#it’s such a subtle but key part of eddie and his relationship with buck

[stagefoureddiediaz]

Something something about how all of Eddie’s traumas - well, shooting and now campervan have lead to him being out of contact/ unable to talk properly or at all to the 118, but to buck specifically and in increasingly limited degrees. Next to zero contact in the well and none directly with buck except cutting his line ( it’s always bobby or Chim on the radio to him). Then the shooting - he’s in and out of consciousness and can only check buck isn’t hurt. Now he’s on the radio - the line is open but words are laboured and difficult but there are more of them.

Something something about Eddie needing to talk - to use his words and how he didn’t after the well / he changed his will, but didn’t verbalise it. After the shooting he did have some of the words - he told Buck about said will - because he knew he needed to find them. And now in a season where he’s been playing word games against time and we’ve seen him being more verbal - what are we going to get

[alchemistc]

Oh, those prompts are so good! If you’re inspired, either 21. listening to someone’s heartbeat or 23. wearing someone’s clothes for Buck/Tommy? Thank you!

He's so fucking tired, is the thing. He's tired, and he's cranky, and this shift had taken ages to end, so when he sees the slash of bright bright blue bleeding out of his duffle and knows immediately what it is, something soft and achy blooms in his chest, and he ignores the subtle eyebrow from Lucy when he pulls it out.

The problem is she's seen Evan in this sweatshirt, less than a week ago when he'd dragged everyone out to trivia, when they'd all been well rested and happy to pepper Evan with stories about Tommy and the more sedate hijinks that Harbor station gets up to. Tommy ignores her look and shrugs it over his shoulders, dragging his head through the neck hole and not minding too much when the hood goes crooked, half stuck in his hair as he gets a wash of pleasant smells - Evan's aftershave, the detergent he uses, a hint of musk, Christ, he'd tucked it in to Tommy's bag unwashed like he knew exactly how much Tommy would want that.

Tommy does his level best not to look like he's huffing glue as he adjusts the hood around the back of his neck.

Donato bites her lip. Sighs, heavily. "Did you steal that, or are you guys in the part of the courting ritual where you do this exhausting shit on purpose just to point out how single the rest of us are?"

Tommy sends a half-hearted glare her way, gets another whiff of aftershave and tries his absolute hardest not to sigh like a lovelorn idiot. He's maybe half successful.

"You are choosing to be single. You have a great guy who'd absolutely love to lock you down, Donato." Tommy stuffs his hands into the front pocket and cocks a hip, and Donato frowns.

"He likes me too much. Don't trust it."

His huff of laughter cuts through the quiet of the locker room. "Hate to break it to you, Luce, but you kinda gotta open yourself up to the possibility of someone enjoying your company, if you want a glimpse at annoying, exhausting, stupid relationship shit."

"I'm trying to mock you, not get relationship advice from your domestically blissed ass."

It's not the first time someone has pointed out Tommy's supposed blissful status, but his body and his mind are so fucking tired and there are apparently, if Evan's last text is to be believed, a couple good cuts of steak seasoned and waiting for Tommy to fire up the grill at home. Which means there is also a man waiting for him there, too, a man with seemingly limitless energy and pockets of technically useless information, a man with silver-cast blue eyes and a birthmark over his brow that Tommy wants to bite every time he catches a glimpse of it out of the corner or his eye, a man he'd given his spare key months too soon just because he liked the idea of coming home to him, liked the idea of him creeping in while Tommy was passed out across his bed or shifting tools around in his garage or -

"Ugh. Gross. I'm leaving, now, tell Buck I said hi."

Tommy isn't actually sure he's going to do that, because he's just realized something that takes precedent, and no offense to Lucy, but she's already wormed her way into one of Evan's defining relationship moments and he's not giving her this one.

He waves her off and shoots Evan a text to let him know he's on his way.

Going home right away doesn't feel right, actually, now that he's thinking about it. He should get flowers, or - maybe learn a foreign language. How much Spanish have Christopher and Eddie taught Evan? Does Jee have some event he could crash?

(Tommy would like to point out that while he hasn't quite said it in words, he's not exactly upset about the way he and Evan are maybe a little batshit insane about each other. If Evan doesn't have any complaints, he's not going to put a damper on it, either.)

The drive home gives him enough time to talk himself down from hiring a skywriter, his cab awash in the scent of the armor-all Evan had spilled in it last week when he got distracted from 'helping' Tommy clean, the hints of scent from the hoodie that's maybe a little tight around the shoulders but still a perfect fit. For him. For Tommy.

Fuck. He should at least get the flowers.

Tommy makes himself keep driving. He's delirious with exhaustion, actually, that's why he keeps overthinking this, there's a steak dinner and a beautiful man waiting for him at home and Evan had probably gotten flowers at the market anyway. Because he does that, constantly, to the point that Tommy had run out of vases to keep them all in.

