Brothers & Sisters

As a follow-up to yesterday’s recap, here are some memorable lines from the episode “Prior Commitments.” Did I miss one of your favorites? Share it in the comments.

Nora: Before cell phones, no one had this much to say to each other.

Nora: No, I didn’t tell Kevin. There would be no need for a family meeting if I had, because everyone would already know.

Sarah: If I don’t get to work, Holly’s going to start ransacking my desk.

Nora: How should I say this?
Justin: Okay, you know what? Rebecca’s not our sister. Dad wasn’t her dad. DNA, gotta love it.

Kitty: Are you engaged to Scotty?
Kevin: No, I met some guy last night. Yeah, of course to Scotty.

Kitty: Wow, you’re getting married?
Kevin: No, not married, committed. No comments from the peanut gallery.
Tommy: It would be so easy.

Kitty: I agonized over meeting her. I could barely look at her for months. And now that I actually like her, I find out that she’s just the love child of my dad’s mistress and some guy.

Scotty: I feel like we’ve been pre-empted by a special news bulletin.

Kevin: They can’t drive five hours to be at their son’s … bonding ritual?
Scotty: Is that what we’re calling it now? Because that sounds kind of kinky.
Kevin: Well, commitment ceremony sounds so … it’s like we’re being formally institutionalized.
Scotty: Well, a lot of people would say that’s an accurate description of marriage.

Scotty: I wasn’t raised in Los Angeles. I never heard my parents use the word “gay” until I told them I was.

Tommy: (to Sarah) You were the one who went looking for Rebecca in the first place. You were the one who was obsessed with that baby picture. And you were the one who told her our dad was her father. So if you’re looking for somebody to blame, look in the mirror.

Nora: Put Scotty’s parents down there.
Kevin: They’re not coming.
Nora: Well, you need to give people more notice.
Kevin: It’s not the notice part that’s the problem, it’s the two grooms part.

Nora: Even if you expect the worst from your parents doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt when it happens. Could I call them?
Kevin: You could call them. But unless you tell them I’m a woman, I don’t think you’ll have much luck.

Nora: Rebecca, last summer, when Justin was in Iraq, you took care of me. Don’t you remember all those nights you stayed up late with me right here, watching old movies. And the times you answered the phone when I was too petrified to pick it up. Have I ever even thanked you?
Rebecca: Nora, you don’t need to thank me. I would have done it whether you were family or not.
Nora: There’s more to family than just DNA. I don’t give a damn about any stupid test. You’re a part of this family. Sorry.

Kitty: Kevin and Scotty have so much in common: a zest for life, a wicked sense of humor, a love of hair products … what? That’s funny!
Robert: I thought you were officiating a ceremony, not hosting a roast.

Robert: You know, you don’t have to put yourself through this.
Kitty: Are you giving up?
Robert: No, I’m not giving up.
Kitty: Well, I would understand. I mean, it was a month ago that you didn’t even want to have a baby.
Robert: A month ago, I was running for president. I feel differently now.

Kitty: This is not a problem that you can just table in subcommittee and move on to the next motion.

William: So … how are things?
Kevin: “Things”?
William: In your personal life. Yeah.
Kevin: I’m a junior associate at a civil law firm. I don’t have time to sleep, let alone a personal life.
William: Are you seeing anyone?
Kevin: Uh, did Mom put you up to this?
William: No. The friend that died, she left behind a husband and three kids. There must have been so many things she would like to have said.
Kevin: Right. No, I’m not seeing anyone right now.
William: Is that common?
Kevin: You know, I think this is getting a little awkward for the two of us. Why don’t we get back to the contract.
William: I’m just trying to talk here.
Kevin: Well, I tried to do that with you for quite a few years.
William: And I just wasn’t ready to talk about it.
Kevin: So maybe I’m not ready now.
William: Kevin, I know I didn’t handle things too well back then.
Kevin: You wouldn’t even look at me. You didn’t want anyone at work to know.
William: I was struggling to find some –
Kevin: What, and I wasn’t? I was a kid. I just needed to know you loved me the same way you loved Kitty, Sarah, Justin, or Tommy. but you were too busy being ashamed.
William: And I have to live with how I reacted. But you can get past this. You can accept my apology.
Kevin: I’m not sure I can.

Justin: Time to celebrate your holy mantrimony.
Kevin: Did you spend the entire car ride over here thinking that one up?

Tommy: I thought you researched it! (punches Justin in the arm)
Justin: Ow! I Googled “upscale gay bar, hot dudes, no nudity, off-street parking.” It didn’t say anything about lesbians. Ow!

Tommy: Kev. I know all about difficult in-laws. You’re gonna have to face ‘em, man.
Justin: Yeah, I agree with Tommy. Are you thinking what I’m thinking?
Tommy: Yeah.
Both: Road trip!

Tommy: Well, I’ve figured out what I’m getting you for your wedding present, Kev. And hint — it’s $3.88 a gallon.
Justin: Super premium. Nice.
Kevin: You think I ought to bring a gift to the Wandells?
Tommy: Yeah. Like, “Here’s some beef jerky and some pine-scented air freshener. And we hope you come to your gay son’s wedding.”

