‘Brothers & Sisters’: Great expectations
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Last night, Kitty Walker reiterated the essence of ‘Brothers & Sisters’: Sometimes greatness comes out of complicated things. Since the Walkers make a spectator sport out of ‘complicated things’ on a weekly basis, it wasn’t so much a revelation but an act of self-awareness. Kitty makes the point to encourage Nora after another debacle, and I couldn’t help but feel that the show attempted to make the same point to the audience. Stick with it, it seemed to say, great stuff will come out of these convoluted, repetitive plot lines!
In this episode, Nora enlists the family to renovate the mansion she intends to use as her center for cancer patients. The whole idea is a bit ridiculous, but in these tough economic times, why not have family members pull the carpets and knock walls down instead of hiring professionals? Obviously Nora has been watching way too much HGTV. Her ‘This is my Ojai Foods’ bit was endearing though, and in the end, I hoped Ty Pennington would pop up to give the house an extreme home makeover. It’ll be the Walkers’ chance to build another family legacy since the first has gradually slipped out of their control.
A Tommy-Holly showdown is likely coming soon now that Holly has strategically installed an inexperienced Rebecca as an executive at Walker Landing without Tommy’s knowledge. Saul and Tommy’s meeting was a scene right out of a mobster movie -- I’m looking forward to how they plan to take Holly down. Holly has been willing to deceive and manipulate her own spawn, so there’s surely no underestimating her defense tactics.
Meanwhile, Sarah’s quest to find funding for Greenotopia leads her down familiar pastures in the form of a Steven Weber return. While Sarah and Graham Finch do have chemistry, it’s another story retread. He was bound to come back at some point, but would it kill the writers to give Sarah a new love interest, especially one that sticks around and injects spice back into her life? As funny as it is to watch her manage two twentysomethings, it might be even better to see her seducing one (but please not either of the Greenotopia boys).
It also looks as though Kitty and Robert are getting their adopted baby, but not without us getting a glimpse into Robert’s doubts about the whole thing. He’s expressed disinterest in having more children before, and he’s clearly on board because Kitty wants it so bad. It’s a deeply complicated story that could really challenge Calista Flockhart’s Emmy-nominated acting chops--but only if the show’s writing will follow suit.
Will this baby be good or bad for Kitty and Robert? What do Tommy and Saul have under their sleeves? Should Sarah get a boy toy? Share your thoughts!
-- Enid Portuguez