S03.E02: Firing Squad

[DanaK]

Quote

Bode receives a life-changing opportunity that could impact his future as a firefighter, and Leven Rambin guest stars as Audrey, a former fire camp inmate, on FIRE COUNTRY, Friday, Oct. 25 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+
 

 

[Danielg342]

Just when you thought things might actually get better...

...we get another edition of "Characters Being Stupid to Move the Plot!"

I had thought, after S1's ridiculous ending, the writers had learned their lesson...but there was Bode, stealing the fallen firefighter's Medic Alert bracelet.

I suppose we don't actually know if Jake discovering the bracelet was an accident or intentional on Bode's part.

...but the whole thing, on Bode's and Gabriella's part, was just absolutely stupid.

Who writes this stuff?

What paramedic worth her salt misses a Medic Alert bracelet?

The only answer I have is "one that needs to move a plot on a badly written TV show".

I suppose Bode's act is an act of "noble sacrifice", akin to taking the fall for Freddy, but Bode didn't have to actually steal the bracelet- he could have just admitted that it came off in the explosion and he later found it on the ground.

Of course, that's before we get to the fact that Bode wouldn't be put in that situation if Gabriella wasn't stupid in the first place.

Which underscores this episode's real problem. I hate episodes like this, where the storyline has only one direction for it to go or else the show's writers look stupid.

I mean, what else is Bode going to do if he doesn't get into the Cadet program? Building an entire episode on the question of whether or not he gets in is false drama at its purest and makes the episode a slog because you're just sitting there watching the episode hoping the writer just does the right thing.

The episode would have been far better if the story started with Bode starting the Cadet program at the beginning, and we see Bode going through the rigours of the program. We may still get that, because apparently the first stage was boring written assignment and the second stage are actual physical drills.

...but still...

This was supposed to be the episode where I presume Bode meets a false love interest in Audrey and we could have used Stage One to build on their potential relationship.

Instead, Audrey is simply there to bizarrely ask the "tough" questions and we have- what I hope, because who knows- fake drama surrounding the Medic Alert bracelet.

Yawn.

The episode's only other real takeaway was that I was right in that Manny's punch would lead to a stint at Three Rock. That storyline was a bit better crafted because the District Attorney's decision was supposed to come out as a shock and it was played like one.

Plus, seeing Vince, Sharon and Eve- among many others- come to bat for Manny was a nice, touching moment.

 

Oh, well...I guess there was another takeaway, a small one, in that Vince bought a log cabin and Sharon bought Smokie's and Vince made a great quip about their future being in bottomless debt.

...and Vince also made a good quip about Eve, Jake and Bode singing off-key, which I'm sure is a callback to Billy Burke's actual musical career.

If anyone would know about singing off-key, it would be Burke.

Anyhow...

I guess I should also say Rick is now demanding to see Genevieve and reveal the truth to her. I mean, it happened...but there's not much to say here other than "we'll need to see where this goes".

One last point before I close this off- was it just me or were Sharon and Gabriella showing more skin off than they usually do? I'm not complaining about it in the least- it's just seems odd because it's not a common visual.

[possibilities]

I enjoy seeing these hard working women all sooty and empowered. I love hard physical labor (even though I can't do it anymore) and one thing the show consistently gets right is that the women who fight fires are as strong, competent, commanding, and messy as any dude on site. I am handwaving the bare arms because I'm having hot flashes so I am telling myself that so is Sharon, who was glowing.

Bode and Gabriela are dimwits. I wish both of them would get transferred to somewhere not on the show. And she threw Bode under the bus during the "test". She invented a story that makes him at fault, when she was the one who made a mistake-- a ROOKIE mistake, no less! I'd also think that Bode not answering, and having someone else answer for him, would count against him since part of the test was to own your errors. Manny was right last week, that the two of them are bad for each other, even though his idea to tell Sharon to keep them apart was absurd. But I liked that Sharon has decided to stop trying to parent. She's much more joyful and I need someone on the show to not be a whiny mopey drag.

Note to anyone who marries me: Do not make major purchases and/or life decisions without talking to me about it and then expect me to take the surprise in stride. I am not looking forward to the drama from rebuilding Smokey's. I hope they just do it off screen and announce it later. I am not down for construction shenanigans and financial angst. But I suppose they plan to make a lot of drama out of the re-build. Sigh.

I actually think that Jake is handling the biodad thing badly. I get that he's insecure about his relationship with Jen, and protective of her. But he can't stop this from happening. And I don't think his insecurity is warranted. He just needs to sit down with her and tell her what happened, and not be so scared about it.

I love Eve. I'm so relieved that she's no longer being written to be another moping emo mess. I can't even remember how they resolved that business last season. I just remember her driving and crying and I'm glad it's over. I like her happy.

I did like Gabriela not going soft on Manny over his predicament. At some point, he has to stop asking her to parent him, and he has to grow up and stop acting out and making excuses. 

3 years was too much, but G didn't know about that when he was all whiny about her not wanting to watch the hearing. 

