S03.E03: The Searchers

[SnoGirl]

Poor Buck. I hope someone tells him to see a therapist-he’s had a rough couple of months. I cannot believe this is the same character from the first season. He might be my favorite character now. I loved that his character was focused only on Christopher once he got bounced from Fire Truck. Him hiding from Eddie, and then trying to tell him broke my heart.

And then the woman asking if Eddie was Buck-you know the first thing Christopher did was tell this woman about Buck missing. I know they were going for the long-game with not knowing if Christopher was alive. I wish we had scene him been found. Part of me thinks he was a pain in the ass at first wanting to look for Buck to make sure he was okay.

Annnnd now I’m shipping Eddie and Buck. It probably won’t go anywhere but dang-those two have great chemistry. Plus with Christopher? Love their little family.

Loved the squad too. Chim and Hen were awesome. Bobby’s concern for Buck was very fatherly. Can’t wait to watch this one again.

Edited October 8, 2019 by SnoGirl

[gonzosgirrl]

2 hours ago, Jennabelle88 said:

I knew from the moment we saw the woman carrying him that it was Christopher, but I guess I forgot Athena didn't know what we knew. I kept screaming in my head, "That's Christopher! Don't you recognize his red jacket?!" She didn't know what he was wearing. She didn't know he was even out! Lol

But I wonder why Christopher didn't recognize her voice? I guess we can assume he was exhausted and/or sleeping, but it's a bit thin. Also have to question why the woman wouldn't say to the police officer, that she'd found this disabled young boy.

[starri]

While a box of lost kittens is always going to be a tough one, I didn't full on lose it until the last scene.

We're going to find out that Christopher 'ships Buck and Eddy too.

[Jennabelle88]

23 minutes ago, gonzosgirrl said:

But I wonder why Christopher didn't recognize her voice? I guess we can assume he was exhausted and/or sleeping, but it's a bit thin. Also have to question why the woman wouldn't say to the police officer, that she'd found this disabled young boy.

Well Christopher is not really around Athena a lot, right? She's part of the police force and Eddie is a firefighter. That's my assumption. 

[Irlandesa]

I am surprised that the woman didn't tell the officials that she had a kid who had lost his parents.

And I'll out myself as the dunce.  I usually see things like Christopher being the kid she was carrying.  It never occurred to me this time.

[DragonFlyzz]

On 10/7/2019 at 9:05 PM, gonzosgirrl said:

I'm not crying, you're crying.

Nope, I’m not crying.  My eyes always look like this.  What’s that on my face?  Uhh ... the roofs leaking and I looked up just in time to get nailed by a couple of drops.

[Emily Thrace]

I wonder with the scene at the end with Athena's daughter means we might get a story with her yet. I wonder if after what happened she decides to say screw college I'm going to be a paramedic. And Athena thinks she should still go to college and Bobby ends up seeing the daughters side.

[marina707]

3 hours ago, starri said:

We're going to find out that Christopher 'ships Buck and Eddy too.

Totally. I'm waiting for the episode where he tries to play matchmaker for them.

[DisplayyName]

15 hours ago, Regalbegal said:

If you would have told me during S1 that I would cry multiple times during an episode bc of Buck I wouldn't have believed you.  Even though I knew they were not going to kill off Christopher, this plot line was heart wrenching. And all of the shipper joking aside, the supportive friendship that has grown between Eddie and Buck is really sweet. 

Well, that's weird. I always thought he was great, even in s1. When Abby was leaving, for example or when he lost the kid on the rollercoaster. He has beautiful, expressive eyes. It seems like he's a pro now when it comes to crying to the camera and he gets so much praise for these last 3 episodes, but I also loved him when he was more amateur at the beginning of the show, I felt as though he tried his best and his emotions were sincere in s1 and s2.

One of my favorite parts of last night's episode was when Buck called his sister to tell her what happened. He asked for help, but he knew that she couldn't do anything to help him, he just called her in sheer desperation, like a kid who wants to get consoled by his mom. Hi Maddie, it's me Buck, my life is over. I found Buck's attitude rather self absorbed btw. I lost someone's kid oh fuck Eddie is going to kill me, hide me, i'm bleeding out but nevermind, don't cry for me, i don't matter *sad music plays*. But it kinda fits the situation. "I lost someone's kid, my life is over." I think I would react the same way so I'm not judging him, it's just an observation.

