S04.E08: Breaking Point

[jewel21]

Quote

The 118 are called to the tarmac when a flight attendant reaches her limit with her flight's passengers. Athena discovers that quarantine has pushed a couple to their breaking point. Meanwhile, Eddie worries Christopher will not accept him dating, Buck reconnects with an old flame and finds himself in the middle of Albert's new relationship and Maddie and Chimney make a big decision about their baby.

Airdate: 03/08/2021

[Irlandesa]

I was hoping they'd  end up the uplifting note of giving out all the vaccines but nope; it looks like we might lose adorable Mia.

I love Christopher and Buck scenes so much.  And as much as Buck was wrong not to tell Taylor why he was inviting her, given everything he has recently been through, I still felt bad for him.  I'm glad they made up at the end. 

 

[anna0852]

Buck now is almost unrecognizable as the horn dog Buck of season 1. And I love it. Score for character development!

[tvgoddess]

They really packed a lot into this episode. Every character had a subplot except Bobby and Athena and their family, but they did last week so I'm okay with it. I'm not ready to say goodbye to Mia so I am really hoping it's just a red herring to have a little mini cliffhanger.

I felt for that flight attendant, sorry. She has been putting up with all kinds of crap for years, and it's not surprising that her passengers would be fed up. I can't understand anyone acting up on a flight. Do they not realize you can be put in jail? Apple juice really isn't worth it. It just sucks that the poor baggage handler got corked in the  throat. His co-worker was really sweet, telling him how inspiring he was.

The crew egging on the guy on the roof to jump was pretty funny. I liked the little side conversations with everyone with the hours ticking by.

Bye Veronica. Won't miss you. And what was she making that was taking so long? I'm always interested in fictional food.

I wouldn't mind if Buck and Taylor started dating. They're pretty together. I know she was horrible in the beginning, but he's grown and looks like she has as well. Christopher gets to me every time. Loved the stuff with him and Buck and him hugging his teacher.

Nice relevance with the vaccines. Overall, great episode to close out our first 8 episodes. See you guys back here in 6 weeks.

[Bulldog]

For me, the two heroes of tonight's episode were 1) the flight attendant who got drunk and slid down the escape hatch, and 2) the homeowner who pushed the guy off the roof.  Not sure what that says about me, but there you have it!

[Jeopardy15]

2 minutes ago, Bulldog said:

For me, the two heroes of tonight's episode were 1) the flight attendant who got drunk and slid down the escape hatch, and 2) the homeowner who pushed the guy off the roof.  Not sure what that says about me, but there you have it!

Loved the older man who pushed that jerk off the roof. That negotiation took waaaaaay too long. 

[shapeshifter]

About the roof situation:
Why didn't they just set up one of those bouncy-house-trampoline thingies and then shoot him with a tranq? 

The drunk flight attendant was a bit of a parody/rip-off of The Flight Attendant.

 

[marceline]

10 hours ago, Jeopardy15 said:

Loved the older man who pushed that jerk off the roof. That negotiation took waaaaaay too long. 

The shot of him walking across the grass with a ladder put a smile on my face. I was like "Yes, Pops, let's get down to business."

[DanaK]

Buck was really obsessed about that one date. I hope he can work things out with that reporter. The vaccine segment was nice

I thought the hours ticking by with the man on the roof segment was pretty funny, with the crew taking bets on how long it would be

I'm not sure I understood what Christopher was upset about. Was it that he was afraid of the teacher replacing his mom or that his mom would be forgotten?

[Irlandesa]

1 minute ago, DanaK said:

I'm not sure I understood what Christopher was upset about. Was it that he was afraid of the teacher replacing his mom or that his mom would be forgotten?

He was afraid of caring about someone new and then losing them. 

[shapeshifter]

1 minute ago, DanaK said:

I'm not sure I understood what Christopher was upset about. Was it that he was afraid of the teacher replacing his mom or that his mom would be forgotten?

I would imagine both, as well as that his dad would have less time for him --which is true --but he will also have the added attentions of his former teacher.

[Lady Calypso]

5 minutes ago, DanaK said:

Buck was really obsessed about that one date. I hope he can work things out with that reporter. The vaccine segment was nice

It was a very interesting storyline to explore for Buck because, as Taylor rightfully pointed out, it was less about Veronica and more about Buck finding someone who just didn't like him. I think Buck has always aimed to be liked by people (a result of his neglectful childhood, as it turns out) so it was a good story to explore Buck as a person, rather than a romantic route. It goes to show how flawed Buck still is, even with his significant progress, and how much work he still has to put in.

