S01.E22: I Know It Feels Impossible

[jewel21]

Quote

The station 42 and third rock crews face a daring rescue when a massive mudslide tears through Edgewater. Meanwhile, Bode’s freedom is on the line at his parole hearing.

Airdate: 05/19/2023

Season finale!

[KLovestoShop]

This episode really pissed me off. I have no idea why Bode had to sacrifice himself. 

[psychfan]

Dude, there’s a reason you had a public defender available. You were told you were allowed that representation. Do you really think she’d have said what she did if the public defender was there? That she’d have been so clear that she was pressuring you to say it was you no matter what?

[DanaK]

Bodie, Bodie, Bodie. Falling on your sword to save Freddie is a difficult choice but he should have talked to his public defender first. The guy is too much of a martyr

[Danielg342]

Well, I'm out. I mean, I called it from the minute Sleeper showed up at Three Rock.

From my review of S01.E19: Watch Your Step:

Quote

No, the main problem with Sleeper is that he totally one-dimensional. He is only there to give Bode and the inmate camp trouble, and he will- sadly and likely- succeed in that regard. The inevitable beats in this storyline will see Sleeper eventually found out, but not before he leaves a path of destruction that will likely see Bode land back in regular prison, where he'll spend S2.E1 and maybe S2.E2 working his way back to Three Rock.

Perhaps I didn't see, exactly, how Sleeper would wreck his havoc on Bode's life and it was good, at least, that Freddy is out (though I suppose this means Freddy probably won't appear much in S2, if at all).

Perhaps, also, I don't know how many episodes of "Bode in jail" that we'll get...it could be two...it could be just the one, or it could even be as high as four but...

That doesn't matter. The Sleeper storyline played out exactly as I thought it would and it's so frustrating and infuriating that I can't really put it into words.

OK, yes, as I've said before, the Sleeper storyline in of itself is not a bad story to tell, and the idea of Bode sacrificing himself to save Freddy is also not a bad story choice either.

The problem, as it always is with this show, is how the show arrived at those story choices.

Once again the writers, in an ever apparent need to be "clever", or "artistic", or "unexpected" or whatever superlative you want to use, have contrived the story's events and its characters to get the plot to do what they want them to do, instead of letting the events and the characters organically lead the writers on their journey.

The investigator character introduced in this episode is a prime example of that. She- literally- comes out of nowhere and, also out of nowhere, declares that she is the entire reason why Freddy's case is backlogged in the courts and that if Bode would just admit to running a drug ring inside of Three Rock (an allegation that also comes out of nowhere because she has literally no evidence of that), Freddy can walk out a free man.

...

...

...OK, everyone, you can stop laughing now. Ladies, gentlemen, Romans...you can stop...

Oh, forget about it. I can't help it either. The show's own logic is so ridiculous that it's hard not to laugh at their own hubris.

I suppose I'll give the show this much in that they have decided- for now- that Manny wasn't the one who set Bode up for his failed drug test (since Manny could have access to the drug test vials and switch them around), because Manny is far more interesting as a reformed criminal and one who is on his own path to redemption than as someone who is outright bad and thus isn't worth redeeming.

Not just because all of Bode's looking up to him would go for naught, but also because Kevin Alejandro (who plays Manny) played a shady, shifty guy in Golden Boy and I'd rather seem him play a character here with more depth and nuance.

It doesn't matter anyway. This show has no idea how to do nuance or subtlety and has absolutely no redeeming qualities about itself that would make it worth a second look come the fall.

To wit:

• The characters are meaningless husks because none of them behave in organic or natural ways. They just decide to be randomly smart or stupid based on what the plot needs them to do, so there's no way to get an accurate read on who any of these characters really are.
• The show wastes wonderful acting performances by people like Billy Burke, Jules Latimer, W. Tre Davis and Diane Farr (though I may be on my own with that last one). I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that actors of their talent level struggle on this show because, as I said in the previous point, I'm not sure anyone could succeed with what this show calls "characterization".
• The writers themselves waste wonderful ideas and premises by twisting around the story and forcing it to go into certain places all because the writers are too obsessed with arriving at a particular destination instead of letting the show's events and characters naturally take them there. As seen with this episode's "shocking" final moment, the writers want to have "moments" but don't want to put in the actual work so that those moments are actually earned.
• All so that the first season ends just so the writers can have their "reset" button, because now there is nowhere left for the show to do- once Bode gets out of jail- except to have a repeat of S1 where Bode goes back to Three Rock just so he can earn the trust of his family, his friends and his captain. The writers have thus proven they're so bereft of ideas and have no idea about long term planning because they have shown they are literally writing this show in circles, and we know how shows like that end up.

