S03.E10: Parental Guidance

[jewel21]

Quote

Owen, Tommy & the 126 race to the rescue when a medieval-themed restaurant suffers a case of carbon monoxide poisoning. Meanwhile the crew is worried that Paul still has not mentally recovered from his surgery and his friendship with Marjan is over. Mateo is offered a promotion by his old fire captain, but quickly realizes he is not the man he once knew.

Airdate: 03/14/2022

[gonzosgirrl]

I know it's early, but that statement in the episode description that Paul and Marjan's friendship is over just grinds my gears. He was unconscious and she is not his wife/partner/medical POA. Even if she shouted at the rooftops that Paul didn't want a pacemaker, she would not be allowed to make that decision for him. Not in the real world anyway. And yeah, if he drops her because she's not actually sorry that they saved his life this way, then screw him.

[Whimsy]

I hate how shows, or the 911 shows in particular, portray how employment, salary and promotion works for firefighters. My quick google search shows that Texas firefighters are civil service, like my state. In order for Chavez to be promoted to Lieutenant he would have to take a civil service test for that rank. Those tests are only given once or twice per year (at least for us) and passing is not guaranteed. The Captain’s test, for example, was HARD and took my husband more than one try to pass, after studying the huge stack of books. Lieutenant may be easier, but probably not by much.  So, say Chavez is a good student and manages to pass first try, he’d then be placed on a list, ranked by score, with others who may be interested in the job.  You get extra points for being a military veteran and years of service. So, even if he aced it, there could be others with a higher score due to the extra points. The top three are typically interviewed and then an offer is made. So, no. That’s not how he would’ve been promoted AT ALL.  Even if the other Captain just made that decision based on his mental issues,Captain Strand would’ve said something, so they’re obviously just making up the process for the show. 

Also, while I can understand that Chavez thought he was helping the Captain of the 129, not saying anything almost cost lives. There’s no way to “help” or “protect” someone with cognitive issues. If he’s that bad at work, how about when he’s at home?  He could seriously hurt himself. That whole storyline was thoroughly frustrating to me. I usually watch this show because it’s light and frothy (to me). I don’t usually get stressed about the storylines. 

8 hours ago, gonzosgirrl said:

I know it's early, but that statement in the episode description that Paul and Marjan's friendship is over just grinds my gears. He was unconscious and she is not his wife/partner/medical POA. Even if she shouted at the rooftops that Paul didn't want a pacemaker, she would not be allowed to make that decision for him. Not in the real world anyway. And yeah, if he drops her because she's not actually sorry that they saved his life this way, then screw him.

I agree with all of this. 

[Dreamawake719]

27 minutes ago, Whimsy said:

I hate how shows, or the 911 shows in particular, portray how employment, salary and promotion works for firefighters. My quick google search shows that Texas firefighters are civil service, like my state. In order for Chavez to be promoted to Lieutenant he would have to take a civil service text for that rank. Those tests are only given once or twice per year (at least for us) and passing is not guaranteed. The Captain’s test, for example, was HARD and took my husband more than one try to pass, after studying the huge stack of books. Lieutenant may be easier, but probably not by much.  So, say Chavez is a good student and manages to pass first try, he’d then be placed on a list, ranked by score, with others who may be interested in the job.  You get extra points for being a military veteran and years of service. So, even if he aced it, there could be others with a higher score due to the extra points. The top three are typically interviewed and then an offer is made. So, no. That’s not how he would’ve been promoted AT ALL.  Even if the other Captain just made that decision based on his mental issues,Captain Strand would’ve said something, so they’re obviously just making up the process for the show. 
 

Also, while I can understand that Chavez thought he was helping the Captain of the 129, not saying anything almost costed lives. There’s no way to “help” or “protect” someone with cognitive issues. If he’s that bad at work, how about when he’s at home?  He could seriously hurt himself. That whole storyline was thoroughly frustrating to me. I usually watch this show because it’s light and frothy (to me). I don’t usually get stressed about the storylines. 

I agree with all of this. 

Agreed with everything you said. I'm not sure if I missed any details in regard to the 129 Lieutenant's death, but is there any reason for us to suspect his death had anything to do with a bad call made by the Captain due to his cognitive issues?

[Whimsy]

9 minutes ago, Dreamawake719 said:

Agreed with everything you said. I'm not sure if I missed any details in regard to the 129 Lieutenant's death, but is there any reason for us to suspect his death had anything to do with a bad call made by the Captain due to his cognitive issues?

