S08.E08: Wannabes

[Snazzy Daisy]

Fall Finale

Quote

Things get messy for the 118 following a massive pipe explosion.

Meanwhile, Athena investigates the beating of a man found behind a grocery store, and Bobby's working relationship with Brad from "HOT SHOTS" just got a little more intimate.

Air Date: Nov 21, 2024

 

 

[Snazzy Daisy]

[fastiller]

"In this firehouse it's Captain Nash." 🔥🔥🔥

[dancingdreamer]

Is Brad in every 911 now,  or has he come out of his coma , to carry on with his own show. I hope it's  the latter. 

I love that Buck is still baking! 

[agathapenny]

So Brad ended up not being that bad...

They better not have Eddie actually move. Adventures in El Paso is unappealing. Didn't they essentially already do that storyline when Eddie went to work at the call centre?

Buck looked devastated by the idea of Eddie moving and losing another person from his life. Poor guy. 

And Eddie's parents are officially the worst, ever. They've just basically stolen Eddie's son and have no intention of returning him. They've settled him in as much as humanly possible so that he'll never leave. They seem to have made no effort to have Chris patch things up with Eddie and go back to live with his father, where he belongs. They are not his fricken parents!

And now they're getting their way over Eddie moving back to El Paso like they always wanted because they've taken his son hostage. I really have to question whether they really want him there and would let him parent Christopher if he was.

And Chris is old enough that he knows exactly what he's doing, and he's doing it on purpose. I kind of dislike him a lot right now, along with hating Eddie's parents. Both are getting away with shameless manipulation that I feel nothing but disgust for.

And here's Eddie, clearly willing to do ANYTHING for his kid, even when it's not in his own best interests.

I liked the cart cop storyline.

This seemed like a fairly subdued mid-season finale (this was the mid-season finale, right?).

[buttersister]

Tell you what though. If Eddie can’t figure out (with help) how to tell his parents to back tf off and his kid to come home, then I don’t want to know him. Full disclosure: Eddie’s never been a favorite, that stache was the worst, so no loss here.

[agathapenny]

2 minutes ago, buttersister said:

Tell you what though. If Eddie can’t figure out (with help) how to tell his parents to back tf off and his kid to come home, then I don’t want to know him. Full disclosure: Eddie’s never been a favorite, that stache was the worst, so no loss here.

I actually don't know how Eddie does it without alienating Christopher even more.

His grandparents are spoiling him rotten and he gets to hurt his dad who he's mad at, at the same time. It's a win-win for Chris. Even if he hasn't thought it through that deliberately (he's a teenager).

Eddie can't physically force him. And he can only make Chris move back with him if his parents are on board, so Chris can't just stay exactly where he is, and we've seen no indication Eddie's parents would back him up and make Chris move out. Quite the contrary. They've done everything they can to make Chris want to stay so they can play mommy and daddy.

Chris is old enough that he has to want to come home. That's the crux of it.

The only way I'd even slightly enjoy an "Eddie in El Paso" storyline is if Buck went with him to take a break from L.A. to continue getting over Tommy. Even then, I'd rather they didn't go there (figuratively, or literally). The only reason I care about Eddie's parents is to dislike them more all the time, and kids and kid storylines are not my favourite, so I prefer them in small doses.

[possibilities]

Maddie wasn't in this one, was she? I kept thinking: no call center?

I really want the story about Brad and his tv show and the bully captain who took Bobby's place is finally over. They keep briuning it back and I don't know why they think it's so interesting. I guess they think it's fun to have a tv show about what their tv show is about, like it's clever to layer it like that, but I'm not interested.

 

[agathapenny]

7 hours ago, possibilities said:

Maddie wasn't in this one, was she? I kept thinking: no call center?

I really want the story about Brad and his tv show and the bully captain who took Bobby's place is finally over. They keep briuning it back and I don't know why they think it's so interesting. I guess they think it's fun to have a tv show about what their tv show is about, like it's clever to layer it like that, but I'm not interested.

 

I found this OK as kind of a one-off, but I'm not that interested in Brad that I'd like to see future episodes where he gets more to do than the regular cast.

