SEASON GUIDE
4.04 "The Slender Threads That Bind Us Here"
4.05 "Stop The World (And Let Me Off)"
4.06 "Please Help Me I’m Fallin’"
4.07 "Can’t Get Used To Losing You"
4.08 "Unguarded Moments"
4.06 "Please Help Me I’m Fallin’"
(Directed by Callie Khouri, written by Taylor Hamra)
Rating: 7/10 (B-)
So… that happened. Just last week, I was saying that Jeff will eventually hurt Layla but I guess now we will never find out because he is dead. Wow, you guys. I don’t remember the last time Nashville really threw me off but I totally didn’t see this one coming at all. Let’s start from the beginning: Juliette agrees to Avery’s terms for the divorce and when she exits the hotel, she slams a fan to the ground and attacks her, Jeff even has to pull her off the unsuspecting fan.
As if things aren’t already bad enough, she also makes a pass at Jeff in a desperate move to convince herself she is a desirable woman and Avery is wrong for wanting to divorce her; Jeff is quick to dismiss her and once he is gone, Juliette takes and snorts and pops every single pill she can get her hands on.
Meanwhile, Luke is still trying to get his new lifestyle brand - whatever the hell that is supposed to be - off the ground and Gabrielle makes a quick quid pro quo deal with Jeff: If he can fix the scandal with Juliette’s fan, she will put in a good word for him to become the CEO of Luke’s brand-thingy. Next thing you know, the (paid off) fan publicly apologizes for harrassing and provoking Juliette, Jeff gets promoted and is getting ready to move Layla in with him. But all is not well in paradise as Jeff falls to his death to stop Juliette from committing suicide.
I have some personal qualms about the way Jeff dies; I found it weird that he ran all the way over the edge to push Juliette back instead of grabbing her from behind and trying to pull her back.. But let’s leave all of that. Whether or not his death is necessary is irrelevant. Jeff is dead, that’s the story the writers are going for and I’m excited how the rest of the season is going to shape up.
During his time on the show, Jeff himself was never really a central character and without a doubt the least liked one but he has become integral to other characters: He is in business with Luke, manager to Juliette and Layla, as well as the latter’s boyfriend and now Colt is connected to him as well by witnessing his death. All four characters needed something to spice up their storyline and it’s gonna be interesting to see how each of them is affected by this unexpected death.
Moving on to other unpleasant news, Maddie is still giving teenagers a bad rep. "Why should I care what you want when you do not care what I want?" I don’t know, Maddie. Maybe because it might make you a somewhat decent human being and less of a lousy big sister? Ever heard of give and take? Or not biting the hand that feeds you? Of course you haven’t because you’re too busy rolling your eyes at everything your mother says. Ugh, I can’t believe I’m saying this but she was worse than Markus in this episode. He was still a jerk and pulled the same stunt with Rayna as his producer but at least he is showing signs of improvement. I’m still wary of the guy though as I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of him yet.
Deacon and Scarlett are still in Natchez and head over to a local bar, The Landslide, where the community has a gathering in memory of Beverly. Both are overwhelmed at how beloved she was and Scarlett gets up on stage to sing the song Beverly would close each Sunday night with. It’s a beautiful and perfectly fitting way for them to find closure and on their way home we find out what’s next for them: Scarlett will go on tour with Gunnar while Deacon will contribute to his sponsor’s bar and rename it "The Beverly".
Will finally gets to perform again but is completely thrown off when a gay fan is pushed to the front row. He runs off after his performance to get drunk and wallow in his self-pity and when he rambles about how he shouldn’t have come out, Kevin breaks up with him, having grown tired of his attitude. Will might be openly gay now but he hasn’t figured out yet what that means for him. It’s ironic (and tragic) that he doesn’t wanna be looked at as just gay and yet that is exactly what he perceives himself as; Everything he does, every step he makes, he includes his sexuality in it and it is making him miserable.
He is no better off than he was inside the closet because he wants to go back to how it was before he came out. But there is no going back, things will never be the way they used to be. Will is hellbound on getting his career back on track but what he needs to prioritize is finding himself and figuring out what being gay means for him. He needs to let go of the expectations he has for himself and the expectations he thinks others have of him. Only then will he be able to rebuild his career without his own sexuality getting in his way.
On its own, "Please Help Me I’m Fallin’" is a slower and subdued episode with one hell of an ending. But it’s an important episode for Season 4 that provides key moments for most of the cast and that propels the rest of the season into a new direction.
Other thoughts/stuff/remarks/observations/whatever you wanna call this section:
- Kyle Dean Masey is only a recurring actor but I hope we haven’t seen the last of Kevin. He needs to at least make one last appearance to properly say goodbye to Will (and to kindly tell him to figure his shit out).
- Oh, Gabrielle. I knew she’d eventually give in. It’s too bad she was paired with Luke. I find both of them much more intersting on their own.
- It was nice seeing Glenn again. I was wondering what he was thinking about the whole Juliette situation and he gave Avery some solid advice. With Jeff off the show now, he will probably become a more prominent character by becoming Layla’s new manager.
- I liked Erin when we met her in the last episode but she’s clearly using Gunnar so she can have a place to stay. Time to ditch her, Gunnar.
- My heart broke a little for Daphne. She’s just so precious. Please don’t grow up to be a brat like your bigger sister.
