The Village Episode 2
After a rollercoaster of a pilot, we join our friends at The Village for another round of emotional punches, laughter and everything in between. The episode starts with flashes of the residents’ mornings. Nick awakens on the floor of his apartment, his body tangled in the sheets. Jedi comforts him. Katie and Sarah are still in Sarah’s bed from the night before, mother watching the daughter sleep. Gabe’s girlfriend lets herself into the apartment and finds Enzo in his bed. Ron and Patricia are getting frisky. And finally, Ben is trying to reason with an unreasonable Sammy. Our last scene before the title card is Katie and Sarah in the bed, discussing doctor appointments. Overall, it’s a cute opening to the episode, reminding us of the characters and who they are.
Next, Nick exits the apartment building with Jedi, heading to the Brooklyn Bridge. There, he tells Jedi to rest (that he’s earned it) and attempts to run for the first time. Pain blossoms over his face. This is probably the longest distance he’s traveled on his own since losing his leg. I would imagine this won’t end well.
“You live here, you’re family.”
To no one’s surprise, Katie and Sarah run into him limping back to the apartment sometime later. Sarah instructs Katie to take Jedi while Sarah helps Nick walk back. They share a quiet moment. We learn a bit about how the two met, back when they were teenagers. Sarah even hints on the night that she might’ve gotten pregnant. It is short lived and Nick thanks the teenager for helping. She offers a bright smile and says, “You live here, you’re family.” The foreshadowing is evident, and the longing is written all over Nick’s face when he replies, “So I keep hearing.” Its also safe to say that Nick hasn’t had much of a family since leaving active duty military, especially if he lost men overseas. This is probably the most welcomed he’s felt anywhere in a long time.
“She’s as cold as a crypt.”
The morning continues with Gabe, his girlfriend and Enzo. Enzo is attempting to make espresso while the two lovebirds share dicey conversation. His girlfriend is not thrilled that Enzo is in the house. In fact, she’s being a complete bitch about it. Its hard to find anything redeemable about this girl in the two episodes we’ve seen her. She lacks empathy, let alone sympathy for Gabe or his grandfather. She furthers this ice queen sentiment when Gabe reveals he is skipping a test to help Ava. He explains, “I’ll find a way to get to everything.” Judgingly, she replies, “Even me?” Enzo, who holds out his espresso, waits until she leaves to reveal he heard it all. He tells him that Gabe’s grandmother wouldn’t have liked her; Gabe questions why and he replies, “She’s as cold as a crypt.”
“In my experience, its never too late to tell the truth.”
Gabe decides to take his test but gives the information to Patricia to help Ava. At the detention center, she shares the information that Gabe learned. The paperwork was confirmed as forged. Ava knows her ex husband is to blame. Patricia tells her to appeal to the judge to prove she’s not a flight risk and the young mother seems defeated, claiming they’ll never believe her as she’s already been painted as a liar. A haunting, knowing expression comes across Patricia’s face, “In my experience, its never too late to tell the truth.” Seems like we might see our social worker take her own advice in the future.
Katie’s doctor appointment reveals that she is 14 weeks along, which comes as a surprise to Sarah. The doctor excuses herself and Katie explains she kept the secret for seven weeks because she was afraid to tell her. She thought that Sarah would want her to abort; she also remembers her mother telling her when she was pregnant that it was the day everything fell apart, so she just wanted one more day. This is an entirely awkward situation all around, and we don’t get immediate relief between the two.
“Guess you better make it good, you’re living for all of them now.”
Nick catches Enzo on his way out to Smalls. He offers him a ride… in what Enzo refers to an “old people bus.” On the bus, the two of them talk about friendship and Enzo thanks Nick for paying for his car service to send off his best friend. He tells him he understands, as he lost some friends recently. Enzo shares a knowing look with the veteran, “Heroes.”
Nick agrees and tells him they saved his life. The next line is both chilling and emotional, when Enzo replies, “Guess you better make it good, you’re living for all of them now.” Hit me in the gut, why don’t you? I’m really enjoying the conversations between the two of them. I’m willing to bet in his days of service, Enzo had similar experiences to Nick. Truth be told, there is nothing better than two people who know how the other one feels. Maybe this’ll help both as the season progresses.
Skipping Stones
There is a brief scene where Ben is skipping stones on the water with Sammy. They don’t talk, but it seems the most at peace Sammy has been since his mother was taken away. I’m curious to what Ben’s story is… he seems like a nice guy with a big heart, so why is he all alone? He is a cop, so maybe he works long hours and hasn’t settled down. Maybe this terrible situation will be the reason to do so?
