S01.E04: Act Of God

[formerlyfreedom]

A massive tornado sweeps through Austin, as Owen, Michelle and their teams races to save those in its path.

Airing Monday, February 3, 2020.

 

[meatball77]

Yeah, tornado don't work like that.

It was fun though.

[anna0852]

Getting better. Loving the open communication between people. Judd and Grace can fight and make up. TK can be pissed at Owen but then embrace. Mateo gets the probie chores but Owen also sits with him after the tornado dad died. I also love the beat of Owen deferring to Judd's experience and acknowledging his expertise. First with the silo and now the tornadoes. 

Also really liking that not only is religion part of the responders lives but that it's different religions. And that there is struggle in faith. It's not blind following but questioning. I kind of love it.

 

[Bulldog]

This week's rescues were at least more interesting, but oh boy, does this show come to a grinding halt when it focuses on personal lives.

So, the nefarious owner of the mysterious blue truck (gee, I wonder how many of those there are in Texas of all places) is so shady that they let their picture be taken (and then the sister apparently puts it in a photo album that nobody ever bothered to look at prior to the tornado aftermath).

It was thoughtful of the tornado to keep its debris out of the roadways and give the units clear paths to their calls.

Probie is basically useless.

Why was Marjan so concerned about her rescues being caught on camera by the news crews?  Isn't humility supposedly one of the tenets of her religion?

Judd and Grace continue to be my favorites.  I would totally watch a show based on just the two of them. (A much better show, I'm sure.)  

Edited February 4, 2020 by Bulldog

[slasherboy]

Why are their uniforms always so pristine?

[Jade Foxx]

Hokey; still watchable. 

[Jillybean]

4 hours ago, slasherboy said:

Why are their uniforms always so pristine?

Probably the same reason that surgeons on ER, Grey's,  etc always come out of surgery in immaculate scrubs.

[Raja]

Since we really don't know the characters yet it didn't play as well as the earthquake or tsunami episodes of the mother-ship. 

[Lady Calypso]

So...still holding on, episode by episode. This one was a bit better but, again, it helps that I tuned out everything Michelle-related. Luckily, there was a bit less Michelle, especially interacting with the regular cast, so it was easy to go do something else when she had her scenes with her mother. 

Well, finally TK knows about Owen's cancer. It's unfortunate that Owen didn't tell him himself, but...I guess it turned out alright. 

So...I guess Marjan's schtick is being on camera, proving herself to be a hero? That...could get very annoying very quickly if they don't tone it down. 

The tornado storyline could have been better...y'know, if we knew the characters better....But it seemed like the only ones affected were the woman in the car, and the family that had the dad die. 

Judd and Grace are great, but I need way more Grace than what we're getting. So far, Judd, Owen, and Michelle are the ONLY ones to really get any character progression. Judd, in particular, is getting some great character moments. Grace is still really just there to prop up Judd. No, having one simple scene in the call centre doesn't really count for me. 

Yeah....I mean, I'm taking it episode by episode, so...I'll watch next week. But they gotta develop the other regulars way more. 

For example, the Probie is basically just there to be kicked around by the other firefighters. Marjan's there to be the camera hog. Paul's there...to cook or something? I dunno. I don't even know if his name IS Paul, for sure. 

Carlos...didn't even show up this week, did he?? If he did, I missed it. If he didn't, I didn't notice until about two minutes before the episode ended.

[msrachelj]

I guess the father should have not abandoned the poor cat, all he had to do was reach over and grab it, and he would most likely not have died. I can't stand when people just disregard the pets that should be treated as family, they have a responsibly to protect them. So sick of seeing so much neglect and abuse that even things like this set me off. 

[SuzieQ]

7 hours ago, Jade Foxx said:

Hokey; still watchable. 

BAM! I find myself picking it apart the entire hour, but it still entertains enough to keep watching. 

I think Rob Lowe is basically playing himself, a narcicisstic, stuck on his looks, aging guy trying to hang on to his youth, except he's in a fire captain's uniform.  and still I watch, lol.  Had a crush on him since Brat Pack days.  I'm sure he's insufferable in real life, but he is fun to watch.

