7th Heaven

Okay, this is my absolute favorite episode in the whole series! This episode is what got me interested in the show! Here is a detailed summary.



Simon: Simon comes home unexpectedly! He wants to see Matt about prescribing birth control pills for his girlfriend, Anna. He and Matt get into a fight. Martin has a talk with Simon, which leads into Simon talking to Ruthie about staying a virgin until marriage. Simon tells Eric a lie about Mary. He tells him that Mary is pregnant again. A rumor goes around the house that his girlfriend is pregnant.



Matt: Matt talks to Simon and tries to convince him not to have sex anymore. Eric tries to get information about Simon out of Matt. Matt is the first to go along with Simon's lie to Eric.



Kevin: Kevin sold back the house to the owner after hearing a sad story. Also, Kevin thinks there's a burglar when he hears Matt and Simon fighting and brings a gun downstairs. Eric sees the gun and asks Kevin to put it in his car. Kevin doesn't want to, but does it anyway. Kevin and Lucy are too nervous to tell Eric about the house.



Lucy: Lucy is a little shocked when Kevin tells her about the house. She tries to make a plan of how she's going to tell Eric. Lucy, Ruthie and Annie have girl talk in the attic.



Eric: Eric doesn't like the idea of Simon being home. He wants to find out why he's home. He tries to get it out of Matt and Kevin. He is scared about Kevin's gun being in the house so he tells Kevin to put it away. Ruthie scares him in the kitchen and says that she's been on the phone with Vincent for four hours. He tells Annie and Annie remembers when they used to do that.



Annie: Annie can't sleep unless she has information about Simon and everything else. She talks to Ruthie and Lucy about guys.



Ruthie: Ruthie talks on the phone with Vincent for four hours. She and Vincent wonder when couples will talk about all there is to talk about. Simon tries to make her promise not to have sex before marriage, but she says that she'll promise only if he promises.



Mary: Jessica Biel isn't in this episode, but Mary has a part. It seems that Mary has been having trouble lately with Carlos and Charlie. Matt, Lucy, Simon, Kevin, and Ruthie know what it is, but won't tell Eric. Simon lies and says that Mary is having another baby.



Sam and David: They start the rumor that Simon's girlfriend is pregnant. They eavesdrop on Eric and Annie and tell Ruthie that Simon is pregnant.



Martin: Martin talks with Simon about sex. He tells Simon that all girls are someone's sister or daughter.



That's all I can muster up for the summary for now.



I loved this episode tremendously! I've seen it about a dozen times! First off, this episode was directed by Barry Watson (Matt Camden). He did a great job!



The scenes where everyone kept scaring each other were a little funny, but when Eric came in with a frying pan, that was cheesy.



I can't believe Ruthie talked on the phone for four hours! I guess that's typical for two teens who are going out.



I really wish that Jessica Biel could've come in for a few episodes in season 9, like this one for example.



Martin's talk with Simon was very mature. I loved what Martin said about the sister/daughter thing because it's true. I just wish that he'd remember his talk when he was with Sandy, but that's another story.



My favorite part I think is the end! When Matt, Lucy, Simon and Ruthie are sitting on the couch and they lie to Eric. Ruthie says, "It's just like old times, here we are again, lying for Mary." I just love that line! It reminds me of season 5 and the younger years!



I do think that some of the situations were dumb, like the gun. Kevin's a police officer! Of course he has a gun! He knows how to use it properly and it's locked away, separated from the bullets. The scaring, like I said before, was a little cheesy. That's about it.



So, this episode was truly amazing and a big comeback after that Valentine's Day episode, "Red Socks." This episode gets a perfect 10 out of 10 from me!

This episode was definitely an improvement compared to the one in the previous week:



Simon & Matt were sharing a secret about Simon having premarital sex. The whole thing gets totally mixed up and eventually people think that Simon and his current girlfriend (nobody even knows who his current girlfriend is) are having a baby. However, this was just due to a series of misunderstandings and confusion.



