Brothers & Sisters

If they threw a Brothers & Sisters story arc and Tommy was hardly in it, would anyone even notice?

Aside from the spectacularly ill-advised affair storyline from last season, and a blip of activity with the birth of a winery and a baby at the end of Season 1, Balthazar Getty’s character hasn’t exactly been what you’d call high profile.

Of course, now the actor is high profile in a bad way, his affair with Sienna Miller splashed across the tabloids, and that’s led some to call for his firing. Or, in the case of a questioner in Entertainment Weekly’s “Ask Ausiello” column, Tommy’s death:

Question: Brothers & Sisters has dealt with a lot of tragedy over the last two seasons, but the one place they have yet to go is the death of one of the Walker children. Given that Balthazar Getty is getting his fair share of bad press lately, and the character of Tommy is already underused in an increasingly overcrowded cast, I can’t help but wonder: Are Getty’s, and thus Tommy’s, days numbered? It actually could be a decent story line and would give every actor material that they would knock out of the park. — Katelyn

Ausiello: While I’m sure there are a few people at ABC who would love to see Tommy go belly-up in the Walker pool, I don’t think it’s happening anytime soon. “It’s really important to separate ourselves from [Getty's troubles] in every way,” says exec producer and sometime guest star Ken Olin. “As long as he continues to do his work and be committed to his work, then his personal business is his own. Frankly, I don’t have any judgment about it… It’s got to be really hard when your life blows up that way. I feel for him. But as much as possible, all of us have tried to divorce ourselves from that part of his life.” So, is it just a coinky-dink that the next batch of B&S episodes to be shot are decidedly Tommy-light? Olin insists it is. “There’s a period where he’s lighter in the show, but that follows a period of him being very present in the show,” he maintains. “It’s more of a situation where you need some characters to drop back so you can bring other characters forward. You’ll see that Holly is very present for a number of episodes, and then for a couple she is much lighter. That’s the ebb and flow of having a big ensemble drama.”

If this means less of Tommy hanging around the Ojai Foods offices twisting the knife in Sarah’s back, I’m all for it. Perhaps when they do bring the guy more heavily into the action, he can actually have something worthwhile to do? I’ve always liked Tommy better as a stand-up guy than as a weasel. The one thing that stinks about Tommy being lightly used for a block of episodes is that it probably means Julia will be lightly used or typically nonexistent.

Maybe they can ship Tommy off for a wine research trip to France, and his family can make sure Julia and Lizzie are included in family gatherings and TV nights and road trips. Maybe she can fit in some spa time with her sisters-in-law. Maybe she can do some bonding with her fellow Walker spouses. Julia’s suffered plenty from the stupid way Tommy’s been written of late. She shouldn’t have to suffer from the actor’s stupidity, too.

Brothers and Sisters, Balthazar Getty, Ken Olin

Okay, I know, it’s really the actress who plays Kitty, Calista Flockhart, hanging at the film festival with boyfriend Harrison Ford, who has some small art film about a crystal skull debuting there. (They’re pictured above with, from left, Mellody Hobson, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Kate Capshaw, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, and Shia LaBeouf.)

Still, because my head is stuck in Walker-ville, it’s fun to see this shot of her with the movie elite. And to imagine the kind of trouble Kitty and her siblings could get into at a bash like this.

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Calista Flockhart, Harrison Ford

Hey, Pantload!

Sorry to borrow Justin’s epithet from a couple of episodes ago, but frankly, you stink.

When you’re feeling all superior to Sarah because her affair ruined a company and yours didn’t, you might keep a couple of things in mind:

It is only by the grace of your wife that you are not in divorce court right now, with your share of Walker Landing on the chopping block, and

It is only by the low-self-esteem of Lena that you were not hit with a multi-million-dollar sexual harassment suit that could have sent your little company reeling.

If you haven’t found out already, you soon will that Sarah’s mistake was not in having an affair with a consultant, but in trusting somebody who was not trustworthy. You might want to mull that one over a bit as you install your father’s mistress as the CEO of your family business, you smug SOB.

I used to like you, Tommy. I used to be you. I sympathized with your resentment of the way your father leap-frogged Sarah over you into Ojai’s top spot, and I respected your decision to walk away and start something of your own.

Which is why coming back this way, gleefully maximizing the humiliation of your suffering sis, is not what I want to see from you at all.