[iMonrey]

I think it's pretty ballsy of this show to do a parody of their own show within their own show, when the show proper is practically a parody all by itself. "Hotshots" is only slightly more unrealistic than 9-1-1. And the commentary about how this or that wouldn't happen "in real life" is a little too meta and self-aware. It's not half as clever as it thinks it is. Hopefully we're done with Brad now.

I hate to tell the Cart Cop kid, but he'd probably make a lot more money off his You Tube videos than working as a cart wrangler at a grocery store. They didn't show us how many followers he had though.

11 hours ago, agathapenny said:

And Eddie's parents are officially the worst, ever. They've just basically stolen Eddie's son and have no intention of returning him.

I'd like to know what the original arrangement was supposed to be, because I don't think the intention was for Christopher to live with his grandparents indefinitely. More of a summer thing, I thought. Why isn't Eddie having conversations with his parents about this? I get he feels bad about the whole situation with the lookalike, but it's time to move on from this state of limbo. Christopher seems to be under the impression he's going to live in El Paso for good, and I don't understand how that came to be or why Eddie or his parents are allowing it.

[BooksRule]

I hate that the Cart Cop was assaulted, but sooner or later it was going to happen. And if you try to shame someone into doing the 'right thing' they are like to double-down and push the cart even farther away from the corral. I'm one of those who doesn't put my cart away if the corral is more than two parking spaces away from my car.  My bad knees just don't want to take me that far.  But if I can't park next to a corral that has carts in it (I don't mind parking farther away from the store entrance if I have a cart to lean on), I always make sure that I place my empty cart right in the spot where the parking spaces intersect so that it won't be in anyone's way. I do my best! 

As for Christopher, I think the original arrangement might have been for him to just stay with the grands for the summer.  Eddie's mistake was not being firm about having Christopher come back when the summer was over, whether or not he wanted to come back.  He's let it go too far, now.

I love to bake, but I still want Buck to come over and bake for me. 'Here, have a scone.' (and from Eddie's expression, it was a good scone.)

[fastiller]

Eddie should've been going to El Paso every weekend during the summer and parking himself in his parent's house.   Have we ever been told what the formal/legal arrangement is?  Like, if this was just to have been a summer visit, surely Christopher is being noted as truant in the school he was enrolled in back in LA.  (Quick story: when I was sent to live in Ireland for Secondary School, my Dad failed to notify the NYC school system to unenroll me in the HS I was meant to attend.  The Christmas school holiday is much longer Ireland than what NYC schools were off for. On one of my visits back to NYC for the Holiday (a few days of which the NYC schools were still in session), I was walking in the area of my old Junior HS and a cop asked me why I wasn't in school.  I forget how I answered.  Had he looked me up, he would have seen me 'officially' truant since the previous September.)

And yes, Buck's face when he cottoned on to Eddie maybe moving was very sad.  First Tommy, now Eddie.

Brad's presence and that of the fictional Hotshots was fun enough for the meta jokes, but like many of you, I'm fine if this was the last episode for that storyline.  Well, unless they bring it back for the viewing party when the Hotshots ep that Chim, Eddie & Buck had cameos in airs.  'Cause they need to bring that one home by the end of this season of 9-1-1, right?

 

Edited November 22 by fastiller

[andromeda331]

Please let this be the last of Brad. I'm so tired of him. I did like at the end with the cast on the show.

Eddie's parents suck. And this show better not be spinning him and Christopher off to 911 El Paso because that would be a horrible show. Eddie and Christopher belong on this show and I can't stand Eddie's parents and don't want to see them continuing to do everything they can to keep Christopher from his father. They are so horrible. I really hope they get their comeuppance.

As a former grocery employee I get the kid trying to get people to put their carts in the correl. It's not that hard but it rarely does. I never confronted people but if I seen them not putting up the cart I'd walked up to the cart louding bitching about who was the idiot to left the cart there pretending I didn't know it was the person in the car. It also would have been nice if it they stopped at the stop sign in front of the store. But I felt bad that the kid was beaten up, yeah that's why you don't do that. That's also why stores tell their employees not to chase after people stealing from the store. You don't know if that person will beat you up or worse.