[Chaos Theory]

I am sorry it’s a personal pet “no pun” peeve with me when people think it’s heroic jumping into lakes or risking their lives to save a pet when they have kids.  Especially when they have kids.   Now the fathers two kids don’t have a dad because one of them sent him to rescue a cat that was fine and dandy under a bed. 

I thought it was funny though after all the legitimately heroic stuff done during the episode what was put on camera was a fireman handing out water.  I think that was kinda the joke.  Not a Muslim woman being prideful because she is still human and enjoys her job.   But after doing a legit action stunt to turn around and have the cameras be off to be exasperated for a second is very human.

 

 

 

Edited February 4, 2020 by Chaos Theory

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, Chaos Theory said:

I am sorry it’s a person pet “no pun” peeve with me when people think it’s heroic jumping into lakes or risking their lives to save a pet when they have kids.  Especially when they have kids.   Now the fathers two kids don’t have a dad because one of them sent him to rescue a cat that was fine and dandy under a bed. 

Yeah, as a mother of 3, I would not have gone back for Casper (our cat in the 90s when my kids were young) even though I would have mourned his loss *if* he had not survived --which he might have. 
Regardless, I did think that story was above average in its complexity. Likely the child that asked the father to go back for the cat will have serious guilt for the rest of her life, and possibly the brother will resent her (or he might just appreciate having her).  
However, had the father not gone back for the cat, likely all of them would have died in the rubble when it collapsed in the next hour or so after the crew found the father, as likely they would not have noticed the house for several days without the father asking for help.
So the writers brought up the pet-in-the-tornado scenario and then neatly sidestepped any moralizing about the correct course of action. We do not know if the cat survived, and do not know if it was trapped in the collapsed house. 

ETA: And the writers resisted the urge to name the cat Schrödinger.
And now I'm guessing Schrödinger's Cat did come up in the writers' room. 

 

Edited February 4, 2020 by shapeshifter

[CoderLady]

18 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

So the writers brought up the pet-in-the-tornado scenario and then neatly sidestepped any moralizing about the correct course of action. We do not know if the cat survived, and do not know if it was trapped in the collapsed house.

 

Tickles survived. They showed someone holding him while the rescue workers were discussing how to find the kids. 

[Jillybean]

Judd said the father needed to be checked out. Owen took the side of the father and allowed him to skip a medical check so he could tell Owen where to look for the kids. I thought this might come up...but they just glossed right over it. 

[shapeshifter]

59 minutes ago, CoderLady said:

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

We do not know if the cat survived, and do not know if it was trapped in the collapsed house.

Tickles survived. They showed someone holding him while the rescue workers were discussing how to find the kids

I missed that. Thanks, although I still think “the writers brought up the pet-in-the-tornado scenario and then neatly sidestepped any moralizing about the correct course of action” because the cat might have survived (or not) in either scenario, and likely the father would have died in either scenario.
And the outcome of the father going to save the cat yielded orphaned (perhaps guilt-ridden) children, but if he had died before help arrived (15 minutes or so), likely the children would have died alone in the second collapse. 
I wonder if this was on cable instead of network TV if the writers would have killed off the pet and the children and had the father survive —or maybe had him die too?

Edited February 4, 2020 by shapeshifter

[auntiemel]

I don't think he went back for the sake of the cat. I think he looked into his little girl's eyes while she was begging him to go back for the cat, and in that flash of a second, he couldn't stand for her to look at him as the guy who let her down and didn't save her pet--he wanted to keep being her hero. So, he made a foolish and ultimately fatal decision. But I get why he did it.

They'd also set him up earlier as trying to "up his stock" post-divorce, so he probably had a lot of that going on, too.

Count me in with people who want to see 1000% more Grace. She's the best!

[iMonrey]

As someone who grew up in tornado alley I find Hollywood's interpretation of tornadoes constantly laughable. They either have no idea how tornadoes work or simply don't care. 

