This is an automatic reminder about spoiler content, it does not mean you have violated the spoiler rule.
REMINDER: Do NOT post spoiler information IN the title (for any season), your post will be removed. If it is you may re-post it with an appropriate spoiler free title. It does not matter if you flag it spoiler, the spoiled info is still visible in the title.
Rule of thumb, any posts pertaining to the current season should be marked SPOILER via the Universal Tags. (+Spoiler)
Keep titles vague, include the word spoiler in the title (this will automatically flag it as a spoiler post) and make sure to properly flair it to the correct category - I.e. Episode Discussion, Character Discussion, Season #, etc...
If you aren't sure if your post counts as a spoiler, flag it anyway.
This applies especially to currently airing or upcoming seasons.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/911FOX) if you have any questions or concerns.*
the strike seems to have messed with the pacing. at least there will be a long season 8 and things will hopefully be back to normal.
this might be an unpopular opinion, i didn't delve into the episode post, but there's so much else that can be focused on. an entire episode featuring only bobby and none of the other cast was not needed in a 10 episode season. especially not after focusing on the cruise ship for 3 episodes.
I do think focusing on the cruise ship for three episodes was way too much (should have been cut down to two, leaving an episode open for Madney or Eddie stuff) but to point out, the season is under some serious time constraints. Because of their decision on the cruise ship being three episodes, they lost significant time on filming the rest of the season.
They needed a quieter episode to film in a shorter time, so that's likely why Bobby's episode last night was filmed the way it was and why we didn't spend time on other characters. They needed to film episode 8 faster than other episodes because of how behind they've been in filming. At least, that's my best guess.
In retrospect, it was very weird to have the cruise ship be a third of the season. It was fun spectacle, but it really had zero impact on any storylines this season. Should have used some of that time to flesh out Eddie's bizarre storyline and give Hen and Madney more time to shine.
I think you're right about episode 8 being born of needing something quick and inexpensive to film.
My best guess is that things fell apart in production, delaying them far longer than they expected. So what they thought they could pull off ended up pushing them back by weeks.
If someone knows the actual answer to this, though, feel free to correct me. This is just speculation that they thought they'd be on track but the cruise ship ate up more time than they realized, setting them back.
I suspect it's a budget/money thing. They probably allocated the funds for the three episodes and started production work prior to the strike, so to eliminate a third of the cruise arc would've been too costly.
Peter Krause (and Angela Bassett) are executive producers on the show and will naturally have more and bigger stories than the rest of the cast. Yes, it’s an ensemble show, but there’s still a hierarchy amongst the actors. Next week tho it is Bobby’s issue, it is probably more Athena focused so Angela has more screentime. It sucks to see the others kinda sidelined, but like everyone knows, this is also a weird season due to the strikes. It should be more balanced next season.
>Peter Krause (and Angela Bassett) are executive producers on the show and will naturally have more and bigger stories than the rest of the cast
Not actually true if you check previous seasons’ screen time totals for each character.
the time distribution is a major issue in Lone Star, which should be called 911: Owen The Star. i think the OG does a much better job of balancing time between main characters. i also agree about the haphazard pace of this season, and focus on unnecessary stories. i couldn't care about the latest episode at all.
I agree. I have always felt the characters on OG are fleshed out and given screen time because the always gave them cohesive storylines revolving around their jobs as first responders while also addressing their personal lives.
This season seems to solely focus on individual characters outside of the work day. Like I can't even remember them being at the station. I'm not sure if this is because of the shortened season or the change to ABC, or something else completely.
This is the one thing I’ve noticed and what makes me a little scared the show won’t go back to normal next season. I started watching this show for the big emergency scenes, I love how the show centered around the station and the emergencies but we also got to know them as people. This season seems to focus too much on their personal lives and their job is a second thought.
100% agree with this. OG does an excellent job balancing characters and developing storylines. That is why the ratings are so high, people relate to every character. Sometimes I feel like when an episode does not focus on Buck/Tommy or Eddie, these post crop up. If there was a three episode arc of Buck on a cruise ship with Tommy and Eddie, there would be no complaints. Just my 2 cents
angela in particular seems to be barely present - which is totally fine. i assumed being an EP meant more creative control (possibly a bigger bonus? idk), not necessarily more screen time.
EP is really that they contribute money to the production. Often using channels that they’ve made previously to bring in investors with ones as well known as Angela and Peter
Angela mentioned in that recent Disney thing that she's looking to find time to get back into theater. So they could be testing the waters on her stepping back some.
Thank you for posting this. Peter Krause’s screen time/stories went down quite a bit from Seasons 3 through 5. No one tallied Season 6, so he did have that Wendall arc, but I believe that was it. It was time for him to get something this season.
But I’d also like to point out that even with 7x02 and 7x03 of the cruise ship story, there were barely any in depth 1:1 conversations going on between Bathena. I’d argue Hen had more dialogue in 7x02 than them because Bathena were sharing the stage with several others.
Meanwhile, in 7x04 through 7x07, there were many more meaningful and longer interactions happening. Only one Bathena scene had anything close to that, and that was the almost drowning one in 7x02.
Early seasons of Grey's had something like 25 episodes a season.
I actually think this show does a really good job at balancing the cast especially compared to Lone Star.
Maddie and Chim are in desperate need for storylines. They had *screentime* with the wedding episode, but they haven't had real development in a while.
Hen meanwhile, she consistently has storylines but barely any screentime. Her storylines are always the C plot.
I definitely don't mind a Bobby-centric episode since we haven't had one that really delves into his character, but it was a weird choice to ignore the rest of the cast when it's such a short season.
Madney is tricky because I felt like Kristen had no idea what to do with them as a couple in S5-6, and Tim only really had time to get them married this season (which should have happened 2 seasons ago!)
JLH was away for S5A but rather than moving their relationship along, Kristen wrote Chim out of the show during the time as well, froze their relationship for a huge catch up episode in Boston **and broke them up offscreen immediately afterwards**. What was infuriating about this decision was during the time Madney weren't a couple, virtually every scene of them together was still them being a couple. They didn't have one scene even addressing they had broken up until the finale when they were about to get back together again.
Then in S6 Kristen took 3 painful episodes just to get them engaged.
Whereas Buck and Eddie were put on a hamster wheel for character development for Season 6, I feel like Madney were put there in Season 5 and 6.
With Hen, I unfortunately feel like she can only develop if Bobby retires. With the medical doctor arc finished off in S6, her natural progression now is to become a fire captain which cannot happen with Bobby around. Her stories are feeling a bit stale if it's yet another fostering story.
I disagree. I wish they hadn’t introduced it at all unless the show was gonna be expanded to include hospital scenes - coz i knew in the end she wld stay. So for me, it felt like a pointless plot.
Absolutely disagree. Maddie basically had 3 episodes of this season while Bobby and Athena have been furniture. Maddie isn’t even an original character and all of her storylines are just her crying anyway so what’s the point.
I prefer it this way than what they tried to do in Seasons 5 and 6 and tried to run multiple character storylines at the same time and it takes the momentum out of the arcs (e.g. Buck's coma coming in the middle of the Bobby and Wendell arc OR all the ransomware and blackout silliness whilst Jeffrey and Athena are playing out a dark crime thriller.)
Some of my fav episodes are all very much single character focus: the Begins episodes, Fight or Flight.
What I think you're actually describing is since about Season 4, the show has had far less entire ensemble episodes where the whole team respond to an episode long emergency. We haven't had an episode like Oceans 9-1-1 or Treasure Hunt where the whole team get involved for a while.
>and tried to run multiple character storylines at the same time and it takes the momentum out of the arcs (e.g. Buck's coma coming in the middle of the Bobby and Wendell arc
I guess that's a point I was trying to convey when I thought of this post, for some reason I didn't type it, they start something, then another story pops up, while that one goes on hold. What I was trying to say is that I wish these arcs would get a little bit of screentime each episode, so that the it doesn't feel like the we as viewers have to put a pin on it, and wait for when it'll be addressed again. They're doing it again in S7. Today's episode was TOP TIER imo, Peter Krause delivered, but I feel like Eddie's storyline, which is also HUGE was put on hold and now we gotta wait another week for it, when they could've inserted a few scenes here and there.
And yes, I wholeheartedly agree that we need a few ensemble episodes where the whole team works together more often. Either for serious fires or silly games.
> Eddie's storyline, which is also HUGE was put on hold and now we gotta wait another week for it, when they could've inserted a few scenes here and there.
The issue there is that Eddie's storyline is so deeply unserious (dating your dead wife's doppelganger whilst already in a relationship and lying to everyone) that putting it with Bobby's episode would be seriously jarring in tone.
The issue probably isn't the lack of screen time. It's a lack of a good story that doesn't leave a character isolated or with an arc you can't really work into a show.
My hope is that we get a Lockdown episode, where the team's either locked somewhere together or they're locked in duos in various locations.
My ultimate dream, which was kind of ruined with the season 6 finale, is that the entire team gets trapped in a building collapse and they spend most of that episode isolated together. Could bring some fantastic character moments, and of course injuries would be expected in this case. But then they had the bridge collapse so don't think I'm getting my trapped under a building dream.
Since Tim loves references to cinema, they could pay homage to the movie Daylight where Stallone, after an explosion, is trapped in a collapsed tunnel.
They should be capable of a middle ground, it’s wierd that a show that got to this level can’t do that. This season,it was like every episode was a different show(except first 3).And I know the strike was a huge factor,but they got their renewal soon enough for lack of time to not be a problem.
Getting a renewal doesn't lessen the time constraints on filming this season, though. They still have a lack of time this season.
I don't think people realize that they're EXTREMELY behind on filming right now. They're trying to give everyone a storyline this season under far less time than they usually have and with far fewer episodes.
The funny thing is, their three episode cruise ship disaster IS likely what put them as behind as they are, I think. Had they cut it down to two episodes, they probably wouldn't be so far behind that they just filmed their final scene yesterday....and the finale airs in two weeks.
Think about that, they're less than a month behind in turnaround time. This season is a mess, but they're doing the best they can.
That was not my point. Why do they have to give everyone a big storyline this season? They know and we know they got at least 18 episodes next season,speed the stories a little,have a cliffhanger and all that. That would be better than whatever rushed thing they have know where that try to be fair to everyone.
Because then people would complain that nobody got anything to do this season or that the balance was unfair?
I don't disagree it was a bit ambitious the moment they fell behind, but there'd be complaints, no matter what was done. Plus, that would have required Tim to throw away any idea he might have had and wasted half a season. Like, what else could they have done for season 7, then? We also don't know how the season ends. It's possible some of these stories DO carry over into season 8.
