Category: Episode Reviews – Walker Independence

Walker: Best Laid Plans

Walker: Best Laid Plans

spnfans

I just typed out that episode title and thought, “laid”? Is that a naughty dad joke? In any case, it has a lot of different meanings, as the episode titles in this show often do. There are multiple story lines in this episode, which all intersect for a dramatic reveal at the end.

Trey Undercover

Cassie and Walker find out that Trey is in fact still a Ranger – and currently making inroads undercover trying to figure out what Grey Flag is up to (and why that’s all about Walker). The dead guy in the van, in fact, was Trey’s in. Not anymore! The Feds are now involved, providing a secret house for the team’s HQ and also ordering James not to let Cordell and Cassie in on what’s happening.

The foursome is a team again!

Though I like that Cassie is pissed that they were kept in the dark and also protective of Trey, and it takes her a while to come around. That was realistic – too often in TV people come around way too quickly and easily without struggling like most humans would.

They all realize by now that it’s a personal vendetta against Walker.

Cordell (waves adorably): Yeah me, I’m the last one on their hit list!

They intercept the text with the instructions for Trey’s first mission and figure out the cryptic message. Walker gives Trey the advice of not getting attached to anyone, and a warning about how a sad story can pull you in when you’re undercover – which clearly comes from experience. I kinda love that Cordell is an emotional man, that he struggles with that sometimes, but it’s part of who he is.

Trey stands watch as lookout for his Grey Flag ‘initiation’ of sorts, while James and Cassie keep watch on him. Things go south when the woman he’s standing guard for staggers out badly wounded.  Grey Flag wants the briefcase she’s retrieved and orders him not to waste time on poor Lana, but of course Trey can’t do that. Cassie pretends to be a bystander and covertly slips Trey some gauze to save her life (waiting for the okay from James on her out-of-the-box impulse though). Another guy shows up and grazes Cassie with a bullet, but Lana survives thanks to Trey’s combat medic skills – and he passes the test.

Read more →

‘Walker: Past Is Prologue’ Looks at How our Past Impacts our Present

‘Walker: Past Is Prologue’ Looks at How our Past Impacts our Present

spnfans

Past is Prologue is an interesting title for last week’s Walker episode. So often, our past is what impacts our futures – if we don’t make sense of it, it can have way too much impact.

Bonham is still grumpy about nobody coming to his family meeting and the horse rescue not being run by him first, feeling like he’s been “put out to pasture”.  Abeline’s having none of it and I am here for her, as always.

Abeline doesn’t want Bonham to have regrets, feeling bad that she waited so long to reconcile with her brother. She of course prevails, telling him she’s got his back and is on his side, but also he needs to talk to Liam and Stella, even if they should have talked to him first.

Abeline: We need to do the teaching, lead by example… and bask in your superiority.

God, I love Abeline.

I also love that Liam and Stella now have a horse rescue because it means I get to see lots of gorgeous horses.

Liam and Stella shoot a social media promo post, much to Bonham’s annoyance. He walks out.

Stella: He’s still mad?

Abby: He’s still somethin’…

Bonham eventually listens to Abeline and comes around, telling Liam that he did eventually accept that he and Cordell didn’t have that “rancher green thumb”, that what matters is that they’re happy. He’s grudgingly impressed with what Liam’s done, and is “man enough to admit that it hurt”, that it wiped away a vision he’d become fond of. It’s a pretty candid thing for Bonham to admit, so I give him a lot of credit.

Liam says he was hoping it could be “ours”, a family thing. That the new logo is based on his Grandad’s signature.

Bonham: Well hell, William, when you put it like that…

Of course he can’t leave it at that, though. He needs a parting shot to keep his grumpy grampa persona intact.

Bonham: Daddy’s signature was damn chicken scratch – that ain’t it.

Meanwhile, just when we were all open-mouthed at Captain James’ ability to be harsh (to Trey), we get to see the softer side of him when Kelly returns to town and they rekindle their romance at a new level, with her moving to Austin full time. Awww.

