#buddie canon s5 idc

[daniclaytcn]

honestly if we go into an eddie near death experience with buck knowing he’s bisexual its the perfect set up for buddie canon and im going feral with the possibilities (not that s4 wasnt but yeah)

actually eddie and buck rn kinda parallel s4 with their relationships? eddie not feelin it with marisol and buck generally having strange vibes with tommy (idc the wedding invite was weird)

oh yeah, the s4 parallels are alive and real xD i will admit that this theory is born mostly out of my desire to see eddie get whumped. but it would also work for all the reasons you're saying!! and maybe not just eddie but also buck, this time...both of them getting trapped somewhere together...i have been asking for this since s5

[ktinastrikesback]

I rewatched 4x13 yesterday, and I had another thought about this scene…something about Eddie’s heart and the blood spatter and the positioning of his body throughout.

We already saw this circular pan earlier in the episode—around the dinner table when Carla is over at the Diaz house. This very well may be something Brenna Malloy just likes using, but using it with Eddie at the center twice in the same episode? It’s a choice. We know Eddie isn’t too certain about his relationship with Ana, that he isn’t sure of what it is that he really wants. I think this motion visually represents his aimlessness and uncertainty, the way his mind must be circling around Carla’s comment and wondering what it is that he actually wants for himself.

I’ve already talked about the framing of Eddie and the mother figure in the shot just prior to this one, but I’ll point it out again: Eddie is placed between the ambulance with the mother figure and the ambulance with the child with Buck standing directly in front of him at a slight distance. Just before this shot, we see the door shut on the mother in the ambulance before it drives away (Eddie rejecting the mother figure and his idolization of her). Captain Mehta then asks him if he wants to ride in the ambulance with the child, and Eddie is in the middle of saying “yeah, that’d be great” (choosing to be with the child/mirroring his prioritization of Chris) just before he is shot.

Immediately, the gunshot forces his body forward towards Buck, and his blood spatters directly onto Buck’s face and body (how stunning is this shot, btw? The way the blood contrasts Buck’s shirt and his eyes, the way the fire engine in the back accentuates the red of the blood even more). The universe is no longer screaming at Eddie, it’s wailing at him. Just as he’s about to push against his instincts again, to put Chris above his own wants and needs, the universe forces his body in the direction of his true wants and desires. Carla tells him to follow his heart, and his blood flies straight to Buck.

@yramesoruniverse and @kitkatpancakestack both wrote beautiful analyses of Eddie’s body and autonomy earlier, and his body in this scene is just so…

His body falls facing Buck, and we see his arm move towards Buck twice: he actively reaches towards him in the above gif, and later his arm continues to naturally drag towards Buck just as Eddie is about to lose consciousness. As the blood loss and shock begin to affect him, his body gravitates in his partner’s direction. The universe pushes him to see Buck, and in these final moments of consciousness, his body naturally seeks out Buck and attempts to connect with him. Actions speak louder than words, and his body in this scene is speaking volumes.

This scene is so visually stunning, and the symbolism behind all of these little bits and pieces is enormous. I really truly love Brenna Malloy for her work here. They could have merely had Eddie get shot, but Brenna took the themes of this episode (and of Eddie’s overall character arc) and interwove them so beautifully into this short time frame. I pick up on something new every time I watch.

This scene is one of the best of the entire series, and it is no doubt foundational to Buck and Eddie crossing that line and becoming canon. I can’t wait.

[ktinastrikesback]

Okay but imagine this except it’s them in the kitchen reacting to Chris asking for something….

[ktinastrikesback]

In "Buck Begins," young Buck takes note of how his parents give him attention only when he's hurt and they're worried. He's the "daredevil that he is" because Evan sees that putting himself in danger equals being seen and getting the affection he craves. Adult Buck is aware of how toxic this is and supposedly is working on it in therapy and through talking with his parents.

But then....in "Survivors," Buck puts himself in danger once again, and it's only after taking this risk that Taylor gives him the (romantic) attention he's been seeking from her. Taylor only pursues Buck and takes him out of the friend zone after he's put his life at risk and caused her to worry. And despite whatever progress he's made in therapy, this action must reaffirm his old belief that hurt = affection. (I just know Dr. Copeland is cringing.) It's a terrible way to begin a relationship in general, but for Buck? It's especially not good.

