9-1-1 Season 9, Episode 3 ‘The Sky Is Falling‘ continues the opening space-emergency, and does a pretty good job at advancing the key emotional beats the show set up in the first two episodes. We’re still not there. We still need Athena’s full circle moment. But the episode is still pretty effective at moving things forward, physically and emotionally.
From Karen and Maddie figuring out how to get in contact with the ship again, to Harry being the rock for someone else to lean on, without forgetting Athena and Hen being actual heroes in space, the show lets its characters shine, and this time, makes the emergencies matter.
Procedurals thrive in using big moments to bring about important character beats. 9-1-1 uses ‘The Sky Is Falling’ to give weight to Athena’s grief and her struggle to move past it, but also to the different ways the 118 (and their extended family) is doing that themselves, for better or worse. Grief is not linear. They don’t come out of this episode okay. And they’re still not out of the emergency. But they’ll come out of it, together, ready to keep trying.
MORE: In case you missed it, read our review of the 9-1-1 Season 9 premiere! And here’s Episode 2.
EVERYDAY HEROES
‘The Sky Is Falling’ showcases how everyone can be a hero. From May and Mara (and okay, Denny too), helping the woman who shows up at the firehouse—and creating the environment so the 118 can help so many more people, to Chim, Eddie, Buck, and Ravi literally handling a terrifying emergency like the heroes they are, without forgetting about Harry, who channels his grief and helps someone through theirs.
In essence, this is what being a first responder is about, and it’s a great message for a first responder show. An emergency is that, an emergency. Things won’t be ideal. You often won’t know what to do. Sometimes you’ll have to be the one to suggest the horrible option. Other times, you’ll have to be the one to make the tough decision or make the actual cut. But the thing that gives everyone hope is the knowledge that, when bad things happen, we can always find people willing to help. And if we can be the people willing to help, then we might just become someone’s hero.
Whether that is by figuring out a way to save the people on a ship stranded in space, or how to save a victim from the kind of medical emergency that seems there’s no coming out of, how to turn where you are into a safe haven, or comforting someone and giving them the strength to make the right decision, heroes come in many forms. And 9-1-1 has all kinds.
MORE: Remember when 9-1-1 killed Bobby Nash because “realism”? We’re still mad.
KAREN WILSON IS OUR HERO
We always expected Karen Wilson to be the one to save the day, and this episode sets her up to do just that. Tripp Hauser wasn’t going to fix this. He was just the foil. And it’s actually great that he ends up being the foil to Karen, because she’s the only one with the right knowledge for it. And it’s also pretty great that Karen isn’t alone in this, that she’s got Maddie on her corner (and a friend in Nashville, too).
So often, procedurals, particularly ones like 9-1-1 that exist on the edge of the absurd, end up ignoring the obvious character beats for the sake of giving the main characters a chance to save the day. Here, the show plays it straight and ends up hitting it out of the park with a storyline that not only makes sense (or as much as something like this can), but that hits the right emotional tone.
Because Karen is this smart, yes. She is also this motivated. That’s the love of her life up there. The combination is lethal. Particularly when you are someone who thrives under pressure, and Karen Wilson doesn’t crumble under pressure. No, she rises. And she makes everyone around her rise, too.
Plus, never let it be said Hen and Athena lost faith. No, they knew Karen would come through, and they kept fighting. Karen handed them the tools. They walked through space. Now, all they need to figure out is how to get back in one piece. Sounds easy, right? (*sarcasm*) But the good news is, Karen Wilson’s got this. We (and Hen and Athena) believe in her.
MORE: What did we want to see in 9-1-1 Season 9? Listen to our preview!
IN DEFENSE OF HARRY GRANT (NASH)
‘The Sky Is Falling’ gives Harry Grant a little bit of closure on his grief and his relationship with his mom, but of course, since this is a TV show, closure is not closure. Athena is not home yet. In many ways, though, that’s life. We don’t get closure on feelings. And there’s no closure on grief. Instead, what we get is an opportunity to move forward. A path, if you will.
Because one of the worst parts of grief is that it leaves you in a weird stasis. You don’t know what you’re supposed to do or where you’re supposed to go. You never planned for this loss. And that’s what’s happening to Harry.
Without Bobby, who is he? And this isn’t just about his relationship with Bobby, who was indeed a father figure to him; it’s about his relationship with his mom and his sister, particularly with his father gone. Because without Bobby, what role does he play with them? In this family. It’s a lot to carry.
And throughout all of this, we must remember that Harry is 18. A literal child. He’s feeling a lot of things, and sometimes they don’t come out the right way, but that’s absolutely normal. He is a kid, and he likely feels like he now has to be a man and figure out things that he thought he didn’t need to know yet.
Loss sometimes makes us grow up faster than we want to, and it’s so unfair that Harry is in this spot. It’s heartbreaking, actually. But it can’t be helped. He can’t change reality (unless the show just wants to bring Bobby back, which we’ll take!) And as he adjusts to this new world he’s now living in, he might make mistakes. He will make mistakes. The important part is that, even without Bobby, he doesn’t have to go through all these things alone.
MORE: We love that May and Harry are series regulars. But what about Ravi?
Things I think I think:
- Yeah, I would never, ever go to space. Period.
- Still think 4-episode opening space emergency is a little long, but at least this episode felt like it was actually following up on the last one and giving character development. I only hate emergencies when they aren’t used to give us something from the characters.
- This is honestly just the right balance of absurd and scary.
- The argument between this couple is so textbook male/female dynamics.
- THE BEENADO MENTION.
- Even Athena has faith in Karen!
- Karen’s angry face deserves an Emmy.
- Maddie thinking on the fly!
- Now, that’s actually a pretty nice way to bring Nashville into it.
- Okay, but it being Eddie who has to see this couple reconcile while the woman might be dying is… not great! When’s mandatory therapy? The Shannon parallels!
- “We’re sending you to the International Space Station.”
- I really love big brother Buck.
- Now we know what May, Mara, and Denny were looking at in the picture!
- “If you’re gonna puke, don’t do it on me.” MARA. I love you.
- “Nobody’s dying.” May, you’re a hero too.
- And Harry’s “all you can do is let them do their job.”
- This emergency is so well constructed!
- “Just cause you don’t like it doesn’t mean it’s not the right one.”
- Eddie sounds so calm under pressure, again, therapy after.
- Also, let’s come back to how reckless he’s being later, please. This ties to Bobby’s death and the fact he wasn’t there.
- Crushed leg flashbacks oh no
- I figured Chim would rather do it himself than let Eddie do it.
- The 118 as a makeshift shelter is actually such a good idea.
- THEY’RE GONNA HAVE TO WALK?!
- Is the train emergency one of my favorite emergencies ever?
- Also, how is Ravi not credited as a main character this season? What are they gonna do, send him off for 5 episodes at one point? He’s everywhere! Justice for Ravi.
- EVERYONE IS SO COMPETENT AND GREAT. I LOVE IT.
- You did do the right thing, Chimney.
- Also, space walking!
- “It’s what our dad taught us.” A MICHAEL MENTION.
- How safe is the space station?
- I guess when it rains, it pours.
- Nah, you’re not gonna kill Athena. You’re not. You’re NOT. Curse that trailer.
Agree? Disagree? What did you think of 9-1-1 Season 9, Episode 3 ‘The Sky Is Falling’? Please share with us in the comments below! Check out our Tales From the 118 podcast if you also want to listen to our reviews. On Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Plus, if you want to leave your own rating/comment about the show, you can do so in our 9-1-1 hub!
9-1-1 airs Thursdays at 8/7c on ABC.
