I have two words for you, Nashville: Too. Soon.

As in, it is way too soon for Deacon to be moving on from Rayna.

On Nashville Season 5 Episode 17, Deacon and Jessie get to know each other on a more intimate level.

I have to say, I'm not a fan of this ship. At least not yet.

Jessie is a likable character on her own. She's flawed, but she's also been hurt so you want to root for her. She was a great country singer, and obviously still can be, but her reputation needs some work.

Her life is kind of a country song. She cheated on her husband, got kicked out of her house, had a breakdown, and abandoned her kid. Allegedly.

They had a fantasy about you and they were shocked to find out you're a real person. How dare you!

Alyssa

• Permalink: They had a fantasy about you and they were shocked to find out you're a real person. How dare...

Her husband wasn't exactly innocent either. We know this because she got way too personal with Deacon over what was supposed to be a business meeting.

True, they're old friends, but it doesn't seem like they were close. It seems like they were just acquaintances; musicians devoted to the industry.

But in that moment, she was an artist trying to get a job from a label head and she straight up told him her whole life story. It wasn't appropriate.

It also seemed forced. Like she wasn't just selling her music, she was selling herself. I know the two of them are very intertwined, but it seemed like she was selling herself to Deacon, not the label.

While this normally isn't bad — two people getting to know each other so personally — it doesn't feel right for Deacon who just lost the love of his life. How can he be expected to move on already?

So much of it was so hard but in the end I wouldn't trade any of it. Not for the world.

Deacon

• Permalink: So much of it was so hard but in the end I wouldn't trade any of it. Not for the world.

That said, I'm still very interested in Jessie's character. I love flawed characters; they're so real. She admits she's done bad things and now she's trying to learn from them.

I also think the best music comes from life experiences. Did you hear that last song? AMAZING.

"Baby, I'm still learning how to lose you." Deacon can definitely relate to that.

Scarlett finally found some confidence and direction and I cannot be happier.

She wasn't going to convince MacKenzie she did something wrong in publishing that article. She's a reporter, getting scoops is her job.

But I like that Scarlett didn't just go home and sulk or cry to Deacon. She finally did something about how she was feeling. Bonus — she helped teenagers along the way!

Scarlett used a mean article for good — focusing on the shame of it all — and ended up getting to MacKenzie anyway.

Who in this world hasn't been shamed for something? Your weight, your hairstyle, your skin color. It's harder to deal with those kinds of feelings if you're younger, like most of the people were that Scarlett met with.

You just don't have the emotional tools yet and those feelings can stay with you to adulthood if you don't learn to process them.

When people treat you that way long enough, you start to believe it. That's how shame wins.

MacKenzie Rhodes

• Permalink: When people treat you that way long enough, you start to believe it. That's how shame wins.

So that's what Scarlett did.

She encouraged her fans to talk about those feelings; to not let them win by being shamed into silence. It was like the old Scarlett was back; assertive but sweet, supportive but secure.

It was nice to see her with a positive outcome for once (aside from her pregnancy, zing!) because life has been handing her some lemons lately. The old Scarlett is obviously still in there. Hopefully, we see more of her from now on. 

Finally to Will. He nailed that commercial. I wouldn't be surprised if Budweiser ran it in real life. Wouldn't that be great advertising for the show? He finally seems happy and secure in his career and that has been a long time coming.

But while his career is flourishing, his relationship is a mess. There is just something about Zack that makes me think he can't be trusted.

It definitely seems that he's trying to be honest but I question whether he ever can be? Jacob had an interesting opinion of him as an uber-rich kid who thought he could buy anything.

Does he think he can buy Will? He was sure quick to sign him to his label and get him a big sponsorship.

Zack seemed sincere when he begged Will to stay and told him he loved him. He even called poor Jeff and let Will listen on speaker as he broke up with him but that seemed just seemed cruel and unnecessary.

There had to be another way for him to earn Will's trust.

Jeff was in love with him and had obviously been strung along for a while. After supposedly ignoring his calls, Zack just calls him out of the blue and breaks his heart in 30 seconds.

The only word that comes to mind is heartless. His tears were not convincing.

Isn't it scary when the whole world says you're one thing and you're not?

Jessie

• Permalink: Isn't it scary when the whole world says you're one thing and you're not?

So I still don't know what to do with him. As Will's boyfriend, I can't stand him, but as the head of Highway 65, I actually think he knows what he's doing.

I loved his idea for rolling out Maddie's album, I love that he brought Alyssa as an independent unbiased person to help with the revenue side of things, and I love his comment tonight about how what an artist sounds like is just part of their potential for success, the rest is how you feel when you look at them.

That's very intuitive, especially for someone new to the industry. That's coming from the country music fan in him. It really has me thinking maybe he can successfully lead Highway 65.

Side notes:

• Avery and Juliette's whisper fight over Cadence's head was so true to life. How many parents have done that exact thing?

• Alyssa's comments about Deacon being straight out of a novel were hilarious. Mostly because that's probably how women in Nashville see him now — the handsome widower. 

• It was so good to see Scarlett and Gunnar working together as a team again! On a related note, Gunnar can't swim. Seriously?

• Maddie and Daphne were so cute teasing Deacon about the women who are interested in him. Daphne's impression of Diane was the best!

• Avery finally made a choice for himself; he's going on tour. Unfortunately, it cut straight to Juliette's insecurities. I'm worried she's going to unravel while he's gone but I really hope I'm wrong since we just got her back from postpartum.

What did you guys think of the episode? Do you think Zack is sincere in his feelings for Will? Do you think Scarlett took a step back to her old self this week? What are your thoughts on Deacon and Jessie?

If you want to watch this episode or any others from previous seasons, you can always watch Nashville online via TV Fanatic.

Tiffany Staton is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.