S04.E06: Please Help Me I'm Fallin'

[Bort]

So the posters in the Landslide had her name as Beverly O'Connor, but the demo tape showed it as Beverly Claybourne. Do we assume that the demo tape was done before she was married? And do we know anything about Scarlett's father, for that matter?

Beverly may have submitted with her maiden name and not necessarily before she was married. And no, we don't know anything about Scarlett's dad, I've always wondered about him, actually.

[izabella]

Beverly may have submitted with her maiden name and not necessarily before she was married. And no, we don't know anything about Scarlett's dad, I've always wondered about him, actually.

 

I'm sure he'll show up the minute Scarlett strikes it rich.  Either her father or a half-brother or sister that she never knew she had.  That's how this show rolls.

[Soup333]

I had such high hopes for this season. I seriously spent the summer thinking, I can't wait until Nashville comes back on. I just knew it was going to be great. Oh, how wrong I was. How very, very wrong. Such a waste of potential. 

 

Mental health issues shouldn't be milked for drama. It's not fun and it's no longer something I can watch. There could have been plenty of drama in Juliette and Avery trying to figure out how to navigate being new parents with a relatively new marriage and huge careers (had they been willing to allow Avery to have any kind of lasting success). She didn't have to go completely over the edge. It's such a caricature of PPD that it's insulting. 

 

It's a rare, rare thing when a show pisses me off so much I stop watching. But Nashville, there you go making it happen. 

[Clanstarling]

Jeff falling off the roof was as hilarious as Dr. Drake Ramoray falling down an elevator shaft.

As funny as the "original" show giving an actor the shaft five years earlier - in LA Law when Diana Muldaur's character literally got shafted.

 

I too, laughed when Jeff went over the ledge. Although I will miss his character, who even while being "redeemed" was more consistent than most of the characters on the show.

 

Although I'm not fond of the sanctifying of Beverly, I thought the bar tribute was well done and touching. As awful as Beverly was, I believe it was said that she was bi-polar, and when her demons weren't attacking her, she probably was proud of her daughter. Besides, she never would have shown the bad side of herself to the crowd who came to see her every week. Their admiration was what she needed. 

 

My own experience is that people who know your parents or siblings but aren't involved with the family, experience a very different person than you do from inside the family.

[whatsatool]

Maybe the show could take a little time to tell us about the history of country music. You know feed our heads.

[hqtextbook]

Maddie's a brat, but I'll give her one thing: I kind of agreed with her when she said she didnt see the difference between performing with Juliette and performing for Marcus. From her point of view, her passion is singing on stage. I also dont really get why one was selling herself out and the other was ok? anyone get Rayna's point here?

[madam magpie]

Maddie's a brat, but I'll give her one thing: I kind of agreed with her when she said she didnt see the difference between performing with Juliette and performing for Marcus. From her point of view, her passion is singing on stage. I also dont really get why one was selling herself out and the other was ok? anyone get Rayna's point here?

I think it's a ridiculous double standard and super controlling, but I think Rayna's feeling is that being on a huge arena stage with a nutty gal like Juliette opens Maddie up to exposure and abuse online and in the media in a way that controlled small venues don't. She's right, of course, but that presupposes that Maddie is a baby who has no presence or autonomy of her own. Maddie is two years away from legal adulthood. Rayna should be teaching her how to face and cope with the world, how to shape her image and online presence, not locking her in a protective bubble and pretending like the internet doesn't exist so the girl is clueless about how to survive life.

[Clemgo3165]

I kind of thought that was what she was aiming for last night. She was pointing out to Maddie the difference between the two performances as one being "her" and the other not. While she likes Juliette's music, the stuff she writes for herself and the way she interpreted Markus' song are far softer and have a more romantic vibe than Telescope does. Does she want to be the pop star who sells what the audience wants to buy or does she want to be her authentic self?

I do think that they're going to have to allow her to do some performing at this point. Both Rayna and Deacon were young when they got started and can and should be around to guide her to making the best decisions for herself.

[SailingBy]

Does a different writer write each one?  Because no one can seem to remember anything that happened previously.

 

From what little I know about the subject, that does seem to be the fairly standard way US TV is written. There is a team of writers, who discuss (along with non-writing producers and the like of course) what is going to happen, then one of them gets assigned to write the actual script for an episode on their own, taking them out of the loop for the discussions on the next episode until they've finished. So they're basically cycling through their pool of writers in succession. (Things work entirely differently in most European TV productions, AFAIK.) So it depends a lot on how good the memory of that one writer for the past history of the show is.

 

But you're right, since I started watching some US shows again, not that long ago, I've often been struck by the permanent amnesia that seems to reign. It's not a Nashville problem, it's all over the place. The writers often seem to have forgotten things that happened just a few episodes ago, and consequently the characters have forgotten too. It's not just forgetting, either. There is also a recurring problem, almost the exact reverse, where characters know about things they couldn't possibly know about - but which we as viewers know about, and the writers know about, but the writers forget the characters can't know about. I can't remember an example from Nashville for that last phenomenon right now, but the first season of How to Get Away with Murder was particularly rife with such instances.