They really managed to turn it around on Taylor to make her more likeable from her last appearances. I'm impressed and I'm totally vibing on Taylor/Buck's friendship and potential rekindling of a romance.

Poor Hen/Karen, potentially losing their foster daughter as she goes back to her birth mother. That really can't be easy.

The cases this week made me chuckle.

I enjoyed the Chimney/Maddie story. As Maddie's due date is getting closer, I can understand the worry, especially with COVID playing a role. I appreciate them exploring different kind of birth plans and ultimately why going to the hospital is a better option. 

[shapeshifter]

4 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

Poor Hen/Karen, potentially losing their foster daughter as she goes back to her birth mother. That really can't be easy.

I'm wondering if they put this foster-daughter-leaving plot-point right before the hiatus because they are just going to move on rather than dwell. Having child actors can be tricky for lots of reasons. I noticed they dubbed her cute dialog about being a doctor. I suppose it could have been the same child speaking the words off camera, but it sounded more like an older child's cadence.

Edited March 9, 2021 by shapeshifter

[DearEvette]

14 hours ago, anna0852 said:

Buck now is almost unrecognizable as the horn dog Buck of season 1. And I love it. Score for character development!

Big ups for Buck 3.0!!   I too am happy that they've done a good job of moving Buck away from that person.  It was the primary reason I was so turned off by the pilot and didn't really start watching the show in earnest until Season 2.  I went back and watched S1 after I had enjoyed the show, but only the second half of Season 1 works for me.

11 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

The drunk flight attendant was a bit of a parody/rip-off of The Flight Attendant.

This is based on a real incident.  It tickled at the back of my mind as this was happening, but I vaguely remembered it  was a male flight attendant and sure enough I had to google it to see if I was remembering correctly.  Per Wikipedia:

Quote

The JetBlue flight attendant incident occurred after JetBlue Airways Flight 1052, from Pittsburgh to New York City on August 9, 2010, had landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Steven Slater, a veteran flight attendant announced over the plane's public address system that he had been abused by a passenger and was quitting his job. He then grabbed two beers and exited the plane by deploying the evacuation slide and sliding down it.

Also, the minute I saw those two baggage handlers I immediately knew it was the sucked-into-a-jet-engine guy (he was saved by golf clubs getting caught in the rotors)  I love how ride or die his friend was for him

"You don't know Darryl, lady" he says indignantly.  and

"Nothing can keep Darryl down. Not crazy white ladies.  Nothing."

And as much as I found the roof negotiation scene fun especially with all the different conversations, roof guy bemoaning the fact that his was Jan to his brother's Marcia, the negotiator guy feeling no sympathy for Buck  etc  I was so happy when homeowner threw that guy off the roof. 

I have completely forgotten everything about Maddie and Chim's storyline.  And I am ok with that.

That liitle Nia is a scene stealer.  Man, I will be heartbroken if they lose her.

[rove4]

Enjoyable episode all around.

The clips showing the 118 crew passing the hours waiting for the standoff to be resolved was funny. Too bad no one put money down on someone shoving roof guy off.

Maddie, what Athena told you is 100% truth.  The only thing that matters in the end is having a healthy baby. Everything else is just window dressing.

Love Christopher!  I was happy to see him happy to see his old teacher.

I only vaguely remember Taylor but I liked her scenes with Buck.  I'd be fine if she sticks around.  They could double date with Eddie and Ana. 

Don't take Nia!

[Chaos Theory]

My brother had a kid during Covid so I have ALOT of sympathy for Maddie and Chim.  Even the rules for pregnancy are different.  There is no guarantee what doctor will deliver your baby and it is touch and go if dad will even be allowed in the hospital the day of the birth.   My brother was allowed in last minute only if he agreed not to leave.  He was basically there for the entirety until mom and baby left and no visitors were allowed.    So I do get why Maddie is a little more nervous then normal.  Even with this the rules have changed.   So she chose a home birth but Chim being a medic knows all the statistics of things going wrong and freaks out about that.    For them it’s a lose/ lose situation.   I get it. 

