In its own way, "Switched at Birth" is a bold show. It's not bold in the sense of being very heavy with its scenes, inducing violence or nudity to make a statement. It's bold simple because it is always ready to mirror, through its storyline's, the many issues our world is facing. In the final season, too, the show has decided not to shy away from this. While some fans have criticized this and hope they focus on our main characters, I'm actually happy it's continued to be a simple but meaningful show, to its very end.
"Relation of Lines and Colors" is the beginning of a movement at UMKC, the continuation of which will be seen in the next episode. It all begins when a ton of cotton balls are left on the lawn of the black student union dorm. Daphne is shocked to see this, it represents slavery, after all. Sharee isn't surprised and honestly tells Daphne that she knows no strict action will be taken against the culprits, if and when they're caught because this isn't the first time black students have been victimized on campus. Because we know Daphne can't help herself, she goes to talk to her old professor, Morales, about this whole situation, who tells her that all students have to do is officially register a complaint because there's a system to get this justice. This is when we find out just how out of touch Daphne is with reality because she falls for it.
She runs into her old pal Iris and tells her what Morello said. Iris can't help but give her a disdained look and informs her of how the white guys who did this have already been caught. Their punishments? A three-day suspension. To protest this, Iris, Chris, and other friends have decided to go on a hunger strike. It makes a strong statement, she tells Daphne, who agrees with the intention but not the method. "Hunger strikes can be dangerous to your health," she tells Iris, who is in no mood to listen. Not knowing what to do, she goes back to Morello and requests her to quickly do something, like maybe a town hall meeting, before these students compromise their health with a hunger strike. Naturally, Iris gets mad at Daphne because Morello called her father who threatened to pull her out of school.
Daphne consults with Regina and Sharee about all of this. Both of them politely tell her to back off because it's not her fight. That's when they find a threatening note taped to her windshield. John is mad when he hears of this and immediately goes to confront the dean. As a result, the person who left the note, a black guy, is expelled. This doesn't sit right with Sharee, who has been distant from the race issues so far by saying she doesn't let it affect her. Daphne asks her why the guy shouldn't have been expelled, considering he threatened her life. She gets a much-needed dose of reality when Sharee tells her that the white guys who left the cotton balls are also a form of threat, but they were merely suspended. It seems like she finally begins to clear the fog settled in her eyes because she goes up to Iris and Chris to apologize and even sits with them as they continue their strike.
It's important to show Daphne go through this process, yes, because it was her picture with Mingo that finally pushed open the race issues on campus. However, the right thing to do is show us what students who actually have to suffer these discriminations go through. And that's what the next episode, "Occupy Truth," will do, by showing us the campus movement through the eyes of Iris, Sharee, and Chris. I'm sure it's going to brilliant.
As for Bay, she continues to entangle herself in the complicated love triangle. After ditching boyfriend Travis and secretly meeting ex-boyfriend Emmett last episode, we learn that the latter had called her over to see if she'd help him with a project. He has to photograph a transformation, which he's decided will be a tattoo that Bay draws on him. She tries to talk about it with Travis first but seeing how stressed he is about the upcoming games, she passes on telling him. Instead, she convinces her boss Noelle to tattoo Emmett after hours. He ends up getting one of his old bike Ripley. Throughout the whole process, the two reminisce and we see flickers of chemistry fly. You just know this isn't going to end well. And it doesn't. After a talk with Melody about his relationship with Emmett, he goes to make up with him only to spot the tattoo and storm off. He confronts Bay but that doesn't end well either. Travis has every right to be mad at both of them, especially because we know they still have feelings for each other. Even Bay, deep down, will always seem to love Emmett, her first true love. She also discovers that Noelle is probably stealing her designs.
Katheryn doesn't find much joy in this episode either. She's forced to dress pretty for a dinner with an important prospective client by her chauvinist colleague Mike. He leaves them alone and right away you realize just what a sexist this client is. He flirts with Kathryn even though he's married, and his opinion on women doesn't win him any prizes either. She smartly tells him off and has to face flak from Mike the next day. She tries to set him straight with no luck. He outright tells her that if she wants to play in the league with the big boys, this is how it's done. It's an important moment for Kathryn because she's such a moral person. I wonder if they'll focus on more on this plot, even though it's quite a played out one.
John and Travis end up having their own misunderstandings. He's been trying so hard since he got back from China to catch up on his game skills, but it's not fast enough. Especially now, when he's in a power struggle with John's latest acquisition, Chris Walker. Travis seeks Melody's advice, always a right move. We get the impression that he almost regrets spending so much time in China because as much as he loves Bay, he didn't think about everything else he'd be giving up. Melody convinces John to not right him off and give him another chance so he organizes a pitching match between Travis and Chris. Unfortunately for the former, he finds out about Emmett's tattoo just before and messes up his game, removes his frustration by punching Walker, and gets thrown out by John. I feel terrible for Travis, who's only been getting screwed around by everyone [well, except Melody]. He deserves better.
Regina and Toby didn't have much to do this episode except give the occasional shoulder to anyone who needed it this episode. That needs to change right away. They're two very important, loved characters in the show. With only five episodes left, they need much more focus.
What did you think of the episode? Was Daphne annoying you with all her interfering or did you see where she's coming from? Are you already sick of the love triangle and want Bay to make a decision and stick with it already? Let us know!