Ooh. Good question. I’m not sure. I wasn’t paying close attention to parts of the episode. 

[Madding crowd]

I don’t understand why they had to bring the other captain on the show at all and I don’t believe for a minute no one noticed if his decline is bad enough to think menus were reports. They should stick with the rescues and the lives of the main characters.

[jewel21]

I kept thinking the captain's cognitive issues were not a result of dementia but rather a result of hitting his head after his night of drinking. I figured he had a concussion or brain bleed and that would be the reason for all his issues. 

[possibilities]

If Paul is likely to fall to the ground like that in the middle of a rescue, how can he be qualifed to be a firefighter? 

It's not just civil service rules the show glosses over.

[Whimsy]

9 hours ago, jewel21 said:

I kept thinking the captain's cognitive issues were not a result of dementia but rather a result of hitting his head after his night of drinking. I figured he had a concussion or brain bleed and that would be the reason for all his issues. 

That was my initial thought too when they were at the funeral.  It's quite a leap to go straight to early onset dementia, or whatever the diagnosis was.  You'd think the first thought would've been the huge cut on his head....

[shapeshifter]

Best lines: When Judd was awkwardly rambling and said "...nary...," and Marjan called him on saying "nary."

But yes to all of the above complaints, with the one that finally made me quote that old commercial with the elderly woman pasting pictures onto a actual, physical wall for all to see:

• "But that's not how this works! That's not how any of this works!"

--being when Captain Strand told Mateo he was welcome back at the 126. 
Previous to Strand hiring Mateo back, I figured if this show had a 24-esque clock running in the bottom corner of the screen, it would have kept saying stuff like: "1 week later" (pretending Mateo didn't really start working for the 129 the next day).
But after Mateo had (magically) become a Lieutenant with the 129, would it even be permitted by the union for Strand to hire him back as anything less???

Ooo! I got it! Because the 129 Captain was not medically able to decide to make Mateo a Lieutenant--and probably failed to follow a crap-ton of regulations necessary to do so--Mateo was never actually employed by the 129 at all. 
And, Captain Strand probably never really un-hired Mateo, because he knew something was fishy.
So.
Apparently we viewers are either supposed to figure that out or not care.
Heh. Just like Mateo doesn't care about the money or the position.🙄

In spite of the episode being written by people with zero sense of the importance of procedure in the real world, kudos to the initial story creators for giving the writers a well-constructed A/B plot that meshed well (the 129 Captain's and Paul's similar-but-different-dilemmas).
IDK. Maybe the writers are just anarchists at heart, as in: Screw f'in' procedural rules! 
--especially after they were probably ordered to make drastic cuts for time.

I did cry a few tears at the end, probably because the 129 Captain knowing he was losing himself was so much like what happened to my mom, who never lost her ability to think and remember, but whose body lost all abilities necessary for her to maintain the dignity she prized above all else throughout life.

 

8 hours ago, possibilities said:

If Paul is likely to fall to the ground like that in the middle of a rescue, how can he be qualifed to be a firefighter? 

My fanwank for Paul being allowed to fall down and get defibrillated (potentially while carrying someone down a ladder on the outside of a burning building) is:
Any firefighter could have a cardiac or other event at any time, but at least Paul would be back up and running, quick as a bunny in no time.

Of course, I don't really know. 
 

Edited March 15, 2022 by shapeshifter

[Raja]

I was also smacking the head wondering how the rest of the department just did nothing as a rookie barely out of probation is now a Lieutenant taking away someone else's job. But worse after seeing them go after Captain Strand in earlier shows how was it nobody in 129 reported their Captain to a Chief, after they set up a near mandatory reporter scenario for the rest of that team.

Edited March 15, 2022 by Raja

[Lady Calypso]

Listen...I really wanted to like the episode because an episode about the three characters who DON'T get screentime besides once a season? I'm all for it! And I've been actually a bit surprised that Paul/Marjan have gotten a bit more to do this season than in seasons past. This season feels like they've been trying a bit harder at balancing out characters' storylines and not just giving it to the same four-five characters. So having the regular screentimers take a backseat/supporting roles was something I was excited for.

Unfortunately, where they've made some progress is overshadowed by bad writing. 

Let's start with Paul/Marjan, who I thought would have more to do than they actually did. I mean, they had more than usual, but Paul's screentime was taken over by Owen, Judd and Tommy (the three characters who always get stuff to do), and Marjan didn't even interact with Paul until a 30 second conversation at the end. And it was mostly just Paul icing Marjan out and the rest of the team blaming Marjan for not showing up to Paul's, even after they were told that Paul was ignoring HER, not the other way around. 

