9-1-1 Season 8 Episode 9 Review: Sob Stories

Critic’s Rating: 4.6 / 5.0

4.6

That is certainly one way to return after a lengthy three-month plus hiatus.

It was a long break for us passionate and loyal 9-1-1 fans, whose last impression of the season was the 118 on the set of Hotshots without a care in the world, just happy to be there.

Then you return only to see Eddie preparing to leave the state and a serial killer harming one of our beloveds. It was a lot.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

Coming into the back half of the season, 9-1-1 was in an interesting place because outside of Eddie admitting to Buck that he was ready to leave Los Angeles and reunite with his son, there were no other dangling plot lines.

Yes, Bathena still needs a house, but Maddie and Chimney were happy with the news of their expanding family, and Hen and Karen were seemingly doing well.

It meant that coming into this hour, we were clueless about what was in store.

There was no bee-nado-level marketing program to usher us into things like the early days of 9-1-1 Season 8, but instead, a terrifying vignette of Maddie in danger, which was exactly what we got in the end after a very twisty and intense search for a killer.

Maddie has gotten some odd calls over her many years as a dispatcher, as she’s taken her work home with her one too many times. But the case of the killer with the weepy voice was hard to turn away from.

The call went from something routine, which is difficult to think about but, also the life of a dispatcher, and quickly went south when the caller talked to Maddie and admitted that they kidnapped someone.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

John, as he identified himself, was a mess, and not just in the fact that he sounded tearful, but he was engaging in a horrifying act while expressing deep remorse, which led Maddie to do the only thing she could at that moment, which was trying to gain his trust.

One of Maddie’s greatest strengths as a dispatcher has always been her ability to connect with people on the line, whether victims or perpetrators. Her genial nature allows people to feel comfortable and safe.

It felt like she was making progress with John, though it also felt like he could have been playing her.

John talked a big game about wanting to be saved, but is that what he really wanted?

Of course, Maddie had to protect the kidnappee, and when John turned on her, it seemed like maybe that would be the end since they were no closer to finding John or Jayna and had no information to go off of.

Over the years, we’ve seen Maddie take a case to heart and not leave it at the call center, so it wasn’t surprising that this was a case that she couldn’t shake because of how distressing it was.

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A kidnapper and potential killer, crying on the phone and seemingly wanting to be talked out of committing a crime, will undoubtedly stick with you because a myriad of questions arise.

What if there were other victims and other 9-1-1 calls? What if you’re the one person who can stop this from happening to someone else?

Those questions drove Maddie to meet with Athena and, ultimately, Detective Braeburn, who was touted to be the kind of person they wanted on their side because she had a stellar track record in dealing with cases involving missing kids.

I’ve watched too much television in my life to blindly trust anyone, especially when described as being a little too good to be true, but Braeburn seemed nothing if not competent and empowered to catch this person.

My first clue that maybe something was off with Braeburn came when she brought up Richard Bullock, a convenient suspect she just so happened to have a history with, because when you think about it, what were the chances it would all really be that simple?

They just established that this person had a long history of making these calls and then murdering these girls, yet all it took was Maddie doing a little Reddit search, and suddenly, all the pieces fell into place.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

There was something off about how quickly things came together, and maybe that was just the chronic television-watcher skeptic in me, but I was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Except it never did. At least, at first.

Once there were tangible connections between Richard and Jayna, it felt like maybe it WAS going to be as easy as finding the man, though he may have had an accomplice or someone else who was ultimately going to be the twist this storyline was begging to have.

When Richard seemingly called back the second time, it was the same weepy voice, but noticeably gone was the naivety that punctuated much of the first call. If last time it was unclear whether or not Maddie was being taunted, it was abundantly clear that here he was trying to get to her.

Admitting that he’d researched Maddie’s life and saying her child’s name ignited a switch in Maddie, who began to use his own words against him.

Things got tricky as that call went on, and I’m sure there will be various opinions about Maddie’s actions because, on the surface, she was talking someone into harming themselves.

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But the surface won’t ever tell the whole story when there is so much underneath.

This was a man who was half pleading for salvation, even if it wasn’t wholly genuine, and Maddie had potentially only seconds to make a decision that would save the life.

She was also operating under a certain amount of facts, one of which being that, judging by history, that girl would eventually be killed if they couldn’t put a stop to things, and judging by Richard’s elusiveness, there was no guarantee they would ever find him.

Having said all that, you could still see the pure devastation in Maddie’s eyes when she heard that gun sound and the guilt began to manifest throughout her.

She had no way of knowing that Athena and the LAPD were at the right location, and although she may not have known what would have happened had she not encouraged him to slay that dragon within, she knew there was a high likelihood that it would end badly for Jayna.

