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« Brothers & Sisters
April 1, 2007: All in the Family
In the last new episode, we saw everyone react to the fact that Rebecca is actually a Walker — everyone including Rebecca herself. The main focus tonight continued to be the fallout from the Rebecca situation, although tonight was less about reacting and more about interacting. And what better way for everyone to get to know each other than at a Walker family dinner?
Though well intentioned, Nora’s dinner didn’t go as smoothly as she had hoped. Kitty was noticeably absent, Sarah asked prying questions, Kevin temporarily became a forensic scientist, and Justin just seemed to be trying to hold everything together. The only time anyone seemed comfortable was when the older four Walker children were making fun of each other: "This whole family loves to kid," Nora tried awkwardly to explain.
Nobody did a great job at their first dinner with Rebecca, but it’s probably safe to say that Kevin’s hair-pulling was the worst. “I saw a split end, it’s just something I do with my sisters.” I laughed out loud when he said that! He’s a lawyer and that’s the best he could come up with? Although obviously no one appreciated Kevin’s ridiculous behavior, it did give Rebecca a chance to see the Walkers in their full arguing/teasing/talking-over-one-another glory. And the funny thing was? Instead of telling her mom how glad she was not to have grown up with the Walkers as her siblings, Rebecca seemed sad that she had missed out on being part of the craziness.
In other news, Kitty played a Rebecca-like role at dinner with Senator McCallister and his children. Not that Kitty would enjoy being compared to her newly discovered sister, but like Rebecca she was the new person at dinner with a tightly knit family. Kitty’s dinner didn’t go very smoothly either, and Sophie’s difficulties with meeting her newly single father’s new girlfriend seemed very realistic. That being said, I missed seeing Kitty interact with her siblings. I hope her increased time with Robert isn’t going to mean we’re going to see less interaction with her family. Kevin was with Chad for a good portion of tonight’s episode, and we still got to see him with his brothers and sisters.
Speaking of Kevin and Chad, things didn’t end well for them tonight, either. I thought Chad was a little quick to get angry at Kevin’s hesitation. I can understand Chad being upset, because obviously inviting Kevin to a public event was a big deal for him. But Chad has put Kevin through a lot and Kevin’s hardly complained. So for him to get mad the first time Kevin doesn’t go along with what he wants seems a little hypocritical.
Other highlights:
— The infrequently-used Julia talking a lot more than usual.
— Tommy having some conflicting emotions over whether or not to find out who the twins’ biological father is. I like when shows continue to address an issue, rather than mentioning it in one episode and then never talking about it again.
— Nora throwing William’s wedding ring into the water. It was a sad moment to end the episode on, but we got the sense from her work in her writing class that it was what she needed to do.
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Apr 2, 2007 12:20 AM
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I really love this show. I thought the dinner with Robert and his kids was pretty heartbreaking. Even Kitty could sense that his daughter wasn't ready. When he was talking about how he "even took them to their favorite restaurant" I started screaming at the screen. That probably made it even harder for his daughter! Taking your kids to their favorite restaurant ("that's our place") is not an appropriate place to bring somebody new. Kitty was right, Robert moves too fast, and he needed to be more respectful of what his daughter was going through.
Also, how classy of a lady is Nora? Seriously. I just kept repeating that over and over throughout the episode. Also, I laughed when she opened with Dora's story. While it was serious, it was also humorous as it reminded me of her telling her kids about "Dora's" story in a previous episode. And in a way I thought it kind of made fun of narrative openings while still doing a bang-up job of one itself.
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Apr 2, 2007 12:50 AM
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I think the whole dinner scene and their relationship...just the whole darn Kitty-Robert story...is boring. I'm just not into it. Ditto with Kevin and Chad.
As for the father of the twins story. Wanta' bet they're going to say that each is the father of one? Just seems the thing to rile things up. Either that or it's Tommy after all. Gotta be some twist to it.