Tommy sits in the cab once he pulls in and tries hard not to romanticize the idea of Evan's Jeep looking right at home in the spot next to his.

Evan greets him at the door with a wide grin, a spoon in one hand, the other held under it to keep from spilling. "Taste," he says as a greeting, and Tommy opens his mouth more for the pleasure of seeing Evan's eyes light than any expectation for what's being put there.

Cucumber, vinegar, dill - he moans around the mouthful and barely chews before he swallows, suddenly intent to get his mouth on Evan's mouth. His duffle lands in the entryway with a thunk and he gets two hands into the hem of Evan's shirt, intent on tugging him in. "Hi," he says, and swallows whatever greeting Evan tries to return.

When they come up for air Tommy's pulse is racing, Evan is breathing heavily, and he's pretty sure there is a spoon tucked into his back pocket, left there when Evan slung his arm back to get a handful of Tommy's ass.

"Hi," he says, finally, eyes lingering on the neckline of the jacket he'd snuck into Tommy's bag.

The significance of the moment finally catches up to Tommy - the memory something Tommy sometimes falls back on when he gets too in his head about where this is going - stumbling through the emergency room doors with the leers of exhausted firefighters echoing in his ears, Evan a vision in blue (this blue) barely letting him get an apology out before trying to eat his face off in front of three amused nurses.

"Hey," Tommy says, feeling the day just slough off of him. His left hand has tucked itself neatly between Evan's impressive pectorals, and he contemplates, for a moment, just saying fuck it to the steaks and shoving him back until he can press Evan to his sheets, blanket himself atop him, press his cheek there instead of his hand and listen to the steady beat.

Evan blinks back at him, his eyes doing something unbearably sweet, and Tommy has to tell him, he really, absolutely does, only -

"I'm in love with you," Evan says, laughing a little breathlessly once the words are out, hands pressing in at Tommy's waist, a sort of wondrous expression leaking in around his smile lines.

Tommy should maybe feel like the wind has been ripped from his sails, but the fever-pitch beat of his heart won't let him.

"Y-you don't have to, like, say it back. I just. God I like you so much but I'm also - I love you," he repeats, or amends, or - there's something settled, in his expression, like just saying it was enough, like he doesn't expect Tommy to feel the same.

Tommy waits a beat. Slides the hand on his chest up over the rasp of his end-of-day stubble, thumbing the crook of his chin, fingers dancing over his cheekbone. "Evan," he says, sounding a little breathless, which should be embarrassing but Tommy doesn't care, and Evan's gaze catches and holds as he waits for whatever Tommy has to say next

[kyoteugly]

Disclaimer: This may be a bit chaotic (also sorry for my English), I never done this type of post before and I assume you know the show so I don’t go into details of every event - you saw them, you know what they’re about. And it all comes down to Buddie going canon. Here we go, enjoy! (warning 3,6k words)

If we take a look at 911 from a distance some things fall in an interesting pattern. I believe at least part of it is intentional. And if this theory is correct - standing ovations for the creators are in order, because they kept the continuity of the previous seasons while simultaneously re-launching the series. We have introductions of the main characters, we revisit big moments from their lives (sometimes in a more flashy way, sometimes more subtle), and we get a new perspective from them (those big moments) to show the character’s growth.

Ok, what’s the theory?

You should watch seasons 7 and 8 as seasons 1 and 2 on abc.

But Tim isn’t simply retelling the story. He takes the core emotion from a big event and puts it into new scenery with inclusion of how the character had changed over the seasons 1-6. 

Before I jump into Buck and Eddie, let's look at a few examples. 

ATHENA:

Introduction of Athena in season 1 goes with her marriage problems. The same in season 7 (it’s one-sided, because it’s her story, not Bobby’s).

May suicide attempt -> in season 7 there is this unnerving vibe around Bobby’s retiring actions, especially when Athena is talking with him (at least I felt this suicidal vibe and we all thought for a moment Bobby is responsible for their house burning down).

The reason why Athena became a cop, the tragic story of her fiance -> bringing back Jenkins in season 8. This plot could work without him, there could be just some no-name prisoner and Athena could simply get the order to escort him without any deep explanation - but the main core of this plot was to revisit Athena’s past.

She was attacked/in mortal danger on the job -> the whole plane disaster in season 8 (and I’ll get back to that because this is the key moment in Bathena story, this is their core).

BOBBY:

His alcoholism is haunting him and it leads to his house burning down while he’s trying to save his wife (and all of this is the result of his actions). His arc in season 7 covers his past.

And also his relationship with the 118 get’s the familiar spotlight - him being a father figure for the team. Everyone comes to him for advice while he’s forced to be away from his firehouse - and during those conversations he’s in the middle of planning his future with Athena (previously their wedding, now it’s about their new home).