Edited October 30, 2015 by SailingBy

[Silly Angel]

And once again, Will is the only person in Nashville who understands heterosexual relationships. As to the homosexual ones, he's Jon Snow.

[HighQueenEB]

Why was Colt set up to be a witness? For a minute I thought he was the one who was going to die.

Is it wrong that I would have been okay with him dying? 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I kind of thought that was what she was aiming for last night. She was pointing out to Maddie the difference between the two performances as one being "her" and the other not. While she likes Juliette's music, the stuff she writes for herself and the way she interpreted Markus' song are far softer and have a more romantic vibe than Telescope does. Does she want to be the pop star who sells what the audience wants to buy or does she want to be her authentic self?

 

I do think that they're going to have to allow her to do some performing at this point. Both Rayna and Deacon were young when they got started and can and should be around to guide her to making the best decisions for herself.

I agree - Rayna has allowed both girls to perform but in settings where they were included in the song choice and knew ahead of time that they would be performing, usually in front of small audiences like their school (the one with a bigger audience that I remember is when they performed with Rayna and Deacon last season at the festival Teddy organized). I think that part of what Rayna is trying to do is to let them perform in a way that reflects who they are as artists, which is what she is also trying to do for her Highway 65 artists, specifically because she doesn't want them to fall into the trap Juliette was in during S1, stuck singing bubblegum songs that she hated and unable to break out of that without fighting with her label. If you come out of the gate as a thoughtful mature singer/songwriter, it's much easier than being known for singing pop and then trying to transition to a more authentic singer/songwriter.

 

I do see the difference between singing Telescope at Juliette's concert in front of thousands of fans who are recording it on their phones and posting it online, opening Maddie up to a lot of publicity but potentially a lot of criticism, vs. singing a song on a closed set where it's just Maddie and Daphne singing in front of Rayna, Marcus, and his band (although let's be honest - the band probably wasn't paying attention), which is a more private moment rather than a full on performance for an audience.

 

Rayna obviously respects the girls' love of music and is not opposed to them singing or learning to play the guitar. I think she just wants to be careful about letting them become famous and having to deal with the pressures of stardom at such a young age. Of course Maddie thinks that Juliette is cool but Rayna sees what a troubled woman Juliette is. Some of it is due to Juliette's childhood and her mother but some of it is due to being in the limelight from the time she was a teenager. Even before the post partum depression, Juliette was shown to be immature, prone to temper tantrums, had poor impulse control, etc. and I think a decent portion of that is because in many ways she is still mentally and emotionally a teenager. It's hard to grow up when you don't have the chance to make all of those silly teenage mistakes.

 

Given how many child/teen stars have grown up to have problems with drugs and alcohol, I understand Rayna's reluctance to let her kids pursue music as a career just yet. It's one thing to write songs when the mood strikes you and sing when you feel like it, but it's another thing to be expected to do it on a constant schedule. Plus there are all the press obligations where you have to smile and play nice during interviews no matter how miserable or preoccupied you are. I think Rayna just wants the girls to have the chance to enjoy their childhoods and finish school before entering that world.

 

But I think that if Rayna would sit down with Maddie and have a discussion about this in more specific terms (not just the generic "when you're done with school" stuff), it would really help the situation. Since she is concerned with having Maddie present herself authentically in what she deems acceptable performance environments, why not help her set up specific performance opportunities at regular intervals or give her guidelines (for example, saying one performance a month during the school year and two per month during summer vacation)?

 

To me, Rayna's concern is not Maddie performing but when/where/how she performs in public. I think it's similar to when I learned how to drive. My parents were all for me getting my license and driving, but I couldn't just do it whenever I wanted with whoever I wanted. They still had rules about when I could drive, who could be in the car with me, how far I was driving, etc.

[SailingBy]

And once again, Will is the only person in Nashville who understands heterosexual relationships. As to the homosexual ones, he's Jon Snow.

 

Perhaps it's a pendant to Gunnar, who over three seasons was the one person who always gave Will sensible advice about how to deal with being gay, and even on how to ask a guy out on a date (which Will of course never listened to). While his own love life was an ongoing shambles.

[madam magpie]

I think that part of what Rayna is trying to do is to let them perform in a way that reflects who they are as artists, which is what she is also trying to do for her Highway 65 artists

I think Rayna would defend her actions with this, but that in reality it's more reflective of who Rayna wants them to be as artists. She's not letting Maddie figure out anything. She's controlling what Maddie sings and where. To figure out what kind of musician she wants to be, Maddie needs to play a lot of music, sing different things, play what she feels, etc. Then she can put together a sound and image. I think Rayna is so afraid of Maddie losing herself in her image that she's trying to forbid an image she dislikes from forming. But really she's just making things harder for Maddie, who will eventually explode down the road.

