Whoa Boy! Where to start? If you made it through last night's episode without a knot in your stomach or shedding a few tears, I'm not sure how you did it. Action-packed doesn't even begin to describe it. Army Wives gets stronger and better with each episode.
When my husband was deployed, I never wanted to stray too far from home. I did it occasionally, of course, but I always felt a bit jumpy. Strange how we tend to think that we'll have control over the uncontrollable if we're in our own, familiar surroundings. Denise's gut reaction after hearing that her husband's chopper went down was to go home, but her second reaction after arriving home was to leave.
Denise packs a bag and tells Claudia Joy, "I need to go there. Frank would come for me if I was hurt. I need to go there."
When Claudia Joy persuades Denise to stay, Denise begins replaying the last conversation she had with her husband. She says to Jeremy, "I lied to my husband and I get to live with that the rest of my life," which reminded me of something we discussed a few months ago at SpouseBUZZ.
Pamela and Chase had a cryptic conversation about his probable upcoming mission and Chase tells Pamela, "There will be no contact while I'm away, not even emails." ArmyWifeToddlerMom and I were recently discussing how much we respect the wives of Special Forces/SEALS. Months of silence with no idea where your spouse is? Hard for me to fathom. Most of us have some idea where our spouses are, and the majority of us are in fairly frequent contact with them. If any of you are SF/SEAL spouses, we'd love to hear more about the unique challenges facing you and your family.
Claudia Joy knows exactly how to handle every situation. I thought it was brilliant that she realized she had to take care of Jeremy, despite his violent history, because his mother wasn't in any condition to do so. "Keep showing up, keep taking it no matter what she says," Claudia Joy told Jeremy.
Roxy asks Pamela how and when they will know something about Frank Sherwood.
"The news"
"You mean we watch TV to find out what happened to her husband."
Sadly, it's true. This is a great frustration among military spouses, as 99 of you recently made loud and clear.
We finally learned the story behind Belgrad and LTC Joan Burton, and it was heartbreaking. Just before Roland left home he said to Joan, "There's always hope, Joan, even in the bleakest of worlds, there's hope." Double entendre, and what a fitting quote given the events that followed.
I thought the producers did a great job of letting both Joan and Belgrad tell the story by cutting back and forth between the two of them. I was captivated by the story and my heart ached for Belgrade. Although we don't discuss military strategy or advocate for or against the war here, I thought the storyline offered a view of the difficult circumstances facing our troops and how the Rules of Engagement, though necessary, can turn a situation upside-down and inside-out. Thankfully, our troops were clearly portrayed as the good guys in this situation. To sum the storyline -- and reality -- up, War IS Hell, as this story reminded us.
Early in last night's episode, Claudia Joy tells her husband that she knows the rules, but asked that he please tell her anything about Frank Sherwood as soon as he has information. "I do not want a stranger walking up to this house and telling Denise her husband died," stated Claudia Joy. Predictions? Anyone care to guess how the Sherwood story will unfold?
Army Wives continues to impress. It's more intense with each episode, yet it somehow manages to stay grounded in reality. In my opinion, the storylines and the dialogue are largely realistic. The little things that are wrong here and there have, at least for me, receded into the background and I find myself glued to the television and on the edge of my seat for one hour each Sunday evening.
I'm entertained, but I'm also left doing some hard thinking after each episode. Entertaining and thought-provoking. The perfect combination.
Okay, it's your turn. What did you think about this week's episode? Sound off in the comment section.
Previous Posts:
Army Wives: Episode One Discussion Thread
Army Wives: Episode Two Discussion Thread
Army Wives: Episode Three Discussion Thread