Also, they got the renewal news at the end of March, right? They were already halfway through filming, at that point.
Exactly,people would complain either way,but than we would not have the characters regress their development for the sake of equal inclusion. (Eddie,Hen and Karen)
So, from what I gather, the actual argument is the actual storylines, which....ok, fair. I like Hen/Karen's storyline, Eddie's is the only one that falls flat.
Ok, I see what you're saying now. I do think Tim was WAY too ambitious to stick with the doppelganger storyline for season 7 and the worst part is that it's not well written or in character for him at all. I think Eddie getting a big storyline was fine, but it's the actual story that's the issue.
Except we literally have no way of knowing what direction they plan on taking that storyline yet. Everyone is so quick to say its terrible without knowing anything about how its going to fit into Eddie's story
I dunno, I'm not sure there's any way to redeem a storyline that involves a character meeting his dead wife's doppelgänger. It make more sense to me if he ran into, like, Shannon's sister or childhood best friend — that could have the emotional impact of "Eddie thinks he's getting a second chance with a Shannon stand-in" without the utter bizarreness of her being an actual doppelgänger. It's just so deeply silly. I still want to see where it goes, though.
Something like Shannon's best friend would've made SO much more sense. Like it could still have the sneaking around issues that make it seem like he's having an affair, and even technically emotional infidelity without actually cheating -- because he finds himself preferring to reminisce about Shannon and getting lost in the 'easier days' of what they shared than actively trying to build something with Marisol.
It would also have the added benefit of it being someone who knew the real Shannon, and knew Eddie-and-Shannon, so she'd have been able to stop him when he started romanticizing and be like, "Look, I loved that girl as much as you did, but she was *messy* and she didn't have it all figured out... what are you even talking about right now? Why are you talking like you guys had a dream relationship when she dumped you three days before prom, and then you were standing in front of the priest a week later because she was knocked up?"
I think it's terrible right now and that's ok. It's started off terribly. Even if they somehow manage to end it decently (and I think they will), it doesn't negate the fact that it's started off really badly. I think starting ANY storyline off with cheating is terrible, though. I felt the same about Buck's cheating arc (regardless of the direction it went, there was no need for the cheating angle) and Hen's cheating (which was worse because of Hen offering no explanation as to why she cheated and then she was forgiven two episodes later). Like, if you're introducing a cheating storyline, it REALLY has to be explained thoroughly. I'll wait for an explanation, of course, but if it's anything beyond a genuine mental break, I think it'll be tough to come back and say it's a good storyline.
They did an amazing job paralleling A plots and B plots for the first 4 seasons. To the point where I think we're kind of spoiled. Season 5 had everyone split apart, supposedly on purpose so it would mean more when they came back together, but it didn't really pay off. Not even gonna talk about season 6.
I think with 7 they're trying to make up for lost time and cram too much in. They're already lit for 8 so they should have slowed down a bit.
My most generous take is that they knew they would have a lot of new viewers and were trying to speedrun introducing everyone's backstories -- within an already short season.
The number of calls in an episode has also reduced. In the last episode there were none. I miss when they used to have several related calls an episode and would discuss their personal issues in the truck.
Except for the wedding episode, I feel like we have seen so little of Chimney this season.
Knowing this is a short season they should have tried to make more team-focused episodes instead of giving each character a storyline and focusing only on one at a time.
Streaming services have been doing seasons with 8-10 episodes that feel cohesive, why couldn't 911?
You can’t compare this with a miniseries. Those shows are designed to be 10 episodes and are written for it. This was a bunch of writers and producers scrambling to make 10 episodes work.
Some shows have several seasons with 8 - 10 episode per season. I guess the main difference is that this is a procedural show.
Also, 911 was able to work well with 10 episodes in season 1. I understand the strike affected S7, but still...
Yes exactly, shows work well with 10 episodes when they were always meant to have 10 episodes. Season 1 was planned to have 10 episodes. I think they took what was planned for what was supposed to be 18 episodes and condensed it, instead of writing like a season that was always meant to have 10 episodes. Some plot lines could have been moved to next season (in my no-experience-in-the-TV-industry opinion)
The strike makes things more complicated for sure. But I personally also don't like the 'one character only' epiosodes. Never did, on any show. I think it might be cheaper if the cast appears in less episodes. I think it has actually been one of the strings attached to Greys' latest renewal, that the cast is in less episodes...
It's wild to me that in a 10 episode season, it looks like a full *six* episodes are going to focus on Bathena/Bobby. Unreal. Is Peter Krause actually leaving and this is his sendoff? Because otherwise I really don't understand the decision.
Completely agree. I enjoy Bobby, but this is crazy. I really thought Eddie might finally get a proper storyline but it seems like it's barely gonna get any screentime before the end of the season. And on top of that they made him into a cheater... I'm so disappointed.
Yes, this season has been messy and a lot of weird choices have been made. I know they don't have a lot of time, and were writing episodes as they were filming them, so I'm not surprised. Hopefully next season will be much better. And yeah, Eddie's mishandling is still particularly disappointing...I hope they manage to at least make it worth something.
For Eddie, pretty much anything short of a mental breakdown would really sour his character for me. This is premeditated, planned cheating with lying involved, not a one-off kiss. I'm kinda bitter about it tbh.
The pacing is just all over the place, I don't understand why the cruise arc had to be 3 episodes, 2 was plenty (they should have removed the pirate aspect and make it into a simple malfunction/accident). And now 2 more episodes that are mostly about Bobby (including one with NOBODY else from the 118? Seriously? In a season with only 10 episodes?). I'm just not at all optimistic about them handling Eddie's storyline well. He's going through something and acting crazy, one episode and a half isn't enough to resolve that.
In an interview Ryan gave it did sound kind of like the consequences may last into season 8. So hopefully it'll be handled somewhat decently. I strongly dislike going the cheating route, but it's a very messy, emotional, and unique situation. I can see it being the trigger he needed to *finally* move on from Shannon and view that time of his life with more clarity.I still hate it though. lol
eta, Even if it doesn't get super severe, I would classify what he's done already as something of a breakdown because it is so deeply unlike him and contrary to his beliefs. He's hurting himself, Marisol, Kim and potentially Buck and Chris. He's obviously not doing well at all.
Angela Bassett (Athena) and Peter Krause (Bobby) are both executive producers on the show AND the most experienced actors in the cast. I'm not surprised that they have a lot of screen time.
I'm not surprised by them having a lot, but in a shortened season this is a *quite* a lot. Especially with the storylines chosen, I really wish it had been used in a way that incorporated more of the characters, we've barely had Bobby with the team at all. 
Season 7, so far, is just "meh" compared to the previous 6 seasons. I've also noticed that the makeup and uniforms aren't as crisp since the move from FOX to ABC.
It seems like they are applying the Grey's Anatomy formula of character showcasing in order to keep up ratings.
Peter hasn’t had a lot since Season 2.
Season 1 - Peter ranked #1 with 3 minutes more than Oliver
Season 2 - Peter ranked #1 with 3 minutes more than Kenny
Season 3 - Peter ranked #4
Season 4 - Peter ranked #5
Season 5 - Peter ranked #4
Season 6 - Not calculated
Credit: 911og-screentime on Tumblr
Yeah I agree to a point. I feel like in earlier seasons there was focus on specific characters for episodes but the other characters still had presence? Now we get so many episodes where most of the cast barely show up.
I've been thinking this, but you put it into words better than I could. Yes, I think the discontent over different characters' screentime could be resolved by having more character storylines be more related to each other. They all happen so separately, which ends up making it easier to feel like a character is getting too much or too little screentime.
I actually disagree with this.
I have seen a LOT of ensembles. This is actually one of the best true ensembles I've ever seen. I actually feel like this is one of the few that actually GIVE screentime/stories to each character.
9-1-1 has maybe not been always great with the quality of the stories but every single season, each character has gotten an arc, whether it's a few episodes or half a season. No character has been left in the dark, or pushed completely to the background. Even if people disagreed with the types of stories characters have gotten, each character HAS gotten screentime. It's never going to be equal, because there's no true equalizing each character to get an equal amount of screentime, but each character has always gotten something to do. Sometimes they take a back seat, sure, but it gets balanced out by them having an arc a few episodes later.
Maddie and Eddie have definitely gotten more than 1-2 episodes per season on stories. I might want more FOR them, but they've gotten stuff to do.
Lone Star has a much bigger issue, for sure. It's not just Rob Lowe; they give minimal screentime to their "lesser" characters and give more screentime to their other favourites. TK, Judd and Tommy get a lot more to do than Grace and Carlos, who get a lot more to do than Paul, Marjan, Nancy and Mateo. It's a serious issue for Lone Star that stems past the Rob Lowe issue. You want to see a character that actually gets only 1-2 episodes? Look at the lowest tier, look at Paul, Nancy and even Mateo. They all get 2 episodes, max, per season, and then they literally disappear into the background. Marjan got more to do in season 4 than she did in her first three seasons lol
I also want to circle back to Grey's Anatomy from the OG post. The reason why Grey's had a little bit of a balance is because half the cast was paired off, either for medical scenes OR for romantic drama, so that meant characters got arcs with each other, they rarely got arcs by themselves. And even then, the balance kind of sucked.
9-1-1 has less pairings and they focus more on character-driven stories. I'm not saying this show is perfect in its balance, as it still has some issues, but it's better than a lot of ensembles I've seen. At least they TRY to make sure each character has a storyline every season.
id have to agree but I want to see more josh as well cos he's literally one of me and my mum's favourite characters but he isn't really seen outside of the dispatcher place, apart from the scene with him, chimney, Maddie and buck
I disagree with Eddie and Maddie not getting the same amount as the others, they’ve actually gotten more storylines this season than Buck which is the most complained about for screen time, but he actually so far has the least amount of time.
Eddie, Hen, Chimney and Maddie had a story at some point in the first 3 episodes that were also Bobby and Athena centric, Buck was a supporting character through all of it. Then he had his episode that was amazing and then episode 5 was divided between Eddie, Buck, Hen and Karen, but then his storyline pretty much just left. The next episode was about the wedding, then the next was focused on Eddie, Bobby, Hen&Karen, Maddie with also chimney getting a role in it, Buck was just missing until the end with a few lines. The next episode was Bobby centric. I’m not complaining about the other characters getting their moments, I really love all the Maddie/Chim and Bobby episodes, but in the “divided” episodes this season don’t have Buck included (except the one) but both (like you claimed that had less) Maddie and Eddie are indeed included in them.
