#911 discourse

[adhdevankinard]

Buck Buckley is such an immediate ick for me. Not his name.

[nqueso-lies]

If Eddie does get a love interest I will be defending her with my life because those fans are gonna be so annoying about her I’m hoping it’s a character we already know tbh!

Same. She'd already so dear to me

[lavieestbellemonamourx]

I’ve probably read close to 1000 9-1-1 fanfics and somehow have yet to come across one that deals with Buck’s PTSD from the truck bombing that doesn’t specifically relate to his leg being crushed. He was pinned under a ladder truck while his father figure was trying to prevent a raging lunatic from blowing them all up. The entire focus after the truck bombing seemed to be on his physical recovery. It would be really interesting to read something that addresses this since the show chose to gloss over it.

[sherlocking-out-loud]

Ryan is truly secure in his place as Tim’s special little boy so unless one of the network executives or Angela decides they’re tired of him he’s sadly not going anywhere.

For shame that there’s so many crazy talented actors that can barely book commercials and here he is working with literal legends with a meh attitude.

yeah, it's really unfair that a mid actor with such a poor attitude and so little gratitude gets to keep his job, while so many talented actors never get a proper shot.

I don't understand what Tim (or is it Ryan Murphy? I can't remember who offered RG the part on 911), sees in him and why they keep him around, even after his "tantrums".

[johanna-swann]

I'm still thinking about this, so I'm gonna make it another post: The 118 family, the characters, actually don't think of Buck as "just" a child. He's the youngest main, he's emotional, he's impulsive, but they respect his talents and enjoy his company. This has been established over the seasons 1-7. Other characters go to him for advice, especially Eddie, they ask him for help with projects like baby-proofing an apartment or fixing a dry wall, they invite him for outings (ren-fair with Hen), they trust him with big responsibilities (the will tm, parenting tips), all that.

But it appears the people behind the show forgot about this. They're suddenly giving interviews where they describe Buck's behaviour as immature, his negative emotions as tantrums and his role in Eddie's life as that of a second child. It's like the writers are retconning Buck's entire character development since before canon even started because even Buck 1.0 was more of an adult than what they're describing these days. It sucks so much because I enjoy Buck's storylines, but nowadays he usually just ends up looking stupid, childish or gets into situation that are so awkward that I can't even watch those scenes because they give second-hand embarrassment on a cosmic scale.

Can we please get the version of Buck back that he was in season 5 or 6? Because he felt like an actual main character. Season 8 and some of season 7 Buck felt like a two-dimensional, caricaturesque comic relief character.

[kinardsevan]

While we're on the subject, one of my favourite random fun facts about oliver is that he works with a charity that takes care of firefighters' health. He pays for their workout equipment for example. He's by far not the one who earns the most on that show but he does so much, I think he doesn't get enough credit but so much shit for nothing, this fandom is so weird sometimes

this fandom is also made up of people who are all ages across the spectrum, which is part of what makes it problematic.

...it's hard for me. because I came out of the NCIS fandom (into the 911 fandom, I mean) as someone who joined in at 19, and fell in love with Michael Weatherly. I loved the show so much that I enjoyed the features on the DVD sets (yes, I'm showing my age, but shut up 😂), and I remember him specifically talking about how the show used to be a popular thing for people of a certain age (read: people in their 30s and 40s), but by s8, 9, 10, people had been watching the show so long that their kids had grown up on it, and now these 15, 16, 17 year-old's were into the show as well. 911 is nearing that area, and we also have the issue that those who create for the BoBs are often sharing stuff that suggests the two are together without actually confirming that it is in fact a fanon ship. so then you have young people entering the fandom, seeing what they're reading as queer storytelling that simply hasn't been acted upon, only for characters like Ana, Marisol, and Taylor to come into play and frustrate them. But at the time, that's okay, because they're all women.

Like, it's not lost one me why all shit went to hell in a few weeks back in April 2024. for an entire class of fans of this show, buddie was always the answer. even when Tommy was first brought in, it was celebrated because "holy fuck, Evan Buckley is canonically bisexual. they finally pulled the trigger!" further, as a fandom member (and especially if you're in the "other" fandom, as I so lovingly refer to them), this is a pawn you have to play. you have to have a bad hand that you lay down so that you can get in the door, right? someone you get to throw on the sword so that you can come out the other side and achieve the point of "we're here. we made it. now lets get down to real business".

