"Brothers & Sisters" Episode 311 Recap: "A Father Dreams"

I just want to further emphasize something here.  Robert's poor secretary, who really should file some kind of complaint or call a newspaper, sits a mere 5 feet or so from the frosted glass door that Robert was humping Kitty against.  I hope that poor girl had vodka instead of water in that bottle!

One redeeming feature in the episode was this:

Nora: Don’t be silly. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.
Scotty: Well hopefully it’s nothing you’ve seen in a long time.

This is such a common mother line, and until now I have never been able to come up with quite the correct snappy response.  Thank you Scotty for resolving that long-standing issue.

Now, I don't see how anyone can think that Kevin was being a dick in this episode when Tommy was reaching a whole new plane of dickiness.  If that idiot wanted an anonymous sperm donor who would never threaten his manhood by revealing that he shoots blanks and couldn't biologically father his daughter then he should have stuck with the sperm bank!  He was the one that insisted on having Kevin's manjuice (grudgingly accepting Justin's as well to allay any sibling rivalry). There is no way in Hell the No-Secrets-Walker clan will ever be able to keep this one quiet, even if Kevin keeps his mouth shut.

What kills me though is that the writers didn't really try very hard to make Tommy out to be the selfish jerk that he is.  Instead they wrote Kevin signing the papers! This was so totally about Tommy and his male inadequacy issues and yet they make him look all wounded and vulnerable.  So Kevin should pity him and agree to his wishes.

After Tommy's already come back to Kevin once looking for spare parts for his daughter!

The fact that Kevin forked over a chunk of his liver (which God knows he needs the way he drinks) along with his spunk and signed that damn paper (doubtless drawn up by the lawyer Tommy and Holly hired to replace Kevin) just to satisfy Tommy's insecurity issues totally kills any argument anyone can ever make that Kevin is "self-centered" in my opinion.

But other than the mistreatment of Kevin and the easy-out given to Tommy it was actually an okay episode.

For starters, there was no Rebecca and no Holly.  Always a plus.

Also, I don't think Scotty really was a victim.  He was actually being as sassy with Nora as one would expect a good Southern boy to be given that he was in her home. They do have manners down there.  Even Scotty's bitch of a mother never manages to be more than frosty when she's expressing her displeasure. I wouldn't expect him to have a catfight with Nora.  It just satisfies me that in the end he flat-out said to her that Kevin is his husband and he should be the one doing the caring for him.

Kevin running out, leaving Scotty behind is actually not as much of a diss as one might think. I suspect that he realized that Scotty would probably make enough of a fuss about him moving that he knew it would be impossible to escape Nora unnoticed if he included Scotty on the escape plan.  Once he was safely alone with Scotty at the hotel, with no Nora or siblings in sight he was more open.  In particular the discussion about having kids was particularly sweet.

Now, if only we could actually see Kevin and Scotty do what Kevin and Julia did in the dream. I swear, B&S is getting like Obama's Inauguration.  We're there, but clearly as second-class citizens only.

Thanks for another great recap!

Great recap, as always, Steven Frank!

It really offended me that not only Tommy, but Sarah and Justin got up and walked out on Kevin the minute he said he wanted to talk about Elizabeth. Kevin donated his sperm, against his better judgment, after the family pressured him into helping Tommy. He agreed to major surgery without hesitation to save the child he never wanted to father, and he's the bad guy for having feelings about the whole thing?!? And what has Tommy done for Kevin? Oh, yeah, he FIRED him. Tommy IS a total dick. Overall, I thought it was a good episode. I like Scotty more and more and think the character is maturing realistically. And I thought the line about making the Nora apology CD was great! I enjoyed the absence of Rebecca, too. One of my great fears is that Justin and Rebecca will procreate and their child will be oh so pretty, but have the IQ of an artificial plant.

I smell fresh Emmy material for Brothers & Sisters matriarch Sally Field. According to sources, Balthazar Getty, who plays the Oscar winner's eldest son, was informed last week that producers were not planning on picking up his option as a full-time series regular next season. However, that doesn't mean that Tommy's place setting at the Walker dinner table is being permanently removed. Not yet, anyway. Per a B&S source, Getty is currently in talks with the show to stay on in a reduced capacity, perhaps as a recurring guest star. While a rep for the show declined to comment, Getty's spokesperson denies that the actor is leaving. Rumors about Getty's possible exit have been grist for the gossip mill for months. The actor's real-life drama -- the collapse of his marriage and ensuing tabloid-ready romance with Sienna Miller -- has allegedly alienated him from his co-stars, many of who had grown close to his wife, Rosetta, and their four young children. What's more, according to E! Online's Marc Malkin, Getty has been showing up late for work and proving increasingly "difficult" to work with. But per multiple sources, Getty's sorta-departure is not the result of any one issue but a combination of factors that also includes budgetary and storyline considerations. Tommy has long been considered the most disposable of B&S's siblings. Removing him, at least as a regular presence, frees up the show to introduce some new blood. In any case, don't expect Tommy to exit by way of a casket. Although an ABC insider says the idea of killing off a Walker has been discussed, the network would likely view such a twist as "too morbid." As a result, Tommy is likely to either relocate with his wife and baby, or just drift into the background and reappear for the occasional disastrous dinner party.