 

[kwnyc]

Eddie's parents have been awful since they first introduced them. They've been trying to get him to give up Christopher for years. They hated Shannon, and are probably glad she's dead. So it seems like they're absolutely willing to throw away their own son, to get their claws into their grandson. 

But Eddie is such a wuss, that he won't fight for the person he loves most in the world. Instead, he'll consider a move back to El paso, where he will be under his parents thumbs again. Wasn't there a medical procedural on a couple years ago said in El Paso? It had doctors and EMTs.

Brad can go away now. But I'll admit to enjoying the scene where the guys from the 118 were playing doctors in the show within a show within a show. 

There seemed to be something wrong with the cart crusader. They didn't actually say so, but he seemed a little unbalanced. And God bless Athena for making it quite clear that he was a guy who should never, ever become a cop. 

And while they aren't saying so, the subtext of the Bobby / Brad relationship is that Bobby is the top, and Brad is the bottom. 

 

[Calvada]

I thought this was a little lame as the fall finale.  The cliffhanger is whether Eddie leaves the show?  I have to think the majority of viewers are thinking "so what?"  I know I am.  I also hope they are finished with Brad Torrance.  What should have been a one episode character has been dragging on way too long.  

[Snazzy Daisy]

What? There are NO Bathena, Madney and Henren for the fall finale? Come on. 😣

I feel the “Cart Cop” story doesn’t belong in the fall finale. I like Athena and I like seeing Detective Romero again, but there’s too much time spent on that annoying YouTuber.

I truly hope this is the last time we see Brad Torrance.

And the “Christopher being away” story has started to get on my nerves. Eddie deserves better than this unnecessarily prolonged arc. Wrap it up!
 

[Crashcourse]

I liked the Cart Cop kid because I can understand being annoyed by people leaving shopping carts on the parking lot.  It can be especially bad if it's a windy day and the cart rolls into a vehicle.   

[tennisgurl]

I hope that this is the last hurrah for Brad and Hotshots. Its been fun, and the meta jokes were cute, but we really should have ended it a few episodes ago. I found it funny that the show basically spent a whole big scene singing its own praise and its reason for existing as something fun and comforting, that and the many meta jokes about the crazy dramatic rescues that happen constantly certainly makes you feel like the writers were having an absolute blast with this little arc, no wonder its been going on for ages. 

A main character ending up in a coma after being hit in the head with a flying bowling ball after saving a bunch of orphans is just about as ridiculous as this show can be. 

Now that the Brad story is almost done, can we be done with "Christopher in El Paso" next? I started this off being so annoyed with Eddie that I was alright with Christopher wanting to spend time away from him, but its been WAY too long now and Eddie's grandparents are just being assholes now. I thought at first that Christopher was just leaving for a summer or something but grandma and grandpa are clearly settling him in to live with them permanently, they've been wanting to have Christopher to themselves for ages. Eddie better not move down there, that would be giving them exactly what they want, he needs to actually put him damn foot down and tell Christopher that he's coming back home to LA now. 

It is annoying when people don't out their shopping carts away and just leave them around the parking lot, but trying to shame people and sticking your phone in their face isn't going to make anyone stop and will probably end like this. That whole plot was kind of weird but fun, it was nice to see Detective Romero and I loved Athena, very gently, telling the kid he should never ever be a cop. 

[I Want My MBTV]

I don't disagree with what any of you are saying about the Cart Cop guy (though I do find it annoying when carts are in parking spaces and when I park if I see someone finishing with a cart I always offer to take it back up to the store for them) but he didn't get assaulted because of him telling people they were shirkers (though that might have eventually happened) he got assaulted because the guy was a wanted criminal and didn't want his face recorded.  Cart Cop could have been filming Tik Tok dances and getting the guy in the background and the result would have been the same.

