Well, that was an unappealing twist.
Most of 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 2 Episode 7 revolved around the slow implosion of Gwyn and Owen’s relationship, Nancy pointing out the painfully obvious to T.K, and our dear Tommy struggling with her role as a working mom.
The hour dabbled with some jealousy, too.
A genuine question I would like to pose to 9-1-1 Lone Star Fanatics is, “Is there anyone genuinely invested in the Owen and Gwyn relationship and pregnancy storyline?”
Lisa Edelstein existing on this series aside, what started as a promising, fun arc quickly got chaotic, absurd, and annoying.
However, I recognize it’s a matter of taste, so if anyone was into it, then share your thoughts below.
Gwyn and Owen agreed that they were all-in, and maybe the signs were always there that something was awry since Gwyn has been giving Owen ways out since the moment she found out she was pregnant.
She presented him with another chance to back out when all of her belongings arrived from New York and cluttered up the Strand home.
We spent a ridiculous amount of time on the two debating whose furniture and appliances would stay or go. The couple bickered over whether or not Owen would keep his blender, which has a name; listen, I’m not mad at the man about this since I, too, name my appliances. Shut up, and don’t judge me.
You’d think that one place that the crazy in this world might leave you alone is your own casket but nope.
Judd
Owen and Gwyn’s schtick is that they bicker and banter like divorcees even though they’re in love with each other. But admittedly, it got old after 9-1-1 Lone Star Season 2 Episode 1.
And then we had to sit through another session of darling, sweet cowboy Judd playing couple’s counselor and therapist to Owen.
I may have zoned out and didn’t process what sort of platitudes he had for Owen this time, but knowing Judd, he slipped in an “I love my wife, Grace” at least once, as he’s wont to do, and maybe what I’ve come to refer to as “Juddisms” because he’s freaking Judd, and he’s the best.
But all I could think of is maybe Judd is so good at doling out advice to his superior because of all the therapy he may or may not still be attending, which brings up questions. Like, I don’t know, what happened to Judd’s PTSD? Is he still working through that and doing OK?
At the rate he’s going, he could probably start charging a fee for all the services he provides. God bless that hunk of a Texan with a big heart.
I’m not saying it isn’t your baby, I mean, the odds are in your favor.
Gwyn
Fresh off a talk with Judd, Owen was feeling himself and thrilled about the fact that regardless of Gwyn’s clutter and everything going on, he’s looking forward to fatherhood, and nothing else will matter when the baby arrives.
And it still feels a bit uncomfortable how both the Strand parents have treated this new baby as if they don’t have a full-grown son right there. Since we’re addressing the TK of it all, why hasn’t he and Gwyn spent any significant screentime together or even had a storyline of their own?
Gwyn and TK’s mother/son time would’ve been infinitely more entertaining and gratifying than a significant portion of what this Owen/Gwyn story has devolved into, but I digress.
Gwyn’s needlessly convoluted pregnancy became more so when she found out, mysteriously too late, I don’t know, that she’s further along than she thought, and the baby may not be Owen’s.
It’s such a contrived plot. The moment Gwyn found out she was pregnant at all, you would think she’d be upfront about the possibility that the child could belong to one of the only two men she slept with during quarantine is the father.
Why assume it’s Owen’s child out of the gate? Why not tell him about Enzo early on?
And since the general rule of the series is that Owen can never be happy without having something or someone ripped away from him, the baby he’s been psyching himself up about for weeks doesn’t even belong to him.
Oh, and it turns out that he was Gwyn’s rebound since she was with Enzo for 15 years before she reunited with Owen. What was the point of this storyline?
Oh, I get it now. I’m the rebound guy.
Owen
It was already polarizing, leaning more toward the negative than positive anyway. Now, we’ve invested this much into it only to discover that it was a colossal waste of time.
And it only makes it more glaring, again, that if the series wanted to insert a pregnancy storyline, the neon sign the size of gosh damn Texas has been pointing at the Ryders all of this time.
We have both Ryders, playing confidant, therapist, and giving both marriage and parenting advice to other characters when they don’t even have children. It doesn’t make sense!