So this means so long show. Farewell...but, unlike your Emmy-baiting main character, I'm not crying about never seeing you again.

Edited May 21, 2023 by Danielg342
Typo fixed.

[Artsda]

Oh Bodie what an idiot.  No truth or proof of anything but he goes back to save Freddie. 

So how is Bodie going to be in prison again whole rest of the show is Fire Country? Cap saw the shady investigator he will know Bodie did his change after talking to her. 

[Dowel Jones]

Well, I'm glad there was hardly anyone in that resort, because the crews quit looking after they found the people connected with the stars of the show.  And I bet that USAR teams in the entire country are going to use this episode to teach proper search and rescue techniques, and USAR operations.  With only a few words:  "Just don't do this."

Early in the episode Manny is in the back of the crew bus briefing the crew.  So, who was driving?

[ProjectInfinity]

(Mostly) tuned out once Rebecca died... Doesn't seem like I missed much.

 

[psychfan]

12 hours ago, Danielg342 said:

Once again the writers, in an ever apparent need to be "clever", or "artistic", or "unexpected" or whatever superlative you want to use, have contrived the story's events and its characters to get the plot to do what they want them to do, instead of letting the events and the characters organically lead the writers on their journey.

The investigator character introduced in this episode is a prime example of that. She- literally- comes out of nowhere and, also out of nowhere, declares that she is the entire reason why Freddy's case is backlogged in the courts and that if Bode would just admit to running a drug ring inside of Three Rock (an allegation that also comes out of nowhere because she has literally no evidence of that), Freddy can walk out a free man.

 

It's really just insulting to the viewers to toss in such stupid stuff. Stuff that not only comes from nowhere but also bears no resemblance to the way the world works. Her allegation is that Bode's running a drug ring with Freddy as his right-hand man, and that's why Freddy's case is tied up. But somehow if Bode confesses, Freddy gets off scot-free? Bode says yes indeed I have been running a drug ring here, everyone knows Freddy's his bud so much so that they're able to stop his actual innocence case, but all of a sudden Freddy's fine? And the public defender outside has nothing to say about any of this? And Manny who two minutes earlier heard Bode say he won't say he did something he didn't do, he won't lie to his friends and family like that, isn't going to speak up right then about how somehow in the intervening minutes where Bode was alone with this investigator boom, he totally changes his story? And also somehow that's exactly at the same time Freddy gets out? Nope, no red flags there at all.

[possibilities]

It's so disappointing. The show has such a good premise and they managed to make it so stupid that it even undershoots the already low bar for stupid shows.

They even SET UP the public defender, and then didn't pay it off.

They made Eve's happy moment into "oops-- it was with a total villain". 

They did that whole thing with everybody falsely accusing Jake, and Jake withholding evidence that could have exonerated himself, and everybody seemed to have learned their lesson from that.... And now they're doing the same thing with Bode.

Why, show? You have all the pieces in place and yet you just flat out refuse to use them. 

[circumvent]

Well, I am bummed that Sharon didn't die, that Gabriela didn't get fired, but at least Bode is back in prison.

Since I am done with this show, I will just fanfic that this is how it ends: Sharon's transplant will fail, she dies. Bode becomes a real criminal and remains in prison. Gabriela just gets fired and goes away. 

But just to add to the choir here, what kind of corrupted investigator is that? And what kind of completely pathetic is Bode? He knows the truth, that the whole thing is a scam to make the department look good because they caught the person they "believe", without any proof, was running a drug ring. All that Bode had to do is be humble in his parole hearing, call the place that was working on Freddy wrongful conviction, tell them the truth, get the investigator to be deposed under oath. It would be a far more interesting second season, and they would keep Freddy in the show. 

They will probably have a time jump in the show because I don't see how they can focus on Bode in prison and let the show be called Fire Country - I mean it is "Bode's" show, he writes, produces, directs, acts, does costumes, make up, props, everything, but it is still kind of weird. Maybe he serves more time, gets out and...whatever they will go with this 

I'm out. It was painful to watch you show. Will not miss.

[Dowel Jones]

44 minutes ago, circumvent said:

Well, I am bummed that Sharon didn't die

Because we all know that a serious kidney disease can be mitigated by a course of antibiotics, like the doctor said.