It’s been a rocky year for you, Tommy, a character-changing year, and not in a good way. You’ve got one more episode to prove that you really are an upstanding family guy after all. Don’t let me down.

– Terri

_{Photo: ABC.com}

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Tommy Walker, Balthazar Getty, commentary

Remember that scene at the end of Separation Anxiety, when Nora admitted that she doesn’t feel that anything has actually happened to her until she tells her family about it, and Kitty opined that perhaps that’s why they’re all so bad at keeping secrets?

It makes you wonder: By that way of thinking, did William Walker even exist at all?

I mean, this guy was the Unknowable King, a master at not telling everything that happened to him. Many secrets have come out since his death, but not ’cause he told ‘em. He carried them to his grave, and apparently we haven’t dug everything up yet, because here’s the ABC’s press release for the season finale:

SARAH DISCOVERS ANOTHER DEVASTATING SECRET THAT WILLIAM WALKER HAS KEPT FROM THE FAMILY, ON THE SEASON FINALE OF ABC’S “BROTHERS & SISTERS” “Prior Commitments” - Kevin and Scotty make a commitment to be life partners, Saul finally deals with his identity in a public way, and the family discovers that William (guest starring Tom Skerritt) kept yet another painful secret from his family, on the season finale of “Brothers & Sisters,” SUNDAY, MAY 11 (10:02-11:00 p.m., ET).

You know, there’s been talk of ABC pushing this show to skew younger, but I don’t know; seems more to me that they’re being pushed to be a better lead-out for Desperate Housewives, ’cause we’re just a Devastating Secret or two from moving Nora to Wisteria Lane.

My one faint hope is that this new Big Secret will take some of the pressure off Rebecca’s paternity reveal to be the biggest Big Secret, and so therefore she may squeak through and remain a Walker, while more novel outrages take the stage. That would be some consolation.

Still … is this going to be a pattern, that secrets about William keep being revealed once a season or so? Sooner or later, surely, they’re going to run out of good secrets and wind up revealing that he threw a Game Night with the Joneses one year to pay off a bad debt, say, or once got busted for smoking pot with Emily Craft. Writers, stop the madness now. Whatever secrets William has left, can’t he just be buried with them?

Girlfriend.

I’m glad you’re getting it on again after the divorce, truly I am.

And certainly, the new fella is a big step up in the grooming department from the ex-husband. Nice going.

I suppose I can understand why you’d like to turn down his business deal in a way that doesn’t make him think that you turned down his business deal, although he seemed to be a pretty good sport about it the last time.

But asking your uncle to cover your ass so you can keep getting naked with the help? Sweetie, that’s where you lose me.

Is it part of Saul’s job description or something that he has to micromanage the romantic indiscretions of the president of Ojai Foods? He certainly appears to have done service in that role for your father before you, but I think it’s expecting a lot to ask him to do that same thing for a second generation of his sister’s family.

But set aside that. Set aside the fact that he was strongly and even pushily in favor of this deal. Set aside the fact that your mother pretty much gave him carte blanche to feel no responsibility towards you, since you weren’t there for that conversation.

Consider only this: When have you found this guy to be sufficiently trustworthy to take on a task of this nature?

Was it when he tried to make you look bad for doubting him while he hid your father’s secrets?

Was it when you hated Holly and he dated her?

Was it when you agreed no one would tell Nora about Rebecca and then he did?

I mean, sure, he’s your uncle, he’s your family, you love him, you have to. But trust him to respect your wishes and protect your pride? That’s just naive, and it doesn’t become you.

That MBA you got. It didn’t come out of a Cracker Jack box, did it?

Ah, well, don’t listen to me. Something tells me you’re going to learn this lesson the hard way over the next couple of episodes. Might want to get some resumes ready.

Speaking only out of love,

Terri

P.S. Hey, remember when you figured out that Rebecca was your half-sister because your dad added her initial to your siblings’ in his computer password? Any chance William just realized that using your kids’ initials is about the lamest password there is, and threw in an extra letter to mix it up? Just asking.

_{Photos: ABC.com}

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Separation Anxiety, commentary

For such a bunch of cute, witty, fun-loving, well-off family members, the Walkers don’t seem to have a lot of friends, do they? Oh, sure, there are always some anonymous extras milling about in the background of parties and weddings and funerals; but pals, with actual rapport and storyline? Nora’s about the only one who’s been allowed any, and maybe better for her if she wasn’t. The check-ups on Brothers & Sisters characters conclude today with a look at the meager assortment of friends that have gotten airtime.