And yet....in the same episode, you have Eddie hear Buck vocalize that he wishes he'd been the one to get shot, and Eddie makes the decision to share with Buck about the change of his will. The important difference here is that Eddie made this change a year ago. Putting Buck in his will as the sole person to be responsible for his son, his heart, his entire world is a huge display of affection, regardless of what their relationship is to each other at this point (platonic or romantic). Eddie made this decision a year ago, on his own, never said anything. To receive this gift, this huge display of trust and love, Buck didn't have to do anything except be himself. Eddie didn't make this choice because Buck got hurt. In fact, it emphasizes that he wishes the complete opposite of Buck getting hurt. Isn't the difference so clear? The contrast of Taylor kissing Buck after his stunt versus Eddie's confession of how important Buck is (and has been) to him? Eddie's love for Buck is everything Buck wants and deserves; it's proof that someone can love him for who he is, that he is enough and that putting himself in danger does not have to be the prerequisite for receiving love and affection.

[ktinastrikesback]

Something about how the distance between them started here…

And then, after the will reveal, Buck remains outside of the Diaz home during the welcome home scene…

…and we haven’t seen him at the Diaz house at all yet in s5. It feels odd because he was there frequently in s4, but he’s never there anymore. He talks about Christopher with and hears about Christopher from Eddie, but he isn’t there with them like he was before. Since this scene in the s4 finale, he’s been stuck on the “outside looking in,” so it’s very very interesting to me that we have a 5b premiere of that same name with a Buck and Chris scene (hopefully) and with Eddie no longer being part of the 118 (which may or may not shift how Buck thinks about the legal guardianship).

The dynamics of the will and Buck’s mindset about Eddie’s safety and his place in Chris’ life, the weight of everything they’re not talking about…ugh it’s all too much.

[ktinastrikesback]

You know what wasn’t a difficult choice for Eddie? Putting Buck in his will.

[ktinastrikesback]

The season 4 crumbs added up to one giant FEAST. Season 5 can't some soon enough 😭🙌🏼

You act like you’re expandable.But you’re wrong.

[ktinastrikesback]

Okay but y’all…it looks like Buck might be watching the tv at the hospital, so obviously he’s watching Taylor report the news when the power goes out and (maybe, hopefully) Eddie gets trapped in the elevator????? THE POTENTIAL THIS HAS.

[ktinastrikesback]

Alright, here it is: The meta post about Eddie Diaz and mother figures and how it all leads to Buddie (I think). Thanks to @yramesoruniverse for your help with this, and @kitkatpancakestack and @evanbucklies for inspiring it! I really have been thinking about this nonstop and had to get it all down. This got quite long, so I'll include a cut in order to spare everyone who doesn't want to continue reading!

We first get an idea of Eddie's complicated thoughts surrounding mother figures throughout his whole storyline with Shannon in season 2 when he romantically reconnects with her for Christopher's benefit. I do want to keep the focus here trained on Eddie in season 4, but I want to point out a season 2 line that is pretty fitting. As much as I don't want to use a Shannon quote as a starting point for a meta, I think this one is actually pretty useful: "...Eddie always knows what's best for everyone...God forbid you stop for a second and actually ask them what they need." While it's harsh and spoken out of spite, Shannon does make a point here which becomes relevant at the end of season 4.

We don't know a whole lot about season 4 Eddie (thanks writers) aside from the fact that he's working on being a single father (he tells Marjan in the crossover that he's "doing the whole single dad thing") and being a support system for Buck and the rest of the 118. Eddie's "arc" this season is moving on from Shannon and beginning to date again (a very small and limited arc, which hopefully season 5 will remedy). Of course, because it's Eddie, the core of this arc is him wanting what is best for Christopher. And it seems pretty clear that what Eddie thinks Chris needs is a complete family with a mother figure (note how he asks Bobby if he's "happy now, with Athena and the kids" and just assumes that Bobby is talking about Ana Flores), but the universe pushes against this idea throughout the whole season. There are a lot of examples in season 4 of unreliable mother figures (for example, the alcoholic mother who causes the wreck in Blindsided), but in order to save some space here, I'll list and discuss those in another post. The main thing I want to point out is that we've seen that mother figures aren't always perfect, and they aren't the end all be all that Eddie thinks. And canonically, the show suggests several times throughout the season that the partner that Eddie needs/wants and who is best for Chris is actually Buck.