What always puzzles me about this, and every other cop show, for that matter, is that convicted inmates, having been through the system and are theoretically completely aware of their rights, never, ever say "I want to speak with my attorney."  I get that it's a plot roadblock to do that, but, please.

[MsVulcan]

After that ending I am out.  The firefighting and rescues are just not enough to outshine all the bad.

[Danielg342]

3 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

What always puzzles me about this, and every other cop show, for that matter, is that convicted inmates, having been through the system and are theoretically completely aware of their rights, never, ever say "I want to speak with my attorney."  I get that it's a plot roadblock to do that, but, please.

It's a pet peeve of mine too but is one that is, sadly, not unrealistic. The vast majority of interrogation subjects don't call a lawyer for their interrogation, thinking they can "outsmart" the police or erroneously believing that "nothing can go wrong because I have nothing to hide".

So, in most TV interrogations, I can accept the suspect doing that.

In this case, Bode knows the system and how it works. He even invoked his right to counsel- and yet, for some reason, he caved to the interrogator's wishes even though he didn't have to (and the counsel would likely tell the investigator to take a hike).

I have a low bar for idiocy in interrogations, but Bode's here has to take the cake. By far.

6 hours ago, ProjectInfinity said:

(Mostly) tuned out once Rebecca died... Doesn't seem like I missed much.

Rebecca is one of those examples of this show's faulty writing. She was a useful character beyond being a potential love interest for Bode, because, as a former lawyer, she would be a valuable asset for the inmates at the fire camp. It would have been far more believable that Rebecca worked to get Freddy out than Eve did, because Rebecca knows the laws.

...but, Bode and his gang need angst and heartache so "let's waste Rebecca" and thus waste a character who could have been useful as the series progresses.

5 hours ago, psychfan said:

It's really just insulting to the viewers to toss in such stupid stuff. Stuff that not only comes from nowhere but also bears no resemblance to the way the world works. Her allegation is that Bode's running a drug ring with Freddy as his right-hand man, and that's why Freddy's case is tied up. But somehow if Bode confesses, Freddy gets off scot-free? Bode says yes indeed I have been running a drug ring here, everyone knows Freddy's his bud so much so that they're able to stop his actual innocence case, but all of a sudden Freddy's fine? And the public defender outside has nothing to say about any of this? And Manny who two minutes earlier heard Bode say he won't say he did something he didn't do, he won't lie to his friends and family like that, isn't going to speak up right then about how somehow in the intervening minutes where Bode was alone with this investigator boom, he totally changes his story? And also somehow that's exactly at the same time Freddy gets out? Nope, no red flags there at all.

I agree. It's downright infuriating that the show thinks I would buy this stuff.

I do believe that the show wanted to frame Bode's admission as some kind of "noble sacrifice" where he sacrifices himself for arguably his best friend at the fire camp (if not overall). Which is fine, but there are other ways to go about it.

In my alternate narrative for Fire Country, I envisioned a storyline where Bode got into so much trouble in Edgewater that he went to jail for it and the town has largely shunned him. In S1, Bode comes back to Edgewater via Three Rock and claims he's a new man and wants to atone for what he has done. We would spend quite a bit of S1 with Bode genuinely trying to be better, leading to a thawing between him and the town.

However, lurking in the background is the "old" Bode, the one who got into all that trouble. Sleeper, here, could have made sense within that story, perhaps as Bode's former friend who led him down the path to destruction in the first place. Bode tries to resist the urge to go back but ultimately he can't. He is still successful for a time in hiding his relapse, but then it blows up in his face when the drug tests come back. Maybe the investigator here makes sense, because now it's a case of confronting Bode about admitting the truth, with perhaps the added stipulation that, in admitting the truth, Bode saves Freddy as well.

Yeah, the audience might still be disappointed that Bode is going back to jail, but at least there's a rational and relatable reason why that is happening. We've all been faced with an issue where lying would be more beneficial to us- but is it really worth the risk?

Ultimately, what dooms this show is all the corners the writers cut. There's a principle in writing to explain in the narrative only what you need to explain, and to not worry about too much about things you've overlooked. No writer is perfect, so even the best will leave stuff out of their narrative because they just simply didn't realize they were doing so. However, such a concept only goes so far- the writer's task is to still craft a story that, despite its inevitable holes, still will make sense to the vast majority of people. You don't want your audience to be confused about how you reached your conclusion because if they have to think about it too much, they'll just check out and move to a story that makes more sense.