Most of fandom figured out that Trey wasn’t really fired and that James was setting him up to do some undercover work, but it was good to have that confirmed in this episode. So yay, now we can go back to liking Captain James again! Though Trey got to hang out in some nice outfits while he was “unemployed”.

It doesn’t take long for the bad guys aka the lobbying group (disguised as country club golfing types) to reach out to Trey, in fact.  It also doesn’t take long for him to figure out their ‘prove you’re smart enough to do this job’ little test.

Trey is smoooooth in not seeming to want it too much, and the lobbying guy is smooth too in making it sound like they’re actually trying to help vets (who in real life really don’t get the help they need). I confess to not really understanding the whole Grey Flag thing, honestly.

Julia is off working in DC, so it’s Cassie and Cordell teaming up to try to figure out why his old squad is maybe being targeted – and why maybe HE is being targeted. I love Cassie for being all in on trying to get Cordell some closure, and also her willingness to drop back and give him some space when digging into all this brings back his PTSD and survivor’s guilt big time. Jared Padalecki is so good at showing those emotional struggles, and I love when this show gets serious and goes there.

Read more →

Walker: Blinded by the Light, In More Ways Than One

Walker: Blinded by the Light, In More Ways Than One

spnfans

That’s a great episode title for this week’s ‘Walker’, referring literally to what happens to Cordell and Julia when they confront Tommy, but also to the fact that just about everyone has some kind of blinders on that aren’t letting them see things entirely clearly.

Tonight is a new episode and then we take a little break, so let’s catch up to where we are with the Walker family and company…

Of Fathers and Sons

The Walker family continues to bicker, Bonham still cranky with Augie, both parents cranky with Liam when he tries to bring work for the horse rescue and therapy center to the table, and Cordell missing breakfast all together much to their annoyance.

On a Saturday.

Bonham calls a family meeting for both his sons to “sort things out” leaving Liam to tell his brother about it. I love the framing here, Liam and his father separated, in two different worlds right now.

Bonham also finally tells Abeline about his conversation with Cordell and asking him to move out. Bonham is worried that there’s too much stress around there for Abeline, admitting he’s scared but then projecting it all onto his sons. He says Cordell needs to fix his family.

Abeline: Fix his family? We are his family! I’m curious how you decided that abandoning our son when he needs us the most is best for my health!

Me: You tell him, Abeline!

She says he’s welcome to stay in the farmhouse as long as he wants, and demands that Bonham apologize (and also finish the dishes alone lol).

Read more →

Walker Welcomes Supernatural Alum Jake Abel to the Family!

Walker Welcomes Supernatural Alum Jake Abel to the Family!

spnfans

It’s the awkward morning of all awkward mornings at the start of this episode, when Cordell gets up and Liam is ready to have that talk they discussed but Cordell is a bit distracted by the fact that he left his daughter in jail the night before.

It only gets more awkward when Mawline comes home – with Stella, who she bailed out.

Cordell is angry, saying he left her there to think and learn the consequences of her actions now that she’s an adult (he did have the sergeant separate her so we know she was safe, which is what I figured, but still.)

Abeline: She’s 18!

Cordell: And she’s MY daughter!

They’re both right actually. She is undermining his parenting and he is refusing to listen to Stella’s side (though she did a terrible job of actually trying to TELL him her side too.) This family is infuriating sometimes! (Like all families…)

He’s also angry that she told Cassie, accusing her of “meddling in my work as well” – and again, he’s actually not wrong, that’s not her place. But her saying “you need to take it down a notch and you need to hear your daughter out” is also good advice.

Stella FINALLY tells what really happened to Abeline – who she apparently also did not tell the story to for some reason I literally cannot fathom!

