'Brothers & Sisters': Please leave the quiet room
Near the end of Sunday's Brothers & Sisters, Sarah and Kitty gang up on their mother over Nora's tendency to hover over all her children's lives and her need to solve everyone else's problems.
I get the feeling that the writers want our sympathies to fall with Nora, since it's two against one, and the Walker kids are good and messed up. But I really felt myself siding with Kitty and Sarah, because seriously, who can take all that?
(Spoilers with a side of baby lamb chops coming right up.)
Granted, Nora's inability to cut the cord is the source of much comedy on Brothers & Sisters, and at least on some level the kids are grateful she's the way she is -- witness the scene the following morning, where a contrite Kitty and Sarah approach their mother for advice. But it's a fine line between helpful and smothering, and Nora regularly obliterates it.
The primary source of this week's angst was an allegedly relaxing spa weekend Kitty booked for Sarah, hoping to help her sister forget about the 10th anniversary of her all-but-over marriage. (Kitty herself is a little frazzled by the discovery of a pre-nuptial agreement in a stack of Robert's papers.) Nora goes on and on about how lovely the place is and how she hasn't been in forever -- prompting great reaction shots from both Rachel Griffiths and Calista Flockhart -- and so the girls reluctantly invite her along.
Not surprisingly, the weekend is anything but soothing, as Nora tries to push divorce-survival strategies on Sarah and centerpieces on Kitty -- causing their ejection from the "quiet room" -- and even manages to pop in on Tommy at the winery after she learns about his situation with Julia. None of it is pretty, although Kitty and Sarah eventually come to realize that mom is right about their respective problems: Sarah's unwillingness to let go (she ends up asking Kevin to be her divorce lawyer) and Kitty's fear of commitment (she finally asks Robert about the pre-nup, and he tells her he's not signing it).
Things aren't going so well for Tommy -- who, as I feared, may have succumbed to the morass of awful feelings about his marriage and slept with office manager Lena (although whether they actually did is a little ambiguous; whatever happened, though, they both seem kind of embarrassed). Really liked Holly's line to Tommy the next morning: "Everyone makes mistakes. ... But from now on, it's not a mistake, it's a choice. Make the right one." (Also, welcome back Patricia Wettig.)
Elsewhere in the Walker family:
After Scotty sees Saul at Milo's "big gay cocktail party," Kevin confronts his uncle about whether he's gay, hurt that he wasn't more supportive when Kevin came out and Saul curtly cutting him off. (Did anyone else get an Arvin Sloane flashback from Saul's clipped "We're done here" at the end of that conversation?). They later make amends with one another, though Saul insists -- twice -- that he's not gay. But you get the feeling that he's trying to convince himself as much as anyone else.
Justin, meanwhile, has gone down a dark path -- and not just because Rebecca has him watching The Hills. No one can say he didn't warn them, but it's no surprise that he's scoring pills from a fellow soldier at his physical therapist's. I feel sorry for Rebecca, though -- almost everything she does is with the best of intentions, and yet she can't seem to get anything to break the right way for her.
How'd you like this week's Brothers & Sisters? Could you handle someone like Nora in your own life?
What got me about the episode last night was that right before Sarah and Kitty ganged up on Nora I was thinking about how Nora was getting on my nerves and that if I had someone in my life like her I would never ever answer my phone or tell her anything. Other than that I am loved the episode. I hope they don't blame Rebecca again like when she took Justin out to lunch. That bugged me
I liked the fact that Justin fell off the wagon, it makes his storyline that much better. I think it will Rebecca's standing with the other Walkers if she's the one who outs Justin renewed secret.
As for Tommy, I'm disappointed that he may or may not have slept with Lena because she's boring and the weakest link of the show right now. I have a feeling that they didn't actually do it.
Sara, Kitty and Nora were priceless last night especially when the confrontation after Nora got back from Tommy's winery.