Also, the part where he tried to tell Eddie what happened. I felt his pain, in his head he was probably begging Eddie to murder him fast. I know I said I wanted Eddie to be mad at Buck, but i'm happy he didn't blame him at all, their dialouge at the end was well written. I loved it when Eddie said he's Christopher's father and he's failed him so many times or something like that. Yeah, parents aren't perfect, but if you love the kid he should be fine.

I say nice things about the episode because it had great moments, but I absolutely loathe the whole ' Is Christopher alive or dead ' storyline and find it disgusting. The kid is in the black tent in a black bag, just kidding, he was alive and right in front of our eyes the whole episode. 

[methodwriter85]

5 hours ago, marina707 said:

Totally. I'm waiting for the episode where he tries to play matchmaker for them.

Oh, that's totally happening, as well as the talk, "Well, sometimes boys only like girls and not other boys as well."

[Bad Example]

20 hours ago, Xantar said:

Ouch. During one of the last scenes, you can see the other Fire Captain lying in the hospital with a green sleeve over his left arm. That was clearly supposed to be taken out so that it would look like he had a missing arm. Some visual effects artist fell down on the job.

Good catch.  I noticed the green sleeve and just accepted it without engaging my brain as to why it was there.  

[AheadofStraight]

On 10/8/2019 at 11:15 AM, Xantar said:

Ouch. During one of the last scenes, you can see the other Fire Captain lying in the hospital with a green sleeve over his left arm. That was clearly supposed to be taken out so that it would look like he had a missing arm. Some visual effects artist fell down on the job.

I came to see if anyone else caught this. I was wondering if they were supposed to have re-attached his arm, lol. Clearly that was a boo-boo.

I noticed this episode was directed by Chad Lowe, Rob's brother. Just caught my eye, probably because Rob will be in the spin-off. 

[Clanstarling]

On 10/7/2019 at 6:16 PM, SimoneS said:

Athena is fierce. 

She is indeed, but I was a little annoyed with her checking out the sounds she heard by herself after she ordered her guys to call for backup if they heard anything.

On 10/7/2019 at 10:48 PM, Mystery said:

I knew that Christopher would end up being (well, supposed to being) the child that the lady was carrying in several scenes. There was no other reason for her to keep showing up with him.

The second I saw her, I knew it was Christopher, so I was able to relax and wait for him to be found.

On 10/8/2019 at 8:15 AM, Xantar said:

Ouch. During one of the last scenes, you can see the other Fire Captain lying in the hospital with a green sleeve over his left arm. That was clearly supposed to be taken out so that it would look like he had a missing arm. Some visual effects artist fell down on the job.

You know, I saw it, and it registered, but I shrugged it off as a specific type of bandage they use for amputations. Sort of right! LOL.

13 hours ago, DisplayyName said:

Well, that's weird. I always thought he was great, even in s1. When Abby was leaving, for example or when he lost the kid on the rollercoaster. He has beautiful, expressive eyes. It seems like he's a pro now when it comes to crying to the camera and he gets so much praise for these last 3 episodes, but I also loved him when he was more amateur at the beginning of the show, I felt as though he tried his best and his emotions were sincere in s1 and s2.

I think it was his initial womanizing and doing stupid things with the firetruck that bugged me in the first season. It overwhelmed those storylines for me. But I liked him in season 2.

4 hours ago, AheadofStraight said:

I noticed this episode was directed by Chad Lowe, Rob's brother. Just caught my eye, probably because Rob will be in the spin-off. 

Chad Lowe! I used to love him in "Life Goes On." For a little while, I thought he was cuter than Rob (but that might have been before Rob rehabilitated his image)

[SimoneS]

I didn't guess that woman had Christopher. I was just happy when she showed up with him alive and safe.

Edited October 9, 2019 by SimoneS

[Fireball]

On ‎10‎/‎8‎/‎2019 at 1:34 AM, Azi said:

Lena was... okay? She was not a disaster or anything, but she's one of those people where you can see that they're acting. I'm all for seeing more badass women, but I really hope she's not going to be Eddie's love interest.

Ugh I think the show really telegraphed that Lena is going to be Eddie's love interest. I'd love if I was wrong since 1) I don't think the actress is very good and 2) I hate the whole story of people working together and being in a relationship. Especially when in reality people would never be allowed to date another firefighter in the same house. Maybe I'm wrong and Lena doesn't join the 911 crew, but the preview made it seem like she does.

