"Brothers & Sisters" Recap Episode 215: "Moral Hazard"

"Verklempt" - the very word I used last night on Twitter right after seeing that scene. If there's ever been a more romantic moment between two men on broadcast television, I haven't seen it.

--Jere

...when two opposite points of view are expressed with equal intensity, the truth does not necessarily lie exactly halfway between them. It is possible for one side to be simply wrong.
--Richard Dawkins

An absolutely outstanding episode of Brothers and Sisters! I had a lump in my throat and was all misty eyed during the scene when Uncle Saul came out. Being a gay man who didn't come out until his late 30's, I totally sympathize with the character of Saul. Now I'm anxious to see where the writers will take his storyline. Maybe Michael Nouri will return next season? At any rate, I love an older man and think Ron Rifkin is pretty darn cute. He might just make my top 10 for the Hottest Gay 100.

B&S is the best drama series EVER. Period! This episode alone jam-packs so many level of emotions that leave a hole in my heart after it finishes. Heavy heavy. Scotty and Kevin just have to lighten the darkest hour in the Walker clan with their union. The sweetest moment and most elaborate gay proposal ever. ROMANTIC at its best. Thank you to everyone at B&S.

As much as I love Brothers and Sisters and feel it's one of the better shows on TV and I like how they deal with gay relationships, I'm not all that taken with this new plot point with Scotty and Kevin so this romantic moment didn't particularly thrill or move me. I think it's much too soon for these two to be making this commitment. I'm just having a hard time believing Kevin actually loves Scotty. It was just a few months ago that he was supposedly in love and living with Jason. He might think he loves Scotty now but Kevin is so wishy washy that who knows what he'll feel tomorrow. Don't get me wrong, I like Kevin a lot. I just happen to think he makes a lousy boyfriend.  And he'll make a worse husband.

As a straight woman, even I was moved by Kevin's proposal but I can't help but wonder what's going to happen at Kevin and Scotty's wedding?  Every event the Walkers hold turns into a fiasco.

Even now,after one day I saw the scene,I'm still listening the "Warm Whispers"with the words which Kvein said"Marry me!"obsess my mind!!!!Wish One day some one will say the same to me.

"I even love the things about you that I hate". With words like that you can hardly go wrong. What a beautiful proposal. Doesn't get any better than this. I can't wait till the next episode. From the preview it looks like a beautiful commitment ceremony.

And no, it is not too soon for Kevin & Scotty to do this. They have known eachother on and off for two years. They have been lovers, fighters, friends. they have seen eachother at their best and at their worst. They don't have to pretend to be anything they are not, when they are together.

We all would have loved to see some more of a build up to this, unfortunately with the limited episodes B&S got, they didn't feel like having much of choice but to speed this up as well. This also due to the fact that shoving Justecca down our troaths was obviously more important then a decent build up to the Kevin/Scotty storyline. Who knows? Maybe we'll have more luck next season and we can see more of their interactions.

As far as being a 'lousy' husband is concerned. I'm not sure about that. From Greg Berlanti's interview in "Out", they didn't seem to be in a hurry to have K/S cheating on eachother or split them up in another way.

Matthew Rhys seemed sick and tired of playing the constantly insecure Kevin and has said he wanted Kevin to be in a steady relationship. Luke MacFarlane will be a series regular from the next season on. And Matthew has often said how pleased he was with the chemistry between Kevin and Scotty. And between himself and Luke.

And as far as the preacher-boy is concerned. Eric Winter seems to have good time amongst the vampires of "Moonlight", if the series gets a 2nd season, he might get a bigger part. Besides, when Matthew Rhys was asked if Eric would come back, he answered with a definitive 'no', they had done the love triangle and that is it. Matthew is usually rather playful with words and likes to leave room for speculation, so for him to be so definitive about it...

