TVSquad

(S03E11) Ya know, if there is one thing I am a sucker for with TV shows it's episodes like this. I love the call back to earlier episodes. Things that reward the regular viewer. Captain Kenneth Push of the Texas Rangers returning to Medium once again is just such an event.

Oddly enough, I just happened to see the "Pilot" episode again this past weekend. Lifetime is rerunning the series, so if you have missed anything, keep an eye on that. The "Pilot" episode is, of course, where we first met Push. The thing that stood out for me about him is how much his relationship with Allison has grown. They didn't exactly hit it off right away. You might recall Push threatening to throw Allison in jail if she was wrong about where they would find the body. Or, Allison telling Joe that Push is the ugliest, angriest man she has ever met. How far they have come.

The two of them are really great together. That's due in large part to the fact that Kenneth Push is a great character, and Arliss Howard does a great job portraying him. I think what makes Push work so well for me is the way he stands out. He's just a different breed than everyone else on the show. Almost like he is running at a different pace. If Medium were getting big-time hit numbers, like the CSI's, I'd start suspecting a spin-off. Even at their viewer levels now, I think it's something worth considering. Not something that focuses on Push's new found dreams mind you. More of a straight cop show, Texas Ranger style, with the occasional cross-over with Medium. That could be fun.

Anyway, back to the show. I really liked how they handled Push's dreams, and his reactions to having them. To his mind, it's just not right for a Texas Ranger to be having these visions. As he said, "I'm a lawman, not a psychic." So his cryptic message to Allison at the beginning, and then his insistence that she take credit for his information, all worked very well.

The dreams themselves were well done also. Having the story of them be correct, but so much of the detail be wrong was a nice twist. Not only because it added more mystery to just what was going on, but also because of the reaction Push had as he struggled with his new found abilities.

The end had me going there for a bit. I thought he was going to get to a phone and call Allison, or Scanlon, just before surgery. But when the nurse gave him the drugs and it was clear he wouldn't be able to stop things I was totally sold on it. Silly, I know. Have I never watched Medium before? Of course we were in one of Allison's dreams. But they had pulled me into the scene completely. Good on the writers.

I liked the family portion of the show this week too. As soon as Joe told Bridgette that he had never done drugs, you knew the jig was up. Her little investigation going through his drawers was cute, and well played. The accusation scene where she cried to Push, "Don't put my daddy in jail." was well done too. I liked Ariel's shocked reaction, "Dad, are you going to jail?" The resolution with Push telling Bridgette the story of his father was a nice way to bring it all to a close. And the little payoff at the end where we find out that Push was telling his own white lie to protect Bridgette was the perfect way to wrap it all up.

Overall, this was another really good episode. I'd put it up there with "Blood Relations" as one of my favorites of the season. And given the preview we saw, next week looks to be keeping the momentum rolling. Looking forward to it. Finally, a little TV trivia. Arliss Howard (Push) directed the "Very Merry Maggie" and "Time Out Of Mind" episodes.