Station 19 Season 7 Episode 1 Review: This Woman's Work
Jasmine Blu
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Jack Gibson will never know peace!
They didn't waste any time delving into the thick of it on Station 19 Season 7 Episode 1, and if it's one thing the premiere did, it reminds us how special this series is and how upsetting it is that we're losing it.
While the fight is still ongoing for many viewers to save the series, until then, it's evident they will take us on an emotional rollercoaster of a ride for this final season.
With Jack's life in peril and his career in the balance, Dixon's death bringing Emmett back into our orbit, and Andy grappling with her first day as chief happening while her best friend was fighting for his life, the hour was intense.
When you consider all that, Theo thriving in his f*ckboy era after canoodling with chaotic Kate in the coat room during Station 19 Season 6 Episode 18 was small potatoes.
And one of the best moments of the hour was how little Victoria Hughes gave a damn about Theo's trifling behind.
It was the most satisfying way to address that storyline, and it was far superior to her being hurt or angry. She did not care. He has exhausted her to the point of her checking out on him, and I'm so proud of her for protecting her peace.
A+, Fyra Banks.
Phyllis [to Vic]
Theo is no longer a priority, and whether or not things will remain that way for them is yet to be determined, but for now, I'm all in on Vic not allowing Theo to occupy any more space than he needs to in her life.
She was ambivalent about what he had to say, and she was perfectly fine knowing they would be working together. My girl couldn't summon a damn to give.
It flabbergasted Theo Ruiz; his facial expression will live rent-free in my head all season.
Life is too short, and there are way bigger things going on in the world to be crying over a gosh damn boy. Her Crisis One call was a perfect showcase for that.
How could you not feel for Phyllis? The woman was holding people hostage at her tech company and threatening to explode everyone, yes, but unrelenting sexism daily will drive a woman mad!
I can't think of anyone better than "Fire-a Banks" having the ability to get through to Phyllis and talk her down, and it was a great call that displayed Vic's compassion, humanity, and bravery all at once.
One of the greatest things about Vic is that she possesses all of these qualities that can often be looked down upon or seen as too "weak" or even "too feminine," and she embodies why those things are beautiful and powerful and why they make her so strong in the first place.
However, one could appreciate the filming and blocking of those scenes between these two women. It was mainly a great choice to have a literal glass wall between them as they bonded over sexism and glass ceilings in their predominately male fields.
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One way or another, that glass wall between them would be shattered, but the method in which it was is what was cause for concern.
And if the nature of the case and how it related to the series' constant and unflinching exploration of sexism wasn't apparent enough, Phyllis' rescue was more powerful when you consider Andy was running the call, Maya rappelled her down to rescue her, and Vic put in all that work and nearly got blown up in the process.
The women of Station 19 are badass, and if we can't take anything else away from this series and its lasting impression, it's that women are complex, wonderful, flawed, powerful beings. Despite what can appear like insurmountable obstacles regularly, we can get to the other side.
We saw that a bit with Natasha Ross as well.
It speaks volumes that despite everything that happened during that floor collapse, the lives lost, including Dixon, and other matters, the news still couldn't resist disparaging her name and gossiping about her.
Who Natasha was sleeping with should've been the least of anyone's worries.
But I loved Ben Warren, ever the person who casually speaks his mind and pulls a person up short, dropping that gem to Sullivan about whether or not he'd be okay with realizing that Ross could lose her job because of him.
Despite everything Ross has gone through, it still didn't feel like this fact was clicking for Sullivan, especially when he got on her case so much about their relationship.
Warren: Are you going to be okay?
Sullivan: It's not me losing his job.
Warren: No, I mean are you going to be okay that you're the reason she's losing hers?
But Ross gets to keep her position while playing the political game as the mayor is content with challenging the rule itself rather than Ross for breaking it.
And he's right about it being a stupid rule if we have two consenting adults in a relationship like this. The attacks on Ross have been strictly driven by bias and nothing else.
They wouldn't go after a man this hard, especially a white male.
But it seems that maybe all of this is worth it for Natasha since Sullivan is adamant about the two of them getting married.
She's right about Sullivan only bringing up marriage in the heat of the moment when they've endured some heavy stuff together.
If he's serious about this, he should officially pop the question to her on a Tuesday. Their exchange was cute enough, and maybe we'll get another Station 19 wedding.
Like Vic, there was way too much on Andy Herrera's plate to be preoccupied with anything else insignificant.
While it's likely that Theo will have some ill will toward her for getting the captaincy, it was a relief to see that Maya had gotten over it.
Maya: It's not enough to be strong; you have to be tough. We don't have the luxury of screwing up.
Hallucination Jack: I hate to admit it, but she's right.
We even got a great Andy and Maya scene together and a hallucination of Jack.
Maya knows she had an uphill battle in the position, and several factors contributed to her losing the captaincy.
Yes, some of it was an error on his part, but it was also much bigger than her fumbling. And she knows that and understands that passing the baton on to Andy, in a way, is important.
Unfortunately, Andy will have the weight of the entire department and everything on her shoulders because any slip-up she makes will be judged thrice as much as a woman and woman of color.
