Station 19 Season 3 Episode 7 Review: Satellite of Love
Jessica Lerner
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Is anyone else still reeling?
That was one heated episode, despite the poor special effects.
It may be too early to call, but Station 19 Season 3 Episode 7 proved to the best episode of season thus far.
Whatever magic went into putting all of this together better stay because Station 19 Season 3 has been on metaphorical fire for a few episodes straight. (That was the last bad fire pun, I swear.)
Having no idea where to start, let's just stick with the protagonist of the series for now.
Andy is in a complete downward spiral, and it seems as though nothing can snap her out of it.
She's engaging in destructive behavior and pushing away everyone who loves her.
It's understandable that Andy's lashing out at everyone around her, especially given recent events.
She's still dealing with the trauma of losing Ryan, and now she has to deal with the reality of her father dying.
She wants to be angry at Pruitt for keeping his cancer and prognosis from her and not seeking treatment, but she can't.
Andy: Why is it so hard for you?
Sullivan: What?
Andy: The truth. That you gave my promotion to Maya because you knew about my dad, and you kept it from me, which makes you a bad boss and a worse friend.
Sullivan: Yep, I did do all of that. Andy, I’m in trouble, and I don’t know who else to talk to about it. But you are who I want to talk to because I’m in love with you. And I’ve been in love with you … it feels like forever, and I’m failing at it. I’m failing at loving you. I’m failing at protecting you. I’m failing at being your boss. I’m failing at being your friend. I’m … I’m sorry, and I want to talk. Can we talk?
Andy: I can’t be angry at my dad because he is dying, but you’re perfectly healthy.
As Andy explained to Sullivan, she can't be angry at her father for dying, so she's just going to be angry at everyone else.
It seems the only person she can tolerate is Jack, and that might have a little something to do with the friends-with-benefits/no-strings-attached flirtationship they have going on.
Andy's still icing out Maya, though she took her outrage to new levels by going off on her former best friend in front of the entire firehouse.
She even rebuffed Sullivan's declaration of love, something she was begging him to admit just months before.
It's safe to say Andy isn't in the right headspace, and maybe Pruitt knew what was right for his daughter after all.
Meddling in her personal life wasn't right, but he could sense Andy would go off the deep end sooner or later, and he was right.
Andy hasn't hit rock bottom yet, but it's only a matter of time before she does, leaving a wake of destruction in her path.
Andy: This is the last, last time. We can’t be roommates who have sex.
Jack: Lots of roommates have sex.
Andy: Yeah, they’re called married couples.
She's in real trouble, but no one around her seems to notice.
It's as if her friends and family are just willing to accept that she's in a bad place and are either hoping to weather out the storm or don't know the depth of her suffering.
Andy does a good job of projecting confidence and bravado, but it's all a charade.
Breaking down in front of Sullivan on Station 19 Season 3 Episode 6 was the closest viewers have seen to Andy dealing with her emotions healthily since the whole ordeal began.
Now, though, it seems she's more willing to drown her sorrows in bad choices than admit she needs help.
It's going to take something drastic to snap her out of her head, and I fear things will only get worse for Andy before they get better.
As for getting better, it seems as though Sullivan might finally be willing to admit he has a problem.
While he's not necessarily ready to disclose his medical condition, he did go to Andy with the intent of telling her about his newfound recreational activities.
Sullivan: Herrera, hey, uh, I need to know how you’re doing.
Andy: The blizzard … it was an emotional night.
Sullivan: Yes.
Andy: I’d never delivered a baby before.
Sullivan: Right.
Andy: And my dad.
Sullivan: Yeah.
Andy: Warren’s little show put us behind so I’m gonna go.
Sullivan: Andy, it matters to me how you are. If there’s anything I can do…
Andy: Uh, thanks. I’m OK, chief.
Drug use is a slippery slope, and if shooting up at work doesn't say you have a problem, maybe overdosing in your office will.
Sullivan's lucky Emmett found him when the new probie did. If not for Emmett administering the Narcan, Sullivan might have joined Ripley on the other side.
Yes, the late fire chief reprised his role, though it was only within the confines of Sullivan's mind as a drug-induced hallucination.
It was great to see Ripley again as the voice of reason.
Ripley and Sullivan go way back, and despite some rough patches over the years -- namely Sullivan blaming Ripley for his late wife's death -- they were always there for each other when it counted.
So it makes perfect sense that even from beyond the grave, Ripley would be there to help his friend see the light.
Though Sullivan brushed aside his close call with death to Emmett, by the end of the episode, he was ready to ask for help.
Like they say, "The first step is admitting you have a problem."
Sullivan appears to have accepted he does have a problem, but it doesn't seem as though he's ready to admit he's an addict.
Ripley: What happened to you?
Sullivan: Um, I have this nerve thing in my leg.
Ripley: No, no, Bob, your moral compass. I must have tried 30 times to make you have second beer and look at you now, literally shooting up in your own firehouse.
Sullivan: It’s … it’s pain. It’s real. I mean …
Ripley: Hey, hey, whose pain isn’t real? Surely, you’re starting to get that. And even if you do everything perfectly, follow every rule by the letter, life still hands you some pretty bitter lemons. But you just keep that bitter face on. What a waste. You see, all you need is what you’ve always needed Bob: more sugar.