One thing I will say is that Maddie seems now to crave fame more than she loves to perform. It wasn't always that way and if the show were having Rayna worried about that, all of the forbidding would seem a lot more reasonable to me.

[Bort]

One thing I will say is that Maddie seems now to crave fame more than she loves to perform. It wasn't always that way and if the show were having Rayna worried about that, all of the forbidding would seem a lot more reasonable to me.

I disagree there. I didn't see Maddie concerned with checking Twitter or SnapChat or Instagram to see what people thought of her, she only wanted her phone so she could talk to Colt. She's not seeing the difference between a public performance with Juliette and a private one with Markus because she likes to perform and she doesn't care about the circumstance, she just wants to be onstage.

[butterly17]

I can't with this Marcus guy.  The character is a dick... and not even in a fun sexy way, like Jeff was.  (I will miss Jeff, he really became one of my favorite characters.)  His musical segments aren't interesting, and he looks like he smells bad.

 

Enough with the Deacon and Scarlett boo hoo hour.  Pass. 

 

Gunner is coming across as a real wimp, give the guy some backbone, and not just a boner for Scarlett.

 

I don't mind Luke as  a character, but he really can't pull off having a storyline all to himself with a bunch of characters no one cares about.  (I'm talking about you PR lady, and Colt... or Cole... or whatever his name is.)

 

Rayna as usual is insufferable.

[missbonnie]

I forgot to add that I predict that Maddie ends up knocked up via her little tryst with Colt.

[Clemgo3165]

I think Rayna would defend her actions with this, but that in reality it's more reflective of who Rayna wants them to be as artists. She's not letting Maddie figure out anything. She's controlling what Maddie sings and where. To figure out what kind of musician she wants to be, Maddie needs to play a lot of music, sing different things, play what she feels, etc. Then she can put together a sound and image. I think Rayna is so afraid of Maddie losing herself in her image that she's trying to forbid an image she dislikes from forming. But really she's just making things harder for Maddie, who will eventually explode down the road.

One thing I will say is that Maddie seems now to crave fame more than she loves to perform. It wasn't always that way and if the show were having Rayna worried about that, all of the forbidding would seem a lot more reasonable to me.

 

Hmm, I don't think that's true. While she's definitely trying to control WHERE Maddie sings she doesn't seem to me to be trying to control WHAT she sings. She had no problem letting both girls sing Telescope in the talent show in season 1, the girls listen to all kinds of different music and experiment with playing different styles. But when Maddie writes her own music and interprets what others have written, she has a definite style and sound that's uniquely hers. I think Rayna is trying to allow that style to fully form before she's thrown to a label who will try to turn her into the next Juliette Barnes. She's trying to avoid subjecting her daughter to the Johnny Bravo treatment.

[nkotb]

On Wednesday night, we were watching the debate and the World Series, so we didn't watch "Nashville" until last night. Unfortunately, yesterday afternoon, I saw on US Weekly's website that "a major character was killed off on last night's Nashville". I went into it knowing that, and thinking that it was Jeff, but I thought there were some anvils that it might be Luke, too. The longer the show went on, though, I knew it was Jeff, because they went out of their way to show that he really did care for Layla, and he got his dream job, plus he saved Juliette with the beatdown. Right at the end, when Colt randomly went out to the roof, I thought they might swerve and make it him, because that really would affect more people (Luke, Maddie, Rayna, Deacon, Daphne, Juliette, etc.) whereas Jeff dying really doesn't have that much punch.

 

I also echo everyone else's statements that HP really should get an Emmy nomination this year. She's knocking this out of the park, which I can't imagine having to deal with while going through PPD.

 

Finally, they had the perfect amount of baby Cadence. I hate when they show too much of a baby, but a cute smile and showing her asleep was the perfect amount.

[madam magpie]

Hmm, I don't think that's true. While she's definitely trying to control WHERE Maddie sings she doesn't seem to me to be trying to control WHAT she sings. She had no problem letting both girls sing Telescope in the talent show in season 1, the girls listen to all kinds of different music and experiment with playing different styles. But when Maddie writes her own music and interprets what others have written, she has a definite style and sound that's uniquely hers. I think Rayna is trying to allow that style to fully form before she's thrown to a label who will try to turn her into the next Juliette Barnes. She's trying to avoid subjecting her daughter to the Johnny Bravo treatment.