As for them as a couple it’s the plot lines of Athena being attacked and her landing the plane. She is in danger, doing her job, he is the one watching/listening. But while in the past he was powerless, merely an audience to her fight, now he is her partner, he’s in danger with her and it’s his choice (with the cruise ship they both were thrown into the danger, this wasn’t the parallel to the past). And yes, this is their characteristic, but when you’re new to the show, you started watching it with season 7, you may not know this about them… so here, Tim is showing you what Bathena is about, ride or die partners with unwavering faith in each other.

Again, the core element of the big moment and the emotional growth/journey of the characters (introduction while keeping the continuity - revisiting the events, not retelling them).

HEN:

She has a very big plot line that includes a few big events from her life.

The plot with Ortiz’s son reminds me of the girl Hen hit with an ambulance. Back then Hen was a mess, doubtful about herself, and people around her reminded her that she did everything right. Now she doesn’t doubt, she’s sure, even when there is not enough conviction from her team. 

Following this plot we have the whole thing with Ortiz and Mara - which basically is covering the same core aspect we saw with Eva and Denny.

For Hen, family is the most important, actually for her and Karen - and this part also shows their journey as the power couple - because now they’re fighting together for their child (against Ortiz) and not with each other (like it was when Eva was threatening their family). They’re much stronger now, after all those years, family love guiding them through life.

CHIM & MADDIE:

They both have their respective episodes in season 7.

Chimney: Why put Doug there? Why Kevin and karaoke bar (the backstory of how Chim became a firefighter) if not for the introduction of the character, for revisiting his big moments…? 

Maddie and the call with the abducted woman -> we learn later it was her stalker not her husband, but Maddie assumes it’s the husband because of her own trauma. And in the same episode her postpartum depression is also addressed -> the abducted woman is separated from her baby - it’s symbolic but it’s there (like I said, not everything is flashy).

As for Madney - it’s all in the way they’re looking for each other when their mental state is in question (past - Maddie in Boston, present - Chim being sick). Their emotional journey lies in the way of how sure of their love they are. Again, in the past they were taking things slow, finding each other but giving each other space and time, careful “i love you” etc - Now they speed things up by getting married right away, right there in the hospital - because they’re sure.

There are more core things (and revisits) to all characters but I won’t go deeper into this because I want to talk about Buddie (with more details)... so…

All 3 power couples got introduced and redefined anew for the new audience, but the core of what makes them Bathena, Henren, and Madney remained the same - just bigger, bolder, stronger… What remains, in the spectrum of main relationships, waiting to receive the same treatment, is Buddie.

EDDIE:

Through season 7 and 8 so far we got to see main aspects of Eddie - soldier, father, widower, best friend (yes, there are elements of them being more, of some deeper feelings, especially from Eddie’s side - this is the part of the continuity from previous seasons… but because seasons 7 and 8 are new seasons 1 and 2, Buddie is leaning a little more to the “best friends” side - for now… it just started to change with episode 8x05).

We learn about Eddie’s character - he’s caring but also sassy, he works great under pressure, he’s not superstitious, he panics when relationships get too serious (not full blown panic attacks this time, but catholic guilt plays the same role here).

The big moment from Eddie’s past is Shannon’s death. The show can’t tell this story again, can’t kill Shannon again, but they can show the new audience the impact Shannon had (and still has) on Eddie’s life -> and here we have the whole “Kim plot”. 

One more thing worth mentioning about Eddie and parallels is that he left Chris and his wife in the past -> now Chris is the one who left him, and the only relationship his son has to offer to Eddie is a glitching facetime video in a moment of the day when he’s busy (Chris) - sounds familiar.

Yes, there are more big moments in previous seasons, but each of them is intertwined with Buck, ergo can’t be discussed without him. So let’s jump into Buck now.

BUCK:

Just like with Eddie we get the reminder of main characteristic of Buck in form of: infodumping, ingenuity, thinking outside the box, being good/capable on a job, abandonment issues (Eddie spending time with Tommy), craving for approval/affirmation (he hates Gerrard and still seeks that pat on the back and “good boy” comment), his spiraling and believe in supernatural, and he’s like a kid in 118 family.

I feel like we got all of his aspects (and the same with Eddie’s) that we know from previous seasons in an easy to swallow pill, coated with a bit of comedy.

Big moments in Buck’s life include Eddie, but there are few relationships that are very important to this character that are highlighted in seasons 7 and 8). 

Christopher. For now we don’t really see the depth of Buck’s and Chris' relationship. New audience can safely say he is somewhat of a “fun uncle” for Chris (right now Chris is his best friend’s son) - this is because we still haven’t seen the equivalent of what created the bond between them - the tsunami (I believe we will get that when Chris comes back from Texas or his return will include scenes related to their bond and this big event from their lives).

