S04.E12: Treasure Hunt

[jewel21]

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When a famous mystery writer dies, Athena, Bobby and the 118 respond to the chaos caused by a city-wide manhunt for buried treasure the author left behind.

Airdate: 05/10/2021

[BooksRule]

Maybe I read too much or watch too many TV shows and movies, but I immediately thought of the concrete river that runs through Los Angeles.  I didn't figure it would be anywhere near a 'real' river, because that would be too obvious.  I also assumed that the writer wasn't really dead, since I recognized the actor (I forget his name) and didn't think he would have been cast just to be in that one tiny video scene.

 

[shapeshifter]

2 minutes ago, BooksRule said:

  I also assumed that the writer wasn't really dead, since I recognized the actor (I forget his name) and didn't think he would have been cast just to be in that one tiny video scene.

I recognized him too (Patrick Fischler) and thought it was a very small part for him too, but I was multitasking so I didn’t dwell on it, but then again, I was only mildly surprised that he was still alive for a bit. 

[possibilities]

Bobby seemed really upset when Athena said she was never going to retire. I was surprised by his reaction.

[Bulldog]

Basically just a filler episode, but I enjoyed it.  Nice light-hearted change of pace.  

[Irlandesa]

49 minutes ago, possibilities said:

Bobby seemed really upset when Athena said she was never going to retire. I was surprised by his reaction.

I can sort of see why he'd question why she wouldn't retire if she didn't need to work because of winning money.  But what I think really threw him off is that she had considered retiring after getting shot and spoke to someone else about it before deciding to continue.  I think it was a surprise to him that he, her husband, wasn't someone she reached out to about her thoughts. 

Edited May 11, 2021 by Irlandesa

[possibilities]

I think of Bobby as someone who works for a mission, rather than just because he needs a job. It's interesting to find out that he no longer feels tied to that, and even might be ready to let it go.

[Empress1]

3 hours ago, possibilities said:

I think of Bobby as someone who works for a mission, rather than just because he needs a job. It's interesting to find out that he no longer feels tied to that, and even might be ready to let it go.

He could still feel tied to the mission but recognize that people don't work forever, particularly in physical jobs like his. I think we are seeing a lot of this with the pandemic - almost everyone I know, myself included, has gone through a priority shift where they no longer want work to be the center of their lives or they want to do more meaningful work. I can see Bobby retired, teaching his grandkids to fish.

9 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

But what I think really threw him off is that she had considered retiring after getting shot and spoke to someone else about it before deciding to continue.  I think it was a surprise to him that he, her husband, wasn't someone she reached out to about her thoughts. 

I think this is it, and is at the crux of the fight they apparently have next episode. And you do need to talk about your later in life plans with your spouse. Not only did she not discuss her plans with him, she didn't discuss her discussion with him - he didn't even know she'd spoken to someone about it. That would sting me too.

"I'm glad we're friends." OUCH. Well, Buck, you tried. (Call me.)

[Clanstarling]

9 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I can sort of see why he'd question why she wouldn't retire if she didn't need to work because of winning money.  But what I think really threw him off is that she had considered retiring after getting shot and spoke to someone else about it before deciding to continue.  I think it was a surprise to him that he, her husband, wasn't someone she reached out to about her thoughts. 

That was my take on the scene too. It's a pretty important issue for spouses to discuss. But Athena is very much a person who goes it alone whether or not she should.

I thought of the concrete rivers in LA too, and knew that the grey bridge had to be an overpass of some sort.

A nice light episode. (which seems a funny thing to call it given the injuries and a death - one that was deserved, but still...)

[Chaos Theory]

12 hours ago, possibilities said:

I think of Bobby as someone who works for a mission, rather than just because he needs a job. It's interesting to find out that he no longer feels tied to that, and even might be ready to let it go.

It’s the nature of their jobs as well.  Bobby knows he has a bunch of people  backing him up every day so if he walks into a dangerous situation he has someone watching his back.  Athena has gone out of her way to not have a partner.  She rides alone.  She may call for backup but she will still be walking into a dangerous situation essentially alone and that is how she likes it.  I think that worries Bobby on both a professional and personal level.

