Brothers & Sisters

Normally, I don’t do recaps in an as-it-happened fashion, but this time it’s called for in order to keep account of those anvils that kept dropping. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the episode immensely, but … if we’d made it a drinking game to down a beverage every time somebody made a portentous statement about Rebecca’s Walkerness, we’d have all passed out by the third commercial break.

So now, welcome to Super Tuesday, Walker style (which means, several months late).

The results are playing on the TV at Graham’s as Sarah comes over and quicky disrobes, because the only politics they’re interested in is sexual politics … and at Tommy and Julia’s, as they watch the results with Kevin and debate the difference between winner-take-all and splitting delegates … and at Holly’s, as Rebecca and Justin return with ice cream and find Holly and David making out on the sofa … and backstage somewhere on the campaign trail, as Isaac tells Robert that his opponent is waiting for him to make his speech. Oops, that doesn’t sound good. But Kitty’s proud of her man anyway. His concession speech is playing again, hours later, as Isaac comes into Nora’s bedroom, sits down, and lays his head on her shoulder very sweetly. She allows as how she hopes he can stay in California a while and not rush back to Washington, but he’s already fallen asleep.

And … it’s three months later! Just like that! The magic of TV, I tell ya.

Robert and Kitty are in a fertility clinic office, getting instructions on injecting hormones. Robert lets slip that Nora and Isaac are having a special dinner that night, and the ABC Music of Whimsy works very hard to alert us that there is Walker wackiness ahead.

Here’s the soon-to-be-dining couple now. Appears that Isaac’s been living with the Widow Walker for lo these three months, but now she’s found out he’s taking a professorship that will finally take him back to Washington. He says he’s hoping she’ll move there with him, and that was to be the topic of tonight’s dinner. He’s hoping she’ll say yes, but she doesn’t look too sure.

Back from commercial, and into another montage. Boy, it’s like they read my post about wanting more family in various conversations, ’cause it’s a regular Walker roundelay here. Kitty tells Sarah that Isaac’s asking mom to go to Washington, something Sarah swears will never happen. But then Sarah mentions it to Saul, and she’s the one doubting while Saul’s sure it will never happen. He also mentions something about Graham’s new proposal, and asks about the upcoming birthday party (which Sarah says is for “the new one,” Rebecca. If you’re keeping count, that’s Anvil #1.) We move on to Kevin giving Tommy some papers to sign (about the winery, apparently, because Holly needs to sign them too) and the phone rings so that Sarah can let these two know about the outlandish news. Tommy calls Justin, who hasn’t heard a word. The phone chain ends as Justin gets another call, from Rebecca, referencing her birthday that night. She wants no part of it, but Justin explains that no one stops Nora from having parties, so “welcome to being a Walker.” Anvil #2. Uh-oh.

Rebecca insists that Holly bring David to the party, over Holly’s protests that it’s inappropriate. Inappropriate? At the Walkers? Lady, those people live for inappropriate. Like sneaking into their mother’s house to disrupt her romantic dinner for her boyfriend. That’s inappropriate, but you don’t see it stopping Sarah, Kitty, Tommy, and Kevin. (Justin at least has the excuse of living there).

The sibling imposition backfires when Nora sees how certain her children are that she’d never leave, and decides to declare her independence by doing just that. Kind of the way Justin went to war because his mom was so determined to keep him out.

Speaking of war, the three brothers meet Isaac on the golf course for a bit of a battle the next morning, grilling him about his ability to meet their mothers’ needs — like for example, will their be space in his townhouse for all of her knicknacks? There’s more uncomfortable camaraderie back home, as Nora and Holly work together to bake Rebecca a cake. There’s some discussion of Holly’s lack of homemaking skills, of that food fight from last season, of Nora’s unexpected (even by her) decision to move to D.C., and of what William would say if he could see them now, baking a cake together for his daughter. I think he’d say, “Wow, that’s Anvil #3.”

Rebecca comes home and walks in on David … installing dimmer switches. He gives her her birthday present a little early — a necklace which will certainly turn out to have some significance, because he’s giving her emotional looks of a type that do not have to do with how ridiculously low-cut her dress is, and the music of melancholy anvil-dropping is playing. Goodness, the Intrusive Musicians seem awfully glad to be back, and full of vigor.

The three stooges and their mother’s boyfriend are still on the golf course, so no one’s dead yet. The boys squabble over who’s asking the most annoying questions, and Isaac finally puts an end to it by saying that he’s glad they love their mom because he loves her, too.

Back in Sarah’s office at Ojai, Graham and Saul are trying to force her into just the kind of deal she’s been resisting — a big incursion into the China market, with huge loans and much at stake. The guys see only the profit, and Sarah sees only the risk. She wants a day to think it over.

In Nora’s kitchen, she and Julia and Kitty are looking over the brochure for the hormone injections. They scatter when Isaac comes in (and announces the delivery boy’s there with the food, so apprarently Nora’s taken Holly’s non-domestic advice). Kitty and Isaac have a talk about the move, and she succeeds where her chucklehead golfing brothers could not. In explaining how Nora needs her family around her, and how Isaac is asking too much, she seems to place some doubt in his mind.

Saul’s trying to sow a little doubt in Nora’s mind, too, but she manages to turn the conversation around into how he ought to follow his heart, too. And feel no obligation at all to her family. That will probably turn out to be a mistake.