19 hours ago, DisplayyName said:

[...] but I absolutely loathe the whole ' Is Christopher alive or dead ' storyline and find it disgusting. The kid is in the black tent in a black bag, just kidding, he was alive and right in front of our eyes the whole episode. 

I agree.  The whole lets put Christopher in danger really lessened my enjoyment of the episode. I mean Christopher being in danger gave the actor playing Buck time to shine and it was highly unlikely that the show would kill off Christopher, but I still didn't like it. 

I also feel a bit cheated that we didn't get to see how Christopher survived.

[MoreCoffeePlease]

Quote

Lena was... okay? She was not a disaster or anything, but she's one of those people where you can see that they're acting. 

Bleh. I thought she was terrible. I so do not want her to be a regular, or to be Eddie's love interest. Drat. Don't mess up my favorite show, people!  Can't you see she can't act?!?

[iMonrey]

Quote

I noticed this episode was directed by Chad Lowe, Rob's brother. Just caught my eye, probably because Rob will be in the spin-off. 

There's going to be a spin-off? Oh for the love of Pete. Why can't networks just leave shows alone? All spin-offs ever seem to do is cheapen the original. I know that didn't used to be true in the past but now the networks are hot to do cross-over "events" that turn each show into a springboard for the next. Instead of being a show in its own right it just becomes a vehicle to service another show. 

[Raja]

16 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

There's going to be a spin-off? Oh for the love of Pete. Why can't networks just leave shows alone? All spin-offs ever seem to do is cheapen the original. I know that didn't used to be true in the past but now the networks are hot to do cross-over "events" that turn each show into a springboard for the next. Instead of being a show in its own right it just becomes a vehicle to service another show. 

I think it as more of a nameplate than a spinoff taking a character for the new show. Even before the MCU introduced true integration taking a character from a new show and putting him in an existing hit in a backdoor pilot is SOP. So CBS, went through CSI and NCIS. NBC now has Chicago and FOX seems ready to link its cop shows to 9-1-1.

[gonzosgirrl]

50 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

There's going to be a spin-off? Oh for the love of Pete. Why can't networks just leave shows alone? All spin-offs ever seem to do is cheapen the original. I know that didn't used to be true in the past but now the networks are hot to do cross-over "events" that turn each show into a springboard for the next. Instead of being a show in its own right it just becomes a vehicle to service another show. 

At least this one is set in a different city and state (Austin(?) Texas I believe), so the crossover potential is slim, unlike the multiple Chicago-versed shows. And Rob Lowe. ♥

[DisplayyName]

16 hours ago, Fireball said:

[...] I agree.  The whole lets put Christopher in danger really lessened my enjoyment of the episode. I mean Christopher being in danger gave the actor playing Buck time to shine and it was highly unlikely that the show would kill off Christopher, but I still didn't like it. 

I also feel a bit cheated that we didn't get to see how Christopher survived.

It certainly gave Buck time to shine! I've been seeing tweets on my tl saying he's the show [with Eddie and Christopher being the perfect side characters to him]. I think it's more like, so far in the first 3 episodes of s3 he got a chance to shine while others not so much, which is ok, i've heard Athena gets a backstory episode and i'm sure the rest of the cast get interesting storylines too. I think they're all good when they get something to do. I hate it when there's a big cast and people start saying that one of them is the star of the show. He's very good, I just hate it when people get competitive. 

I didn't mind it when Christopher was in danger for the first time, it was a good way to highlight what an amazing kid he is and what an inspiring person Gavin is but the cliffhanger and the fact they made the viewers think he was dead for the entire episode after that... Damn, they don't need this stuff to make people watch the show, the ratings are better than ever now that the show is in the 8pm timeslot. i'm wondering how the actors feel about this storyline. I follow the actor who plays Buck on social media, he's lovely and he's always very excited when he has a big part in an episode and promotes the hell out of it but with this episode he was like 'watch the show, the tsunami storyline ends' lol. Maybe he was just busy, I don't accuse him of hating the storyline and don't want to project my own feelings onto him. I hated it, that's for sure lol.

[mojoween]

I will never understand why Ronda Rousey keeps getting hired for acting jobs.

Nomenclature.

[Raja]

3 minutes ago, mojoween said:

I will never understand why Ronda Rousey keeps getting hired for acting jobs.

Nomenclature.

She's the big fish from a little pond. This is the first time I didn't see her fight, even if she did threaten a fire fighter with her broken ribs.