Maddie. This one is simple for now, they’re great siblings, they support each other, the upcoming scene with Maddie should add more.

Best friend Eddie - partners on a job and in crime, knowing each other so well they can read every small signals (it’s mostly visible in 7x01 and 8x01), showing up for each other etc - you all know what I mean - Eddie jumping into idea of bachelor party, Buck confronting Eddie about Kim, Buck’s coming out, Eddie asking for help with Chris (twice) - all of that have (mostly) subtle Buddie themed moments (smiles, looks, wording) but what screams loudly is that they’re best friends (like you’ve never seen better friends than them). Like I said before it started to change in 8x05, and even earlier we see a little bit more of Eddie, like he’s kind of in the background - just remember this, I’ll explain in more details later.

Bobby. This relationship is highlighted the most, and after the first 3 episodes of season 8 nobody has any doubt that Bobby is like a father to Buck (in case somebody missed it in 7x10). In previous seasons we saw how this father-son thing evolved between them (whole season 1, lawsuit, Buck spiraling because of radiation Bobby “absorbed”, coma dream, etc), and now we get the speed run through it to establish how it works.

There is one more very important relationship in Buck’s life that also counts as Buck’s big moment. And it’s Abby, who is represented by Tommy. Older, more experienced love interest, who shows Buck he still has something to learn about relationships, who changes his perspective. It goes further. Remember the guy who was catfishing girls with Buck’s photos? Remember when he was in a meeting with Abby and a girl came up to them? Abby didn’t like what she heard and left Buck cold in that cafe/restaurant. Sounds familiar? Yeah, it should. His first date with Tommy, interrupted by someone, where Tommy didn’t like Buck’s behavior and left him on a curb. What’s important, none of them (not Tommy nor Abby) told him it was over, they were disappointed, of course, but left with the vibe “contact me when you grow up”/”I don’t do dramas”. Again, this is parallel, the revisit to the past event (core of the scenes remains) but the point here is not to tell the same story again but show something new, so Buck’s relationship with Tommy goes in its own way.

I would like to address the lightning strike here, because I believe this event won’t get “the revisit” treatment. It was mentioned in background in season 7 - the locker room scene with Eddie and how Buck tells Tommy the night they met was the best one he had since he died (or something like that). So the lightning strike exists already in season 7 and 8 narrative for the new audience.

Ok. In previous seasons we saw all main couples dating and getting married - basically becoming what they are now. And we saw how Buck’s and Eddie’s relationship grew and evolved throughout the seasons - but they never reached the status of a couple.

So we are now at 8x05, we have all main characters introduced, all power couples redefined by some huge events that made them stronger. We have Buck and Eddie - best friends for life - now is the time to show Buddie of it all.

BUDDIE:

Believe it or not, episode 5 is about Buddie in so many ways, but not in a way you think it is… It’s about retelling their emotional journey, their bonding path and what makes their relationship so special. Yes, I’m using “retelling” here, because the story of their feelings never reached the conclusion, it was always between the lines, and now it can be told anew. Tim already had the perfect recipe for them, so now he is using the core ingredients, to once more reach the point where making them a couple will feel natural. It’s not only about making them canon, it’s about telling beautiful love story - patience is important, their emotional state is the key and has to be set up just right. 

Ok. Masks. This title is a red herring in itself. If we talk about who is wearing a mask the answer is simple - everybody, it’s a Halloween episode. Going deeper we can say - it’s Eddie with his ‘fine’ mask. Let’s go even deeper, it’s not a noun “masks” (in plural), it’s a verb. The whole episode is masking itself, and it’s masking who the story is about. We have two major plot lines here, Buck’s (a comedy) and Henren (drama), both very loud and over the top, making the audience look in one way when in the background another story is unfolding. Red herrings everywhere.

What are the big moments from Buck’s and Eddie’s life that are hidden in this episode? When did Buddie truly start? Firetruck, tsunami, lawsuit, fight club, divorce era… yes, it’s all there… well, tsunami is only mentioned there because it’s Buck and Chis arc, but the important moment for Buddie after the tsunami is still represented in this episode by Karen’s words “You saved him”. Let’s break it down.

BUCK:

Firetruck: the event itself is represented in Denny’s accident. He’s pinned by the vehicle, Karen is holding his hand while others are trying to save him, there is and audience to his tragedy, a lot of people (in this case firefighters) are working together (building the construction) to get him out, the accident was caused by a man who was driven by vengeance/seeking justice, in the end Denny has his leg in cast - the same leg Buck had.

Lawsuit: The whole Buck’s curse plot - injury on a job (to his limb), aftermath of which he ends up with a medical condition (boils = blood thinners), which causes him to focus solely on himself. Buck is so self absorbed in this episode he doesn’t notice his own boyfriend, let alone his best friend (if you want me to write a longer post about Buddie in corelation to Buck and Tommy and why imo Buck is a lame boyfriend in this episode let me know - I won’t do that in this post).