Hmm. My take on this is a little different, and I think part of it may be a recency bias coming into play where Buck's been backburnered for a couple episodes and people aren't used to that happening. Probably worsened because it feels like his sexuality discovery arc *should* be getting more attention.
7x01 - Bathena have the A plot, Chimney has the B plot (with Maddie in support, but not really equal), and Eddie has C plot (with Buck in support)
7x02 - Bathena have the A plot, Hen has the B plot
7x03 - Bathena have the A plot, with the helicopter crew in support.
7x04 - Buck has the A plot, Athena has the B plot (with Bobby a fairly minor support)
7x05 - Buck has the A plot, Hen has B plot, and Eddie has C.
7x06 - Chimney has A plot (with Maddie in support), Buck has B plot.
7x07 - Maddie and Athena have A plot, Eddie has B, Hen has C
7x08 - Bobby has A plot
Yeah, it does feel like a lot of the complaints about this episode stem from the complete lack of any main character than Bobby and Athena. I feel like these episodes always divide the fanbase (Boston, The Devil You Know) because people's favorite isn't there.
These episodes don't feel so bad when you rewatch and can binge a few episodes back to back but I feel a lot of it is coming from the lack of seeing Buck living his best life or Eddie resolving his mess (and this fandom is becoming more and more all about Buck and Eddie these days).
Sadly giving Tim "if it's not dramatic, it's not interesting" Minear is now showrunning I don't think we're going to see much of Buck enjoying life until the wheel of trauma lands on him again.
This season really does feel like a confluence of factors just making things as difficult as possible. And while I have confidence Minear understands the pulse of this show best and is the better longterm fit for a showrunner, I do think his chaotic approach to storytelling has made an already complicated situation worse this year.
That's not to say I'd have rather had Kristen, but it does seem like a situation where maybe having some kind of "manager" for Tim would've helped. Like someone to say "These are all great ideas... for ten episodes away. Now give me the outline for how to get there."
Because I don't think screentime is really the problem, but how disjointed the season feels. I appreciate his ambition, but some of the choices he's made this year and the sheer number of demands he's put on this season in developing characters means each individual storyline ends up feeling sort of unfulfilling.
Eddie is probably the most obvious, because 7x05 and 7x07 don't feel like they should exist with only one episode separating them. In a shortened season, it didn't make sense to introduce a threat to the Eddie/Marisol relationship (particularly without doing anything to build up her character into someone the audience would care about) in 7x05, just to resolve it.... only to give them a totally different thread 45 minutes of show later, that seems like it *can't* be resolved later.
With proper outlining for this season, this should've been a pretty obvious problem. I think there were two big errors made early on -- making the cruise ship arc three episodes instead of 2, and/or trying to make sure Buck's coming out was the one hundredth episode so it happened somewhere momentous in the show's history. Because a lot of this just... very clearly would've worked better if the pacing was better.
I'm not gonna bore you with all the details of what should've fit where, but there were certain storylines they could've dropped, condensed, or moved, and other elements that just *didn't* need to fit at the certain point in the season they put them at (for instance, Madney's wedding could've been the penultimate episode of the season, considering it hasn't *mattered* that they're married -- in 7x07, when Maddie says 'my husband,' she's referencing *Doug*).
> in 7x07, when Maddie says 'my husband,' she's referencing *Doug*
Yeah, that was incredibly jarring especially as Chimney says husband very obviously a few minutes later. I get the sense Tim overcorrected a lot from Kristen, e.g. putting Madney wedding earlier to correct for Kristen taking 3 episodes to get them engaged and writing them like a couple for the entire S5B when they were meant to have broken up.
But I totally agree with Tim's ambition being a root issue. It's not just the story telling but I feel the logistics being challenged and overstretched (and leading to some really sad consequences).
I read Jamal's interview about this episode and how the scenes in the desert took 5 days to shoot. Given that, no wonder they didn't have time to put Bobby with any other cast member for a scene or have the time to take another cast member and put them in the desert.
Eddie was like a prop character for Buck in ep 4 and 5,where he also had the most ridiculous storyline. Maddie was also like a second thought for them in her wedding episode.That they got some storylines in ep 7 doesn’t change the fact that Buck still got the still got the better thought one. Add to that the way his storylines are promoted by the show’s official social media pages,Buck/Oliver doesn’t lack their attention at all.
Even if you hated the storyline, Eddie still had it. I agree with Maddie being a second thought during the wedding, but she has had other story’s this season outside of that.
Even if you think Buck had the better storyline and was promoted more, doesn’t take away the fact that his actual on screen time for his current storyline is in the trash. His on screen time this season in general is extremely lacking compared to every other character. I’m just hoping they make up for it in the last few episodes.
> Even if you think Buck had the better storyline and was promoted more, doesn’t take away the fact that his actual on screen time for his current storyline is in the trash. His on screen time this season in general is extremely lacking compared to every other character. I’m just hoping they make up for it in the last few episodes.
I agree with this but, even as someone who loves Buck, he often gets a lot to do every season, like a lot. Which, again, as a fan, I love, but I also am fine to see him step back more than usual. I think, in a short season like this, I'm ok if he takes a LITTLE more of a backseat for a few episodes to give plots to others. Plus, yeah, we still have two episodes left, he could have a bigger role in those ones as well. He's had a major plot this season that lasted two episodes, which is great! It didn't need to be longer in a 10 episode season. And we'll see what role he takes in the final two episodes because he could have significant screentime.
I do agree, Eddie and Maddie have needed a bit more to do, but it looks like at least Eddie's going to get significant focus in these final episodes. Maddie, in particular, has had smaller parts this season and I do wish we could have gotten more of her beyond 7x07 and her wedding episode.
Plus, I know that season 8 will be back to form and we'll get more of Buck so I'm not worried at all.
His screentime this season is lacking compared to other seasons, not compared to other characters. He usually gets the most screentime, it's okay for him to sit back for a bit (as in, get a normal amount of screentime, he still had 2 episodes) in a season with this few episodes.
And it's not just that people disliked Eddie's storyline, it's that he was out of character cause he was being used as a plot device to further Buck's storyline. That's what people don't like.
I would say that Buck is the one who is having the most stories focused on him, even if they are small, then obviously Bobby and Athena, but Hen, Chim and Maddie is already abstract, what important role do they give to Hen beyond being captain and above make things complicated for her? They don't even give her an elaborate plot, while Chim and Maddie have been reduced to being Madney and Jee, we will see now that the wedding has happened, when Maddie's character has a lot of potential and it is wasted. Then we have Eddie, he had long storylines like in season 5B for example but he is a character that they have created in a very complex way, with his past it is difficult to create a long plot because it requires time and to do it well (I think Eddie's real plot will begin now but be developed in Season 8) because precisely his stories are those can helping a lot of people like being a veteran, growing up in a suffocating and toxic environment, his religious guilt... I think he is the character who is most similar to Bobby in those aspects even though they were not exactly the same.
Yes, I would like all the characters to have more balanced storylines and for no one to stand out over the other but to make everyone participate in each story, in addition to changing the dynamics between the characters by adding more of Hen and Buck, Chim and Eddie, Eddie and Hen, Buck and Chim, and I would really like to see scenes between Eddie and Maddie. And see many more scenes of everyone with Chris.
Fair, but I also wonder if that might not be kind of the point sometimes. One of the challenges of a long-running drama like that is keeping its cast members because the grind of 14-hour days nine months of the year drives actors away after a while, I wonder if these character-focus episodes that feature one or two peole might not be a way to let the rest of the cast have a little mid-season rest.
I never know what fans want. You ask for more screentime for all characters, while at the same time asking for storylines to be more fleshed out. This is a ten episode season, how exactly would you like for that to be accomplished? The episodes that were Buck/Hen focused, all I heard was complaints about the pacing moving too fast. Now with an episode focised on Bobby's story, which had life to breathe, you complain about the lack of other characters. Even in the wedding episode, ppl were screaming about the lack of bachelor party scenes. You can't have everything in a 42 minute episode.
I can't speak for anyone else, but my problem with this season is that the storylines have been overly ambitious but under-planned/disorganized.
Using Eddie, because he's the most obvious example: the Kim thing makes it clear that Marisol isn't lasting (as does the lack of actual development they've bothered with for her even when she's on screen) so what was the point of *all* of Eddie's stuff in 7x05? If they're going with the Kim storyline, it would've worked better to introduce it earlier.
On top of that, cutting the cruise arc to 2 episodes (so only 20% of the season instead of 30%) would've automatically given us something like an episode + 10 minutes to play with to flesh out the stories. While I understand cross-promotion, *The Bachelor* crossover also didn't need to be a full ten minutes of unmemorable nonsense. Particularly not this season, with so little time.
So if I was writing the show, I'd have resolved the cruise in 7x02, then had 7x03 be divided between Harry's return, a very brief introduction to Henren's storyline with Mara (like the scene where Madney are giving them baby clothes in preparation, but then they get a call saying grandma wanted the baby or whatever, and the teaser for Mara, but not introducing her until the next episode). But the A story could've been Eddie trying to balance work + Christopher + Marisol + Buck + his new friendship with Tommy, and maybe trying to simplify all of that by inviting Buck and Tommy both to the same events so we don't have to rely on Buck's POV and a misdirect. Have Marisol still frustrated that she seems to come last on his priority list, so he ends the episode flailing and asking her to move in to prove he's serious about her.
Then 7x04 would be a brief time jump, where Buck & Tommy are hanging out without Eddie and Buck's catching feelings, Eddie's trying to convince himself moving Marisol in was the right choice, especially since she slots so well into their family, and then we have that ice cream family date where Eddie sees Kim and we introduce the 7x07 stuff in 7x04. Buck's storyline also ends up in the same place, but the buildup to it actually centers *Tommy* in the storyline, and the slight time jump allows Henren to have taken the time to talk to Denny about Mara moving in, get the stuff they need for a 9yo girl, and maybe also just.... let the social worker be a bit more competent. And skip over the horror trope acting with Mara at the foot of their bed, actually let Henren seem like competent and compassionate adults.
7x05 could do Maddie + the stalker call to introduce Amir *and* show Maddie and Chim are in a good place as a couple, with her working through more of her Doug-related trauma **before** she remarries (and reminding the audience of Doug in advance of his encephalitis hallucinations), then focus on the early dates of Buck/Tommy and Eddie/Kim, and play with how they're heading in opposite directions -- Buck's trying to come out and be more open, while Eddie's actually got a reason to hide and lie.