In short, we can accept, say, the detective finding the perfect parking spot in New York City as soon as he arrives on the scene even though we know that's practically impossible, since parking is not important to the plot. The writer leaving out all the evidence that detective collects to put away the perpetrator is a bigger mistake to make, since the evidence would be important to the plot.

Far too often shows believe they're doing the former when they're really doing the latter, and Fire Country is a prime example of that.

[possibilities]

I assumed Freddy stays on the show to try to exonerate Bode, but with this show you never know. They might just think disposing of Freddy is okay.

 

[LaylaGirl]

I am also out. I stayed this long for Billy Burke and Diane Farr - but I just can't with all the stupid story lines. And the rescues aren't even that good because they spend so much time standing around talking rather than taking any action.

[Bulldog]

I’m still trying to wrap my head around the logic of placing your child in a supposedly air tight container when a mud slide is barreling towards you. 
 

And was Luke really not going to reveal he was (conveniently) a match because Vince was mad at him???

Edited May 21, 2023 by Bulldog

[circumvent]

10 hours ago, Danielg342 said:

The vast majority of interrogation subjects don't call a lawyer for their interrogation, thinking they can "outsmart" the police or erroneously believing that "nothing can go wrong because I have nothing to hide".

Maybe some do this but there is also the reality of the "justice" system when the interrogators are a bunch of authority abusers who use every tactic to lead the suspect, or even a proven criminal to confess to much more than they did, to discourage the suspect to talk to a lawyer first, to hold them for the whole time they are allowed to be held without calling anyone, or to "collaborate" for some leniency - which is usually a lie. On top of that, some people don't know they have rights, and the Miranda Rights got thrown into the SCOTUS toilet

[Danielg342]

15 minutes ago, circumvent said:

Maybe some do this but there is also the reality of the "justice" system when the interrogators are a bunch of authority abusers who use every tactic to lead the suspect, or even a proven criminal to confess to much more than they did, to discourage the suspect to talk to a lawyer first, to hold them for the whole time they are allowed to be held without calling anyone, or to "collaborate" for some leniency - which is usually a lie. On top of that, some people don't know they have rights, and the Miranda Rights got thrown into the SCOTUS toilet

I'm not talking about the police side- I'm talking about the person getting interrogated. A lot of people falsely think the police are "on their side" and are "only interested in the truth", which is why a lot of them will not invoke their right to counsel. Quite a bit of this is influenced by TV, because there's the sense that if you're invoking your right to a lawyer, you must have "something to hide", because that's how TV usually plays it.

Reality is, everything you've said is why you want to have a lawyer present and to insist on that right before the interrogation can really proceed. Since it takes a lot of work just to get an arrest and because, in the public's mind "arrested=guilty", law enforcement will not give up so easily on the interrogation suspect even if that's "the truth". So, without a lawyer by your side to steady the proceedings and ensure your rights are respected, it's very easy to get caught in that crossfire and wind up getting convicted for something you didn't do.

Further to the point, the police will use the suspect's sensibility that the police are "interested in the truth" against them, because that's how they'll get the suspect to open up- and eventually stick their foot in their mouths.

There is a limit to how far the police can go. In 1991, in Austin, Texas, four teenage girls were brutally murdered at the end of their shift at a yogurt shop, with the culprit burning the shop down in a bid to hide the evidence. The police wound up arresting four suspects and wound up convicting them on nothing but their confessions- but, later, all four convictions were quashed because it was ruled the police used faulty methods to secure the confessions. One of those confessions occurred because the police kept the suspect at the station for over twelve hours, with interrogators eventually "convincing" the suspect they had committed the crime even though, earlier, the suspect insisted he didn't do it.

To this day, the murders remain unsolved.

What does that mean for this episode? It further reinforces how silly Bode's interrogation was, because, not only did Bode realize the façade and worked to counteract it (by bringing in the public defender), he still played along with the investigator even though it made no sense for him to do so. Furthermore, the investigator cannot create a crime out of whole cloth, verbally coerce a confession and think that's all she needs to do to convict Bode of the crime- the Austin murders show that the police still need more than just the suspect's word to prove they have actually found the person who committed the crime.

All the investigator has is Bode's "failed" drug test and that bag of money. The bag is suspicious, but, by itself is no indicator that crime had occurred. Neither is the drug test, because that doesn't prove a drug ring infiltrated the camp.

