"Stayed on the line with you the entire night, 'til you let it out and let it in"
Han, Cil, and Rachel are white knuckling their way through Season 9, Episode 14, "DIY," and Episode 15, "Pick Your Poison" ā the two-episode arc where Buck's grief stops being quiet, the 118 shows up in every way that matters, and Eddie Diaz plays host at someone else's house like a man who has never once considered that this might be a little bit married of him.
We explore why this storyline works specifically because of who Buck is ā neurodiverse, self-aware enough to know something is wrong, but not quite there on what to do about it. We make sure to give Oliver Stark and his performance across both episodes all the flowers he deserves and every Buddie System award we can hand out.
We document the intricate mating habits of the most coupled uncouple on television, breaking down the proxy argument playing out in stereo between an engaged coupleā¦ and Buddie. We get into Eddie hunting Buck down about a missed therapy appointment like a ānaggingā wife, what it means that he's the one sitting still right next to Buck while everyone else moves in and out of the frame, and why across both of these episodes it's Eddie ā not Maddie ā who is Buck's primary support system, even if neither of them is ready to acknowledge or unpack that. We also dig into where Eddie is emotionally right now, why he's in his happiest era staying single and hanging out with the boys, and the cards Buck is holding during his game with Christopher that briefly sent 9-1-1 Twitter into full forensic investigation mode.
If you want someone to sit with you in the wreckage of these two episodes and walk through exactly why the Buck and Eddie of it all is moving in a very interesting direction ā we've got you.
"Don't let this darkness fool you, all lights turned off can be turned onā
Episode title inspired by "Call Your Mom" by Noah Kahan