When the girls sang Telescope with a singer/songwriter vibe in a completely sheltered venue, Rayna was OK with it, yes. When Maddie sang it in a sexy dress in an arena, Rayna was not OK with it. I don't mean Rayna's got some Fahrenheit 451 approach to what Maddie's allowed to sing. I mean, Rayna wants to control what Maddie sings as a way to control Maddie's image and who she is as a performer. She said as much in the car last week (or was it in the bedroom this week? The episodes run together). Rayna has an image in mind for who Maddie is as an artist, and that includes small venues, a low-key vibe, the Bluebird, etc. All of that defines for the public what they're getting when they go see Maddie Conrad perform. It's a big deal in music, crafting your sound and image, and the public tends to freak out when you change (which is why Markus shifting genres could be super interesting if it were done in a realistic way and focused on the actual craft of music, rather than relying on yet another cliche). Big stages, drug-fueled rock shows, and huge production numbers are not what Rayna wants for Maddie. But they are, clearly, on some level what Maddie wants for herself. Where Rayna is blowing it is in being so scared of losing control of her kid that she forgets about people like Taylor Swift who, with a lot of great guidance and tremendous talent, can cross over and do both successfully. She's being very rigid and controlling of Maddie's music, putting her into a one box, which is the opposite of her stated intent with her own label.

I do think Maddie is starting to get caught up in fame. Her admiration for Juliette and the lifestyle over her dedication to the music (does she sit around wring songs? No) are what tell me that. And I could see why Rayna would be scared of that. But I think banning it all outright is a huge mistake, though a common one parents make. Given her own experience, I feel like Rayna should do better. Then again, I feel that way about Rayna a lot. Maybe she just kind of sucks, and I can't accept it.

Edited October 30, 2015 by madam magpie

[marceline]

Is it wrong that I would have been okay with him dying? 

 

I don't hate Colt but I'd have been happy to see him die just because I like Will Chase and I think he could do good work with that. (Big Broadway fan here)

[Clemgo3165]

When the girls sang Telescope with a singer/songwriter vibe in a completely sheltered venue, Rayna was OK with it, yes. When Maddie sang it in a sexy dress in an arena, Rayna was not OK with it. I don't mean Rayna's got some Fahrenheit 451 approach to what Maddie's allowed to sing. I mean, Rayna wants to control what Maddie sings as a way to control Maddie's image and who she is as a performer. She said as much in the car last week (or was it in the bedroom this week? The episodes run together). Rayna has an image in mind for who Maddie is as an artist, and that includes small venues, a low-key vibe, the Bluebird, etc. All of that defines for the public what they're getting when they go see Maddie Conrad perform. It's a big deal in music, crafting your sound and image, and the public tends to freak out when you change (which is why Markus shifting genres could be super interesting if it were done in a realistic way and focused on the actual craft of music, rather than relying on yet another cliche). Big stages, drug-fueled rock shows, and huge production numbers are not what Rayna wants for Maddie. But they are, clearly, on some level what Maddie wants for herself. Where Rayna is blowing it is in being so scared of losing control of her kid that she forgets about people like Taylor Swift who, with a lot of great guidance and tremendous talent, can cross over and do both successfully. She's being very rigid and controlling of Maddie's music, putting her into a one box, which is the opposite of her stated intent with her own label.

I do think Maddie is starting to get caught up in fame. Her admiration for Juliette and the lifestyle over her dedication to the music (does she sit around wring songs? No) are what tell me that. And I could see why Rayna would be scared of that. But I think banning it all outright is a huge mistake, though a common one parents make. Given her own experience, I feel like Rayna should do better. Then again, I feel that way about Rayna a lot. Maybe she just kind of sucks, and I can't accept it.

 

Holy crap on a cracker Batman! I've tried to reply to this twice so far and each time I've accidentally swiped to the left on my "magic mouse" and lost the whole thing. Argh!

[Sutton]

Does anyone else think that Maddie will soon think to change her name from Maddie Conrad to Maddie Conrad Claybourne or just Maddie Claybourne? Would it be more of a help to have Claybourne as a stage name? If she wants to make it in the Country Music Industry being Rayna Jaymes/Deacon Claybourne's daughter would be a big plus especially if she's that talented.

 

Did Colt have his phone camera with him so he has proof that Jeff didn't commit suicide?

[hathorlive]

Remember all those fun times with Avery and Deacon, when we said they'd make a great sitcom?  Yeah, it's been that long since this show was anything other than a slow drip into sadness.  I'm so tired of Deacon and Scarlet.  You want a life lesson from your mom, Scarlet?  Go on tour, be a success and live out your musical dreams.  Because you don't want to be dead and people remembering you in a run down bar called the Beverly.  But sure, blow what is your 3rd chance at success because of dead mom.

 

I have no words for Juliette.  I feel like I'm stalking HP and it's hard to watch even if its a fictitious account of Post Postpartum.  I'll miss Jeff but once again Juliette will face no consequences for her actions.  At this point, I just want Avery to move on, get a job/gig and have his own life.  She's an endless pool of suck and there's no good outcome for this.

 

I guess we'll get Marcass and Layla next? 

 

I don't mind Luke Wheeler.  He's grown on me.  But what hasn't grown on me is that the show started out with the premise of artists fighting the evil music labels for control of their vision.  Now those same artists ARE the music labels and there's no one to be the big bad (borrowing from Buffy). They've lost the focus and the music sucks this year.