The party’s obviously started, because Sarah and Graham are dancing. She’s trying to avoid Saul, but Tommy comes in to say that Saul’s looking for her, and is taken aback to find her openly canoodling with her consultant. Graham heads off to talk to Saul, and Tommy cautions Sarah about mixing business with pleasure. She points out that he’s not one to judge on that score. We move to the buffet, where Holly notices Rebecca’s necklace. I think perhaps we can count her reaction to it as Anvil #4.

Isaac comes upon Robert in a room alone, watching his former opponent giving a speech. They talk about how terrible running for president was, and how much Robert misses it anyway. But he and Kitty are starting a family, and she deserves her life back, and Robert doesn’t want her thinking he’d rather be someplace else. Wait … was that a Robert/Kitty anvil, or a Isaac/Nora one? They’re going to have to start labeling these.

Out at the buffet, Kevin and Sarah are reeling with the realization that Mom is serving them storebought food. Abandonment issues already! Sarah has to slap Kevin to stop him from openly weeping.

Holly confronts David about the necklace, which it turns out belonged to his mother. She says it’s the kind of thing you give to a daughter, and what is he trying to imply? (CLANK! #5.) He says he’s just implying that he’s broke and had to give Rebecca some old trinket he had lying around, and she says fine and storms out … but you know, they were talking in the kitchen, and there’s this pantry, this infamous pantry, and standing in it is Justin, looking Troubled. Does that look on his face count as an anvil? We’ll be charitable and say it’s part of the one that just fell.

Nora finds Isaac and asks why he’s been avoiding her, and he says he thinks she rushed into the decision. If this were any other woman, she’d have to wonder if he doesn’t really want her to go … but knowing her children, she immediately guesses correctly that one of them got to him. He mentions that it was Kitty, and she wonders why Kitty didn’t come to her. Well, ’cause you’d overreact, dear. Nora? Noooo.

Out in the party, toastmaster Sarah is raising a glass to Rebecca. She mentions that this is Rebecca’s first birthday in the Walker family (CLANK! #6. Ow.) and that she should thus be subjected to the traditional humiliating birthday toast. Sarah starts it off by celebrating the fact that Rebecca’s horrible bangs have grown out — Ha! — and there ensues a bit of debate about the bangs, but the whole toast thing quickly devolves into a shoting match that sends the assorted spouses, boyfriends, uncles, and former mistresses scurrying for the kitchen. With just the five siblings plus Rebecca, Nora, and Isaac left, the family has it out about mom’s move, and goodness, don’t these kids get it that the best way to push Mom away is to insist that she not do something? Act like you’re happy she’s leaving and then you’ll give her an incentive to stick around. But they start to psychoanalyze her decision and then argue about who’s turn it is to go at her and finally Nora gives them a good solid yelling to — declaring that she’s making a decision for herself for a change, and it serves them right for all the eye rolling and complaints about manipulation. She’ll show them! She finishes by sweetly telling Rebecca that none of this applies to her, which isn’t really an anvil but sure sets her apart from the crowd, so we’ll call it Anvil #7.

After everyone’s left, abruptly, Kitty speaks with her mother again, and this time Nora’s not so sure of herself. She wonders if she’s running away from herself as much as them. Kitty asks her if she loves Isaac enough to make this move — and then, so she doesn’t regret not saying it the way Nora regretted not saying it when Kitty moved to New York, she tells her mother, “Please don’t go, I need you.”

Then we’re at Holly’s, and, oh man, no further need for anvils, because the topic finally comes out for good. David asks Holly if she’s absolutely sure Rebecca is William’s daughter, and she says no, not absolutely. There was this one night … All those who’d like to take one of those anvils and hit Holly upside the head with it, please raise your hands. David claims he only came back to be with Holly, and Holly would like them to just leave it at that, but we all know that’s not gonna happen.

Because it may not be a Walker secret, but it’s a Walker show. And a Walker knows about it. So back at chez Walker, right after Isaac tells Nora he knows she can’t move, Justin tells Rebecca what he overheard in the pantry. And when she says she doesn’t know if she could just take David’s hairbrush to a lab and find out that her life is a lie again, Justin offers to go with her.

The next morning at Ojai, Sarah tells Saul that she can’t go ahead with the big risky business deal, but not because of the risk or the business — because she doesn’t want that risk and business to get in the way of her thing with Graham. She asks Saul, the fixer, to think up some way to get out of the deal without making her look bad, and he agrees to make one more compromise for the family. The look on his face, though, says that maybe that compromise will involve slipping arsenic into the water cooler.

Robert’s giving Kitty her hormone shots and proposing some bedroom activity to go with it when the phone rings. Kitty assumes it’s going to be Nora, all weepy because Isaac’s leaving today, but in fact, it’s a representative for the Republican presidential nominee, wanting to take a meeting. Both Kitty and Robert know this means he’s going to be offered the VP spot, though Robert tries to make light of it. Maybe because the look on Kitty’s face tells him there’ll be trouble if he’s serious.

Rebecca’s serious about that paternity check, so here she is with Justin, handing over David’s razor clippings and toothbrush and used gum (ew!) to some guy who’s going to analyze it with absolute accuracy. And Nora’s serious about staying home, so she has a sad little phone conversation with Isaac at the airport, telling him “so long” instead of goodbye. She hangs up, resists the urge to call Kitty, and sits at the table all by her lonesome with a meal and a glass of wine. Hey, at least it’s better than airplane food.

Photo: ABC.com

Brothers and Sisters, ABC, Separation Anxiety, recap