If short hair is regulation for a firefighter, and that's why Bode cut his, then why was he allowed to have long hair at 3 Rock, and why do other firefighters on the show have long hair? Don't get me wrong; I'm relieved he cut it. But still-- that was a weird bit of exposition that doesn't square with the rest of the show. Also, why does he look like a greasy mess? None of the other people on the show look like that, and they're all doing the same work.

[Danielg342]

7 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I enjoy seeing these hard working women all sooty and empowered. I love hard physical labor (even though I can't do it anymore) and one thing the show consistently gets right is that the women who fight fires are as strong, competent, commanding, and messy as any dude on site. I am handwaving the bare arms because I'm having hot flashes so I am telling myself that so is Sharon, who was glowing.

I'm not complaining about the bare arms and skin. I just think these days Hollywood tries too hard to have its women avoid showing skin at all even when it would make sense for them to do so. Skin doesn't have to mean "sexy" and "sexy" doesn't have to be bad either.

I would also agree that Sharon looked particularly good in this episode too.

[possibilities]

I forgot to mention that I thought it was really bad to just start clearing brush on private land without even talking to the landowner and/or resident before doing so. I get that they are worried about fire. But if someone showed up in my yard and did ANYTHING without warning or conversation or permission, my gut reaction would be to go out there and read them the riot act. I thought the person in this episode was portrayed as relatively calm under the circumstances.

Yes, it turns out she has a problem and it shoud be addressed. We can't have fire hazards going un-checked. But if there is no rule saying land must be kept within specfiic spec for public safety, then you have to get consent. And even if there is a law, you still need to notify the people and try to get them to comply before you just show up and comandeer the place with nary a word before you set to it.

Locally there was someone who was doing stuff that was a problem for their neighbors and people talked to him and tried to work it out and so on before they sent people to handle it without his participation. 

Even just knocking on the door or leaving a written notice ahead of time would be basic protocol. Or if it was serious enough to make a firm deadline (or start immediately) even just introducing yourselves before you start working if it's so bad that it can't wait-- all of that is basic politeness, as well as a safety issue so the resident doesn't show up with a shotgun and start treating you like a criminal they need to defend agaisnt, would be smart, and I thought Eve was wrong to not even try talking to the person before clearing the yard.

They wrote it that the person had a longstanding grudge against Eve and also against having brush cleared, but that's all the more reason to handle it tactfully, not a justification for just showing up and doing it without following protocols.

[The Wild Sow]

15 hours ago, Danielg342 said:

One last point before I close this off- was it just me or were Sharon and Gabriella showing more skin off than they usually do?

Ha! I've always thought Gabby's boobs ought to get their own credit, since she shows them ALL. THE. TIME!

 

15 hours ago, Danielg342 said:

but there was Bode, stealing the fallen firefighter's Medic Alert bracelet.

I suppose we don't actually know if Jake discovering the bracelet was an accident or intentional on Bode's part.

...but the whole thing, on Bode's and Gabriella's part, was just absolutely stupid.

Who writes this stuff?

What paramedic worth her salt misses a Medic Alert bracelet?

Necklace, not bracelet - which they should certainly have seen when they cut his shirt! What a couple of dumbasses is right! And if Bode had to snatch it off of him to cover for Gabs, dropping or tossing it over to where they dragged him from would have been smart. THAT would be plausible deniability - not putting it in your unlocked locker!

15 hours ago, Danielg342 said:

Oh, well...I guess there was another takeaway, a small one, in that Vince bought a log cabin and Sharon bought Smokie's and Vince made a great quip about their future being in bottomless debt.

And Airstream is a travel trailer, not a log cabin! But yeah, neither is something to "surprise" your spouse with!  As soon as they talked about Smokey's being sold, I knew Sharon and Vince would end up owning it, though (I do love Sharon and Vince - a cute middle-aged - younger than me! - couple still obviously very much in love 😘)

Edited October 26 by The Wild Sow
ETA: I lost my dear husband a year ago (also a few years older than Vince and Sharon) -- and I'm missing him SO much when I watch Fire Country because we loved to discuss it! Now I guess I just have to discuss it here.

[buckboard]

So sorry to hear about your husband, Wild Sow.  

I agree with you about the necklace, not bracelet and travel trailer, not log cabin, and yes, one should talk to their spouse about a major purchase, like a trailer or bar.  And yes, keeping the necklace and not just saying they found it on the ground afterwards was pretty stupid, even for Bode.

This puts Jake in a position of having to decide whether to cover up for his close friends.  If he tells the truth about finding the necklace in Bode's locker, Bode could lose the opportunity to become a firefighter and Gabrielle might face some sort of disciplinary punishment.  Of course, we know that Bode has to become a firefighter, so Jake is now caught up in their web of lies.

[possibilities]

And why would you put it in your locker instead of taking it home or throwing it away somewhere? His idea that they had to dispose of it together was the stupidest thing I've ever heard of.