[Bort]

I do think Maddie is starting to get caught up in fame. Her admiration for Juliette and the lifestyle over her dedication to the music (does she sit around wring songs? No) are what tell me that.

I think that's more of an admiration of success. Wanting to be successful and wanting to be famous are two different things. If Maddie were obsessing about fame, she would've been checking Twitter to see if she was trending or at least had her performance with Juliette mentioned but we never saw her even seem to care about that aspect.

[madam magpie]

I think that's more of an admiration of success. Wanting to be successful and wanting to be famous are two different things. If Maddie were obsessing about fame, she would've been checking Twitter to see if she was trending or at least had her performance with Juliette mentioned but we never saw her even seem to care about that aspect.

I think fame can mean a lot of different things. Twitter trending is one, yes, but I don't think it's that narrow. Juliette lives the lifestyle of fame: fancy hotels, jets, parties, beautiful people, loud music, etc. If success were what Maddie aired, her mother would be a goddess. But Rayna has always been semi uncool because she doesn't embrace the lifestyle of fame. It's not surprising Maddie digs that. She's young, and fame is super alluring. If we saw Maddie writing songs and perfecting her guitar chords, I'd think differently, but all we see is her falling all over celebrities like Markus and Juliette.

Edited October 30, 2015 by madam magpie

[Julie23]

This show had such promise. Remember season 1? We had song-writers writing songs, and singers singing songs. And yes, there was some soapiness (Deacon and Juliette sleeping together comes to mind - ick!), but even diva Juliette was entertaining.

Then came pig-blood Peggy, rogue mayors, diva-awful Juliette, Deacon falling off the wagon, Zoe-Gunner-Scarlet triangle, Gunner's not-child, that singer that killed her abusive ex, Luke Wheeler, Maddie the brat and her Colt love, Juliette's pregnancy and decent into unredeemable territory, Jeff, the label head from hell, Will the gay cowboy was handled poorly as well.

So sad, but this show has really become unwatchable. Rayna is the only character I even care about at this point.   

[dcalley]

Connie's hair can't keep me coming back at this point.

I was staring at it during her scenes with Markass because it was the only thing that interested me.

[Clemgo3165]

But we DO see her writing songs and perfecting guitar chords. She's had many, many lessons with Deacon and was frustrated when he put a halt to them when he first got sick. We've seen her write songs with him, with her Mom, and by herself - performing one of those songs on the Opry stage with Daphne. She's also rearranged a number of other songs to fit better for her and Daphne. 

 

I haven't really seen her falling over anyone but Juliette and I don't think that was because she has a plane and fame. She loves Juliette and her music, plain and simple. And with Markus it really was all about the music - that band breaking up was like the day the Beatles broke up. People didn't love the Beatles because they were famous, they loved them for their music, their ideas, etc. And she turned down an opportunity to meet Markus so she could stay home with Deacon after Bev's funeral.

 

Maddie wants to perform, just like her Mom. I don't remember her ever saying her Mom wasn't cool because she didn't embrace the "lifestyle." (I could be forgetting something here.) And I think her Mom was a goddess to her until she found out she'd been lied to for so long. Her Mom is majorly uncool right now because she won't let her perform where and when she wants to, but that's different than wanting to be famous for fames sake.

[madam magpie]

But we DO see her writing songs and perfecting guitar chords. She's had many, many lessons with Deacon and was frustrated when he put a halt to them when he first got sick. We've seen her write songs with him, with her Mom, and by herself - performing one of those songs on the Opry stage with Daphne. She's also rearranged a number of other songs to fit better for her and Daphne.

With the exception of the Boulevard "tribute" (which I thought was a great touch, very teen girl), Maddie hasn't done any of that in a long time. I have no memory of her writing songs with anyone but Deacon in season two. SEASON TWO. She and Rayna talked about it once, but I don't remember if they played it. I also don't remember what they played at the Opry. But even that was last season...the middle of last season, no less. It's been months at this point since we've seen Maddie really love or care about music for itself.

To me, someone who loves music is constantly playing and tinkering with music. Someone who loves fame tries to surround herself with fame, among other things. Maddie has been seeming to do the latter recently, which I do find believable. Fame is very alluring. I could understand her mother being worried about that, and since Rayna herself mentioned the image issue in the last episode or two, I think that's a big part of what bothers Rayna. Internet fame is another thing Rayna has mentioned being concerned about. But I see no deep love of music on its own from Maddie anymore. She seems to want flashy.

As for Maddie being mad at Rayna for lying, I honestly don't know if that's true anymore. It's mostly been dropped. Realistically, Maddie could and should hold resentment for it, but since the show offers no evidence, I can't say I believe it anymore. I think she sees Rayna as a fuddy duddy mom, and Juliette as a hot, young star, and that's why Juliette is cool to her. Well, that and Juliette lets her do what she wants and treats her like a peer. But Maddie has been enamoured with Juliette since the beginning, so it's not just because she sees Rayna as a liar.

