Inasmuch as the 9/11 attacks marked a dark moment in history for all of us, they remain especially scarring for first responders, emergency personnel, and anyone who had a friend or relative who was injured or killed as a result. Given all that’s happened on Rescue Me since we first met Tommy Gavin some five years ago, it’s easy to forget that the characters on this show are, in large part, products of the aftermath of that catastrophic event—forever changed, and incalculably damaged.
Granted, it’s safe to assume that the men of 62 Truck were far from pictures of perfection before that day, but if ever there was a question as to its effect on their lives, it was answered in this episode.
The addition of Genevieve (Karina Lombard), the French journalist, accomplishes two things: first, it brings in a “hot foreign piece of ass” (Tommy’s words) to spark everybody’s attention and give viewers some additional eye candy, but more importantly, it gives us a chance to hear just how the events of September 11th have settled in the psyches of these characters that we’ve come to know so well. Until now, the consequences have been mostly implicit—but as Genevieve talks to Franco, Lou, and Tommy for her book about the ten year anniversary of that day, we go deeper than ever before.
As I mentioned last week, actor Daniel Sunjata is an ardent supporter of the “9/11 was an inside job” camp, so it comes as no surprise to hear him espousing those views in character as Franco. He runs down that movement’s tenets in an impassioned monologue before asking Genevieve if she’s single—true to form.
Lou, meanwhile, meets with Genevieve at a romantic restaurant, but fails to keep himself together during the interview. “Everything that I was gonna feel for the rest of my life ... I used it all up at Ground Zero. It's all gone now and I got nothing left to feel." His post-meal apology to his date is note perfect: “Usually when I go out with a woman I try not to cry until the second date, and even then it’s just a last-ditch effort to get sex…”
Tommy’s refusal to participate in the process speaks volumes. He doesn’t say much, but his anger tells the story, and makes for the most memorable scene of the episode. His feelings on the subject are, understandably, rooted in the widows and children of the fallen, no doubt spurred on by the loss of his cousin. The triteness of a coffee table book about the tragedy irritates him deeply.
In other Tommy news, the Section 8 issue is done and dusted—Chief Feinberg, it seems, has some enemies at the FDNY head office, so Tommy will go back to regular duty next week… as a punishment to Feinberg. Expect to see Tommy in uniform once more, despite the fact that the department’s psychiatric review has deemed him to be “Margot Kidder-hiding-in-the-bushes-crazy”.
Watch this episode again at the Showcase video centre—and be sure to share your thoughts in the comments.
Final thoughts:
-Never has Sheila’s plotline felt more out of place than in this week’s episode. After pretending to save Tommy’s life (but really, almost killing him) at the end of Season 3, is there anywhere truly uncharted left for this obsessed woman to go? (Short of actually killing Tommy, that is.)
-Tommy as an AA sponsor? Improbable, but intriguing.
-Michael J. Fox was once again hilarious as Dwight (“I’m getting a hard-on!”). Likewise, Janet explaining their unpredictable sex life to a dispirited Tommy made for great comedy.
-Gina Gershon doing her French accent while rolling around in the sheets with Tommy makes me hope she’ll stick for a while longer. “My name is Cecille and I am a maid and this is my shoe…”
-Tommy saving that girl from the exploding car made for exciting television, but since it was never addressed after the fact, let’s just hope she reappears later in the season lest that rescue become a total non-sequitur.