except. people like LFJr. fans like Tommy. if you're someone like me, who was GA right up until then, you had no reading on buddie, never shipped it, but then came in with the pilot and said "let him stay, we like this one". OR, maybe you were already here, and you never shipped buddie. OR maybe you had shipped buddie at one point, but something about Tommy (or the toxicity of the other side, or a million other reasons), pulled you into this side of the fandom. either way, twice now, both GA and fandom have told TM & Co., we like Tommy and we like Lou, and we want him to stay. further, we like bucktommy, and we want to keep them. that's a big threat to those in the buddie fandom.

you know what's even harder to contend with?

when you're 19, and you think the love story you've been following for years isn't going to be given to you. I've said a lot recently, I was in the Ezria fandom. I did NOT like RG coming into that ship and disrupting things. (I didn't like any of the others either, but the spurious connection between both shows still makes me laugh). I was the 19 year old in 2012 when 2b aired for PLL that was like "Fuck you mean Ezria is gonna break up? that her parents won't support it?" let me be so for real too by telling you that I never watched PLL LESS than when they were broken up in seasons four and five.

I know I've taken this conversation so off the rails in a completely different direction 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 but I say it all to make the point that, I understand the BoBs. but that doesn't mean I support what they've said or agree with it. I definitely don't agree with the bullying, because I was never a part of that crap when I was watching PLL. ship what you want, absolutely. but keep it to the fandom spaces. your posts don't belong on OS, RG, or LFJr's instagram/twitter/bluesky, etc posts, telling them that you don't like one of them or that you think they should die or that you're coming for them.

also, kids, as an elder(ish) millennial, let me remind you that what you put on the internet is out there forever (or at least until a server crashes 🤣). maybe think about that the next time you wanna tell an actor to go off themselves (or that you're going to do it or them).

[thetrialsandtribulationsofeb]

i genuinely don’t understand how being afraid of GA’s reaction to buddie might be a reason for them not to become canon, just like being afraid of making them canon because they’d lose their will-they-won’t-they appeal. if you think about it, there’s actually a vacant spot for a gay couple on the show since michael and david left, and buck and tommy broke up. and also, after the bi-buck canonization, they did lose some of the audience, yes - but they also gained some. just look at how quickly people jumped on the bucktommy ship. and at least this time, with buddie, the ship would actually be worth it - it would be a beautiful relationship based on years of friendship and shared values, instead of whatever the shitshow bucktommy was

plus, i don’t see a problem with “suddenly making eddie gay,” because, first of all, they already gave one of their main characters a bi-awakening recently, and it went pretty well in terms of GA’s reaction. sure, there were some negative opinions, but overall GA accepted it, and it could’ve been way worse. which is a good thing - thank god society is more open-minded now than it was even ten years ago. secondly, they had michael realize his sexuality in his 50s, and tommy is another character who spent most of his life in the closet and was in a relationship with a woman before coming out. if they give depth to eddie’s gay awakening, i do believe the GA will get it. and yeah, maybe more people will fall out - but they’ll be replaced by a new audience who’ll be excited about a queer friends-to-lovers canonization

and lastly, yes, making eddie gay is “risky” because “there will be too many queer characters,” but also… considering how pointless and frustrating his relationships with women have been, and how - statistically - half of the main characters on the show are still canonically straight: bobby, athena, chimney, and maddie (we can headcanon all we want, but textually there’s not much to suggest most of them are queer). meanwhile, in eddie’s case, people can write entire essays on why he’s queer, using multiple moments from the show as evidence. it will make sense, if they handle it right

so if they make buddie canon, there would be two straight main pairings and two queer main pairings (one wlw and one mlm). that’s literally the perfect ratio for a major network tv show

and it’s just kind of funny how the writers or producers - or both - think that making buddie canon is some huge risk, but then they kill off the main character, who was also GA’s favorite, on a show that was known and loved for its found family trope and for keeping its characters alive - which is what set it apart from other procedural dramas. and it’s very funny to scroll through 911’s social media accounts, because the comments are just a complete mess. like kenny said, no one is happy. and no one cares about the new spinoff. if i were abc, i’d be so embarrassed. like, how do you mess it up this badly? and now they’re just ignoring the backlash and acting like it’s all fine. but every promo tactic feels awkward and fake because everyone is still running on disappointment and can’t fully believe in the show’s bright future anymore

honestly, the only way to save themselves is to bring bobby back (even if it’s ridiculous writing-wise) and make buddie canon in season 9 - not a season later. ’cause after everything they did with these characters in season 8, it would just be stupid and illogical for them not to end up together. again, it’s like if nick and jess or ross and rachel never kissed after all that romantic buildup. you can’t write two characters with textbook will-they-won’t-they energy and then never acknowledge it. i know it happened before with both straight and queer ships, but how long will this go on? when will they learn that it’s bad storytelling and frustrating for the audience?