Edited May 11, 2021 by Chaos Theory

[rove4]

I have zero issues with retiring.  I'm out as soon as it's financially feasible. Maybe even before then if I can swing it.  😁

How is Taylor still friend zoning Buck?  Poor Buck. He keeps swinging and missing.  lol

Glad the assistant made off with the five million. Literal payback for putting up with his douchebag boss. 

[marceline]

This is the first time I've ever come close to just shutting the episode off midway. I know part of this show's guilty pleasure vibe is the rescues of stupid people but this was overkill. 

The conversation between Bobby and Athena about retirement was telling. I think she's really underestimating how much PTSD Bobby still has from her attack.

[Empress1]

19 minutes ago, rove4 said:

I have zero issues with retiring.  I'm out as soon as it's financially feasible. Maybe even before then if I can swing it. 

I tell my financial adviser every time I speak to her (so twice a year, at least) that I can't wait to retire. She's always like "you have so much time! Compound interest is working for you!" and I'm like, "if I hit the lotto? OUT." I once told my boss that if I won the mega-million (it was one of those times where it was especially huge so more people than usual were playing and talking about it) she should expect my resignation, and she replied "I would resign from the airport on my way to St. Tropez."

25 minutes ago, rove4 said:

How is Taylor still friend zoning Buck?  Poor Buck. He keeps swinging and missing.  lol

That arm pat was like ... ain't happening for you with her, my dude. 

[HerkyJerky]

When Athena & her captain were trying to think of something to charge the pregnant lady with?  How about failure to provide aid? Isn't that how the last episode of "Seinfeld" ended?😁

[Lady Calypso]

I was so happy to see Athena work more with the other cops and detectives this episode...right up until she, once again, walked into the rich guy's house without backup...twice. Damn, I was really hoping that Athena would eventually get a partner, because continuously going in potentially dangerous situations alone is getting tiring. And maybe Bobby is too, with the conversation about retirement. I'd be happy to see Bobby/Athena have a conflict, especially referring back to past events, such as Athena's attack. 

This episode was definitely pure filler, which is fine. Not all episodes need to be super intense. This one was mostly fun, even with stupid idiots looking for treasure. I predicted that there'd be no buried treasure (though I guess it technically WAS buried at one point) and I also suspected that the douchebag rich guy would not be dead...and a nice surprise that he also ended up dying at the end. Still, there was still something they could have charged the pregnant woman with: even if she claimed that she had a bad connection with 911, she still left the scene and didn't bother reporting the guy's heart attack later on. She just left and it took a couple of hours before they figured out that she was there. So, at the very least, they could have caught her there. Is there really nothing they could have charged her with?

Taylor sees Buck as a friend, while Buck is gaining romantic feelings again! Oh boy! Be careful, Buck! Taylor may be a lot better than she was a couple of years ago for you, but just be careful! I did enjoy Taylor, Buck and Eddie teaming up.

[DearEvette]

2 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

I was so happy to see Athena work more with the other cops and detectives this episode...right up until she, once again, walked into the rich guy's house without backup...twice. Damn, I was really hoping that Athena would eventually get a partner, because continuously going in potentially dangerous situations alone is getting tiring.

What cracks me up about this is that IRL there seems to be an OVER abundance of police who respond to anything.  My former next door neighbor asked us to call the police because he suspected his housemate was stealing from him and he couldn't find his phone.  We did as he asked, and I kid you not, four police cruisers (8 officers in total) came rolling up.  The roommate wasn't even on the premises at the time. 

Anyway, I thought this was another fun one concept episode kinda like the one where they were all accused to helping with a bank heist. Something to have all the cast working together in a fun/stupid way.

I liked how the treasure hunt sucked everyone in, even Athena at the end.  And I loved how the 911 operators were taking bets on where it would or wouldn't be.  And the 118 all went to his house in an angry caravan.  And then got questioned by the po-po. They looked like the Scooby gang standing over that guy's dead body LOL. 

I am glad that we are seeing some cracks in Athena/Bobby relationship.  Not because I want them to break up -- no way!  I love them together.  But I do think it is a realistic bump.  And it will be interesting to see how it escalates next week and how they resolve it (because you know they will, nobody stays mad too long at each other on this show).