Moreover, Kevin resold the house to the previous owner. Why would you do something like that if you're planning to move into the newly bought house with your wife & daughter??



Finally, there's a secret about Mary that will soon be revealed in one of the following episodes.



And by the way: why in the world would EVERYONE be up at 12:00, midnight, and wandering around the house? What kinda family is this? The Bundys?



I hope the writers have learned from their mistakes last week (Valentine's Day Episode) and never ever try anything like that again.

On this one I don't even know where to start. What do I love about it? The painfully constructed and convenient twist with Lucy and Kevin having to give up a house they never even got to move into? Yes. Lucy calling her husband a "gun freak" and Eric defending the household armed with a frying pan? Yes. The women of the house discussing the what-ifs of the recent seasons? Yes. The twins appearances..? No, of course not. Well, the dream had to end eventually.



Brotherly Love actually reminds of this show at its prime, even self-referencing that very period, as Ruthie prior to the closing credits sighs: "Here we are again - lying for Mary". It makes me feel old, but at the same time it gives me a good feeling. It's like a circle has ended - it's a back to basics Heaven episode, lacking Jessica Biel, but using the close-knit and reunited Camden foursome (Lucy, Matt, Simon, Ruthie) as a launching pad for nostalgia. I love it. And, to my sarcastic pleasure, it proves once again that the entire Camden machinery is based on accidental eavesdropping. Times a-changin, you say? Not so much.

I have to say that "Brotherly Love" is an episode that has brought mixed emotions and thoughts to me. At first viewing, I thought it was a pretty strong and interesting episode. One that throws some new wrenches into some ongoing storylines, and starts a really interesting new one. While the episode itself, with it's storylines and structure is quite good, why am I having some different feelings toward it?. On some repeated viewings of this ep, I found myself getting more and more annoyed with the Simon storyline. Why is it?. What happened?. Read on....



I have to admit that I was definitley one of the ones who absolutely loved this idea with Simon back in the beginning. I thought it was such a great idea, and was pushing the show with it's squeaky clean image into new boundaries. I thought, way to go Brenda. Before long, the idea was worn out, and it seemed that it was no longer interesting and two sided, but it got increasingly one sided. No more so than in this episode I thought. We'll get to that in a minute. In this episode, Simon is back home, and so is Matt. By the way, isn't it convenient how Matt can just fly home to Glen Oak from New York and medical school to be there when he is needed?. If you saw "The One Thing", it sure didn't appear that the head boss would allow for this sort of thing. Matt is a character, and he has a lot more going for him character wise, and the writers choose to just drop him in and getting involved in other storylines but his own. There is so much you can do with his character. Let's see it. Anywho, Simon and Matt are both back home and Simon has a new girlfriend named Anna. Yes, another one. Simon approaches Matt and asks if Matt could get him some condoms. Write a prescription. This sets off a chain of events in the household that leads others to believe that maybe Anna is pregnant. Simon and another pregnancy storyline?. Afraid so, people. And can Matt, who isn't even a doctor yet, even do what Simon asks?. I seriously doubt it. Simon and Matt have some words and get into a fight in the living room where they are bunking for the night. That moment itself was pretty good, because it was kind of like old 7th. Simon and Matt fighting like they were young boys again. Too bad Kevin and his gun had to break it up. It's only natural that Simon would be involving Matt in this. If you can't yet go to your parents, but need someone, who better than your big brother?. The part with Simon that really started to agitate me as time went on that really made me feel differently about the episode was his conversation with Martin. The speech Martin gave to Simon and the whole structure of that scene seemed very one sided and preachy. Something I always praised the old 7th of being able to step around. While what Martin said was not entirely untrue, the fact that this stranger(and he practically is to Simon at this point)would speak about something that is none of his business, and doing it with this smile on his face, was what got me. Any one else wanna smack it off his face?. This moment just seemed too preachy to me, and made it seem that Brenda Hampton was no more writing the topic as an issue with two sides, but as one that only has one and that's the only one. That whole moment bugged me to no end and really put a mar on the whole thing for me. It just got the point where it felt like they were saying that no one can be their own person. They can't have their own ideas and views. That Simon is not a level headed young guy because he, wait for it, had sex!. What started out as a fantastic idea has dwindled into something else. Stop making Simon out as some kind of low life because he has gotten into something that comes naturally with life!.



