S03.E12: Fools

[jewel21]

The 118 responds to a viral stunt gone haywire, a disaster at a couple's fishing trip and an epic first date fail. Meanwhile, Athena investigates a woman who doesn't remember being shot in the head and Eddie is forced to have a difficult conversation with Christopher.

Airdate: 03/23/2020

[anna0852]

Something I've been wondering. When child actors are given tough subjects in a script do their parents get any input? Like tonight. Were Gavin's parents able to see the script and did they have to have a 'limitation' conversation with him? Or say, child victims on a show like SVU? Surely these subjects must spark questions from the little actors.

[BooksRule]

I think the fishing trip story in the description was last week, wasn't it?  (With Shari Belafonte and Greg Evigan?  Although if you go to imdb.com, Shari is listed for this episode also as well as last week.  I'm confused. 🙂 )

The 'bullet in the head' story turned out differently than I expected.  I thought we were going to find out that she tried to shoot her husband and the bullet ricocheted somehow and hit her instead (although I wasn't sure how she could have shot herself in the back of the head). Her husband tried to cover it up when she forgot about being shot (so she wouldn't leave him?).  I dunno. 

I loved seeing Patricia Belcher as the neighbor.  She's good in everything she does. 

[anna0852]

9 minutes ago, BooksRule said:

I loved seeing Patricia Belcher as the neighbor.  She's good in everything she does. 

That was the most cheerful I've ever seen Caroline Julian 😁

[elle]

 

Quote

The 'bullet in the head' story turned out differently than I expected.  I thought we were going to find out that she tried to shoot her husband and the bullet ricocheted somehow and hit her instead (although I wasn't sure how she could have shot herself in the back of the head). Her husband tried to cover it up when she forgot about being shot (so she wouldn't leave him?).  I dunno. 

I loved seeing Patricia Belcher as the neighbor.  She's good in everything she does. 

As soon as I recognized Steven Culp, I knew where the story was headed. I hoped they would surprise me and do something different.

I was also hoping the writers would surprise me by having Maddie give her friend the tough love speech of he needed to set aside his embarrassment to give a statement to the police to stop these guys, who are probably counting on him not to report for just that reason.  She did sort of say something to the affect that he wouldn't want this to happen to someorne else but didn't press it.  All of which means this will drag out over multiple episodes.

Once again Christopher and Eddie's story is the best thing in the episode.

Love Patricia Belcher, she makes everything better!

Edited March 24, 2020 by elle

[HunterHunted]

55 minutes ago, elle said:

I was also hoping the writers would surprise me by having Maddie give her friend the tough love speech of he needed to set aside his embarrassment to give a statement to the police to stop these guys, who are probably counting on him not to report for just that reason.  She did sort of day something to the affect that he wouldn't want this to happen to someone else but didn't press it.  All of which means this will drag out over multiple episodes.

Yep! I had the exact same thought. These guys are going to attack other people. They're going to seriously injure, put someone in a coma, or murder someone and Josh is going to feel like a shitheel.

[Lady Calypso]

I think they need to tone it down on the cases. I don't know whether they actually amped up the cases this second half or if it just feels that way, but it feels like 40% of the episode was just about other people. 

Athena's case with the woman who got shot in the head was actually decent. I was hoping for more of a twist than just the husband shooting her. That was pretty much established right off the bat and then they never detoured away from that....but I guess that's not a bad thing? It was a simple open and shut case. Plus, I had a good laugh at Patricia Belcher's character and Athena's sometimes partner wanting to give her a hug. 

Josh's story was pretty sad. It sucks that he got totally played and then got beat up and mugged by his date. I was hoping for Maddie to push a little more on getting Josh to actually report the guy but I guess, given her own history with abuse, I can see why she didn't. She knew it had to be Josh's choice and she wanted to be supportive, not have him push her away. In that sense, I can see why she made the choice that she did. 

Eddie and Christopher's story this episode was solid as well. I absolutely LOVED the ending, with them finding a way to get Christopher to skateboard. 

Also, I guess Christopher's English teacher is going to be Eddie's new love interest? She was alright, I guess. Not the strongest actress I've seen, but not terrible like Ronda. 

Once again, a Bobby-lite episode. I kind of like it. Sometimes, Bobby seems to overpower the show, so I appreciate that they seem to be spreading out the storylines in episodes with different characters. We even got an update on Chimney's brother still being there and on a date already! 