 

Edited March 9, 2021 by Chaos Theory

[Moose135]

14 hours ago, tvgoddess said:

The crew egging on the guy on the roof to jump was pretty funny.

I kept waiting for them to pull a fire hose off the truck and knock the guy down with a spray of water.

[tennisgurl]

I admit it, the flight attendant just getting pissed off and peacing out was hilarious, even if she did unintentionally hurt the poor baggage guy. Even better was the guy who owned the house that the idiot robber was standing around on just shoving him off, I had the biggest smile on my face as soon as they showed him carrying the ladder to the house. Cant really blame him for wanting to speed things along, there is a difference between wanting to end a situation peacefully and basically throwing a block party for this moron. That poor luggage guy just has the absolute worst luck. 

They sure packed a lot into this episode, just about every character got a subplot except for Bobby and Athena who got a big subplot last week, plus several cases. I didn't really like Taylor very much back when she was last on the show and I think that she was pretty harsh on Buck here, but I liked seeing her and she has seemingly grown a lot since we last saw her. Buck has grown a whole lot too, I think that they could really work as friends and maybe even as a couple eventually. It would be great to see Buck really find a solid relationship, he has always just had the worst luck with women. I do think that Taylor made a good point about how Buck needs people to like him, which has always been a major characteristic of him and now we know it stems from his emotionally neglectful parents, hopefully we can see him dealing more with that now. This was a really nice way to follow up the story with his parents and backstory without it being super obvious, and continues his subplots with his failed date and maybe with Taylor again. Buck definitely wins for best character growth on the show, you can really see how much he has changed for the better since the first season, while also still being recognizably the same person. 

The cases were all pretty good, and at least Athena finally called for backup right away when dealing with a clearly sketchy person. She always stumbles into the weirdest things on seemingly routine calls. The stand off with the roof idiot was fun, as everyone passes the time talking about everything going on in their lives and giving each other advice as they kill time, while the idiot cries about how he didn't get a dog as a child until the perfect ending where the guy who owned the house just shoved the guy off the roof. "That is a whole series of bad life choices all culminating in this biggest bad life choice." "I think he has one more bad life choice in him." 

Eddy dealing with talking to Christopher about him dating his former teacher was also a good story, and I love that Christopher ran off to Buck when he was upset. The further adventures of Christopher and his two dads. Buck is so good with him, and I am glad that Christopher and Eddie managed talk things out. Even when he is angry, Christopher is such a cute kid. 

Speaking of cute kids, I am going to be so sad if they take sweet little Nia away. Not only will be be devastating for Hen's whole family, but its going to be really hard for Nia, who is very connected to her new family and having to leave them to live with a women she probably doesn't even remember is going to be so confusing for her. 

Maddie and Chim being freaked out about having a baby in COVID seems really real, I have had a few friends have babies in the last year and it really adds to the already nerve wracking experience of child birth. The talk between Maddie and Athena was really nice, its really just about the baby not about anything else going on. 

Everyone bringing vaccines to the hospital was a nice and hopeful way to end this run of episodes, and a nice way to come full circle from the start of the season where we saw COVID really hitting LA. They really have done a pretty good job with the COVID stuff, mask issues not withstanding, showing the way its affected people and showing how its progressed from the early days to everything shutting down to things opening up then shutting down, and now the vaccines and people slowly starting to travel again. Its a nice ending, but I am sad to have to take a break! 

Edited March 9, 2021 by tennisgurl

[Jillybean]

1 hour ago, DearEvette said:

This is based on a real incident.  It tickled at the back of my mind as this was happening, but I vaguely remembered it  was a male flight attendant and sure enough I had to google it to see if I was remembering correctly. 

Yep! I was like, damn, they're ripping from some OLD headlines!

What is the purpose of Albert? I don't understand...he showed up, lived with Chim, now lives with Buck...does he have a job? A reason for being there instead of wherever he came from? I was surprised the bitchy neighbor was willing to date someone unemployed, unless of course he is employed and I've just forgotten his entire storyline (entirely possible).

[ajsnaves]

I am a bit confused about the Hen/Karen storyline.  The ultimate point of foster care is almost always reunification.  It has been a while since I worked a Protective Services case as an attorney, but I think every single case where the kid was out of home, they were working towards reunification.  It is not always successful, but that is the goal.  Did they not explain this to Hen and Karen?  Was there no visitation with her mother or father?  Or is starting that where they are now?  That process can take a long time.  You don’t just hand over a child who has had no contact for a year.  I just wish they would have filled in a bit more of where in the process they all were.