The things above are like playing with the form of what I mentioned before - revisiting previous events. What’s important here is the emotional state of Buck. He learns very quickly he can come back to his job (Eddie is asking about it, because he knows how important it is for Buck) but the boils ultimately send him on a spiral and right back to the self absorbed state of mind - and the reason for it is to make him blind on what’s going on with Eddie.

EDDIE:

Fight club and divorce era are played out here only in Eddie’s emotional state because the show is putting Eddie in the background on purpose so we can’t have big moments played out in a form of parallel scenes. 

But just like with the fight club, Eddie is distancing himself from the firefam. I said already that Eddie is kinda in the background - this is the part where we can see Eddie isolated and alone, in this episode it screams the loudest (compared to the previous ones). 

The haunted house - Hen is terrifying, Chim is scary, even Buck, whose job was to give out candy, managed to freak everybody out (including himself) - only Eddie is this lame and cringe werewolf wannabe. This is a metaphorical, subtle way to show he stands out from the rest of the team. He’s with them but he is alone in the crowd. They have to ask him about Chris, he’s not talking about him himself and he’s keeping his ‘i’m fine’ mask on (pun intended). In fight club era Eddie is grieving after Shannon, now he’s grieving his relationship with Chris. He’s hiding his pain just like he was hiding his bruises.

Divorce era can be seen in a way Eddie interacts with Buck. He’s losing his patience sooner than usual, is meaner in his comments because he’s running on fumes, getting closer to his breaking point (it could escalate, we know he can snap when he can’t deal with his emotions). He doesn’t look at Buck - and I know, it’s because of the things on Buck’s face, hiding behind the magazine, sucking on lollipop… but honestly, do we actually believe that? Or the comedy of those scenes masked that they’re disconnected right now (actually they’re disconnected since Gerrard made them work separately. How they miss each other's eyes in the courtroom - it started there). The episode ends so blatantly showing us Buck talking bullshit with his head so far up his behind he doesn’t think for a second that Eddie needs him. And Eddie, well, he’s fighting alone, just like he was when he stepped into the ring.

WHAT’S NEXT:

If I’m right about all this, and not just insane, we will see 4 more big events - or rather the emotional state those events invoked. 

Kitchen scene - Buck being sorry for not being there for Eddie, when he needed him (the tension aspect of the scene would be nice, but the actual core of this scene is Buck admitting he failed Eddie and Eddie actually listening and accepting Buck’s words).

Well - Eddie has to save himself, deal with something on his own (with only briefly mentioning Buck, mostly Chris).

Will - this has to be addressed at some point. We know about the will but people who started watching from season 7 don’t. This will be clear, no red herrings, no telling story in the background.

Shooting arc - Buck being scared he may lose Eddie. It doesn’t have to be a near death experience, it can be Eddie deciding he’ll move to Texas - the core is fear of losing his… right, what? Best friend? When we reach this point they’ll be more, and “best friends” term won’t be enough, not even to the general audience. 

After that we can start talking about Buddie canon.

Of course there will be more scenes, new scenes, the characters are still growing but in my opinion Tim is trying to set up and show similar emotional journey for them, right up to the point when we should have had Buddie… and he will pick up where he left them, messed up and vulnerable and so in love with each other it’s overwhelming (shooting arc)… then we will go in a straight line to the Buddie canon.

I don’t want to make predictions, I’m bad at it. I prefer to analyze. But in my opinion and what I know about the next episode, I think the well call will serve as a reminder about Eddie Begins, the actual connection between past and present will be in the mustache scene (or right before the mustache scene). 

Final thoughts.

We all see the parallels between different characters and between previous seasons and new ones. We get frustrated about some plot lines and episodes (Bobby episode, Kim plot line)... But if you take a few steps back and look at season 7 as season 1 it makes sense to show these threads again. If you look at all the elements we talk about as a fandom you will see it’s one huge project, not just hints placed here and there. And it’s not just for the benefit of long term fans, it’s for the new audience to get to know these characters, to fall in love with them, to make them curious enough to watch previous seasons.

We all feel it, this carefree vibe from season 1, we’re all falling in love again, saying season 8 has what’s the best in 911, has it all. And I believe it’s because of what I wrote above, these new introductions of characters and relationships. 

One relationship remains to be shown in all its beautiful and unhinged glory - Buddie.

And I believe once we get the equivalent of a shooting arc we will get Buddie canon - this time Tim will tell their story how he wanted - with Buck and Eddie together, as a couple, as soulmates.

Wow, this was long. Sorry for the chaos, I never done this type of post before, but I hope you got the gist of it and enjoyed it. Remember, it’s only my opinion, I could be wrong (honestly, I probably am xP) but I wanted to share my thoughts because I got very hyped up about it. Feel free to contact me if you want.