I also had a good chuckle at Josh thinking that Maddie might be setting up him and Buck and Maddie's reasoning for not doing so. I also appreciate Buck's chill response about that as well. 

[iMonrey]

Quote

As soon as I recognized Steven Culp, I knew where the story was headed. I hoped they would surprise me and do something different.

I know right? Does Steven Culp ever place nice people?

I thought it was fairly unrealistic for Eddie to fly off the handle like that just because Christopher fell down. I'm sure the kid has fallen before. 

On a side note, I have asked this more than once and never gotten an answer but I am glad the show finally spelled out for me what Christopher has. Maybe I'm dense and I was just supposed to know by looking at him but I didn't.

Buck can't get a date? Isn't this the same guy who commandeered a fire truck in the pilot episode to hook up with some random chick? 

[shapeshifter]

2 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Buck can't get a date? Isn't this the same guy who commandeered a fire truck in the pilot episode to hook up with some random chick? 

Yep. I guess without a fire truck he's got no game. heh

[ShortyMac]

5 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

I thought it was fairly unrealistic for Eddie to fly off the handle like that just because Christopher fell down. I'm sure the kid has fallen before. 

On a side note, I have asked this more than once and never gotten an answer but I am glad the show finally spelled out for me what Christopher has. Maybe I'm dense and I was just supposed to know by looking at him but I didn't.

Also, the school nurse would have cleaned and bandaged his scrapes. They would not let him stay all bloody like he was. 

They have mentioned his CP multiple times.

I am happy for the message they said with Christopher. Times have changed. I have CP, too, and my parents did the opposite with me: they would not let me try things because they doubted my abilities, and didn't want me to get hurt. I already knew that I was different, and shy, didn't have many friends, and 'othered' and ostracized at school (90s-00s) (I was never in special ed, all regular classes, including gym), and their actions made my self-confidence and self-esteem issues worse. It has affected me my whole life. It is okay if you have to do something in a different way, or if you fall, or fail. It is better to have the chance to try, or to go for something, than not, and have the 'what ifs' later. With support from my therapist,  I finally confronted my parents recently about this.  

I remember seeing that adaptation in a Facebook video that went viral, a mom doing anything for her son. I really hope that how society views disability is changing.

[HunterHunted]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

Buck can't get a date? Isn't this the same guy who commandeered a fire truck in the pilot episode to hook up with some random chick? 

The show seems to have forgotten that as recently as season 2 Buck was still getting sparks with women in the middle of rescues. They've bromantically paired him off with a fauxband and a kid and seemingly forgot that both guys date women. It makes sense for Eddie to be out of dating mode because he's still dealing with the complicated emotions surrounding the death of his estranged wife.

However, Buck has been on a sex sabbatical to not be a ho-bag for awhile. The fact that he's sexlessly coupled up is pretty much a sign that he's not such a ho. I'd rather it be purposeful if he's discovered that he's been using sex to substitute for emotional intimacy and no longer has the same sex drive. Or that he finds that he's more sexually fluid now. I don't really care, but it feels like weird wheel spinning. Buck feels safe hanging with Eddie and Christopher, but there's a part of him that seems to be hiding from having to attempt to have another mature sexual relationship with a woman.

[anna0852]

Buck had a serious girlfriend until the end of Season 2, when Allie dumped him after the truck explosion. And then he was dealing with serious injuries, the tsunami and getting his job back. I can see how he'd just now be starting to date again. And he was really clear about not going back to being 1.0 again. 

[BookWitch]

8 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

Josh's story was pretty sad. It sucks that he got totally played and then got beat up and mugged by his date. I was hoping for Maddie to push a little more on getting Josh to actually report the guy but I guess, given her own history with abuse, I can see why she didn't. She knew it had to be Josh's choice and she wanted to be supportive, not have him push her away. In that sense, I can see why she made the choice that she did.

Josh did say that he would take care of it in his own way. Wonder what that will be. 

 

At the end when the girl is giving the guy a plunger as a present, she gave him the wrong kind. The flat bottomed ones are for sinks. The toilet ones have a funnel type thing on the end.

[iMonrey]

Quote

They have mentioned his CP multiple times.

I have never heard them say it, ever.

Quote

Buck had a serious girlfriend until the end of Season 2, when Allie dumped him after the truck explosion. And then he was dealing with serious injuries, the tsunami and getting his job back. I can see how he'd just now be starting to date again. And he was really clear about not going back to being 1.0 again. 

Yeah I get that but what he was complaining about was how hard it is to be single and/or to find someone. He's never had that problem before. Josh, maybe, but Buck? No. 

