By 
Nashville’s season premiere picked up two weeks after the fall finale, but no one had really moved on from anything that happened.
What happened last season: Rayna and Deacon were in a horrific car accident when he fell off the wagon after Maddie learned he’s her father. Juliette was sent reeling when her mother died of an overdose. Gunnar proposed to Scarlett. Peggy announced she was pregnant.
With the exception of a faux death, the season 1 finale of Nashville left viewers with every possible soapy cliffhanger in existence. It was slightly entertaining TV, but completely predictable. The most standout moment was Juliette’s performance at the famed Bluebird Café. Unfortunately, her powerhouse song was the montage for all those dreaded soapy, cliffhanger moments smashed into a three-minute period. Less is more, writers. Less is more.
For last night’s premiere, I didn’t honestly have high expectations. I adore the show. It’s more of a guilty pleasure than anything else. It has just the right amount of scandal, sexiness, humor, and country music, which also happens to my favorite genre. Given that I had less than favorable feelings for the finale, I wasn’t sure what kind of follow-through I expected… and I didn’t really get any. In fact, if you took the time to think about the stories, you probably knew what was going to happen in the premiere.
Let’s break this down story by story.
Rayna’s in a coma!
Well, duh. Of course, she is. And of course, there’s the potential for brain damage. This story has been done on every TV show in existence. Unless the writers are going to actually shock viewers by offing their lead character, never put your lead’s life in danger. Otherwise, we just sit there rolling our eyes and waiting for them to wake up, so they can get on with their lives.
Rayna’s coma did, however, take us into Deacon and Rayna’s past. Turns out, post rehab all those years ago (aka the night Maddie was conceived), Deacon had bought Rayna’s dream home and proposed. She said yes, but later realized he was drunk. So drunk that he didn’t remember proposing. Ouch! She’d already been seeing Teddy by then… and well, you know the rest now.
Deacon took the blame!
Well, duh. The only person who could hate Deacon more for anything that’s happened in his life is himself. Unfortunately, telling the courts he was under the influence while driving only goes so far when you have a court appointed lawyer who figures out Rayna was the driver. Before she could take anything further, Rayna awoke from her coma and stated Deacon was driving. This scene happened off-screen which was slightly upsetting because I would have loved to seen the look on everyone’s faces when they learned the truth.
Scarlett pulled a Kelly Taylor!
Well, duh. When two men are pursuing you and you’re incapable of making a decision, you always pull a Kelly Taylor on TV. (And if you don’t get that reference, please marathon 90210 as soon as possible.) Independence over the messy and confused Gunnar and the try-too-hard and entirely too brooding Avery? Sure, but it’s boring. So Scarlett is back to waiting tables, bemoaning her romantic life, and singing sad songs at the Bluebird Café. Next, please!
Gunnar is sad!
Well, duh. Because he’s one of those romantically involved guys who can’t have one night stands or drunkenly kiss a girl on the dance floor. He’s basically a wet blanket, but god bless Will for trying to bring him out of his shell.
Of course, Will still needs someone to bring him out of the closet, but I still understand and appreciate his struggle more than anyone else’s. Chris Carmack, you are perfection.
Peggy’s pregnancy isn’t welcomed!
Well, duh. And even more duh, she appears to have lost the baby. Teddy offered nothing but romantic support and she was all, “But remember when you wanted babies and you loved them?” Oh, he remembers, Peggy. He just didn’t want them with you. You rarely go from being the messy, sort-of mistress to the happy, pregnant wife. Later, Peggy called Teddy, who actually came running. With tears in her eyes, she talked about hearing the baby’s heart beat… and then a fade to black. That baby is gone, y’all! Or she’s just trying to get attention. Guess we’ll know for sure next week.
Juliette is as bitchy as ever!
Well, duh. Does a leopard change its spots? Juliette’s struggling to hold on to her career post-mama’s death and Rayna’s coma, which is ruining her record sales. She makes a to-do about praying for Rayna and visits her in the hospital, where things get a little too real. A conversation with Maddie about Deacon and Rayna cause Juliette’s heart to start beating and she begins to see the reality of what’s going on around her. She was even willing to post bail for Deacon, but Rayna’s confession prevented that from needing to happen. Later, she met Scarlett at Deacon’s and they cleaned up his drunken mess. Awww, bonding!
Don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed the episode (and that’s probably because I was lesson planning and watching it, so I was staying busy, but the songs were amazing – even Avery’s!) I just sort of knew everything would play out the way it did.
The only big surprise in the episode was someone telling Rayna’s sister that the car accident wasn’t necessarily an accent. Perhaps their father was behind it. Say what?! Do you think he’s guilty? What did you think about the premiere? Lackluster? Or amazing? Share your thoughts with me in the comments below!
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