Quote

Why was Marjan so concerned about her rescues being caught on camera by the news crews?  Isn't humility supposedly one of the tenets of her religion?

I wondered the same thing. I suppose this is the show's way of defying stereotypes, but they're trying to have their cake and eat it too. She's devout enough to insist on wearing the hijab but also wants to be a camera whore because she enjoys the fame and adulation. Pick a lane, lady.

Quote

No, having one simple scene in the call centre doesn't really count for me. 

So far the show has been neglecting the 9-1-1 part of 911. I think this was the first time we even saw the damn call center to any extensive degree. I keep forgetting Grace even works there.

Quote

I guess the father should have not abandoned the poor cat, all he had to do was reach over and grab it, and he would most likely not have died. I can't stand when people just disregard the pets that should be treated as family, they have a responsibly to protect them. So sick of seeing so much neglect and abuse that even things like this set me off.

Yes, yes, I admit it, I'm one of those crazy animal people so when they stood up to run to the bathroom the first thing out of my mouth was "what about the cat??" I mean it wouldn't have taken 2 extra seconds to scoop him up. And it hurts my heart that no one in the family thought of the poor thing in that moment. My pet would be my first thought. 

(Now, in reality you hear the tornado sirens WAY before the tornado gets anywhere near you, so you have plenty of time to move everyone and everything down into the basement or wherever you're going. Assuming you have sirens which, in a big city like Austen, you would.)

That's not to say pets are just as important as children, by any stretch. But if you just completely forget about the pet in the moment, you probably shouldn't have one.

Edited February 4, 2020 by iMonrey

[RyjackAunt]

19 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Now, in reality you hear the tornado sirens WAY before the tornado gets anywhere near you, so you have plenty of time to move everyone and everything down into the basement or wherever you're going. Assuming you have sirens which, in a big city like Austen, you would.)

Not necessarily. I live in Dallas & maybe had 15-20 seconds between the siren & a tornado ripping through my neighborhood last October.
My eyes practically rolled out of my head watching those huge tornadoes on this show last night. Ridiculous that Hollywood doesn’t do more research before filming a disastrous tornado. It was incredibly unrealistic.

[DearEvette]

7 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

Judd and Grace are great, but I need way more Grace than what we're getting. So far, Judd, Owen, and Michelle are the ONLY ones to really get any character progression. Judd, in particular, is getting some great character moments. Grace is still really just there to prop up Judd. No, having one simple scene in the call centre doesn't really count for me. 

Yeah....I mean, I'm taking it episode by episode, so...I'll watch next week. But they gotta develop the other regulars way more. 

I love Judd and Grace's dynamic.  They actually feel like a married couple.  Since Judd's storyine and character is so interesting, I am not too mad that for now she is his support system mostly, since I think it is done well within the context of  their marriage.  But I agree the actress just comes across as so grounded and together it would be nice for Grace to get some shine of her own.  I do like how they are portraying her wrt to her faith.  A lot of times tv wants to emphasize the more radicalized parts of evangelical Christianity or make people obnoxious bible thumpers.  But she just comes off like just a  person who happens to go to church and believes in God. Added to that I liked Judd's concession to go back to church on Sunday but to draw the line at Tuesday bible study.  I feel you there Judd.

I also agree that the other characters who are not Owen, Michelle or TK needs some development and fast.  I think they are spending way to much time on Michelle's sister drama.  Maybe it is supposed to try to capitalize on  Liv Tyler's specific acting strengths because  because each episode I find her less believable as a paramedic. 

Hating the idea that Marjan wants to be seen doing heroic rescues.  I get that she is a sort of Insta influencer or whatever, but she should draw the line at the fire and rescue work she does.  Makes me think less of her.

[izabella]

34 minutes ago, DearEvette said:

I love Judd and Grace's dynamic.  They actually feel like a married couple.  Since Judd's storyine and character is so interesting, I am not too mad that for now she is his support system mostly, since I think it is done well within the context of  their marriage.  But I agree the actress just comes across as so grounded and together it would be nice for Grace to get some shine of her own. 

