9-1-1 Episode 2 Season 8 Review: When Boeing Goes Big…
The Boeing in 9-1-1 Episode 2 Season 8 is headed for disaster, but luckily they have Athena Grant-Nash on board. She never backs down from a challenge.
It’s funny how the marketing campaign focuses on bees when the REAL emergency is a horrific plane crash where Athena becomes the pilot and 118s airlift multiple patients from the comfort of a fire station.
I wondered how they could get Athena in the air and still get everyone in, and I was glad to see they figured out a way to not just cram everyone in at the last minute.
No, those passengers need 118, and having Hen, Chimney, and Eddie guide you through complicated procedures over the phone without you seeing them is the best thing anyone on a plane could wish for, given the circumstances.
The trip is an hour long from start to finish, and while there is a lot of action on the plane, there are also quieter moments between Athena and Dennis at the beginning. There is also a glimpse into the past and a reminder of Athena’s origins and who she has become.
I’ve said this many times before, and I apologize for repeating this statement, but Athena Begins is a prime 9-1-1 moment.
At that point, we already know Athena in the present, but as we delve into the formative years of her life, seeing her motivation to become an officer is crucial to understanding Athena’s motivations and who she is as a person.
Many experiences, people, places, and things in general help shape who we are today. Pain, sadness, and grief can be some of the things that shape you into who you are the most.
Emmett’s death will haunt Athena forever, and the flashback to his funeral and Athena’s words about doing the work that Emmett could never do, as a way to honor him and his legacy, sums up a lot of Athena’s career.
She has dedicated her life to pursuing justice, and while catching Dennis cannot heal the wounds that grief creates, catching Emmett’s killer is the justice she needs to serve.
Of course, atonement for sin or wrongdoing isn’t a bad thing. And neither is forgiveness. Dwelling on anger isn’t healthy, and the painful cycle of clinging to certain things can do that to you.
But not everyone needs or deserves a redemption arc. Some people are inherently evil, and it’s okay for them to stay that way. Some relationships are inherently toxic, and that toxicity doesn’t need to be swept aside so we can have a moment of happiness on screen.
While the series doesn’t necessarily seek to redeem Dennis, they do push this story further into the gray area, where it becomes a more black-and-white situation for Athena and the audience.
Dennis always shows remorse for his actions, but that doesn’t automatically mean forgiveness. An “apology” doesn’t negate the action and the consequences. But it can change your perspective and empathy.
Athena never has to forgive Dennis, and that’s not necessarily the point of the show. Instead, she has to reconcile the anger and justice she fought so hard to achieve for Emmett and balance it with her empathy and understanding.
Dennis was trapped, and he was willing to cooperate and put himself back in prison if Athena didn’t agree to his early release. And how do you react to that?
It’s hard to even pretend to be someone else because it’s not the kind of decision you can make on the spot. And if you ask me, blaming someone else is pretty messy.
Maybe that’s a bad way to phrase it when Dennis just told her the whole story about who was following him and why, then the plane collided with a smaller plane possessed by bees, and everything went wrong.
We were all curious about how a bee-nado could turn into three parts, but now we know that the bees were simply the catalyst that brought us here. To bring us to Athena Grant-Nash commanding a plane with only the occasional help of a child and a prayer for enough wi-fi.
We’ve seen Athena go crazy so many times. It seems like just yesterday she was on a cruise ship in Episode 3 Season 7 of 9-1-1, trying to save herself and others facing the scariest moment of their lives.
I know there were a lot of dispatchers at that center with Maddie and Josh, but Josh had to be on the phone, if only so we could see his shocked face and then pass it on to the clueless Maddie.