I loved the Buck/Taylor storyline.  I hope we see they’re friendship continue, but no romance.  I think he could use some friends outside the first responders and first responder adjacents. It is always nice to see Buck and Christopher together.

[possibilities]

Yes, Hen seemed so blindsided by the idea that Nia might return to her mother, and that's just not possible. Foster parents are always informed of what is happening; if they were working on reunification, that would be something they would know about and the mom having "fulfilled all the requirements" would absolutely not be a shock. 

Some children do get fostered-toward-adoption, but if reunification is being worked on, the foster parents would be well-aware of that.

[gonzosgirrl]

36 minutes ago, possibilities said:

Yes, Hen seemed so blindsided by the idea that Nia might return to her mother, and that's just not possible. Foster parents are always informed of what is happening; if they were working on reunification, that would be something they would know about and the mom having "fulfilled all the requirements" would absolutely not be a shock. 

Some children do get fostered-toward-adoption, but if reunification is being worked on, the foster parents would be well-aware of that.

I thought the same. I cringed that they were letting the child call them 'mommy'.

Honestly these shows (and This Is Us) do no favours to the perceptions of adoption and fostering. It kind of pisses me off, as much as I enjoy the shows.

[iMonrey]

Could a champagne cork really puncture someone's throat like that?

I can't even remember the backstory on Hen and Karen and this kid, so it's hard for me to get worked up about it. 

[ribboninthesky1]

10 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

It was a very interesting storyline to explore for Buck because, as Taylor rightfully pointed out, it was less about Veronica and more about Buck finding someone who just didn't like him. I think Buck has always aimed to be liked by people (a result of his neglectful childhood, as it turns out) so it was a good story to explore Buck as a person, rather than a romantic route. It goes to show how flawed Buck still is, even with his significant progress, and how much work he still has to put in.

Taylor said something earlier in the episode that was of particular interest.  Buck expressed how he wanted a meaningful relationship, and she reminded him that he had several.  I didn't realize it at the time, but it was an interesting precursor to her loneliness.  

I have always liked Buck, but Taylor told him what he needed to hear.  He IS needy and desperate to be liked.  I think TV and film make it seem as though all it takes is a Very Special Episode or two for a person to change.  People can change, but it's not easy.    

I don't need to see Taylor as his girlfriend, either.  It's fine if they do, as long as it's not one-sided.  

The Nia child actress is a treasure! I hope we get to see more of her.

9 hours ago, Jillybean said:

What is the purpose of Albert? I don't understand...he showed up, lived with Chim, now lives with Buck...does he have a job? A reason for being there instead of wherever he came from?

I don't remember his employment status, but from what I recall, he was supposed to be living with Chim.  If someone had just started watching the show this season, though, I don't know if they would realize Albert and Chim were brothers.  I guess the pandemic threw a lot of stuff into chaos in terms of the writing.  I thought Maddie and Chim were already living together when Albert came into the picture, so it's not like he couldn't be there now.  

Poor Christopher - that was an effective way to show how the pandemic has impacted children.  But I confessed that I chuckled when Ana offered to end things for Christopher's sake, and Eddie was like, "Wait a minute, now! I'll talk to him.  We'll work it out." 

23 hours ago, Bulldog said:

For me, the two heroes of tonight's episode were 1) the flight attendant who got drunk and slid down the escape hatch, and 2) the homeowner who pushed the guy off the roof.  Not sure what that says about me, but there you have it!

I too was completely sympathetic to them! And yet, highly entertained by the commentary during the stand-off. 

[gik910]

Yay - the Nia story line has been handled poorly.  We are foster parents. The goal is always reunification and even in the cases when it's not, it's because the case has gone through the courts. It's not kid comes into care, gets placed, boom adoption.  There is a whole lot of court and other stuff between that.

Even during the pandemic there would have been visitation of some sort (we moved to zoom calls for a while - challenging with kiddo under 2). The case worker would at least touch base monthly. The guardian ad litem would be in touch quarterly, and there would have been family meetings quarterly.  They would know her mother and at least have a general idea of what was happening.  