Glad new episodes are on. I so much love Sally Field. She really needs to let loose, get boiling mad and get on with it. Tonight was a good start.
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Apr 2, 2007 2:01 AM
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Pinkie I was thinking the samething that either that both Justin and Kevin are the father of one of the twins or that tommy really is the father.
I also love Sally Field. If she isnt nominated for an Emmy for her role as Nora Walker....then something is defiantly wrong with the universe.
I absoutly loved the dinner scene. The Walkers are almost like the Quatermaines over on General Hospital. I wish my family dinners were like that.
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Apr 2, 2007 4:27 AM
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Nora's closing story and throwing the ring away actually made sense of her behavior - she was amd at soemone she couldn't be mad at and didn't know what to do.
I totally relate to Rebecca feeling she missed out on crazy family disfunction. I grew up with a brother 12 years younger than me. I noticed later on the tight bond that crazy siblings have and I definitely felt left out and even more important, had a hard time fitting in.
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Apr 2, 2007 5:16 AM
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People in TV shows and movies are always throwing jewelry in the ocean, and it shanks me off--I understand wanting to get rid of a symbol of something that's painful, but what kind of dipstick literally throws away something that valuable? Even if they feel it would be crass to take a monetary benefit from their own pain, why not donate it to charity? That (however valuable it may be, $100 or however many thousands) won't be doing anyone any good in the sludge of the bay.
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Apr 2, 2007 5:51 AM
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i love this show i thought that the whole episode was very good i loved the family dinner very funny
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Apr 2, 2007 6:59 AM
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Just wanting to clarify my earlier post. I, too, loved the family dinner scene. The dinner scene I was talking about was the Kitty/Robert/kids dinner. I don't like that entire story line.
Staley, I know what you mean about throwing jewelry away. I realize the symbolism of it and the need for the hurt party to do it, but sometimes it's a costly item they pitch.
That was one thing that really bothered me at the end of the Titanic movie with that multi-million dollar necklace going into the ocean. Yikes. LOL
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Apr 2, 2007 9:00 AM
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The Kitty/Robert storyline might be boring, but I'll sit through almost anything to keep Rob Lowe on the screen!
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Apr 2, 2007 11:18 AM
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I loved this ep! It wasn't as funny as previous eps, but it was very good in moving the show forward, in family dynamics, etc.
As Lizziebelle put it, the Walkers are the primetime equivalent of the daytime Quartermaines. Entertaining and they put the "fun" in dysfunctional.
I don't mind Kitty's relationship with the Senator but on second thought he shouldn't have taken Kitty to the kids favorite place. He should've gradually introduced Kitty to the kids. They knew she was his girlfriend, but the 'meet the potential stepmommy' game was a wee bit too soon!!
And what can I say about Nora? She's class personified. She's got the most to be angry at, but she manages to once again make peace with Holly and extend an invitation to Rebecca as if she was one of her own kids. Can I gush about how much I love Sally Field???
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Apr 2, 2007 11:48 AM
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Sign me up for the Sally Field Fan Club!
It was very big of her and also the right thing to do having Becca over for dinner. Like Rebecca, I am the love child of an illicit affair and after my parents split, and I was introduced to my stepmother, I would've given anything for her to be as gracious as Nora. Anyway, I thought it was rude of Kitty not to be there and judging from the night she had, I bet she wishes she could do it differently.
I don't get why Tommy's all of a sudden determined to find out who the father is. I thought the whole point of both of them donating was so that the true identity of the dad would never be discovered. I don't think he should ever find out. It's irrelevant.
The Senator moved wayyyy too quickly bringing Kitty to dinner. When was the last time the kids had him all to themselves? Dumb move. But I really respect him for wanting to include Kitty.
I thought Kevin and Chad had already broken up so I wasn't moved one way or the other with that storyline although I think the manager was right. Chad would be totally in love with Kevin if he's the guy he's with when he comes out.