So, all in all, I hope that Kevin & Scotty will stay together. I've already ordered the truck-load of tissues for next Sunday. :-)

Fantastic recap of an amazing episode. Snicks, loved all the pop culture camp references (Shelby drink your juice -- classic!) -- and I totally thought Dynasty during that boardroom scene as well, and I loved every manipulative move on Holly's part. I've had my share of loving/being disappointed with this show, but this episode was near perfect and has me counting seconds til next week. I loved how it not only moved all the stories along significantly but made them all incredibly involving, even the stuff about Ojai. It also showed how, when you take Kitty and McCallister out of the equation (since they were largely absent from the show), the show hardly suffers for it and might even be better for it.

I loved all the parts with Kevin, Scotty, & Saul. I actually enjoyed Saul's 'official' coming out more than I thought I would!

I enjoyed the Nora, Sarah, Tommy, Holly, and even the Justin & Rebecca stuff (Although I still think Rebecca should be the Walker and Justin not). And I was surprised by the minute amout of time Kitty and Robert were in it!

I too, fondly remembered Dynasty right about the time Holly came in with her new pusiness proposal - Is she going to turn into Alexis? That could be fun!

Really loved Kevin's proposal at the end. The "I even love the things about you that I hate'...that's part of how I knew I loved my bf.

I certainly hope Rebecca wasn't planning on staying at Nora's after Holly threw her out....I wonder where she went?

 Now I'm really looking forward to next week!  8)

Just a few comments that need airing. If there is one thing the Kevin-Scotty proposal scene wasn't it's "well lit". Its a poor advertisement for eco-friendly bulbs that after Scotty turned on the lightswitch the apartment looked as dark and gloomy as a hotel, pick-up bar. Look at the scene again.

That said, How Great Is It that this love scene ended with a mouth on mouth kiss instead of the brotherly hug almost every other show on TV would have closed it out on. I say Damn now that's Good TV.

 Finally, Uncle Saul. I find nothing admirable about this character. Thirty years working as the chief gofer for his lying cheating brother-in-law, lying to his sister all these years about the secret mistress, lying to himself and everybody about his sexuality (does everyone remember he made a smarmy play for Holly after Williams death) and now the biggest incident of all, committing business fraud behind Sarah's back and loosing them control of the family company then trying a half-assed suicide attempt. If he succeeded next episode I'd say "Meh, who cares"..

What is there more to say then that. And Missy Higgins in the background - perfect. Can't wait to see the wedding;)

--

It's a new dawn. It's a new day. It's a new life and I am feeling good.

I have a lot of issues with this show (where do I start?), but not with this moment. I thought it was probably the most sincere scene all season and I believed it a heck of a lot more than all the sperm dance/incest-not incest/family biz kerfuffle that took up the rest of the hour. Only hoping this plot doesn't end up on the backburner next season.

I have to say, I'd love to have you around doing recaps for this show regularily. This was really funny. Loved your picture captions specially. Also, I saw Sarah's raincoat, and thought "is she going to pull a femme fatale on Graham?". As a general observation, you know why this was such a good ep? No, not all the gay content and gushing ( which was nice, btw ), but the complete lack of Kitty and Robert!

I have to wonder if Kevin has met Scotty's parent's yet. I think I am in the minority that thinks is a little rushed. I wanted them to get engaged and have 1 episode where Kevin gets to meet the parents. Even if that means pushing the wedding to next season. It would have made a lovely season opener. I can see it now: Kevin all nervous sitting through a dinner with Scotty's over protective parental units. lol

Darling Milo except for Ugly Betty, CNN and Women's Wrestling I never watch the "Dumont", when Brothers and Sisters first started to air I tried to watching but never could get into it, reading your thoughtful and detailed synopsis makes me want to re-visit the show and give it another chance. Well done Milo!

We promise not to believe any vile rumors.

Kevin certainly was a busy bee this episode wasn't he?  I'm actually not surprised that he had the epiphany that he did and proposed to Scotty.  This week the point was really driven home just how dysfunctional his family is.  More to the point, Saul's coming out, and realization that his life has been wasted, certainly must have had an impact on Kevin.