When Scotty found Justin in the bathroom acting suspiciously, was anyone else afraid we were going to have a Misunderstanding in which the family suspected Justin of stealing Kevin's pain meds? Thank god they didn't swing at that pitch.

but, I was on Tommy's side in this episode. Yeah, he's a dick and I don't like him, but he is Elizabeth's father. How and when they tell her about her conception is up to him & what's her name. Kevin is an uncle, and a sperm donor, period. He knew this going into it, begrudgingly or not, he knew what he was doing. I'm just surprised that they didn't have papers drawn up before they went through with the donation, you would think with Kevin being a lawyer that's something they would've thought of up front.

Meanwhile, something needs to be done about the snoozefest that is Kitty and Robert. Could those two be any more boring??

With the news that Getty (Tommy) is either getting the ax or reduced to a reoccurring role I hope the show kills off Tommy and his wife in a car accident then Kevin can raise Elizabeth with Scotty. For added drama, Julia's parents can try to sue for custody. This would also resolve Sarah's story line as she takes Tommy's place at Ohi and has to deal with Holly. no votes

I wasn't that moved by this episode. I think the whole dream sequence scenario is way overdone. Also the Kitty/Robert sex in the office was a big, big cliche and you know we would never have seen Scotty and Kevin do it in his law office after they got married. Poor secretary...another cliche. Seemed like the writers just took their brilliant caps off and went pedestrian with this episode. I did love the amount of time though spent on Nora purging some of her William angst. That's something that should be explored further and Dave Annable was adorable...I do like him better without Rebecca. And this was the first episode all season without Rebecca and Holly. Didn't miss them at all. My one continuing criticism of B & S is that the scenes are just too short and choppy. I wish they would cut back a bit and let us focus more on the major storyline for that episode. The whole Robert/Kitty thing really could have been deleted this time through and maybe emphasized at a later time. B+ for this one.

I thought this episode was hilarious, actually. It made me remember why I liked it so much in the first place.

This episode further confirmed to my partner that Sally Field should play my mother in the story of her life.

They must be keeping the reveal for next season since there hasn't been any mention of him for the last few eps. Maybe with B. Getty's role reduction there will be room to add the Lafferty story line, or maybe the idea has been dropped altogether. I wish they'd drop Rebbecca. I was glad she wasn't in this ep, so bland. Justin is much more interesting without her. I agree with the observations about Tommy. I think dealing with his insecurities and unresolved issues with having a gay brother would make for an interesting story line, but since he's not going to be in the show much, oh well. I hope Saul's BF turns out to be the Foley character we met a few eps ago! Hee Hee.

The Ausiello Files

Somebody returns to 'Brothers & Sisters' in April

Jan 7, 2009, 03:33 PM | by Michael Ausiello

http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2009/01/exclusive-sex-s.html

All I can say is "YAY!"

"Heterosexuality is not normal, it's just common." (Dorothy Parker)

YAY TOO!!! That is good! Loved that character/actor a lot!

Am WAITING for Saul's story to unfold!! Please, let it happen!

Same here, Rebecca - blaaaaand!

I do like the Tommy character! It's true, he is a jerk, but that makes him intersting! True - him "dealing with his insecurities and unresolved issues with having a gay brother" would indeed be interesting! I want Tommy to stay and Rebecca to go. I hope Balthazar Getty's real life issues/problems do NOT interfere with his Tommy role. Unless what they say is true, that he's becoming a jerk on set, but that can't be a reason to fire him. Or can it? Hmm.. I hope he stays.

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• R.I.P. - Heath [† 22 January 2008 -- one year gone]
• R.I.P. - Sayif [† 12 June 2008 -- run over]

This episode is hilarious at almost very point! The writing just is at its best. I have to agree whether or not this has anything to do with there were no Holly and Rebbecca.As much as I would love to see Kevin and Scotty adopting Elizabeth, I wouldn't want Tommy to die - I want the FAB5 to be complete and alive.There's so many good points in this episode and I've found more every time I re-watch it!Even though Justin's sperm didn't get there before Kevin's, I find him so adorably cute this episode.Still the best, still the best.