Nashville - Recap: Maddie Daddy
Recap and Review of Nashville - Season 1 Episode 20 - A Picture from Life’s Other Side:
It's highly likely that there's a bigger picture I'm missing here -- at the very least, there's a bigger picture that has yet to be realized. There has to be. Otherwise, I can't see why Nashville keeps asking the audience to invest chunks of time into the political, behind-the-scenes maneuverings that have acted as a drain on the series since day one. With each passing week, I become less certain that Tandy's (Judith Hoag) power plays are leading to something. In fact, I'm not entirely convinced that the character exists for any other reason but to fill time, as her attempts to stage a coup amongst the board of Wyatt Industries, her father's company, are the lowpoint of what is otherwise a pretty solid episode. It's not Judith Hoag's fault that she's been saddled with such a lifeless storyline, an arc that's buoyed only by the gravitas of Powers Boothe's performance as Lamar Wyatt. No, that's more on the writers for not finding a more streamlined way to get wherever the hell they're going with this. Lord knows it's been twenty episodes, and it doesn't feel like much progress has been made at all on the political front. With that said, if you ignore Tandy's failed attempt at a coup (nipped in the bud by Lamar, who returns from his medical sabbatical at the end of the episode), "A Picture from Life's Other Side" is definitely a strong episode, anchored by some of the biggest developments of the season: a breakup, a revelation, and TWO deaths. With all that's happened, it's interesting to think that this wasn't the season ender. Next week's finale is going to have a tall order to fill.
Credit: ABC
A breakup: Gunnar (Sam Palladio) has been spiralling out of control ever since Jason's death, and it's taking its toll on his relationship with Scarlett (Clare Bowen), who isn't buying into his whole "rebel" act, even if the Nashville music industry is. After hearing Gunnar play the tough guy on a radio interview, implying that his brother's experiences were his own, Scarlett begins to lose her patience with Gunnar. And it couldn't come at a worse time, since she needs his support -- her debut at the Grand Ole Opry is that night, and she's scared witless. Of course, the plotline for the rest of the night is pretty much telegraphed once Gunnar promises Scarlett that he'll be there for her performance ("You know I wouldn't miss it," he says, kissing her forehead. Famous last words in a relationship). Gunnar proceeds to play a show at the bar where he was discovered a few weeks back, and winds up running afoul of an ex-con, who calls Gunnar on his B.S. after sussing out that he never did hard time behind bars. Will (Chris Carmack), who'd gone to talk some sense into Gunnar at Scarlett's request, ends up stepping in for his friend when the ex-con gets a little too familiar. And like that, a brawl breaks out, Gunnar and Will are arrested, and any hope of making it to the Grand Ole Opry in time goes up in smoke.
Scarlett knocks it out of the ballpark at the show, however, and it proves to be one of the Scarlett-related highlights of the series. Her performance of "Looking For A Place to Shine" is exuberant and perfect for the character, communicating her excitement at achieving a dream she never even knew she had, and accomplishing a goal she never even realized she was capable of attaining before this season started. Will has a similar high point this week, barging in on Rayna's private talent showcase, as she's looking for a new male star for the label. She finds every act brought before her to be missing that certain something, until Will comes in and insists on five minutes of her time. He performs a song called "A Showman's Life," and exudes all the star quality and country authenticity that the other prospective signees were lacking, and he more or less secures himself a deal with the label with that audition (though Rayna's manager is looking into changing Will's name, as he doesn't think the surname "Lexington" fits). The poignancy of Will's song becomes apparent later when he apologizes to Gunnar for trying to kiss him, and explains that he's been alone all his life because of his sexuality. He recalls how his father caught him with a friend at a young age, and kicked him out of the house for it. Will hasn't been home since. Gunnar takes the opportunity to apologize for having overreacted to the kiss, and Will is far more accepting of Gunnar's apology than Scarlett.
When a disappointed Scarlett comes to bail Gunnar out of jail, she says that she can't be with him like this. The whole "rebel" facade, the bar fights, the jail time. "I fell in love with you, not your brother," Scarlett tells Gunnar, stating that he's taken his grief over Jason's death too far by essentially becoming him. She rightly observes that Gunnar had spent half his life trying to escape the criminal life that he's now trying to portray as a musician. "Look at where we are," she tells Gunnar, motioning to their prison surroundings. Scarlett has bailed Gunnar out of the slammer, but she doesn't look back as she walks away, with Gunnar slowly falling to pieces in the background. And now it appears that the door has opened for Avery (Jonathan Jackson) to re-enter Scarlett's life, as he actually did make it to the Grand Ole Opry performance, eliciting a smile of recognition from Scarlett, who spotted him in the crowd. The love triangle is back on, it would seem. And God help me, but I think I might be rooting for Avery.