In Breaking Point, while Eddie is on his date, it's Buck who is at home taking care of Christopher and getting him through his nighttime routine (which establishes that he knows the routine and has gotten Chris ready for bed before, hence the reference to his "cautionary tale"). On the date, when Ana says that no one has been in his life since Shannon passed away, Eddie noticeably looks uncomfortable (the will reveal makes this scene and that particular comment and Eddie's subsequent reaction so rich. Eddie knows that what Ana is saying is completely untrue, because the person he trusts most with his son is with him at that exact moment). Later, when Eddie tells Christopher about his new 'friend', he says "it's a woman." And...to be honest, what the hell was that? He could have said, "I'm dating someone" or "I have a girlfriend." But he says it like this? And it's weird...right? Christopher is the one who has to say "girlfriend." Also his tone of voice when he says it...it's suspicious to me. Anyways...Eddie talks with Ana about Christopher's reaction and her first instinct is to take a break and wait for Christopher to warm up to the idea so as to not cause him more pain. Meanwhile, Chris is out the door, in an Uber, and on his way to Buck, the person who actually gets Chris to talk about his feelings and who fixes the whole mess. So while Eddie is talking with Ana, Buck is playing a parental role AND promising Chris he isn't going anywhere, completely juxtaposing everything Ana has said and done in this episode (throwback to Fools, anyone?). Just like we see in 4x14, the perfect partner that Eddie is looking for is already putting in the work, no questions asked (and this is all before Buck knows about the will!). Yet Eddie is still trying to force it with Ana.

We see this again very briefly in Parenthood. Eddie and Buck are seen agreeing on parenting ideals on a call, similar to how we saw them work together in Future Tense to talk Chris out of playing video games. At the end of the episode however, when Chris asks to join the movie, Ana just jumps ahead and lets him in, not consulting with Eddie. Of course, this isn't a serious issue and Eddie is happy to have Chris join them, but it still carries on with juxtaposing Ana with Buck. It's also a bit interesting that Chris sits between them, parallel to the video game scene from season 3. But again, it's a very brief scene, so I don't know how much value it has overall.

We see all of this come to a head in 4x13 when Eddie becomes invested in the single mother and her son from the balcony call. Interestingly, this call happens after Eddie's conversation with Carla ("make sure you're following your heart"). On the call, Eddie flirts with the mom. This is interesting because we've seen many times in the past that Eddie...doesn't like flirting, especially on the job. Eddie openly flirting with the mom here may be his way of fighting against what his instincts are telling him Carla's comment was about (him liking Buck/a man). Eddie quickly becomes invested in Charlie (the son) and takes a liking to his mother because he relates to her. You can kind of see the gears working in Eddie's head when he's at their apartment...he's admiring her and perhaps maybe fantasizing about having a partner who gets it. And he sees a mother taking care of her son...reinforcing his love for the mother figure. But of course, we all learn by the end of the episode that this mother figure is extremely warped and not at all what her child needs.

The best part about this plot is the way it plays into the shooting scene at the end of the episode. Just before he gets shot, we see Eddie in an interesting framing choice (I am genuinely serious when I say that I want to sit down with Brenna Malloy and ask her about her directing choices for this whole scene):

The mother and son are placed into separate ambulances, and Eddie stands between the two vehicles. Visually, Eddie is literally placed between the mother figure and the son, and Buck is standing in front of him (at a slight distance). As (thank you to @kitkatpancakestack for pointing this out!) the ambulance with the mother drives away, Eddie says "shoulda gotten here sooner" to Buck (who replies, "That kid is just lucky he met you." He knows how to reassure Eddie and recognizes what is good for the child). Then of course, Eddie gets shot. But let's focus instead on why this framing before the shooting is important: the universe does scream, and it sure as hell was screaming at Eddie this whole episode. Carla calls him out for not following his heart, he idolizes this mother only for her to end up being horrid, then he gets shot with his partner standing right in front of him (you know, the same person who takes care of his son for the entirety of the next episode).

This can be read so plainly: Eddie has been fighting hard for what he thinks is best for his son, and he's stuck in this relationship with Ana because he thinks she is what will make Christopher happy. Meanwhile, Buck is in front of him and has been there the entire time putting in the work with Chris and making him feel heard, loved, and important. This ties right back to that Shannon line: if Eddie had simply asked Christopher what he needs/wants, it's very possible that his answer would be "Buck." Eddie doesn't need to be stuck in the middle of this relationship he doesn't care about because Chris' happiness is not dependent on having a mother figure.

Of course, we didn't see very much of Eddie in 4x14 so we don't really know what is going through his head regarding the shooting or Carla's comment just yet, but I'm hoping we see a lot of him working through all of the events that took place in 4x13/14 throughout next season. Because of the way the mother/son storyline ended up and the way they framed Eddie in the shooting scene, I'm willing to bet that he's going to be reevaluating just what Christopher needs and what he already has (with his Buck).

(Also side note--the welcome home party scene...when Buck is watching Eddie greet Christopher, notice the framing there too. The photo of Chris and Shannon is on the right side of the frame, Eddie and Chris in the middle, and Buck to the left. You already know what I'm going to say, so I'll leave it at that...)