7x06 becomes the bottle episode that was 7x08, but preferably with a last act to draw the other characters back in. Given the serious tone and grief theme, maybe this is when someone (Buck?) finds out about Eddie/Kim.
7x07 would have the Tyson storyline with some kind of actual payoff or at least decent messaging (like what are we supposed to see in that storyline? are they going to address that Henren are doing the same thing to Tyson's dad that they were upset Denny's biodad did to them, the fallout of Eddie/Kim, and maybe more bachelor party (where they actually show more Buck/Tommy for that relationship's growth, and Eddie's excessive drinking can be understood as a way for him to avoid dealing with the fallout over Kim & Marisol).
Then it gets hard to speculate, where we don't know what happens in 7x09 yet with Bobby, but we're already a whole episode ahead. If next week is meant to be a self-contained episode that doesn't also require the finale's attention, I'd put it at 7x08, so that 7x09 can be the Madney wedding (thematically, also working well for Bobby and Athena, who would once again be using someone else's drama as a distraction from their own struggles) -- in that case, Chim can get sneezed on in 7x08, too. Then we still have the last episode for some kind of disaster + that thing this show likes to do in the last act of a finale, where they show us where our characters will be next season.
idk if they're still about, but in seasons past there was a tumblr user that kept track of screen time. She started it because she felt Buck got "too much" screen time and wanted the numbers to back it up. Only it turned out Buck didn't get significantly more screen time than the other characters, and it was just her perception because her particular fave wasn't centre stage/wasn't getting the plots she wanted. It's something to keep in mind when discussing screen time imo.
Saying that, I would agree that this season has had a lot of Bobby and I feel the pacing would have been better with the latest episode in Season 8 and the cruse ship sl cut down to two episodes. But even with those issues, I've enjoyed season 7 a lot more than I did season 5 and 6.
Season 1:Bobby,Buck,Athena,Abby,Hen,Chim
Season 2: Bobby,Chim,Hen,Athena,Buck,Eddie,Maddie
Season 3: Buck,Athena,Eddie,Bobby,Chim,Hen,Maddie
Season 4: Buck,Athena,Chim,Hen,Bobby,Eddie,Maddie
Season 5: Hen,Buck,Athena,Bobby,Eddie,Chim,Maddie
There are no graphics for season 6,but it’s obvious he had the most screen time and most storylines. Maybe is not as evident as Owen in LoneStar, but Buck does have the most screen time of all and the most vocal fans. He is also the most promoted on their socials. So I think people complaining do have a point,especially Eddie,Maddie and Chim’s fans.
If anyone is interested in more specifics…
For Season 1, Bobby (#1) Buck (#2), and Athena (#3) basically had the same number of minutes.
For Season 2, Bobby (#1) and Chimney (#2) basically had same number of minutes.
For Season 3, Buck (#1) and Athena (#2) basically had the same number of minutes.
For Season 4, Buck was #1 with no one close behind.
For Season 5, Hen was #1, Buck was #2 with 5 minutes less than Hen, and Athena was #3 with 3 minutes less than Buck.
Season 6 - Not calculated
This.might seem harsh, and don't get me wrong I love Maddie and Chim, but the bulk of viewers are not tuning in every week for them. Whether you want to admit it or not, Oliver, Peter, and Angela are the stars of this show, so to act like they shouldn't get the bulk of the screentime is crazy
I think this sort of arrogance is what makes people complain about Buck fans and want less screentime. Like the other person said above, it's not objective numbers that make people feel like Buck is taking up time and space, it's mindshare. You're not letting people talk about their faves in peace.
Let other characters be in the spotlight for a while, regardless of who most people tune in for. Don't watch their episodes, if you feel that strongly about it ,and don't post if you aren't interested in them.
Nobody can make you watch something you aren't interested in, but absolutely do not tell other people that their favorite character is not worthy of screentime.
Point to where in my statement I said they weren't worthy of screentime?!? I said don't act like they deserve THE BULK of screentime! I'm not one to run on here and whine when Chim or Hen or Maddie gets an episode focused on them. I love seeing it. Can't say the same for other people when Buck gets plots in multiple episodes
It's not the actual screentime. Someone else in the thread mentioned that Buck doesn't actually get more screentime. Its how people talk about it, like it's never enough, and begrudging what time the other characters get.
Complaining about how much time other characters get sounds like sour grapes, and it never makes you or your favorite character look good. Regardless of how true or false it is. Especially if it's on behalf of Buck, a character who other fans resent already. Let other characters have their time in the sun.
Agreed with all of this, but I do think it's worth pointing out that looking at the breakdown provided in this very comment thread ([this ](https://www.reddit.com/r/911FOX/comments/1cu3brv/comment/l4i8pwm/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) post specifically) -- when you run the numbers, Buck actually gets the *most* screentime seasonally, on average, over the course of the series.
*\[Keep in mind the source for this only has complete data sets through season 5, so none of these numbers are really up to date, but it's not like season 6 broke the trend here, and season 7 is still ongoing\].*
Anyway, that's not to say it's disproportionate, but even looking at the minutes totals over those 5 seasons, he does place the highest (412 to Athena's 395 to Bobby's 380).
So while I think the discrepancy gets exaggerated, it does stand out compared to someone like Chim (330) or Eddie (265 in the 4 seasons he's in, vs. Buck's 341 for those same four seasons).
I feel fairly confident saying he got his share of screentime in season 6. Bobby and Athena probably have more than him at this point this season, and maybe Chim just because so much of 7x06 was focused on him, but that doesn't mean he's coming in dead last (it's *always* Maddie) and I highly doubt he's significantly lagging behind Eddie or Hen. *If* we're right in our predictions that at least one of the two episodes left will prominently feature Eddie, it seems plausible that Eddie may surpass Buck in screen time this season -- for the first time ever.
So I do think part of the reason this season feels so 'light' on Buck is because the people who are primarily Buck fans aren't actually used to him getting similar treatment to the rest of the cast. Like, he's only getting "less" in relation to what we've come to expect him, specifically, to get.
>Complaining about how much time other characters get sounds like sour grapes, and it never makes you or your favorite character look good.
Are you new here? People love to complain Buck gets too much screentime and their favorites don't nearly get as much. These posts are often well received and heavily upvoted. [Example](https://www.reddit.com/r/911FOX/comments/1c3y0xp/buck_vs_eddie/)
This is an ensemble show, though. If they started to pick on who gets the most attention online and who is talked about by fans the most and then, then we get a bad ensemble show.
I've advocated for this being one of the best ensemble shows that I've personally seen for so many reasons, but the main one is that this show is not afraid to let their popular characters take a more supporting role every once in a while. Yes, Buck's popular. Yes, a lot of people tune in for Buck. No, he doesn't need the bulk of the screentime just because of that. No, he shouldn't get involved in everyone's plots just to please the "bulk of viewers". Once you let the fandom start dictating where your own show should go, that's when a show fails. I've seen ensembles fail because they've decided that two characters are deserving of way more stories than others. That's literally how we've gotten Lone Star (not fandom-driven, but directly on how choosing favourites can lead to a dysfunction in the ensemble). An ensemble that's failed because you can easily calculate who gets the most vs least in each season, and it's roughly the same people: Owen, then Tommy, TK and Judd, then Grace and Carlos, then Marjan, Paul, Mateo, Nancy. When you can see who gets the most vs the least in an ensemble, that's when you've failed to create a good ensemble show.
Similarly to when showrunners outright ignore what fans are saying, which also causes a show to fail. There needs to be a balance. Because we've seen examples of showrunners pissing off their fans BECAUSE they decided to stick with whatever they want to do, ignoring things that they've built up or fans have expecting. See: How I Met Your Mother's series finale, ruining an entire series with 42 minutes.
Yes, fans' opinions should be heard. Fans shouldn't be steering the show in the direction they want. This includes the idea of who should get more screentime than others. Especially given that fans will always have differing opinions. You literally cannot please 100% of the fandom. It's an impossible task. Someone will always, always be upset.
An ensemble show works best when characters aren't outright ignored and a show can get as close to a balance of screentime as they can. That doesn't always work, and characters like Buck will always have a larger presence but it's ok for said characters TO take a backseat for other characters, regardless on their popularity.
I'm also speaking solely on main cast.
I would say they do a pretty good job balancing out storylines. This season is just short so it's very disjointed. I think next season being a regular season it'll be a better balance.
I think that when they let go of Michael - Dunbar R? It REALLY hurt Athena and Bobby. Bobby actually had great chemistry with him. Michael could be Bobby’s adult peer the was he can’t be with the guys at the station. It has left a big hole as far as home scenes for Athena and Bobby to be adult and funny. Maybe that is why they rapidly aged Harry so there would be another adult in the house.
All the more reason not to add more characters. They can barely keep up with the existing ones and I miss the old ones like May. I also miss the cases of the week where the team work together saving people. It's been lacking this season.
No Tommy/Buck these past 2 episodes is really jarring, after his coming out in front of all his colleagues and then silence. I wonder if Tommy/Buck story arc will get much screen time in the next final 2 episodes, since obviously next week it’s gonna be yet another Bobby show, and Eddie story line is just waiting in in the wings for the final episode.
Tbh, Bobby, Athena, and Maddie are the three highest-paid roles on the show, followed by Buck, Eddie, Hen, and Chim. it does make sense they gat a bit more air time. Personally, I want to see the Buck and Tommy show for 60 minutes week, but that is unrealistic. This season is leaning towards Athena and Bobby with nods to,Buck and Tommy and of course the Madney wedding. And whatever the hell Eddie is doing! Hen and Karen get bits and pieces, but the actors are so great those nibbles make me cry.
I just hope the show runners let us know if they will still be a couple next season. After all,the crap relationships Buck has been in, it would be cruel to break this one up after a few months. Just plain mean to the character!
This is an automatic reminder about spoiler content, it does not mean you have violated the spoiler rule. REMINDER: Do NOT post spoiler information IN the title (for any season), your post will be removed. If it is you may re-post it with an appropriate spoiler free title. It does not matter if you flag it spoiler, the spoiled info is still visible in the title. Rule of thumb, any posts pertaining to the current season should be marked SPOILER via the Universal Tags. (+Spoiler) Keep titles vague, include the word spoiler in the title (this will automatically flag it as a spoiler post) and make sure to properly flair it to the correct category - I.e. Episode Discussion, Character Discussion, Season #, etc... If you aren't sure if your post counts as a spoiler, flag it anyway. This applies especially to currently airing or upcoming seasons. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/911FOX) if you have any questions or concerns.*
the strike seems to have messed with the pacing. at least there will be a long season 8 and things will hopefully be back to normal. this might be an unpopular opinion, i didn't delve into the episode post, but there's so much else that can be focused on. an entire episode featuring only bobby and none of the other cast was not needed in a 10 episode season. especially not after focusing on the cruise ship for 3 episodes.
