#use of Evan is permitted for the people who love buck the most and understand and love him to the core or something like that

[1doesnotsimplyhavejust1fandam]

Something that I’ve thought about several times since the lightning episode is the fact that Eddie only yelled out for Buck. He never said Evan. In fact, I never even considered that he might have used Evan, not even when I first saw the promo they released of basically just Eddie yelling for Buck (still such an insane promo). And it’s both easy and kinda difficult to explain why I think Eddie didn’t shout “Evan”.

The easy part: if Eddie actually had used Evan, I think it would have confused even dedicated fans of the show. He’s only ever used Evan once before, and nobody would’ve thought it was a normal occurrence, even for a horrifying situation like the lightning strike. I actually appreciate that they didn’t have Eddie (or anybody) call Buck “Evan” during the lightning strike, because it helped drive home the familial love point of the coma. I think he was full named by coma!Bobby, and irl!Athena, but he gets called Evan by his parents and Daniel while in the coma. And it’s meant to be a reminder that Evan is for the people who don’t know Buck. Daniel because he died, but his parents because they simply didn’t care to make the effort. Maddie and his fire family did make the effort. And so none of them call him Evan in this episode.

The hard part: the reason Eddie used Evan in the Will scene was to grab and hold Buck’s attention. To tell him that what he is saying is one of, if not the, most important things he could tell Buck. He says it to make Buck listen, to make sure Buck actually hears what he has to say. I don’t think we’ll see Eddie use Evan without that type of justification. And storming up the ladder with an unconscious or dead Buck is not enough for Eddie to need Buck to listen. This is especially significant because it also means that Eddie using Evan will be a sign for the audience to listen to Eddie too. Buck couldn’t hear Eddie use “Evan” while he was dead, and Eddie isn’t in the habit of mincing his words when it comes to telling his best friend the important things.

This post is meant to break down my thoughts about the lack of “Evan” shouting by Eddie, but also to get excited about the very distinct possibility of Eddie calling Buck “Evan” during a love confession! Even though there has only been one incidence of Eddie calling him Evan, it is clear that the meaning changes when in Eddie’s mouth. And I can’t wait to see how the meaning develops if and when it’s used during the love confession.