Nashville - Season 1 Episode 7 - Recap Video and Review - Lovesick Blues
Recap video and review for Nashville - Season 1 Episode 7 - Lovesick Blues
This week's Nashville is one of its best episodes, yet its quality is peculiar, in the sense that it essentially makes the previous five episodes pointless, more or less. Okay, that's a bit of hyperbole, but seriously, did we need five more episodes to get to this point? Outside of some of the specifics, the barebones narrative of "Lovesick Blues" could easily have served as the basis for the show's second episode. Rayna (Connie Britton) and Juliette (Hayden Panettiere) are making music together and about to embark on a co-headlining tour, but only if they can keep from clawing each other's eyes out, while tensions between Rayna and Deacon (Charles Esten) are at an all-time high. Meanwhile, Scarlett (Clare Bowen), newly split from Avery (Jonathan Jackson), discovers that Gunnar (Sam Palladio) carries a torch for her. Seriously, other than the potential scandal with Teddy (Eric Close), who's being blackmailed into dropping out of the mayoral race by a suddenly-villainous Coleman (Robert Wisdom), this episode could have served as a fitting follow-up to the excellent pilot episode.
Of course, I'm generally ignoring that there have been some significant developments on a character front. While Juliette's mother has more or less dropped off the face of the show for now, her spirit still lingers in how Juliette carries herself, as if turning up her swagger to 11 will somehow erase the guilt and shame she feels about her mother, and about her own criminal transgressions. And though the mayoral election subplot hasn't borne much fruit, it will likely serve to create drama in the relatively listless marriage of Teddy and Rayna, so it's contributed, in that respect. Also, though Watty White (JD Souther) is hardly around, he's still a motivating influence for Gunnar and Scarlett's music, as he was the one to initially encourage their partnership and help to hone their abilities as a songwriting duo. And while I'm not sure they ever really needed to go in this direction, the last several weeks have at least developed a certain desperation in the careers of both Rayna and Juliette, to where not only does their partnership make sense, but it also feels necessary, and integral to their continued success in the music industry. They are sharing spotlight now, as opposed to the pilot, in which the tour was presented as little more than a way to prolong Rayna's gradually dying career.
Credit: ABC
"Lovesick Blues" is a bit ponderous in its approach to theme. Both Juliette and Rayna are being pressured into a duet at the Grand Ole Opry in celebration of their label, Edgehill. Neither wants to do it, but both are being needled by managers and music execs with an eye for what's clearly a good business decision. Rayna is being threatened with the release of her greatest hits album (which I'm guessing Rayna is trying to avoid, lest it signal the end of her career, although I can't remember a time when that's ever been the case for anyone in the music industry), while Juliette is being nagged into it as a means of salvaging her career from countless weeks of bad publicity. As it turns out, she's even dragging down her Tim Tebow-esque boyfriend, Sean Butler (Tilky Jones), as it's being said that she's responsible for the downturn in his gameplay. Rayna and Juliette meet up with Juliette's new songwriting partner, Deacon, and Rayna's new producer, Liam McGuinnis (Michiel Huison), and the meeting quickly devolves into a verbal sparring session. Rayna comes off as insecure, and generally petty, claiming that Juliette doesn't deserve top billing because she hasn't earned it, and she doesn't have the chops to back up the hype. As Juliette storms out, Deacon comes to her defense, laying down the demo for "Undermine" and telling Rayna that Juliette has the potential to be a truly great songwriter. He even throws Rayna's past in her face, reminding her of how many in the music industry didn't think she was traditional country when she first broke in. It's a fitting elucidation of the theme of old school vs. new school, and the extent to which they aren't all that different.
Credit: ABC
Juliette, upset from the confrontation, seeks out Sean for a therapeutic bang, but the quarterback hesitates to go all the way. Though Juliette accuses him of being gay and using her as his "skirt", he later explains that he believes in abstinence, and saving himself for marriage. He tells Juliette that he would like to get to know her, and she relents. The plot is kind of a dud, given the strength of the rest of the episode, but I do like Sean's role as a contrast to Juliette's bad girl persona. This could feel like much more of a trite relationship than it does, so I'm glad for the restraint the series has shown in not making them a traditionally "odd couple" pairing.