She made a split-second decision that she believed would save a young girl who did not deserve what was happening to her. 

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

It was at this point of the story I wished that we hadn’t continuously seen Maddie on a loop being knocked down and drugged during the promotional campaign because it meant there was something amiss about the rescue and Richard’s death.

Had we never seen any of that, it would have been an even bigger twist seeing Braeburn take down her mask and weepily talk to Maddie while rendering her unconscious and stroking her hair.

But even knowing it was on the horizon, the reveal was still shocking, and my brain immediately raced back to every time we saw Amber and all the events that led to that exact moment.

There was something off about that first meeting between the three ladies, and now you can understand why it all felt a little too easy because it was.

Braeburn was a master at her little ruse, but Maddie walked right into her trap by putting things together in a way likely no one else ever had. That seemingly forced her to set up Richard.

Aside from Maddie’s dramatic rescue in the next hour, which I will most definitely need expeditiously, it would be fascinating for the series to dive into Braeburn’s motives because you can tell there must be a hell of a story there.

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With Athena on the case, I know she will not rest until she finds Maddie, but I do wonder how they’re going to figure out there’s a serial killer detective right under her nose.

This was such an evil start to the back half of 9-1-1 Season 8. Even though we saw the cliffhanger through promotion, it still hit incredibly hard and now opens everything up for what comes next.

Namely, how will Maddie’s loved ones handle her disappearance?

Chimney will be a mess and probably ask himself why the woman he loves has yet again been yanked away from him by a psychopath. Still, it will also hit Buck hard, especially coming off his struggles in this hour to deal with the prospect of everyday life without his best friend.

When Eddie told Buck that he was looking for houses in Texas during 9-1-1 Season 8 Episode 8 to be with Chris, you could see the mask Buck put on to be the friend Eddie needed in the moment slip off as soon as Eddie turned his back and the realities of the situation hit him.

Buck’s childhood and subsequent years beyond were filled with feelings of abandonment and being left behind.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

His parents ignored him his whole life, and Maddie eventually left him, followed by his first love, Abby.

While it’s not as simple as saying, ‘They abandoned Buck,’ in CERTAIN cases, that was the impact he felt.

Adult Buck was always trying to find his place, and he found that in Los Angeles, with the 118 and a family that supported him and loved him through triumphs and tragedies.

But perhaps above all else, Eddie has proven to be Buck’s greatest constant over the past however many years it’s been in 9-1-1 land.

From rocky start to the best of friends, the two have shown up for one another time and time again and forged the kind of deep, meaningful relationship many people dream about.

It’s that bond, forged through years on the job protecting one another and years on the couch learning one another, that had Buck scrambling during this hour to come to terms with Eddie no longer being by his side in every sense of the word.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

We’ve seen Buck grow throughout the series from an arrogant guy with a chip on his shoulder and a penchant for danger into someone more grounded. He can still be impulsive, but he is more cognizant of his place in the world and the things that matter.

Eddie matters to him, as evidenced by hours like this, where Eddie’s every move dictates Buck’s every emotion and action.

When it became clear that Eddie was making the move and it wasn’t just something he was considering, Buck stepped up and wanted to help Eddie as they always do for each other.

Buck’s a helper (and a fixer!), so naturally, he wanted to do something for Eddie because, at his core, I believe he wanted to be supportive.

It was like two things were warring inside of him. The side that knew what Eddie was doing was right and something he had to do.

There might not be anyone on the planet who knows more about what Christopher means to Eddie than Buck, and no part of Buck would ever want to stand in the way of that.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

But simultaneously, inside of him was another part that was hurting and feeling like, yet again, he had found something that he cared for and adored, and it was leaving him behind.

Eddie’s decision to leave Los Angeles wasn’t about Buck, and while Buck subconsciously knew that, it didn’t stop him from lashing out when the feelings got too big and the pain too raw to ignore.

It didn’t seem like Buck was purposefully trying to sabotage the renters parading through Eddie’s house, but more like he couldn’t help himself.

Where Eddie was a nervous wreck, wanting everything to be perfect because getting his place sublet was a vital step on his road to El Paso, Buck was excitable and oversharing in the way we’d known him to be.

Call me foolish, but it came across as more of Buck being Buck than Buck actively trying to hurt Eddie’s chances of finding a renter.

However, there was a noticeable switch in Buck when he heard Eddie say that everything that mattered to him was in Texas. If you thought Buck would hear something like that and respond any other way than taking it to heart and clamming up, you don’t know Buck.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

Buck’s actions from that point forward felt wholly in character because he shuts down when faced with difficult emotions and hurt.