Things have become explosive with Katie and Sarah. Sarah thinks that Katie is keeping more secrets and the duo resolve little outside of Sarah’s work, other than Katie’s baby’s father being named Jagger. Awkward and certainly not what anyone wants their daughter to say. Interestingly, Katie is on her way to Smalls to help with inventory, so it looks like we’ll have another encounter between Nick and Katie.
“Courage under fire you get medals for. Courage after fire, you just get lonely.”
At Smalls, Nick’s friends are waiting for him. One of them is a buddy he was deployed with (Dean) and a mutual friend named Joe, who is also a veteran. Joe runs a support group for veterans and is also an amputee. Dean and Joe try to persuade Nick to try out a group, but he tells them he prefers brooding.
Joe says something that sits with me. “Courage under fire you get medals for. Courage after fire, you just get lonely.” Nick seemingly knows what he is saying, but choses to ignore it. You must wonder when he wakes up on the floor in the beginning of the episode if he is already unraveling. It seems stereotypical to already point fingers to something like PTSD, but when you survive what Nick has, then it doesn’t seem all that surprising.
Nick asks if Dean has seen any of the other guys. He says not since Cooper’s funeral. Cooper’s widow, Amy has just moved to Queens and Nick wants to visit her. While Dean originally makes a joke that he’s the only one she ever really liked, things get somber fast when he says, “Don’t worry, she doesn’t know.” This leads to a weird confession from his buddy… Nick made a mistake and that is why Cooper is dead. What? Nick demands more information, but the scene cuts before we get the answer. What did Nick do?
Enzo vs. Macklemore
In the next scene, Ava is on the phone with an accented man. She tells him you swore this wouldn’t happen. This is ominous and bizarre… is she holding back information from the others? So far, with Gabe and Patricia, she claims she didn’t know the papers were forged. Is she not as innocent as we think?
Enzo returns to the assisted living home to find a new roommate. For an old guy, he’s crass and crude. He immediately goes to Sarah, who tells him that she can’t do anything about it. This turns into a rant and he asks if they’re still talking about roommates. She reveals to him that Katie is pregnant and she lied to her about it. They go outside to a bench where Enzo offers advice. We also learn that Gabe’s father left the family when he was young.
What’s a Macklemore?
Enzo then reaches out to Gabe who tells him he also can’t help with the new roommate right now. He’s on his way to help Ava in court. The judge does not seem willing to listen to what Ava presents, but Gabe is able to get Ben to say a few words on her behalf, as the judge’s son is NYPD. This is a cool moment, not just for Ava’s case but for Gabe as a future lawyer. He might not be one yet, but he does everything right to try and help her and he’s clear headed and direct. He looks professional!
Ben speaks about his relationship with Ava to the judge. He mentions that he moved in next door to her after a personal tragedy. This is new… what happened to Ben? Ava is tearing up at this point, but he does not elude anything further. I guess this is something we’ll just have to wait and see. Thankfully, the judge grants Ava’s bond off Ben’s word, but it is for 10,000 dollars. Regardless, the neighbors still see it as a victory.
While discussing Sammy, you can see some sparks flying between Ava and Ben as they meet briefly outside the detention center. He keeps some of Sammy’s behavior a secret from her and tells her the bond is the next hurdle for her case.
Black and White
Back at Smalls, Nick and Katie are alone. He asks her why she’s not in school and she explains that she vandalized the defense contractor. There’s some awkwardness in the conversation as Nick points out a military is necessary, and she comments that dropping bombs on wedding parties is not necessary. He gives her a scenario where things aren’t so black and white, ending the thought with, “And how many innocent kids’ lives are you responsible for now?” The scene does several things. It tells Nick that his daughter is pregnant. It also shows the guilt that Nick has from his time overseas, but I think the most interesting part of this exchange is the world views both have.
Regardless that Katie doesn’t know that Nick is her father, they are the same blood and may share similar characteristics. However, because Nick has been in these terrible situations, he is able to see the world as much grayer than she does. It proves her nativity and her innocence in a world that truly isn’t what we think it is as kids. I think it also adds to her own worry and stress, as she knows she wants to bring a child into it. How do you properly make the decisions that must be made in a world as such?
“Let me guess, your mom thinks it’s a bad idea.”
Katie is about to run off when Nick stops her. There is a parental look in his eye—this is all new to him, but the instinct is there. He asks her some questions, unaware that Sarah is listening. He doesn’t seem surprised that Katie hasn’t told the boy she’s pregnant and even says, “Let me guess, your mom thinks it’s a bad idea.” I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that Nick had no clue Sarah was pregnant. Seems a bit hypocritical, but maybe she had her reasons.
And then…
Sammy continues to give Ben the silent treatment but smiles when he gives him a video of Ava singing to him, so he can go to sleep. Meanwhile, Patricia asks if they can lend the money to Ava from the Smalls savings. Ron says it’s no secret that the place has been sinking for years. Patricia then tells him that her cancer has returned. There’s silence in the room.