Emily: First and foremost, of course, is Nora’s wacky friend Emily Craft, who in just two episodes managed to stir up more trouble than most characters can do in a multi-episode arc. First, she got Nora busted for smoking pot, then dressed her up like a call girl to go to her professor’s party. With friends like this … Prognosis: Emily’s a hoot, but another of those over-the-top characters to use sparingly. She doesn’t really synch with the show’s more realistic style. Yet I find myself wishing for her presence in scenes when the Walkers are outmaneuvered — drinking the McCallisters under the table at Kitty’s engagement party, maybe, or sparring with Holly. Emily should have their back. I’d rather see her doing that, anyway, than getting Nora into more trouble.

Margaret: This society dame was allegedly Nora’s best friend, until her husband made a pass at Nora and Margaret blamed the victim. And she must have really been steamed, because neither she nor grabby Harry was ever heard from again. Prognosis: Nora can make her peace with the woman who had a decades-long affair with her husband, but Margaret can’t be friends with the woman whose ass her husband grabbed? Talk about fair-weather friends.

The Joneses: I guess “friend” isn’t quite the right word, since the two families seem to politely hate each other. It’s one of the few recognizable social contacts we’ve seen the Walkers make, though. Perhaps their behavior that night is why they don’t have more friends. Prognosis: These folks pretty much served their purpose, by rallying the Walkers together amusingly, and setting the stage for Rebecca to stumble, a little with her answer and a lot into Joe. No need for a return engagement, unless one of these other wacky hangers on is around to punish them.

Lena: Before she was Tommy’s mistress and Justin’s girlfriend, she was Rebecca’s friend. Not a very good friend, apparently, considering all the chaos she caused in Rebecca’s new family. The fact that Justin kept dating Lena even after Rebecca tattled about her affair with Tommy drove a wedge in the half-sibling’s friendship, too. Prognosis: If DNA tests confirm that Rebecca is indeed a Walker, then she doesn’t get to have friends anymore. So bye, Lena! Never come back!

_{Photos: ABC.com, HBO.com}

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Margot Kidder, Meredith Baxter, Susan Sullivan, Jenna Elfman, Emily Rose

We’ve done check-ups on all the major Brothers & Sisters characters and quite a number of minor ones, and now it’s time to clean up some of the odds and ends — like the miscellaneous extended family members who have wandered through. An over-the-top bunch they’ve been, too.

Ida: Nora and Saul’s mother was a piece of work, wasn’t she? Ruining Nora’s birthday surprise, suspecting Justin’s gay, and generally inspiring in her grandchildren a rare compassion for what their mother goes through as a daughter. Prognosis: Ida seemed like more of a caricature than a character, good for some laughs but not so much fun to be around. We’ve got to have a return appearance, certainly, to deal with the change in Saul’s lifestyle, but beyond that, I hope they use Grandma very sparingly.

The Ridges: Julia’s parents, meanwhile, were over-the-top evil. Well, her dad, anyway; Mom seemed nice enough, but if she condoned that ambush by which Tommy’s wife and child were taken from him, she’s guilty, too. Prognosis: If these two come back, Tommy’s going to need more back-up than Uncle Saul. I wouldn’t mind seeing Nora going at them, or the assembled sibling mob. But somebody better be keeping an eye on the baby the whole time.

Major Weiner: I think it was mentioned in a first-season DVD commentary that they kind of put Garry Marshall in a scene and let him go, and it shows. He was more restrained in the wedding episode, though still, a little of him goes a long way. Prognosis: I wouldn’t mind an encounter between Ida and the Major — too bad she never made it to the wedding — but as with Ida, Robert’s uncle needs to be sparsely seen.

The McCallister Clan: Their trashing of Nora’s yard was completely ridiculous, but worth it for that scene when the normally life-of-the-party Walkers have been cornered on that little patio, and respond by jumping into the pool fully clothed. Also silly, but a very cool way to end the season. Prognosis: The only time I’d like to see Robert’s cousins reappear is if Nora schedules another game night with the Joneses. These McCallisters will not only beat the pants off that snooty crew, they’ll hogtie ‘em and lash them to the roof.

