The good news is that we got a nice dose of medical emergencies.
Tommy, Nancy, and T.K.’s beef with the profiteering private emergency company, Paragon, meant that much of 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 4 Episode 10 had them duking it out for every call.
But the second and only other storyline was Owen wondering whether or not his new wealthy love interest thought of him as a sex worker.
Owen’s storyline was the weakest aspect. It felt like a bit that ran too long, and it was barely worth chuckling at in the first place.
Of course, the team got a good laugh or two out of what was happening, and despite what the arc did for Owen, it’s still fun to see him more immersed in the squad.
We even got a feel for what the house is like when he and Mateo feel like actual friends, and Nancy is there often enough to give her input as they’ve settled into a just bordering-on frat house situation.
The early scene with Owen giving his speech, talking about cancer as a survivor, to a room full of wealthy donors who could kick something towards the Stand Up to Cancer charity in honor of the hundreds of firefighters who are affected by cancer because of their work was great.
It was hilarious to witness everyone doing whatever they could to smooth-talk these donors and convince them to write checks for the charity.
As expected, Judd is nowhere without Grace, who could fill in the blanks and prompt him to appeal to a donor with a fire truck ride getting compared to that of a spaceship.
It was particularly funny when Judd discovered that the donor wasn’t solely a sports fan but the actual team owner.
And Tommy going on a side rant about how the budget cuts affect EMS services and their needs, coming hot off of her discovering that Paragon cut a deal with the city was so on brand for her.
Mateo using a line he heard a pretentious Owen recite one night about Dostoyevsky to appeal to a high-brow donor was amusing, particularly when Nancy realized that it was a ruse on his end and encouraged him to listen to Crime and Punishment.
Little things like that make you consider the impact and influence of being around one another on some of the characters.
But then it shifted to Owen encountering a down-to-earth, take no charge heiress, Kendra, who seemingly posed as a bartender.
We couldn’t go a season without Owen having a love interest, so in hindsight, it’s impressive that they lasted this long.
Owen: So you’re not the bartender.
Kendra: I was on break and wanted a Pinot Grigio.
Owen: And you just went back and got it?
Kendra: I take what I want.
Kendra is exactly what you’d expect, young, attractive, stable, and independent. Owen is often drawn to any variations of these things.
The gunning gag was that she was this insatiable woman who turned the tables on Owen in a way that counters traditional heterosexual relationships on television.
She had sex with him and left while he was still sleeping. But she had the bonus of being a wealthy woman who’d cut him a check afterward.
Owen wasn’t unreasonable for concluding that she was paying him for sex or just tossing money at him like a kept man or “boy toy” when she’d literally send him money right after they’d have sex.
She also never talked about why she was sending him money in the first place, and Kendra cut the checks she was writing or cash she was paying directly to him.
Any reasonable person would have had the same thoughts about this, partly why it was so easy for Mateo and the others to poke fun at Owen about it.
And instead of just talking to Kendra about it, he set up this date. He tried to make their relationship and subsequent encounter into something it wasn’t to prove to himself and everyone else that Kendra wasn’t essentially paying him for his company.
Big Daddy knows how to pick a Sugar Momma.
Judd
Judd had the most forthright and real take on all of this. Regardless of what Kendra was doing, she gave Owen a total of $140K, which could be put to good use.
Instead of fretting about it, Owen could’ve just focused on distributing the money to the charities and causes he deemed fit.
Nevertheless, the climax came when Owen and Kendra had their inevitable conversation. She played the Poor Rich Girl card and implied that these misunderstandings make dating hard because of her money.
But actually, it’s just her not communicating properly or like a mature adult. Owen isn’t exempt from that, either.
How was he supposed to know that her sending a cash payment with a Bone emoji the morning after meant that she wanted him to donate money to the shelter he got Buttercup from based on their conversation? It was BEFORE they had sex the night before.
It sounds like Kendra’s issues with dating while having money are of her own making.
One can’t make heads or tails of whether or not Kendra is sticking around for a while if she and Owen will become something more serious, especially since she seems to strongly send the message that she’s only in for a casual, sexual relationship or anything else.
But it’s not precisely a storyline worth investing in or one that piques interest. If anything, it’s a repetitive one for Owen, only this time, she’s wealthy and can bring him his favorite rare-to-fine tequila.