Julie: I hear ya! Rayna (and Deacon by default) is also the pretty much the only character I care about anymore. And really, I only care about her because I like Connie Britton so much. I don't know long that can sustain me, though. (I do also like the girls, but the real ones.) Mostly I find this show to be really boring now. Same stories, same angst, too much misery, no depth, repeat.

Edited October 30, 2015 by madam magpie

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

The Longer She Spends Away From Nashville, The Less Juliette Can Control Her Selfie
A fan has the bad luck to insert herself into the immediate aftermath of Avery's divorce demands. Plus! Big progress is made in the development of Luke Wheeler's lifestyle brand!!!

[MisterS]

To me, someone who loves music is constantly playing and tinkering with music. Someone who loves fame tries to surround herself with fame, among other things. Maddie has been seeming to do the latter recently, which I do find believable. Fame is very alluring. I could understand her mother being worried about that, and since Rayna herself mentioned the image issue in the last episode or two, I think that's a big part of what bothers Rayna. Internet fame is another thing Rayna has mentioned being concerned about. But I see no deep love of music on its own from Maddie anymore. She seems to want flashy.

As for Maddie being mad at Rayna for lying, I honestly don't know if that's true anymore. It's mostly been dropped. Realistically, Maddie could and should hold resentment for it, but since the show offers no evidence, I can't say I believe it anymore. I think she sees Rayna as a fuddy duddy mom, and Juliette as a hot, young star, and that's why Juliette is cool to her. Well, that and Juliette lets her do what she wants and treats her like a peer. But Maddie has been enamoured with Juliette since the beginning, so it's not just because she sees Rayna as a liar.

 

It's true that there has been less of Maddie writing and singing lately, but I don't think that's by design i.e. I don't think the writers are trying to show her as fame obsessed.  I think that because of the massive volume of characters and stories they don't have time to show all aspects of her character:  I'm trying to be charitable here as they are constantly dropping balls and introducing character inconsistencies. 

 

However I do think it is realistic that a teenager like Maddie, in the environment she is in, would gravitate to somebody like Juliette, as a performer and a friend, without having any understanding of the negative aspects of Juliette's lifestyle.  

 

And I'm in the minority but I don't think Maddie's bratty and selfish behaviour is a surprise given how f***ed up her recent family life has been.

 

I do wish that the girls would sing more though...Actually I wish there was more music in general on the show, particularly from characters who don't really sing much any more - I'm thinking Deacon, Avery, Rayna (although the latter is understandable as CB is not a great singer, much as I love her).

Julie: I hear ya! Rayna (and Deacon by default) is also the pretty much the only character I care about anymore. And really, I only care about her because I like Connie Britton so much. I don't know long that can sustain me, though. (I do also like the girls, but the real ones.) Mostly I find this show to be really boring now. Same stories, same angst, too much misery, no depth, repeat.

 

It is really boring - this episode in particular, even though it was supposed to be really dramatic and had a "shock" ending.  I am pitifully invested but it's a snoozefest mostly. I suppose I can't complain if I am still watching! :-)

Edited October 30, 2015 by MisterS

[madam magpie]

It's true that there has been less of Maddie writing and singing lately, but I don't think that's by design i.e. I don't think the writers are trying to show her as fame obsessed. I think that because of the massive volume of characters and stories they don't have time to show all aspects of her character: I'm trying to be charitable here as they are constantly dropping balls and introducing character inconsistencies.

This could certainly be true. This show makes it very hard to read the characters because there's so much inconsistency and so many dropped storylines.

That said, I also agree that Maddie has no clue about the downsides of fame and a lifestyle like Juliette's. Rayna should be helping her learn what the downsides are!

Edited October 30, 2015 by madam magpie

[kassa]

Any teenage boy who just got laid for the first time would be mopey to have his girlfriend sent home

 

 

Or the 100th time!  I find the Daphne/Maddie stuff refreshing – I’m sick of people on shows “getting over” trauma in a one or two episode arc.  Those kids have been screwed over how many ways in the past couple of years?  And I didn’t see anything in Maddie’s behavior that was out of line with a generally good kid’s reaction to being grounded for just about anything.  She mouthed off, but handed over the phone.  I can’t recall in detail, but “moooooooom!” and “this is so unfair” and “you don’t care what I think” are hardly signs of a vicious character, especially for a kid who has no doubt read every tabloid headline and rumor about her mother that she could throw back in her face at any moment... yet doesn’t. 

 

Just because she throws back her mother’s advice about Daphne doesn’t mean she’s not going to take it.  I can hardly blame Maddie for not keying into Daphne’s change in personality when Daphne’s own mother hasn’t managed to do so until she exhibits PTSD in front of her fancy friend.  Poor little Daphne. 