August is still infuriating (and hungover), saying he can’t help clean up at the SideStep because he’s the head of the homecoming dance committee. Mawline doesn’t take excuses though, insisting they follow the list of chores that their father left and clean up their mess at the bar. Augie also insists that Cordell wouldn’t let him tell the story, but I find that even harder to believe. He still isn’t owning up to any responsibility or apologizing, insisting he’s becoming his own person and she’s just pissed because she’s losing a sidekick and holding everyone hostage with her indecision.

Ouch.

August: So since you wanna stay hogging up the limelight…who knows, I might even shine…

Wow, Augie. But it’s clear that’s what’s really getting to him, the struggle of the younger sibling in thei shadow of their superstar older sibling’s spotlight all the time.

Colton arrives in the middle of awkward sibling rivalry fighting and offers to make breakfast – a “happy curry”. What a sweetie Colton is.

Read more →

‘Walker’ Episode ‘Mum’s The Word’ Shocks with its Ending

‘Walker’ Episode ‘Mum’s The Word’ Shocks with its Ending

spnfans

Last week’s episode of ‘Walker’ was titled ‘Mum’s the Word’, which was partly about mothers and children and how we all cope with the danger that’s all around us, but also about silence and when you need to break it.

Stella and Augie are still in a bad place, August still angry that Stella didn’t go away to college as planned. It’s not pleasant to watch and it makes him an unappealing character for now, but it strikes me as very real for an adolescent who desperately wants out from under his older sibling’s shadow. I don’t think Cordell really gets it, because in his own sibling relationship, he’s the older sibling in the spotlight.

Augie has got a bit of a martyr thing going, asking his dad to please be there to play on the junior team for the annual flag football match tradition.

Walker says he will if he can, but he’s got a new assignment the next day so can’t promise.

Stella isn’t happy either, feeling lost and not knowing what her future holds. She and Geri work the food truck at the game the next day, a former classmate of Geri’s coming by to condescendingly say she’s so brave to still show up there after all she’s been through and then toss out to Stella, “I could’ve been your mom…”   Not very good taste in previous girlfriends if that’s what she’s implying, Cordell!

Afterwards, Stella says she doesn’t want to be “that weird alumna who’s always around” and then realizes Geri might take that personally. She doesn’t, though. She tells Stella that she was originally supposed to go to business school, but then her dad died and left her the Side Step, and “life got in the way”. Part of being a grown up is owning your choices, she says, pointing out that Stella is lucky to have a safety net.

She definitely is, but an 18 year old isn’t really an adult (says someone who was a psychologist in a college counseling center full of 18 year olds for many years). Everyone is expecting Stella to magically turn into an adult just because she graduated high school, but that’s not really fair.

Stella tries to say that their dad has been trying to show up for them lately, but Augie dismisses that, saying “for you maybe”.  She invites him to hang out with her and Colton – which I think an 18 year old would definitely know that would not be what your 16 year old brother would want! – and he is once again furious that she doesn’t get it.

Stella is in the tough position of trying to be August’s big sister and also a bit of a mother figure for him too, which is never going to go over well with a younger sibling.  When Augie hears that the Sidestep will be closed that night, he gets his 16 year old rebellion on and invites all his friends for a party there, with beer flowing freely.

Augie ends up locked in the tap room with his friends, who tell him that they actually think he’s “badass”, which I feel like a 16 year old would not say, but anyway, they thought he was the one on his high horse. August is making strides in popularity, but has to text Stella to come let them out. She comes and kicks everyone out and frees her brother, angrily asking “what were you thinking?”

And that’s the moment the police show up and arrest both of them.

Meanwhile, back at Ranger HQ…

Cordell now runs on a treadmill instead of outside, which I really can’t blame him for, and he’s still jumpy and hypervigilant, but he seems to be slowly recuperating from his ordeal. James assigns Walker and Cassie to go pick up a briefcase of evidence from the Dallas station, from the mercenaries who are now all captured. On the way back, a strange ringing comes from the case, and they leave it on the road for a while, pondering whether it’s a bomb.

Cassie: It could be kitchen timer…or a Furby…

Read more →