[saber5055]

The eyeball thing was all kind of gag inducing until I remembered I've had eye-deadening drops for different tests, including an eyeball ultrasound, I still looked away for a bit.

The woman stuck in the window was all kinds of nonsense to me. I'd be able to wiggle back out of it, and I didn't see where she swelled up so gigantically that the guys had to cut the sill apart to get her out. Plus, unless she used the entire roll of TP, that was a pretty weak toilet to clog on some poop. I guess the show was going for comedy. Eh. Not funny.

I was really hearting the Young Frankenstein movie date, and was shocked when it went south. But I'd be all about turning those two guys into the cops. He can take his revenge later. Are people not suppose to know he's gay? If that's a problem, toss those people out of your life.

They didn't steal his credit cards and run to Best Buy to buy a bunch of big-screen teevees before ditching the wallet? Some crooks they were.

[Kleav]

49 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

Are people not supposed to know he's gay?

I don't think the problem is that he doesn't want people to know that he's gay. He feels like a fool for falling for the scam.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, saber5055 said:

The woman stuck in the window was all kinds of nonsense to me. I'd be able to wiggle back out of it, and I didn't see where she swelled up so gigantically that the guys had to cut the sill apart to get her out.

I imagine it was a boobage issue (takes one to know one).

 

2 hours ago, saber5055 said:

unless she used the entire roll of TP, that was a pretty weak toilet to clog on some poop.

Having been a renter for over 40 years --mostly for at least 7 years in one place-- many places have barely adequate plumbing. Probably the tenant/date/boyfriend would've known to turn off the water at the toilet and then troubleshoot.

[tennisgurl]

Poor Josh, I should have known that when he was getting so much screen time that something would go wrong with his date. I was expecting Maddie to give him a tough love speech about talking to the police about the guys that robbed him, especially considering her own history and feeling ashamed of being abused, but maybe its coming up later? 

I thought that the theme of the week would be Fools AKA dumb people doing dumb stuff, especially with the dumb YouTube guys back again, but it was actually about being a fool for love. The internet guy is desperate for the other guys to like him, the girl on the date trying to have a good love match despite everything, the wife refusing to see that her husband tried to kill her, even the subplots with Josh and Eddie (both him meeting his new love interest, and his love for Christopher causing him to act out of character) wrapped into it. The plunger date was rather cute. 

Dang Eddie, he really lost it on that poor teacher. I mean, kids do dumb stuff and fall, and yeah Christopher has physical limitations, but he was already fine. He also seemed to be pretty convinced that the other kids must have been picking on him or forcing him to skateboard to make fun of him, like he didnt buy it when Christopher's teacher told him that he was fitting in with his classmates. The teacher seemed nice, and not the type to join a fight club, so she is already a step up from his last love interest! The ending was really sweet though. 

Of course Chims brother already has a date! 

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I thought that the theme of the week would be Fools AKA dumb people doing dumb stuff, especially with the dumb YouTube guys back again, but it was actually about being a fool for love.

Yeah, I am still wondering if this was supposed to air around Valentines Day.

 

4 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Poor Josh, I should have known that when he was getting so much screen time that something would go wrong with his date. I was expecting Maddie to give him a tough love speech about talking to the police about the guys that robbed him, especially considering her own history and feeling ashamed of being abused, but maybe its coming up later? 

I expected that too and then when they didn't get it over with I thought: No. Not the same Maddie arc all over again. 
It's like she's still on Ghost Whisperer with her own COTW telling them to go into the light of conquering their fears and taking back the power and blah blah blah with perhaps SVU's Olivia Benson's image appearing in a crumpled piece of toilet paper as a sign to testify against the abusers. Kind of like a recurring nightmare within the show. 
Or maybe not and this will be the end of it?
Sorry, I'm old and have already lived and learned. I admit that it is probably a good message for the uninformed.
But this show isn't supposed to be a PSA . . . or is it?

 

[iMonrey]

Quote

I thought that the theme of the week would be Fools AKA dumb people doing dumb stuff, especially with the dumb YouTube guys back again

Wait, again? Have we seen these particular kids before?

[DearEvette]

Yes.  They were in the Season 2 premiere ep where that kid cemented his head in a microwave.

Edited March 25, 2020 by DearEvette

[Ohwell]

I've always said there should be a Stupid Jail where people do stupid things should serve 60 days.  I'm not kidding.    