The Other Walkers
Does it seem odd to anyone else that we’ve seen Nora’s brother and mother, Tommy’s in-laws, and dozens of Kitty’s husband’s relatives, but never a single soul from William’s extended family? Was there a deadly family reunion disaster years ago that took generations of Walkers, siblings, nephews, nieces, and cousins in one fell swoop, leaving William the last Walker standing? I’m willing to believe his parents are deceased, and the funeral was done so quickly and early on that they might reasonably have been there and not mentioned. But the engagement party? Kitty’s wedding? A lot of daily life? Have we ever even heard them mentioned? Prognosis: If William’s family has stayed away from his children because they don’t like his wife, maybe they’d be interested to know that they have a niece who’s not related to her.

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Marion Ross, Bill Smitrovich, Garry Marshall

Holly hasn’t had a lot to do in the love-interest department — maybe because, as Scott suggested in a comment earlier, her story is only of interest as it intersects the Walkers’, or maybe because producer/director Ken Olin doesn’t want actors making out with his wife. Still, I’ll try to carve out a last little check-up here.

Saul
I suggested in Saul’s love-interest check-up that maybe his relationship with Holly was nothing but a ruse to get information from her; and now, from the other side, maybe Holly was just dating him as a way to tweak Nora and create a connection with the family. Regardless, all concerned — viewers included, most certainly — are probably just as glad that it ended when it did. Prognosis: It’s doubtful that Holly’s ever going to have a genuine friendship with any of her dead lover’s clan, but if she was, Saul would be the most likely.

David
I guess if the script calls for your wife’s character to have an old love interest, one way to handle it is to cast yourself. It was nice to see Ken Olin in front of the camera again, even the scruffy current version. But the relationship still went nowhere. Holly was ambivalent about David when she wasn’t pleasantly hostile, and he seemed to be up to something other than a love re-match. Prognosis: I think David’s only supposed to be around for another episode or so, which should be more to the point of Rebecca’s paternity than Holly’s dating status. Still, this is an actor who should be pretty available to the producers if David needs to pop up again in the future. (But not as a Pop, let’s hope.)

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Holly, Patricia Wettig, Ron Rifkin, Ken Olin

The series of posts on the characters of Brothers & Sisters — where they’ve been, where they’re at, and where we’d like them to go — comes to the final series regular today, the dirty mistress, Holly Harper.

Origins: Holly was a mystery woman in William’s office and at his funeral, but the secret of her longtime affair with the Upright Family Man gradually got out to William’s kids, and was finally definitively revealed by William’s wife at a typically disastrous dinner party.

Progress: Holly was a force of eee-vil throughout the first season, lying about her daughter not being William’s child, demanding a role for herself at Ojai Foods, stealing Tommy away to start a wine business, even stealing Nora’s boyfriend at the winery opening. A food fight between her and Nora broke the tension that had been building, and Rebecca’s acceptance into the Walker clan plus Holly’s partnership with Tommy brought her into the family orbit in a more peaceable way.

Current Status: Maybe too peaceable, because this character has gone from spiciest to most bland in the space of a season. The return of her old boyfriend David may put her in the wrong again, if it turns out that he really is Rebecca’s dad and she lied about it.

Concerns: I’m very relieved that Holly’s no longer hated and hissable, but surely there has to be a role for an actress of Patricia Wettig’s talents that goes beyond Wise Advisor to Young Women. This is a big cast, and it seems impossible for everybody to be well-used. Holly’s been marginalized this year, and maybe that needed to happen, considering how many fans were calling for her ouster in Season One. Still, it doesn’t seem quite right for her to be The Benign Voice of Reason and Experience, either.

Prognosis: As with her daughter, I’d like to see a third-season storyline for Holly that gives her her wily spirit back without making her Cruella de Vil. Not one involving her having lied about Rebecca’s paternity again, let’s hope. And not one involving her protesting a Rebecca-Justin romance. Oh, writers, let’s just not go there. But if Rebecca wants to get a Bad Boyfriend that Holly needs to take apart, that might be fun. Or if Holly wanted to get a Bad Boyfriend herself, that would be okay, too. Seems odd that the mistress has had less romantic action since William’s death than the widow, doesn’t it?

Second Opinion: What would you like to see from Holly, or would you just like not to see Holly at all? Share your thoughts in the comments.

_{Photo: ABC.com}

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Holly, Patricia Wettig

He’s dated his brother-in-law’s mistress but admitted to having been in love with a man, making Saul’s love-interest check-up a little more complicated than most.

