9-1-1: Lone Star’s Big Tommy Reveal Is a Shocking Finale, But I’m Excited for Gina Torres
Warning: spoilers ahead for Episode 6 of 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 5, titled “Naked Truth.”
9-1-1: Lone Star is halfway through its fifth and final season on the 2024 TV schedule with “Naked Truth,” which seems to be setting Nancy up for a tear-jerking storyline that will span the rest of the series. Instead, Nancy has gone from expecting the worst for Tommy to supporting Nancy in getting the best possible news while Tommy’s future remains uncertain. Tommy has breast cancer, which is of course terrible for the character and her loved ones… but I’m excited to see Gina Torres lend her acting chops to the storyline.
In a twist of fate, Tommy only learns about his breast cancer when she’s scheduled for a mammogram for no other reason than to be with Nancy in the waiting room and support her when she needs someone other than Mateo to lean on. The episode (streamable with a Hulu subscription) sets up a breast cancer arc for Nancy quite perfectly, including the deaths of women in her family from the same diagnosis.
So it’s an emotional punch in the gut when “Naked Truth” reveals the great news to Nancy right before the terrible news to Tommy, foreshadowed only by the nuances in Gina Torres’ performance as Tommy builds up to reveal her own mammogram results. Something’s a little off with Tommy as soon as she opens the door, and she’s clearly happy for Nancy that her own diagnosis was just a cyst. However, when Nancy realizes that something is wrong, Tommy finally admits: I called my doctor earlier about my mammogram. She said they found something. It’s… bad. Bad, Nancy.
Tommy deserves a hug from Nancy as she starts to cry, partly because her daughters are just in the other room. The promo for the next episode also proves that 9-1-1: Lone Star will delve into how “bad” Tommy really is, confirming that her diagnosis is breast cancer and that she’ll need to leave 126. Check it out: Well, hopefully Owen actually addressed his sleepwalking/sleep-talking/sleep-breathing issues in “Naked Truth,” because Tommy may need all the support he can get as the final season continues! He’s always been there for his fellow firefighters when they needed him, including when Marjan withdrew her name from the running for lieutenant so Paul could secure a promotion), as well as for Judd before he decided to return to 126 in Gracie’s (and actress Sierra McClain’s) absence. Hopefully Tommy can count on his support as well; it certainly looks like she’ll have Nancy by her side.
All in all, we’ll just have to wait and see what 9-1-1: Lone Star has in store for Tommy with the final six episodes of the series, but I’m confident that Gina Torres will crush the material, and I’m looking forward to watching (and maybe even shedding a few tears) as Season 5 continues. Stay tuned to Fox on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET to catch new episodes of 9-1-1: Lone Star, or stream it with a Hulu subscription. 9-1-1 is currently airing its tense eighth season Thursdays on ABC.