Lastly, I did get the Arvin Sloane vibe from Saul last night. The gay storyline kinda ruins my perception of Arvin Sloane though.
I do not like Rebecca ! I think she is sneakie and connivinng. The Walkers should not be so willing to include her in their family. Did Nora get proof that she really is william's child ? She seems just too determined to include herself,and has already caused so much trouble. I think that is her intention.
I am so over Nora. She grates on my nerves and I was done with her before they yelled at her. They have made her so shrill and predictable I can't even watch her anymore. Of COURSE she was going to run tell Tommy, I don't know why they even bothered making her lie and promise she wouldn't.
I love Nora! Shrill? Of course that's what I love about her. She's a parent that cares to much about her children. She is however the glue that holds that family together. Notice that everyone ends up at her house when their day has gone bad, or when they had good news.
Nora needs a boyfriend - Sally Field is gorgeous and shouldn't be alone maybe then she won't be so involved in everyone else's life.
I'm disappointed in the whole Walker family - they KNOW Justin's an addict and therefore is very good at lying and yet is anyone checking on him properly?? You don't trust addicts when there are drugs around - what a shock he's taking more drugs than he should and yelling at Rebecca is a sure sign but she's too young to see it although I seem to remember her saying she took drugs herself for some time so she should recognise the signs. Why is Rebecca still with Nora anyway? She's made up with her Mother go home for heaven's sake!
I love that Tommy told Holly where to go when she keeps quoting his father as if she knew him better than anyone else just because she shagged him a couple of times - she needed being put in her place.
I don't think Saul is gay, or rather the writers shouldn't make him gay - plenty of straight men have gay friends so why shouldn't they go to a gay friend's party without everyone ***uming they're gay - it's not like everyone's jumping on each other - they're having a drink and a chat just like a straight party.
How perfect was the employee at the spa who kept confronting them in the "quiet" room? Everything from the tone to the silly little facial expressions were SPOT ON! Highlight of the episode for me.
how can anyone NOT fall in love with this show?
it is by far the best show on tv. wow!...what a cast!
sally is amazing and hysterical, calista is adorable, and best-of-all matthew is hilarious, not to mention very sexy.
all three of them, as well as the entire cast are great at playing both comedy and drama. the show is realistic and very relatable, and has so many great guest stars to.
bring back the beautiful roxy olin. i love her as much as her mom, she was great on the show...very adorable.
they should write her character michelle back-in the show, even for a small story.
eric winter was also great as jason, but i really want kevin (who is my favorite!) & scotty to be stay together.
i really hope they make luke a regular.
patricia wettig is fantastic as holly. she is a wonderful actress, and very beautiful.
i also love that ken olin is appearing on the show now. the producers need to release a soundtrack, because the show plays so many wonderful songs.
i love dave, ron, sarah, emily and all the others. and wow!, rob lowe is terrific as ever. his eyes hypmotize & distract me. he is such a great actor. everyone on the show is very talented, including the kids, who are so adorable & funny.
and rachael...wow! she can do anything well, she is outstanding, and calista, sally, and esspecially matthew make the show for me. keep up the great work.
thanx, john wayne hicks.
i think it's great that saul IS GAY, for those who don't like the idea, i've always thought he was gay since the show started. it's great that there exploring an older man cominig out of the closet late in his life. it's realistic and true for many people, not everyone tells there family there gay when there 20, some people take longer, esspecially when you consider the time in which saul grew up, which was much different then kevin's time.
saul's story is one that SHOULD be told in a truthful way.
...with that said, i kind of understand why he was mad at kevin. although kevin meant well, he can be pushy, and saul was not ready to tell the world yet.
i as a gay man, understand both points of veiw.
ron rifkin is great on the show, but matthew rhys is the best actor to grace any screen...big or small.
he is so realistic & believable, and extremley sexy & adorable.
i like jonathan lapaglia who was the original kevin, before matthew replaced him, but i can not imagine ANYONE playing kevin better!
---john wayne hicks