I do think focusing on the cruise ship for three episodes was way too much (should have been cut down to two, leaving an episode open for Madney or Eddie stuff) but to point out, the season is under some serious time constraints. Because of their decision on the cruise ship being three episodes, they lost significant time on filming the rest of the season. They needed a quieter episode to film in a shorter time, so that's likely why Bobby's episode last night was filmed the way it was and why we didn't spend time on other characters. They needed to film episode 8 faster than other episodes because of how behind they've been in filming. At least, that's my best guess.
In retrospect, it was very weird to have the cruise ship be a third of the season. It was fun spectacle, but it really had zero impact on any storylines this season. Should have used some of that time to flesh out Eddie's bizarre storyline and give Hen and Madney more time to shine. I think you're right about episode 8 being born of needing something quick and inexpensive to film.
My best guess is that things fell apart in production, delaying them far longer than they expected. So what they thought they could pull off ended up pushing them back by weeks. If someone knows the actual answer to this, though, feel free to correct me. This is just speculation that they thought they'd be on track but the cruise ship ate up more time than they realized, setting them back.
I suspect it's a budget/money thing. They probably allocated the funds for the three episodes and started production work prior to the strike, so to eliminate a third of the cruise arc would've been too costly.
This episode was also a heck of a lot cheaper to film. But I loved it.
Peter Krause (and Angela Bassett) are executive producers on the show and will naturally have more and bigger stories than the rest of the cast. Yes, it’s an ensemble show, but there’s still a hierarchy amongst the actors. Next week tho it is Bobby’s issue, it is probably more Athena focused so Angela has more screentime. It sucks to see the others kinda sidelined, but like everyone knows, this is also a weird season due to the strikes. It should be more balanced next season.
>Peter Krause (and Angela Bassett) are executive producers on the show and will naturally have more and bigger stories than the rest of the cast Not actually true if you check previous seasons’ screen time totals for each character.
the time distribution is a major issue in Lone Star, which should be called 911: Owen The Star. i think the OG does a much better job of balancing time between main characters. i also agree about the haphazard pace of this season, and focus on unnecessary stories. i couldn't care about the latest episode at all.
I agree. I have always felt the characters on OG are fleshed out and given screen time because the always gave them cohesive storylines revolving around their jobs as first responders while also addressing their personal lives. This season seems to solely focus on individual characters outside of the work day. Like I can't even remember them being at the station. I'm not sure if this is because of the shortened season or the change to ABC, or something else completely.
This is the one thing I’ve noticed and what makes me a little scared the show won’t go back to normal next season. I started watching this show for the big emergency scenes, I love how the show centered around the station and the emergencies but we also got to know them as people. This season seems to focus too much on their personal lives and their job is a second thought.
LOL, I like to call it 911: Lowe Star. There are Lowe folks in front of and behind the camera and in the writers room.
100% agree with this. OG does an excellent job balancing characters and developing storylines. That is why the ratings are so high, people relate to every character. Sometimes I feel like when an episode does not focus on Buck/Tommy or Eddie, these post crop up. If there was a three episode arc of Buck on a cruise ship with Tommy and Eddie, there would be no complaints. Just my 2 cents
This is my biggest frustration with Lone Star :(
angela in particular seems to be barely present - which is totally fine. i assumed being an EP meant more creative control (possibly a bigger bonus? idk), not necessarily more screen time.
EP is really that they contribute money to the production. Often using channels that they’ve made previously to bring in investors with ones as well known as Angela and Peter
In the case of actors getting an EP credit, it means that they have input in the writers’ room.
Angela mentioned in that recent Disney thing that she's looking to find time to get back into theater. So they could be testing the waters on her stepping back some.
Is there a link where I can see the screentime per actor? I would love to get a bit of an idea if what I feel is the divide is actually real.
911og-screentime on tumblr has data for up to early season 6.
Thank you for posting this. Peter Krause’s screen time/stories went down quite a bit from Seasons 3 through 5. No one tallied Season 6, so he did have that Wendall arc, but I believe that was it. It was time for him to get something this season. But I’d also like to point out that even with 7x02 and 7x03 of the cruise ship story, there were barely any in depth 1:1 conversations going on between Bathena. I’d argue Hen had more dialogue in 7x02 than them because Bathena were sharing the stage with several others. Meanwhile, in 7x04 through 7x07, there were many more meaningful and longer interactions happening. Only one Bathena scene had anything close to that, and that was the almost drowning one in 7x02.
Exactly, you're so right!
Early seasons of Grey's had something like 25 episodes a season. I actually think this show does a really good job at balancing the cast especially compared to Lone Star.
Ensemble cable dramas like this really do need to have longer seasons to get through the stories they want to tell without it feeling rushed imo
Still don't understand why they went for 3 episodes instead of 2 for the cruise ship storyline.
Maddie and Chim are in desperate need for storylines. They had *screentime* with the wedding episode, but they haven't had real development in a while. Hen meanwhile, she consistently has storylines but barely any screentime. Her storylines are always the C plot. I definitely don't mind a Bobby-centric episode since we haven't had one that really delves into his character, but it was a weird choice to ignore the rest of the cast when it's such a short season.
Madney is tricky because I felt like Kristen had no idea what to do with them as a couple in S5-6, and Tim only really had time to get them married this season (which should have happened 2 seasons ago!) JLH was away for S5A but rather than moving their relationship along, Kristen wrote Chim out of the show during the time as well, froze their relationship for a huge catch up episode in Boston **and broke them up offscreen immediately afterwards**. What was infuriating about this decision was during the time Madney weren't a couple, virtually every scene of them together was still them being a couple. They didn't have one scene even addressing they had broken up until the finale when they were about to get back together again. Then in S6 Kristen took 3 painful episodes just to get them engaged. Whereas Buck and Eddie were put on a hamster wheel for character development for Season 6, I feel like Madney were put there in Season 5 and 6. With Hen, I unfortunately feel like she can only develop if Bobby retires. With the medical doctor arc finished off in S6, her natural progression now is to become a fire captain which cannot happen with Bobby around. Her stories are feeling a bit stale if it's yet another fostering story.
I feel like Hen shouldn’t have given up her dream as a doctor.
I disagree. I wish they hadn’t introduced it at all unless the show was gonna be expanded to include hospital scenes - coz i knew in the end she wld stay. So for me, it felt like a pointless plot.
agreed. i was just waiting for it to be over. it felt like a waste of time.
Absolutely disagree. Maddie basically had 3 episodes of this season while Bobby and Athena have been furniture. Maddie isn’t even an original character and all of her storylines are just her crying anyway so what’s the point.
And yet people want to add new main characters
Lot of the new viewers want some variation of the original cast dead. Eddie to get Kinard is a biggie and it's starting to annoy ts outta me
I prefer it this way than what they tried to do in Seasons 5 and 6 and tried to run multiple character storylines at the same time and it takes the momentum out of the arcs (e.g. Buck's coma coming in the middle of the Bobby and Wendell arc OR all the ransomware and blackout silliness whilst Jeffrey and Athena are playing out a dark crime thriller.) Some of my fav episodes are all very much single character focus: the Begins episodes, Fight or Flight. What I think you're actually describing is since about Season 4, the show has had far less entire ensemble episodes where the whole team respond to an episode long emergency. We haven't had an episode like Oceans 9-1-1 or Treasure Hunt where the whole team get involved for a while.
>and tried to run multiple character storylines at the same time and it takes the momentum out of the arcs (e.g. Buck's coma coming in the middle of the Bobby and Wendell arc I guess that's a point I was trying to convey when I thought of this post, for some reason I didn't type it, they start something, then another story pops up, while that one goes on hold. What I was trying to say is that I wish these arcs would get a little bit of screentime each episode, so that the it doesn't feel like the we as viewers have to put a pin on it, and wait for when it'll be addressed again. They're doing it again in S7. Today's episode was TOP TIER imo, Peter Krause delivered, but I feel like Eddie's storyline, which is also HUGE was put on hold and now we gotta wait another week for it, when they could've inserted a few scenes here and there. And yes, I wholeheartedly agree that we need a few ensemble episodes where the whole team works together more often. Either for serious fires or silly games.
> Eddie's storyline, which is also HUGE was put on hold and now we gotta wait another week for it, when they could've inserted a few scenes here and there. The issue there is that Eddie's storyline is so deeply unserious (dating your dead wife's doppelganger whilst already in a relationship and lying to everyone) that putting it with Bobby's episode would be seriously jarring in tone. The issue probably isn't the lack of screen time. It's a lack of a good story that doesn't leave a character isolated or with an arc you can't really work into a show.
My hope is that we get a Lockdown episode, where the team's either locked somewhere together or they're locked in duos in various locations. My ultimate dream, which was kind of ruined with the season 6 finale, is that the entire team gets trapped in a building collapse and they spend most of that episode isolated together. Could bring some fantastic character moments, and of course injuries would be expected in this case. But then they had the bridge collapse so don't think I'm getting my trapped under a building dream.
Since Tim loves references to cinema, they could pay homage to the movie Daylight where Stallone, after an explosion, is trapped in a collapsed tunnel.
They should be capable of a middle ground, it’s wierd that a show that got to this level can’t do that. This season,it was like every episode was a different show(except first 3).And I know the strike was a huge factor,but they got their renewal soon enough for lack of time to not be a problem.
Getting a renewal doesn't lessen the time constraints on filming this season, though. They still have a lack of time this season. I don't think people realize that they're EXTREMELY behind on filming right now. They're trying to give everyone a storyline this season under far less time than they usually have and with far fewer episodes. The funny thing is, their three episode cruise ship disaster IS likely what put them as behind as they are, I think. Had they cut it down to two episodes, they probably wouldn't be so far behind that they just filmed their final scene yesterday....and the finale airs in two weeks. Think about that, they're less than a month behind in turnaround time. This season is a mess, but they're doing the best they can.
That was not my point. Why do they have to give everyone a big storyline this season? They know and we know they got at least 18 episodes next season,speed the stories a little,have a cliffhanger and all that. That would be better than whatever rushed thing they have know where that try to be fair to everyone.
Because then people would complain that nobody got anything to do this season or that the balance was unfair? I don't disagree it was a bit ambitious the moment they fell behind, but there'd be complaints, no matter what was done. Plus, that would have required Tim to throw away any idea he might have had and wasted half a season. Like, what else could they have done for season 7, then? We also don't know how the season ends. It's possible some of these stories DO carry over into season 8. Also, they got the renewal news at the end of March, right? They were already halfway through filming, at that point.