[Ohwell]

9 minutes ago, mojoween said:

I will never understand why Ronda Rousey keeps getting hired for acting jobs.

Nomenclature.

My guess is that since The Rock and John Cena have been successful as actors after their wrestling careers, they're giving a female an opportunity now.  Problem is, while these guys are likable and have at least some acting chops, she can't act her way out of a paper bag. 

[Court]

This show. Dang it, I cried twice. It amazes me that Buck has become my favorite when I hated him in the beginning of the first season. 

[PamelaMaeSnap]

On 10/8/2019 at 11:15 AM, Xantar said:

During one of the last scenes, you can see the other Fire Captain lying in the hospital with a green sleeve over his left arm. That was clearly supposed to be taken out so that it would look like he had a missing arm. Some visual effects artist fell down on the job.

I had my eyes closed through all of the scenes I thought even MIGHT be amputation scenes ... so when I saw him with the green sleeve on his arm, I thought "Wow, even with all his screaming, did she actually MANAGE TO SAVE HIS ARM AFTER ALL???" I never even thought about the green screen! Kudos.

Also, I immediately latched on to the fact that the woman was carrying Christopher during the first scene where we saw her ... not sure if we were meant to assume she did not speak English or why she would not have said anything about carrying around a disabled/unconscious child that wasn't hers otherwise. 

Finally, during the scene at the end with all the people coming to the fence where all the "Missing" signs were, with flowers or to post more flyers, I KNOW I am not the only one who harkened back to 9/11 (and the coincidence or not that it was 9-1-1). 

Edited October 11, 2019 by PamelaMaeSnap

[SimoneS]

I didn't realize that Rhonda Rousey was joining the cast for the whole season. Ugh,why? She can't act and lacks charisma.

[ESS]

20 minutes ago, SimoneS said:

I didn't realize that Rhonda Rousey was joining the cast for the whole season. Ugh,why? She can't act and lacks charisma.

Spoiler

Actually I don't believe she is because according to the press release for 3x06 Monsters that I read her name isn't in the credits anymore so I assume that's when they'll be writing her out somehow.

Edited October 12, 2019 by ESS

[Raja]

1 hour ago, SimoneS said:

I didn't realize that Rhonda Rousey was joining the cast for the whole season. Ugh,why? She can't act and lacks charisma.

She is a sports superstar, it is a big cast and any acting can be hidden by the B and C storylines in any particular episode.

[SimoneS]

9 hours ago, Raja said:

She is a sports superstar, it is a big cast and any acting can be hidden by the B and C storylines in any particular episode.

If she is staying for the whole season, then I do hope that she is kept in B and C stories away from the main cast which has gelled and is very strong.

[Clanstarling]

I can't say I'm thrilled with Rousey's character, but I'll give her time on the acting. Practice makes better.

[Chaos Theory]

As much as the show likes to blow up Los Angels it has always been more about the internal effects of the line of work these people do.  The deep guilt Buck feels for simply not holding on to a child in his care has the potential for a decent story.

I have no issue with Rhonda Rousey being a part of the show.   She was fun on Fast and Furious and you know she can do those action scenes.   I am just hoping she isn’t being brought in as a love interest for Eddie or even worse Buck.

Don’t screw with my fake relationship between Eddie and Buck.

Edited October 12, 2019 by Chaos Theory

[gonzosgirrl]

Oliver Stark earned TV Line's Performer of the Week honors for this episode. Well deserved.

Edited October 13, 2019 by gonzosgirrl

[marceline]

On 10/8/2019 at 11:15 AM, Xantar said:

Ouch. During one of the last scenes, you can see the other Fire Captain lying in the hospital with a green sleeve over his left arm. That was clearly supposed to be taken out so that it would look like he had a missing arm. Some visual effects artist fell down on the job.

I watched on Hulu and didn't see that. I saw a stump. 

Edited October 13, 2019 by marceline

[Clanstarling]

14 hours ago, marceline said:

I watched on Hulu and didn't see that. I saw a stump. 

I watched on Hulu too - and I did see the green sleeve. Weird.

[SuprSuprElevated]

On 10/12/2019 at 11:20 AM, Clanstarling said:

I can't say I'm thrilled with Rousey's character, but I'll give her time on the acting. Practice makes better.

I'm one of those naysayers in the background wondering why the people who have perhaps gone to school to learn the craft, aren't given an opportunity.  Well, I don't really wonder, I know it's a matter of money.  The money which producers bank on being the result of having a known entitiy vs an unknown.  Same gripe I have about sports journalism.  On-air jobs going to ex-jocks, not journalists.  Intellectually, I get it, but philosophically, I don't like it.