I'm also tired of Brad and while I agree that Eddie's parents are awful I don't care if he moves to El Paso since he's not that interesting.  I would feel bad for Buck but otherwise I would not miss Eddie at all.  And I don't miss Christopher and the storyline just needs to end already. 

Weren't we told last week that Athena was going to have a new trainee?  Was that already dropped?  

[possibilities]

I also wondered what happened to the Athena-with-a-trainee plot.

[andromeda331]

4 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I also wondered what happened to the Athena-with-a-trainee plot.

Hopefully that's still coming.

[bilgistic]

My brother-in-law is visiting and watched this episode with us. He doesn't usually watch the show. He asked if Buck and Eddie are a couple.😂

[buttersister]

There was an Eddie-centric rerun today (Eddie almost dies but fights to live for Christopher) that included his dipshit parents telling him to turn over his kid to them. So what-say producers sh”t or get off the pot with this. El Paso or hard pass, figure it out, since Eddie won’t. Sorry, Christopher, you asked for it.

[agathapenny]

10 hours ago, Snazzy Daisy said:

And the “Christopher being away” story has started to get on my nerves. Eddie deserves better than this unnecessarily prolonged arc. Wrap it up!
 

From your lips (keyboard)....

[Diana Berry]

I think we will see Eddie go to Texas and have a drama filled reconciliation with Chris going back to La with him.  
 

if the young actor cant film (I realize him and his family moved) they can film around that . “How’s Chris? “ “ he’s great” .  The audience doesn’t even need to see him ( except occasionally like Athena’s mystery kids) . I want Eddie to stay 

[iMonrey]

2 hours ago, Diana Berry said:

if the young actor cant film (I realize him and his family moved)

Is that what happened? First I've heard of it. Where did you read that?

[Diana Berry]

49 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Is that what happened? First I've heard of it. Where did you read that?

The boards were saying after season 7 finale that family moved out of  la then other  boards saying network was just going to make him recurring.  Either way it’s an easy fix the audience doesn’t have to see him every episode.  
 

[kwnyc]

As child actors hit adolescence, that may be the time they start wanting to experience a life outside of a TV show. 

The short-lived recasting of Harry doesn't seem to have worked out and they've said that the original actor doesn't want to return. 

If Gavin's family feels that it's best for him to live in another place and not return to the show, then the show should find a believable way to work around it.

Though they really have built up Eddie's parents as terrible people.

Edited November 23 by kwnyc

[agathapenny]

7 hours ago, kwnyc said:

The short-lived recasting of Harry doesn't seem to have worked out and they've said that the original actor doesn't want to return. 

And nobody's missed him, yet we all just assume he's around. We don't need to see him. Or at least I haven't missed him and am fine with just assuming. 

Likewise, I don't think we'd need to see Chris (much, or at all). A throwaway every now and then about him being at a friend's place works for me. If it's true that the actor isn't interested in the screen time, it's an easy solution.

[possibilities]

If Gavin wants out, I have to respect that. But it's a big loss for representation, and it also makes me sad.

But the way they're handling it, they are making Eddie look like the one thing I liked about him is being retconned out of existence, i.e. he was a great dad and now he's acting like he is clueless and stupid in that area.

Of course, if they've decided that Gavin wanting off the show means they can get rid of Eddie, too... well, hahahahaha-- I would find that kind of amusing. "Oh, we only kept you around because you served the narrative as a support character for Christopher, but now that that's over, we don't need you anymore". 

Actually, I did also like him as Buck's friend. But he's been said to be a pain in the ass off camera, so I wouldn't be heartbroken if that lost him his job, either.

 

Edited November 24 by possibilities

[Irlandesa]

I think there's some misunderstanding about Gavin's family's move to Georgia.  They made the move during the pandemic.  He has been commuting every season since then and I think filming his scenes in chunks.  So there's nothing inherently different about his living situation this season than there was last year or in the previous couple of seasons except that he's older.  Maybe it's harder for him to get away from school. 

I suspect the truth is that the pacing is just off on this show.  Stories that look to be building to something just go away quickly and other stories, like Eddie and Chris, are almost ignored for half a season.  It's probably easier to keep Chris in TX than have to write ahead. 