To my knowledge, the investigator does not have eyewitness testimony that Bode and Freddy were dealing drugs or proof that anyone else failed a drug test. Furthermore, to expand on the faulty logic, if eyewitnesses had claimed that Freddy and Bode were both dealing drugs, then Bode's word that Freddy wasn't involved would not exonerate him.

Now, if this was Gabriella being accused of running the drug ring at Three Rock then maybe the investigator's story could have stood despite the flimsy evidence. Gabriella was definitely seen at the camp numerous times, especially around Bode, so if the investigator wanted to weave a narrative that Gabriella was feeding Bode drugs it could have worked. Gabriella would be naïve enough to think "the truth will set me free" and thus she would be, more believably, susceptible to the investigator's suggestive and coercive tactics.

Yeah, the investigator would have no hard proof that Gabriella was slinging drugs at Three Rock, but, based on what we have, there would be enough optics to make someone logically believe that. "Gabriella was seen at Three Rock. Bode failed his drug test. How did Bode get those drugs? Gabriella must have given it to him".

Sure, dig deep and it falls apart- but, at first glace, doesn't that make sense? At least more sense than some convoluted narrative of "Bode is slinging drugs along with Freddy unless Bode admits Freddy wasn't a part of it"?

Oh well.

[circumvent]

30 minutes ago, Danielg342 said:

To this day, the murders remain unsolved.

Like over 90% of all crimes committed in this country. The police, and the FBI have a terrible track record of competence

 

31 minutes ago, Danielg342 said:

I'm not talking about the police side- I'm talking about the person getting interrogated.

Yes, but the person being interrogated is influenced by the behavior of the law enforcement present. Some do trust the police, some do have wrong assumptions about how law enforcement works, but this is all used against them by the inherent corruption of the system, because the system is designed to oppress. And yes, people should immediately ask for a lawyer, although that part is also corrupted by the constant hammering coming from the authorities in the room. It is a traumatic situation, unless the interrogated is a psychopath. In situations of trauma, all reason goes out the window and the pressure to end the whole thing and believe that it is the best outcome 

Now, in the show, it was ridiculous because Bode knew it was a set up and because the public defender was just outside (if I remember correctly). He was there for another reason, he didn't have to talk to the woman. The character was resented to us as someone who is very aware of this type of things. But it is in character for him, the martyr complex speaks louder than anything else in his mind. As far as I care - which is about an ounce from where I stand - he will rot in prison.

 

[jabRI]

And with the bag of money, it's not like Bode or Freddy were trying to hide it.

[buckboard]

12 hours ago, circumvent said:

But it is in character for him [Bode], the martyr complex speaks louder than anything else in his mind. As far as I care - which is about an ounce from where I stand - he will rot in prison.

 

Nah, I think in one or two episodes next season (if the writers strike ever ends) they'll put together all the reasons posters have mentioned here why Bode threw himself on the grenade (once again), this time to save Freddy, and he'll be released from prison.  I don't see why he can't wind up in Cal Fire before the end of Season 2, maybe as liaison to Three Rock.   

 

 

[Dowel Jones]

2 hours ago, buckboard said:

I don't see why he can't wind up in Cal Fire before the end of Season 2, maybe as liaison to Three Rock. 

Perfectly on par with this show's tenuous connection to reality.

[circumvent]

8 hours ago, buckboard said:

Nah, I think in one or two episodes next season (if the writers strike ever ends)

Don't worry about the strike. The actor who plays Bode, who is the creator, producer and almighty king of everything in the show will cross the picket line and write every episode. His egotrip cannot be interrupted.

[Danielg342]

I'm just going to throw this out there, given the reaction to this episode:

Is Bode going to prison one of the worst TV train wrecks of all time?

(By "train wreck" I mean a narrative moment or choice that made the TV show basically irredeemable)

It's hard for me to say. I've seen quite a few train wrecks in my day, but I'm not sure I ever saw one that got me this upset. Then again, Bode's terrible decision is still fresh in my mind and that may be clouding things- once the dust settles and I can truly see it for what it was against all the other worst TV missteps I can see if it truly ranks among the worst.

[Maverick]

It was a pretty bad move.  I wasn't liking the writing in the back half of the season but the show was still tolerable.   This is a case where the strike might help because i would probably stop watching but by the time it comes back I'll probably give it a try.  Crap writing like shouldn't be used for the writer's cause in their strike.  

 Since this show is basically a soap opera, if Bode were smart he would have fainted when he got on the stand and bought him some time to talk to his family and a decent attorney.  