He gets that he can no longer use Fentanyl to dull the pain but appears unwilling to admit to himself just how deep-seated of an issue this truly is.
Hopefully, Sullivan will get some sense knocked into him when he stops by to see Grey's Anatomy's Dr. Amelia Shepherd, neurosurgeon extrastriate and recovering addict, on the next episode.
As for getting some sense knocked into them, what the heck is JJ thinking?
Does she really think up and abandoning her own daughter just because she has reservations about parenthood is a good excuse?
She just showed up out of nowhere on Dean's doorstep less than two months ago, eight months pregnant, and now she's once again leaving, seemingly out of nowhere.
Wouldn't it have saved her some time and effort just to leave her daughter on the doorstep of Dean's houseboat instead, as that would have been just as cold-blooded and heartless.
JJ hasn't always been the best influence on Dean, but the life lessons she shared with her daughter and Dean made it seem as if she was trying to change.
Sure, some of JJ's "lessons" seemed a little off base at first, but maybe it was just the ramblings of a tired new mother.
Dean: What are you doing?
JJ: Leaving.
Dean: You’re leaving with the baby?
JJ: No.
Dean: Wait, you’re leaving us? You’re gonna leave her? Hey, OK, hey look, I’m sorry. I think this is just hormones. I didn’t mean anything I said before.
JJ: I was never planning to stay. I wanted her to know you, and I wanted to give you the choice. You can give her up for adoption if you want, but I don’t think you will ‘cuz you’re such a good guy. Look, you are gonna be such a good dad. You’re way more cut out for this than I am.
Dean: I’m not. Hey, I’m really not. I can’t do this.
JJ: Hey, tell her I love her.
Dean: JJ, you can’t.
JJ: Tell her I know myself too well. Look, I won’t be a good mom.
Dean: JJ.
JJ: Tell her to look me up when she’s 16 or 17 if she wants because I can hang with a teenager, but not a baby.
Dean: Please, please, please, just for a second, just wait. OK? I’ve seen you with her. I see the way you look at her your face lights up.
JJ: Everyone’s face lights up when they look at babies. I am not a mother. Look, you don’t want me in her life, trust me.
Dean: Please.
JJ: Give her a good name, Dean, and give her a good life.
Nope, it was the wisdom JJ would have imparted on her daughter and Dean if she had bothered to stick around that she tried to cram down their throats in four days.
JJ doesn't think of herself as "mother material," but most parents probably feel that way at first.
No one goes into parenthood expecting it to be easy, but running away before things get hard is just taking the coward's way out.
JJ thinks she's doing what's best for her daughter, but what's best for that baby is to have her mother around.
No one is expecting JJ to be the perfect parent, least of all Dean, but she bolted before she could prove them wrong.
What's more, her disappearing act is also unfair to Dean, who, until a few weeks ago, didn't know he was going to be a father.
He was willing to turn his life upside down to make this work, and all JJ was willing to do was share some life tips with their daughter. It really puts things into perspective.
Emmett: Look Joe, I really don’t want to have to go and get any of the other guys here. I’m new, I’m the chief’s son, and they’re gonna think I’m dumb if I have to ask them how to get rid of you. So can you please just do me this solid and …
Joe: Firefighter Dixon, I sleep on the ground. I have painful gout and no medication for it. my kids haven’t spoken to me in over a decade. My last good friend stole my tent from me, and the one before that died right in front of me. I suffered through a blizzard last week, and there was no room in the shelter. A blizzard in Seattle, which if anyone were paying attention is a terrifying reflection on the state of the planet. Everything I just listed is a real problem. “The other guys will think I’m dumb” is not a real problem.
It'll be interesting to see how Dean deals with raising his daughter as a single parent.
He doesn't have his biological family to lean on, but fortunately, he has his firehouse family, who will be more than willing to rise to the occasion.
Some stray thoughts:
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Good on Maya for finally standing up for herself. She may not have been Station 19's first choice for captain, but now that she has the position, she does deserve their respect.
She's still new to the position and learning how to lead, but she shouldn't have to deal with disrespectful offhanded comments and insubordination. Like it or not, Maya is the captain, and the rest of Station 19 needs to fall in line.
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If Rigo survives, he and Jack shouldn't be allowed to work together. They claimed to be grown ups about the whole situation, but it's clear them being on the same shift puts the entire firehouse at risk.
These firefighters should be worried about saving the lives of other people, not whether their own lives will be in jeopardy because of bad blood between colleagues.
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When Vic mentioned she had been evicted, I thought the story was heading toward her moving in with either Andy and Jack or just Andy. They all could end up being roomies at some point, but for now, it seems Vic is more than comfortable at casa de Avery.
It's a pretty sweet deal when you think about it, though Jackson might not be too happy when he realizes Vic moved in without discussing it with him first.
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Sure, Emmett is the new fire chief's son, but I like him. Yes, he's privileged and naive, but it seems like his heart is in the right place, most of the time. Plus, he appears to be a new love interest for Travis, and Travis does deserve some good luck in the romance department after everything he's been through.
So what did you think Station 19 Fanatics?
When will Andy hit rock bottom?
Will Sullivan follow through and accept help for his addiction?
Have we seen the last of JJ?
Don't forget to hit the comments below to let me know your thoughts. If you missed the latest episode, remember you can watch Station 19 online at TV Fanatic.
Jessica Lerner was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in October 2021.
