S05.E07: Filleted to Rest

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

While investigating the murder of Eleanor Barba, a chef at a high-end restaurant, Liv consumes her brain and becomes an unrelenting perfectionist who knows just how to break a person to their very core. Meanwhile, Major is on a mission to find out who is betraying the commander.

Promo:

Original air date: 6/13/19

[ketose]

At least we answered the question of what happened to Liv's mother and brother. In light of the past season's events, they're both kind of asses about Liv's dilemma in the first season.

[tennisgurl]

I was just thinking about Liv`s family and wondering what happened to them, and now we know! They became high key assholes who dont care about the awful situation that Liv was apparently in. What did they want her to do, turn him into a zombie before they became mainstream. And now Liv gets a brand new evil dad to work against!

Damn it Justin, I liked you! Poor Major, that head shot was brutal. Major is a nice guy, but dont screw with him. 

[bybrandy]

Liv's mom. I hoped we'd get an update there but I didn't really think we would.  Lot of missing main cast this week but I was pleased to have a minute of Liv's mom.  I'm less interested in her potentially evil bio dad because it isn't like I felt like she was lamenting him not being in her life all this time... but there you go.

 

[thuganomics85]

Holy crap, they finally brought back Liv's mom!  It has been so long that I didn't even realize that after seeing Molly Hagen's name in the credits, because I totally forgot she was who played her.  Too bad she is still kind of a jerk, since I would think she'd understand now why Liv did what she did, and, really, had Liv tried to tell her the truth at the time, there would be no way she would have believed her.  Of course, that might end up being peanuts compared to Liv finally finding out who her dad is, since he's apparently the head of these radicalized zombie guys.  Oh, Liv!

Bummed that they brought Justin back, only to have him also joined this group, and it all ending with Major having to be the one to kill him.  Major really can't catch a break on this show.

I guess the bit with Ravi's doctor companion having a twin is a nice way to use the actress more than just over a video chat!

I'm starting to get a bad feeling something bad is going to happen to Michelle, and this is going to all end with Clive and Bozzio also raising that child.

Liv on "Chef from Hell" brains was fun.  At least she didn't go full-blown Gordon Ramsey on anyone and start throwing plates.  Or calling someone a donkey!

[GaT]

They actually remembered Liv has a family! I'm amazed.

[AnimeMania]

Why were those Zombies eating all of those vegetables, I don't know why Liv felt the need to cook that fancy meal since nobody could taste it. They have brain tubes for a reason, Zombies are not vegans.

[AudienceofOne]

I found it interesting that this was the brain Liv hated the most, especially when she didn't seem that bad on it. It suggests she was fighting the brain from minute one, which begs the question why. And then we meet her Mum again and go: oh yeah, that's why. Judgemental perfectionist brain? This is a bit too close to home.

6 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I was just thinking about Liv`s family and wondering what happened to them, and now we know! They became high key assholes who dont care about the awful situation that Liv was apparently in.

They were assholes from scene 1 mostly. Well, maybe not Evan but his mother, yeah. I think it's a shame we didn't deal with this whole thing earlier but also that the scene wasn't about her relationship with her mother at all but about her new Plot Father. 

[ketose]

Bringing in zombie dad with just six episodes to go seems like an unnecessary complication. Also, it wasn't clear if he was also Evan's dad. I did like that he figured out Enzo is an idiot in one episode.

They may be retconning Liv's mom here. In S1, she just came off as dumbfounded that Liv would quit being a doctor, break off her engagement and start looking the way she did. Apparently, she thought Liv was becoming a drug addict. They kind of had to make her family jerks to explain why they were written out of the show.

[Affogato]

It seems like Major is the main character, the one who we get to see grow and change and mature into a different person. Simple social worker to assassin to soldier to a leader of men   

Liv’s change is much more simplistic since the driven perfectionist doctor was gone before the show started. Ravi gains a little confidence. Blaine loops back on himself.

I wonder if the character of Chase was planned all along and just brought in earlier than anticipated. There was too much Chase in the story. The character was clearly supposed to spiral but it took too long, yet  if Chase had learned anything the character would have moved into Major’s territory. You can see the things Major needed  to learn from Chase. Did take away from the experience. 

the serendipity if Liv’s dad being the radical zombie leader is one wy to speed along the plot. Not many episodes left. 

What is in the syringes?

[cambridgeguy]

4 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

Why were those Zombies eating all of those vegetables, I don't know why Liv felt the need to cook that fancy meal since nobody could taste it. They have brain tubes for a reason, Zombies are not vegans.

That's why Liv critiquing the remoulade was weird.  How could she pick up the subtle flavors?  That should have tasted like a bland paste to her.

[possibilities]

She had the chef's brain, which was extremely sensitized to flavors. She's always gotten new abilities temporarily when she eats a new brain. Like doing math, or being a great dancer.