Downstairs, Gabe and his girlfriend are checking the mail when Nick, Katie and Sarah enter. He tries to see if Sarah can get Enzo a new roommate again, but she tells him it’s not possible. Gabe’s girlfriend tries to get him into the apartment, but he seems in a trance. Ice queen seems to know her time is limited. Bye bye!
Nick’s Anger
Another explosive scene is next. Sarah confronts Nick in the apartment, bothered by his question to Katie in the bar. Sarah is unfair in her line of questioning, in my opinion. He broke up with her in high school to join the military, unaware that she was pregnant at the time. She makes a weird comment about seeing horrible things but choosing war. Nick is angry now because he said he should’ve known, but she claims it wouldn’t have made a difference.
The conversation escalates to Nick’s state of being, seeing the bottles of liquor behind him. Granted, these belonged to the tenants in the apartment he’s renting, but this sends Sarah off. She asks how much he drinks, then if he takes pills. The next question is about PTSD. Nick doesn’t remain silent. He tells her that he doesn’t drink often, and he hasn’t even taken more than an ibuprofen despite losing his leg. He explains that he doesn’t know if he has PTSD, but crowds of people do bother him, and if it makes him unfit to be Katie’s father… she cuts him off. Says she never said that, and he demands to know why she hasn’t told her.
Is Sarah being unfair?
This seems like fear on Sarah’s end. She tells him that Katie will hate her and that because she’s pregnant, she can’t have that. Katie needs her. This is all very unfair to Nick. Sarah continues this line of thinking saying that she’s known her for 17 years and he’s known her two weeks. The final blow comes in a scathing line: “Don’t worry Sergeant Porter, you get to be the hero in this story too.” I’m going to assume that neither of them is innocent in this and Sarah is being completely unreasonable. Besides, she has no idea that Nick found out earlier that he might be the reason one of his buddies died, so that line probably hits closer to home than she realizes.
I really hope that she considers what she says to him in the next day or so because it’s not a good look on Sarah at all. I understand she’s upset and that everything feels like it’s falling apart but saying what she did isn’t going to fix it.
Nick waits until Sarah leaves and closes the door to slam the bottle in his hand against the wall.
Sarah goes to talk to Katie and explains her decision to keep her. Unknown to her daughter, she tells the story of how Nick joined the military. Katie was conceived after 9/11. Nick had always wanted to be a firefighter and one month in, the towers were hit. He saw things there that were terrible (and this explains the comment from earlier made by Sarah).’
Hero
Pause, please. My Gosh… Nick has been through it all. To be a first responder in 9/11 and then to join the military after what he must’ve seen working there every day? My heart just shattered. 9/11 hits close to home to any New Yorker. We all are connected by that day and anyone who lives locally knows how many lives it destroyed even years later. Its safe to say that Nick never dealt with what happened to him then… add on the terror of war… I suspect this season will be rough on him.
“I didn’t know how to crochet a heart, so I gave birth to mine.” She was about to go get an abortion, when she decided to do something good in memory of the people who lost their lives, even after Nick left. Sarah tells Katie to get up, they settle problems in this house in one way… dancing.
“Sarah has a 10-year-old. Yours?”
This might be one of my favorite parts of the show… the vignettes of the residents in the beginning and the end. Just like we saw in the beginning of the episode, we see each group in the apartment. Gabe breaks Enzo out, tells him he’s coming to live with him. Ron and Patricia cuddle in the bathroom. Meanwhile, Katie and Sarah continue to dance. Ben and Sammy play with a toy basketball, finally bonding, and we finally reveal Nick on the fire escape, sitting alone. He holds a picture in his hands. It says “Sarah has a 10-year-old. Yours?” … does this mean that he’s known that long? The episode ends with this thought.
This episode was just as great as the pilot. It continues to balance humor, despair and happiness in 42 minutes without there being periods of boredom or slow scenes. The actors mesh incredibly well together and flow excellently on the screen.
We don’t learn everything in one episode. Some shows have great storylines, but reveal too little or too much each episode. The pieces we’ve gotten make me want to come back each week to find out what will happen next.
Most importantly? The show gives you hope.
In the episode, there are the comparisons about black and white and gray areas. It’s clear what we see here is rare. I don’t know any of my neighbors this well, but it makes you hope for it. You root for these people because the truth is: this is possible. The Village tells you that good people are out there, and humanity still exists. You wish you knew these people because they represent what makes us America. It tells you that we are better when we are together and that our differences make us who we are.
Love is truly the thread that connects us all and The Village is the perfect reminder that we should spread more of it each and every day.
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