We all run into bad luck, but when you can't shake that bad luck off, it's normal to wonder if something bigger might be at play.

Is it karma? Are you being punished for some wrongdoing you once committed? Or perhaps it's nothing that sinister, and you're genuinely just finding yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

9-1-1 Season 6 Episode 7 is all about the idea of being cursed, following an actress who finds herself in increasingly dire situations after purchasing a supposedly invaluable artifact. But this is 9-1-1 people. Things are never quite as they seem.

9-1-1 Season 6 has been heavy all around. Sure, there have been lighter moments, and having the 118 back together has been more than enough, but there's also been an awful lot of sadness.

But that all changes during this hour, which is literally all jokes. And it's been a minute since an hour leaned deliberately into the lighter aspects of the series shamelessly.

Felisa's story runs throughout the hour, with the young actress plagued by near-death experience after near-death experience. It's pretty wild how quickly things seem to spiral for her minutes after she receives this stupidly expensive bracelet that looks like something you could purchase at a Christmas Bazaar for $12.

Sprinkles of information inform us that Felisa was a bit of a troubled Hollywood starlet at one point. It appears that she's trying to make amends for past behavior and cleanse the bad vibes that have been following her.

And that's all well and good to want to make a change, but you're better off just trying to put positive energy out into the universe and not expecting an expensive gimmick to change your fortune suddenly.

Chimney: Don't mind Eddie. He's unnaturally resistant to anything supernatural.
Eddie: Prove to me something is real, I'll believe in it.
Chimney: I feel you're confused at the definition of belief.

Permalink: I feel you're confused at the definition of belief.

The 118 meet Felisa over the various emergencies, which gives us lots of time to check back in with Eddie Diaz, a non-believer of anything supernatural,

Large ensemble shows will always struggle with screen time and finding the best ways to incorporate various storylines into an hour. So far, Eddie's character has probably suffered the most, as he hasn't really had a ton to do.

The back half of 9-1-1 Season 5 was a dark time for Eddie, and when this season has focused on Eddie, it's shown him to be more at ease and at peace with himself and his job. That's been nice to see, but he was long overdue for an extended storyline which we got here and then some.

Eddie has always operated on a plane of realism. Maybe there's a higher power out there, but is that power spending its time trying to kill a woman and disrupt a firehouse?

Eddie's skepticism completely contrasts with almost everyone else, who starts to believe in the curse as things continue to go from bad to worse. Not just for Felisa but at the station as well.

Chimney: Oh no.
Hen: What?
Chimney: That's that damn bracelet. Do you think it heard me trash-talking it?
Hen: I don't think it has ears.

Permalink: I don't think it has ears.

There's something to be said for Felisa's resilience as these emergencies put her through the wringer. It's insane to think that a chandelier falling on you is just the start of a very crappy few days.

But a fake bracelet cursing Felisa was too tidy a story to tell here. The bigger picture, of course, had to involve a bumbling grifter and an opportunistic assistant. Sidenote, if ANYONE was truly cursed, it was that grifter.

They kind of gloss over the whole Alexis of it all, as Eddie seems to be the only one concerned about the fact she's stealing from her friend. And yes, the bigger issue is the grifter who almost murders multiple people on his quest to save himself, but Alexis' deception is a big deal.

Felisa seems stuck on the idea of almost feeling like she deserved what happened to her. Like her past somehow makes it okay for Alexis to steal from her, like a form of comeuppance. It's sad to see her so resigned to what's happened, but she has to work that out in her own time and in her own way.

Eddie, ever the pragmatic one, can't let anything go, and he has to meet with Felisa on the beach to drive home the idea that we can't live our lives in fear. Eddie's been through hell and back and lived to tell the tale, and he's not allowing the terrifying moments he endured to dictate how he lives his life.

It's a pretty profound moment to see Eddie and Christopher on the beach when you think about the trajectory of the series. A place that harbors so much pain for them could easily be something they'd want to avoid. But instead, they faced it, embraced it, and allowed it to just exist with them instead of scaring them.

It's a lovely little coda for Eddie and feels like a jumping-off point for him to maybe stop seeing things as so black and white. It's okay to put on those rose-colored glasses sometimes.

Amidst Felisa's struggles, Buck has problems regarding his sperm donation. And I'll be honest, those few weeks removed from this storyline were a blessing.

Everything about Buck's decision feels rushed, and I'm still waiting for him to have another conversation with the people who know him best, especially when he's totally sober.

Again, this hour is very light, so when the team finds out, it's all funny ha-ha, and Buck gets a mini-interrogation in the firetruck before it's dropped. And that doesn't feel true to the fire family. Yes, they are nosy and would eavesdrop; that's on-brand. But they're more concerned with Hen not telling them than what Buck's about to do.

And no, it's not their business. Buck doesn't need to go to them and seek their approval, but as we've seen over the years, they're a close-knit bunch that values each other's opinions. They're family, and even when they're being stubborn, they still listen and appreciate one another.

Maybe a talk is coming, but as it stands right now, Buck is on-board with his decision, and that's just all there is to it. And we're meant to feel that even more when we see Buck sprint across the city to get to the sperm donor office on time.

But Buck's insistence on going through with this is having the opposite effect on me and making me believe more and more that this isn't going to work out the way he thinks it will.

Buck has such a pure heart. This is a man that believes a few weeks of clean living will suddenly erase an entire lifetime of everything else. He wants everything to be perfect for Connor and Kameron, which is a lovely thought, but it makes me nervous about what could happen when things inevitably aren't.

Because things are never perfect. And what happens to Buck if it all falls apart?

Loose Ends

Hen is back! I love that Bobby went all out with a feast for her return, even bringing Athena to the firehouse to welcome her back. Things will always be better when the whole team is together.

I hope those two random people who weren't cool enough to join in the toast for Hen at the end of 9-1-1 Season 6 Episode 5 know that Hen is back at the 118. I'm sure they will be delighted.

Buck and Hen talking about sperm and NSFW topics at WORK. Totally appropriate.

Eddie and Athena are such a good duo. The two biggest realists of them all, they're great sounding boards for each other.

I love an Abuela mention, even if the story we got was incredibly sad. I'm glad Eddie called her at the end to chat. I'm petitioning to bring Abeula back to LA!

Felisa's worst emergency had to be the wax. Wax just rendering you blind and slowly suffocating you has to be horrifying. Though obviously, being trapped in your vehicle while hot asphalt traps you inside is also terrible.

Chimney and all things supernatural is too funny. And I love how he basically riles everyone up with his conspiracies. Chimney is never afraid to admit that he's afraid.

Now why in the world would Connor and Kameron think it appropriate to come to Buck's job and ask him why he hasn't given up his sperm yet?

Bobby and Athena being all flirty in the firehouse. They will always be the most adorable couple.

The music selections this season are like nothing I remember from the past. I don't know what's changed there, but keep it up. Music adds a lot to certain scenes.

There were a lot of laugh-out-loud moments in an episode that was overall just the right amount of comical. We're approaching the midseason finale quickly, and I'm not all that sure what some of the character's season-long arcs are supposed to be, but I am enjoying the ride nonetheless.

Drop me a line in the comments and let me know what you thought about the hour, and as always, watch 9-1-1 online via TV Fanatic if you need to catch up!