The ABC series may have steered too far into soap opera territory with this plotline.
9-1-1 is definitely known for its over-the-top moments. Each season highlights a crazy large-scale disaster, such as an earthquake or a tsunami. Season 7 alone features a capsized cruise ship, an escape from a drug cartel, and a massive fire that overtook Bobby’s home. But in between all of the outrageous emergencies, the show typically sticks to more authentic plots with its characters and their relationships. That is, until the writers of the ABC drama decided to throw in a brand-new love interest that’s just plain unhinged.
Eddie Diaz (Ryan Guzman) is generally one of the more even-keeled characters on the show. He’s a veteran who is an amazing single dad to his son, Christopher (who has cerebral palsy). Eddie did struggle with his mental health after returning from service, but tried to make things work with his wife, Shannon (Devin Kelley). Shannon ends up leaving for two years, and Eddie does his best to raise Christopher on his own.
In Episode 7 of Season 2, Shannon returns and wants to be in Christopher’s life again. Eddie and Shannon reconcile, but not without a whole lot of complicated feelings from both sides. Several episodes later, Eddie tries proposing, but Shannon shuts him down, saying that she still has a lot to process in order to be the best mom she can be to Christopher, and she isn’t interested in becoming a wife again. She shocks Eddie by instead asking for a divorce. In Episode 17 of that same season, Shannon is fatally injured in a road incident. She ends up dying on the way to the hospital, and Eddie does his best to move on. He dates several people in the seasons that follow and battles Post-Traumatic Stress, but as of Season 7, it seems like he if finally happy with his new girlfriend, Marisol (Edy Ganem). But, of course, that’s when 9-1-1 decided to make things weird.
Who Is Kim in Season 7 of ‘9-1-1’?
This season, in Episode 7, Eddie is walking by a store when he notices a woman in the window who looks exactly like Shannon. In fact, she’s played by the same actor that portrayed Shannon, in a creepy twist that’s taken straight out of your average soap opera. Eddie flirts with her, and she tells him her name is Kim. Eddie then has a bizarre dream about sleeping with her after meeting her. Eddie is still very much dating Marisol, but he decides to take Kim out on several dates behind Marisol’s back. However, it’s not immediately clear what Eddie is trying to get from this relationship with Kim (other than just continuing to stare at her when they’re out together).
In Episode 9, Kim brings brownies to the firehouse for Eddie, but Buck (Oliver Stark) sees her and can’t get over how much Kim looks like Shannon. He confronts Eddie about what he’s doing with her, and Eddie is then forced to admit to Kim that she actually looks identical to his dead wife, and that’s the reason for their connection. Kim understandably freaks out and leaves. But, if this whole storyline isn’t strange enough, the 9-1-1 writers decided to take things one step further. Later that night, Kim shows up at Eddie’s house with dyed hair to match Shannon’s and then convinces Eddie to say everything to her that he never got the chance to say to Shannon. They both cry and then embrace, only for Marisol and Christopher to walk in at that exact moment. Totally confused, Christopher just asks, “Mom?” But Christopher isn’t the only person dumbfounded by this whole situation; the audience is also left wondering what the hell is going on?
Eddie’s Storyline Might Be a Step Too Far for ‘9-1-1’
There are a lot of reasons that this plot line for Eddie makes zero sense. First, there are not a lot of duplicate strangers just walking around Los Angeles. The odds that Eddie would spot someone who looks exactly like his dead wife are way too unbelievable to be a serious plot point for the show. It is corny to have the same actor play Kim and Shannon, too; it almost feels like the writers think the audience is too dumb not to see how silly it all is. Plus, although Eddie has had his fair share of struggles, he’s always been fairly level-headed and is a religious person who cares a lot about being a good human. So, Eddie cheating (even if it’s just emotionally) on Marisol feels uncharacteristic. The scene where Kim is pretending to be Shannon is probably meant to be an emotionally charged moment where Eddie gets to finally bare his soul. Instead, it just comes across as awkward and unbelievably preposterous — why is Kim okay with Eddie using her as an emotional crutch and stand-in for his dead wife?
The most egregious part of this storyline (besides its clear jump-the-shark ridiculousness) is the fact that Eddie’s actions could seriously affect Christopher. The writers have spent a lot of time building up their father-son relationship and showing how Eddie is such a dedicated dad. It’s illogical that he would throw away their connection (and potentially Christopher’s well-being) to pursue a woman who looks like his dead wife. There’s no clear motivation for ruining his relationship with Marisol or for damaging Christopher’s mental health, other than that the 9-1-1 writers wanted to get a little kooky with their story-telling.
The series has played with the idea that Eddie and Christopher have not fully recovered from Shannon’s death. However, this plot with Kim feels out of left field, and really, Eddie should have just remained single. It’s possible that the series wanted to show that Shannon was Eddie’s soulmate, and that’s why he can’t seem to hold onto a girlfriend or have a healthy relationship with one, but their past scenes and dynamics don’t really support this, since the two were just not a good couple. Or maybe the writers wanted to portray the fact that Eddie needs to process more of his feelings regarding her death so that he can officially move on. However, it does seem like there could have been other avenues in which Eddie could have explored his emotions rather than relying on a soap opera method that is steeped in melodrama. There’s only one more episode left in Season 7, but here’s hoping that the next season steers completely clear of all soap opera tropes: no evil twins and people with amnesia, please.