The stronger storyline was Tommy versus Paragon.
Owen: Why is he dressed like a ski instructor?
Tommy: I have no idea.
It felt natural for them to bring that company back up again and revive Tommy’s issues. Also, we got Pierce back, and he was still a colossal dick.
The city wanting to contract out with Paragon wasn’t surprising. Sadly, when has any of that been about the best interest of the people rather than dollar signs?
But the rage it sparked in Tommy and the competitiveness was amusing. She was the ring leader in pulling off some tomfoolery to keep their jobs as long as possible.
She and Nancy are the funniest of the trio, with T.K. being more subdued. But they were entertaining all around, and Tommy has a way of reminding you of how fun it is when the Captain is immersed in her team, and they’re all in something together.
The first call was such a doozy. Dan was such a genuinely sweet guy. The moment he walked onto the bus with those hot pants and his tubes and all out, you knew it was about to be a disaster.
But no one could’ve anticipated the literal bloodbath on the bus. How did everyone else get off if it was that slippery and Dan had the entire floor coated in slippery blood?
With the type of blood he was losing, it was apparent he’d require an immediate blood transfusion, so as funny as it was that Tommy enlisted Grace’s help with getting them to the scene ahead of Paragon so they could take over, deep down, one knew that Paragon would have the better equipment to treat poor Dan in the end.
Of course, the 126’s advantage is that the EMTs come with firefighters too. When Paragon shows up at a scene, they’re not coming with the people equipped to handle structural barriers or other things that may crop up.
It was a case of how many first responders were necessary to get this down. It was not until Owen’s sledding suggestion that they managed to get the poor man out of there.
But Paragon had the tools to take over properly, and Tommy is a professional who genuinely cares about the patients enough to make the right call.
It was a wild case, whereas the senior-aged woman with over a dozen contacts stuck in her eye was an amusing, gross, and icky one.
Pierce flexing how well he knew the couple and provided personalized care for them while also bribing them with smoothies they have in the ambo was the type of thing that would set Tommy off.
But the antics at the perfume factory were the worst. Would you even want to deal with the company that asks you what insurance carrier you have before he even assesses the situation or offers to help?
And can you imagine being strapped on a gurney and overhearing that Paragon was taking you to the hospital for literally no reason other than to get money out of you?
It’s all so sickening.
The explosion was shocking, but it gave Tommy and the others a chance to jump into action, and we all know they’re the best team of the bunch and dedicated to the job for all the right reasons.
When I’m done with Paragon, they won’t have a business card to put it on.
Pierce
Tommy doesn’t hesitate to help, even when it’s someone like Pierce who she has issues with, and she genuinely saved his life out there with the thoracic surgery in the field. He’d have died otherwise.
It was a humbling moment for him and one where they connected as first responders. Because regardless of his crappy attitude and how ridiculous he looked in that ski suit Paragon uniform, deep down, Pierce is not only great at the job, but he likely means well.
The karmic justice came from learning that Paragon doesn’t have the state-of-the-art equipment they boasted about this whole time.
Any company whose primary focus is making money and cutting corners while doing it wouldn’t bother investing in the right things because they cost too much.
Pierce filing a suit against Paragon is pure perfection. He’s ready to take them for all they have because of their negligence, and he deserves every penny.
It turns out that Tommy didn’t have to fight the good fight when one of Paragon’s own can deliver the final blow.
Where will that leave Pierce, though? He and Tommy are in a good place, and he may be out of the job for a bit. Will we see him return to the 126?
Better yet, what if he starts his own company or something? Or he figures out how to provide the aid that the EMTs need since he knows better than anyone?
At this point, another Pierce appearance wouldn’t be so bad.
Marjan seemed perfectly fine and has recovered from her injuries after her ordeal. We didn’t get to spend much time with many of the others.
We still need some more development or a solid storyline for the Ryders, who have spent most of the season in supportive roles to the other characters.
It was great to have the emergencies back. But some continuity from past episodes to this one to keep up the momentum would’ve been nice.
Over to you, Lone Star Fanatics. Do you like Owen and Kendra? Would you like to see Pierce return to the 126? Sound off below!
You can watch 9-1-1: Lone Star online here via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.