New developments that happen and also become secretive in the Camden abode deals with Kevin and Lucy. As we saw in the "Paper Or Plastic?" episode, Kevin had gone out, without Lucy knowing, and bought a house for them. Now, the house's previous owner, an older gent named Milton, is back and he lays out a big sob story to Kevin. Apparently, he and his wife's new home in Florida was recently destroyed by the hurricanes they were having down there(and a cousin of mine who lives there knows about that all too well), and they are a couple without a home. He says that his daughter is now expecting a baby, and he and his wife want to be back and be closer to her when the baby comes. It is apparent pretty quickly, as Milton piles it on, that he wants his house back. What a situation. It is eady to feel sorry for the old man and the recent mess he and his wife have been through, but what do you do?. Well, according to Kevin, you give back a big, beautiful house you just bought for your new family, to it's previous owner. It is an awkward and uncomfortable situation to be in, and I know I would be at a crossroads myself. But you can kind of see what Kevin was thinking. He and Lucy and baby Savannah have a home to stay at. True, it's not their home, but it is a home and they live there. Milton and his wife have no home. And Milton makes it clear that there probably wouldn't be room at his daughter's place. What to do?. Give up your new house to people who are desperatley in need and are worse off than you because you still have a home to go to?. Or do you say no and let these nice, old people to find another way?. Was Kevin in the wrong for doing what he did?. Some say yes, some say no. I see the generosity in what Kevin did, and see that he and his family would be taken of if he gave back the house. If he didn't, what would Milton and the mrs. do?. What's really bad about this whole situation is how Lucy and Kevin have not grown any or gotten any mature. How so?. Because instead of being grown ups and tell Eric and Annie about what has happened, they lie and keep it a secret and just add more to the fire. Kevin, being a cop, should know better judgement and responsibility. And his other storyline with Eric about keeping a gun in the house was kind of odd. I can see where Eric is coming from, but I thought he overreacted about it a little bit. Since Kevin is a cop, it's only natural that a gun will there somewhere.



The main, and mysterious, secret going on here deals with Mary. Ahh, Mary. It's a shame that the most interesting character, and kid, who gets the best storyline, is not there on screen. Mary has always been a richer, deeper, complex, and vastly interesting character. Her storyline here was the best thing going and it's for a character that isn't there. While her story is incredibly interesting and dramatic, it does upset one that the writers keep taking Mary back to the troubled individual she was(or was she just a normal, rebelious teen?)in seasons 4 and 5. Still, it does make for some great drama, and I would rather have that than anything else.



"Brothery Love" is an episode with a great premise, but was marred by some nimble minded and one sided preaching that left a bad taste in a mouth. great in story and ideas, but brought some anger. There was some lightness to it with everyone sneaking around at night and scaring each other. It was funny at the first, but then they kept beating it into the ground and it was no longer funny as it was silly. The episode is one of great conflict for me, but the story was there.

Well better late than never, right? My review for the Brotherly Love episode if finally here, and after the very bad review on Red Socks I will say first hand that this episode was exceptionally better than that trainwreck of a musical. But then again it would've been impossible for this episode to have been worse than the musical since that musical hit rock bottom (in my opinion, and I've gotten some e-mails saying otherwise). Anyway lets get started reviewing this episode.



