(S02E16) Rebecca: "I don't know what to do next."
Justin: "Me neither."
I cried twice during this episode. Maybe more. I cried when Nora told Kevin he deserved to have a beautiful wedding just as much as anybody else. And I also cried at two more points, but I'll talk about them below the jump. This was a beautiful episode of television. Even though I don't know that I have written about the music used in episodes, I thought the use of "Can't Find My Way Home" for the last two scenes was profoundly moving. Last year, I thought the season finale was a disaster because it ended with grand hijinks and everybody jumping into a pool. This year's season ended quietly on a beautiful sunny hillside, and it just about broke my heart. I am going to go out on a limb here and hope that this show wins an Emmy, because when they do it well, they really nail it.
One of the reasons this episode was so moving was because I just love Scotty so much. I felt so sorry for him that his parents were so unwilling to come and watch him get married. Some of the commenters have complained and don't like Scotty and find him whiny. I just find him to be such a good person that I want him to be happy, even more so than Kevin. Nora's acceptance of him, his father's cufflinks, the flowers: It was all what Scotty deserved. So, what the heck happened to the rings? Did they just forget to get rings?
Did anybody else get the impression that Scotty's father would have come to the wedding if his mother hadn't been so adamantly against it?
It's always nice to have Tom Skerritt visit the show, but holy cow, could they try to make him up to look younger than William was when he died? William keeps getting older in these flashbacks, and that's just so wrong.
I was mildly surprised that Sarah was still so accepting of Rebecca. But I don't think Holly did lie to William about Rebecca. I seem to remember her telling Rebecca in the first season that she and William had never really talked about it. William might have drawn conclusions, but I always thought that he left Holly money because she had been his mistress for twenty years, and not because he thought Rebecca was his child. So, now that they know about Ryan, do you think Sarah will back off of her persuit of suing Holly? I wonder whether Holly knows about Ryan, or whether this will turn out to have been a betrayal of her too. It sounds like William Walker had an active conference life.
So, obviously, Ryan is a way to save face now that Rebecca is no longer a Walker. If only Sarah had showed Rebecca that picture last year, that could have saved them so much time. Obviously, the baby looks like a Walker baby. Or they could have tried showing it to Nora. Hey, there's a thought.
Why do Kevin and Sarah still think Nora is so fragile about William? He has been dead for almost two years and she has really, largely, moved on. She has long since come to terms with his betrayals and imperfections. On the other hand, even though I don't think Nora is as fragile as they do, I have to admit, it would be a significant blow to find out that there was another mistress, another infidelity, and a child. Just when she had wrapped her mind around the thought that Holly and William didn't actually share that kind of a bond... Still, I loved the use of "Can't Find My Way Home" in that scene, and the fact that it was just Kevin and Sarah, quietly together, without involving the rest of the family.
Another scene that made me a little watery was the brief scene in which Kitty and Robert decided to adopt. I don't know why: It was just a great little scene.
But finally, the scene between Rebecca and Justin at the end was just perfect. I have railed long and hard against a romance between those two, but the setting, the song, Rebecca's thoughts that maybe all of this drama has been to lead her to Justin... Maybe I'm in the minority, but I think you'd have to be made out of stone not to be moved by that. Their awkward kiss, and then what finally really did it to me was just the look on Rebecca's face as she leaned her head against Justin's shoulder, and his hand came up to hold her, like they finally had come home.
Bravo, Brothers and Sisters. Bravo.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-12-2008 @ 9:58AM
chrisb said...
This episode was hit-or-miss for me. Loved the wedding, loved the storyline about Scott's parents, loved Sarah threatening to sue Holly for fraud. Didn't hate the Rebecca/Justin scene as much as I thought I would.
But the Ryan storyline is just dumb, dumb, dumb. For starters, how does a picture of a baby mean William has another child? That's quite a leap. But worse than that, they've already done this storyline. Are they out of ideas?
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5-12-2008 @ 1:42PM
Jimmy said...
I agree. Why go through with a year's worth of story lines just to toss them out because David Anable and Emily Vancamp look cute together? If Ryan turns out to be a Walker, and with the whole password thing he must be, it'll be Rebecca all over again, this time with a guy. Which Walker will he hook up with?