And, yes, Paul's heart issue is just gonna be ignored for the rest of the series, anyway. He's never gonna need to be shocked, UNLESS they make it a one episode dramatic plot point, and it's all become pointless since he was able to complete the practice run on his first try, anyway. And he obviously passed the real run, even with the 25 second pause because he collapsed and needed his heart shocked for the rare time that it'll happen. 

And now, to Mateo. I get the show was going for Mateo having a heart of gold and being such a sweet and selfless person and all that. Oh, he's just doing it to help out his old captain who treated him like shit when he worked over there!

I get why he might be torn about turning his old captain in, but I feel like it was also a no-brainer, especially at the point where the captain almost killed a team of firefighters. I think the idea being the plot was there, but Lone Star's mediocre writing didn't help it at all. 

They also had Captain 129 blatantly spiral and apparently Mateo and Owen were the only ones to take action. I mean, nobody else at the 129 noticed that their captain was reading menus as quarterly reports? 

And Mateo is SO TORN UP about turning in his shitty captain and said captain was SO GRATEFUL for Mateo turning him in. I mean, I guess it beats a plot where this captain comes after Mateo for having him lose his job...but this is Lone Star! Mateo is a bottom tier character, which means his storylines get relegated to one episode arcs! Of course it wasn't gonna carry over to another episode! How silly of me!

[marceline]

11 hours ago, Madding crowd said:

I don’t understand why they had to bring the other captain on the show at all and I don’t believe for a minute no one noticed if his decline is bad enough to think menus were reports. They should stick with the rescues and the lives of the main characters.

Technically Mateo is a main character. I don't think of him that way at all but the show does. (Personally I'm startled every time Mateo shows up on screen because I forget about him instantly the moment he leaves my sight. I'm basically a goldfish where he's concerned.)

[Bruinsfan]

Right there with you. When Owen came in to find Capt. Tatum sprawled out on his couch, I had a brief moment of wondering what was going on before remembering that Mateo lives with him now.

That woman from the opener maybe ought to consider catching rides with friends until her husband is recovered enough to drive. Or at least trading her gigantic SUV in for one of those cars that brakes automatically when it detects obstacles.

[iMonrey]

Quote

That woman from the opener maybe ought to consider catching rides with friends until her husband is recovered enough to drive. 

I'll go ya one better - that woman should never drive again. Even as she insisted she had to keep her eyes on the road (this time) she kept looking at her husband and I was just waiting for her to have another accident. It actually made me nervous to watch her drive. 

[eel21788]

4 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

it's all become pointless since he was able to complete the practice run on his first try, anyway. 

At one week post-op!

In real life, the first two weeks after you have a pacemaker placed you aren't allowed to put your arm over your head, not even to comb your hair. He wouldn't have had medical clearance to do all the pulling and stretching and climbing needed to pass that test for at least a month, and even then it would still have been pretty painful to move his arm (this is speaking from personal experience).

[eel21788]

13 hours ago, possibilities said:

If Paul is likely to fall to the ground like that in the middle of a rescue, how can he be qualifed to be a firefighter? 

It's not just civil service rules the show glosses over.

He can't.

From google:

Firefighters who have received an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) are asked to retire or are permanently placed on restricted duty because of concerns about their being incapacitated by an ICD shock during a fire emergency. 

[eel21788]

17 hours ago, jewel21 said:

I kept thinking the captain's cognitive issues were not a result of dementia but rather a result of hitting his head after his night of drinking. I figured he had a concussion or brain bleed and that would be the reason for all his issues. 

He hasn't had his medical work-up for it yet. Once they have done his MRI, what do you want to bet they find a brain tumor?

[EllaWycliffe]

Oh show, I forgive you so much because Rob Lowe is pretty. I forgave the volcano for god's sake... the volcano that basically would have driven most of the population out of Austin if it actually existed. But there were major reality issues here.

First, I like Paul and there's no way he would not be on restricted duty. He would keep a job but there's no way it would EVER come to him being tested - his problem is beyond that. But let's say he somehow did get allowed to do the physical test. He COLLAPSED in the test and his defibrillator shocked him back to normal living. He collapsed from heart trouble while being tested on whether he was fit enough to do his job.  THATS AN AUTOMATIC FAIL!!! I mean really, he can't complete the test without medical intervention. He's absolutely a liability in the field. This would never happen.