I like them a lot as a couple, and think Grace is so pretty!  I wish they would light Grace's "home" better for her beautiful skin, though.  She should be glowing, but the lighting or odd filter that they use for this show is terrible.

[DearEvette]

17 minutes ago, izabella said:

I like them a lot as a couple, and think Grace is so pretty!  I wish they would light Grace's "home" better for her beautiful skin, though.  She should be glowing, but the lighting or odd filter that they use for this show is terrible.

Ugh yes.  The filter on this show makes everyone look like they just walked out of a coal mine.  On her, since her skin is darker, it not only makes her look as grimy as everyone else, it leaches any tone out of her skin.   I mean, there is an art to properly lighting darker skin on film anyway, but this show just exacerbates it x100.  Here is a picture of her in natural light.

[UnknownK]

That bathroom looked pretty messed up and the tub was turned over. Considering the father would not have fit in the tub with the kids you can't say he would have survived the storm even if he didn't go back for the cat.

Funny thing is the cat was sitting in a freaking box when they got up to leave, would have been simple just to close the flaps and take it along. Once the cat was under the couch I would have left it since it was as safe as it was going to get anyway.

Looking at the guys injuries he would have died from massive internal bleeding with medical attention anyway. Without the father yelling for the kids to get them to speak the firefighters would have probably left to get other more vocal (alive) victims help so he did his job.

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, DearEvette said:

Hating the idea that Marjan wants to be seen doing heroic rescues.  I get that she is a sort of Insta influencer or whatever, but she should draw the line at the fire and rescue work she does.  Makes me think less of her

I’m still hoping she just thought it was cool that any member of the team completed the rescue and survived that drop onto the jump cushion moments before the car fell. Or at least the writers could easily retcon it to be that. 

 

4 hours ago, izabella said:

I like them a lot as a couple, and think Grace is so pretty!  I wish they would light Grace's "home" better for her beautiful skin, though.  She should be glowing, but the lighting or odd filter that they use for this show is terrible.

Their home was cave-dark! Should I offer to bring some lamps?

 

9 minutes ago, UnknownK said:

That bathroom looked pretty messed up and the tub was turned over. Considering the father would not have fit in the tub with the kids you can't say he would have survived the storm even if he didn't go back for the cat

Another point to add to my list of how they did a really good job of illustrating that there were no clear cut right and wrong decisions for the father. Ultimately he was determined to save the 2 kids and then the cat, and all 3 did survive. But a parent who also saw their own survival as crucial to their children’s well-being might have managed to save all—or not. 

[meatball77]

Having the kids go in the bathtub is correct but they should have grabbed a mattress to go on top of the tub, the tub doesn't protect you at all, it's just a solid place to be and the mattress will protect you from the debris if your house falls on top of you.  While you may not have a lot of time once the sirens go off it's not like you wouldn't be able to notice the massive thunderstorm and the tornado watch and have been watching the weatherman on the tv.

[saber5055]

This was a pretty good episode. Typically, storm chasers know when tornadoes are coming, and tv is 24/7 with local weather showing radar that has hooks so they can predict where a tornado might be. And spotters on the ground are constantly calling in. Yet sometimes one can just drop out of a cloud unannounced. Still, sirens, show. And the fire house should have had weather radio/tv weather on instead of harping about who ate what for dinner.

I'm not surprised that dad died since the tornado hit at dinner time and rescue didn't get there until noon the next day. Geesh.

A couple times I heard the cat's name as "Tinkles." Heh.

So Michelle and the medics live in the same station as the firefighters. Yeah, odd that Owen didn't run into Michelle while he was redecorating/rebuilding the station and had to meet her on a call. *hand wave*

Michelle's mom had to call her at work to come home RIGHT AWAY because the shed didn't blow down in the storm? Geezy pete, writers.

TK was a total dick to his dad when he found out about the cancer and made it all about himself and threw a self-absorbed tantrum. Such a total dick. Can't stand him.