and shutting buddie down once and for all won’t work at this point - it’s too late. if they both stay single forever or get into yet another flat and pointless relationships, it won’t land. hell, even if they do write good, interesting relationships for both of them, it’ll still feel disappointing, because buddie will forever be the ship that got away. it’s like if amy and jake married other people. or like robin and barney divorcing and ted and robin ending up together (some people liked it, sure, but most fans are still mad about that ending to this day)

and if bobby stays dead and buddie never happens, they’ll probably lose like… 80% of the audience. the only ones who’ll stay are the casual viewers who watch it in the background and don’t think too deeply about the story, and the die-hard fans who are too emotionally invested to quit. and that would go down as one of the stupidest acts of self-sabotage in tv history. but if they bring back bobby-peter and make buddie canon, it could actually become one of the most interesting, talked-about tv moments in a long time

so if i were abc, i’d be talking some serious sense into the writers and doing everything i could to save my ratings and my fanbase. because the marketing they’re using now won’t work in the long run

but only time will tell which direction this story takes

[stolenkissesdiaz]

tommy calling buck ‘evan’ during their entire relationship and the first, and only time, he calls him buck is after he breaks up with him. eddie calling buck ‘evan’ only once and it was when he gave buck his goddamn son. the only time tommy called him buck was before leaving and the only time eddie called him evan was when he gave buck proof of him and chris staying. of them wanting buck. of them keeping buck. id say “which could meaning nothing!” but it actually means everything.

[mid-knight-black]

There is something so heartbreakingly beautiful about Chris comforting his Buck 🥹

[we always talk about how much Buck cares about Chris but we don’t talk enough about how much Chris loves Buck 😭😭😭]

[nqueso-lies]

Reblog with @gayjaytodd tags cause exactly

Welp. Since he said it.

[wikiangela]

athena bringing Bobby home to his children, when he always wanted to see them again and be with them again, was such a beautiful act of love and sacrifice. she can't even visit his grave and be close to him without flying to Minnesota, she loved him so much and she knew what he would want. it's such a devastating and heartbreaking choice and an act of love and im forever gonna cry about it.

bathena truly are (were 😭) the best couple ever, nothing will ever compare to their love 😭

[itsametaphorok]

What gets me about what Eddie said to Buck is he means it. Eddie is grieving and he’s angry so I get why he’s lashing out at Buck. But we’ve seen Eddie say “you make everything about you” to Buck multiple times now throughout the show. In situations where he’s angry but also when he’s already calmed down. He’s not just lashing out to hurt Buck, he reallly thinks Buck makes everything about himself.

And not only is that an uncharitable thing to think about your best friend, it’s also just wrong most of the time.

I think that’s what bothers me. Like yes, Eddie lashing out when he’s hurt or angry himself is a problem, but the bigger issue for me is he really thinks Buck is selfish and self centered.

[newtkelly]

here’s what i think. i think that if you watch a drama about first responders who risk their lives on a daily basis, but you watch it because you think it’s a slow burn romance because someone online told you it was, and then you turn around and claim that the show is “making fun of you” or “laughing in your face” or being “cruel to the fandom” - well, i think you’ve probably convinced yourself that this show is something that it isn’t.

people die. firefighters die. and you know what, babies and children die. to think that bobby’s beautiful full-circle story was anything but carefully crafted - we’re not watching the same show. like, we can’t be. you’re watching edits on tiktok. you’re watching week to week and clinging to anything that feeds the machine. 9-1-1, from season one (skipped by many apparently, which is a damn shame), has never shied away from the darkness of the human existence, and it never will. this show isn’t what you’ve told yourself it is. there’s nothing to be afraid of, though - you can enjoy darkness, you can appreciate it. no one is pranking you. no one is laughing at you. you can enjoy it for what it is. think your own thoughts.

[kinardsevan]

Buddie this, Ryliver that.

Let us come together and ship Ryan with a fucking acting coach cause lord knows we’d all be better off with it.

🤣🤣🤣🤣

I know it's been a minute since you've sent this, but as we all know...I've been busy.

I've never loved or hated Ryan (except for when i was 19 and he was on PLL and I was under the delusion that Ezria was normal/healthy/legal/etc). I don't have a specific opinion on his acting abilities.

What I *do* have a specific opinion on, is his ability to understand that if you're gonna put hands on someone in an acting format, you have to at least fucking mention that you want to TRY SOMETHING. I'm not even saying bro had to tell Oli what he was going to do. Jim Caviezel didn't tell TPH that he was going to kiss her on her last episode of Person of Interest as a main. He said he had an idea and wanted to try it. She said "don't tell me, just do it". BUT SHE STILL HAD INFORMED CONSENT.