Despite upending her life in Manhattan, Gwyn is living in Texas but staying at a hotel. I guess Gwyn and Owen are over, or who knows? TK is in for another surprise that will likely take place offscreen, and maybe this arc has come to an end?
It feels like a waste of time that could’ve gone literally anywhere else.
But kudos to Owen for breaking that bowl. It was cathartic, and I envied him.
Speaking of envy, TK is shining in the field as a paramedic, and Nancy understandably feels some kind of way about it.
Nancy voiced all the things that some fans probably wondered about, especially in the aftermath of Tim’s death. On the rotation of characters, many of whom can get shafted when it comes to screentime and plot, the paramedics were practically stand-ins in the background.
Nancy: What’s this about?
TK: This is about family.
And it turns out that the firefighters have always treated them that way. Nancy compared it to high school, and the firefighters were the cool kids, while she and Tim were the geeks on the sidelines.
She isn’t wrong about it either, which is why it felt off sometimes when the series focused more on everyone but Nancy’s grief when Tim died.
TK and the others never invited Nancy nor Tim anywhere when they went out. It never crossed TK’s mind to extend an invitation to Carlos’ house when the other trio would show up to play video games.
They know nothing about her, and with Tim and Michelle gone, Nancy feels more isolated than ever. TK effortlessly slid into this new position, charmed and impressed Tommy, and he still gets to hang out with his friends without paying her any mind.
The rig will officially have a new name and Tim will be riding with us for every call.
TK
TK assumed that it was some friendly rivalry between two kids trying to win the affection and praise of “mom,” Tommy, but it went beyond that, and it took Carlos to point it out to him.
What would TK do without Carlos? Honestly?
At least their conversation prompted TK and the others to turn the Rig into a tribute for Tim, including renaming it with Tim’s last call number.
It’s a beautiful, meaningful gesture that was long overdue. It’s disheartening that it took this long for something like that when Owen created an entire memorial wall for Judd’s previous brothers.
Carlos: Since you’ve been doing the 126 games over here, how many times have you invited Nancy? Or Tim?
TK: That’s not… oh, we’ve been such jerks! How did I not see that?
Carlos: The cool kids never do.
It’s about family, and the 126 is shaping into one, so hopefully, this means Nancy will get included more.
As for family, Tommy is still having such a difficult time trying to juggle motherhood with her job. It kills Tommy inside that her kids have grown to rely so heavily on Charles, and it makes her inadequate and like he replaced her in their eyes.
TK flipping the sirens to drive Tommy to her daughter’s black belt test was such a sweet moment. It was such a blow when Charlies sent her away and told her that their daughter felt too pressured by Tommy.
Charles came across as harsh, and he has to know how hard this is for Tommy, but he doesn’t always know how to reassure her. He has to understand that keeping things from her isn’t helping this situation or making it easier on anyone.
But they are a couple who seems to know how to work through things. We didn’t get a confirmed resolution, but we got a Vega family food fight!
The calls mostly took a backseat to the personal arcs. Unfortunately, that meant we only caught a glimpse of Grace.
It also meant we didn’t get much to go on with the body of the undocumented stowaway that landed on a man’s casket. It was a hell of a way to start the hour.
The Fire Kids trio exchanged some commentary on the sidelines, and there was a sad exchange between Tommy and the other stowaway at the airport, a Honduran woman mourning the loss of her loved one while recovering from hypothermia.
You may be killing this whole stay at home parent thing, but you don’t get to box me out!
Tommy
For some reason, it seemed like a plot they were setting up, but then it ended there, so they never revisited it.
We also got that crazy case with the MRI machine that saw some of the team stripping down to their skivvies. Gina Torres’ physique is ridiculous! Yes, mama!
Sometimes the personal-arc-heavy hours are some of the best, but this time around, it was a bit underwhelming, and focusing on the cases would’ve been more fun.
Over to you, 9-1-1 Lone Star Fanatics. What are your thoughts on that baby bomb shocker? Do you love TK as a paramedic? Hit the Show Comments button below and let us know!
You can watch 9-1-1: Lone Star online here via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.