Judd is my fav character. I like him, I like the actor, I like his dialogue, I like his relationship with his wife. He and Rob Lowe own this series.

Edited February 5, 2020 by saber5055

[stonehaven]

I was one to write this off but gave it another shot. This is the best one yet. All that saidm I would easily take 911 original back any day now...

[llongori]

10 hours ago, iMonrey said:

(Now, in reality you hear the tornado sirens WAY before the tornado gets anywhere near you, so you have plenty of time to move everyone and everything down into the basement or wherever you're going. Assuming you have sirens which, in a big city like Austen, you would.)

Austin resident here.  The city of Austin has no tornado sirens.  And we don't have basements because most of Austin sits on limestone covered with a thin layer of soil--too hard to dig into. 

Wouldn't they have had weather warnings from local news?   If they were watching a subscription service or even a cable channel, those warnings would not have come through.  You only get their notifications if you are watching the particular channel.  I can speak to this because I compulsively watch bad weather warnings and reports, shuffling between channels to see who's reporting live.  I don't know why...

I guess a better question is why he didn't have any of the dozens of weather apps that will ping your phone when something is going on.

Edited February 5, 2020 by llongori

[AdorkableWitch]

2 hours ago, llongori said:

Austin resident here.  The city of Austin has no tornado sirens.  And we don't have basements because most of Austin sits on limestone covered with a thin layer of soil--too hard to dig into. 

Wouldn't they have had weather warnings from local news?   If they were watching a subscription service or even a cable channel, those warnings would not have come through.  You only get their notifications if you are watching the particular channel.  I can speak to this because I compulsively watch bad weather warnings and reports, shuffling between channels to see who's reporting live.  I don't know why...

I guess a better question is why he didn't have any of the dozens of weather apps that will ping your phone when something is going on.

Some cable systems will interrupt programming on all channels for tornado warnings. Doesn't help if you are watching a streaming service. This is why having a weather radio is so vital. If you don't have one, you need one.

[HunterHunted]

My work (45th and Lamar) does have tornado sirens, but the city doesn't. During a tornado siren drill at work, we all ran outside. No one knew what they were. We were all told we were dead at the end of the drill because it was actually a tornado siren.

Tornados don't often touch down in central Austin because it's too hilly. When they do, they tend to hop. It happened once at work about 5 years ago; pulled up some 100 year old trees. I also had part of one of my oaks punch through the roof and the house got struck by lightning (Burnet and Anderson) in the same storm. The same storm pulled up trees that sliced through other neighbors' cars and homes like butter. My neighbor from across the street looked out from their front door to watch my home be wrecked while not a single leaf was disturbed on their property.

The city does have a water crossings and weather maps that you can sign up to. The city provides updates via text. I have to figure out how to update since selling my house.

That being said, the reason airplanes tell adult passengers to secure their own oxygen before helping children is because an oxygen impaired adult isn't help to a child without oxygen. Like dude, you're more help for the kids and the cat by making sure you and the kids are safe. 

Edited February 5, 2020 by HunterHunted

[shapeshifter]

45 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

That being said, the reason airplanes tell adult passengers to secure their own oxygen before helping children is because an oxygen impaired adult isn't help to a child without oxygen. Like dude, you're more help for the kids and the cat by making sure you and the kids are safe. 

Now I'm wondering if he never flew on an airplane and heard that very valid point.

[Sam Spayaid]

I thought that the first show was bad (911)  but THIS?!!! A whole new level of how truly horrible a show can actually be and much like the other fiasco, actors like Rob Lowe have also been infected with the Angela Bassett I Forget How To Act Disease. Shut this off after 10 minutes. Super terrible. 

[saber5055]

11 hours ago, llongori said:

Austin resident here.  The city of Austin has no tornado sirens.

Wow, that's some shocking news. Why no sirens? I guess the show writers didn't know that since at the beginning the AUSTIN SIRENS sent dad and the two kids to the bathtub. Made me wonder why the fire station didn't have a siren or weather alert, they had to go outside to help the flag probie and see the tornado. If they hadn't done that, they could have all been killed while sitting around discussing what Owen had for dinner.

