

Another great casting choice with Russell. All of Reenie, Colter, Colter's sister and now Colter's brother are great casting decisions. I wish the writing was as good as the casting. The last few episodes have improved a bit, but I keep expecting a lot more from both the mysteries and the personal stuff.

Like I said above, I think it was supposed to be Eddie's new relationship leading to a Buck/Eddie pairing, maybe even as soon as the end of this season. But with the switcheroo I think it's much less likely (unfortunately). Normally I'd say it's unlikely that a network would follow the fans in this way, but I think with the change in network it's actually really likely that was the plan at some point. What better way for ABC to endear themselves to the 911 fans than by putting together a pairing I'm sure they knew was popular with a good portion of the fanbase? I'm not sure why that plan seems to have changed — to the extreme detriment of Eddie. Buck's still golden.

I have to say, I wondered about this. I think it's crystal clear that when they started writing the Tommy story it was supposed to be Tommy and Eddie who got into a relationship. Tommy was clearly courting Eddie with dates meant to impress (flying to Vegas for a fight). The two were given everything in common from martial arts to basketball. Chris thinks he's cool. Eddie even had dialogue to the effect that he just clicked with Tommy, and isn't it wonderful when that happens. And Buck's story of realization was going to be his jealousy of Eddie and Tommy. So Eddie and Tommy were going to have a short relationship, just long enough for Eddie to admit his bi side, then Buck and Eddie were going to realize they were really into each other. It could just be that Buck's character is more of a favourite, so they decided to give him the good story instead. But if they are ever going to do Buck/Eddie they need to have Eddie realize he's bi as well, and nothing about the horrific story they've saddled him with leads to that realization. Whereas the the original bi story with Eddie easily leads both Buck and Eddie to a realization. Anyway, I've never seen anything to suggest Guzman turned down a bi storyline, or is in any way homophobic, but if he did, he's an idiot of the first order. Because everyone I've seen hates his current story for very good reason (it's awful), and makes his character unlikeable and moving backwards. I sincerely hope they don't get rid of Eddie — he's my favourite. That's the kind of thing that would make me quit the show entirely. I hope the second paragraph is true and we get that story.

Just a small nit pick: Eddie wasn't sitting in a restaurant nearby, the 118 was called to the scene of Shannon's accident, not knowing it was her. Eddie rode with her in the ambulance and was there when she died.

I thought Marisol was fine. But they absolutely have not treated her like a long-term addition to the cast. What do we know about her? That she's handy and almost became a nun. That's it! This does not a fully developed character make. So yeah, when I see her it's like "really? They're still dating?" I'm someone who thinks they should go ahead and do Eddie and Buck in a romantic relationship. But if they don't want to for whatever reason they desperately need to make a love interest a fully developed character with story and motivations of their own. This is why Athena and Bobby, and Chim and Maddie work as couples. I'm all for the "she doesn't exist at all" explanation, actually. I mean, this plot has already gone full soap opera, complete with look-alike, so why not retcon like a soap opera as well to get out of this mess? I can't believe I'm rooting for a brain tumour, lol. Sadly, I think it's just what it looks like. I've always been impressed with this show's ability to give the characters feet of clay while still making me love them all to pieces and root for them. I adore Bobby, in spite of the fact that he's responsible for the deaths of more than 100 people in a fire due to his addiction. I love Athena in spite of the fact that she smacked her kid across the face when he pushed too far after his abduction, or when she basically told Bobby she was ashamed to be seen with him due to her own issues of feeling like a failure over her previous marriage, and brought his dead family into it in the most insensitive but relatable way. I love Eddie, even though he was a terrible husband who signed up for the military without even talking to his wife and was initially terrified of being Christopher's father (at least his method of bailing was to do everything he could to provide what his wife and son needed monetarily, and he didn't cut all communication, which is why it's so much easier to forgive him than it is Shannon for her abandonment). The problem with this Eddie storyline is that it's just utterly unsympathetic. Who would act in this moronic fashion? It's not an "oh, I wish they hadn't done that, but it's exactly what someone would do". I've also always been impressed that this show usually has the characters act like they're smart. They usually do the intelligent thing, which is way more surprising than it should be in the world of television, but that's a whole other rant. To follow this story we have to believe that Eddie has completely turned his brain off, and not just for a split second of a bad decision, but for hours and days at a time. It would be like if Buck was still floundering around in the closet saying stupid stuff like he did when Eddie and Marisol surprised him and Tommy on their first date. No! They had him act like a damn adult, admit his momentary panic, and move past it. We already had Eddie go off the rails over Shannon with the whole street fighting/rage storyline. Given what we were shown of their relationship it's impossible to understand why Eddie would still be clinging to her to the point of obsession, unless there's something really wrong with his brain. I think it's rewriting the character (assassination) in a major way to suddenly have him string two women along when that's not who he fundamentally is, and he's seriously acting like a creepy villain in a movie of the week and it's bizarre, not interesting. I honestly don't know how Eddie could come back from this and still be a likeable character. It's not more understandable because she looks just like Shannon, it's more disturbing. I thought it was so refreshing for a father to be concerned that his son was treating girls badly when Chris was stringing a bunch of girls along, and he had Buck talk to the kid about it. That was a mere few episodes ago where Eddie explicitly expressed why this is wrong (note: date a bunch of girls or boys at a time, no problem, but don't lie to them) and that he doesn't get this kind of behaviour. And now we get this. It's just too hard to believe that Eddie is that emotionally oblivious not to see the parallel, or at least, not care, because, um, she looks exactly like his dead wife? What? I just can't get over how unbelievably creepy that is, picking up this unsuspecting woman because she's a dead ringer for your dead wife, and taking her out while, let's face it, pretending it's her. I wish I thought the writers and those in charge had given it as much thought as I apparently have. This just hit me as a such a weird direction for the show to go. Oh well, I'll keep watching for the disasters and rescues, which is really my favourite part.

