9-1-1 is more of the same, as it delivers daring rescues and a slew of forgettable guest stars. However, more than ever, there is the vibe it wants you to see everyone get their moment in the sun with dedicated episodes.
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In many ways, 9-1-1 is more of the same, as it delivers daring rescues and a slew of forgettable guest stars. However, more than ever, there is the vibe it wants you to see everyone get their moment in the sun with dedicated episodes.
| Network | FOX |
| Genre(s) | Action, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Romance, Young Adult, LGBT |
| Noted Characters | |
| Eddie | Ryan Guzman |
| Bobby | Peter Krause |
| Chim | Kenneth Choi |
| Maddie | Jennifer Love Hewitt |
| Jonah | Bryce Durfee |
| Lucy | Arielle Kebbel |
| Jeffrey | Noah Bean |
| May | Corinne Massiah |
| Claudette | Vanessa Williams |
| Hen | Aisha Hinds |
| Taylor | Megan West |
| Ravi | Anirudh Pisharody |
| Athena | Angela Bassett |
| Buck | Oliver Stark |
| Karen | Tracie Thoms |
| Michael | Rockmond Dunbar |
| Christopher | Gavin McHugh |
This content contains pertinent spoilers.
Summary
The 118 go through quite a lot this season. Eddie leaves the team, partly voluntarily but also after a blow-up with Bobby. Chim goes on a leave of absence after Maddie disappears, and new characters, Jonah and Lucy, take their place and shake things up. Alongside that, May takes Maddie’s place at the call center, which leads to her having more screentime than ever, and as for the rest? Honestly, it is a lot of the same things we’ve seen before, be it relationship issues, dealing with their past, or struggling with a recent decision that they are kicking themselves a little too hard over.
Review
Highlights
Eddie: Solely For Having A Storyline Since His Introduction
At this point, I would submit Eddie is the sole character who always has an active storyline going. There isn’t a huge gap like you see with many of the OG characters, or you feeling like when one storyline is over, that’s it. Whether we’re talking about the challenges of raising Christopher, especially after his mom died, PTSD, issues Eddie has with some family members, and more, you could argue Eddie is the lead character, or at least treated as such.
Having An Obstacle Beyond The Rescue
Between Jeffrey early in the season and Jonah later, 9-1-1 gave us the rare multi-episode case that wasn’t all handled in one episode. Jonah’s was shorter, but the build-up and aftermath you could submit were similar.
Either way, 9-1-1 doesn’t really operate as a show where any long-term adversary is anything beyond one’s inner demons. Be it Eddie’s PTSD and his guilt, Hen previously having issues because of her cheating on Karen, or Bobby’s alcoholism, which usually rears its head once every season. But as for people? Like someone trying to show that maybe the 118 or LAPD aren’t borderline superheroes who will survive and thrive no matter what? Only Jeffrey and Jonah pushed the possibility of that.
For as of now, you don’t see Taylor or someone else holding either accountable. There is no upper management who continually is on anyone’s ass about what they do or how they do it. Granted, it isn’t like Athena is firing off shots every episode or that the 118 doesn’t appear to do things by the book. But with the main threat always coming from everyone’s personal life and the show rarely focusing on all characters equally at once, it made having a central villain a welcome change of pace.
Building Up May
May had the best build-up and development of the few children on this show. Yes, Harry had his time in the sun early in the season, but May got to hang with the adults and really outgrow being Athena’s kid. From her not knowing about going to college, dealing with Claudette at the 911 call center, and really showing herself as growing up, she stepped up in such a way that it makes you wonder what is next for her? Never mind, with her deciding to go to college, we’ll she just pop her head in every now and again, or remain a constant in season 6?
Low Points
The Utter Lack Of Threat Or Need To Fear
The issue 9-1-1 will have for as long as it is on is that it doesn’t present any real threat to the series leads. We’ve seen them get kidnapped, beat up, impaled, have trucks land on them, and more, yet all of that, at best, becomes anecdotes. After a certain point, it doesn’t affect their movement or their thinking. It is just stories the characters bring up every now and again.
This is fine, in some ways, but decreasingly makes it so any situation seems as serious as they are making it when there is a pattern that no long-term effects will be implemented.
On The Fence
Taylor
We have such mixed feelings about Taylor. On the one hand, with her being so aggressive about getting stories, to the point it ended her relationship with Buck, you have to appreciate her being someone that is the rare consistent presence that isn’t likable. Yet, on the other hand, her whole backstory about her dad and mom? It felt awkward and forced, similar to the amount of energy put into Eddie when he first came on 9-1-1.
However, with Taylor clearly not being meant to evolve beyond Buck’s love interest, there is the need to question whether the time spent will be well invested in the long run?
Claudette Not Living Up To Her Potential
Claudette is a key part of May’s growth this season, for with both of May’s parents being first responders, she got a job far easier than it perhaps should have been. So Claudette acting as a reminder that May was a newbie, that not everyone is familiar with her parents, and thus will go easy on her, made her a welcomed addition.
However, the show didn’t really develop Claudette besides being what could be seen as a bully. Or rather, it waited until it was time to kill Claudette off to reveal she was in a horrific fire when she was younger, never mind she had a husband and more.
How Bloated This Show Often Seems
Ravi got introduced early in this season, and then it seemed he faded to the back. We then got Jonah and Lucy, and once the show decided to sideline Lucy and Buck being together until maybe next season, while she still got to be part of the action, her storyline stalled. But, in general, even with us focusing solely on Athena, when it comes to the cops and not going too deep into the lives of the 911 operators, this show feels bloated.
I mean, the fact only Eddie, maybe Maddie too, has a storyline that feels like it has been consistently building episode to episode, season to season, is terrible. For nearly all other characters, they get a short few episode stint, and then they pretty much are only seen to answer a 911 call. And mind you, this is with us not seeing all the 118 members under Bobby’s purview. So I can only hope that this show will stop teasing people dying or maybe leaving and actually follows through – beyond Michael, who only is gone because their actor doesn’t want to be vaccinated.
Maddie’s Individual Episodes
There are multiple ways to look at Maddie. You can see her as a lifeline for Chim since most of his storylines have involved her or their shared daughter. Also, considering what she has brought to the show regarding domestic violence and Post-Partum issues, there is no denying that, for a network show, she has brought issues that aren’t commonly seen and aren’t necessarily common topics on network shows.
But on the flip side, Maddie does feel like she is part of the bloat problem. Her storylines, increasingly, aren’t to aid the group. It takes Eddie away from the 118, does more for her than it does Buck, and outside of a handful of highlights, I wouldn’t say she is an asset to the show. Now, this isn’t to say she is an outright liability, but sometimes it feels that the people behind the show don’t think her, or even Eddie, have strong enough characters for a spin-off, yet don’t seem to realize the work put into those two eclipses the work put into other characters. Especially regarding impactful storylines that appear to have legs.
Overall
Our Rating: Mixed (Stick Around)
9-1-1 has the issue a lot of long-running shows do. It doesn’t really want to take legitimate risks anymore. It’ll feign a need to worry because of some psycho or mental health episode, but it all seems fine in the long run. Which, in some cases, it is good to see, like with Bobby, Maddie, and Eddie. However, as the show adds new blood to shake things up but doesn’t eliminate characters or have them reassigned, in the process, it becomes increasingly bloated.
Hence the mixed label. Between lack of risks, too many characters, and feeling only a handful get quality storylines on a consistent basis? That’s why 9-1-1 is a show we think is worth sticking around for but shouldn’t be high up on your watchlist.
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