Matt & Simon: Well I think I've posted my opinon on the forums many times regarding the direction the writers have taken the character of Simon this season. This episode we find out he has yet another girlfriend he's having sex with without being in a real relationship with her. It's a wonder how Simon could've went from treating girls with the outmost respect (Deena and even as recently as Cecilia) to just treating them as objects he uses for pleasure. And no matter how he words it (ex, "I'm in love, Matt!") it's still nothing but casual sex. It's not even a physical relationship because that would mean he has some sort of relationship with this girl, but he doesn't. Not only is he a player/pimp now, but he's also a hyprocrite. I was pleased to see Martin tell ask him how would he like it if some guy treated Ruthie the way he does his "girlfriend" and then pointing out that "every girl is someone's sister or daughter." I thought he got through to Simon, and he did kind of, but not enough to have an impact on his own personal life decisions. His talk with little sister Ruthie was awesome, I loved it. Especially since nowadays on the show we rarely see Ruthie/Simon bonding or even talking like in the earlier seasons. I loved it when later on Simon said he was still gonna have casual sex to his family and Ruthie called him on being a hyprocrite, in so many words. She makes him promise to not have sex again until marriage if he's gonna make her promise the same thing, which you could tell he was just promising to make her happy. But then again, for anyone who's read the season finale spoilers, Simon gets married soon. Maybe he takes his promise to Ruti to heart? But between having sex several times out of wedlock and then getting married just to have sex is undoubtedly cause a big rift between him as is dad. Anyway.. poor Matt that once again he's caught with helping out Simon and again having to keep it a secret. He's been a good big grother to Simon this season as always, even when he lost it and started physically fighting with Simon in this episode... which made me laugh, I must admit. It was great to watch!



That's all about I have to say about that storyline, but one think I must say is I hope the writers get Simon back on track. make him realize what he's doing is wrong and get back to the responsible, respectful Simon we all knew for 8 seasons. But from spoilers, it just seems like Simon will only be getting worse (as Mary.. read on for that)



Lucy & Kevin: Well I guess the writers really want to portray Lucy as a co-dependent mother, needing her own mom to take care of her family unfortunately. And they are portraying Kevin as a spineless husband who can't stand up to his wife. And I MUST ask: Why in the heck did Kevin sell back the house to that man? Okay I get he felt bad for the guy, but Kevin you have a wife and daughter.. it's time to put them before your sympathies of some old man. Kevin's responsibility as a father and husband is to support his family, starting with getting them out on their own and he is not owning up to that responsibility. It seems Eric is the only sane one in this case. He sees Kevin and Lucy be out on their own and wants them OUT. They're a family (Lucy/Kevin/Savannah), they should be on their own! Writers, let them move out finally!



I guess since there's a 10th season the writers are stalling them moving out.



Mary's Big Secret: Once again throughout the episode the Camden clan try and hide Mary's newest secret from their parents. With all the other secrets in the house Eric and Annie are up to here with it. And when Eric overhears the kids talking about Mary's secret he calls them on it at the end demanding them tell him what it is. Coliins played that scene at the end very well where he tells them he'll act surprised when Mary tells him and he can't take anymore secrets. I can't believe Simon told him Mary was pregnant again.. the look on his face was pricesless. "Pregnant?...But Charlie was only born.. a year.. ago." Great stuff. As funny as it was to see them keeping this secret and the very end where Ruthie says, "Just like old times. We're covering up Mary's lies", I still don't like it. Mary leaving her family? You gotta be kidding, writers. They're writing Mary and Simon so out of their original characters that it's really not believable that these are the same people. I have to wonder, as many as the fans also, why the writers insist on tearing apart Mary these past two seasons. She gets married, has a baby, gets a good job, lives out on her own, and she's considered the "bad" one. Whereas Lucy gets married and has a child while still in college and still moaching of mommy and daddy and she's considered the "good" one, or the responsible one with a good head on her shoulders and a good life. It's sick! The writers are sending the message that it's better to have a family living at home than it is to start one when you're making iton your own. Why writers, why? I guess I shouldn't judge this storyline too much until we find out the specific circumstances for Mary's leaving, as the Camdens tend to blow things out of proportion. But the question still is, why are the writers making storylines to ruin the character of Mary? She's not on the show--concentrate instead on the present characters. Do something with newborn Savannah. More on Ruthie and the love trinagle with Martin and Mac. Anything but this! I think the writers are bitter toward Jessica Biel because she hasn't appeared since start of season 8 and even still for all the bad advertisements (ie, posing nude in Geer Magazine). So they're taking it out on Mary, which won't want Jessica to return. If this keeps up, do NOT expect Jessica to return for the series finale because her character is almost to the point of nonredeemable. I just hope the writers take the show back to its glory days for the last season/tenth season.