[Dowel Jones]

1 hour ago, Danielg342 said:

Is Bode going to prison one of the worst TV train wrecks of all time?

Oh, dang.  Here I thought that S2 was Bodie escaping from a train wreck on the way back to prison, and the entire season would be him trying to escape the clutches of the evil investigator while he searches for the real drug smuggler at Three Rock.

[The Wild Sow]

Would that be a “one-armed drug smuggler”? 😜

[b4pjoe]

No sense repeating all of the reasons everyone has already said but I am out as well. I can't remember any show that I thought was so good at the beginning could get so bad so fast.

[Stevie Nicks]

I just can't with this show. I kept screaming at the TV "DEMAND TO BE RETESTED, BODE!!" I mean, is there no automatic retest? There should be. If he comes back clean, which he would, then that would exonerate him for being a dealer at least. So he falls on his sword for Freddie. Of course he does. 

Sharon collapses because the writers remembered she needs a kidney and needed to stop acting like everything is fine. And the scuzzbag brother in law is a match. Of course he is. Ugh. 

And Bodes parents believe automatically that he's doing drugs again, with no real evidence beyond a failed urine test. Again screaming at the TV "RETEST HIM!!!" But no. Ugh.

Now we see a completely new character that may have had Bodes child? Ok then. I'm over this show. I really am. 

 

[possibilities]

Oh God. I forgot about the ex who might or might not have had Bode's baby. She doesn't even know if it was him, so at minimum she was fucking two different guys in high school at the same time? And now she's with Jake. 

And Bode is with Gabriella, who is Jake's ex?

I think I have to laugh.

[tjw68]

This episode is nothing but lazy writing. 

[buckboard]

One of the terms to settle the writers strike should be that Max Thierot be prohibited from writing his own storylines.  Hire only professional writers who aren't otherwise invested in the show.  I suppose he wants to be taken seriously and not just be a pretty boy who does his best work when he goes shirtless, but this isn't working.

If they're turning us off  -- the viewers who actually have been watching the show -- with their horrid writing, how do they expect to attract viewers?  

The plot makes no sense.  Why would Bode ask for the tests if he was using?  Manny saw Bode's statement before Bode spoke with the woman from the AG's office.  Why didn't he speak up?  For that matter, why wasn't the public defender in the room with him?  Where did the AG come up with that far fetched theory about Bode's guilt?  Why is the hearing -- and everyone else -- ignoring the fact that Bode insisted Sleeper was framing him?  Even though Sleeper had been sent back to prison for framing him.  And so on....   Oh, yeah, the baby.  Except she's not sure it's Bode's.  Yeah, why bother to find out who the father of your child is.  (I may have forgotten 15 or 20 other plot miscues....)

[circumvent]

2 hours ago, buckboard said:

One of the terms to settle the writers strike should be that Max Thierot be prohibited from writing his own storylines.

Yes, he should be kicked out of the WGA

2 hours ago, buckboard said:

I suppose he wants to be taken seriously and not just be a pretty boy who does his best work when he goes shirtless

Well, to me there is not pretty there and shirtless...ew

[sweetandsour]

This is mean and I have plenty of legitimate criticisms of this show, but the finale really highlighted for me how ridiculous Max looks in clothes.  I don't care for him out of clothes, either, but his pumped-up proportions are so strange and clothes only highlight how his silhouette is not a real person's silhouette.  It's like a Popeye cartoon silhouette but worse.  Seeing him at the parole hearing was like, oof.

Speaking of cartoons, all of the villains on this show are cartoon characters in all the bad ways.

I assume that they only showed part of the conversation with the state's attorney.  Bode insisted that Sleeper is the drug dealer, but he's got so many connections and machinations that he keeps getting away with it.  But he offers or accepts an offer to go undercover and the fake front is that he confessed to "being the bad dude" and goes back to prison.  No one else in his life can know he's UC so it has to look real and everyone has to react like it's real.  Sleeper's got eyes everywhere!  Bode is shown crying in his cell because he's sorry he hurt the people he loves, not because he's actually staring down the barrel of staying in prison long-term.

So Bode spends x number of episodes in s2 gathering enough intel and evidence to bring down Sleeper and probably his whole inside network.  He doesn't have to do it to get paroled, but it was how he got Freddy out ASAP (super believable, that was) and how he "saves" Three Rock and other prisoners from the poison that is Sleeper.  This of course also allows Bode to be SuperBode the Martyr who knows best and knows all.