[HunterHunted]

49 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

Wow, that's some shocking news. Why no sirens? I guess the show writers didn't know that since at the beginning the AUSTIN SIRENS sent dad and the two kids to the bathtub. Made me wonder why the fire station didn't have a siren or weather alert, they had to go outside to help the flag probie and see the tornado. If they hadn't done that, they could have all been killed while sitting around discussing what Owen had for dinner.

They have gotten so many details about Austin very wrong from the beginning. Also flooding should have been a bigger concern because there are substantial parts of town that were designed by idiots who forgot that it rains with some regularity in Austin. Why are there even businesses on Shoal Creek at 4th? It's a bowl. That part of town has substantial floods every 5 to 10 years. 

Yes, I know this flooding wasn't from a tornado, but the point is that Austin gets a lot of wind and flooding damage in storms. Fire and rescue are constantly saving people from cars that have decided to ignore low water crossing barriers and from homes that have washed away from floods. Homes will just be swept off their foundations.

If you want to tell the story of Austin fire and EMS, it's injuries, car accidents, fires, and floods.

[Raja]

13 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

They have gotten so many details about Austin very wrong from the beginning. Also flooding should have been a bigger concern because there are substantial parts of town that were designed by idiots who forgot that it rains with some regularity in Austin. Why are there even businesses on Shoal Creek at 4th? It's a bowl. That part of town has substantial floods every 5 to 10 years. 

Yes, I know this flooding wasn't from a tornado, but the point is that Austin gets a lot of wind and flooding damage in storms. Fire and rescue are constantly saving people from cars that have decided to ignore low water crossing barriers and from homes that have washed away from floods. Homes will just be swept off their foundations.

If you want to tell the story of Austin fire and EMS, it's injuries, car accidents, fires, and floods.

Well the franchise just had a tsunami 2 part extravaganza. A few flooded streets on its heels would have been subpar 

[saber5055]

17 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

Yes, I know this flooding wasn't from a tornado, but the point is that Austin gets a lot of wind and flooding damage in storms.

Thanks for the inside info from the real Austin. The show writers totally missed an opportunity there given that it was raining like Noah had built an ark, all while waiting for the tornado to hit.

Maybe that's next week? Floods swamp that country bar and the mechanical bull shorts out and electrocutes everyone? Hey writers, story idea here!

[iMonrey]

Quote

Austin resident here.  The city of Austin has no tornado sirens. 

Wow. That seems shockingly remiss. Up here the sirens go off if the tornado is within 100 miles of you, or if it hasn't even touched ground. They have itchy trigger fingers. Which is almost just as bad because people learn to ignore them.

Quote

The actor who played the dad, also played a really horrible human being on TWD.   On that series, he suffocated an old woman with a pillow, strangled a doctor, and contaminated a water supply making many people sick and I think some died.

Yep. Took me a while to figure out where I knew him from. So when he died I just sort of shrugged and thought "Well, he was a total dick on The Walking Dead anyway."

I think we all knew the kids would turn out to be OK. I can't think of a show that would dare to let the children be found dead. Now that would have been a shocking twist.

[saber5055]

59 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

I think we all knew the kids would turn out to be OK.

Of course they would be. What was funny was, they only way they could be heard even making a breathing noise was with that sound amplifier. I guess the kids were asleep since it was at least 12 hours from tornado to rescue. But once Owen got in there, then everyone could hear everything. Sure, Owen was wearing an intercom, but still ... it's not like the collapse made the rubble sound proof.

I appreciated the make up department doing Owen's ash-loaded face when he got out from inside the crushed house. Even his eyelashes were loaded with dust. Nice job.

Although I'm not sure where all that dirt/ash came from inside the destroyed house. But ... hand wave. Still loved the eyelashes, Owen.