So despite my many apparrent problems with this episode I still enjoyed it. It was interesting, funny--classic 7th Heaven if you will. The scenes with everyone sneaking around the house and Martin scaring Eric half to death was great. "I have a bad heart!"--haha. As for my score, the episode was okay I think. Certainly better than Red Socks, but I'm not gonna give it the best grade since the next episode that aired (Tangled Web We Weaved) is a lot better and structured and whatnot.



Grade: B



Random Ramblings



Kinda odd Ruthie would trust the easedropping of a couple of six year olds as much as she did, no?



Eric, chill out. Okay I get you don't like guns in your house and but jeez--what's gonan happen between now and morning that Kevin had to bring it out to his car right then? Kinda ridiculous.



As I said before, great seeing Matt and Simon going at it in the family room. Too bad Kevin had to split it up right when they were going at it...



So I got some e-mails disagreeing with my Red Socks review in the last few weeks. Also I've said some controversial things in this review about the characters/writers... do you people agree or disagree? Let me know!

Better late than ever, right guys? Sorry, but it took me weeks and weeks to write the next review. I kind of lost my luster for writing for this show after the Red Socks episode. It was just too much to bear in complete horror as I needed to take a 7th Heaven break and recuperate on the badness that this show has become in some episodes this season (i.e. Vote, Why Not Me?, and ugh...Red Socks) In all honesty, watching paint dry on a wall for an hour would've been more entertaining than re-watching last week's dreadful musical episode. As for this week's episode it really was a step up. Unfortunately, each individual storyline had it's major problems and major character flaws that this episode really wasn't that good either. Let's break it down...



Kevin and Lucy: The show begins with Kevin (George Stults) taking a drive over to his new home that he bought for himself, Lucy and Savannah months ago. (Editor's Note: Let's all remember that he bought it without consulting Lucy or the family). He finally meets the former owner, Milton, who shows up at the house as well. The owner very connivingly tells Kevin of his story about his family losing their new home in Florida after the recent hurricane disasters. Milton sort of lays it out clear that he wants to have his house back even though Kevin now owns it and has a family to support. In what has to be the dumbest thing Kevin has done to date on this show he actually sells back the house to him---leaving his new family without a place to live and once again back to square one when it comes to freeloading on his in-laws (Eric and Annie). As much as anyone could sympathize with the elderly man on his circumstances, it was just preposterous that Kevin would actually sell back the home that he bought already for his new family as they desperately need to move out of is in-law's home. Kevin is supposed to be a man and a husband and father! He should know that he needs to put his families interest first before any other person no matter what the conditions are! That should be first priority in your life as a man, husband and father. Kevin is a disappointment on so many levels and I'm shocked the writers would continue to keep them at the Camden home. And I'm not even done....



It was even more hard to watch that Kevin and Lucy (Beverley Mitchell)---two grown adults---not being able to have the proper dignity to go up to Annie and Eric and tell them Kevin stupidly sold their new home to the previous owner and are staying with them much longer. Although, they should be embarrassed. Looking at these two immature people they really shouldn't have their daughter Savannah or the ability to reproduce until their maturity is up to level of at least an 18-year-old, which neither both were acting at all in most recent episodes. It's rather sad that writer Brenda Hampton can't write better character development and more plausible decisions for who are supposed to be church-going people who should be more level-headed. It's becoming a lot harder to identify more with these characters as they make the most preposterous decisions and mistakes that no average individual would make in real life. With that, it's harder to like the show as of lately.



