S02.E03: The Worst of Conditions

[Drogo]

After tragedy strikes, Jason is faced with a huge decision regarding his future with Bravo Team.

[mojoween]

My father was killed in an auto accident last December; tomorrow is his birthday.  I basically sobbed through the episode.

The girl who plays the daughter deserves an Emmy for whatever she had to do to realistically show that much grief.

[dwmarch]

1 hour ago, mojoween said:

My father was killed in an auto accident last December; tomorrow is his birthday.  I basically sobbed through the episode.

The girl who plays the daughter deserves an Emmy for whatever she had to do to realistically show that much grief.

Although I cannot be sure how meaningful consolations from internet strangers are, I am sorry for your loss. This was a surprisingly emotional episode to me and I have never lost anyone to such circumstances. I don't know if I'd be able to watch the whole episode if I was in your place.

I had forgotten that David Boreanaz can actually act! His grief was certainly his finest work on this show to date. I also appreciated the understated moment where he accidentally-on-purpose smashes the beer and then deliberately trashes the rest of it.

Speaking of beer, Clay insisting that the beer not be that fancy imported stuff was a nice callback.

The idea of mom's special tacos verged on absurd but I will take it at face value that grief caused the Hayes family to forget that tacos are not difficult to make. My mother had a recipe for empanadas, made with her own dough from scratch and when she passed the recipe went with her. I don't bother with empanadas from other sources but I might if they were as simple to make as tacos are.

There were some other great moments in this episode as well, like when Blackburn came in with that look on his face and even the most junior guy on the team immediately knew why. I loved how Ray was the first one to show up at the hospital. I felt like the scene with Mandy was a hint at her past, as if to say she has never been involved with Jason but they have a very intimate bond with one another and if he needs her to just show up and sit quietly with him she is always ready to do that.

While I am sure they have said it before, I loved that Cerberus is "the hair missile". I do wonder about that Hollywood shield Cerberus has protecting him from harm. If terrorists would shoot up a hotel lobby full of innocents they certainly shoot a dog so Cerberus can only really lead in situations where the bad guys aren't going to do that (similar to how Buffy was generally safe from harm if she was wearing a skirt, was certain to be kicking someone's ass if she was wearing pants).

[cameron]

5 hours ago, SweetTooth said:

Well, it seems that this actually did suck all of the assh*le out of him. 

I do love that Ray was the first one there and that all of the stupid pettiness went right out the window. That's real life. When something like this happens, all of the BS melts away.

Jason's mom was awesome. 

I looked her up, because I thought she looked familiar, and though she has a long IMDB, I haven't watched any of the series she's been in. 

Also, she's only 17 years older than David.

Thought the same thing.  I knew her from staring in Homefront in the 90's when she was a lot thinner then.

[Chaos Theory]

I admit to only watching this show sporadically so I am curious if the audience didn’t like Jason’s wife.  Is this a case of getting rid of the bitch wife who wants the lead to come home and  take out the trash and take the kids to the park.  Or more to show as much as the guys take all percausions for themselves in the field shit still happens and the bottom still fall out.  

Edited October 18, 2018 by Chaos Theory

[fifty8th]

4 hours ago, Chaos Theory said:

I admit to only watching this show sporadically so I am curious if the audience didn’t like Jason’s wife.  Is this a case of getting rid of the bitch wife who wants the lead to come home and  take out the trash and take the kids to the park.  Or more to show as much as the guys take all percausions for themselves in the field shit still happens and the bottom still fall out.  

While I was never a huge fan of the character, the actress got a starring role in a new show so I think it was her choice to leave.

[Wagara]

I lost my 24 year old brother to a car accident 2 weeks ago today.  The show was as tough as I thought it would be.  I tried watching Young Sheldon last week just to relax and there was a car accident death in the first 5 minutes.  I guess TV is just going to be tough for awhile.  The grief from all was realistic but especially the daughter.  The counting of cars at the intersection was especially tough.  I think each of my family members have visited the site.  My heart broke all over again.

[Ohmo]

15 hours ago, mojoween said:

The girl who plays the daughter deserves an Emmy for whatever she had to do to realistically show that much grief.

David specifically praises her in this interview.

SEAL Team's David Boreanaz: Jason's Life Shifts 'Radically' After Tragedy — Plus, a 'Heartbreaking' Scene to Come

I also was a big fan of the scene between Mikey and Sonny when Sonny promises Mikey that he won't let anything happen to Jason.

Loved the actress who plays Jason's mom.  Liked the intro scene between her and Davis.

If Jason and Mandy hook up, I'll hurl.

Will someone explain to me why Ray couldn't lead the team on the mission?  I like Michael Irby and all, but isn't Ray Jason's 2IC for a reason?