[The Wild Sow]

8 hours ago, ketose said:

They may be retconning Liv's mom here. In S1, she just came off as dumbfounded that Liv would quit being a doctor, break off her engagement and start looking the way she did. Apparently, she thought Liv was becoming a drug addict. They kind of had to make her family jerks to explain why they were written out of the show.

I do remember they thought she had PTSD from the boat fire!

I'm glad to know Evan's alive.  That wasn't exactly clear when Liv & her mom were first talking.  Guess they found another compatible blood donor.  I still think Liv should have said she had an on-the-job exposure to HIV or Hep C or something else bad, but if her mom really is a HIPAA-disrespecting hospital admin, she would have snooped.

I know it's been 4 or 5 years our time, but how much time has passed since S1 in show-time?  I think more like just a year or 2, right?  Because holding on to that estrangement for 5 years (in light of what Eva now knows about zombies) would be pretty ridiculous!  Personally, I think it's ridiculous anyway, but then again, I'm not a micro-managing nutcase.

[Affogato]

12 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

Why were those Zombies eating all of those vegetables, I don't know why Liv felt the need to cook that fancy meal since nobody could taste it. They have brain tubes for a reason, Zombies are not vegans.

It was for the family moment. The kids hadn’t actually had family, Liv also had a messy family, she is creating a perfect sanctuary for them all.  With props. 

I suppose major will have lots of social work to do when this is over.  

[GaT]

9 hours ago, AudienceofOne said:

I think it's a shame we didn't deal with this whole thing earlier but also that the scene wasn't about her relationship with her mother at all but about her new Plot Father. 

Exactly. They should have addressed what happened with her family a long time ago. The only reason they're doing it now is to bring in Liv's new daddy. Which is really stupid in the last season, why are they bringing in another complication? The last episode is going to be a rushed bunch of garbage.

[JamieLynn832002]

13 hours ago, ketose said:

Also, it wasn't clear if he was also Evan's dad.

I took the mom saying he came back later and she thought he had changed as that being when Evan was conceived but the age difference between Liv and Evan seems big enough that I'm not sure that actually makes sense if Liv has no memory of the man.

[AudienceofOne]

19 minutes ago, JamieLynn832002 said:

I took the mom saying he came back later and she thought he had changed as that being when Evan was conceived but the age difference between Liv and Evan seems big enough that I'm not sure that actually makes sense if Liv has no memory of the man.

What the Mum said made no sense. I thought when she talked about him "coming back" she meant when he came back to Seattle around the time Evan got hurt. I also thought she was implying it was him that saved Evan. But I always thought that Liv and Evan were several years apart. So if they had the same father then... ???

[JamieLynn832002]

3 minutes ago, AudienceofOne said:

What the Mum said made no sense. I thought when she talked about him "coming back" she meant when he came back to Seattle around the time Evan got hurt. I also thought she was implying it was him that saved Evan. But I always thought that Liv and Evan were several years apart. So if they had the same father then... ???

Evan was still in high school in season 1 while Liv was post med school so there was an at least seven year difference which really doesn't work if they share the same horrible father who Liv doesn't remember. I kind of feel like they suddenly realized Liv still being on the outs with her family made no sense without explanation so they just threw this in with the added bonus of giving Liv a connection to the new evil.

[AudienceofOne]

I can believe that her mother would cut off and never speak to a man who had disappointed her, especially if she thought he wasn't good enough for her kids. But how he could be BOTH her and Evan's father makes little sense to me. I can't imagine her mother getting pregnant to a man twice when her children don't even know who he is. She's simply too much of a control freak for that. 

[Affogato]

35 minutes ago, JamieLynn832002 said:

Evan was still in high school in season 1 while Liv was post med school so there was an at least seven year difference which really doesn't work if they share the same horrible father who Liv doesn't remember. I kind of feel like they suddenly realized Liv still being on the outs with her family made no sense without explanation so they just threw this in with the added bonus of giving Liv a connection to the new evil.

A seven year old or a ten year old would not necessarily piece together her mothers relationships. Clearly there was at least one long term relationship—uncle whoever— they liked and thought was their father. That would have blinded them to some other guy who was only around briefly especially if they weren’t told about a prior relationship. 

Evan may have been saved by being made a zombie, which liv could have done. That may be why mom is angry. Evan could have died because Liv didn’t turn him into a zombie! 

Edited June 15, 2019 by Affogato

[ketose]

11 minutes ago, Affogato said:

A seven year old or a ten year old would not necessarily piece together her mothers relationships. Clearly there was at least one long term relationship—uncle whoever— they liked and thought was their father. That would have blinded them to some other guy who was only around briefly especially if they weren’t told about a prior relationship. 