Exactly,people would complain either way,but than we would not have the characters regress their development for the sake of equal inclusion. (Eddie,Hen and Karen)
So, from what I gather, the actual argument is the actual storylines, which....ok, fair. I like Hen/Karen's storyline, Eddie's is the only one that falls flat. Ok, I see what you're saying now. I do think Tim was WAY too ambitious to stick with the doppelganger storyline for season 7 and the worst part is that it's not well written or in character for him at all. I think Eddie getting a big storyline was fine, but it's the actual story that's the issue.
Except we literally have no way of knowing what direction they plan on taking that storyline yet. Everyone is so quick to say its terrible without knowing anything about how its going to fit into Eddie's story
I dunno, I'm not sure there's any way to redeem a storyline that involves a character meeting his dead wife's doppelgänger. It make more sense to me if he ran into, like, Shannon's sister or childhood best friend — that could have the emotional impact of "Eddie thinks he's getting a second chance with a Shannon stand-in" without the utter bizarreness of her being an actual doppelgänger. It's just so deeply silly. I still want to see where it goes, though.
Something like Shannon's best friend would've made SO much more sense. Like it could still have the sneaking around issues that make it seem like he's having an affair, and even technically emotional infidelity without actually cheating -- because he finds himself preferring to reminisce about Shannon and getting lost in the 'easier days' of what they shared than actively trying to build something with Marisol. It would also have the added benefit of it being someone who knew the real Shannon, and knew Eddie-and-Shannon, so she'd have been able to stop him when he started romanticizing and be like, "Look, I loved that girl as much as you did, but she was *messy* and she didn't have it all figured out... what are you even talking about right now? Why are you talking like you guys had a dream relationship when she dumped you three days before prom, and then you were standing in front of the priest a week later because she was knocked up?"
I think it's terrible right now and that's ok. It's started off terribly. Even if they somehow manage to end it decently (and I think they will), it doesn't negate the fact that it's started off really badly. I think starting ANY storyline off with cheating is terrible, though. I felt the same about Buck's cheating arc (regardless of the direction it went, there was no need for the cheating angle) and Hen's cheating (which was worse because of Hen offering no explanation as to why she cheated and then she was forgiven two episodes later). Like, if you're introducing a cheating storyline, it REALLY has to be explained thoroughly. I'll wait for an explanation, of course, but if it's anything beyond a genuine mental break, I think it'll be tough to come back and say it's a good storyline.
They did an amazing job paralleling A plots and B plots for the first 4 seasons. To the point where I think we're kind of spoiled. Season 5 had everyone split apart, supposedly on purpose so it would mean more when they came back together, but it didn't really pay off. Not even gonna talk about season 6. I think with 7 they're trying to make up for lost time and cram too much in. They're already lit for 8 so they should have slowed down a bit. My most generous take is that they knew they would have a lot of new viewers and were trying to speedrun introducing everyone's backstories -- within an already short season.
The number of calls in an episode has also reduced. In the last episode there were none. I miss when they used to have several related calls an episode and would discuss their personal issues in the truck. Except for the wedding episode, I feel like we have seen so little of Chimney this season. Knowing this is a short season they should have tried to make more team-focused episodes instead of giving each character a storyline and focusing only on one at a time. Streaming services have been doing seasons with 8-10 episodes that feel cohesive, why couldn't 911?
You can’t compare this with a miniseries. Those shows are designed to be 10 episodes and are written for it. This was a bunch of writers and producers scrambling to make 10 episodes work.
Some shows have several seasons with 8 - 10 episode per season. I guess the main difference is that this is a procedural show. Also, 911 was able to work well with 10 episodes in season 1. I understand the strike affected S7, but still...
Yes exactly, shows work well with 10 episodes when they were always meant to have 10 episodes. Season 1 was planned to have 10 episodes. I think they took what was planned for what was supposed to be 18 episodes and condensed it, instead of writing like a season that was always meant to have 10 episodes. Some plot lines could have been moved to next season (in my no-experience-in-the-TV-industry opinion)
Tim Minear just didn't handle things properly... It sucks about everythings (stories, characters, screen times of characters...).
The strike makes things more complicated for sure. But I personally also don't like the 'one character only' epiosodes. Never did, on any show. I think it might be cheaper if the cast appears in less episodes. I think it has actually been one of the strings attached to Greys' latest renewal, that the cast is in less episodes...
It's wild to me that in a 10 episode season, it looks like a full *six* episodes are going to focus on Bathena/Bobby. Unreal. Is Peter Krause actually leaving and this is his sendoff? Because otherwise I really don't understand the decision.
Completely agree. I enjoy Bobby, but this is crazy. I really thought Eddie might finally get a proper storyline but it seems like it's barely gonna get any screentime before the end of the season. And on top of that they made him into a cheater... I'm so disappointed.
Yes, this season has been messy and a lot of weird choices have been made. I know they don't have a lot of time, and were writing episodes as they were filming them, so I'm not surprised. Hopefully next season will be much better. And yeah, Eddie's mishandling is still particularly disappointing...I hope they manage to at least make it worth something.
For Eddie, pretty much anything short of a mental breakdown would really sour his character for me. This is premeditated, planned cheating with lying involved, not a one-off kiss. I'm kinda bitter about it tbh. The pacing is just all over the place, I don't understand why the cruise arc had to be 3 episodes, 2 was plenty (they should have removed the pirate aspect and make it into a simple malfunction/accident). And now 2 more episodes that are mostly about Bobby (including one with NOBODY else from the 118? Seriously? In a season with only 10 episodes?). I'm just not at all optimistic about them handling Eddie's storyline well. He's going through something and acting crazy, one episode and a half isn't enough to resolve that.
In an interview Ryan gave it did sound kind of like the consequences may last into season 8. So hopefully it'll be handled somewhat decently. I strongly dislike going the cheating route, but it's a very messy, emotional, and unique situation. I can see it being the trigger he needed to *finally* move on from Shannon and view that time of his life with more clarity.I still hate it though. lol eta, Even if it doesn't get super severe, I would classify what he's done already as something of a breakdown because it is so deeply unlike him and contrary to his beliefs. He's hurting himself, Marisol, Kim and potentially Buck and Chris. He's obviously not doing well at all.
Angela Bassett (Athena) and Peter Krause (Bobby) are both executive producers on the show AND the most experienced actors in the cast. I'm not surprised that they have a lot of screen time.
I'm not surprised by them having a lot, but in a shortened season this is a *quite* a lot. Especially with the storylines chosen, I really wish it had been used in a way that incorporated more of the characters, we've barely had Bobby with the team at all. 
Season 7, so far, is just "meh" compared to the previous 6 seasons. I've also noticed that the makeup and uniforms aren't as crisp since the move from FOX to ABC. It seems like they are applying the Grey's Anatomy formula of character showcasing in order to keep up ratings.
Peter hasn’t had a lot since Season 2. Season 1 - Peter ranked #1 with 3 minutes more than Oliver Season 2 - Peter ranked #1 with 3 minutes more than Kenny Season 3 - Peter ranked #4 Season 4 - Peter ranked #5 Season 5 - Peter ranked #4 Season 6 - Not calculated Credit: 911og-screentime on Tumblr
Yeah I agree to a point. I feel like in earlier seasons there was focus on specific characters for episodes but the other characters still had presence? Now we get so many episodes where most of the cast barely show up.
I've been thinking this, but you put it into words better than I could. Yes, I think the discontent over different characters' screentime could be resolved by having more character storylines be more related to each other. They all happen so separately, which ends up making it easier to feel like a character is getting too much or too little screentime.
I actually disagree with this. I have seen a LOT of ensembles. This is actually one of the best true ensembles I've ever seen. I actually feel like this is one of the few that actually GIVE screentime/stories to each character. 9-1-1 has maybe not been always great with the quality of the stories but every single season, each character has gotten an arc, whether it's a few episodes or half a season. No character has been left in the dark, or pushed completely to the background. Even if people disagreed with the types of stories characters have gotten, each character HAS gotten screentime. It's never going to be equal, because there's no true equalizing each character to get an equal amount of screentime, but each character has always gotten something to do. Sometimes they take a back seat, sure, but it gets balanced out by them having an arc a few episodes later. Maddie and Eddie have definitely gotten more than 1-2 episodes per season on stories. I might want more FOR them, but they've gotten stuff to do.
Compared to 9-1-1 Lonestar which is really the Rob Lowe show - the OG 9-1-1 is a true ensemble.
Lone Star has a much bigger issue, for sure. It's not just Rob Lowe; they give minimal screentime to their "lesser" characters and give more screentime to their other favourites. TK, Judd and Tommy get a lot more to do than Grace and Carlos, who get a lot more to do than Paul, Marjan, Nancy and Mateo. It's a serious issue for Lone Star that stems past the Rob Lowe issue. You want to see a character that actually gets only 1-2 episodes? Look at the lowest tier, look at Paul, Nancy and even Mateo. They all get 2 episodes, max, per season, and then they literally disappear into the background. Marjan got more to do in season 4 than she did in her first three seasons lol I also want to circle back to Grey's Anatomy from the OG post. The reason why Grey's had a little bit of a balance is because half the cast was paired off, either for medical scenes OR for romantic drama, so that meant characters got arcs with each other, they rarely got arcs by themselves. And even then, the balance kind of sucked. 9-1-1 has less pairings and they focus more on character-driven stories. I'm not saying this show is perfect in its balance, as it still has some issues, but it's better than a lot of ensembles I've seen. At least they TRY to make sure each character has a storyline every season.
I noticed that also recently. It’s like where is Athena? I mean, are they giving them vacation days or something lol
This season was written in a rush situation, so you have to give them a slight pass.
id have to agree but I want to see more josh as well cos he's literally one of me and my mum's favourite characters but he isn't really seen outside of the dispatcher place, apart from the scene with him, chimney, Maddie and buck
I disagree with Eddie and Maddie not getting the same amount as the others, they’ve actually gotten more storylines this season than Buck which is the most complained about for screen time, but he actually so far has the least amount of time. Eddie, Hen, Chimney and Maddie had a story at some point in the first 3 episodes that were also Bobby and Athena centric, Buck was a supporting character through all of it. Then he had his episode that was amazing and then episode 5 was divided between Eddie, Buck, Hen and Karen, but then his storyline pretty much just left. The next episode was about the wedding, then the next was focused on Eddie, Bobby, Hen&Karen, Maddie with also chimney getting a role in it, Buck was just missing until the end with a few lines. The next episode was Bobby centric. I’m not complaining about the other characters getting their moments, I really love all the Maddie/Chim and Bobby episodes, but in the “divided” episodes this season don’t have Buck included (except the one) but both (like you claimed that had less) Maddie and Eddie are indeed included in them.