I felt bad for Bobby though.  He has his own PTSD issues with Athena's near death experience last year that he porbably wasn't aware of and it came bubbling up this way.  It has to be difficult to be married to a cop like Athena who is independent and not wanting to step on her professional toes but also being a little afraid that she won't come home.  And for Bobby it was even worse because he actually listened to her being hurt in real time.  I still remember the look on his face when they heard the gunshot over the live radio channel.  So yeah he is still suffering under something.  I also think Athena is in some level of denial still.  She seemed a little to obviously eager to get the conversation over with.

[tennisgurl]

After we had quite a few high emotion high intensity episodes to start out with, I am happy to get a more light hearted theme episode, where the whole team is dealing with one ridiculous situation. In this case, its a pretentious mystery writer setting the town into a treasure hunt frenzy to cure his writers block, but in true murder mystery fashion, there was a twist or two. Everyone slowly getting dragged into the the treasure hunt and pairing off into teams, even Athena by the end, was a lot of fun, as was the resolution. I guessed that the author would be alive, the actor playing him is one of those "Hey, its that one guy!" actors that pop up a lot so I guessed they would give him more to do, but I thought that the long suffering assistant would murder him, not that he would die of a heart attack after being berated by the lady who's husband got hurt while the assistant made off with the loot. So if the author didn't die, I guess his plan was to reveal himself as being alive along with his book? I don't think the public would be thrilled to find out that he was manipulating everyone to cover for his bad writing. 

I swear, the show is messing with me at this point, it so looked like Eddie was jealous about Buck partnering with Taylor before partnering with him. It looks like Buck is back to crushing on Taylor, but she still sees him as a friend and partner in shenanigans. Oh Buck, he just has the worst luck with women. 

Things with Bobby and Athena have been pretty solid for a long time, so I guess it was time for them to have some conflict. I can totally see why Bobby was upset at the idea of Athena never retiring or even slowing down from being in the front lines, he is still clearly dealing with his fear of losing her after she nearly died not too long ago, and that plus him losing his first wife and kids, I think that he is less alright with the idea of Athena being in the line of fire for their entire rest of their marriage then he thought he was. Not that he wants her to quit or take a desk job, just that he wants to imagine a time when they are just relaxing together without having to worry about either of them in a life or death situation where they can just enjoy being together. Athena on the other hand is extremely independent and struggles with admitting that she can be hurt (and has been) and cant imagine not being a cop, even if she's in her seventies still chasing bank robbers. Bobby is also not wrong on a practical level, they are both in dangerous and physically demanding jobs and have both had on the job injuries, sooner or later they just wont be able to run into collapsing buildings or hostage situations the way that they used to, and that could lead to them being hurt even worse or killed, its just how it is. Plus the fact that Athena just keeps running into dangerous situations alone and refuses to get a permanent partner or call for backup cant make Bobby feel great about her staying safe on the job. It actually shows how Bobby has grown since the show started, when he was doing this so that he could make up for his horrible mistake and then he would work until he died on the job or felt like he had saved enough people and would take his own life, but now he has actually made strides to getting to a better place where he sees value in his own life again, and can see himself not dedicated to saving lives and actually enjoying his later years with his family. But now that he can see an actual future for himself, he is probably worried that Athena might not be there for that future because she just wont slow down. I hope they can work this out quickly, but it does seem like a real bump that they would hit. 

[iMonrey]

This episode made me feel like I was watching Scooby Doo. I know this was meant to be a light-hearted filler episode, but I was struck by how awful the dialogue was. It felt so pretentious and the acting felt so stagey and stilted, and I've never noticed that before on this show.

[tvgoddess]

6 hours ago, Empress1 said:

I think we are seeing a lot of this with the pandemic - almost everyone I know, myself included, has gone through a priority shift where they no longer want work to be the center of their lives

I've been on that path long before the pandemic lol. Only 40 more years I tell myself because I'm sure I'll probably be working until I'm 90.

 It's very clear that Bobby is ready to get to that next stage in life where he can just chill and relax without having to worry about himself and worry about Athena's safety and wellbeing also. Athena though is way too independent and self-reliant to have someone take care of her or be in that mode. I don't think it will last long, but they'll go through a little time at odds.

