Army Wives

This is more of a review of Roland's story line than the entire episode. A few episodes back, he decided he wanted to be a high school counselor instead of a psychiatrist in an Army hospital. Fine--given his time with Emmalyn, that makes sense. But nothing since that point has had any reality to it. My concerns have been building for several episodes.



1. There are specific requirements for being a high school counselor. While I don't know for certain, it seems possible that Roland's previous preparation would not be sufficient to give him the proper credential. (On a related note, I thought that last season Denise earned her nursing credential amazingly quickly and easily.)



2. An accredited high school could not simply hire anyone to be an English teacher, even as a long-term substitute. We have been given no reason to believe that Roland had any background in the discipline he is teaching.



3. Last--and by far the biggest problem--is the way that Roland dealt with the student in the school who came to him for counseling. Hugging her and meeting in a restaurant with her are behaviors that are completely off limits. It doesn't matter whether she's straight or gay All behavior like this is strictly forbidden simply because it *could* be a step in the direction of sexual harassment. And this is not something new for Roland to learn. All of this would have been behavior that was forbidden to him with his previous psychiatric clients. So it's completely unbelievable that he made this type of mistake, not once, but multiple times. And he even hugged her again after he told her the principal wasn't going to inform West Point that she was gay!



I have read that the show now has a military advisor to help them avoid some of the mistakes they made in that regard last season. It seems to me they could use one to cover the areas of teaching and counseling too.

I suppose that the show HAD to give Denise a bit better of a storyline than being a housewive and mother to two men who are gone most of the time. I like that she's out and about. I don't like that the FIRST time she gets a little independence, she's carousing around with a fellow. Hmm ... seems a bit fast for someone in love with her hubby for so long. I figure it's just a bit out of whack. A pet peave, doesn't mean I don't like the show. Again ... something that seems a little bit off-kilter, Roland's caught in a compromising situation when he's seen hugging a student. Argh ... I never once ... in ALL my years at school hugged a teacher. GROSS. Way off base. The storyline is unbelievable, I'm glad they wrapped it up and nixed it right quick. I DID love the side-story of Roxy's new waitress. I thought it was really well done, this was a side-story that was well thought out. In addition, it was even PLAUSIBLE!!! Sandi (the waitress) was a 'low-down dirty' scam artist. Roxy calls her on it ... and all is well with the world. That is until another UNBELIEVABLE storyline opens up with Trevor getting all gooey-lovey with his pain meds. Seriously? What is this? Finally, another logical storyline was the introduction of the Delta Force unit and their wives. Seems that Chase's little team-mates have been naughty little pilferers. They're going down. Apparently Chase is helping to tie the anchor too, as he keeps the Mrs. out of the loop, but ends up being 'acquitted' due to the fact that he didn't do anything wrong. Oddly ... The two side-stories kept me on track with this episode. I realize not everything in a TV show can be completely credible, seeing as we want some DRAMA ... but somewhat credible situations would be on target right about now. So far my least favorite episode. In addition, my longest review.

This episode opens with Pamela in bed, waking up and realising that Chase isn't there. She hears him outside and goes for a look. She sees him outside with a man. When she asks him he closes up. Roland has a talk with Denise about the doctor (Getty) whom she brought to the re-opening of the bar. He thinks that she may have feelings for him, and Roland reminds her of what happened to him when he had an affair. Claudia Joy goes to see her doctor. He informs her that she isn't pregnant and she seems very happy about the news. But he told her that if she wanted to try with Michael, they should try right now. She seems upset about the suggestion and walks out. Trevor is told he is not fit enough to deploy. Late the next night when Pamela and Chase are in bed asleep, they are awake by bagging. We then see Chase being arrested. When she goes to the police station in the morning she notices that 2 other Delta wives are there and their husbands have also been arrested. Roland seems to be getting better at his job being a guidance counsellor. Claudia Joy gives Joan a load of baby items. Roland is called into the principal's office and they have a talk about the fact he has been spotted with a young pupil a couple of times. Roland is told that his time at the school is up, as he won't admit what they talked about. Claudia Joy tells Michael about her false alarm, regarding the pregnancy. He tells her he would have been happy with another child. Pamela heads round to one of the other Delta wife's house and finds it trashed. Pamela learns that they were arrested for selling art work from the Middle East. Claudia Joy tells Michael that she may be up for another baby. Pamela goes to visit Chase but he can't tell her anything. Roland gets a phone call from the principal and has to go and meet him. Jessica admits to the principal that she is gay so that Roland can have his job back. Roxy fires one of her waitress's and she puts in a lawsuit against her for wrongful dismissal. Claudia Joy and Roxy discover that she has filed 2 of them before and a claim case, when they confront her she agrees to drop the case. Chase comes home and we learn that Chase was sent undercover and helped to put the other men in prison. Joan and Roland go round to see Michael and Claudia Joy and thank them for the gifts. They also ask them to be their daughters Godparents. At the end of the episode we see Denise and Getty kissing, very passionately. She pulls away and walks out of the room.