I'm sorry, but the whole Rebecca/Justin kiss was icky. For two people who thought they were brother and sister just a few days they didn't wait long to start snogging.
5-12-2008 @ 11:11AM
Ryan said...
Loved the episode. I cried about 3-4 times. And yeah though I have my worry on the new "Ryan storyline" it's kinda cool because HEY IT'S MY NAME!
No, but seriously I love this family. So it should mean better than it's getting bigger!
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5-12-2008 @ 11:27AM
jayr2345 said...
This was a great episode. I am definintly not digging the new Ryan storyline. Its just basically restarting the whole Rebecca storyline just with a boy this time. I sure hope whatever actor they get to play Ryan dosen't have any on screen chemistry with Sarah or they're gonna have to redo the story again with another R name.
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5-12-2008 @ 11:54AM
tv junkie said...
Everything was beautifully done, except for the coming out of Saul to the rest of the siblings. what the hell was that, it almost seems like an after-though, like the writers forgot to write a line for Ron Rifkin until the last minute! it was so corny the way they did it that almost ruin the otherwise superb episode.
i guess it's true that ABC is scared of having the "older" gay man storyline with Saul because the way they wrote it so far is almost like they're afraid to let him completely out so they just squeeze in one scene for him in each episode.
the other sibling twist is completely unexpected (hopefully Justin don't start calling Ryan "bro") and i'm cautiously optimistic about it. can't wait for season 3~
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5-12-2008 @ 12:01PM
Judy said...
I missed the last 5 minutes due to storms - my local station lost the feed. The last thing I saw was Kevin starting to talk to Sarah. What did I miss? Thanks.
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5-12-2008 @ 1:27PM
JustListening said...
Ok, so who was the artist performing Blind Faith's "Can't Find My Way Home" at the end of the episode? Such a great song, and I'd like to hear the full version of somebody pouring new life into it ...
Thanks in advance!
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5-12-2008 @ 2:30PM
chrisb said...
The artist's name is Ellen McIlwaine. I just found it on iTunes.
I agree... fantastic version of that song.
5-12-2008 @ 2:01PM
clinton said...
They did such a great job casting this show. The actors playing Justin and Rebecca are just so watchable. I am autamatically compelled to invest in their story. The final scene with them was feature film worthy. I was kinda confused between the discovery of "Ryan" and the scene where Nora is urged to sit down by her kids in the last moments of the show.
B&S is the only show I watch every week. I am happy that it survived all the backstage brouhaha and the not so great reviews. I hope ABC puts good people in the producer spots or show runner whatever the term these days.
Rob Lowe had only signed on for a few episodes orginally. Is he a series regular now?
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5-12-2008 @ 2:07PM
Sam said...
I thought that Ryan was actually one of the kids, that they were going to dewalker another walker. I think for all those haters of the rebecca not a walker -- me, kinda included. I was really rather touched by Rebecca's perfect line -- what if I went through all of this just to meet you (Justin). That I think was one of the greatest lines ever.
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5-12-2008 @ 4:11PM
La-Di-Dah said...
I loved the wedding and loved the finale. What continues to amaze me is how perfect an actor Matthew Rhys is - I thought that scene with Scotty's parent and then Scotty's father was wonderfully played and on the level. I loved that there was not so many Walker shananigans in this episode. Oh, and I loved the Kevin/William flashbacks. Tom Skerritt is also such a serene actor. I am hoping the B&S writers are kewl enough to handle the "Ryan" storyline in a completely different way than they did Rebecca. I am looking forward to something new next season. Can't wait. Peace.
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5-12-2008 @ 5:24PM
segsig said...
What the heck was it Rebecca said after the kiss? I replayed it a gazillion times and didn't get it.
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5-13-2008 @ 12:04AM
Karyn said...
Rebecca said after the kiss, "I'm not really sure what to do next."
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5-13-2008 @ 6:56AM
antonio81 said...
I think the episode was quite beautiful...i've never seen a commitment ceremony on tv before, or in real life, and it was extremely uplifting, and provides lots of hope for the rest of us..of course it's an idealized version of reality...what was also interesting was that Scotty's mom was the one who had the issue with him being gay....that was a nice role reversal as it is usually the dad who has the prolem...
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