Then he gets paroled and his UC work to bust Sleeper helps him overcome some of the normal administrative obstacles to working for Cal Fire faster than if he was a standard parolee and Cal Fire nepo-baby nugget.  He has to mend most of his relationships because of the lies he told and let people believe so he could go UC.  Bring on a few more episodes of stupid soap opera BS during live rescues instead of, you know, rescuing people.

Ultimately it comes out that blond neighbor ex-girlfriend who is now dating Jake has a baby that could be Bode's.  Bode's peace with Gabriella last about 2 seconds before this revelation.  It turns out he's not the father, though, because the other guy ex-girlfriend was sleeping with back then ... is Sleeper!  Oh nos!!!!!  Sleeper rears his ugly head again, and Bode really goes above and beyond to crush Sleeper once and for all because now it's in the name of a child!  And SuperBode will always champion the children and do what's best for the innocent little babes!

Now can I have my WGA card?

[Danielg342]

51 minutes ago, sweetandsour said:

This is mean and I have plenty of legitimate criticisms of this show, but the finale really highlighted for me how ridiculous Max looks in clothes.  I don't care for him out of clothes, either, but his pumped-up proportions are so strange and clothes only highlight how his silhouette is not a real person's silhouette.  It's like a Popeye cartoon silhouette but worse.  Seeing him at the parole hearing was like, oof.

Speaking of cartoons, all of the villains on this show are cartoon characters in all the bad ways.

I assume that they only showed part of the conversation with the state's attorney.  Bode insisted that Sleeper is the drug dealer, but he's got so many connections and machinations that he keeps getting away with it.  But he offers or accepts an offer to go undercover and the fake front is that he confessed to "being the bad dude" and goes back to prison.  No one else in his life can know he's UC so it has to look real and everyone has to react like it's real.  Sleeper's got eyes everywhere!  Bode is shown crying in his cell because he's sorry he hurt the people he loves, not because he's actually staring down the barrel of staying in prison long-term.

So Bode spends x number of episodes in s2 gathering enough intel and evidence to bring down Sleeper and probably his whole inside network.  He doesn't have to do it to get paroled, but it was how he got Freddy out ASAP (super believable, that was) and how he "saves" Three Rock and other prisoners from the poison that is Sleeper.  This of course also allows Bode to be SuperBode the Martyr who knows best and knows all.

Then he gets paroled and his UC work to bust Sleeper helps him overcome some of the normal administrative obstacles to working for Cal Fire faster than if he was a standard parolee and Cal Fire nepo-baby nugget.  He has to mend most of his relationships because of the lies he told and let people believe so he could go UC.  Bring on a few more episodes of stupid soap opera BS during live rescues instead of, you know, rescuing people.

Ultimately it comes out that blond neighbor ex-girlfriend who is now dating Jake has a baby that could be Bode's.  Bode's peace with Gabriella last about 2 seconds before this revelation.  It turns out he's not the father, though, because the other guy ex-girlfriend was sleeping with back then ... is Sleeper!  Oh nos!!!!!  Sleeper rears his ugly head again, and Bode really goes above and beyond to crush Sleeper once and for all because now it's in the name of a child!  And SuperBode will always champion the children and do what's best for the innocent little babes!

Now can I have my WGA card?

One change I would make and then you would be good to go on that WGA card:

Bode's ex-girlfriend, whose name is Cara, is confused about the father of her child because she was impregnated at a party where she was hopped up on all kinds of drugs. She then realizes that Sleeper raped her, using drugs to do it. Because Sleeper drugged her, she can't remember the assault, so Sleeper skips the charges and gets away scot free, all while flashing that idiotic smug smile of his at Bode and Cara while he does it. This leads to Bode now having to defend the honour of not just Cara's child but Cara herself, and he's joined on his quest by Jake and Freddy. They find Sleeper (who managed to sweet talk the DA out of sending him back to prison, because Sleeper is Teflon, after all), beat him to a bloody pulp, throw away his body in some field where no one will find it for twenty years. The episode then ends with a slow motion "victory" walk by Sleeper's murderers conquerors.

Of course, that's still not the end of the story. Oh no. The police will still question Bode about Sleeper's disappearance. Bode then makes some grand speech to the police about how they're useless and how the world needs people like Bode to exact revenge "the justice this world needs" and the police are so moved by Bode's bad attempt at Shakespeare that Edgewater holds a ticker tape parade for Bode with President Joe Biden making a cameo just to award Bode the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Fade to black on the season, right? Wrong!

