New network, same old problems for the 118 family.
After 9-1-1’s unceremonious cancellation after six seasons on FOX, the ambitious drama landed at ABC for season seven. And even though this was the first new hour in ten months, the series returned like it never left.
9-1-1 Season 7 Episode 1 was prime 9-1-1 in all the ways that matter. From the emergencies to the laughs to the angst to the heartbreak and everything in between. 9-1-1’s new run got off to a blazing hot start.
When we last left Los Angeles, the 118, Athena, and Maddie were dealing with the aftermath of an overpass collapse and various personal struggles. But 9-1-1 Season 6 Episode 18 wrapped in a way that left everyone hopeful about the future.
Bathena were going on their much-delayed honeymoon, while Madney was preparing to wed, and Henren was ready to expand their family.
And not to be left out of the romance parade, Buck and Eddie both found themselves on the cusp of something with two women they’d met on calls during 9-1-1 Season 6.
Everything was copacetic. Tied up with a neat little bow.
But this is 9-1-1. You knew things were never meant to stay that way.
Bobby and Athena have been through their fair share of issues since they began dating and subsequently got married, but it’s been a while since we’ve seen signs of any struggles within their marriage.
So, it’s a little surprising to see Athena so anxious and concerned about the cruise during her sessions with Frank, resident everyone-on-911’s personal therapist.
Frank wasn’t buying what she was selling about a ’70s viewing of The Poseidon Adventure having her so rattled, and it didn’t take long seeing Bobby and Athena on that boat to realize that Athena’s totally in her head about spending so much unfettered time with her husband.
The storyline felt abrupt in the sense that this was the first time we’d heard Athena’s fears said out loud, but when you dive beyond the initial shock, Athena’s concerns make sense. But her communication skills need some work.
Bobby and Athena both lead incredibly stressful and time-consuming lives, with shifts and cases that would leave them with a lot of time spent away from each other. But that’s their normal.
And it’s been their normal for many years.
So, suddenly dropping them into an environment with no turmoil, no set schedule, and an array of leisurely choices would be difficult for someone like Athena to adjust to. It’s something that’s out of her comfort zone.
Bobby seems to be more a casualty of the apprehension surrounding an elongated time free of structure, but isn’t it also normal to have some reservations about spending so much time with anyone?
On the surface, yes, but your husband should be one of the people who doesn’t make you feel like there will be awkward lulls in conversation or stilted moments when your brain is free from worry. It’s unfortunate the talk they desperately need will have to wait until AFTER they dodge a sinking ship.
Introducing these marital woes as a lead-in to a pirate takeover and subsequent cruise disaster was clever, and while Athena will be fighting for survival and not necessarily worried about much else, it will be another reminder of the fragility of life and the bond and love she and Bobby share.
Speaking of the cruise disaster, Norman and Lola showing up should have been a clue that something was about to go dangerously wrong.
While it was played comedically, with Norman being a little too much and then suddenly a little too sullen and Athena launching into investigation mode because it’s the mode she knows best, never did I think Norman murdered his wife.
However, they were doing a decent job of making me doubt it.
Norman’s tale about Lola’s kidnapping was a little more complicated than expected, but the bottom line remains the bottom line moving forward: a very big boat is under siege, and a storm is brewing.
Those two things together are lining up to bring us an emergency unlike anything we’ve seen on 9-1-1 to this point, and isn’t that saying something when we saw a tsunami take out the Santa Monica Pier once upon a time?
While Athena was contemplating her life and then ignoring it all in favor of a good old-fashioned mystery, the 118 was back in Los Angeles doing their thing in the field and dealing with some romantic issues, some their own and some others.
