Brothers & Sisters – Episode 5-1 Review

Reviews, Shows

After a lackluster season four finale, Brothers & Sisters bounces back with a decent premiere that gives hope for better episode to come this year. Though this premiere is filled to the brim with “here’s what you missed in the time jump” dialogue, the story lines – while numerous – manage to hold their own, and bring some actual surprises.

Yes, this season Brothers & Sisters followed Desperate Housewives‘ lead and jumped forward in time, but in this case only a year. To be honest, I really don’t mind the writers’ use of the gimmicl. All major story lines last season, like Narrow Lake and Ryan, had been mostly wrapped up so there was no where to go. True, maybe the story lines directly after the accident would have been more intense and rama-packed. But too much of that at once would have been a disaster, way too hard to wade through while keeping any of Brothers & Sisters‘ trademark light/comedic undertone. Personally, I wouldn’t have kept watching if everyone was depressed all at once for a long period of time. This way, fast-forwarding a year, the emotional pain from the tragedy is still raw and prominent, but fresh material and comedic story lines could still be included.

Of course, the major issue of this premiere is the near-death of Robert. That’s right, near. As it turned out, Robert’s death at the end of the last season actually was him lapsing into a coma. Have to admit, at first I was pretty annoyed when this was revealed. Thanks to Rob Lowe’s departure from the show, we the audience know that Robert isn’t going to recover. When the news of his “survival” broke, I immediately started worrying about how long the show was going to drag out this useless drama. Half a season? The whole season? So I was relieved, and a little surprised, when Kitty pulled the plug before the episode was over. Actually, more than surprised, I was confused. The show spends most o fthe episode telling how Kitty is refusing to let Robert go…then it jumps to after Robert’s funeral? What? Yes, I didn’t want the forced drama to last more than a few episodes, but that was a little too quick. My guess is that, to the writers,  the sooner Kitty moves on, the sooner she can take the role previously held by Sarah – that of the single and ready to mingle Walker sibling.

Even though there was a little too much going on in this episode, some story lines stood out as my personal favorites. After an irritating relationship, Justin and Rebecca are finally breaking up! Good riddance, Rebecca! Call me insensitive, but I had a huge smile on my face when Justin found the house empty. If you can’t tell already, I hated that couple. They were always fighting  – they never seemed to be happy except the proposal and their wedding. And there was so much melodrama with them last year that the show will actually be stronger without them. Am I being a little presumptive since they aren’t filing for divorce yet? Maybe. But considering that Rebecca’s story is supposedly going to be wrapped up in two episodes, I’m hopeful. And given Justin’s self-discovery while he was away, I’m looking forward to more of him this season. Maybe he’ll start dating too.

As for Sarah, she and Luc are still a happy couple. Luc took a job as an underwear model. And Sarah is selling Narrow Lake for $55 million, to be distributed among the siblings and Nora. To me, this is one of the biggest shocks of the episode. Why would businesswoman Sarah sell off what could be the start of another company? That was what I’d expected to be her story line this season. Based on Justin’s outburst and Sarah’s own hesitation, that might still happen. Side note, I was also shocked that she didn’t think her siblings, uncle and mother important enough to keep her from moving to France. I suppose that was part of how Sarah was affected after the accident, since the family did grow apart.

Along with the prospective sale of Narrow Lake, another surprise is that Kevin and Scotty don’t have a baby. This is actually very disappointing, since I and I’m sure many other fans were looking forward to Kevin and Scotty as parents. However, when the couple take in Kevin’s former client, a young boy named Mateo who was in danger of going to juvenile detention,  I get the distinct impression that Mateo won’t be staying just for one night.

Last but not least, Nora has had her own troubles over the past year. Formerly the driving force of the Walker clan, she faded into the background while her children became wrapped up in their own issudes. Thanks to a pep talk from Justin, though, she realizes she has to take charge again. Meanwhile, Holly suffered memory loss from the accident and still thinks she’s having an affair with William, despite Nora’s insistence that she and Holly are friends now. That scene in particular really got to me, as I totally loved Nora and Holly’s friendship last season. It’s sad to think viewers might never get that back.

One more note on Nora – the most confusing scene of the whole premiere is when it’s shown that Nora is working in a flower shop. And no explanation is given for it whatsoever. What happened to her charity house? Because of this, I highly doubt Nora is a lesbian, as the preview for next week clearly implies. The siblings probably find out about the flower shop, which Nora has been hiding from them for whatever reason.

Overall, not a bad start for Brothers & Sisters season five. I’m eager to see what this year will bring for the Walkers.