Simon the Never-Ending "He's a Whore": Before I begin I'd like to say this...I loved the fact that at the beginning of the season writer/creator Brenda Hampton decided to let the Simon character be the first of the children to have sex outside of marriage unlike his three elder siblings who wait until they were married. It was a rather good move since it would've been unrealistic that all seven children would wait until marriage to have a sexual experience, even if they are from a minister's family. At the beginning of the season it was established and put out very well in the first two/three episodes. Now that the season has progressed and the family is still on the issue with Simon is just absurd and rather disappointing on the writer's standpoint. This is not earth shattering news that should continue on for months. I don'r care if this is a Christian family. Even though she came up with the idea to add some juice to the family dynamic, Brenda Hampton seems to now have a hard time letting this storyline go as the family continues to bicker and make Simon the unjust outcast, just like Mary. He's over 18 and he made this personal decision for himself. It doesn't make him a bad person and a sex-crazed maniac since he's now technically in "sin" with lust. Whatever. But let's begin with this week's storyline...



It starts out with Simon (David Gallagher) unexpectedly coming home to the family for a weekend visit and asking Matt to come too, but to be discrete as he needs a favor. Once again, Matt (Barry Watson) drops by again---and without Sarah again and leaving his New York intern job on the rocks again. For the umpteeth time, this is ridiculous that Sarah (Sarah Danielle Madison) isn't here with Matt or that his very strict intern position is being wasted away in New York where he should be in order to up his career. I've never been to medical school but I'm sure it is a very competitive field among many applicants and contenders who vie for an opportunity to become a doctor in New York City---and the fact that Matt spends more time visiting Glen Oak and butting into his families lives (with no storyline of his own, mind you) rather than spending time with his wife and working on his medical career is just sad and unrealistic. I just wanted to say that once again to the writers; maybe they'll get a clue on how to handle the recurring Matt in a more realistic sense of him droppping by more.



Anyway, as we go further on, Simon ask Matt to come over to the Camden home so he can get his help in getting some birth control pills for his current girlfriend, Anna, by somehow writing up a prescription for her as he's in somewhat of a bind. First all, doesn't Simon know that Matt isn't a doctor yet? So how could he write up a prescription for his girlfriend (A woman he's never met by the way)? Also, never mind the fact it's more the girls responsibility to get her own prescription as she's needs to be examined first. Not only that, but Simon... that's what you called your older brother for as he lives all the way across the country? Seriously Simon, don't waste Matt's time. He's a married man with a job and going to medical school. Don't involve your brother in your sex life with your girlfriends. That' just tasteless and unnecessary. But since we are on the matter, why would Simon think that Matt would help him? He knows his family. He knows that Matt will probably not help him, which is another sad matter that I will address. It is out of character that after all these years Simon wouldn't know what Matt's stance would be over this.



On the opposite side though, since Matt is there anyway why wouldn't he help Simon? Even though Matt isn't able to write prescriptions, but even if he could, why wouldn't he help? It's obvious that Matt doesn't like the fact that Simon is having sex outside of marriage. But Simon is having sex anyway and probably won't stop (It's kinda hard), so wouldn't he want his younger brother to be as safe as possible in not getting into trouble with unexpected pregnancies? Sometimes people like Matt and the Camdens need to put their feelings aside and help your brother anyway. Wouldn't you rather him be safer than sorry? When you're in a family you may not always like one's decision but you support them anyway. That's what family is there for. You'd think that of all shows, 7th Heaven and its characters would get that. So much for Brotherly Love; there was no love. Overall, the dialogue and the approach of this storyline from both perspectives was poorly executed and was just a waste. But leading more into something else...