Credit: ABC
Meanwhile, Gunnar is all up in arms when Hailey (Chloe Wang) invites Scarlett out with them for a round of drinks to help her get over Avery, and Scarlett proceeds to get tipsy on tequila shots, sing a sweet little cover of "Ring of Fire" and...make out with some dude. Except she seemed as thrown by the kiss as Gunnar did, which makes it all the more jarring to see Gunnar completely go off on Scarlett for being "loose", to the point where I almost had to rethink my stance on whether this was a character I even felt like rooting for anymore. He hardly even tried to hide his interest in Scarlett from his girlfriend, nor was his even able to hide his sense of entitlement to Scarlett, scaring off an interested suitor simply because his jealousy couldn't abide her being around other guys. Scarlett, however, is more forgiving. Though she's initially freaked out by the obvious indicators of Gunnar's interest in her, she eventually comes around on his outburst, telling him that she's glad to have him in her life, and resolving to getting back to writing music together.
Credit: ABC
Maybe this was simply an adverse reaction to going to Avery's house to make up and finding Marilyn Rhodes (Rya Kihlstedt) just stepping out of his bedroom, but it almost feels unearned, since they don't seem any closer as friends than they did back in the pilot (although the storyline shows how Avery is coming along as a solo act, with posters all over town and a brief encountering with an industry bigwig played by Wyclef Jean). I'm only bothered by it in the sense that, for the story to have real stakes, there need to be consequences to the story's major dramatic actions. And I'm not sure that Scarlett refusing to be a pushover for Avery is a success if she's just going to be a pushover for Gunnar. The guy practically called her a whore for getting kissed (and there wasn't even tongue!). It might help her character feel more grounded in reality to get a little angry about that. I like the Gunnar/Scarlett pairing, but there's a sense of inertia about the story even when there's supposedly plot advancement. I don't think it will feel like they're really getting anywhere with this storyline until they actually get there. That said, I really wouldn't mind just watching them write music together all day. Their music scenes together have been among the strongest of the series and, again, it's a good pairing as far as chemistry and story potential are concerned. So I'll be looking forward to seeing the plot get farther away from point A, even if point B proves to still be a long ways off.
Though Teddy has to contemplate what he's going to do about Coleman's threat to leak the photos of him and Peggy Samper (Kimberly Williams-Paisley) to the press, he must endure the stern looks of his father-in-law/financial backer, Lamar Wyatt (Powers Boothe), who doesn't seem to understand that it's not enough that Teddy wasn't actually having an affair. No, if Teddy is going to try and sell to the press that he wasn't actually stepping out on the missus with Ms. Samper, he's going to need an alternative story to sell them - and the truth is arguably worse, as embezzlement actually will land you in the slammer (which is not to say that people don't still go to prison for adultery). However, while the issue is hardly resolved this week, the stress of it all doesn't stop Teddy from attending Rayna's performance with Juliette. The two sing a "Before He Cheats"-style kiss-off song called "Wrong Song", and the moment is electric, with management believing they have a hit on their hands. As Rayna and Juliette pose together for an adoring crowd, it's hard to read their smiling expressions - is it a possible bond being formed, or is it two women barely concealing their contempt for one another? Smart money says it's the latter. And that can only mean great things for the series, which thrives on pitting Rayna's traditionalist ideology against Juliette's new school approach.
"Lovesick Blues" feels like the show finally delivering on the premise its sold with the pilot episode, and this decision immediately makes for a stronger show. The various plotlines are tying together in meaningful, significant ways, and it probably won't be much longer before we see just how combustible these elements are when they're put in conflict with one another, whether it's Teddy vs. Coleman for the mayorship of Nashville, Gunnar vs. Avery for the heart of Scarlett, or whether it's Rayna vs. Juliette, for the soul of country music.