Anyways. Edmundo Diaz is confused about what he and Christopher need, and it's actually a brilliant way to dive into a storyline about his sexuality and his feelings for Buck. Remember that post-finale interview with Tim where he said Eddie is always concerned with what's best for Christopher? That there will be a lot to explore with Eddie? I take everything Tim says with a grain of salt, but looking at all of this, there's quite a bit here pointing in the direction of pining Eddie. It's not wishful thinking, it's in the text.

I'm literally just applying basic film analysis to these scenes...and everything is adding up to a larger picture. I'm really excited to see what Eddie's arc in season 5 will be because there's so much set in place for it to be really great.

[ktinastrikesback]

I am never not thinking about this. This is so deliberate? They showed us this? His arm isn’t merely falling towards Buck (though it does so later), he is crawling his fingers towards him. He is reaching for him.

When Eddie is on the ground and at death’s door, the weight of hiding his desires and feelings is thrown to the wind. In this moment, he just lets his emotions and his heart pull him towards who he wants, to the person he feels safest with. In Blindsided, Bobby says:

“While you’re [at rock bottom], if you close your eyes, you might be finally able to find the clarity you need…”

In this moment, we witness Eddie finding his clarity. And yes, he obviously already knows about his feelings for Buck. But perhaps the clarity is that “I no longer need to hide if I’m dying/at rock bottom.”

(I’m so sorry for bringing this shot up again, but…come on…it’s STUNNING)

[ktinastrikesback]

“That’s what I want for him.” = “That’s what I want for me.” 😭

eddie hides behind christopher when he needs to say something he's scared to say. he says, christopher loves you, christopher misses you to shannon before admitting that he misses her in s2 when they meet outside chris' school. he says do you have any idea how much christopher misses you to buck when he's angry at the grocery store because he can't tell buck he misses him too. he finds it easier to like ana because christopher likes her.

so keep that in mind when, in season 5, we get a christopher loves you for buck.

[ktinastrikesback]

Wait…we know there’s a heatwave in episode 2, and in the BTS we got, Oliver was wearing that tank top…maybe it actually is Buck modifying his uniform to survive the heat??

If that’s the case, good luck Eddie. You won’t be surviving the other kind of heat 👀😝🥵😂

[ktinastrikesback]

Oh yes 1000% agree with everything in this fantastic post!

Taylor's use of "invincible" also parallels when Margaret tells teenage Buck "you think you're indestructible, but you're wrong!" in Buck Begins. Like Margaret, Taylor doesn't understand that Buck's reckless behavior is indicative of deep-seated insecurities. I've written on this before, but I think it's worth it to discuss again: When Buck tells Eddie that it would have been better for Chris if he had been the one who got shot, Eddie is visibly upset, but Eddie knows Buck and immediately understands and sees the layers underneath that statement. This is what makes his use of "expendable" so powerful. Where "invincible" and "indestructible" are more superficial and relate to physicality, "expendable" reaches deeper and directly addresses Buck's fear of abandonment. The definition quite literally is:

"of little significance when compared to an overall purpose, and therefore able to be abandoned"

Eddie telling Buck that he is wrong to think of himself as expendable shows that he understands the root of Buck's comment and contrasts the negative reactions that Buck usually receives in response to his reckless behavior (which we obviously see in Buck Begins, but we see quite a bit of it with Bobby and Hen and Taylor in Survivors too). The only other person who could see through Buck's actions and address the real issue would be Maddie. For it to be Eddie in this episode, and in both scenes, Eddie's reaction/reassurance happening after Buck interacts with Taylor...says a lot. Taylor tells Buck he's not invincible and runs away. Eddie tells Buck he isn't expendable and gives him the ultimate proof of how much he believes that to be true.

I think we've glossed over perhaps the best part of Eddie's will...yes, it's fantastic that he changed it and that he trusts Buck that much. BUT thinking about Eddie's deliberate choice of the word "expendable," there's an added layer to his decision. Eddie isn't a fool, and he knows how close he and Buck are. He knows that if he were to die, Buck would probably not do well. Gifting Buck with guardianship of Chris is Eddie ensuring that both Buck and Chris won't be abandoned if he's gone, ensuring that they would have each other, that they wouldn't be alone. This act, in combination with him telling Buck "you think you're expendable, but you're wrong," completely overshadows any other reason Buck has ever been given to stop behaving recklessly. So yeah, I am ready to see how Buck's actions change in season 5.

[ktinastrikesback]

If they don’t have a scene where Buck is excitedly telling Chris all about the zoo animals that he and Eddie encountered at work, then what is the point?