12 minutes ago, possibilities said:

But he's been said to be a pain in the ass off camera, so I wouldn't be heartbroken if that lost him his job, either.

I hadn't heard that.  I had wondered if this is an exit story for him because the actor wants to leave.

On 11/22/2024 at 10:57 AM, iMonrey said:

I'd like to know what the original arrangement was supposed to be, because I don't think the intention was for Christopher to live with his grandparents indefinitely. More of a summer thing, I thought. Why isn't Eddie having conversations with his parents about this?

There's so much assumed and unsaid here.  But I do think it has only been a summer since Chris has been gone. I believe it was stated that it has been 3 months since Chris left. But really, before Eddie considers moving back to El Pas, maybe he should consider visiting his son first. 

At least Eddie is thinking of doing something. I have a hard time villainizing his parents in this.  Eddie is the one who made the mistake and Eddie is the one who took a passive role in trying to reconnect with him.  Chris seems pretty happy.

2 hours ago, agathapenny said:

And nobody's missed him, yet we all just assume he's around. We don't need to see him. Or at least I haven't missed him and am fine with just assuming. 

Didn't someone mention he moved back to FL to be with his father and step-father?

[buttersister]

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had wondered if this is an exit story for him because the actor wants to leave.

LOL, I’m old so I’ve lost count of actors like him that left their TV gigs and poof. For every Steve MCQueen and Clint Eastwood, there were scores of Joe UsedToBes. Bye, dude.

Edited November 24 by buttersister

[Irlandesa]

9 hours ago, buttersister said:

LOL, I’m old so I’ve lost count of actors like him that left their TV gigs and poof. For every Steve MCQueen and Clint Eastwood, there were scores of Joe UsedToBes. Bye, dude.

True.  But sometimes actors have a different mindset in that they expect instability is baked into their profession and so they're less risk averse.  There might be things he wants to do but can't because of his schedule. 

I say this as someone who doesn't think he's leaving but I watch a lot of British TV and am used to seeing those actors leave their popular shows after 2 or 3 seasons.  7 seasons on a network show is a good run and a decent paycheck if he was wise with his money. 

 

[Clanstarling]

On 11/22/2024 at 1:06 PM, tennisgurl said:

It is annoying when people don't out their shopping carts away and just leave them around the parking lot, but trying to shame people and sticking your phone in their face isn't going to make anyone stop and will probably end like this.

Being on the petite side, I would never confront anyone about leaving a cart, I'm too aware of the risks. On the other hand, I will corral abandoned carts if they're near where I'm parked. I have even (upon occasion) tidied up the cart corral (our store has two sizes, and lots of people just roll them in willy nilly). Not that I'm OCD or anything. Sometimes I'm just in a mood - and have the time.

On 11/22/2024 at 2:56 PM, possibilities said:

I also wondered what happened to the Athena-with-a-trainee plot.

After that first one crashed and burned, maybe they're rethinking how they'll handle trainees. Athena would be a heck of an intimidating training officer, imo.

Edited November 24 by Clanstarling

[iMonrey]

10 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

At least Eddie is thinking of doing something. I have a hard time villainizing his parents in this.  Eddie is the one who made the mistake and Eddie is the one who took a passive role in trying to reconnect with him.  Chris seems pretty happy.

I wouldn't say Eddie has taken a passive role in trying to reconnect with him. He's been calling him and Facetiming him, so he's the proactive one in the situation. My complaint is that he's not being proactive enough. He's tip-toeing around the situation. I get it at first when feelings were still raw. The last (and only other) time we same him Facetime Christopher, Christopher would barely even speak to him. This time they seemed to be on fairly good terms. So when Christopher asked for the autograph to be sent to him, Eddie should have clarified right then and there that he expected Christopher to come back home at some point. 

That's basically the problem. Both Eddie and his parents have allowed Christopher to assume he can live in El Paso indefinitely. Someone should have stepped in and corrected that assumption as soon as it came up. Both Eddie and his parents are in the wrong for letting that happen. Or worse, allowing Christopher to make that decision for himself.