Edited October 18, 2018 by Ohmo

[mojoween]

51 minutes ago, Wagara said:

I lost my 24 year old brother to a car accident 2 weeks ago today.  The show was as tough as I thought it would be.  I tried watching Young Sheldon last week just to relax and there was a car accident death in the first 5 minutes.  I guess TV is just going to be tough for awhile.  The grief from all was realistic but especially the daughter.  The counting of cars at the intersection was especially tough.  I think each of my family members have visited the site.  My heart broke all over again.

Watching The Conners sucked balls too, different death, but does it matter?  I have to drive by the site every time I go to my parents house.

On topic, this was the only time I liked Stella.  She did well thrust into a situation she wasn’t prepared for.

I did like the introduction between Linda and Lisa, because I never knew Davis’s first name.  Then I noticed later the head leader guy also called her Lisa.

[Ohmo]

5 hours ago, Chaos Theory said:

I admit to only watching this show sporadically so I am curious if the audience didn’t like Jason’s wife.

Sometimes Alana got on my nerves, but speaking for myself, I would have voted to put Mandy in that casket before I'd choose Alana.

[Lunula]

7 hours ago, cameron said:

Thought the same thing.  I knew her from staring in Homefront in the 90's when she was a lot thinner then.

OMG - that's where I know her from! I used to watch Homefront (as short lived as it was) when I was in college with some of my friends. We would all get together and discuss how Kyle Chandler looked in every episode (it was always good). When I saw her last night, it was such an itch in my brain not knowing from where I was remembering her! 

My family also suffered a loss due to a car accident many years ago when we lost my older sister. I thought they did a nice job showing the shock, grief, anger and sadness - and I absolutely loved that the team's response was immediate and absolute. Ray running to Jason, regardless of what was happening between them, made me happy - and even more happy when Jason broke down and admitted he was being such an ass to him. Even more happy (though it was sad) when it finally dawned on him that he took Alana for granted. I think people in exceptionally high-stress jobs such as this can become very self-absorbed - perhaps as a defense mechanism, but I think also because they feel like they are "saving the world" and everyone around them should cut them some slack because of it. Unfortunately, every relationship is 50/50 - it's not all about Alana, but it's also not all about Jason. 

I like that the show went there with her death. I don't feel like Alana was well-written or the relationship between them was well-played. It could've been very meaty and interesting, but ended up being a drag where she came off as naggy and whiney. I'm looking forward to seeing how Jason builds relationships with his children and what it means for the team. I mean, I can't imagine he'll never go back to the team since that is the primary focus of the show, but hopefully it'll humanize him without making him go nuts considering what he has to do each day at work. 

Overall, a great episode. 

[justawatcher]

I'm going to make a guess that Jason and Adam basically switch jobs for a while and Adam runs the team and Jason does Green team until his kids beg him to go find himself and save the world again.  And why, all of a sudden, are they calling Blackburn "Havoc" at every opportunity? Is it their way of portraying that he too is a SEAL or something else?

[mythoughtis]

6 hours ago, Lunula said:

I like that the show went there with her death. I don't feel like Alana was well-written or the relationship between them was well-played. It could've been very meaty and interesting, but ended up being a drag where she came off as naggy and whiney

This was exactly my issue with her character. She was so underdeveloped. We never got a chance to like her because all we saw was her bad side. We’ve only seen a little more of Ray’s wife, but I think we all like that character, right? Because she’s been given lines that show her to be supportive of Ray, while not being perfect. 

[Dezza]

I can’t help but put my conspiracy head on here. At the end of Season 1, we had Adam Cutter arrested. We also know there’s supposedly a trillion dollars worth in Afghanistan. We had Jason sitting at the crossroads saying that accidents never happened there. Can’t remember if they have mentioned the “other” driver, but with other shows (I’m thinking Designated Survivor) the wife has become the target to gain revenge on the principal. Would be interesting to see what, if anything, has happened to Amy Nelson...

[Lunula]

10 hours ago, Dezza said:

I can’t help but put my conspiracy head on here. At the end of Season 1, we had Adam Cutter arrested. We also know there’s supposedly a trillion dollars worth in Afghanistan. We had Jason sitting at the crossroads saying that accidents never happened there. Can’t remember if they have mentioned the “other” driver, but with other shows (I’m thinking Designated Survivor) the wife has become the target to gain revenge on the principal. Would be interesting to see what, if anything, has happened to Amy Nelson...

oOooOOh. That's an interesting idea, I like it. 

Quote

And why, all of a sudden, are they calling Blackburn "Havoc" at every opportunity? Is it their way of portraying that he too is a SEAL or something else?