Holly
Saul told Holly that he’d been sweet on her for years, even while William was alive, and maybe he’d convinced himself that was true. Still, it was never really for certain whether their romance was real or just a ruse for Saul to get information out of her about William’s financial shenanigans. Either way, their hook-up was worth it if only for that scene in the restaurant where Nora, on a date, spots her brother on a date with Holly and they have that great little juvenile whisper-shouting match. Prognosis: If and when they ever get this coming-out storyline over with, it will be interesting to see Holly’s reaction to the news. Her advice to him at the wedding that you can’t help who you love makes it seem as though she already has an idea about it. Or maybe she was just sympathizing with him about his niece marrying a politician.

Milo
Since Milo was introduced in last season’s finale, Saul’s been doing more running away from him than running towards him. He’s clearly not as interested in jumping back into a long-lost and out-in-the-open relationship as Milo is, but going to a party at Milo’s and showing up at his apartment unannounced indicates that he’s no longer fleeing in terror, anyway. Prognosis: I’m not sure we’ve really seen signs that Saul still has a thing for Milo; it’s been more a matter of grappling with what Milo represents. Nora’s dip in the dating-pool-of-the-past didn’t work out so well. Nothing against Michael Nouri, but it might be better for Saul to move ahead with someone new.

Evan
Maybe this guy? Saul met Evan when he made that unannounced visit to Milo’s, and found his friend housesitting there. They had a nice chat about Milo, but that was about it as of the strike break. Prognosis: When Enrico Colantoni’s casting was announced, he was mentioned in many sources as a love interest for Saul, so I’m going to guess that’s what’s ahead. Maybe Milo finds romance on his vacation, removing any awkwardness that might arise over his friend getting involved with his old heartthrob. I thought the actors had a nice rapport, anyway.

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Ron Rifkin, Michael Nouri, Enrico Colantoni, Patricia Wettig

Continuing on in a series of posts on the characters of Brothers & Sisters — where they’ve been, where they’re at, and where we’d like them to go — let’s venture onto the Holden family tree with a look at Uncle Saul.

Origins: Early on, Nora’s brother was a man of mystery, covering up for William’s financial and personal indiscretions and earning the distrust, even the open hostility, of his nieces and nephews.

Progress: Saul was absolved of wrongdoing in Ojai’s post-William financial fiasco, but his pursuit of a relationship with his brother-in-law’s mistress, Holly, caused some bad feelings in the family, as did his insistence on telling Nora about Rebecca. After spending most of the season as a back-burner character, Saul caught a storyline wave (if an exceptionally slow-breaking one) when Milo, an old “friend,” turned up at Kitty’s engagement party to reminisce about a long-ago trip they took together, and let Saul know he was divorced and available. Saul initially rebuffed the advances, but later went to a party at Milo’s where he was seen by Scotty, causing Kevin to wonder whether his bachelor uncle was gay, and why he didn’t come out about it. Saul did finally tell Nora he once was in love with a man, but refused to go into detail despite her pleas.

Current Status: Saul went to visit Milo, but found another man in his apartment — just a friend, a house-sitter. The two struck up a conversation about Milo, the break-up of his marriage, and the feelings he had for Saul.

Concerns: It’s right that this plotline of Saul coming to terms with his sexuality and what it might mean to go public with it should take its time … but time enough, now. Whether because there were so many flashier stories to zip through, or because there was discomfort at the network about another gay character or more airtime for an older character, Saul’s front-burner storyline has been set to endless simmer. Saul’s one of the characters that this show has always had trouble making time for, and if they really can’t sustain consistent interest in him, then maybe he and Milo should head off into the sunset together and be done with it. But I hope it doesn’t come to that, because I’ve enjoyed the relationship between Saul and Nora, and the reminder that there’s more than one generation’s worth of brothers and sisters on Brothers & Sisters.

Prognosis: I’d like to see this Saul-comes-out story that started with last season’s finale come to fruition by this season’s finale. There’s spoiler talk of some business complications involving Saul, and that seems to just be spinning him back to the start of Season 1. A little character development for this fellow, please.

Second Opinion: What do you foresee for Saul? Share your thoughts in the comments.