[shapeshifter]

3 hours ago, saber5055 said:

Made me wonder why the fire station didn't have a siren or weather alert, they had to go outside to help the flag probie and see the tornado. If they hadn't done that, they could have all been killed while sitting around discussing what Owen had for dinner.

LOL. I started watching this show because I had just binged The West Wing (first time viewing) and thought I'd like to see more Rob Lowe, but now I'm watching because it's mindless escapism, and because you, @saber5055, and a few others have funny comments. Plus my oldest daughter is a 911 call-taker/dispatcher.  But I really need to find something else more worthy on Netflix. 

 

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

Quote

Austin resident here.  The city of Austin has no tornado sirens. 

Wow. That seems shockingly remiss. Up here the sirens go off if the tornado is within 100 miles of you, or if it hasn't even touched ground. They have itchy trigger fingers. Which is almost just as bad because people learn to ignore them.

Same here. Tornadoes never touch down in my neighborhood because it's close enough to a 50 ft. bluff above Lake Michigan that serves to disrupt the cyclonic motion, so I am right to ignore the siren, but last spring I got freaked out when the local TV stations kept breaking in with the stations' weather people who were getting real time information from local people on Twitter. I actually went down to my little basement and swept it for 20 minutes, heh.

I didn't notice, did the show have the TV stations showing the weather people saying stuff like, "And here's a live video of a funnel cloud we just got from Suzy Brown at the Austin Burger King"?

Edited February 5, 2020 by shapeshifter
punctuation

[anna0852]

57 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

 

I appreciated the make up department doing Owen's ash-loaded face when he got out from inside the crushed house. Even his eyelashes were loaded with dust. Nice job.

Although I'm not sure where all that dirt/ash came from inside the destroyed house. But ... hand wave. Still loved the eyelashes, Owen.

Crushed drywall. That stuff gets everywhere. 

[ShortyMac]

18 hours ago, stonehaven said:

I was one to write this off but gave it another shot. This is the best one yet. All that saidm I would easily take 911 original back any day now...

Same.

[saber5055]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

I didn't notice, did the show have the TV stations showing the weather people saying stuff like, "And here's a live video of a funnel cloud we just got from Suzy Brown at the Austin Burger King"?

I might have missed it, but the only tv coverage I saw was of the probie handing out water bottles. Austin's weather people might have been off the clock that night.

Storm coverage here is OTT. It starts when storms are hours west of the tv station's city. It continues non-stop until the storms get east of the tv station, then regular programming comes back on. That's my WTH moment since I live east. Tornadoes freak me.

Thank you @shapeshifter. I like to have fun with my tv viewing. Meanwhile, Rob Lowe is nice to look at, I'll give this show that. And thinking about it, this show is much better all the way around than some other dramas I watch, so there's that.

[meatball77]

4 hours ago, icemiser69 said:

don't know how much good it does now to go hop in a new tub.  Most new tubs I have seen are now being made of plastic.  Hiding in a tub makes more sense when it is made of cast iron.

 

 

Guidance is to go to the most interior room in your house (typically a bathroom and often those rooms are made to be stronger), if it has a tub you get in the tub and put your mattress or something else on top.  Otherwise being in the tub doesn't do anything, you would be just as safe next to the sink.

[mojoween]

I was hoping Marjan getting pissed at the reporter guy for filming dad dying would put an end to her constant need to go viral but apparently not.

At night the blue truck in the picture would have looked black, no?

I feel like bad boyfriend’s dad would have used the score of the national championship game, not the year, for his gun safe combo but that wouldn’t have been as easy for Grace to get out.  

Apropos of nothing, I still remember where I watched that game.  I don’t even like Texas but I liked USC so much less than that, heh.

Oh my god Uber lady shut up.  Your fare is not interested in your prattle.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, mojoween said:

I feel like bad boyfriend’s dad would have used the score of the national championship game, not the year, for his gun safe combo but that wouldn’t have been as easy for Grace to get out.  

I was thinking it should have been the star player's jersey number, but, now that you mention it, a year is four digits, which combinations are these days.