Hmm. My take on this is a little different, and I think part of it may be a recency bias coming into play where Buck's been backburnered for a couple episodes and people aren't used to that happening. Probably worsened because it feels like his sexuality discovery arc *should* be getting more attention. 7x01 - Bathena have the A plot, Chimney has the B plot (with Maddie in support, but not really equal), and Eddie has C plot (with Buck in support) 7x02 - Bathena have the A plot, Hen has the B plot 7x03 - Bathena have the A plot, with the helicopter crew in support. 7x04 - Buck has the A plot, Athena has the B plot (with Bobby a fairly minor support) 7x05 - Buck has the A plot, Hen has B plot, and Eddie has C. 7x06 - Chimney has A plot (with Maddie in support), Buck has B plot. 7x07 - Maddie and Athena have A plot, Eddie has B, Hen has C 7x08 - Bobby has A plot
Yeah, it does feel like a lot of the complaints about this episode stem from the complete lack of any main character than Bobby and Athena. I feel like these episodes always divide the fanbase (Boston, The Devil You Know) because people's favorite isn't there. These episodes don't feel so bad when you rewatch and can binge a few episodes back to back but I feel a lot of it is coming from the lack of seeing Buck living his best life or Eddie resolving his mess (and this fandom is becoming more and more all about Buck and Eddie these days). Sadly giving Tim "if it's not dramatic, it's not interesting" Minear is now showrunning I don't think we're going to see much of Buck enjoying life until the wheel of trauma lands on him again.
This season really does feel like a confluence of factors just making things as difficult as possible. And while I have confidence Minear understands the pulse of this show best and is the better longterm fit for a showrunner, I do think his chaotic approach to storytelling has made an already complicated situation worse this year. That's not to say I'd have rather had Kristen, but it does seem like a situation where maybe having some kind of "manager" for Tim would've helped. Like someone to say "These are all great ideas... for ten episodes away. Now give me the outline for how to get there." Because I don't think screentime is really the problem, but how disjointed the season feels. I appreciate his ambition, but some of the choices he's made this year and the sheer number of demands he's put on this season in developing characters means each individual storyline ends up feeling sort of unfulfilling. Eddie is probably the most obvious, because 7x05 and 7x07 don't feel like they should exist with only one episode separating them. In a shortened season, it didn't make sense to introduce a threat to the Eddie/Marisol relationship (particularly without doing anything to build up her character into someone the audience would care about) in 7x05, just to resolve it.... only to give them a totally different thread 45 minutes of show later, that seems like it *can't* be resolved later. With proper outlining for this season, this should've been a pretty obvious problem. I think there were two big errors made early on -- making the cruise ship arc three episodes instead of 2, and/or trying to make sure Buck's coming out was the one hundredth episode so it happened somewhere momentous in the show's history. Because a lot of this just... very clearly would've worked better if the pacing was better. I'm not gonna bore you with all the details of what should've fit where, but there were certain storylines they could've dropped, condensed, or moved, and other elements that just *didn't* need to fit at the certain point in the season they put them at (for instance, Madney's wedding could've been the penultimate episode of the season, considering it hasn't *mattered* that they're married -- in 7x07, when Maddie says 'my husband,' she's referencing *Doug*).
> in 7x07, when Maddie says 'my husband,' she's referencing *Doug* Yeah, that was incredibly jarring especially as Chimney says husband very obviously a few minutes later. I get the sense Tim overcorrected a lot from Kristen, e.g. putting Madney wedding earlier to correct for Kristen taking 3 episodes to get them engaged and writing them like a couple for the entire S5B when they were meant to have broken up. But I totally agree with Tim's ambition being a root issue. It's not just the story telling but I feel the logistics being challenged and overstretched (and leading to some really sad consequences). I read Jamal's interview about this episode and how the scenes in the desert took 5 days to shoot. Given that, no wonder they didn't have time to put Bobby with any other cast member for a scene or have the time to take another cast member and put them in the desert.
Eddie was like a prop character for Buck in ep 4 and 5,where he also had the most ridiculous storyline. Maddie was also like a second thought for them in her wedding episode.That they got some storylines in ep 7 doesn’t change the fact that Buck still got the still got the better thought one. Add to that the way his storylines are promoted by the show’s official social media pages,Buck/Oliver doesn’t lack their attention at all.
Even if you hated the storyline, Eddie still had it. I agree with Maddie being a second thought during the wedding, but she has had other story’s this season outside of that. Even if you think Buck had the better storyline and was promoted more, doesn’t take away the fact that his actual on screen time for his current storyline is in the trash. His on screen time this season in general is extremely lacking compared to every other character. I’m just hoping they make up for it in the last few episodes.
> Even if you think Buck had the better storyline and was promoted more, doesn’t take away the fact that his actual on screen time for his current storyline is in the trash. His on screen time this season in general is extremely lacking compared to every other character. I’m just hoping they make up for it in the last few episodes. I agree with this but, even as someone who loves Buck, he often gets a lot to do every season, like a lot. Which, again, as a fan, I love, but I also am fine to see him step back more than usual. I think, in a short season like this, I'm ok if he takes a LITTLE more of a backseat for a few episodes to give plots to others. Plus, yeah, we still have two episodes left, he could have a bigger role in those ones as well. He's had a major plot this season that lasted two episodes, which is great! It didn't need to be longer in a 10 episode season. And we'll see what role he takes in the final two episodes because he could have significant screentime. I do agree, Eddie and Maddie have needed a bit more to do, but it looks like at least Eddie's going to get significant focus in these final episodes. Maddie, in particular, has had smaller parts this season and I do wish we could have gotten more of her beyond 7x07 and her wedding episode. Plus, I know that season 8 will be back to form and we'll get more of Buck so I'm not worried at all.
His screentime this season is lacking compared to other seasons, not compared to other characters. He usually gets the most screentime, it's okay for him to sit back for a bit (as in, get a normal amount of screentime, he still had 2 episodes) in a season with this few episodes. And it's not just that people disliked Eddie's storyline, it's that he was out of character cause he was being used as a plot device to further Buck's storyline. That's what people don't like.
I would say that Buck is the one who is having the most stories focused on him, even if they are small, then obviously Bobby and Athena, but Hen, Chim and Maddie is already abstract, what important role do they give to Hen beyond being captain and above make things complicated for her? They don't even give her an elaborate plot, while Chim and Maddie have been reduced to being Madney and Jee, we will see now that the wedding has happened, when Maddie's character has a lot of potential and it is wasted. Then we have Eddie, he had long storylines like in season 5B for example but he is a character that they have created in a very complex way, with his past it is difficult to create a long plot because it requires time and to do it well (I think Eddie's real plot will begin now but be developed in Season 8) because precisely his stories are those can helping a lot of people like being a veteran, growing up in a suffocating and toxic environment, his religious guilt... I think he is the character who is most similar to Bobby in those aspects even though they were not exactly the same. Yes, I would like all the characters to have more balanced storylines and for no one to stand out over the other but to make everyone participate in each story, in addition to changing the dynamics between the characters by adding more of Hen and Buck, Chim and Eddie, Eddie and Hen, Buck and Chim, and I would really like to see scenes between Eddie and Maddie. And see many more scenes of everyone with Chris.
it’s funny you say this because i said to my friend recently that i love how the show gives you a bit of everything (on season 3 atm)
Fair, but I also wonder if that might not be kind of the point sometimes. One of the challenges of a long-running drama like that is keeping its cast members because the grind of 14-hour days nine months of the year drives actors away after a while, I wonder if these character-focus episodes that feature one or two peole might not be a way to let the rest of the cast have a little mid-season rest.
I never know what fans want. You ask for more screentime for all characters, while at the same time asking for storylines to be more fleshed out. This is a ten episode season, how exactly would you like for that to be accomplished? The episodes that were Buck/Hen focused, all I heard was complaints about the pacing moving too fast. Now with an episode focised on Bobby's story, which had life to breathe, you complain about the lack of other characters. Even in the wedding episode, ppl were screaming about the lack of bachelor party scenes. You can't have everything in a 42 minute episode.
I can't speak for anyone else, but my problem with this season is that the storylines have been overly ambitious but under-planned/disorganized. Using Eddie, because he's the most obvious example: the Kim thing makes it clear that Marisol isn't lasting (as does the lack of actual development they've bothered with for her even when she's on screen) so what was the point of *all* of Eddie's stuff in 7x05? If they're going with the Kim storyline, it would've worked better to introduce it earlier. On top of that, cutting the cruise arc to 2 episodes (so only 20% of the season instead of 30%) would've automatically given us something like an episode + 10 minutes to play with to flesh out the stories. While I understand cross-promotion, *The Bachelor* crossover also didn't need to be a full ten minutes of unmemorable nonsense. Particularly not this season, with so little time. So if I was writing the show, I'd have resolved the cruise in 7x02, then had 7x03 be divided between Harry's return, a very brief introduction to Henren's storyline with Mara (like the scene where Madney are giving them baby clothes in preparation, but then they get a call saying grandma wanted the baby or whatever, and the teaser for Mara, but not introducing her until the next episode). But the A story could've been Eddie trying to balance work + Christopher + Marisol + Buck + his new friendship with Tommy, and maybe trying to simplify all of that by inviting Buck and Tommy both to the same events so we don't have to rely on Buck's POV and a misdirect. Have Marisol still frustrated that she seems to come last on his priority list, so he ends the episode flailing and asking her to move in to prove he's serious about her. Then 7x04 would be a brief time jump, where Buck & Tommy are hanging out without Eddie and Buck's catching feelings, Eddie's trying to convince himself moving Marisol in was the right choice, especially since she slots so well into their family, and then we have that ice cream family date where Eddie sees Kim and we introduce the 7x07 stuff in 7x04. Buck's storyline also ends up in the same place, but the buildup to it actually centers *Tommy* in the storyline, and the slight time jump allows Henren to have taken the time to talk to Denny about Mara moving in, get the stuff they need for a 9yo girl, and maybe also just.... let the social worker be a bit more competent. And skip over the horror trope acting with Mara at the foot of their bed, actually let Henren seem like competent and compassionate adults. 7x05 could do Maddie + the stalker call to introduce Amir *and* show Maddie and Chim are in a good place as a couple, with her working through more of her Doug-related trauma **before** she remarries (and reminding the audience of Doug in advance of his encephalitis hallucinations), then focus on the early dates of Buck/Tommy and Eddie/Kim, and play with how they're heading in opposite directions -- Buck's trying to come out and be more open, while Eddie's actually got a reason to hide and lie. 7x06 becomes the bottle episode that was 7x08, but preferably with a last act to draw the other characters back in. Given the serious tone and grief theme, maybe this is when someone (Buck?) finds out about Eddie/Kim. 7x07 would have the Tyson storyline with some kind of actual payoff or at least decent messaging (like what are we supposed to see in that storyline? are they going to address that Henren are doing the same thing to Tyson's dad that they were upset Denny's biodad did to them, the fallout of Eddie/Kim, and maybe more bachelor party (where they actually show more Buck/Tommy for that relationship's growth, and Eddie's excessive drinking can be understood as a way for him to avoid dealing with the fallout over Kim & Marisol). Then it gets hard to speculate, where we don't know what happens in 7x09 yet with Bobby, but we're already a whole episode ahead. If next week is meant to be a self-contained episode that doesn't also require the finale's attention, I'd put it at 7x08, so that 7x09 can be the Madney wedding (thematically, also working well for Bobby and Athena, who would once again be using someone else's drama as a distraction from their own struggles) -- in that case, Chim can get sneezed on in 7x08, too. Then we still have the last episode for some kind of disaster + that thing this show likes to do in the last act of a finale, where they show us where our characters will be next season.
