Buck and Tommy aren’t endgame on ABC’s 9-1-1.
This isn’t one thing I’ve recognized from the very begin of their relationship. Buck and Tommy had some chemistry of their first couple of conferences, even when I felt like Buck’s emotions have been misplaced and I’m nonetheless bothered by that closet remark throughout their first date. Apart from that, they’ve had cute moments that confirmed that one thing necessary was creating between them. With Tommy, Buck bought a chance to navigate a afterward in life queer awakening. We haven’t gotten an precise alternative to see Tommy serving to him navigate these queer areas exterior of their first kiss or date, however the reality stays that Buck wasn’t alone as he skilled a number of firsts with a person. And that’s necessary.
For season 8, I anticipated 9-1-1 to ramp issues up a bit bit for Buck and Tommy. By that, I meant dates, adventures like those he took Eddie on in season 7, and for Tommy to be built-in into the Fireplace Fam circle. As a result of if the present was going to make Buck/Tommy one thing that lasts, these keystone moments have been necessary. None of these have occurred. We have now barely seen Tommy, and when he’s round, they’re at Buck’s condo or in a scene with others. Tommy isn’t taking Buck on any dates that discover Buck’s pursuits, and if there’s something we learn about Buck it’s that he’s an explorer who likes to study and expertise issues with these he loves or cares about. We’re additionally not exploring Tommy’s likes and pursuits. And 9-1-1 has made a transparent and deliberate alternative to point out that Tommy is on the skin — take into consideration the group chat in 9-1-1 season 8 episode 5 “Masks,” with nobody attempting to drag him into the Fireplace Fam dynamic which Buck is a part of as a primary character.
That’s when it grew to become clear to me that Buck and Tommy aren’t endgame. They by no means have been endgame. However simply because I notice that, doesn’t take away from the significance of Buck and Tommy’s relationship. Let’s make that clear, at the beginning. Oliver Stark himself stated so throughout an interview with TVFanatic. As a result of Buck resides his fact now and is a “extra genuine model of himself.” He adopted that up in the course of the interview by saying, “And whether or not or not Tommy finally ends up being the endlessly companion for Buck, he’ll all the time have been his first. And there’ll all the time be, I believe, enormous significance positioned upon it for these causes.” This quote proper right here threw the fandom area for 9-1-1 right into a tizzy; that features those that assume Bucky/Tommy are endgame and those that need different choices for Buck to be explored.
A variety of time in fandom areas, it’s both/or. I’ve to select this ship and hate the opposite character. Or I’ve to love this individual after which fully make the opposite a monster to suit the narrative as to why they weren’t the fitting match for the person’s OTP desire. However I believe there’s a 3rd possibility. One which feels extra actual and that I’ve skilled a number of instances all through my romantic life. Typically relationships don’t work out since you’re not the fitting match for one another exterior of a selected second in time. And that’s okay. It doesn’t imply that the time spent collectively doesn’t matter or it wasn’t necessary to your journey. It’s. It all the time will likely be. You’ll bear in mind who you have been with them and the way you’ve modified or grown. And also you’ll take that with you as you progress onto the subsequent part of your life. Once I take into consideration Buck and Tommy, I consider this. They’re not endgame. They by no means have been. They’re only a cease on the street to one thing nice past them.
If something, Tommy is the brand new Marisol or Anna of 9-1-1. They have been necessary sufficient to be with a lead character on the present in a romantic relationship. They usually had some interactions with the Fireplace Fam. However the writers by no means built-in them into the Fireplace Fam or the lead’s life to make it seem to be they have been greater than a short lived factor or a lesson to be discovered. It was all the time floor degree. That’s what Tommy is now. He’s the man that Buck dated first when he was simply figuring himself out. As for the lesson of all of it, it may very well be that Buck can do that. He will be with a person and be his most genuine self. It’s simply part of him. The lesson that Buck learns with regards to Tommy can completely change attributable to no matter results in their breakup. However proper now I’m specializing in the nice and never how he can develop into a scar that Buck carries round with him in the identical method he did with Abby firstly of 9-1-1.
The writing is on the wall with regards to Buck and Tommy.
And if we examine their relationship to each different relationship on 9-1-1, from Bobby and Athena to Hen and Karen, their setup isn’t an awesome love story. It’s not a sluggish burn. It’s two individuals who simply so occurred to fall into one thing collectively as one discovered their bisexuality. It was good for a second. And the writers have made it abundantly clear that they don’t plan on making a historical past for Buck and Tommy that may require them to have their very own part within the writers 9-1-1 present bible, for instance. Buck may have his epic love story. Perhaps Tommy will too. Nevertheless it received’t be with one another. And that’s okay. As a result of they have been an necessary second in time on the street to discovering the one every of them is supposed to be with endlessly.
9-1-1 airs new episodes Thursdays on ABC.
Queerly Not Straight posts solely on Fangirlish with opinion items, listicals, critiques, and extra targeted on the LGBTQ+ group.