In the closing moments, we see Sleeper's badly decaying body in all its glory, because CBS has selective standards and has paid off the FCC. We see some strange ooze seep into Sleeper's body, which, before you know it, Sleeper transforms into a fearsome anthropomorphic wolf, letting out a good howl for good measure. He is then reborn as Wolfman, and he has one thing on his mind! The episode then fades to black as ominous music plays, as, though he doesn't yet know it, Bode's nightmare has born anew!

There.

Put all that in and you won't just get your WGA card...we might as well hand you an Emmy too.

[jabRI]

The only way the going back to prison story line would have made ANNNNY sense is if they offered him the chance to work undercover and bring down an operation threatening his fire team.  Why didn't they go there?  Lazy writing.  How does the attorney generals office have time to investigate him but not Sleeper? Or Manny for being so incompetent.

And this show needs better actors, I get that they are still young but Eve, Jake and Gabrielle really suck the air out of every scene they are in.  I want to like them, but it's not possible to care about them when their characters are so one-dimensional.

Don't get me started on ridiculous Diane Farr, I always had a lot of respect for her as an actor, but why she has to act like a high school girlfriend is just insulting.

[circumvent]

2 hours ago, jabRI said:

Why didn't they go there?

I think it would have been a terrible idea but I also think the writers cornered themselves so badly, no ideas they have will be good enough to save the logic in the show.

2 hours ago, jabRI said:

I get that they are still young but Eve, Jake and Gabrielle really suck the air out of every scene they are in.

Gabriela is terrible. Jake, to me, is neutral but Eve, despite the overacting is miles ahead of Bode in the acting department. At least she has facial expression and emotions. Bode is a robot, a brooding, woe is me robot, who is not only expressionless, but also monotone. 

Totally agree with Diane Farr and the high school girlfriend vibe. I had no idea of who she was before this show and could not understand why she has top billing in the credits. She is beyond awful. 

[SHERMDOG]

I have stayed with this show all season...until the finale...PISSES ME OFF!! 

how about they re-test him!?? I'm there is some kind of test to prove Bode right????

And his mom is such a fucking hypocrite.  Automatically thinking he is lying. Not willing to let him explain.

TThen we have the stupid mudslide... ot one but TWO red refrigerator s...And...they couldn't unjam it, but in 10 seconds they were able yo get the whole damn thing picked up out of the sludge/mud. BLECH...

I'm out. STUPID ASS writing. Agree with previous posters on that!!

[LCWilson]

Who ever wrote this ending of season 1 should be fired. Out of all the ways this could have possibly been written, they chose this... I doubt I'll even watch it again. 

[cameron]

On 5/28/2023 at 9:43 PM, SHERMDOG said:

I have stayed with this show all season...until the finale...PISSES ME OFF!! 

how about they re-test him!?? I'm there is some kind of test to prove Bode right????

And his mom is such a fucking hypocrite.  Automatically thinking he is lying. Not willing to let him explain.

TThen we have the stupid mudslide... ot one but TWO red refrigerator s...And...they couldn't unjam it, but in 10 seconds they were able yo get the whole damn thing picked up out of the sludge/mud. BLECH...

I'm out. STUPID ASS writing. Agree with previous posters on that!!

And please tell Chief Leone that her helmet isn't suppose to be worn slanted to one side.  Not a fashion show.  If you're going to wear the helmet, wear it right.

[Emma]

I just binged the show over the last few days. It has warts but I’m hooked. 
I was so hyped to come chat but now feel like I’m the only one in the room who is going to continue watching lol. Quietly walks back out door.

[Dowel Jones]

Do not fear.  This show is a snark target and many of us will be back when it comes around again.  We all need the humor.

[possibilities]

I'll probably be back, too. I like firefighter shows and rural shows. I get super annoyed, but it does have an addictive quality.

I like it when people point out what a show does right, and sometimes it even changes my mind or helps me understand why I'm hooked on a show that in some ways annoys me, so I hope you will stick around and provide positive commentary if you continue to like the show!

Edited February 7 by possibilities

[Danielg342]

7 hours ago, Emma said:

I just binged the show over the last few days. It has warts but I’m hooked. 
I was so hyped to come chat but now feel like I’m the only one in the room who is going to continue watching lol. Quietly walks back out door.

I might still watch...it's on after S.W.A.T., so it's not like I have to go out of my way to watch the show...but, the events of the finale left a bad taste in my mouth. Once S.W.A.T. ends, Fire Country will need to improve because I doubt I'll give it a third chance.