Then we have the Mateo storyline and like, someone else summed up the reality that he can't just be promoted to lieutenant on someone's whim because firefighters in larger cities are civil servants and spots are competitive. This just wouldn't happen. I also can't see there not being any formal protests in the firehouse over a guy barely past probation being elevated above people like Judd (I assume the other fire house has some competent older firefighters other than the dead lt) I also can't see Strand blithely allowing it simply because Mateo is not experienced enough to really hold the position. 

The fire chief can't simply fire Mateo on the spot. Strand should have expressed some concerns higher over Mateo being promoted. He certainly should have made a report himself over the chief's behavior at the fire and how he and his people were ordered into a death trap. All in all, if the fire chief was THAT addled, I can't believe none of his people said anything. 

A small aside - when Mateo said he could help with the reports, I couldn't help but think "aren't you supposed to be catastrophically dyslexic?" Isn't that the worst job for him?

Another small aside - I really don't understand the nature of the issue between Paul and Marjan.

Last aside - wasn't it nice to see less of TK?

[bilgistic]

1 hour ago, EllaWycliffe said:

Oh show, I forgive you so much because Rob Lowe is pretty. I forgave the volcano for god's sake... the volcano that basically would have driven most of the population out of Austin if it actually existed. But there were major reality issues here.

First, I like Paul and there's no way he would not be on restricted duty. He would keep a job but there's no way it would EVER come to him being tested - his problem is beyond that. But let's say he somehow did get allowed to do the physical test. He COLLAPSED in the test and his defibrillator shocked him back to normal living. He collapsed from heart trouble while being tested on whether he was fit enough to do his job.  THATS AN AUTOMATIC FAIL!!! I mean really, he can't complete the test without medical intervention. He's absolutely a liability in the field. This would never happen.

Then we have the Mateo storyline and like, someone else summed up the reality that he can't just be promoted to lieutenant on someone's whim because firefighters in larger cities are civil servants and spots are competitive. This just wouldn't happen. I also can't see there not being any formal protests in the firehouse over a guy barely past probation being elevated above people like Judd (I assume the other fire house has some competent older firefighters other than the dead lt) I also can't see Strand blithely allowing it simply because Mateo is not experienced enough to really hold the position. 

The fire chief can't simply fire Mateo on the spot. Strand should have expressed some concerns higher over Mateo being promoted. He certainly should have made a report himself over the chief's behavior at the fire and how he and his people were ordered into a death trap. All in all, if the fire chief was THAT addled, I can't believe none of his people said anything. 

A small aside - when Mateo said he could help with the reports, I couldn't help but think "aren't you supposed to be catastrophically dyslexic?" Isn't that the worst job for him?

Another small aside - I really don't understand the nature of the issue between Paul and Marjan.

Last aside - wasn't it nice to see less of TK?

Rob Lowe creeps me the hell out. I think his skin looks like tanned leather, and his hair looks insane.

He posted this picture on Instagram (I saw it when I looked him up the other day to answer some question of my boyfriends) and it just creeps me out so much! This is just cringey.

But yes, I did appreciate no TK!

[Tdoc72]

Annoyances: 

—everything everyone already mentioned 

—Marjan’s stupid hat (although I liked her sweaters she wore with the hat)

Edited March 17, 2022 by Tdoc72

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Tdoc72 said:

Annoyances: 

—everything everyone already mentioned 

—Marian’s stupid hat (although I liked her sweaters she wore with the hat)

I floved Marjan’s pink hat, especially in the first scene with the sweater!

[iMonrey]

When everyone went over to Paul's at the beginning of the episode, is that the first time we've ever seen Marjan out in public without a head scarf?

I guess we shouldn't be surprise the writers don't really know how fire departments work. Hell, they don't seem to know how weather works.

[marceline]

I have to admit that I looked at the hat over the headscarf and thought it was overkill. Then I realized one is about faith and the other is about fashion but I still kept thinking, "Gurl, isn't your head hot?" I'd have sweat through both layers.

[mojito]

 

7 hours ago, iMonrey said:

When everyone went over to Paul's at the beginning of the episode, is that the first time we've ever seen Marjan out in public without a head scarf?

She had it on. This is when she visited Matteo. Maybe it looked like hair to you.

On 3/15/2022 at 8:54 AM, Raja said:

I was also smacking the head wondering how the rest of the department just did nothing as a rookie barely out of probation is now a Lieutenant taking away someone else's job.

