9-1-1 Review: Peer Pressure (Season 5 Episode 5)

As far as 9-1-1 episodes go, this one is probably one of the least memorable of the whole series. 9-1-1 Season 5 Episode 5, “Peer Pressure,” suffers from out of character moments and dull emergency stories.

Some of the plot lines for this episode could have been so much more captivating if executed even slightly different. Honestly, so many times I felt more like watching a soap opera than the show we’ve known and loved for 5 years.

The Grant Family

Let’s start with the major drama of the episode, Athena and Harry Grant’s showdown. Honestly, Harry was simply lashing out in anger due to his traumatic experience. 

Athena shouldn’t have slapped him — plain and simple. Yes, she is dealing with her own trauma or avoiding it more like, but that doesn’t excuse this action.

Honestly. there are so many other ways the writers could’ve portrayed Athena not handling her trauma well. In fact, with 9-1-1 Season 5 Episode 4, “Home and Away,” it seemed as though they were — with her obsessive cleaning and unease in her own home.

It would be nice to see the writers expand on that and have Athena realize that either she needs to move out of her home or seek therapy. It should not be because she hit Harry and Michael is worried about her and their kids.

This whole season it’s like 9-1-1 is trying to erase the Athena we’ve come to know over the years. Athena from before Season 5 would have never put a criminal ahead of the safety of her children.

The writing is sloppy and seems as if the show is aiming to leave us confused instead of cheering for more. If anything the whole Grant family situation shows us just how uninspired and lost 9-1-1 has truly become.

The Buck of it All

Then there is the situation with Buck and Ravi and the rest of the 118 team. The Buck we know and love would not have turned into a drill sergeant in order to train Ravi. 

Sure, he’s upset and worried about his family — Maddie, Chim, and the baby — but that means he should be having heart to hearts with Bobby or Eddie. Not lashing out at the new guy and scaring him to the point he would rather hide out than learn. 

Not even his moment with Taylor is enough to convince us that Buck is acting within his normal character for “Peer Pressure.” There has been nothing in the past that would lead us to believe Buck would have this type of conversation with Taylor and none of his 118 family. 

It’s one thing if he’d told her and say Bobby or Eddie, but instead Buck only confides in Taylor. It’s a bit suspicious and throws things off kilter more than is necessary — again adds to the soapiness of the whole episode.

Then for Buck to just throw it out there that he’s putting in for a transfer because he thinks the weirdness is all his fault. What?! That makes absolutely no sense. 

The Buck that 9-1-1 has set up so far would never just up and abandon his family because he thinks one half of his family is mad at him. No, Buck would lean more heavily on the only family he has left.

He would confide in them that he’s feeling lost and broken and guilty. He would ask them if they’d heard from Chim or even Maddie. Instead, this version of Buck is pulling a one-man show routine.

It’s so out of character for him that I like to pretend the whole scene didn’t even happen, that I simply imagined it. Because the only other explanation I can come up with for that moment was to add drama where none is needed. 

The Emergencies

What is the point of even putting in emergencies at this point if they do nothing to engage the plot or move it along? 

In past seasons we’ve at least gotten emergencies that tied in with something the characters were dealing with or had some kind of overall lesson. Unfortunately, this week’s emergencies tried to hard to put humor into the episode and failed epically.

The humor of the kid suddenly trying exercise didn’t even translate. I imagine the writers anticipated the whole name of the app/mirror aspect would create ironic humor. Instead, all that happens is boredom and lack of interest.

With the old folks home, which is the only fire we’ve seen in ages, the moment is dull and takes too long to really get to the meat of it. The setup for the illegal meth lab makes no sense and lacks any sense of direction.

Therefore, when the reveal does finally happen we aren’t laughing at anything this elderly couple has to quip about their side business. Unfortunately, by then we are so disinterested in these characters that we are waiting for the scene to change.

The only semi-interesting emergency is the suicidal teen that May saves. What could’ve been a heartfelt moment is squashed by May only trying to show her boss she’s capable. 

This whole charade with Claudette isn’t even compelling. There are so many other ways this story could be playing out but, we are left with a woman who is bullying a young girl and throwing her weight around for the sake of drama.

Then “Peer Pressure” decides that its time to end that feud with a simple I was only pushing you to be great moment. Please, that is the biggest cop out I have ever seen with a story like this. 

Ultimately, 9-1-1 Season 5 Episode 5, “Peer Pressure” only serves to further drag this season into a spiral of melodrama and uninspired storytelling. If this is the beginning of the end for this show, I’m sad to see it go down this way.

What did you think of this episode of 9-1-1? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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9-1-1 airs Mondays at 8/7c on FOX.

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