To Brenda Hampton: Just because a person decides to have sex before they're married doesn't make them a bad person or a slut or a whore. That seems to be your general theme of writing this storyline arc all season with the way at how you have written Simon and other family members to belittle him now just because he decided not to wait. In fact, it is insulting. You need to stop preaching your conservative values onto your audience. You say you rather much be "Helpless than Harmful", but you're doing exactly the opposite in your writing. Maybe you don't see it because you're writing the show and are attached to it closely from your perspective. Maybe you don't see it the way others do, but you're making a huge mistake when it comes to your writing. It only shows that the Camdens are a bunch of judgmental Christian fanatics with no will to accept others decisions in their own personal lives when it comes to other people, including sex...which by the way is no one else's business but their own and shouldn't be discussed for so long.



Simon is 18. It shouldn't be the business of family to discuss this. Brenda Hampton get off your moral high horse in your preachiness on Simon's suddenly "having sex makes him a bad person." You should be ashamed of yourself. We live in 2005, not 1955! Stop making the character out to be a bad sex-crazed teenager who has lost it and has sex with a new girl every week. That's not real life.



As for the conversation between Simon and Martin (Tyler Hoechlin) in the garage area where Martin wanted to get Simon's opinion about girls was rather interesting and somewhat confusing. But there were times in that conversation where Martin had absolutely no business in judging Simon and was a complete jerk in the way of talking to Simon. It was absolutely wrong and sad that Martin would say to Simon that he thinks it's cold of what Simon is doing. In particular, when Simon tells him that having sex with his girlfriends is just casual, and then Martin bringing up the fact that do these "poor, helpless and defenseless girls" who are having sex with Simon know that it's just casual. Yeah.....ok Martin, like girls do not have a mind of their own! If they didn't want to have sex with Simon, they wouldn't. It takes to to tango and the girl is just as willing as Simon. They want to have sex just as badly as Simon when they are alonw. So stop thinking girls are all defenseless creatures with no minds of their own and that Simon is taking advantage of them being the fact that he'sa guy and they're girls. It was insulting and setting women back decades. Once again I will ask from my previous column, does Brenda Hampton hate women? She writes them like their dumb, defenseless whores with emotional problems. But getting back to the storyline, why in the world did Martin want his opinion in the first place since he doesn't think too highly of Simon? For the first time Martin was a complete doofus. Go away now you virgin Christian freak!



Kevin and the gun: This mini subplot plays in the episode where there is a big fuss by Eric (Stephen Collins) that Kevin has a gun in the house. Wow, where do I begin...First of all doesn't Eric know that Kevin is a police officer? And one main thing that makes Kevin a police officer is that he has a gun! Not only that, but Kevin and Lucy have been living in the Camden home for a few weeks now since Savannah was born, and he probably had a gun all this time since then. So why is Eric creating a fuss now? The timing of this was wrong. But then again, it's reasonable why Eric doesn't favor guns being the fact that he was shot with a gun by a kid (Season 3, Johnny Get Your Gun) before. Nonetheless Kevin is a police officer who stashes his gun and bullets in different places and locks it up and is careful with it as it's part of his job. So cool off Eric!



Although, it was quite stupid though that Kevin had the gun out like that in the living room when scaring Matt and Simon when they were fighting. Maybe Kevin shouldn't carry a gun when he automatcially assumed a burgular was breaking in even though the house was full of people and all the lights were on! That makes absolutely no sense of him waving his gun like that all of the sudden.