If she makes any major screw-up, they'll go back to the status quo of filling these positions of power with men and never look back with the notion that they gave "diversity hires" a chance and failed or didn't live up to it.
Andy: I'm going to be the best damn captain the station has ever seen!
Hallucination Jack: Now you get it.
Maya was straight to the point with what she said, but it was precisely what Andy needed to hear and a reminder that she'll have playing in her mind.
The parallels between Andy and Natasha are great because, through Natasha, Andy gets to see how hard it is to navigate these positions of power as a woman of color.
Of course, as on point as Maya's advice was, it also fueled the fire for Andy, who was already dealing with insecurities and second-guessing.
She knows she deserves this and is adamant about it, but the imposter syndrome will always creep in anyway.
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Her subconscious manifested via Jack, questioning her moves and picking away at everything she was most insecure about.
He was also hilarious at times!
I'm happy she could quell that voice in her head via her seriously injured best friend, and by the end, it seemed he was pleased that she asserted herself.
Her assertion that she would be the best captain ever was a bit overdramatic, but one respects the sentiment all the same.
We'll have the version of Andy devoted to the job and trying to reach this high bar she's set for herself.
She's spent so long on the sidelines talking about how she'd do things, and now she gets to show it, but it's never as simple as it seems, which could be a compelling thing to explore for her further.
Of all the storylines squeezed into the hour, Travis Montgomery's was the sexiest and hottest, no doubt, but the most underwhelming, too.
It's always great to see Emmett because he's a great character, and it was a good follow-up after Dixon's death.
Travis getting to tell Emmett about Dixon's last words and extending some version of closure through that was emotional.
Emmett: What did happen? She said you were with him.
Travis: He was under a slab a concrete, we worked to get him out of it, but he was calm. He talked about you.
Emmett deserved to have his father tell him those things to his face. It likely feels like so much wasted time not having his father's unconditional love and acceptance.
But then it felt as if Travis, who knows better, exploited Emmett's grief with that super hot makeout session and a sex scene that reminded us of the perks of having the ten o'clock timeslot.
Not only did Travis cheat on Eli, but he didn't tell Emmett about Eli, and Emmett is vulnerable and grieving.
It's a messy situation all around.
Also, Travis tends to have some frustrating storylines a lot of the time. They've beaten the infidelity trope to death.
But at least our other queer pairing is living their best lives right now. It's just so satisfying to see Carina DeLuca and Maya in a happy and healthy place in their relationship.
They've been through hell and back together. And it was amusing to hear Carina try to voice that very thing by saying everything feels clearer now.
They're making choices that make you feel like their life together is just beginning.
The two of them definitely deserve to find themselves in a house where they can bring some of both of them to it and make it their home.
It's a great sign for them, letting the apartment and all the negative memories go and having a fresh start in a new place.
Let's be his moms.
Maya
Also, it speaks to how serious they are about their parenthood journey, that they want a house big enough for their kids.
It all feels so promising, and regardless of how things play out for the series, by now, I can trust and believe that they'll have one of the best outcomes and closure.
It was also a mark of Maya Bishop's growth and how far she's come in her healing journey, as she was the one to bring up adopting baby Liam.
It's something that Carina probably needed to hear. She got that confirmation that Maya is just as committed to starting a family with her as she is.
Maya is in her work/life balance era, and we love to see it!
It wouldn't be Station 19 if these two adopted Liam, which wouldn't be an emotional process that probably tests them and becomes a rollercoaster for them.
There is nothing easy about the adoption process on a good day for the average couple, let alone a same-sex one consisting of two women with their professions.
But I'm all in on following them through this journey together.
Carina: This clears up some things.
Maya: About what?
Carina: Us.
Maya: You weren't clear about us before?
They can also do right by Liam and his mother, and it's a beautiful way to honor her.
But back to Jack. Why can't that man ever have good things?
As heartbreaking as it is, it makes sense that they're going down the route of him with CTE.
It's something that does happen to individuals in the profession, and yet it's rarely explored in a storyline like this.
I just hate that Jack Gibson eats, breathes, and sleeps being a firefighter, and I can't envision what his life will be like outside of that.
He is not going to take this news well at all. It's the biggest challenge he'll have to face, and hopefully, he'll have his Station 19 family to get him through it, along with Martha, who was a gem this installment.
She had every right to go off about not getting a phone call immediately when she's the closest he's had to actual family outside of that station.
Andy calling Jack's biological sister, whom he barely spent time with and didn't even show up, was weird.
However, this incident showed how important he is to her and Warren especially, and it was nice to hear how close Warren's kids are to Jack.
Jack will never be the same after this, and it's a tough pill to swallow. What does life look like for him if he can't fight fires anymore?
Over to you, Station 19 Fanatics.
Are you thrilled that Maya and Carina are adopting Liam? What are your thoughts on Jack's career-ending condition? Sound off below if you haven't already; you can make your voice heard by signing the Save Station 19 petition.
You can watch Station 19 on ABC on Thursdays at 10/BC. You can stream the following day on Hulu.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
