9-1-1: Nashville Season 1, Episode 2 Review: Reheating 9-1-1’s Nachos

9-1-1: Nashville Season 1 Episode 2 “Hell and High Water” got a tiny bit more interesting by making us care for one of the firefighters. But it also made it really hard to fight the allegations that this show is just reheating the nachos of 9-1-1. I said what I said. 

Also despite some really interesting conversations between two of the women, Blythe and Dixie, Roxie and Taylor were once again paid dust. And don’t even get me started on how Don annoyed me. He had no reason to talk to Blythe like that. Boy, bye.

Don’s Conversation with Blythe 

I have known these cast members for 2.5 seconds. And while in 9-1-1: Nashville Season 1 Episode 1 I felt basically nothing for these characters, I’m starting to feel more things in Episode 2. Mainly I’m starting to feel anger. In particular I’m starting to feel angry at Captain Don Hart for the way that he talked to his wife Blythe. 

Now, I get that he might have not known what to say to his wife after encountering Blue in the streets. That’s a natural human reaction. Surprise, shock, apprehension. And he apologized for not telling Blythe, which was the right move. What wasn’t the right move was then excusing not telling his wife and saying that she should have known that as soon as Blue texted him that Blue was coming back into their lives. 

What Don said shifts the blame away from himself and puts it on Blythe. Of course she knew that there was a chance that Blue would come back into their lives. But this little line really annoyed me after he spent Episode 1 acting like a character out of Hallmark. Hallmark would be upset by this buffoonery that shifts the blame over to the wife like she’s an idiot for being upset at being kept in the dark about something that has been looming over their family for 20 years.

Blythe gets to be upset. 

Blythe also gets to be upset about the fact that she found out about Blue through her son Ryan. Their son didn’t even know about Blue. And putting that responsibility on his shoulders to tell his mom, even if not intentional, is a red flag. I’m also really glad that Blythe brought to attention that this is hard for their son. Because so far, Don has prioritized Blue over Ryan. And I stand by that statement.

Ryan and All the Big Changes

Episode 2 sees some of Ryan’s walls softening with Blue. They have not come down. It’s only been one episode after all. But he is starting to see that Blue is serious about taking on this job. And it’s like no matter what Ryan throws at him, Blue is okay with it. The show is a little clunky in its delivery of some small details about Blue’s life though; like him sleeping in basically what was a cupboard.  As someone who grew up poor, 911: Nashville is absolutely being heavy handed with the “I’m poor so I’m a little tougher when it comes to taking on grunt work” narrative with Blue. 

But back to Ryan.

Besides LeAnn Rimes and Jessica Capshaw, Michael Provost is one of the best actors on the show. (Sorry, Chris O’Donnell. The scripts they’re giving you really are doing you wrong.) There was a real vulnerability and tension between him and his character’s wife Sam. And that great acting continued on when Roxie and Taylor came to comfort Ryan. The acting was kind of blah in the fire truck later on. But I really enjoyed the time with this trio of Ryan, Roxie, and Taylor. And I really feel like 9-1-1: Nashville needs to invest in this trio because it has the spark of found family that this show desperately needs. 

Right now Ryan has the most stuff going on and is the most interesting character on Nashville. The show keeps focusing on Blue but honestly I don’t care about him. I care about Ryan finding out that he has a new brother and how that lie makes him rethink his relationship with his father, especially after said father let Blue skip the academy and join them out on the field. And I care about the how or why when it came to his marriage falling apart as a first responder.

Roxie and Taylor Paid Dust, Again

I know that 9-1-1: Nashville has to prioritize the core story that has to do with the Harts and Blue. It’s a shocking revelation that the Captain had another kid and his son never knew about it while some other politics happened between Don, Blythe, and Dixie. Typical drama stuff. But even then, that’s no excuse to pay Roxie and Taylor dust. 

At this point, I know nothing about Roxie and Taylor besides A) Their face cards have never been declined. B) Taylor is taller than Roxie. And C) Taylor makes a killer hot chocolate. The show had them also saying witty lines and being in the background throwing darts. Or they had both of them available to comfort Ryan as he was going through some real pain. 

Nevertheless, 9-1-1: Nashville is treating Roxie and Taylor like they’re just stand-ins to progress the stories of everybody else. And when these are the only POC characters in your show, this doesn’t look great. It looks even worse when again, the synopsis for 9-1-1: Nashville says that this show takes place in one of America’s most diverse cities. 

If you’re so diverse, then actually give Roxie and Taylor something more than just being a vehicle to advance other people’s stories.

Additional thoughts about 911: Nashville Season 1 Episode 2: 

• No shade to Kimberly Williams-Paisley, but I don’t care one bit for dispatch and her character Cammie. She’s boring and feels one dimensional.
• Like I’m not trying to compare her to Jennifer Love Hewitt over on 9-1-1, but I had Maddie for 2.5 seconds and I already loved her. So what is missing here? 
• Blythe really stepped up to Dixie and was about to go 10 toes down with that woman. Truly some tension there that makes me wonder what could have been if Don wasn’t involved. 
• Also 9-1-1: Nashville, you’re making it harder for me to not say that you’re just reheating 9-1-1’s nachos.
• A lightning strike in the middle of an emergency? And you do this after the last episode had everybody finding the humanity within themselves to come and help lift up the stage off of people stuck underneath? Just like they did on 9-1-1? But they had a fire truck. And they also had characters that we cared about. 
• We don’t really care about these characters on Nashville. 
• That makes it so when big incidents happen like the captain being struck by lightning, it doesn’t mean much. It doesn’t have the same emotional resonance.
• Talking about reheating nachos. Didn’t Buck have a secret brother and he was also struck by lightning on 9-1-1? Not saying that 9-1-1 can be the only one with secret brothers and lightning strikes. It’s just one thing after another piling on when it comes to 9-1-1: Nashville. And I was banking on something new with this show. Something fresh but within the same circle. Right now it’s not giving that.

911: Nashville airs Thursdays at 9/8c on ABC.

What did you think of the 911: Nashville “Hell and High Water? Let us know in the comments below!