That was such a supremely well-acted scene.  You really could feel Saul's sense of tragedy at having wasted his whole life trying to satisfy other people's expectations and the reality that he's lost most of his years as a result.  Kevin, the younger gay man, having to be the one offering support to his uncle was very poignant.  Both actors were amazing.

This I think is what drove Kevin to propose.  He realizes what a great partner Scotty really is and wanting to make their relationship permanent is a bulwark against the kind of situation he sees Saul as being in.  Despite his insecurities about commitment it's been pretty clear from the beginning that Kevin has been looking for a lasting love.

His proposal to Scotty was very well done.  The whole scene played beautifully.  It was especially cute watching Scotty go all Southern Belle and clutching his pearls when Kevin got down on one knee.

My only gripe is that I still think that this has all been too rushed, especially given how little air time they've had these last few episodes (including this one). 

I'm not one that believes in marriage. It didn't work for my parents and it's nothing I can relate to. But Luke and Matthew were fantastic in that scene! I thought it was funny how light bulbs seemed to play such an important role in leading Kevin to propose to Scotty.

I saw Luke shine through Scotty, if I may say. Of course I don't know what his wishes are in real life, but the way he portrayed Scotty in that scene felt very true.

A lot has been written about Kevin and Scotty, but I was even more slapped in the face by the actors' awesome performance in the Kevin and Saul scene! Gosh was that heartwrenching! I am not sure why I was moved so much by it (being a straight woman), but Saul's agony about wasting so much time, the voice breaking, it was unbelievably upsetting, tender and emotional all at the same time. And his and Kevin's lines where so strong it hurt:

Saul: "I want to be free". Kevin: "Just say it"

And the end of the scene, when Saul says: "Thank you Kevin" and he replies with a simple: "I know. I know."

.. goosebumps ..

For months now I was trying to think about who Saul would open up to first (a part from Nora) and I felt there was a good connection between Saul and Tommy. But in the end, it was the right way to go, to tell Kevin first, before all other siblings.

R.I.P. - Heath Ledger [1979 - 2008]

Great job, snicks! Your recap was the perfect blend of humor & summary, w/o coming off as being snarky. I thought Dennis' recaps were getting too snarky towards the end of his tenure, but that's understandable considering how tremendously maddening the storylines on B&S can be.

Since I've rewatched the episode a hundred times, I noticed a continuity error - Kevin is wearing a different shirt & tie when he returns home to Scotty after a very hectic day. Maybe Uncle Saul was still sick from the booze & threw up on Kev, so he had to change shirts?

I justed watched some clips of QAF and even though I loved that show and the characters, Kevin's proposal kicked Brian's proposal's ass.

afhickman

"It takes a village (to make Village People)"

Because I really want to know: Would you propose to someone by going down on one knee? Would you want someone to carry you (or would you want to carry someone) over the threshold? Would you throw a bridal bouquet to your "maids" of honor? How traditional would you want your nontraditional wedding to be? I didn't think even straight couples did this sort of thing anymore. Mind you, it's fine with me, but I am curious.

That proposal scene was lovely and, I won't lie, I cried (even on the fifth viewing). It was so wonderful, not only to see Kevin and Scotty's relationship progress like that, but to even see that on network television. Things are finally beginning to change. It's things like this that give me hope for America...

And I found Saul's coming out to be touchingly tragic. The knowledge that he has wasted his whole life lying to himself and to everyone around him really came through. I'm curious to see where they'll take his storyline...

Before beginning to comment, I must state that, while Dennis Ayers is irreplacable, you have the same writing style along with an individual twist. In no way do I prefer either of you to the other one. Though I kinda miss Dennis's snarky comments occasionally... ;) Anyway, SO loved the episode. Though Justin having a crush on the girl he thought was his half sister... little creepy. Thank goodness the acting was so good or else it would've been weird. As it is, love 'em to bits together. It's sad that Justin is angry. I think they should've made out until Kevin walked in on them. ("JUSTIN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?") :) Ciao!