"Brace for Impact" must have been a reference for the one made by the arrival of Air Force Colonel Kat Young, played by Brooke Shields.

Brace yourself was good advice because there was little to nothing to like about her. From the moment she arrived, she was nothing but a pain in the ass. Of course, I'm sure there will be some side story coming down the pike that makes us like her (hello, Jackie Clarke!), but for right now, she's going to be on my radar.

Seriously? The one time Joan makes David a priority, the new beyotch arrives on base and makes Joan feel like a failure. That's ridiculous. As much as I have enjoyed Army Wives season 7, I have to give two thumbs down to the writers for making that the entrance of the new character. The Army/Air Force football fight is plenty to worry about, bringing the fight arbitrarily to the table through David annoyed this viewer quite a bit.

Joan had to come a very long way to even go to a basketball game, let alone put her cell phone in her pocket for one hour, putting her family first for what could have been the first time since David became a part of it. Bringing hell down upon her as a result was not acceptable. As she watched Latasha and Maggie play a game with all the kids and she left them behind, I wondered if this will somehow lead to her wanting to leave the Army to spend time with her family. She misses out on so much, and now she finally sees that.

What made it worse was HellKat walking into GENERAL Holden's office and demanding $2 million just in case something happened to her flight flight training pattern route. As soon as Micheal sat down to lunch at his desk it was so obvious she was going to do the "Maverick" Top Gun fly by and rattle the windows that I was almost embarrassed to be watching. As he rightly should, Michael told her if she thought those shenanigans were going to help her cause, she was very wrong. She then mumbled under her breath, "I will not be ignored."

All of which is leading up to the inevitable Kat/Michael affair that I predicted back in the second episode of the season. They're probably perfect together, and I can imagine in many ways they would be, but for now I detest the thought of it. Oh well.

Maggie tried really hard this week to be a friend and mom to Caroline. It looked like it was working until a car of teenage mutants rolled by and picked her up, asking if her step monster was still buying the depressed teenager routine. Great. So she's been acting all along? Now she just needs a role in the school play and a ticket to Hollywood. She can be a star!

How Caroline turned out like that is beyond me, because Eddie is not one to shy away from discipline. It was really interesting watching he and Pat take their first runs at the men with speeches as Pat tried to make sure nobody thought he was better than them because of his name and the school he attended and Eddie was just all around disgusted by their plight.

Eddie: Your leaders go down this is how you honor them? Buy letting discipline goes to hell? I am disgusted by what I see. Poor discipline leads to poor performance. And I am not going to let my ass get shot off because one of you clowns got lazy. What you've been through up here? It ends right now. Do I make myself clear? | permalink

Of course, I didn't have a clue what he was talking about because they always look like that on Army Wives. Don't they? I know in the real Army boots are shined and all that, but who am I to know if it's like that while roughing it in the harsh terrain. Eddie sure made it seem that they were slacking off and that could be why their leaders were shot in the first place. But would Frank let them fall apart like that? Seems unlikely.

The conversation between Frank and Pat was very sweet and I can see how Frank will feel a fatherly bond with Pat. How he will feel with Eddie should be interesting to discover. They seem very different. I'm not sure who Eddie reminds me of. He's a character kind of out there on his own at the minute.

The Jackie and Gloria dilemma cleared up a lot faster than I imagined it would. Pat wasn't going to let it go on any longer than absolutely necessary. It was nice that Denise pointed out by saying nothing at all, Jackie said everything to an embarrassed Gloria. The Jackie that joined the show last year would have never marched over to the Hump Bar and fixed the situation with such finesse and without a fuss. The Jackie I love now had absolutely no qualms about it.

That's why even though I don't mind saying I hate Kat Young, I'm guessing by the end of the season I'll be tearing up over something going on in her life, too. That's what happens on Army Wives. They make me hate them, and then they make me love them.

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.