End of rant.

[SonofaBiscuit]

Huh, I guess I didn't realize that Buck's name is actually Evan.  I thought his first name was Buck, lol.

Mark another one down for the Buck/Eddie shipper column.  None of their love interests on the show have ever come close to having the kind of chemistry that they have with each other. 

I did LOL at the Ed Sheeran song playing at the end of the episode.  Buck was sitting all alone in his apartment and the song lyrics were saying "When I'm away, I will remember how you kissed me.  Under the lamppost back on 6th Street.  Hearing you whisper through the phone.  Wait for me to come home."  The music stopped, and as soon as it did, Eddie knocked on the door.  Is that supposed to mean something?  I don't know, but I chucked.  

[Clanstarling]

3 hours ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

I'm one of those naysayers in the background wondering why the people who have perhaps gone to school to learn the craft, aren't given an opportunity.  Well, I don't really wonder, I know it's a matter of money.  The money which producers bank on being the result of having a known entitiy vs an unknown.  Same gripe I have about sports journalism.  On-air jobs going to ex-jocks, not journalists.  Intellectually, I get it, but philosophically, I don't like it.

End of rant.

I appreciate the philosophical dislike. I'm a writer and I cringe when certain celebrities get mega contracts for books. But to be fair, occasionally some of those turn out to be pretty good.

There are many paths that people take to creative fields. There are those who've been immersed in it from childhood on, those who accidentally happen upon it on a lark, and still others who have their first careers in something else, and want to pursue a different creative side. Study doesn't necessarily make a good actor (or writer), and lack thereof doesn't necessarily make a bad one. So while, yes, casting a celebrity is a money call- it doesn't mean they can't do well. I mean, Dwayne Johnson may not be Sean Penn, but he's pretty good at the types of roles he plays.

That being said, she's not very good (yet) and may never be. But I willing to wait and see - especially since I'm not sure if it's her or the character I'm not crazy about at the moment. Because that type of character always irks me.

[SuprSuprElevated]

3 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

I appreciate the philosophical dislike. I'm a writer and I cringe when certain celebrities get mega contracts for books. But to be fair, occasionally some of those turn out to be pretty good.

There are many paths that people take to creative fields. There are those who've been immersed in it from childhood on, those who accidentally happen upon it on a lark, and still others who have their first careers in something else, and want to pursue a different creative side. Study doesn't necessarily make a good actor (or writer), and lack thereof doesn't necessarily make a bad one. So while, yes, casting a celebrity is a money call- it doesn't mean they can't do well. I mean, Dwayne Johnson may not be Sean Penn, but he's pretty good at the types of roles he plays.

That being said, she's not very good (yet) and may never be. But I willing to wait and see - especially since I'm not sure if it's her or the character I'm not crazy about at the moment. Because that type of character always irks me.

You make valid points.  

[AheadofStraight]

On 10/10/2019 at 2:15 PM, Raja said:

I think it as more of a nameplate than a spinoff taking a character for the new show. Even before the MCU introduced true integration taking a character from a new show and putting him in an existing hit in a backdoor pilot is SOP. So CBS, went through CSI and NCIS. NBC now has Chicago and FOX seems ready to link its cop shows to 9-1-1.

Thank you - I knew "spin-off" wasn't quite the word I was looking for but all that came to mind. "Franchise" is probably more apropos!

[kwnyc]

On 10/8/2019 at 1:26 PM, methodwriter85 said:

At the rate we're going, I'm expecting season 4 to deal with a sudden volcano appearing out of the La Brea tar pits.

You correctly predicted an episode of 9-1-1 Lone Star BEFORE it was on! Kudos!

[shapeshifter]

On 10/8/2019 at 1:26 PM, methodwriter85 said:

At the rate we're going, I'm expecting season 4 to deal with a sudden volcano appearing out of the La Brea tar pits.

16 hours ago, kwnyc said:

You correctly predicted an episode of 9-1-1 Lone Star BEFORE it was on! Kudos!

And, @methodwriter85, your post may have gone on in the minds of lurking writers to eventually spawn this year’s bat-poop crazy show La Brea, about a sinkhole opening at the La Brea tar pits, that creates a wormhole to 10K years BC!
 

Edited December 5, 2021 by shapeshifter