I felt Nora's sadness but applauded when she threw that ring. She needed to do that and nothing is so finite as the ocean.
That guy in her class with the weird hair made me laugh.
Another stellar episode.
PS - is Calista back down to Ally weight? Cause I could've sworn when this show started she had the body of a 13 year old girl, not a 12 year old boy as we've sadly become accustomed to seeing from her McBeal days.
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Apr 2, 2007 12:41 PM
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I don't know why, but I spent most of the hour from last night figuring out which Walker I was least annoyed with. I know the one I am always most annoyed with is Sarah, and that did not change last night, though Kevin and Tommy ran a close second.
I am ready for Kevin to move on to this new relationship we keep hearing about. I like Jason Lewis, but have never gotten why either one of the two was the least bit interested in the other. I guess I would call it lack of chemistry in my opinion. And the hair thing, way over the line. Seriously, what a jerk for doing that. Ya know, she may have just consented out of her own curiosity in the future if he just asked. Of course then she may risk losing the millions.
As for Tommy, I agree with KAD and did not see why Rebecca's presence made the least bit of difference in the identity of his babies' donor father. The two situations are completely different.
As for Kitty, I do not blame her for not wanting to be there. I have been in a similar situation, and sometimes it is just too much, too soon. I really can't fault her for that. I think it was WAY above what Sarah did by showing up, then just sniping the whole night.
As for Nora, class act, but it may have been a little soon and I think a part of why she just had to do the dinner was to assert a bit of control in a situation she felt she never had control over. Sally Field is such an impressive actor though and it is hard not to root for the character of Nora.
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Apr 2, 2007 1:15 PM
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I really like this show a whole lot. It continues to slowly grow on me to the point where it may just become my favorite show before the season is over. Rachel Griffiths’ Sarah, Dave Annable’s Justin, and Patricia Wettig’s Holly are three of my favorite actor/characters. All flawed but interesting and ultimately understandable and loveable.
But my most favoritest has got to be Sally Field’s Nora/Dora. Sally has always been golden in my book, since both God and I were boys. When I was really little, I used to put a wire hanger on my head and jump off the couch, pretending I was the flying nun. Now, thirtysomething years later, I still love her. I’ve followed her like a puppy since. . . “Sybil,” “Smokey and the Bandit,” “ER.” “Places in the Heart” is still one of my all-time favorite movies.
It’s wonderful that an older character is shown the way Nora is. It’s wonderful that an actress of a certain age is given the chance to shine the way Sally does. She looks great and is just so doggone loveable. I look forward to more and more of her.
I would like to see the original pilot to the series with Betty Buckley as Nora. I’d like to see her take on the character. Nothing against Buckley, but I just can’t see her in the role. Sally owns it now, and I don’t think Nora would be the same played by anybody else.
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Apr 2, 2007 1:22 PM
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Loved this episode. I thought it was great that Kevin had to back up a step and really look at what Chad's coming out would mean for the two of them as a couple -- it's not as simple as "closeted vs. out." I thought the Senator finally showed that he isn't Mr. Perfect by being seriously passive aggressive at the end with Kitty, who for once really came across as mature and balanced. I love the tortured dynamic between Rebecca and Holly, too. It's sort of like Holly is seeing her daughter get swept away into this other family -- the family that always came first for William, too.
My only complaint is that there is NOT ENOUGH SAUL. I love Ron Rifkin, love the character and think that more scenes of Saul with both Nora and Holly are definitely called for. His friendship with Kevin was interesting this hour, but let's have more of that.
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Apr 2, 2007 2:26 PM
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This show pisses me off. My mother would never in a million years break bread with my Dad's illigetamate child. I really like this show, but if they continue to make the other woman into a decent human being instead of the horrible person she is. What right to this family's anything does this woman feel she is intitltled to.. i am going to stop watching this show. They really need to kill her off!!
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Apr 2, 2007 2:47 PM
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