The funny part was Bobby and his white board along with his clumsy attempts to hide it from Athena. 

Buck is destined to be a loner forever, I swear. When Taylor friend-zoned him, ouch. I felt that inward cringe. Why does no one want this guy as a boyfriend? Not a serious question, but I find it hard to believe in the realm of the show.

 

[Empress1]

1 hour ago, tvgoddess said:

Why does no one want this guy as a boyfriend? Not a serious question, but I find it hard to believe in the realm of the show.

Buck is cute, has a job he loves and is good at and is steady, wants to be in a relationship, and loves kids. Somebody should snatch him up (call me, Buck). I could see if he's holding out for something more substantive than just sex - he's had a lot of casual sex, and he found something deeper with Abby and that seemed to strike a chord in him. But even then, what my single friends who date men and I complain about is not meeting men who want to commit. If Buck really does want to be in a relationship, he's a unicorn. (He could also have all the Tinder sex he wants, pandemic or not, if he just put up one picture of himself in uniform.)

Edited May 11, 2021 by Empress1

[possibilities]

13 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

It actually shows how Bobby has grown since the show started, when he was doing this so that he could make up for his horrible mistake and then he would work until he died on the job or felt like he had saved enough people and would take his own life, but now he has actually made strides to getting to a better place where he sees value in his own life again

That's what I was trying to say-- not that I thought he was wrong to be thinking about retirement, but that it surprised me to see the change, and it was an interesting milestone for him. I certainly don't think there's anything wrong with retiring, or that he shouldn't be thinking about it. I just actually saw it as a big change for him, and in a way it's flipping the dynamic with Athena, because just a minute ago she was flipping out about her daughter talking to the girl who bullied her. Athena was traumatized and worried after having gone through the daughter's suicide attempt. Now we're seeing Bobby having worry and trauma over Athena's near death experience-- and Athena's in denial just like her daughter was. 

13 hours ago, iMonrey said:

This episode made me feel like I was watching Scooby Doo. I know this was meant to be a light-hearted filler episode, but I was struck by how awful the dialogue was. It felt so pretentious and the acting felt so stagey and stilted, and I've never noticed that before on this show.

Yeah, I felt that way, too. There were some relationship beats that resonated, like the Bobby-Athena issue, but overall I thought it was a pretty cartoony and overly cute/annoying episode, not in keeping with the usual tone. I don't mind ligh-heartedness, but the tone of this episode's caper didn't work for me.

[iMonrey]

 

Quote

Buck is destined to be a loner forever, I swear. When Taylor friend-zoned him, ouch. I felt that inward cringe. Why does no one want this guy as a boyfriend?

Well, he's sweet, but he's a bit dim. 🙂

Edited May 12, 2021 by iMonrey

[Arkay]

This was a decent enough takeoff on the real Forrest Fenn and his hoax treasure hunt. IRL five people did die looking for it, but I didn’t mind the lighthearted tone.

What I dislike is Angela Bassett’s acting in this show. I’ve enjoyed her in other roles, but as Athena, I’m not a fan of her delivery. 

[methodwriter85]

On 5/12/2021 at 8:58 PM, Arkay said:

What I dislike is Angela Bassett’s acting in this show. I’ve enjoyed her in other roles, but as Athena, I’m not a fan of her delivery. 

It feels like a waste of her. She needs a dark, intense serial drama, hopefully with scene partners that she can banter with. The straight-laced cop role doesn't really work for her, especially on a procedural.

On 5/10/2021 at 11:12 PM, BooksRule said:

Maybe I read too much or watch too many TV shows and movies, but I immediately thought of the concrete river that runs through Los Angeles.  I didn't figure it would be anywhere near a 'real' river, because that would be too obvious.  I also assumed that the writer wasn't really dead, since I recognized the actor (I forget his name) and didn't think he would have been cast just to be in that one tiny video scene.

 

Years ago I read about the push to try and de-concrete parts of the L.A. River to create a more natural environment and it was neat to see the Glendale Narrows. It's moments like that where I love that they're really filming this show in Los Angeles.