The "Invisible Black-Sheep" Mary: Yes everyone, Mary had her very own storyline in this episode. In fact she plays one of the main focal points in this episode. The only problem: She doesn't even appear in this episode. In fact she hasn't been on the show in over a year. So why on Gods green Earth would Brenda Hampton all of sudden develop a huge storyline for Mary when Jessica Biel is awol having a career? Not only that, but why create a storyline that degenerates the Mary character by having her doing the inexplicable—leaving her husband Carlos and son Charles? (Which by the way is completely out of character for Mary). Does Brenda Hampton hate Jessica Biel? I'm very serious as I ask that question. Because in the last two seasons the bashing of Mary by her Camden family members has been so consistent when quite frankly she's the most normal and level headed. Its so funny how Mary (Jessica Biel) is the one who has a well paid (and long-term) job as a flight attendant, is a loving wife and mother and living on her own in Buffalo is labeled as family "black sheep" and outcast---while Lucy (Beverley Mitchell) has no paying job, a really stupid husband and lives at home with her parents and is treated as the "angel" of the family. That is a very sad depiction on this show.



Anyway getting to the storyline, throughout the show the family kids mention vaguely many times that Mary, Carlos and baby Charles aren't exactly living a fairy tale life as of late. They don't know how to tell their parents Eric and Annie about Mary while also telling their own individual bad news. Of course things get mixed up as usual as the family spies on each other and Mary's news gets mistaken for supposedly Simon having a baby when he's really not. I'd elaborate more, but it's rather boring and tedious like so much of this show now. But in the end things get straightened out and the kids (rather Simon) tells Eric at the end that Mary is having a baby when in fact she only left her husband and son. The kids get upset with Simon when they're gathered together in the living room that he made up the pregnancy, as well as I was upset too. Can't this family just be frickin' honest with each other and stop stalling when it comes to talking to each other? Don't these people go to church? You'd think they'd have a better inkling in just telling the honest truth to people and family members and not hiding stuff from each other. In fact, why are they hiding it? Ruthie suggest they're covering for Mary once again. Um...did Mary even ask you to cover for her? Mary is a grown woman and will tell people HER news when she feels like it. Ugh, these characters get more annoying with their logic more and more.



Overall, this episode just didn't do it for me. The episode was directed very well by first time director Barry Watson. Unfortunately, Brenda Hampton's writing wasn't up to par, but that seems to be the usual case in most later seasons on the series she created herself. Don't get me wrong, this episode was light years better that the previous craptacular Red Socks episode, but Brenda Hampton---she just doesn't know how to write good dialogue and her characters well any more. It's just sad seeing her creativity diminish the older her show gets. Maybe it's time for her to quit the series and let someone else take over the reins. At this point I wouldn't mind because Brenda Hampton continues to recycle the same old storylines and doesn't write in plausible sense of the characters. The next episode...once again the never ending Simon is a ManWhore continues... Ugh.



Grade: **5.5 out of 10**



Rants and Bits:

*I know I picked on Brenda Hampton a lot this week but I have too. The series could be so much better and she's just being lazy in her writing with recyclying storylines and off-the-wall character development in the wrong direction. Maybe she'll listen more if we pick on her.



*It was very nice that Simon (David Gallagher) called Matt (Barry Watson) on that dig that he got married to just have sex. I mean really, who in the world gets married after the first date and think they're in love? He may think he did get married for the right reasons but unconsciously I think it's lust---which is why these Camden kids get married to young and not to hear the tirade of their overly preacher dad, Eric and matriarch mom, Annie.



*The twins did some usual Camden spying in this episode as they're the ones who start the whole Simon is having a baby. Somebody please stop letting these kids spy and rather go outside and play with other kid---which is what they need to be doing.



*Seriously, why doesn't Eric and Annie give Kevin and Lucy a deadline to move out? It's getting to point where these two unfortunately have to be blunt in telling their daughter and husband to leave, but something needs to be done. Grow some backbone Eric and Annie and make Lucy and Kevin grow up fully and get their own home!



*It was very hypocritical of Simon telling Ruthie not to have sex until she's married, but still says he's gonna have sex anyway since it's already done. You can't have it both ways Simon in your logic. But I'm not surprised. It only proves more that this family makes no sense in their way of life.