You guys! Zoe and Wade know each other! Sometimes they have conversations! Alright, I got a little bit excited about that aspect of this episode, which was also, despite the Wade/Vivian drama alluded to by the tricky title, the real point of the hour in this reviewer's eyes. Let's talk about what went down in Bluebell this week.
Zoe and Wade...and Vivian and Charles: Following on from Vivian's rather rude lack of communication with Wade about her pending reunion with her ex Charles, Wade went to Zoe for advice about how to keep her cousin's love. While Zoe did her best to assess the situation and help Wade, there wasn't really anything she could have done to avert the inevitable "Vivarles" (?) redux. What was particularly irksome was that when Wade showed up all damp from the rain and epically romantic to make his claim on Viv's heart, instead of just being honest with him, she slept with him and then went back to ignoring him. It's Wade Kinsella - who does that?
At the end of the episode, Vivian actually left Bluebell to go house hunting with Charles, leaving but a voicemail for Wade and leaving Zoe to pick up the pieces while babysitting Harley. I'm starting to think being cousins is the only excuse for these two women to be friends because Vivian was fairly awful in pretty much everything she did this week. While it's better in the long run that she gets her family back together, and Charles is totally adorbs, obviously that was the wrong way to handle the situation. Wade's dashed feelings were not going to simply disappear if Vivian looked the other way, as Zoe anticipated. The painful truth Wade had to realize was that his efforts to prove he was the right man for Vivian could not win out over the strength of her history and remaining feelings for Charles.
Now that the Wade/Vivian relationship is, hopefully, completely over, I hope that Wade gets his groove and badass attitude back. It's been disheartening to see him pine pointlessly for a relationship that was not meant to be. Anyway, after getting to see all of these intense Zoe/Wade interactions, I can't wait to see more between them in the final episodes of the season.
The weakest part of the episode was the George segment (again, sigh). After getting set up by the pastor with a party girl, George thought it would be a good idea to have a whipped cream party with his date, and Lemon walked in on it with May at the worst possible moment. Really, George? I don't care about his confused lustful feelings for Lemon -- it was thoughtless and inconsiderate to cavort like that in the very spot she was trying to keep perfectly clean for the good of their business. Maybe at some point the writers will let George get himself together and have something meaningful to do, but it hasn't happened much this season. Even the suggestion that one encounter with another woman had caused his attraction to Lemon to fade was bizarre and confusing.
What did you think of this week's Hart of Dixie? Were you excited to see Zoe and Wade have so many scenes together, finally? Share your thoughts in the comments!
In not being invested in personal relationships as much as I am HoD going back to having an entertaining, well-rounded show, I have a bit of a different perspective on Vivian/Wade/Zoe etc.
ReplyDeleteI thought introducing the Wilkes family into Zoe's life was a good idea and a great opportunity to expand the list of recurring Bluebell characters. Unfortunately, HoD had different ideas. The introduction of the Wilkes clan quickly went from extended family stories for Zoe (good) to relationship fodder for Wade (bad). Somehow, the audience knows more about the Wilkes family through Wade dating Vivian than we do through Zoe, who is the blood relative here and whose biological father is the whole reason Zoe came to Bluebell in the first place. Kind of an important part of Zoe's character history and yet HoD just used it as a launching pad for someone else's relationship.
Vivian, in particular, had a chance to be a really good addition to the rotating cast of townsfolk on this show. She's smart, has a strong personality, an interesting family, a familial connection with Zoe, and her scenes with the aforementioned Zoe were entertaining even during the early contentious part of their relationship. Unfortunately, HoD has misused the character to the point where Vivian leaving town (and presumably the show) is a viable solution to her story arc. Vivian leaving town and splitting with Wade may be good forward movement for shippers but what I see here is the wasting of a formerly solid character and a missed opportunity to make Hart of Dixie a better show.
The Lavon/Owls vs. AB/Belles subplot:
Didn't care for it. I don't mind the ongoing Lavon/AB breakup aftermath story but getting goofy about it with the Owls and Belles isn't really to my liking. I'm not saying it was bad. That sort of thing just isn't to my particular taste. I guess the same goes for the Brick/Lemon ballroom dancing stuff too. I did like the Tom and Wanda stuff though. Mostly just for Wanda. She's fun but Tom still has a tendency to get on my nerves sometimes.
George:
We completely disagree on George. He's been one of the only consistently fun to watch characters throughout the second half of this season. He's usually even more amusing when he's mad or frustrated about something. That's why his Lemon confusion was working for me. He was frustrated about having these feelings he had absolutely no idea what to do with and it was driving him nuts. Good stuff. It was good to see George let loose and have fun. It doesn't happen often. And I call shenanigans about his 'thoughtless and inconsiderate' romp in the kitchen. That's a bunch of bull. Lemon got an A- from the health inspector. She passed with flying colors. Most people in the food service industry would kill for an A-. Lemon's needless nitpicking and hypercritical attitude fabricated a problem that didn't exist in the first place. If George wants to have fun after hours in a restaurant he's 50% owner of then he should be more than welcome to... as long as he cleans up afterward.
Yep. These days I'm just grateful to find something in an episode to really enjoy. I hope other viewers can too, no matter what that may be.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! :)
ReplyDeleteAnother good review, and I'm guessing this one must have been easier to write because the episode had so many good scenes.
ReplyDeleteThe opening scene on Wade's neatly composed deck showing his loss of confidence was a good start to his SL. I hope the writers stop using the word "amazing" to describe lovers and love making. It's a red flag to me. Wade used it to describe Zoe in the season 2 break up episode, and Vivian used it to describe her night with Wade when she knew full well she was going to reconcile with Charles (which was the right thing to do). Vivian's handling of difficult relationship situations is as poor as her handling her son when he acts inappropriately. I guess Charles was the one who set boundaries for Harley when they were together. Now he can do that again in Baton Rouge.
The combination of Katy Perry, barbershop harmonies, and a wing-flapping owl can only be seen in Bluebell along with Tom and Wanda's intergalactic bedroom.
The set up for the eventual Wade/Zoe reconciliation was beautifully put in place with the blinking eyes scene. Those two can communicate more emotion with just their eyes than any other couple on TV.
The fun aspects of this episode: Lemon can lead, Don Todd's biography, Wanda in fishnets, the return of the pink tea, and Elodie's "Gainey shame" definitely brought back a season 1 feel.
Nicely stated! I agree, especially about Zoe and Wade's looking at each other, I really missed these two showing their feelings!
ReplyDeleteGeorge seems to be a difficult character to write for, in so much that the show tried to pair him up with Lavon's relative to get him in the likelihood of a 'fight' with Lavon, then had to involve him with buying Fancies because otherwise he would of had no reason to be involved with Lemon as much as he has.
ReplyDeleteWith Wade, i think they tried to show him going towards a character like Zoe (but lets me honest Vivian was a LOT less Neurotic that Zoe) but seemingly almost as well 'educated'. Im not sure it worked for the show.
HoD writers have missed a TON of opportunities this year.
ReplyDeleteCompletely agree about that.
ReplyDeleteI think the main reason for Vivian was to show the viewers (and Zoe in HoD world) how much Wade has grown. Instead of just sexin' up all the bar chicks in AL he had a long term meaningful relationship with a classy, educated, single mother. That's a HUGE step in the evolution of Wade.
ReplyDeleteYeah it is, but i already think he had 'evolved' by the end of the last season.
ReplyDelete