Justin: I told you in confidence! Like, brother-lawyer confidentiality!

Scotty: I was just worried the gods in charge of crushing my hopes and dreams gave you cold feet.

Scotty: Nora, thank you for everything.
Nora: No, I should be thanking you, for making Kevin so happy. And … I get another son.

Kitty: I remember touching your stomach when we went back to my apartment and — Cooper was practically doing somersaults. And I just thought, how weird, and how beautiful. Now, I don’t know how I’m supposed to stop wanting that.
Sarah: Kitty, you remember the somersaults. I remember the heartburn. You know what Cooper remembers? Nothing. There are no guarantees. In the end, the only thing that matters is that there’s a child. And that lasts forever.

Kevin: Not only am I getting hitched tonight, I picked today to meet the in-laws who already hate me. What is wrong with me?

Tommy: So … you like Rebecca.
Justin: It was a fleeting moment, okay? And besides, it doesn’t matter. She lied to me.
Tommy: Listen, Justin, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that you two have always … connected. So maybe it’s something worth salvaging.

Bertha: I have imagined his wedding day since he was a little boy. But what you two are doing, it’s not a wedding. It’s not a union recognized by the Church or the State.
Kevin: Actually, it is. In the state of California, it is. But you’re right. It’s different. And we’re doing this because we want to be a family, and we cherish family as much as you do.
Bertha: Scott is who he is. We’ve accepted that, and we love him. But don’t ask us to celebrate this contrived event. We don’t want to hurt our son. But we can’t sit there and have you rub our noses in this pretend wedding. It is too painful, and too insulting.

Kevin: I have something important I have to tell you.
Scotty: What is it? Did something happen in the living room?

Nora: Tonight, Kevin, you don’t get to be guarded or cynical. You and Scotty deserve this night to be as romantic and memorable as anyone else’s.
Kevin: Thank you. You gave us a wedding.

Kitty: I thought that, in true Walker style, I would share with all of you a secret. This isn’t the first time that Kevin’s been married. See, when we were kids, we used to play wedding. And Mr. McBear officiated. And I would wear mom’s white nightgown. You remember, the satiny number with ruffles that just screamed “bride” to me at the time, and to Kevin, who wanted to wear it more than I did. Right afterwards, we were the proud parents of five kids. And I was the mom, Kevin was the dad, because that’s what our family looked like, so that’s all we knew. And now, here we are at Kevin’s second wedding, and the rules are different. And things that we thought to be true turned out not to be. And it seems that when we give up on what was … well, that’s when things that we thought improbable, or impossible even, happen right before your eyes.

Sarah: We’re like the Mafia, us Walkers. Once you’re in, you can never get out.

Justin: My God, this is like the gayest week of my life.

Kitty: I think I just had it in my head that it had to be a certain way and, you know, I get it. Things don’t always work out the way you plan. I mean, Kevin’s wedding turned out better than mine. … There are kids everywhere that need families, and we can give them –
Robert: Yes. Let’s adopt.

Kevin: You’re not going to take me all the way to the bedroom?
Scotty: It’s funny, it’s our first time home as a married couple, and suddenly I’m — I’m not in the mood.
Kevin: Yeah, Tommy warned me that would happen.

Kevin: You were right. Okay, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about Dad, and all this — all this stuff’s been coming back. And I wouldn’t have actually thought about it if it hadn’t been for Scotty and his parents. Anyway, there was this one time. Dad and I were at a conference for Ojai. It was the first time he tried to bond with me after I came out … this isn’t even what it’s about.
Sarah: What is it about, Kevin?
Kevin: There was this guy there. Doug. Oh God, his name was Doug. He was telling Dad about a friend of theirs who died. A woman.
Sarah: Who?
Kevin: I’m not sure. But he gave Dad an envelope, and I didn’t think anything more of it. But I remember Dad asking how Ryan was handling it. And I just assumed Ryan was this woman’s husband, I guess. But, later, I was going through some contracts, and I found a picture.
Sarah: What picture?
Kevin: The picture you found in Ojai. The one we decided was Rebecca. Sarah, I swear, I never thought I’d seen that picture before, but I had. I saw it then. And when I asked Dad who it was, he said it was the woman’s son. You were right. There was another “R.” But it was never Rebecca. It was a boy. And his name was Ryan.

Rebecca: Justin, you were the first person to reach out to me. Before anyone else, you were my friend. And when everything was happening these past couple of weeks, I … you’re the person I wanted to talk to. You always are.
Justin: You, too.
Rebecca: And I — I mean, everything’s been crazy. I mean, first I find out that I have this family that I never even knew existed, and then suddenly I don’t. But then it turns out that I do. Because, by some miracle, you’re all still willing to accept me. And I can’t help but wonder, what if, in all of this insanity …
Justin: What?
Rebecca: It was all just a way to meet you.

For more recaps and memorable lines, visit the pages for Season 1 and Season 2.

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