 

I was false-spoiled.  I DVRed the episode and hadn’t seen it yet, and saw an online heading asking “When did Nashville become Game of Thrones?” superimposed over a picture of Juliet face down, with a death stare at the camera.  I thought “wow, they actually killed Juliet!”  And the whole episode was anvils, and I was patting myself on the back thinking “people who weren’t spoiled are thinking this is all a big fakeout, but they really ARE going to kill her off!” And then Jeff did his lame roundoff off the balcony, and I hooted aloud. 

 

And I thought Juliet took all her pills?  And then snorted some?  How is she still alive?

 

 

She threw up? 

 

Connie Britton for the win with her gently snide “help yourself” when Rockerdude grabbed a piece of fruit.   Followed by the mild but clear eyes flashing when he opened the fridge door.

[jjj]

Jeff falling off the roof was as hilarious as Dr. Drake Ramoray falling down an elevator shaft.

That is hilarious.  As soon as I read your post, I remembered the Friends going, "They wouldn't kill off JOEY, would they?"  "Nah"  <thud> Ross: "Now, maybe?"

 

As long as we are talking crossovers, I expect Aunt Jessica to show up with the sheriff of  Cabot's Cove to utter my favorite line of that series:  "What is this, the death capital of Maine [Tennessee]?"   (That's "Murder, She Wrote", for anyone who never tuned in!)

[Haleth]

Gunnar's first clue that the girl wasn't into him was the fact she was still wearing her bra in bed. I know, network tv, but it looked silly.

[freebie]

Oh, Jeff, we hardly knew ye. I really am not looking forward to Layla's reaction to all of this.

 

 

Also, going from attacking him  - why didn't they sit down and talk about all this like rational adults in a committed relationship - to being aw, shucks, everything is jolly good, go secure that job so we can move in together in a second...

 

This. So much this. The age difference (and the whole manager-client power dynamic) has always squicked me, especially because Layla come off like a high-schooler more often than not. Her tantrum in this scene was like something out of a Lifetime movie called His Teenaged Mistress or something. She's ridiculous with her irrational mood swings, infuriating pouting, and cringe-worthy excitement about playing house with Jeff. So glad we won't be dealing with that anytime soon. With how this show usually goes, though, what are the odds that after Will's latest breakup with Kevin, Will and Layla will agree to "try again" as he helps her over her grief?

 

Meanwhile, Will is the most out-of-touch with his own life character on this show, and that's saying something. I mean, he decides he wants to perform and to hold onto the songs he and Kevin wrote. Then he sings a boot-stomping number more suitable for pre-outing Will, tries to connect with the ladies in the crowd, just like pre-outing Will, then gets offended when the crowd demonstrates they are more up on current events than Will is himself. Why not bust out "Broken Song" and stake his claim as a legit country artist who just happens to be gay, rather than try to fit back into the straight guy suit he wore uncomfortably for so long? "Born for leanin' over the edge"? Um, no.

[mack6986]

I don't believe in violence, but I almost feel like that pushy fan got what she deserved. Juliette was so obviously upset - I mean, she was visibly crying, and her hair, clothes & makeup were a hot ass mess, which is the total opposite of what she always looks like in public - and that fan ran up to her and started waving her phone in Juliette's face without nicely asking Juliette for a picture or considering her feelings. I don't totally blame Juliette for snapping. Granted, that's something you have to deal with when you're so famous, but still.

Hayden is absolutely killing this shit. The storyline makes me uncomfortable, in light of everything she's going through in real life, but I hope she's handsomely rewarded when awards season rolls around. She fucking deserves it. At this point, she's the only actor on this show I give a shit about.

[jjj]

This. So much this. The age difference (and the whole manager-client power dynamic) has always squicked me, especially because Layla come off like a high-schooler more often than not. Her tantrum in this scene was like something out of a Lifetime movie called His Teenaged Mistress or something. She's ridiculous with her irrational mood swings, infuriating pouting, and cringe-worthy excitement about playing house with Jeff.

Well, she is a teenager, or barely out of her teens -- she had just postponed going to Harvard when we met her, when she won that talent contest, so is 19 or 20 now.  Jeff had to be twice her age, which wouldn't matter as much if she were in her mid-20s.  But she has had no time to mature.  I'm not saying she would have been mature if she had gone off to college, but she would not have spent her late teens without any apparent adult guidance in that swirl of fame. 

[lonestar]

I can't believe no character on this show has figured out Juliette could be suffering from post part depression?  Also, I was hoping Luke's kid would go over the roof. Jeff was a fun character, just like Rayna's father. They kill off the interesting ones (except the newly sainted Beverly.)

[TWP]

That is hilarious.  As soon as I read your post, I remembered the Friends going, "They wouldn't kill off JOEY, would they?"  "Nah"  <thud> Ross: "Now, maybe?"

 

As long as we are talking crossovers, I expect Aunt Jessica to show up with the sheriff of  Cabot's Cove to utter my favorite line of that series:  "What is this, the death capital of Maine [Tennessee]?"   (That's "Murder, She Wrote", for anyone who never tuned in!)