This is just not a great way to represent it at all. 

 

Edited March 10, 2021 by gik910
Spelling

[tvgoddess]

6 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I can't even remember the backstory on Hen and Karen and this kid, so it's hard for me to get worked up about it. 

And I guess I completely forgot it, because before this episode I kind of thought the adoption of Nia (called her Mia earlier, I really thought that was her name) was already finalized. Probably because she was calling both Hen and Karen "mommy".

[possibilities]

What happened is that Karen lost all her IVF embryos, and went through a period of grief, and they weren't sure what to do next. about having kids. They were kind of mulling that over when Hen went on a medical call where a young boy was giving CPR to his mom, who had a heart attack.

The boy was out in a group home while his mom was recovering in the hospital, and Hen arranged for him and all the kids at the group home to go to the fire house for the firehouse Xmas party. The social worker for the kid whose mom had the heart attack told them that there was a shortage of foster families, which is why the kid was in a group home instead of an individual placement.

So Hen and Karen kind of fell in love with all the kids and decided to try fostering instead of going back to IVF.

I don't remember seeing anything between that episode and when Nia was just living there. 

Maybe I've forgotten something that happened, but there's just no way that makes sense for them to be confused about what is happening with respect to fostering vs adopting. There are a lot of unrealistic things happening on this show, but this particular storyline doesn't feel to me like it belongs in the same category as all the crazy rescues. It feels just badly written.

[shapeshifter]

6 hours ago, possibilities said:

Maybe I've forgotten something that happened, but there's just no way that makes sense for them to be confused about what is happening with respect to fostering vs adopting. There are a lot of unrealistic things happening on this show, but this particular storyline doesn't feel to me like it belongs in the same category as all the crazy rescues. It feels just badly written.

I think a lot of the show is badly written, but there's enough scene switching and action shots so that there's a presumption that bad writing and plot discontinuities will be "forgotten."
In this instance, the line from the social worker is: "As you know, our office has been working with Nia's birth mother helping her prepare for reunification. She's been doing well, meeting all the requirements and we think it's time to start the reunification process."
From the audience standpoint, it should have at least been: "This may come as a surprise to you, but, our office has been working with Nia's birth mother helping her prepare for reunification. She's been doing well, meeting all the requirements and we think it's time to start the reunification process."
I guess it was changed to "As you know" because someone decided they weren't going to dwell on that plot, but I may be wrong. 
And if I'm right about them planning to not mention Nia again after the hiatus, then why did they include these lines earlier:

Quote

the social worker. She wants to come see us this weekend.

For what?

Karen: Nia's been with us for almost a year now. That's usually when they start to talk about permanent placement.

So maybe instead this is going to be a major plot point.

Edited March 10, 2021 by shapeshifter

[candall]

Judging from all the air time he gets, Buck is a fan favorite.

His charm escapes me.

[jabRI]

On a side note, would an Uber driver pick up a minor? Maybe that's the new normal?

 

[momo]

On 3/9/2021 at 8:22 AM, shapeshifter said:

I would imagine both, as well as that his dad would have less time for him --which is true --but he will also have the added attentions of his former teacher.

I was waiting for him to tell her that he & dad were waiting for his new girlfriend to come over LOL

[Clanstarling]

On 3/8/2021 at 6:27 PM, anna0852 said:

Buck now is almost unrecognizable as the horn dog Buck of season 1. And I love it. Score for character development!

 

On 3/8/2021 at 8:50 PM, shapeshifter said:

About the roof situation:
Why didn't they just set up one of those bouncy-house-trampoline thingies and then shoot him with a tranq? 

The drunk flight attendant was a bit of a parody/rip-off of The Flight Attendant.

 

 

On 3/9/2021 at 8:29 AM, Lady Calypso said:

Poor Hen/Karen, potentially losing their foster daughter as she goes back to her birth mother. That really can't be easy.

I would miss the girl - she has to be the cutest kid on television, pretty much ever.

On 3/9/2021 at 9:49 AM, tennisgurl said:

Speaking of cute kids, I am going to be so sad if they take sweet little Nia away. Not only will be be devastating for Hen's whole family, but its going to be really hard for Nia, who is very connected to her new family and having to leave them to live with a women she probably doesn't even remember is going to be so confusing for her. 

They might steal a plot from Call the Midwife.