Intimacy coordinators have jobs for a reason. Actors have UNIONS for a reason. Shit like this isn't cute. It's straight up violence. And even if Oliver brushed it off as soon as it was over, many of the rest of us didn't. Because at the end of the day, it's not about him specifically if he ultimately came out of the situation okay. It's about the deeper connotations of what those actions suggest is acceptable in the long-run.

Hitting, or even threatening to hit someone, even in a workplace environment, is not acceptable in the slightest.

(Sorry, I'll come back down off my soapbox.)

[thetrialsandtribulationsofeb]

the main reason i fell in love with 9-1-1 is because it had that long-forgotten vibe of long-running comfort shows from the 2010s (modern family, brooklyn 9-9, new girl, etc)

first of all, shows like these usually have the perfect balance between depth and drama, and humor and silliness - though 9-1-1 is obviously a bit more packed with drama since it’s not a sitcom. but it’s not entirely a procedural drama either

the thing is, i’m not really a fan of that genre - exactly because it’s kind of “lazy” with its characters most of the time and focuses more on the job aspect (though there are some exceptions, ofc)

i think one of the main reasons why 9-1-1 is still going strong isn’t the crazy emergencies - it’s that it’s a character-driven story. which is why:

1. i simply don’t care about realism

2. i don’t want main characters to die on this show, maybe ever (or at least not until they’re all 90, so i’ll never have to witness their deaths)

just like i don’t care whether the finances of characters in friends, himym, and new girl are realistic, or whether the detective work in brooklyn 9-9 is accurate. for me, that’s not the point. i don’t watch the show for an accurate representation of living in new york or la, or for a realistic portrayal of being a detective

for me, 9-1-1 isn’t a show about firefighters - it’s a show about characters who just happen to work as first responders. and i don’t think that’s just in my head, because the show has focused on character depth and development since the very first season - abby trying to figure out her place in life despite her circumstances, michael and athena’s divorce, buck’s coming-of-age story, bobby’s guilt and dark past, eddie being a single dad and dealing with his messy relationship with his ex-wife, the whole found family trope, etc

the show actually dedicated a lot of its episodes to the characters’ stories in a way that made me feel completely emotionally attached to them. and it’s not my fault i did - the show convinced me that that’s what it’s about

if it were the type of show that is mostly plot-driven, where characters are purposefully not that deep and don’t have huge lore because that’s not the point, then i simply wouldn’t feel the way i feel, and i wouldn’t categorize it as a comfort show in my head

so that’s why i’m never going to be okay if bobby stays dead and buddie never get together. it’s like if they killed captain holt or jay/phil dunphy, or if nick and jess or amy and jake never got together. the death of a main character or the collapse of a main ship affects the show too much - to the point of no return - because it’s all about the characters and their dynamics. and when you take one piece away, it all crumbles down

the fact that i love this show and the story it created is exactly why i can’t just accept the way 8b went and gladly swallow the “bobby is dead,” “buck and eddie will always stay just friends,” and “who even cares about athena’s, madney’s, and henren’s personal stories at this point? let’s make everyone ooc (forgetting hen’s birthday!!!) and focus more time on side characters and boring ‘action’ stuff instead” pills

and they can’t even do the action stuff right anymore - the helicopter chase, the way bobby’s death was handled (if it’s actually permanent - like, there are two options: either you kill your character permanently, and in that case, make the build-up and aftermath as good as possible, or you make it ambiguous and weird on purpose because the character will actually come back to life - and considering that bobby’s death felt ambiguous and weird, it should turn out to be fake), and the building collapse in 8x18 were just straight-up dull and strange. it genuinely felt like i was watching a different show

and i just want my comfort show back :(

i want unrealistic emergencies and realistic characters - that’s the balance for me, and that’s what made the show so good in my eyes

[stolenkissesdiaz]

i hope buck, eddie and shannon are haunting helena through chris rn. i hope when chris rolls his eyes and snarks back helena freezes reminding her damn well who his father is. i hope when chris bites the inside of cheek and is suddenly really interested in his hands when he’s nervous about something helena scrunches her eyebrows in confusion bc she swears she’s seen it before and her eyes widen as she recalls eddie’s friend, the same friend who was there when they picked up chris, having the same mannerisms when eddie and his team came to texas. i hope when chris asks for the ice cream from the store 45 minutes from their house near the park and he picks rocky road helena swallows roughly bc shannon would do the same when she missed eddie and/or was sad. i hope she’s violently reminded no matter how much she pretends, that child will never be hers in the way she’s so desperately been trying to make it be for years. i hope she’s reminded of her damn place in chris’ life.