 

Now that would be interesting.  Do a crossover with a 20 year old show.  Networks, are you listening?

[TWP]

So the posters in the Landslide had her name as Beverly O'Connor, but the demo tape showed it as Beverly Claybourne. Do we assume that the demo tape was done before she was married? And do we know anything about Scarlett's father, for that matter?

 

Oh my gosh!  You're expecting continuity and detail from this show.  I'm watching Nashville.  What are you watching? ;-).

[pattycat]

I shake my head a little bit, when I see the comments about Deacon and Scarlett, needing to stop their Moping.

No, it hasn't been a barrel of laughs, and I'm more than ready, to move on, But:

Come on Folks :-). Beverly, for all her faults, and she had way more than her share; was their Mother and Sister! They aren't two people, who went into a tailspin, because, the nice neighbor lady, who baked cookies, died!

Beverly gave Scarlett her life, and though, clearly, at times, she was a lousy Mom, we've also heard Scarlett talk about happy times. And bottom line, she was her Mom. For all her problems Scarlett loved her!

Bev was Deacon's only Sibling, they grew up together and were each other's allies, in their nightmarish childhood! She was also, the person who gave him a liver donation that saved his life and cost her own. For all their complicated relationship. She was his Sister,and he loved her!

I wish the show had not gone the "the donor dies" route. Since they did, I think showing Deacon and Scarlett's, pain, was very realistic.

Edited October 31, 2015 by pattycat

[wendyg]

sailingby: I don't think the writers are as disconnected from each other as all that. Typically, (from reading Ken Levine's blog on TV screenwriting) script outlines are agreed in advance, and although an individual writer *may* have the assignment to write the script (many comedies are now scripted by the entire writers' room working together - all of Chuck Lorre's are apparently written this way), the showrunner certainly reviews it and may ask for changes (the network also will have notes), and there is supposed to be a "show bible" that writers use to stay on point. Either the NASHVILLE writers are under extraordinary pressure or they just don't care (and think viewers will not remember mistakes).

 

In Britain, yes, the process is quite different. It's much more common for one or two writers (who are partners) to write the entire show and complete all the episodes before shooting begins. That is also why every season ("series", here) is so short. If you want to have 22-24 episodes of something a year you *have* to have a bigger writing staff and have more of an assembly-line process where one script is being written while the next couple are in pre-production and the one after those is being broadcast.

[Abstract]

Will is such a baby. Did he really expect to have girls falling all over themselves for him still? I think it's possible for him to be accepted as performer, but he's got to take some time and revise his act so that it doesn't hinge on flirting with the audience if he doesn't want a repeat of what happened in this episode.

[thaliasghost]

 so is 19 or 20 now.  Jeff had to be twice her age, which wouldn't matter as much if she were in her mid-20s.

I think she was supposed to be 21-22 while Jeff was supposed to be in his mid-30s. So about 13-15 years age difference.

[Litnit]

I just loved that Maddie had sex with Colt and wasn't immediately struck by some kind of karma sex police consequence.  Though maybe Colt witnessing Jeff's death is going to put him over the edge?

 

I know it's a drama and there needs to be conflict, but this is just getting so damn depressing.  Juliette has gone from one shot to help her sleep to snorting god knows what in two episodes?  

 

Are there no "out" singers who can be a special guest star and get Will over his issues???

[LeGrandElephant]

I'm 30, but maybe because I don't have kids yet I find myself more sympathetic to Maddie than to Rayna. Rayna is being hypocritical and inconsistent by refusing to allow Maddie to perform in public. It would make much more sense for Rayna to guide her into slowly starting to perform than to have this blanket prohibition for Maddie to rebel against.

True, Maddie is being a bit bratty about it, but she has a point, and since teenagers have little control over their lives they have pretty much no outlet when they aren't allowed to make their own decisions besides acting bratty by rolling their eyes and making snide comments at their parents. Rayna is punishing Maddie by taking away her communication with her boyfriend and friends, and what is she punishing her for exactly? For doing a great job doing exactly what Rayna herself does for a living, and has done since she was that age, and never seems to regret?

Personally, I believe school is important, and I would be on board with Rayna insisting that Maddie can only perform when it doesn't interfere with school. But that doesn't seem to be her rule - her rule seems to be never ever, except occasionally when I say so.

On a separate topic, what ever happened to that check that Rayna wrote to Beverly? I keep expecting Deacon to find it and blow up at her.

(Edited because I noticed my iPad had changed Rayna to Ryan).

Edited November 2, 2015 by LeGrandElephant

[madam magpie]

On a separate topic, what ever happened to that check that Rayna wrote to Beverly? I keep expecting Deacon to find it and blow up at her.

Bev ripped it up and sent it back to Rayna, and Rayna told Deacon about it. He wasn't mad.

[LeGrandElephant]

Bev ripped it up and sent it back to Rayna, and Rayna told Deacon about it. He wasn't mad.

Oh wow I guess I completely missed or forgot about that. Was that last season?