Spoilers ahead for the November 1 episode of 9-1-1 Season 5 on Fox, called “Brawl in Cell Block 9-1-1.”
The heroes of Station 118 were in even more danger than usual in the latest episode of 9-1-1, when their call to extinguish fires and provide aid during a prison riot turned into the very real possibility of being injured or even killed by prisoners on the loose. Buck and Eddie escaped the prison to transport a wounded guard to the hospital, escorted by two other guards… or so it seemed, before everything went wrong. And by the end of the episode, I found myself suspecting that Buck is in for more heartbreak, even though both he and Eddie survived mostly unscathed. The source of the potential devastation? Taylor.
Buck and Eddie (with Eddie still serving as paramedic with Chimney still gone) were taken captive by a pair of escapees who were posing as guards, led by death row inmate Mitchell who had an unexpected goal in staging the deadly escape: donate his own heart to his dying son. Buck took a hard hit to the head before the hostage situation could be resolved, and went home to Taylor. When he walked in, Taylor was having a tense conversation with somebody on the phone, saying:
Tell him to call me later, and maybe I’ll answer.
As soon as she saw Buck, she quickly put her phone behind her back. Now, the most obvious reason for that move was simply putting her phone in her back pocket, and Buck obviously wouldn’t think anything was weird about her talking on her phone. But her expression seemed guilty to me, and she seemed pretty angry in her half of the conversation about the mysterious “him.” And it was that phone call and her guilty expression that made me not really buy into all of her relief to see Buck come home alive, well, and ready to tell his story.
That’s not to say that she was disappointed that he was okay other than a bump on the head, because she’s not a monster. But she didn't seem just relieved to see him. Taylor seemed awfully interested in the details of the case, after coming out and saying that the news reports were short on specifics. Poor trusting Buck spilled those details to her, and she seemed awfully eager to get the full story.
Throw in the fact that Eddie reminded viewers that Taylor is a reporter while in the middle of the hostage situation, and the whole big deal made out of everybody wanting Mitchell’s son to never find out that his replacement heart came from his convicted murderer father, and I can’t help but feel that Buck trusting Taylor is going to backfire when some of the details that he shares with her start making the news. All of this on top of the whole Maddie situation!
And sure, Buck isn’t exactly ready to pop the question to Taylor, but after what he went through with the breakup with Abby and going a while without getting any closure, a betrayal like this would have to result in some heartbreak if it happens. It’s possible that I’m reading too much into Taylor’s expressions and interest in details that hadn’t made the news from other reporters, but I’m definitely going to be on the lookout for any signs that Taylor is going to betray Buck. Maybe Buck should just hang with Eddie and Christopher from now on.
Considering that the promo for the next episode doesn’t address this week’s case at all, and Buck seems to be the source of some ghost-related humor, any betrayals might not be on the way as soon as next week. Still, I have my eye on Taylor! See what happens next with new episodes of 9-1-1 on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on Fox as the fall TV premiere season continues.
