TAKE TWO: Thoughts on “Stillwater” and “Family Ties”

On TAKE TWO this week, viewers got a double header with two episodes airing back-to-back.

The first episode was entitled “Stillwater,” which found Sam and Eddie traveling to California’s wine country to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a wheelchair-bound woman. Hired by the woman’s son, the two quickly discover this is no ordinary missing person’s case when the son reveals that he witnessed her otherworldly abduction. Despite Sam’s enthusiasm for the bizarre story, both she and Eddie know there must be a more down-to-earth explanation for her disappearance. But when their investigation uncovers things even they can’t explain, they can’t help but wonder if the truth is out there.

Rueben’s Thoughts:
The Good For once I didn’t figure out who the culprit was until closer to the end when the doctor said “he hired me” – meaning the wine guy – so I was pleased that I was actually stumped for once. It was also fun to see actor Martin Cummins (Riverdale and When Calls the Heart) guest starring. This show does a great job of getting good guest stars for each episode.

The Bad The dumping toxins in a small town – (or anywhere for that matter) – is troubling so that’s not a criticism of the show, but yet it is. For shame!! It also reminds me of the driving storyline of the Canadian import Burden of Truth that has been airing on The CW this summer.

Roz’s Thoughts:
The Good Creative ways to use aliens and I’m with Rueben on being surprised by the who did it. It’s also great to see Monica use all that knowledge for a case in a way that doesn’t just seem like she’s a throw away assistant.

The Bad I’m happy when we don’t have a storyline that mirrors anything with toxins in water/ground. We have too much in real life to see it sort of thrown around in forty-three minutes.

Ange’s Thoughts:
The Good It was a case different to all the other ones Sam and Eddie had handled before and interesting to see them get out of town for a bit. It was kind of sweet to see that Sam was really determined to help the young man that requested her and Eddie’s help and the fact that they were the first/only PIs that he thought of.

The Bad The case itself I didn’t really love. Alien angle which ends up being toxins is a bit overdone and honestly didn’t really hold my interest in this episode. I would have also liked to see more of Monica and Berto back at the office or even taking the lead on cases while Eddie and Sam were out of town.

[Photo Credit: What2Vue]

The second episode was entitled “Family Ties,” which focused on what happened when Detective Rollins received a frantic phone call from her younger brother asking for help. She assumed he had gotten himself into some kind of legal trouble again, but when he doesn’t show up to meet her, she fears the worst. Not knowing what her brother was caught up in and hoping to avoid LAPD involvement, she turns to Sam and Eddie to help track him down. Meanwhile, Sam is dealing with family drama of her own.

Rueben’s Thoughts:
The Good Finally we got to see a bit more of Christine, and a little more backstory on her. I had asked about that a while back and it was really nice to see that come to fruition. If only we could get a bit more of that.

The Bad I don’t really have a criticism, but it would’ve been nice to see just a bit more of Sam’s dealings with her sister rather than just overhearing her one-sided phone conversation with her and Sam telling Eddie about somewhat starting to mend fences with her sister. Wouldn’t it have been cool to see Sam with her sister?

Roz’s Thoughts:
The Good Family issues are always a good draw for me, and Christine and her brother were so different and interesting in this case that twisted and turned often. We rarely see Christine drive an episode, but she’s got more going on than we see each week. I get why Eddie would date her (or whatever it is they’re doing) more because we see her as a person, not just a cop.

The Bad Drugs and stolen cars. I know they go together, but they didn’t seem to be the central issue like they are in most cases. I felt like they were pretense for all the family stuff, but I’d want to watch Eddie and Sam solve another case like that.

Ange’s Thoughts:
The Good Unlike the episode that aired before it, I found this week’s second episode to be one of the show’s strongest. Weren’t we just discussing only a few weeks ago that we would like to see more of Christine and BAM! we got our wish this week and it really didn’t disappoint. I really enjoyed getting to see more of her backstory as well as a bit more of Sam’s with the storyline about trying to reconnect with her sister. I wonder if we’ll get to meet her in a future episode?

The Bad None for me on this one! I quite enjoyed this episode.

TAKE TWO will air a new episode, its penultimate episode in fact, on September 6 at 10/9c on ABC.