9-1-1: Season 6/ Episode 12 “Recovery” – Recap/ Review

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Alongside a resolution to the Wendell storyline, Buck presents the possibility everything won’t go back to being as it was after his latest near-death experience.

Aired (FOX)	March 20, 2023
Director(s)	John J. Gray
Writer(s)	Andrew Meyers
Previously Noted Characters
Buck	Oliver Stark
Maddie	Jennifer Love Hewitt
Bobby	Peter Krause
Tamara	Diana Lu
Carrie	Alicia Coppola
Trey	Chris Johnson
Wendell	Maurice J. Irvin

Recap

This content contains pertinent spoilers. Also, images and text in this post may contain affiliate links which, if a purchase is made from those sites, we may earn money or products from the company.

It Was Like Nothing Happened, And That Felt Strange – Buck, Maddie

Being that Buck is still the baby of the 118 and Maddie’s little brother, everyone dotes on him while he is off-duty. He doesn’t want them to and even presents a level of pushback, but at least when he is distracted by them, he isn’t left with his thoughts. From what it appears, Buck is haunted by his coma dream and has started to pick up habits to ensure he is conscious.

Heck, when he sees his doctor, who gives him a clean bill of health, he almost sounds disappointed. As if he wants something to hold him back from being capable of being so reckless. If not, a diagnosis that requires him to change his lifestyle. It’s like that guy in the bed who relished in his ability to bounce back from anything has left, and now someone who potentially has anxiety, if not an itch to change their profession, has become the new Buck.

Justice For Wendell – Tamara, Bobby, Carrie, Trey, Wendell

We finally get a more proper introduction to Wendell and why his death deeply affects Bobby. If you remember, Bobby got terribly drunk in season 1, episode 4, after the Liberty Flight 46 rescue. That was back in 2018, and after Hen and Buck found him, Bobby found himself at a AA meeting where he met Wendell.

Now, at first, Bobby wasn’t the most friendly, because of shame, among many other negative emotions. However, in time they grew close because Wendell was just too charming. Thus leading to a friendship that went beyond Wendell being Bobby’s sponsor, and that is why Bobby becomes hellbent on taking down Carrie and Trey, even if it means pressuring the vulnerable Tamara.

Someone who, because of that pressure, cracks. In some ways, her cracking is good, for it allows Bobby to learn the truth about Wendell’s demise, but it is also bad, for it sets Tamara up to use again.

Full Details: Like Bobby, Tamara showed up to one of Wendell’s AA meetings, even though it appears NA (Narcotics Anonymous) might have been a bit closer to what she needed. He charmed her like he did Bobby, and they started a friendship. Note – this story isn’t leading into any funny business, but it did lead to Tamara talking about Winding Path and Wendell dedicating himself to taking Carrie and Trey down.

Unfortunately for him, Carrie catches on, and it seems she keeps a deadly drug in her office that has led to many an overdose. She challenged him to take it, to prove himself the kind of addict they usually take into their care, and he did, to keep Tamara from having to shoot up. That injection ended up killing Wendell, and with discovering his body came Carrier and Trey hiding him, and Carrie blaming Tamara, who, already wracked with guilt, internalized what they were feeding her.

But, after a certain point, keeping Tamara close, because she knew too much, was no longer a solution, and Carrie decided to have Tamara take her last hit, call Bobby to get him to the house, and then Trey would set the company on fire. Trey and Carrie have done this before, when people like Bobby got too close to the truth.

This time though, they didn’t discard of all the evidence and people who could take them down. Ultimately leading to Bobby initially being arrested when he came to rescue Tamara and was framed, but between the cop who arrested him thinking something was fishy, Tamara’s testimony, and Carrie and Trey turning on each other? The truth is revealed, and Bobby got his freedom and justice for his dear friend.

Things To Note

What Could Happen Next

1. Hopefully a focus on Chim and his dad now that the other ongoing storyline has been resolved.

Review

Highlights

A Possible Shift For Buck

Anytime someone’s life is threatened, whether personal or career, usually there is some turmoil for a little while, and then things go back to normal almost like nothing happened. Yes, as shown with Bobby, we will get reminded that getting back to normal sometimes was a long road, and there were bumps along the way. However, “9-1-1” operates where, often, you can jump in any time without knowing anyone’s backstory, and it won’t feel like you missed much.

This shift for Buck could be different. The daredevil seemingly isn’t getting stage fright because he was shocked, but he seems to wonder what else he can offer? Is there more to Buck than daring rescues? Potentially, Buck is bound to mirror Bobby’s journey. It seems like he may seek to rediscovers not only why his lack of fear has been invaluable to the 118 but also how he can evolve and maybe take a more measured approach. If not, make it less of a competition and recognize this job requires a bit more thought to become a long-term career.

On The Fence

The Wendell Story

As much as we love it when “9-1-1” has multi-episode storylines, this one wasn’t cutting it. If Wendell did truly appear in season 1 and was someone reoccurring since then, it would have been fine. However, rushing him in, killing him off, and then adding all the details on the back end? It didn’t allow for the intended effect of his character. Unless the goal was for Bobby to get back into AA and potentially take up the mantle of becoming someone’s mentor. Though, with the likelihood of seeing Tamara again slim, I can only assume that a future member of the 118 will show up, and that might be the end to a means for this storyline.

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