I needed to vent. Eddie's story is straight-up character assassination. It is that awful. I admit, Eddie's my favourite, though I love the entire cast and think Peter Krause and Kenneth Choi are both phenomenal and the best actors of the cast. I was really hoping for Eddie to get a storyline, but let me tell you, this was not it. he's not just being turned into a total cheating jerk, which would be bad enough because it's so out of character, this is more like a mental breakdown. I'm actually hoping for a brain tumour at this point, or something, anything to explain this horrible direction they've taken the character. It just makes no sense and I can't see how they're going to take this story in any kind of direction anyone would want to watch. It's like watching a car crash in slow motion, and I can't stand second-hand embarrassment, so I think I'm out, at least of this story. What was so wrong with having a man on the show who actually valued fidelity and being in a monogamous relationship? Someone who actually wanted a permanent relationship and wasn't interested in flings? It was, frankly, refreshing. Now Marisol needs to run as fast as she can, and while she doesn't know it yet, poor Kim needs a restraining order, it's that f-ing creepy. Sure, Eddie's relationship with Marisol, much like his relationship with Ana, was boring as all get-out. But that could have been solved with, I don't know, writing some kind of actual story for them, if they really didn't want to go with a romantic relationship with Buck. Instead we get this — I don't even know what would be a strong enough word to call it. Do the writers not get that everyone ships Eddie with Buck because Buck is an actually interesting character who's been developed and they've had actual stories together? I would way rather have seen bisexual Eddie (though I don't begrudge Buck the story, since they're doing a good job with it). Last part of my rant: Eddie's relationship with Shannon was no better than his relationships with Ana and Marisol — in fact it was worse. They were a terrible couple who should have gotten that divorce (though Shannon's reasoning was BS). I hated Shannon and thought she was awful. Not because she abandoned Eddie, I could understand that, but because she apparently had zero communication with her son for almost 2 years. That is traumatizing for a kid, for whom you've been the primary parent his whole life. Yes, she was awful, and seemed to be exiting both of their lives yet again so she could find herself when she, thankfully, died. Eddie's delusion about this, after all these years, is yet another horrible aspect to this whole horrible mess. And not for nothing was Eddie's parallel in this episode a guy who kidnapped two women and a child to feed his delusion that they were his family. Stop turning Eddie into a creepy stalker, writers. He will never be able to have a relationship with Kim. The second she sees a photo of Shannon it's over. Eddie could never, ever introduce her to Chris (need I explain why?). And just given what she wore on the date and her hairstyle, she seems in real life to be absolutely nothing like Shannon was, so that's eventually going to clash horribly with Eddie's delusion. Desperate measures are already needed to salvage this.

I was so excited this show was back. Even with all the manipulations of the past I'd missed watching some truly wonderful dancing. And then I hit tonight and the gaslighting was just beyond belief. As if I'm not supposed to believe my own eyes, but instead just follow along with the judges like a good little duckling, like the studio audience clearly do when they vote. That was some next level BS tonight, sending Thiago, of all people home. He was far and away the best dancer on this season. In fact, he was one of the best dancers they've ever had and they treated him like excrement. First they saddle him, the most technical dancer they have, with the total mismatch of Essence, the least technical woman on the show, so he cannot show what he can do in his own style the first week. That dance was clearly dumbed down for Essence to be able to perform. And even given that, it was not nearly as bad as the judges would have had us believe. They both showed plenty of emotion in it, especially Thiago. And how, how the hell did we wind up with Thiago, of all the dancers, getting the "technical but unemotional" edit? What horse hockey. Then, he shone in Essence's style, even though the choreography was somewhat lacklustre. And tonight, Thiago and Alexis clearly had one of the best dances of the night. I knew it was over when the judges inexplicably decided that was the one dance of the entire evening they were going to pan. Insanity! I agree that the choreography wasn't especially outstanding, unfortunately (see the end as the music builds to a crescendo, and the choreography — doesn't), but Thiago and Alexis made the absolute most of it. This was no cutesy dance where they could gaze longingly into each other's eyes — what the hell more connection did they expect? I thought the connection was evident not only when they looked at each other, but when they extended their beautiful matching lines. This, this dance got panned when there was that awkward salsa (to this day, I can't remember a single thing he did), and it had no right to be as disconnected from one move to the next as it was when he is a ballroom specialist; that lacklustre African jazz (choreography was great, execution was lacking); and that horrible Bollywood (why the hell is Waverly still here? He's been terrible in everything to date). The only other really good one of the night was actually Beau and Jordan's beautiful Viennese Waltz. I have to hand it to Beau, he seems to bring out the best in everyone he dances with and can find the chemistry. Definitely the best she's been on the show. And this after Virginia was completely stunning last week, essentially dancing with a lamp post (sorry James fans, I love him too, but he couldn't keep up and wasn't long for the show — he just didn't have the training). She had an amazing core strength and incredible stretch and toe point and but got no recognition for it, just dumped. But Thiago was really something special and I feel so cheated. I think I'm out for the season. I feel like we're watching some terrible teen movie where everyone goes ga ga over the conventionally attractive quarterback and we're supposed to pretend he's the best thing since sliced bread, when he's about half the dancer Thiago is. Not once was Thiago given credit for his incredible strengths, or really given a chance to shine. I still thought he shined anyway, and I hope he knows how special a dancer he is and that this is just utter stupidity. This show has pulled some gaslighting before, but never have I seen them deliberately get rid of their best dancer this early in the game. Big mistake. They've lost this viewer at least.