I am still catching up from last week’s vacation, so be patient with me. My Monday shows seem to be the easiest for me to stay up to date with, so it’s another FOX only review.
First up was 9-1-1 Lone Star, which saw the introduction of Billy. He used to work for the 126, but was on leave when the rest of the team perished in the explosion. Owen and Billy meet during a game of poker and seem to hit it off despite Judd warning Owen that Billy hates his guts, and Michelle describing him as “slippery.” The two men are later seen playing golf where Billy says his leave was related to cancer, so naturally, Owen feels comfortable confiding in him about his own cancer diagnosis. I knew right away this would backfire, and it did! So now Owen’s got to prove he’s healthy enough to stick around or his 126 will be a thing of the past.
Elsewhere in the episode, the gang helps Mateo study for his firefighter’s exam. It’s the last chance he’s got to take it, and the team gets creative in helping him when they learn he’s dyslexic. All that hard teamwork pays off, because he passes! In terms of the 911 calls they encounter, the episode starts with two women getting their car pinned under a semi-truck, then a man chokes on his friends ashes, and another man gets run over by his tractor. Luckily in all of these scenarios, a good friend is nearby to help.
Prodigal Son was up next, and we are brought in to a comatose Martin, who was stabbed by Malcolm last week. You can see Malcolm struggle to process his feelings throughout the entire episode, which he takes out on his friends. He learns a lot, especially about being a better friend, which hopefully sticks. This week’s killer is a weird one, they have embalmed their victims. Creepy. Edrisa also gets to attend a funeral convention with Gil and Malcolm to try and get some insight as to who the killer may be.
Finding that culprit wasn’t too hard for the group, so there wasn’t much excitement to be had. But I do feel the theme of the week was emotional maturity. Jessica is trying to find a defense attorney in case Martin succumbs to his wound, since she took the blame for Malcolm. Ainsley tries to recruit Martin’s lawyer, who’s the one responsible for his cushy prison living arrangements. Ultimately, Jessica and Ainsley get some time to bond, and they both agree that while Martin is a monster, they aren’t ready to see him go like this. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see next week!