[Tdoc72]

On 3/23/2020 at 10:42 PM, BooksRule said:

 

The 'bullet in the head' story turned out differently than I expected.  I thought we were going to find out that she tried to shoot her husband and the bullet ricocheted somehow and hit her instead (although I wasn't sure how she could have shot herself in the back of the head). Her husband tried to cover it up when she forgot about being shot (so she wouldn't leave him?).  I dunno. 

 

I wanted it to be a twist too. But they never showed us what happened after the shot and her just resuming her life. Did her husband patch her up after she didn’t die?  Wasn’t he afraid she would remember?  

[msrachelj]

On 3/23/2020 at 10:42 PM, BooksRule said:

I think the fishing trip story in the description was last week, wasn't it?  (With Shari Belafonte and Greg Evigan?  Although if you go to imdb.com, Shari is listed for this episode also as well as last week.  I'm confused. 🙂 )

The 'bullet in the head' story turned out differently than I expected.  I thought we were going to find out that she tried to shoot her husband and the bullet ricocheted somehow and hit her instead (although I wasn't sure how she could have shot herself in the back of the head). Her husband tried to cover it up when she forgot about being shot (so she wouldn't leave him?).  I dunno. 

I loved seeing Patricia Belcher as the neighbor.  She's good in everything she does. 

So she got shot in the back of her head, then what? The husband must have given her his own medical attention until the would cleared up? Then she conveniently lost all memory of it and the bullet did not bother her except for memory loss and headaches. No infection, nothing. Very far fetched. 

[msrachelj]

On 3/24/2020 at 11:10 PM, shapeshifter said:

I imagine it was a boobage issue (takes one to know one).

 

Having been a renter for over 40 years --mostly for at least 7 years in one place-- many places have barely adequate plumbing. Probably the tenant/date/boyfriend would've known to turn off the water at the toilet and then troubleshoot.

Water pressure, old toilet, sometimes it just happens. If you are not quick with your plunger skills, oh oh...

[msrachelj]

On 3/24/2020 at 11:46 PM, tennisgurl said:

Poor Josh, I should have known that when he was getting so much screen time that something would go wrong with his date. I was expecting Maddie to give him a tough love speech about talking to the police about the guys that robbed him, especially considering her own history and feeling ashamed of being abused, but maybe its coming up later? 

I thought that the theme of the week would be Fools AKA dumb people doing dumb stuff, especially with the dumb YouTube guys back again, but it was actually about being a fool for love. The internet guy is desperate for the other guys to like him, the girl on the date trying to have a good love match despite everything, the wife refusing to see that her husband tried to kill her, even the subplots with Josh and Eddie (both him meeting his new love interest, and his love for Christopher causing him to act out of character) wrapped into it. The plunger date was rather cute. 

Dang Eddie, he really lost it on that poor teacher. I mean, kids do dumb stuff and fall, and yeah Christopher has physical limitations, but he was already fine. He also seemed to be pretty convinced that the other kids must have been picking on him or forcing him to skateboard to make fun of him, like he didnt buy it when Christopher's teacher told him that he was fitting in with his classmates. The teacher seemed nice, and not the type to join a fight club, so she is already a step up from his last love interest! The ending was really sweet though. 

Of course Chims brother already has a date! 

Yes. Isn't his son in a class with able bodied ( how do you put that, so PC these days and don't want to offend) students? She is not his one on one babysitter. Kids will be kids, and get hurt. That was a pretty shitty thing to do , to yell at her for that. 

[WinJet0819]

I'm wondering when is the last time the crew has actually battled a fire, considering they they are firefighters and all? Lately, it seems all they've been dealing with is accidents, trapped people, and weird injuries. But haven't seen any fires for the fire department.

And is that teacher going to be a possible fling for Eddie? Even after he jumped down her throat about Christopher, when she really did nothing wrong? And it sucks what happened to Josh. I'm pretty sure the mugging will lead into what happens next episode. They probably took his keycard for the 9-1-1 center as part of a bigger plan.

[DearEvette]

1 hour ago, WinJet0819 said:

I'm wondering when is the last time the crew has actually battled a fire, considering they they are firefighters and all? Lately, it seems all they've been dealing with is accidents, trapped people, and weird injuries. But haven't seen any fires for the fire department.

This is actually probably one of the most realistic things about the show.  Fires have sharply declined over the years thanks to a lot of fire prevention campaigns that have proven to be fruitful.  I saw one statistic that said that actual fire calls are the least amount of calls firefighters gets now,  in one place I think I saw only 5% of the calls they get are about putting out an actual fire.  Medical aid is the most prevalent by a huge margin. 