Evan may have been saved by being made a zombie, which liv could have done. That may be why mom is angry. Evan could have died because Liv didn’t turn him into a zombie! 

Although, if Liv was a donor but Evan's mother wasn't, it seems to imply that they have the same father.

[Affogato]

12 minutes ago, ketose said:

Although, if Liv was a donor but Evan's mother wasn't, it seems to imply that they have the same father.

And people often hook up several times without telling their young children. So Liv. Seven years later approximately Evan. 18 years later shows up again, he’s a zombie. Turned by a fg mercenary somewhere? Cures his alcoholism. Etc. looks up his old gf? 

I think we’ll get an answer. i don’t think mom is a main plot arc. 

Edited June 15, 2019 by Affogato

[MisterGlass]

Not crazy about the father development, but I suppose we'll see where it goes.  I don't recall Liv's father being a major plot point, so this feels a bit out of nowhere.

Murder using frozen meat as a blunt object was part of a semi-famous Roald Dahl story/Alfred Hitchcock presents episode.

[CletusMusashi]

This season isn't dull, but it sure does feel like they're rushing a bunch of extra stuff in at the last minute. 

[Babalu]

2 hours ago, MisterGlass said:

Not crazy about the father development, but I suppose we'll see where it goes.  I don't recall Liv's father being a major plot point, so this feels a bit out of nowhere.

It only makes sense to me, this late in the game, if her father is also Beanpole Bob, but even that seems a bit of a stretch if that’s how the writers are pulling things together.

[Affogato]

I was thinking that TV leans heavily on the found family trope—i assume there is one. Everything from Friends to Farscape.  I Don’tcare much about Liv’s real family(if it was a big deal it should have been an ongoing thread through the seasons), i don’t care much about these kids she found and turned (what happened to the fg school/kids? Did chase abolish it off screen and throw them to the public school system). I do care about the family of Liv, Major, Ravi, Peyton, Clive. I get that Clive  splitting off to marry and have a kid is part of growing up and leaving that friend group, a natural projection. But I think in sort of basic tv terms they need to be the focus because they are the ones we signed on for. 

[The Wild Sow]

22 hours ago, MisterGlass said:

Not crazy about the father development, but I suppose we'll see where it goes.  I don't recall Liv's father being a major plot point, so this feels a bit out of nowhere.

Murder using frozen meat as a blunt object was part of a semi-famous Roald Dahl story/Alfred Hitchcock presents episode.

Shoulda been a leg of lamb!

[aradia22]

This episode was hella confusing. I barely remember season 1 so I have no idea what was going on with Liv and her mom. I vaguely remember something with her brother and then they were estranged and written off the show. And now there's suddenly something about her dad? I don't remember that at all. Who cares if her biological father is the new villain? This is a mess. 

Justin's story held little more weight. I know he dated Liv very briefly and generally he's been Major's friend but they've been using the other cast members at FG to report to Major so Justin has barely been on screen. And now he's a traitor. The hell kind of writing is this?

So they just dropped the Michelle thing? Or at least it's 30/1 odds.

[Dobian]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5

On 6/13/2019 at 8:18 PM, tennisgurl said:

I was just thinking about Liv`s family and wondering what happened to them, and now we know! They became high key assholes who dont care about the awful situation that Liv was apparently in. What did they want her to do, turn him into a zombie before they became mainstream. And now Liv gets a brand new evil dad to work against!

Damn it Justin, I liked you! Poor Major, that head shot was brutal. Major is a nice guy, but dont screw with him. 

I had been wondering if they were ever going to resolve Liv and her family, it was a plot thread they completely dropped after season 1.  Of course, mom is a totally coldhearted bitch.  I hate characters like that.  Just bad, one-dimensional writing.  And why wouldn't Liv just reach out to her brother on her own?  Or is he just missing the empathy chip in his brain too like mom?

[ketose]

7 hours ago, Dobian said:

I had been wondering if they were ever going to resolve Liv and her family, it was a plot thread they completely dropped after season 1.  Of course, mom is a totally coldhearted bitch.  I hate characters like that.  Just bad, one-dimensional writing.  And why wouldn't Liv just reach out to her brother on her own?  Or is he just missing the empathy chip in his brain too like mom?

After season 1, they wanted to make the show more about zombies and the writers must have decided that the side plot of Liv's family was too much. At the beginning of season 2, Evan is still in the hospital and he tells her specifically that he never wants to see her again. Neither Liv's mother or brother showed up for the next 3 years.

According to the show, Liv had tried to reach out, probably after everyone knew about zombies. The fact that Liv's family was apparently trapped in New Seattle and never interacted with her is both poor writing and character assassination. I attribute this to the desire of the producers to create this bigger zombie apocalypse at the same time as making sure every single episode contained a Rose McIver improv showcase.