Credit: ABC
A revelation: When Rayna (Connie Britton) brings Deacon (Charles Esten) over to the house to jam with Maddie (Lennon Stella) and Daphne (Maisy Stella), Teddy (Eric Close) walks in on the gathering and flips out on Rayna in private. He rationalizes that he respected Rayna's wishes when she requested he keep Peggy (Kimberly Williams-Paisley) away from the kids, and she should do the same regarding his requests concerning Deacon. However, Rayna says that Teddy has no right to tell her how to live her life, now that they're divorced. So Teddy, in defense of his fatherly relationship with Maddie, issues a restraining order barring Deacon from coming within 100 feet of the girls. It's a case that gets out of hand pretty quickly, as the former Mr. and Mrs. Conrad end up in court, prompting Rayna to confront Teddy and plead with him to trust her. She says she would never knowingly violate Teddy's relationship with Maddie. Rayna states that he'll always be their father, regardless of paternity.
Satisfied that his fatherly role is safe in Rayna's hands, Teddy drops the restraining order and Rayna returns to work on her new record label, Highway 65 Records. However, Maddie is later compelled to go through her mother's things, having overheard Rayna telling Deacon she loves him, only to then be met with an "I'll tell you when you're older" answer by Rayna about her past with Deacon. Inside a lockbox, She discovers a paternity test, from which she learns the truth: Teddy is not her real father. Though it's all but set in stone, the show still seems hesitant to just come out and say that Deacon is Maddie's real father, instead having Maddie tearfully confess to her friend over the phone, "I don't think my dad is my father." This staunch refusal to commit to outright confirming that Deacon is Maddie's father makes me wonder if there isn't some bigger twist at play, and that someone else is actually Maddie's daddy. But I can't see how that would help the story other than to give us a twist simply for its own sake. They'd also have to explain away Teddy's resistance to Deacon being around the girls, among other things. So while it's possible that Deacon isn't Maddie's father, it's highly unlikely. And it looks as though Deacon will be finding out the truth next week, one way or the other. And it's about damn time.
Credit: ABC
TWO deaths: The most dramatic story of the episode belongs to Juliette (Hayden Panettiere), who plans to give Dante (Jay Hernandez) the $2 million he's blackmailing her for, in exchange for the SD card with their sex video on it. However, Dante proves to be as slimy and insufferable as ever, hiking up the price to $10 million at the last minute. Juliette considers going through with it, but her mother, Jolene (Sylvia Jefferies), talks her out of giving him the money, since she hasn't done anything wrong. Juliette decides she'll simply preempt Dante by going on The View, of all places (I mean, I get network synergy and all, but really?), to announce the existence of the sex tape and to explain her side of the story: she fell in love with the wrong man, made a mistake, got her heartbroken, and now just wants to move on with her life. It seems like a solid approach, even if it will cause Juliette embarrassment (especially once the video actually leaks).
Yet Jolene can't stand to see her daughter suffer, particularly knowing that her own weakness brought Dante into Juliette's life in the first place. Jolene decides to take matters into her own hand, visiting her ex-dealer to purchase a gun and enough drugs to bring down even the most durable of addicts. She then uses the drugs to numb herself for what's to come, as she steals Dante's number out of Juliette's phone and calls him to set up a meeting to hand over the original $2 million fee, since he's now unlikely to get a single red cent out of Juliette. Completely ravaged by the drugs, Jolene lets Dante into the apartment and then confronts him with the gun. When he tries to call her bluff, she opens fire -- killing him almost instantly. She then puts in one last call to her daughter, sharing a forgotten memory from Juliette's childhood, before overdosing. Juliette makes it to the apartment too late to do anything but cradle her mother's cold, pale body.
Credit: ABC
It's a genuinely affecting moment, even if Juliette and Jolene's relationship hasn't always been the most affecting of the series. Hayden Panettiere nails the grief, while Sylvia Jefferies delivers on her portrayal of a mother's desperation to protect her child, no matter the cost. It also speaks to the broader arc of Jolene's character, as she often seemed to believe herself unworthy of her daughter's affection, even though it's the only thing she ever seemed to really want out of life. In death, Jolene looked for a final act of penance to reset the balance and pay Juliette back for a lifetime of mistreatment. It's far more poignant in retrospect, which is a considerable accomplishment, since it was pretty poignant within the body of the episode itself.
"A Picture from Life's Other Side" sets up next week's finale well, as all the pieces are in place for the entire tenor of the series to change, heading into season two. It's also a pretty compelling episode in its own right, despite being only one part of a two-part story.