_{Photo: ABC.com}

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Saul, Ron Rifkin

Love interests haven’t been high on the plotline list for Rebecca, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still do a bit of a check-up. What romantic misery does the Walker half-sis have in her past and future?

Older Married Guy
When Rebecca’s existence was first discovered by the Walkers, Holly said she was away at school. But really, as she confessed to Justin later, she had gone after her married lover — a man she had started dating at 16, when he was her teacher — and was coming home because he got found out by his wife for the second time and killed himself. That’s back when Rebecca was bad news, and not a boring scold. Prognosis: Becca told this story on herself to confess her complicity in the kiss with Joe. We’ve never heard anything about it since, though. Will it ever spin a plot in which some of this guy’s kin crop up? Or in which she goes for another older married guy? Or in which Holly gets the kid some counseling? It seems like kind of a big thing to never mention again.

Joe
Speaking of older married guys. There was never anything romantic between Rebecca and Joe, although she would have taken things further than a kiss if Joe hadn’t chickened out come to his senses. Later, she admitted she mostly went after the guy to get back at Sarah. Maybe she likes her older married guys a little more well-groomed. Prognosis: Since Joe’s probably gone from the show, there’s not likely to be any further interaction from these two. But if Sarah ever wants to cause trouble in Joe’s relationship with his ex/current wife, maybe she could send Rebecca over for some guitar lessons.

Justin
Yeah, yeah, we already went over this dreadful do-NOT-go-there possibility in the listing of Justin’s love interests. But since then, I’ve seen this spoiler from Kristin at E! and … oh, dear. The way this potential romance is being talked about — coming as the result of something shocking — really makes it seem as though Justin’s Walker-dom is at risk. But it’s still hard to reconcile all these different stories, because though it would be dumbfounding that they would pursue a plotline so disruptive and tacky, it’s certainly not something that no one’s thought about or suspected (with dismay, sure, but still). Prognosis: So who knows. Maybe it’s just misinformation. Or maybe they’ve figured out a way to transmit mass hypnosis over the airways so that we love a Justin and Rebecca romance. Better be powerful.

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Emily Van Camp, Rebecca, Dave Annable, John Pyper-Ferguson

Continuing on in a series of posts on the characters of Brothers & Sisters — where they’ve been, where they’re at, and where we’d like them to go — we’ve run out of legitimate siblings and come to The Other Walker.

Origins: For much of Season 1, William’s daughter with Holly was just a photo in the Ojai house and an initial in William’s Top Secret computer password. Then she came back to town, and things got complicated.

Progress: Though Sarah, Kevin, and Tommy wanted to keep Rebecca’s existence a secret from Nora, Saul broke the pact and clued his sister in, and Nora told Justin and Kitty. Justin immediately befriended the girl, and Nora had her over for dinner. The Sibling Acceptance Train might have been derailed when Rebecca and Sarah’s husband, Joe, kissed after Game Night, but Joe seems to have gotten most of the blame for that, and Rebecca went on to move in with Nora, serve as Justin’s nursemaid when he came home from war, and be a bridesmaid for Kitty.

Current Status: Now that she’s mostly accepted in that big family, even making her peace with Sarah, Rebecca’s starting to think that Wiliam might not be her father after all, what with mom’s old friend David sniffing around (not to be confused with David the contractor who Nora was dating; really, aren’t there enough names to choose from without using this one twice?)

Concerns: Spoilers indicate that a DNA test will be deciding the issue of Becca’s paternity once and for all, and I am certainly in favor of that, as long as it turns out to confirm her Walker-ness. Otherwise, pretty much every plotline since the character’s introduction has been a gigantic waste of time. But assuming that the results do confirm that William’s her daddy, I think the fact that she’s addressing this directly and in a definitive way speaks well of her, and of the writers for getting this possibility out of the way. Then we can turn to getting Rebecca’s spirit back. I don’t want her to go back to being all evil and vixeny or anything, but she should be able to claim her birthright now of being outspoken and critical and witty.

Prognosis: I look forward to seeing Rebecca build deeper relationships with her new siblings — particularly Justin, but the others as well. Also, like Justin, she needs to get a job. And a boyfriend who is not related to her. (Hey, maybe that’s why she wants to make sure she and David don’t share DNA.)

Second Opinion: Where do you see the character of Rebecca going? Share your thoughts in the comments.