I wonder if Matteo was even eligible to apply for that job and take a test.  I liked how he went from following being entrusted with the snips after Marjan used the power saw on the knight's helmet, to being entrusted to be a Lieutenant. 

I've known a handful of women who transitioned. Never seen one with an impressive beard to go along with male pattern baldness. 

I liked:

PAUL: I feel like I'm gonna die.

OWEN: You're not gonna die, I promise. (turns to Tommy) He's not gonna die, is he?

TOMMY: I sure hope not. 

[preeya]

On 3/15/2022 at 1:41 PM, eel21788 said:

He hasn't had his medical work-up for it yet. Once they have done his MRI, what do you want to bet they find a brain tumor?

Then he can transfer to Chicago Med, The Good Doctor, The Resident, or New Amsterdam. 

Located in Chicago, San Diego, Atlanta, or New York respectively.

Are there any medical shows in Texas?

[Raja]

11 minutes ago, preeya said:

Then he can transfer to Chicago Med, The Good Doctor, The Resident, or New Amsterdam. 

Located in Chicago, San Diego, Atlanta, or New York respectively.

Are there any medical shows in Texas?

There was The Night Shift with the Army doctors who worked in a San Antonio civilian hospital between deployments

[meatball77]

On 3/15/2022 at 2:52 PM, eel21788 said:

He can't.

From google:

Firefighters who have received an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) are asked to retire or are permanently placed on restricted duty because of concerns about their being incapacitated by an ICD shock during a fire emergency. 

My husband in the military replaced a guy who received one of those devices.  He was immediately retired with 100% disability, all he did was work at a desk but they wouldn't let him stick around for the guy who was coming to replace him in three weeks.

Driving is the main concern for those.  Because being knocked out mid drive is a problem.  As would being knocked up mid ladder. 

[mojito]

Quote

As would being knocked up mid ladder. 

Being knocked up is frequently a problem. 

[preeya]

20 hours ago, mojito said:

I wonder if Matteo was even eligible to apply for that job and take a test.  I liked how he went from following being entrusted with the snips after Marjan used the power saw on the knight's helmet, to being entrusted to be a Lieutenant. 

This is so far-fetched. It would NEVER happen IRL.

[Kel Varnsen]

On 3/15/2022 at 8:55 PM, EllaWycliffe said:

This just wouldn't happen. I also can't see there not being any formal protests in the firehouse over a guy barely past probation being elevated above people like Judd (I assume the other fire house has some competent older firefighters other than the dead lt) I also can't see Strand blithely allowing it simply because Mateo is not experienced enough to really hold the position. 

Even informal protests. Like I might be able to ignore the idea of Lieutenant's tests and seniority lists, just like the writers did. But was every other fire fighter at the new house totally cool with Mateo getting the automatic promotion to lieutenant, and were totally fine with following his orders? Without any kind of conflict? That is at least something you would hope tv writers would be able to handle.

[possibilities]

On 3/16/2022 at 7:28 PM, mojito said:

I've known a handful of women who transitioned. Never seen one with an impressive beard to go along with male pattern baldness. 

I know one. I don't think it's that unusual. 

[WinJet0819]

As mentioned before, there should be no realistic way that Paul is able to return to full duty with with an internal defibrillator. What we saw happen during his test would be much worse in an actual fire if he's carrying a victim and the building is about to collapse and speed is of the essence. It's nice that the show gave a focus on Paul, but could they not have given a medical issue that's still serious, but not as far-fetched to come back from?

In regards to Matteo, there is no way he should be eligible for a double bump to Lieutenant without taking a written test. He's become a good firefighter, but he's never been responsible for people before. The promotion even surpassed Chicago Fire levels of idiocy, and that show has set the level pretty high.

And yes, this is TV, but if you have a fire captain that can't even remember the guy who died at a funeral, and then is thinking take-out menus are quarterly reports, it should be reported right away. Simply taking the promotion to keep a better eye on him, while commendable, is not going to cut it. It shouldn't take until they're actually on a call of a actual fire where the captain again forgets what he just says and is about to kill another company for Matteo to finally act. What if the other company that came wasn't the 126, and that company's captain trusted Tatum over Matteo? Or if Matteo didn't hear what Tatum ordered? Multiple firefighter's would be dead, Tatum's career would have been damaged irreparably he would have been forced out with no benefits and probably a lawsuit, and Matteo would probably be axed, as well for not coming forward sooner.