Where he could have taken a beat and then calmly explained to Eddie how the words he overheard hurt him, he instead decided to rescue a dog, almost throw it back in Eddie’s face, and then force him to explain his intention to move to the rest of the team before he was ready.

On the flip side, what Eddie said hurt me, and I’m not even his person!

Considering we only hear this short conversation, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the words because they sound harsh, especially when juxtaposed with Eddie’s early words to Buck, in which he wondered what he would do without him.

It must have been whiplash to go from feeling indispensable to someone to quickly feeling obsolete.

But again, this is where it can be frustrating because Buck has come so far, yet it’s as if he can’t think rationally sometimes when it comes to Eddie specifically.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

And it makes you wonder why that is.

As always, Eddie was carefully measured in his approach to Buck, though you could see how he went from confused to hurt and then decidedly angry when he realized that Buck’s actions were purposeful.

Even if Eddie realized the emotions were coming from a place of pain, that didn’t negate what they did to Eddie.

Eddie was rightfully mad because the number one thing he wanted was support from Buck, and he didn’t feel like he was getting that. And two things can be true at the same time! You can understand how both Buck and Eddie were feeling in this particular scenario.

When the 118 embraced Eddie, expressing their sadness about him leaving but being overwhelmingly supportive about his decision, it had to be hurtful to see Buck off to the side looking downcast because he was wrapped up in his own feelings.

The two of them were poised for a blowout, or at the very least, a tough conversation about how they felt about the current situation.

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Eddie was busy trying to get his ducks in a row while also surely pushing down the emotions of leaving Los Angeles, his job, and the family he made for himself.

He was undoubtedly scared about losing Buck.

But what he was doing was ultimately bigger than him, right? He had to do it because he needed to be a father to his son and be physically present.

Buck was making it about himself in specific ways, but hearing Eddie say that to him hurt my heart. Watching the two go back and forth also broke my heart because the crux of it all was the sadness of leaving one another.

But Eddie wasn’t wrong to draw a line in the sand because he didn’t want to leave Buck or the life he’d built, but he had to. It’s not much of a life with Christopher not in it.

Buck and Christopher will not compete because no one else will win a competition regarding your child.

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Ultimately, somewhere between Blaze’s return to his home and his showing up at Eddie’s house, he made a life-altering decision that I did not see coming.

Though, in retrospect, I should have because Buck loves a grand gesture, and make no mistake about it, Buck GIVING UP HIS LOFT and renting Eddie’s house so it’s one less thing for him to worry about is a massive gesture.

Look, at this point, everyone has their opinion of the Buck and Eddie dynamic, and I’d love to know just how I’m meant to interpret their relationship when they continuously show us the intensity of their feelings for one another.

Buck could have easily sought out one of the potential renters he ran off and convinced them to sublet the house. It would have still been a kind gesture in its own right, but decisions were made to have Buck make this massive choice, and I’m making the decision to see that for what it is: a big deal.

Feel how you want to feel about the loft, but that place was a staple of stability for Buck for many years. It was his home, a place he shared with people he loved and felt safe in.

He gave that up for Eddie.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

Eddie was stressed beyond belief. Another big move and life change were just on the horizon, and he told Buck that if he needed to take out his anger on him, he would absorb it and take all of it on FOR him.

Let all of that sink in.

The angst between the pair was relatively short-lived, but those few seconds before they left the house and Eddie got a chance to look around at his home, now Buck’s, felt like the first time all episode he had a chance to breathe.

He’s doing it. He’s going to be with his son, and he’s going to have to say goodbye to the family he’s made for himself and the life he loves, back to a place that holds so many complicated emotions and a shattered past.

This was a damn good hour of television, and to think we still have to see the aftermath of Maddie’s kidnapping and Eddie’s ride off into the Texas desert.

Get your tissues ready.

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

Loose Ends

• It will be bizarre not to see the loft anymore because it became such an extension of Buck. It’s going to take me a minute to process that we just won’t be seeing it anymore.

• So, when Eddie inevitably returns from Texas, will we enter the Buck and Eddie roommates era?

• Blaze/Bingo was one of the cutest dogs I have ever seen.

• Braeburn better not have touched a hair on Jee-Yun’s head!

(Disney/Christopher Willard)

• The animal shelter rescue was so dramatic but also so good. Buck coming out of a burning building with a dog in his arms? Put it on a poster!
• Buck, a notorious basketball hater, carrying that ball around Eddie’s house during the showings. It could mean nothing.

• A detective serial killer is giving that one season of The Killing. If you know, you know.

What a way to start the second half of the season!

There’s plenty to discuss after this one, so please drop all your comments below so we can discuss it!

You can watch 9-1-1 on ABC at 8/7c on Thursdays.

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