_{Photo: ABC.com}

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Rebecca, Emily Van Camp

Justin can’t hold a job, but he’s never been short of female companionship. Ladies love slackers, don’t you know? Today, the series of Walker check-ups continues with a look at Justin’s love interests.

Fawn
Talk about a low-maintenance relationship. Keep her in drugs and sex, and Fawn was happy. No talking, no expectations, no responsibility. Plus, bringing her to a family party is guaranteed to rattle your mother and sisters. Prognosis: I’m surprised we didn’t see the Return of Fawn when Justin went on the pain pills — she’s sort of a human symbol of his addiction. I guess he thought Lena would do, but she was kind of a downer. I expect Fawn’s long gone, but I remember her fondly, if only because she was so very inappropriate.

Tyler
Tyler, on the other hand, was the very definition of appropriate. Beautiful, ambitious, and inexplicably tolerant of Justin’s slackerdom, she was a girl you could bring home to Mom and Mom would cook breakfast for. Apparently, that was more appropriateness than Justin could handle, because he decided he had too much going on with rehabbing and war prep to have the kind of relationship Tyler deserved. Prognosis: The door was surely left open for Tyler to return in the uncertain event that Justin ever gets his act together. All the more reason to hope that the writers let this lost boy find himself.

Lena
For proof that Justin can’t handle an appropriate relationship, look no further than his follow-up girl. He and Rebecca’s old pal Lena bonded over pills in a bar, commisserated over her mistreatment at the hands of a married man, and continued to sleep together after Justin found out that the married man was his brother Tommy. Where are we, Pine Valley? Still, for that “piss off the family effect,” Lena was possibly even better than Fawn. Prognosis: Unlike Fawn, though, I have no residual affection for Lena. She seriously needs to go away and never come back. I mentioned in her mini-profile under Tommy’s love interests that maybe she’d be back with a baby, which would necessarily be Justin’s. That might pull a small good thing — Justin’s having to man up to be a dad — out of a colossal bad thing — that whole godforsaken dual-affair storyline — but only if Lena dumps the kid and runs.

Rebecca
Oh, I know, blecch. No incest storylines, please, since even if they’re not related by blood, they’ve come to be family. Still, with spoiler speculation out there, and topics on the ABC forums like “When are Justin and Rebecca going to make out? When?!” I suppose we need to check up on the possibility. Prognosis: Or not. Really, there are so many more appealing possibilities for both Justin and Rebecca, including having a nice brother-sister friendship. Justin has a good relationship with his other sisters, but it’s more a motherly than a peer one. He and Rebecca have a really cute rapport, and I don’t think it’s at all necessary to make it romantic. Don’t force it to, writers, hear?

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Justin, Dave Annable, Laura Jordan, Marika Dominczyk, Emily Rose, Emily Van Camp

Continuing on in a series of posts on the characters of Brothers & Sisters — where they’ve been, where they’re at, and where we’d like them to go — we’ve made it now to the baby of the family (well, if you don’t count that half-sister).

Origins: In the beginning, Justin was an irresponsible vet with a drug problem, a ditzy girlfriend, and daddy issues.

Progress: Over the ensuing season-and-a-half, Justin kicked the drug problem, went back to war, came back from war, got another drug problem, and kicked it again. He also got a better girlfriend, lost the better girlfriend, won the better girlfriend back, gave the better girlfriend up, slept with his brother’s girlfriend, and had all sorts of inappropriate chemistry with his half-sister.

Current Status: Justin’s still an irresponsible war vet, but now with no drug problem and no girlfriend, and, if spoilers are to be listened to and worried over, maybe some “who’s my daddy?” issues.

Concerns: Surely, surely it’s time now for Justin to grow up. Not a lot, he can still be goofy and funny and a teaser of his elderly siblings. But honestly, man, get a job or go to college or find a cause or do something other than live off your widowed mother. It’s getting embarrassing, you know? I’ll admit that I enjoy Dave Annable more on the lighter storylines than the heavier ones, and would be very happy if we never have to go down the warfare and rehab roads again. Or blaze new paternity-doubt trails, either.

Prognosis: In addition to reuniting with paying work, I’d love for Justin to reunite with Tyler, the one respectable girlfriend he’s had. It would be good if he figured out what he wanted to do with his life first, though. Surfing and hanging out? Doesn’t count, dude.

Second Opinion: What should Justin be doing now? Share your thoughts in the comments.

_{Photo: ABC.com}

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Justin, Dave Annable