They were pretty consistently calling him Havoc anytime they were on a mission, weren't they? Or are they calling him that now while not on missions? My only gripe with Blackburn is when they refer to him as "Lieutenant" - I actually called my brother-in-law who is ex-Navy and asked how a Lieutenant Commander should be addressed and he said as "Commander" - so I'm hoping they fix that goof.  

[MLee]

On 10/17/2018 at 9:34 PM, dwmarch said:

Although I cannot be sure how meaningful consolations from internet strangers are, I am sorry for your loss. This was a surprisingly emotional episode to me and I have never lost anyone to such circumstances. I don't know if I'd be able to watch the whole episode if I was in your place.

I had forgotten that David Boreanaz can actually act! His grief was certainly his finest work on this show to date. I also appreciated the understated moment where he accidentally-on-purpose smashes the beer and then deliberately trashes the rest of it.

Speaking of beer, Clay insisting that the beer not be that fancy imported stuff was a nice callback.

The idea of mom's special tacos verged on absurd but I will take it at face value that grief caused the Hayes family to forget that tacos are not difficult to make. My mother had a recipe for empanadas, made with her own dough from scratch and when she passed the recipe went with her. I don't bother with empanadas from other sources but I might if they were as simple to make as tacos are.

There were some other great moments in this episode as well, like when Blackburn came in with that look on his face and even the most junior guy on the team immediately knew why. I loved how Ray was the first one to show up at the hospital. I felt like the scene with Mandy was a hint at her past, as if to say she has never been involved with Jason but they have a very intimate bond with one another and if he needs her to just show up and sit quietly with him she is always ready to do that.

While I am sure they have said it before, I loved that Cerberus is "the hair missile". I do wonder about that Hollywood shield Cerberus has protecting him from harm. If terrorists would shoot up a hotel lobby full of innocents they certainly shoot a dog so Cerberus can only really lead in situations where the bad guys aren't going to do that (similar to how Buffy was generally safe from harm if she was wearing a skirt, was certain to be kicking someone's ass if she was wearing pants).

I have been a lurker for forever.  What finally motivates me to create a log in and post something....ketchup tacos.  I puree tomatoes to put into the taco meat when I add the spice mix.  Kind of in place of the water.  It makes the tacos delicious.  I think the ketchup is a pretty similar concept.  Sounds gross, but I bet it's delicious.

 

Love this show. 

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Freedom is not free.  The price is incalculable on the loved ones of those placed in harm's way that we all may be free.  This ep was but a glimpse.  What power.  What truth.  What loss.

I was pretty sure Jason would have been ordered to stand down had he not made that choice himself, IRL.   Clay was right, imo, to broach that topic.  Unspoken doubt and a modicum of resentment is literally deadly to a team like that.  

The best development I saw was the genuine grace with which Clay's lady jumped all in to help.  Her aside to Clay about the value of real family as opposed to her academic colleagues was profoundly spot on.  A keeper, indeed.

[Raja]

On 10/19/2018 at 12:37 PM, Lunula said:

oOooOOh. That's an interesting idea, I like it. 

They were pretty consistently calling him Havoc anytime they were on a mission, weren't they? Or are they calling him that now while not on missions? My only gripe with Blackburn is when they refer to him as "Lieutenant" - I actually called my brother-in-law who is ex-Navy and asked how a Lieutenant Commander should be addressed and he said as "Commander" - so I'm hoping they fix that goof.  

I didn't catch that but I do hate it from the time they were doing it with Mr Spock on Star Trek forward. The worse I saw was an actor I first knew from a cop show who played many cop and military characters calling an officer "Sergeant" when he had on Lieutenant's bars. I was thinking that he had done this so many times before that he should have overrode the script  and forced the correction.

[Skycatcher]

On 10/18/2018 at 12:34 AM, dwmarch said:

The idea of mom's special tacos verged on absurd but I will take it at face value that grief caused the Hayes family to forget that tacos are not difficult to make. 

 I completely got this. There are tacos, and then there are Mom's special tacos.

When my Mom passed suddenly she took all the family recipes with her.   That hit us hard. We needed our familiar comfort foods while we were dealing with our grief. Mac and cheese is easy to make, but it wouldn't be Mom's mac and cheese and that was  really important just then, especially for Dad.   Happily, I found that in years past I had written almost every one of them down and stashed them in my files.  That bit of continuity gave us a touch of normalcy in a hideously chaotic time.

[Chas411]

I know the scene between Jason and Mandy was supposed to show the audience how he's himself with her and they've such a special bond. All it did though was remind me how awful Mandy is, how she doesn't fit with the show at all and how annoying it is the show keeps trying to make her and Jason happen.