OTOH, firefighters who fight wildfires are the one sector whose actual firefighting has gone way up over the years. 

[saber5055]

On 3/24/2020 at 10:10 PM, shapeshifter said:

I imagine it was a boobage issue (takes one to know one).

LOL. Which is why I could easily get out of that window, forward and backward.

I thought the husband-shooting-wife story was kind of WTHeck too. Did he feel guilty after shooting her so didn't finish her off, roll her up in the carpet and dump her body somewhere for a Dateline episode?

[iMonrey]

Quote

This is actually probably one of the most realistic things about the show.  Fires have sharply declined over the years thanks to a lot of fire prevention campaigns that have proven to be fruitful.  I saw one statistic that said that actual fire calls are the least amount of calls firefighters gets now,  in one place I think I saw only 5% of the calls they get are about putting out an actual fire.  Medical aid is the most prevalent by a huge margin. 

Yup. In fact, most of the calls fire fighters go on are pretty mundane. Mostly people having heart attacks (depending on the locality, you generally get the fire truck, police and ambulance when you call 911, and the fire truck is always there first). That wouldn't make for a very riveting show, though.

[saber5055]

2 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

That wouldn't make for a very riveting show, though.

Depends on whose heart attack it is. Ha ha ha.

[Ursula Parrott]

The first date poo story really happened.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, Ursula Parrott said:

The first date poo story really happened.

Quote

"We had a lovely night on the second date but it's too early to say if she's the one. But we got on very very well and she's a lovely girl," he said.

"And we've already got the most difficult stuff out of the way first."

🤣

[MoreCoffeePlease]

OMG, the eye thing was disgusting. "I have to get some different friends." Ha ha

I liked Athena's not so subtle talk with her ex about his condition.

I feel so bad for the guy who got beaten up. Online dating is so scary to me.  I'm wondering how many 1st dates are actually dangerous. 

Love this show for the "house porn" ... the Steven Culp house was very nice.

 

[lilabennet]

Christopher has been telling the other kids that tsunamis aren't that bad.  I love this show no matter how silly it is.

[Whimsy]

On 3/26/2020 at 6:43 PM, iMonrey said:

Yup. In fact, most of the calls fire fighters go on are pretty mundane. Mostly people having heart attacks (depending on the locality, you generally get the fire truck, police and ambulance when you call 911, and the fire truck is always there first). That wouldn't make for a very riveting show, though.

Yup, this is mostly what happens. 

[Jillybean]

On 3/24/2020 at 4:14 PM, HunterHunted said:

However, Buck has been on a sex sabbatical to not be a ho-bag for awhile. The fact that he's sexlessly coupled up is pretty much a sign that he's not such a ho. I'd rather it be purposeful if he's discovered that he's been using sex to substitute for emotional intimacy and no longer has the same sex drive. Or that he finds that he's more sexually fluid now. I don't really care, but it feels like weird wheel spinning. Buck feels safe hanging with Eddie and Christopher, but there's a part of him that seems to be hiding from having to attempt to have another mature sexual relationship with a woman.

I think the wheel spinning is because

Spoiler

of the interim until Connie Britton returns as Abby later this season. Buck needs to be available for that storyline. 

 

[Clanstarling]

On 3/24/2020 at 12:14 PM, ShortyMac said:

Also, the school nurse would have cleaned and bandaged his scrapes. They would not let him stay all bloody like he was.

Not all schools have nurses - that's one of the budget cutbacks I've seen at my kids' schools. IIRC the only blood we saw was on his pants, not his bare leg.

On 3/24/2020 at 5:29 PM, saber5055 said:

The eyeball thing was all kind of gag inducing until I remembered I've had eye-deadening drops for different tests, including an eyeball ultrasound, I still looked away for a bit.

Could not watch it. I can take any kind of gore you've got - but when it's the eye, I'll always look away until it's over.

On 3/24/2020 at 8:46 PM, tennisgurl said:

Of course Chims brother already has a date! 

He's young, cute, and not employed. Seems about right. 😉

[ShortyMac]

5 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

Not all schools have nurses - that's one of the budget cutbacks I've seen at my kids' schools. IIRC the only blood we saw was on his pants, not his bare leg. 

His elbows were scraped, too.

[Clanstarling]

2 hours ago, ShortyMac said:

His elbows were scraped, too.

Didn't see that. My bad.