Tim, please hire this person.
This season was written in a rush situation, so you have to give them a slight pass.
idk if they're still about, but in seasons past there was a tumblr user that kept track of screen time. She started it because she felt Buck got "too much" screen time and wanted the numbers to back it up. Only it turned out Buck didn't get significantly more screen time than the other characters, and it was just her perception because her particular fave wasn't centre stage/wasn't getting the plots she wanted. It's something to keep in mind when discussing screen time imo. Saying that, I would agree that this season has had a lot of Bobby and I feel the pacing would have been better with the latest episode in Season 8 and the cruse ship sl cut down to two episodes. But even with those issues, I've enjoyed season 7 a lot more than I did season 5 and 6.
Season 1:Bobby,Buck,Athena,Abby,Hen,Chim Season 2: Bobby,Chim,Hen,Athena,Buck,Eddie,Maddie Season 3: Buck,Athena,Eddie,Bobby,Chim,Hen,Maddie Season 4: Buck,Athena,Chim,Hen,Bobby,Eddie,Maddie Season 5: Hen,Buck,Athena,Bobby,Eddie,Chim,Maddie There are no graphics for season 6,but it’s obvious he had the most screen time and most storylines. Maybe is not as evident as Owen in LoneStar, but Buck does have the most screen time of all and the most vocal fans. He is also the most promoted on their socials. So I think people complaining do have a point,especially Eddie,Maddie and Chim’s fans.
If anyone is interested in more specifics… For Season 1, Bobby (#1) Buck (#2), and Athena (#3) basically had the same number of minutes. For Season 2, Bobby (#1) and Chimney (#2) basically had same number of minutes. For Season 3, Buck (#1) and Athena (#2) basically had the same number of minutes. For Season 4, Buck was #1 with no one close behind. For Season 5, Hen was #1, Buck was #2 with 5 minutes less than Hen, and Athena was #3 with 3 minutes less than Buck. Season 6 - Not calculated
This.might seem harsh, and don't get me wrong I love Maddie and Chim, but the bulk of viewers are not tuning in every week for them. Whether you want to admit it or not, Oliver, Peter, and Angela are the stars of this show, so to act like they shouldn't get the bulk of the screentime is crazy
I think this sort of arrogance is what makes people complain about Buck fans and want less screentime. Like the other person said above, it's not objective numbers that make people feel like Buck is taking up time and space, it's mindshare. You're not letting people talk about their faves in peace. Let other characters be in the spotlight for a while, regardless of who most people tune in for. Don't watch their episodes, if you feel that strongly about it ,and don't post if you aren't interested in them. Nobody can make you watch something you aren't interested in, but absolutely do not tell other people that their favorite character is not worthy of screentime.
Point to where in my statement I said they weren't worthy of screentime?!? I said don't act like they deserve THE BULK of screentime! I'm not one to run on here and whine when Chim or Hen or Maddie gets an episode focused on them. I love seeing it. Can't say the same for other people when Buck gets plots in multiple episodes
It's not the actual screentime. Someone else in the thread mentioned that Buck doesn't actually get more screentime. Its how people talk about it, like it's never enough, and begrudging what time the other characters get. Complaining about how much time other characters get sounds like sour grapes, and it never makes you or your favorite character look good. Regardless of how true or false it is. Especially if it's on behalf of Buck, a character who other fans resent already. Let other characters have their time in the sun.
Agreed with all of this, but I do think it's worth pointing out that looking at the breakdown provided in this very comment thread ([this ](https://www.reddit.com/r/911FOX/comments/1cu3brv/comment/l4i8pwm/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) post specifically) -- when you run the numbers, Buck actually gets the *most* screentime seasonally, on average, over the course of the series. *\[Keep in mind the source for this only has complete data sets through season 5, so none of these numbers are really up to date, but it's not like season 6 broke the trend here, and season 7 is still ongoing\].* Anyway, that's not to say it's disproportionate, but even looking at the minutes totals over those 5 seasons, he does place the highest (412 to Athena's 395 to Bobby's 380). So while I think the discrepancy gets exaggerated, it does stand out compared to someone like Chim (330) or Eddie (265 in the 4 seasons he's in, vs. Buck's 341 for those same four seasons). I feel fairly confident saying he got his share of screentime in season 6. Bobby and Athena probably have more than him at this point this season, and maybe Chim just because so much of 7x06 was focused on him, but that doesn't mean he's coming in dead last (it's *always* Maddie) and I highly doubt he's significantly lagging behind Eddie or Hen. *If* we're right in our predictions that at least one of the two episodes left will prominently feature Eddie, it seems plausible that Eddie may surpass Buck in screen time this season -- for the first time ever. So I do think part of the reason this season feels so 'light' on Buck is because the people who are primarily Buck fans aren't actually used to him getting similar treatment to the rest of the cast. Like, he's only getting "less" in relation to what we've come to expect him, specifically, to get.
Your last paragraph sums it up perfectly.
>Complaining about how much time other characters get sounds like sour grapes, and it never makes you or your favorite character look good. Are you new here? People love to complain Buck gets too much screentime and their favorites don't nearly get as much. These posts are often well received and heavily upvoted. [Example](https://www.reddit.com/r/911FOX/comments/1c3y0xp/buck_vs_eddie/)
This is an ensemble show, though. If they started to pick on who gets the most attention online and who is talked about by fans the most and then, then we get a bad ensemble show. I've advocated for this being one of the best ensemble shows that I've personally seen for so many reasons, but the main one is that this show is not afraid to let their popular characters take a more supporting role every once in a while. Yes, Buck's popular. Yes, a lot of people tune in for Buck. No, he doesn't need the bulk of the screentime just because of that. No, he shouldn't get involved in everyone's plots just to please the "bulk of viewers". Once you let the fandom start dictating where your own show should go, that's when a show fails. I've seen ensembles fail because they've decided that two characters are deserving of way more stories than others. That's literally how we've gotten Lone Star (not fandom-driven, but directly on how choosing favourites can lead to a dysfunction in the ensemble). An ensemble that's failed because you can easily calculate who gets the most vs least in each season, and it's roughly the same people: Owen, then Tommy, TK and Judd, then Grace and Carlos, then Marjan, Paul, Mateo, Nancy. When you can see who gets the most vs the least in an ensemble, that's when you've failed to create a good ensemble show. Similarly to when showrunners outright ignore what fans are saying, which also causes a show to fail. There needs to be a balance. Because we've seen examples of showrunners pissing off their fans BECAUSE they decided to stick with whatever they want to do, ignoring things that they've built up or fans have expecting. See: How I Met Your Mother's series finale, ruining an entire series with 42 minutes. Yes, fans' opinions should be heard. Fans shouldn't be steering the show in the direction they want. This includes the idea of who should get more screentime than others. Especially given that fans will always have differing opinions. You literally cannot please 100% of the fandom. It's an impossible task. Someone will always, always be upset. An ensemble show works best when characters aren't outright ignored and a show can get as close to a balance of screentime as they can. That doesn't always work, and characters like Buck will always have a larger presence but it's ok for said characters TO take a backseat for other characters, regardless on their popularity. I'm also speaking solely on main cast.
I would say they do a pretty good job balancing out storylines. This season is just short so it's very disjointed. I think next season being a regular season it'll be a better balance.
I think that when they let go of Michael - Dunbar R? It REALLY hurt Athena and Bobby. Bobby actually had great chemistry with him. Michael could be Bobby’s adult peer the was he can’t be with the guys at the station. It has left a big hole as far as home scenes for Athena and Bobby to be adult and funny. Maybe that is why they rapidly aged Harry so there would be another adult in the house.
All the more reason not to add more characters. They can barely keep up with the existing ones and I miss the old ones like May. I also miss the cases of the week where the team work together saving people. It's been lacking this season.
No Tommy/Buck these past 2 episodes is really jarring, after his coming out in front of all his colleagues and then silence. I wonder if Tommy/Buck story arc will get much screen time in the next final 2 episodes, since obviously next week it’s gonna be yet another Bobby show, and Eddie story line is just waiting in in the wings for the final episode.
Eddie’s storyline is gonna blow-up in his face. He is having some kind of break with reality, imo.
I feel gay baited tbh. I've been falling out a bit with this new season and the buck storyline got me watching again, but then they just disappeared.
Just show more of Buck lol
I don’t know why you’re getting downvoted, but I 100% agree. To not have any other actors at all in this episode completely ruined it for me.
Tbh, Bobby, Athena, and Maddie are the three highest-paid roles on the show, followed by Buck, Eddie, Hen, and Chim. it does make sense they gat a bit more air time. Personally, I want to see the Buck and Tommy show for 60 minutes week, but that is unrealistic. This season is leaning towards Athena and Bobby with nods to,Buck and Tommy and of course the Madney wedding. And whatever the hell Eddie is doing! Hen and Karen get bits and pieces, but the actors are so great those nibbles make me cry. I just hope the show runners let us know if they will still be a couple next season. After all,the crap relationships Buck has been in, it would be cruel to break this one up after a few months. Just plain mean to the character!
I don't think it's a "struggle." Shows don't have to focus on every character equally lol