Tagging some people who may be interested (if you want me to remove you from this post let me know): @buddiebeginz @stagefoureddiediaz @lemotmo @inell @jackwhiteprophetic @lover-of-mine @loveyourownsmiilee

Part 2, episode Confessions - HERE

[strappingyoungbuck]

just the fact that. since the start of the show, a major part of buck's storyline relates to romantic and sexual relationships. the fact that he recognised constant one night stands weren't healthy for either party so he made the conscious effort to change. and it paid off! he had a good thing with abby, he matured for her and emphasised his best qualities in putting her first, being responsible and kind. and it gained him stability and, briefly, a home! he felt so comfortable he was very quickly practically moving in with her.

and he recognised that he needed a solid foundation to build up to a relationship like that. the fact that he held back, spent all that time talking to her on the phone, helped with her mother. they knew each other before their relationship really began and that's why he was so content with her.

and then abby had to put herself first. which she could have handled better than just leaving buck alone in her apartment but really. was buck actually fully oblivious to the end of their relationship or was he just hanging on to a good thing after it was already gone?

and then there's ali. i don't know how much there is to say there but i think it's key that she was never around for extended periods. buck had just finished a very emotionally intense relationship, probably his first serious relationship, so it seems the way he and ali started dating does make sense for him. but like. what really stands out for me is that he moved into his apartment For Ali. she pushed for him to stop living like such a bachelor and have his own space, only it was meant to be a space with her in mind. so, i don't think anyone really should have been surprised that he's so lonely. he's literally living alone in an apartment meant for a couple.

and so we see buck grow from someone completely reckless, irresponsible, living in a shared house to a man intentionally getting his life together not just for his sake but for the sake of the people around him. he's someone who can provide a sofa for people to sleep on, instead of relying on chim or maddie. he goes to therapy because he wants to be better, for his own sake. he steps up.

and then there's eddie. who is simply the logical culmination of buck's romance arc. there's that initial reckless jealousy, some remnant of buck 1.0 that rears its head, which switches in the course of one episode to complete loyalty and unfailing support. he meets christopher, he loves christopher, and he almost kills himself trying to keep christopher safe. he provides eddie with the support to put christopher in a good school, with someone to look after christopher whilst he works. they barely know each other and buck helps with the person most important to eddie, it's not exactly a subtle parallel to the beginnings of his relationship with abby.

and they're best friends! (oh my god they were best friends.) it's like everything with abby amplified by a thousand, because they know each other intimately, they risk their lives for each other. buck feels comfortable at eddie's home ("i'm not exactly a guest").

and the lawsuit is awful but. it's like watching a break-up where neither party realised they were in a relationship. it's like how ali couldn't handle the risks of buck's work so she left in case one day buck didn't come home, but eddie lived through that. buck wasn't there and eddie lost his co-parent and his confidante. but eddie forgives and buck sees how much he's really hurting and they can talk about it because buck Sees eddie.

abby left because she didn't know who she was after giving so much of herself away, and following both eddie begins and buck begins, both the characters and the audience understand about as much about eddie and buck as we're ever going to, really. there's a solid sense of self, lots of personal progression, and it is literally only logical from buck's point of view to end up with eddie, who knows ("i know you did") that buck has to take the risks he does, and who won't ever up and leave him (he was the first the run in and grab the rope!).

and buck has proved time and again he is a capable and worthy co parent for christopher ("there is no one i trust more"). he consistently steps up for christopher and for eddie. shannon left because she needed time, because she feared being married to eddie made her a worse mother. with buck, being with eddie makes them both better parents and better partners. they have each others backs!

like. don't do it for me, fox. do it for the narrative.

[lying-little-legend-blog]

Toby’s not a name you hear everyday.

"Down these mean streets a man must go, who is not himself mean... 

…who is neither tarnished nor afraid. He is the hero; he is everything. He must be a complete man and a common man and yet an unusual man. He must be, to use a rather weathered phrase, a man of honor—by instinct, by inevitability, without thought of it, and certainly without saying it. He must be the best man in his world and a good enough man for any world.”

(Okay.. y'know what? I highly advise that people go back and rewatch season 3B of Pretty Little Liars with the knowledge that Toby was a double agent.The result may shock you! After months of procrastination, I finally got around to this project.)

This is a reevaluation and in-depth analysis of the infamous -A Team reveal of Toby Cavanaugh. Having been the subject of harsh scrutiny over the course of his redemption arc, largely in part due to poor writing and a rushed resolution, I believe the writers actually did a wonderful job strengthening the themes of forgiveness and heroism through Toby’s character – proving subtle clues and strong parallelism that PROVE his well-intentioned motivations for having joined the -A Team. While I do not wish to legitimize the wrongdoing of either Spencer or Toby’s behavior whilst on the -A Team, I wanted to provide you guys with a slightly different take from what I’ve seen.