 

[Danielg342]

3 hours ago, possibilities said:

And why would you put it in your locker instead of taking it home or throwing it away somewhere? His idea that they had to dispose of it together was the stupidest thing I've ever heard of.

Two words: "Tru Wuv".

8 hours ago, The Wild Sow said:

I lost my dear husband a year ago (also a few years older than Vince and Sharon) -- and I'm missing him SO much when I watch Fire Country because we loved to discuss it! Now I guess I just have to discuss it here.

I'm sorry to hear about The Wild Boar. *hugs* My only memory of him was that you told me he fell asleep during the same Criminal Minds episode that I also fell asleep trying to watch.

Anyway, I can't promise I'll be as fiery and as compelling a debater as the Boar was, but at least I'll try to be as engaging as I can be. :)

As for my mistakes- one, I think I'm too used to hearing and knowing about the Medic Alert jewelry as "bracelets" that I never seemed to register that in this episode, it was a necklace. I used to see Medic Alert ads all the time as a kid, and they were- to my knowledge- always portrayed as bracelets.

I also had no idea what an Airstream was before it was pointed out to me here on the forum, and it was a throwaway line that I half listened to so I must have used my intuition to fill in the gaps from what I heard with what I didn't hear. I should have realized Vince buying a trailer makes more sense than a log cabin.

[The Wild Sow]

Thanks, Danielg342! 

[Dowel Jones]

On 10/25/2024 at 8:49 PM, Danielg342 said:

..but the whole thing, on Bode's and Gabriella's part, was just absolutely stupid.

 

On 10/26/2024 at 9:33 AM, possibilities said:

I forgot to mention that I thought it was really bad to just start clearing brush on private land without even talking to the landowner and/or resident before doing so.

I guess they were going for a bulk rate on the lawsuits against CalFire.  Now, I realize this show has only the most tenuous connection to reality, but, IRL, there's is no way CalFire would go trespassing on private land, especially with inmates, and except in an immediate emergency, which this ain't.  They would be paying out a significant amount in damages to that property owner.  I have seen that problem arise before; fortunately, the landowner was more forgiving. 

As for Bode and Gabby, the pilot would have a helluva payday.  I'm also curious as to why a firefighter with absolutely no medic experience is lecturing the cadet class on the medical procedures that Gabby undertook.  But, as we learned from Chicago Fire, any breach of medical protocol is okay as long as everything comes up roses.  And if I were a cadet, I too would be pissed off that some random inmate with puppy dog eyes was bumped in front of every other firefighter in the class.

An Airstream and a bar?  Eh, that's only $100K.  A couple of shifts of OT and a campaign fire, and Vince and Sharon are in like Flint.

To answer one other questions, inmates can have long hair and beards, as they are not CalFire employees.  Vince's hair is skirting the line, but probably legal.

No DA is going to go to trial trying to get a felony conviction on a punch.  DAs put their money on trials that matter, and a jury trial would be way too expensive a proposition given that the jury could, and likely would, find Manny innocent.  Starting the fire was accidental.  But I get it; Vince must go to prison (camp) for a year, where he's surrounded by the very guys that he ran roughshod over during his career.  Yeah, what could go wrong?

[possibilities]

Sharon and Gabriela have long hair. Is there some law of nature that female hair can't catch fire?

[Dowel Jones]

Only when it has been coated with a thin layer of industrial strength handwavium.

[Artsda]

Bode and Gabriella are the worst part of this show and they keep forcing them. She should have married Diego. 

[I Want My MBTV]

13 hours ago, Artsda said:

Bode and Gabriella are the worst part of this show and they keep forcing them. She should have married Diego.

I only want them to be together so they're not inflicted on anyone else.  Everyone else deserves better!  

[JamieLynn832002]

On 10/28/2024 at 6:14 PM, Dowel Jones said:

As for Bode and Gabby, the pilot would have a helluva payday. 

I think the injured/allergic man was another firefighter, not the pilot, which may be their saving grace since he presumably knows at least Gabby.

[christie]

On 10/29/2024 at 1:21 PM, Artsda said:

Bode and Gabriella are the worst part of this show and they keep forcing them. She should have married Diego. 

Yes and no - between Bode and Diego I'd definitely choose Diego hands down (and it's not even close); on the other hand, I wouldn't wish Gabriela (or Bode for that matter) onto anyone so Diego definitely dodged a bullet.

Edited October 31 by christie

[NJRadioGuy]

2 hours ago, christie said:

Yes and no - between Bode and Diego I'd definitely choose Diego hands down (and it's not even close); on the other hand, I wouldn't wish Gabriela (or Bode for that matter) onto anyone so Diego definitely dodged a bullet.

I don't care if they end up together or not, but if they do, just do it now and move the damned plot forward! There are some good stories there to be told if they want to, and this relationship crap is dragging it into the crapper with every second its onscreen. Marry them, drop a helicopter on her or whatever, just DO IT NOW and get back to telling good stories about Three Rock and some exciting rescues and whatnot.