Well, I thought that the shortened season (thanks to the writers' strike) really affected the the first post-strike eppy. Things just seemed a little off to me, even though it was good to see the Walker clan after a long absense.

Most notably affected by the time crunch was Kitty's and Robert's decision to move forward with starting a family. Last I recall, Robert was on the fence and now it seems he's full steam ahead. I'm not sure if he's really come around to the idea or if he's only placating Kitty's wishes. I realize that the show took a three month time leap forward and that Robert is no longer campaigning, but if those factors influenced the baby-making decision, I think the writers needed to do a better job of connecting those dots.

I didn't really understand Saul's tiff with Sarah either. Where is that coming from? And speaking of Saul, what became of his potential love interest?

Why wasn't Scotty at Rebecca's birthday? Loved the David/Graham moment... "Is this normal?" "I don't know. I'm new here". That and Kevin's emo reaction to Nora possibly moving to D.C. were my favorite moments.

I keep reading that Rebecca's paternity will be addressed, but that there will be a twist coming that we don't expect. So far, everything looks predictable, so predictions must be wrong. Do you think she is going to discover that she isn't a Walker, but then lie to Justin about the results? Maybe that's the twist? image

All in all, I'd give the eppy a C. It seemed that everyone was trying too hard to recapture "that old feeling", but it just wasn't there. For me at least. I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt that the writers are trying to get from point A to point Z in a very limited amount of time to finish the season. Hopefully the future eppys will be smoother sailing.


Leslie