♠️♦️♣️♥️

Badges and banners and keys, oh my!

Upon the realization that Spencer discovered his ties with the A Team through the Radley ID badge, Toby could have easily (and purposefully) planted his Radley Parking Pass for Spencer to find as a means to tell her that his alias, E. Lamb was important. It would also explain  why Toby asked Spencer HOW LONG she had known about his allegiance to the A Team. He TOOK BACK his ID badge to keep Mona OUT of the know, so to speak, LEAVING the key for Spencer to investigate!) 

Keep in mind, he left his apartment untouched aside from having left that pass in a book that Emily gave him for his birthday.  This indicates that Toby was TRYING to tell the girls something. He was TRYING to communicate to them that there was a significance behind the alias. Perhaps he was hoping that, in seeing the name pop up everywhere, the girls would know to look into Radley to find E. Lamb.  

If you look at it from Toby’s perspective, it’s plausible to assume that he wanted SPENCER to find the pass and NOT Emily, which would explain why upon Emily’s discovery of the pass during her investigation of him in 3x21: Out of Sight, Out of Mind, he texted her to stop looking into E. Lamb. He didn’t want her to get caught! 

(NOTE: Spencer finally outs Toby to her friends in the beginning of this episode. In doing so, she essentially defied Mona’s original threat “Rat out T and I take out one of your 3!″) 

Toby may have also wanted to ensure that his cover wasn’t blown. He originally intended for Spencer to find the pass, hopefully pushing her to look into a lead on E. Lamb in secrecy. With Mona watching the liars’ every move, it was important that Emily stayed away from him. 

In the eye abides the heart and with every heart a key can only open...

It could also be argued that Toby left the A lair key in Spencer’s possession (at the end of 3x16: Misery Loves Company), hoping that Spencer WOULD get to the lair before it was cleared. [It is my belief that LUCAS cleared the A lair under instruction by Mona. This can be proven through the parallelism in Lucas being the one found clearing the room in Rosewood High, leaving behind Alison’s (now empty) diary.] 

Although this accounts as speculation, my money is on Lucas being the one responsible for emptying out the room. It was heavily implied (if not directly confirmed)  that he was the one who cleared out Creepy Harold's room in the school basement. That AND leave behind an -A message telling the girls that there was “nothing to see here!”

Oddly enough, an episode prior to Lucas’s confrontation with the liars in the basement, Toby arrives downstairs JUST IN TIME to ensure the girls got their hands on Ali’s diary pages.  Had he not shown up, the girls would most likely have had those torn pages confiscated from them by Harold. This shows us the stark contrast between both Lucas and Toby’s loyalty. In this instance, Lucas took orders from Mona that rendered the girls investigation meanwhile Toby had given the girls the upper hand AND rescued them from Harold. 

Another way to interpret this is that Toby wanted Spencer to find the origin of the key to send her a message, one that proved he did in fact love her. The apartment that she was led to was on Mayflower Hill. The funny thing about mayflowers is that they traditionally wield 3-5 petals, which coincides with the game that Spencer references to the P.I. 

“We had a secret, him and me… and this will tell me whether he kept it. Did you ever play a game with the flowers when you were little? He loves me, loves me not? […] Trick is, you just find a flower with an odd number of petals…”

Similarly to the BAD/214 message that Toby gave Spencer (which coincidentally led to an empty motel room), who’s to say that Toby wasn’t trying to send Spencer a message by allowing her to investigate the origin of the key? In Season One, Spencer immediately assumes the message in braille meant “BAD.” Upon her confrontation with Toby, however, she learns that she interpreted the message wrong. It actually read “214” – which helped in drawing attention to the relationship between Jenna and Ian.

My Toby’s name was Cavanaugh...

Although some of his plans went awry, his intention for Spencer to find and talk to E. Lamb came to fruition. It’s also important to note that Eddie was one of few people in Radley that could be trusted. Eddie was also the person responsible for Spencer discovering the map on Mona’s game board, not Mona herself, but EDDIE. This could suggest that the Toby knew about the existence of the map and wanted Spencer to find it through Eddie. (The parallel in the star on Mona’s game board to the neon-lit star sign outside of Toby’s motel room in 3x24: A Dangerous Game supports this possibility.) 

Remember what Toby said about the room? “Mona doesn’t know about this one...” Do we think this could have a double meaning?

Prior to this, an interesting clue is presented after it Spencer made clear that Toby was "dead to her,” Toby sent the flowers and deepest sympathy banner as both a warning and a response to the girls. 

The warning was for Emily to STOP looking (both for him and E. Lamb) and the response was for Spencer believing him a quote on quote dead man. This arrangement was both a play on words and a serious warning. “Someone close to you will pay for your loose lips” could refer to the fact that, due to the fact that Spencer she had just outed Toby to the girls, they were now being monitored more closely by Mona. 