On 3/9/2021 at 12:24 PM, possibilities said:

Yes, Hen seemed so blindsided by the idea that Nia might return to her mother, and that's just not possible. Foster parents are always informed of what is happening; if they were working on reunification, that would be something they would know about and the mom having "fulfilled all the requirements" would absolutely not be a shock. 

Some children do get fostered-toward-adoption, but if reunification is being worked on, the foster parents would be well-aware of that.

They fell in love with the girl, I have no problem as you can blindsided by something you know, but have suppressed in day to day living. Just because you know it, doesn't mean you're prepared for it. If I'm wrong, it seemed like they were anticipating being able to adopt her (a stray line or two in the dialogue?)

[Clanstarling]

7 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

  On 3/8/2021 at 8:50 PM, shapeshifter said:

About the roof situation:
Why didn't they just set up one of those bouncy-house-trampoline thingies and then shoot him with a tranq? 

The drunk flight attendant was a bit of a parody/rip-off of The Flight Attendant.

Had to quote my own post, as I didn't reply to Shapeshifter (had to exit quickly).

The guy on the roof had a gun, so setting all that up would be right in his face and likely to escalate, rather than de-escalate the situation.  That's what I figured, anyway.

[methodwriter85]

See, This is Us writers? THIS is how you do a dramatic foster parent storyline. There's no bio parent showing up unannounced to take home their kid. It doesn't work like that! (I cannot believe I'm lauding a Ryan Murphy show for being more realistic, but there you go. This Is Us's fostering storyline actively pissed me off and turned me off on that show.)

I liked Buck's arc in this episode. Relationships really are a two-way street and his date deserved better than to be raised as a  trophy against his rival roommate in the Alpha Male wars.

Edited March 29, 2021 by methodwriter85

[gonzosgirrl]

35 minutes ago, methodwriter85 said:

THIS is how you do a dramatic foster parent storyline.

By showing the foster parents as being blindsided by the possibility that the birth mother was going to have her child returned, when it's clear said birth mother had actively been working towards it? I don't disagree that the TIU foster child/adoptee storyline had holes in it, but this isn't really a better example, IMO.

[shapeshifter]

On 3/29/2021 at 1:33 PM, gonzosgirrl said:

By showing the foster parents as being blindsided by the possibility that the birth mother was going to have her child returned, when it's clear said birth mother had actively been working towards it? I don't disagree that the TIU foster child/adoptee storyline had holes in it, but this isn't really a better example, IMO.

All it needs to be a better story is a line from one of the foster parents like: “We knew this day might come, but I guess it was always easier to believe it wouldn’t.”

[Clanstarling]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

All it needs to be a better story is a line from one of the foster parents like: “We knew this day might come, but I guess it was always easier to believe it wouldn’t.”

I agree. It's human to push harsh realities to the back of your mind when you're really happy with the present situation. Reality bites, as it were. But even though I don't like a lot of hand holding by writers in a show, there did need to be a line like you suggested.

Edited March 31, 2021 by Clanstarling

[marinite]

On 3/9/2021 at 7:06 AM, marceline said:

The shot of him walking across the grass with a ladder put a smile on my face. I was like "Yes, Pops, let's get down to business."

What made it even funnier to me was that it was in the background! Nobody even noticed him. Lol

On 3/9/2021 at 8:19 AM, DanaK said:

Buck was really obsessed about that one date. I hope he can work things out with that reporter. The vaccine segment was nice

I thought the hours ticking by with the man on the roof segment was pretty funny, with the crew taking bets on how long it would be

I'm not sure I understood what Christopher was upset about. Was it that he was afraid of the teacher replacing his mom or that his mom would be forgotten?

The chanting by the fire crew of “jump jump jump” portion of that storyline was hilarious.

[kwnyc]

On 7/25/2021 at 2:10 AM, marinite said:

The chanting by the fire crew of “jump jump jump” portion of that storyline was hilarious.

Possibly one of my favorite moments in the whole series.

And while reality is routinely ignored, one thing that has actually showed continuity is that Buck is serious about therapy; he sees a doctor outside of the department counselors, and has continued his sessions through the pandemic. He's still crazy ol' Buck, but he has developed a capacity to listen, and Taylor calls him on his stuff. So maybe he's gone from sixth grade boy to 10th grade boy. ;-)