[ktinastrikesback]

YALL I don’t have time to add screenshots right now BUT I’m rewatching 4x13 and noticed during the scene of Eddie, Carla, Chris and Ana in Chris’ room….

The solar system is NOT hanging in the corner in this scene but is back there in 4x14 when Buck is there?!?! I just rewinded twice to make sure I’m not seeing things…

@kitkatpancakestack thoughts?? This universe theory keeps getting stronger and stronger I swear

[ktinastrikesback]

Listen LISTEN bestie about your 2x04 post, you are absolutely onto something bc if there's one thing 9-1-1 doesn't have it's throwaway lines. I'm consistently blown away by how overall TIGHT they keep the narrative. There are certain waypoint episodes (stuck, buck actually, what's next, future tense, Jinx, Parenthood)—and by the way i would LoVe your opinion on those—that I feel pave the way for the characters in purely subtextual ways (some of which as you've pointed out turned out to be true!) So yeah, what am I saying? Who knows, but the writers are absolutely insane, they make me feral.

Hi @kitkatpancakestack! First of all, your comments on my posts always make my day...thanks for supporting all of my crazy thoughts lol! Thanks for the ask, here's my long ramble for you😜:

Listen...I'm not quite sure I've watched any other shows that foreshadow so blatantly? The only other I can think of is This Is Us...which like...the whole point of the show is foreshadowing and hinting and interweaving different storylines. Is 9-1-1 as complex? No, but it's close enough! I mean, gosh, look at all of the hints dropped in the first few episodes of season 4 and how those ended up coming into play in the last few episodes. For example:

-4x01, Buck and Eddie in the elevator and on the roof. I wasn't here on tumblr at the beginning of the season, but I remember going on a HOT rant to my roommate about how the emphasis of Buck and Eddie being alone would come into play later. I didn't even read it as romantic, I literally was like "hmm, maybe they're going to end up in danger together near the finale" and? Look what happened.

-4x02, obviously, because it's us, I HAVE to mention the invisible string stuff...Again, I remember watching that and noting that okay, it serves a purpose in this episode and relates to covid, whatever. But I remember seeing someone here say (I was lurking) that the book Carla was reading from is intended for children dealing with a dead/dying parent. My brain immediately went: Will Eddie be in a coma or come close to dying? And.....look what happened.

And of course, Future Tense we already know set up SO much. The one-on-one phone call between Buck and Chris in Future Tense set up Chris running away to Buck in Breaking Point which set up Buck promising that he is there for him which set up Buck literally being there for him in Survivors? It's INSANITY. Each of these little moments are fantastic in their own way, but then when you string (see what I did there) them together, they paint a full, intentional picture? This is whyyy I read so much into everything.

Especially after this season and the way they so clearly laid out the blueprints for character arcs from episode one onward, I am SO ready to look over everything in 5x01, 5x02 and maybe even 5x03 with a fine-tooth comb.

We also have two lines that I think need to be re-addressed in season 5:

-First, "You don't find love, son, you make it." (2x08) This story and this line being in an episode about Buck's search for romantic love is SO significant, but we've yet to see how it directly relates to his love life at all. The relationship he entered into with Ali at the end of that episode was...a waste of time, he was single all through season 3, and now he's with Taylor...and like? How does this quote fit with that relationship? Answer: It doesn't, which is why it won't last. When this line gets called back, it will be significant, and right now, the only way it can meaningfully relate to Buck is through what he's built with Eddie and Chris.

-Second, "No comment, Taylor." (4x14) It's been on my mind since the episode aired, and since we know that the writers don't just throw in lines for the hell of it, we can assume that this will come into play at some point in Buck and Taylor's relationship. He doesn't trust Taylor. They tried so hard (not really) to convince us that Taylor has changed, that she is better for Buck now. And okay, yeah she's a little better, BUT we get this line plus her eagerness in Treasure Hunt to leave and go after the assistant story in the Maldives. If I were to bet money, I'd say Taylor's job is going to become a problem in season 5 and Buck ends up deciding to break things off because of it (what a cool parallel to Ali breaking things off with him bc of his job, huh?).

Looking at all of this and at how everything in 4x13 and 4x14 played out, Buddie happening by end of season 5 narratively makes sense. I'm feeling very confident about it, and maybe I'll eat my words later, but it just seems like things have been laid out so well over the course of season 4 (where I think we can all agree, something shifted with these two) that will end up (like the Buck and Chris stuff) painting a larger picture.

Anyways...thanks for the ask! I'll be here til we get that canon love confession 😂