When Emily receives a text telling her to meet Toby, she is eventually presented with an -A message further insisting that Toby was dead. A quote taken from the Bible has been printed out on a pamphlet:

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

(Psalm 23:4)

I believe that Toby sent this message to Emily as a way to maintain the belief that he was “dead” because, after witnessing Spencer deface his mothers grave, he decided to go off the radar in attempt to truly defy Mona and take down Red Coat. Additionally, the aforementioned quote is arguably one of the biggest hints to indicate that Toby’s intentions were pure. That, despite working in league with Mona and the A Team, he wouldn’t be tainted and wanted the girls to know NOT to fear him.

Mona’s plans clashed with his, however. She wanted to break Spencer - Toby wanted her to forget about him. After all the old saying goes, out of sight and out of mind! Anyway, Toby realized that, after his failed attempts to communicate to her, he had to work from another angle to pursue a search for Red Coat. This is supported through Toby’s comment about switching between motels in order to hide from Mona.

...And guess what? He actually succeeded in hiding from Mona, keeping his motivations a secret from her. 

Both during his meeting with Spencer at the cafe and later on at the loft, Toby showcased his ability to conceal his true intentions and seek refuge away from Mona. By reporting to “A” in the diner, Toby also confirms news of Hanna’s babysitting job, which is later used to Spencer's advantage when she decides to send Malcolm a picture of her and Ali. 

What’s funny is that, like Toby, Spencer sent the girls a clue to the girls that indicated that she was operating from the inside WITHOUT Mona’s knowledge, only to be met with skepticism and the assumption that Spencer had betrayed them. Similarly to the tasks performed to prove their loyalty to Mona, both Spencer and Toby had difficulty communicating messages to each other and their friends. Spencer herself acknowledges:

“Mona watches my every move; you found a way to get to me without her knowing about it!”

Sneaky little clues, hidden behind those baby blues!

Everything I’ve done was so I could protect you

Although he wasn’t on the –A Team until after getting the job in Bucks County (around the time between 3x09-10), in 3x07: Crazy, Toby covers for Spencer by giving her an alibi (and lying to the police) that kept her from being questioned for a hit and run. 

Spencer makes Toby promise that he wouldn’t tell anyone about Jason driving under the influence, which, he keeps. Jason got off scot-free. Following those events, in 3x08: Stolen Kisses, Toby expresses his frustration with the lies and cover-ups that have plagued Spencer’s life:

“I think that you’re the one that needs protection, and the people you really need protection from are the ones you are related to. […] I’m not going to ask you to explain anything because you won’t; you just say that I have to trust you. Mona is locked up, Garrett is locked up, but you still jump every time your phone rings. I know it’s complicated, so I’ll make it easy on you, I’ll find out for myself.”

I’m exactly where I need to be

In 3x12: The Lady Killer, -A contacts Emily at the Lighthouse Rock Inn. Emily answers the phone to a distorted voice telling her that she has “one minute, get out!” Knowing that Toby was working alongside Mona at this time, it’s safe to assume that he was the one who sent the warning. This can be backed up by the –A ending sequence where –A is seen using the same voice modulator to order two tickets for the Halloween train. (Which is a reference to Toby’s reflection showing up as Spencer is looking at the event banner earlier in the episode.)

You’d tell me if things started up again, wouldn’t you?

In episodes 3x13-14, Toby displays hesitancy to trust Spencer alone with the likes of Garrett and Jason, respectively. Knowing what happened to Garrett on the Halloween Train and Jason in the elevator (in both cases, Garrett and Jason were providing the girls with intelligence that –A didn’t want them to know), it seems as if Toby KNEW that both Garrett and Jason had targets painted on their backs, wanting Spencer (and Emily) to stay as far away from them as possible. This proves that Toby had Spencer’s protection in mind.

Proving their loyalty to Mona required a level of emotional detachment from their friends and loved ones. While Toby is often condemned for his actions, let’s remember that Spencer kidnapped Ezra’s then believed son, which prompted Aria’s anxiety attack. Spencer also planned on using the liars as bait to lure Red Coat over to the Thornhill Lodge. 

At the end of the day, Spencer made clear that she UNDERSTOOD Toby’s reasoning for joining Mona. The thing that hurt was the fact that, under contract of his loyalty, he could not prevent Mona from inflicting the emotional damage that led her admitted into Radley Sanitarium. Mona may have been taking orders from someone else, but that doesn’t exactly justify her actions and vile behavior. 

As mentioned beforehand, Spencer based her decision to forgive Toby on intention and the rationale behind his attempt to protect her. Spencer was willing to do the same things to get answers and protect her friends. 

End of Theory!