[mojoween]

The score would have been four digits too and much more unique than 2005!  Although not so unique for Texas.

[Dowel Jones]

5 hours ago, saber5055 said:

I appreciated the make up department doing Owen's ash-loaded face when he got out from inside the crushed house. Even his eyelashes were loaded with dust.

"9-1-1 What's your emergency?"

"Oh my god, My captain just came out of a search and rescue, and his face is covered with ash! His skin is going to dry out!  Please hurry!"

"Okay, sir, we'll get a moisturizing unit on the way as soon as possible.  What's your location?"

"We're at the collapsed house.  My captain is the guy standing by the dad who just died because no one thought to examine him for injuries.  Please hurry!"

[tennisgurl]

This one was an improvement on the last few episodes, probably because it focused more on actual rescues than on personal drama, especially Michelles, which I am already over after only four episodes. It had some pretty good rescues, and some good character stuff, even if we are still only really scratching the surface so far. I am really glad that TK knows about his dads cancer, and while I think he was kind of harsh on his dad, I did love their hug and him telling Owen how he knows he will kick cancers ass. Which is not exactly how that works, but a positive attitude is always a good thing! 

I also appreciate how they do use Judd's experience in the area, like with the silo and with the tornado. Granted, its a tv tornado (so not much a real one) but it did lead to some decent drama. I hope the Uber ladies Etsy business picks up...pun intended. I really love the scenes between Judd and Grace, they have a great natural chemistry, they really do feel like a married couple. The discussions between them about faith were quite well done as well, and I am glad that they found a sort of middle ground. Judd is coming back towards religion...but not quite enough to commit to bible study!

The poor dad and his kids, thats really gonna hurt those kids. When shit is going down, this is why you grab the pets and run right away, dont just leave them! Kitty apparently hasn't run out of his nine lives anyway, as he was the one to get out of there without a scratch on him! The dad dying and not telling anyone was rather on the nose with the Owen situation, but still sad. Hear that Owen, take care of yourself so you can take care of you kids! The universe is not here for subtlety! 

I still suspect that Michelle's sister isnt really dead or in trouble, she probably got into trouble with the wrong crowd (bad crowds are infamous for their love of blue vehicles!) and disappeared to escape them, leaving her loved ones hanging. Maybe she got pregnant, and they will try to make us feel like she was justified because "she had to protect the baby" or whatever. 

[ribboninthesky1]

On 2/4/2020 at 12:54 PM, Jillybean said:

Judd said the father needed to be checked out. Owen took the side of the father and allowed him to skip a medical check so he could tell Owen where to look for the kids. I thought this might come up...but they just glossed right over it. 

Owen is a FATHER, you see, and could empathize in a way that Judd could not.  Never mind that he could have tried to persuade the father to get checked while they were looking for signs of life from his children. 

This episode made me realize that Rob Lowe annoys me more than Liv Tyler.  Don't care about cancer vanity or the possibly alive sister.   

[UnknownK]

On 2/4/2020 at 9:49 PM, meatball77 said:

Having the kids go in the bathtub is correct but they should have grabbed a mattress to go on top of the tub, the tub doesn't protect you at all, it's just a solid place to be and the mattress will protect you from the debris if your house falls on top of you.  While you may not have a lot of time once the sirens go off it's not like you wouldn't be able to notice the massive thunderstorm and the tornado watch and have been watching the weatherman on the tv.

The bathtub can weight up to 500lbs (cast iron not fiberglass) and can hold up to 82 gallons of water (x around 8.x lbs per gallon for another 670lbs). Because they are so heavy the are bolted to the floor and mounted next to a wall. The point of sitting in one during a tornado is that the odds of you getting tossed into the air are less then sitting in or under something lighter and closer to the center of the room, plus they act as a shield for things flying sideways like armor. Also bathrooms are small enclosed rooms with not a lot to fly around in the first place.

When I was younger my understanding was to crack open some windows so that when the tornado came close the air pressure had a chance to slowly drop and not cause the house to explode. No idea if that had any truth to it.