Nashville - Recap: Baby One More Time

That said, there are still some lingering issues with how some of these characters are written, as the show is eroding the sympathy many of these characters have earned through their troubling circumstances. For example, Avery (Jonathan Jackson) seems less like a guy who's trying to move on with his life, and more someone actively trying to hold onto his bitterness a little while longer, as he once again rants at Juliette (Hayden Panetierre) when she stops by his apartment to drop off his things, continuing to rub her mistakes in her face after she's already apologized and put herself through hell. Granted, it's probably not the best idea for Juliette to then throw her own culpability out the window by putting the blame for her infidelity back on Avery's friendship with Scarlett (Clare Bowen), but Avery is being kind of insufferable with his attitude, badmouthing Juliette to a girl at the Blue Bird before hooking up with her. The entire storyline just left both characters feeling far less sympathetic. Similarly, Maddie (Lennon Stella) is bordering on unbearable with her constant bitterness about Deacon (Charles Esten) and Rayna (Connie Britton) being together. Then again, Maddie's ongoing bitterness can at least be explained away by the fact that she's a teenager, and invariably prone to these sorts of angsty outbursts. But there's no adequate explanation for where it culminates, as Maddie becomes bitter with Deacon for being contractually forced to tour by Luke (Will Chase), who chooses to keep Deacon on the tour for no reason other than to, presumably, keep the Luke/Deacon/Rayna love triangle going. It's the one industry-focused storyline that doesn't really work. Okay, maybe it's the second, as I felt the same way about the stuff focusing on Zoey (Chaley Rose).

Credit: ABC

Zoey seems to be a bit jealous about the connection Gunner (Sam Palladio) has with Scarlett, but is also hesitant to accept Gunner's offer to move in with him. Her indecisiveness is affecting her career, since she's shown to be having a really hard time getting the moves down for Juliette's tour, where she's a backup singer. Yes, she eventually does come around and decide to move in with Gunner, but it seems less motivated by her own affection for Gunner than by her realization that she can't have it both ways. I didn't particularly enjoy the storyline, but at least it's kept short, although I wish more time had been spent on Gunner's other storyline this week, as he gets Scarlett to help him write a song, and it's every bit as magic as it's been every other time they've teamed together on a song. However, Scarlett refuses to accept a co-writing credit, and tensions rise as it becomes apparent that there are at least some lingering feelings still there, even if neither wants to admit it. It's an interesting story with far more potential than most romance stories on this show.

Thankfully, it's not the only strong story this week. Rayna is solidifying Highway 65, as her deal with the gift cards and other promotions has resulting in her opening at No. 1. It's not a platinum opening (in fact, it's barely gold), but she anticipates she'll be in the top spot for several weeks.

Except...well, she isn't.

Credit: ABC/Mark Levine

Will (Chris Carmack) quickly scoops the No. 1 spot from her, causing Rayna to recognize that what got her to the top of the country business is no longer enough to keep her there in the changing world of the music industry. Even Tandy (Judith Hoag) feels she has to resign from Rayna's team, unable to keep up with an industry she doesn't even love. To combat the threat to her position as the Queen of Country Music, Rayna adds forty more dates to her concert tour, which means she'll be on the road for another full year of non-stop promotion. This amplifies Maddie's bitterness, since Rayna is hardly around as it is. But Rayna feels it's necessary to get Highway 65 off the ground. She even appears on Good Morning America Concert Series, sharing the stage with guest star Luke Bryan in a scene that makes her feel more like an actual, real-life country star than anything the show has done so far. I love these crossovers with the real world, as it lends a genuine aura of reality to the show. Of course, Rayna is so intent on playing ball with the media that she reveals what Luke whispered to her before kneeling to propose to her. She tells the host of GMA that Luke whispered to her about his "trick knee", and the worrisome background music begins to swell, which seems to indicate that this is something Rayna shouldn't have revealed. However, remove the music, and I'm not sure the actual content of the scene would have revealed any mistake on Rayna's part. Is Luke's knee issue really that big of a secret? It certainly doesn't feel that way, particularly when there are characters with actual secrets to keep.

Credit: ABC

For example, Will is being blackmailed into continuing on with the reality show alongside Layla (Aubrey Peeples), lest his sexuality become public knowledge. And now that he's the No. 1 artist in country music, he has a lot more to lose. But Will's bigger concern is Layla: to make up for hurting her, Will goes to Jeff (Oliver Hudson) to try and get Layla's career jump-started again. This leads to Layla getting an audition for the role of Patsy Cline, but she doesn't feel she has any shot. And, realistically, she doesn't. Between Juliette's frontrunner position for the role, and an upcoming audition by another high-profile country star (played by Tony winner Laura Benanti), Layla doesn't have a prayer. And so she bitterly decides she's going to blackmail Will herself. After telling Will she hates him and will never forgive him (in an outdoor restaurant, in front of tons of people who apparently don't notice that two major country stars are having a tear-filled fight just a few feet away), Layla gives Will an ultimatum, to either put her on his tour or have his sexuality revealed to the world. I could probably do without having Layla become a vindictive supervillain, but I'm not really sure what else you do with her otherwise. If nothing else, it'll provide for some interesting tension as Will tries to keep his career and personal life in balance.

Credit: ABC

For her part, Juliette is trying to do the same thing by coming to her screen test for the Patsy Cline movie dressed up as the iconic country star. The audition itself doesn't recapture the magic of the first, but Panetierre does a great job with the clunky dialogue of the movie-within-the-show. She doesn't make the least bit of sense as Patsy Cline, which is why I'd be surprised if they had her win the role. She's the show's punching bag, after all, which means great things rarely happen to her. Case in point: Jeff Fordham (who has a storyline of his own this week, as his division is being threatened unless he signs more female artists) gives Juliette a hard time about it, unaware the entire time that Juliette's weight gain for the role isn't really for the role at all. It's due to her sudden pregnancy. However, Juliette catches a tiny bit of a break when she goes in for her abortion, only for the doctor to reveal that Juliette is close to eight weeks along...which isn't possible if the baby is Jeff's, since they only slept together four weeks earlier. Tears fill in Juliette's eyes when she realizes that the baby is Avery's. Well, thank God for that, as I'm not sure another season being reminded she slept with Jeff Fordham.

"How Far Down Can I Go" is a huge improvement over last week's dicey premiere. It's not perfect, but my faith in Nashville is mostly restored, for the time being. Here's hoping the show can keep up the momentum.