This week's episode of Nashville definitely had a different tone than the rest of season five so far.
I liked that the episode started during the chaos of filming Gunner and Scarlett's music video. Their storyline seemed very passive before this episode, truth be told. They'd had some intimate moments, but I felt like their interactions were lacking. I didn't believe Gunner was really sorry when Scarlett kept pressing his buttons in their kitchen. I still don't believe he's sorry for anything that's gone on between them, but I don't think he's a bad guy. The biggest win of the episode came when Scarlett stood up for herself to the director of the Exes music video. The artistic moodiness of the director made me smile and Scarlett's sassy behavior earned her some respect points. She stood up for what she believed in.
Gunner and Scarlett have been slowly climbing towards a boiling point. The music video was obviously that point, encouraging the couple (or not) to have steam coming out their ears. All of that tension must have provided just the right circumstances for Scarlett to explode. Encouraged by the director's suggestion she "embrace her sexuality like others have done," Scarlett stormed off. Essentially, she told that director to put his suggestions and his video where the sun don't shine.
Thank goodness!
I was also happy to see that Clayton had some screen time this week. I enjoyed his voice enough to say I think he's my favorite musician on the show. Rayna's music is truly fantastic, but Clayton has that enticing bluesy feel. He sings slow and sweet as if his voice was being dragged through honey. His resistance and hesitation towards Maddie and her advances felt a little forced, though. I know we learn he's 24, and I know Maddie isn't the most reliable source of good judgement. However, Clayton deserves to give her a shot, especially if he'll pacify her moodiness like he did in this episode. Love might hurt, though it seems to be just the medicine Maddie needed.
Maddie needs recognition for her new song, too. I thought it was thoughtful and somehow folky in it's tune. If nothing else, her latest tune is already one of my favorite songs from her.
Rayna offers a glimpse into her and Deacon's night together which seems to be very, very normal. Both Rayna and Deacon seemed like normal, prying, worried parents by asking Maddie where she was going when she left to go see Clayton. At least these three are trying!
So, this stalker business is something everyone has thought about at this point. I ran through a few of my theories last week, but Nashville has other ideas. Even though Rayna put on her detective hat and discovered Randall had snagged something off her desk, I was suspicious. He cried, he looked creepy, and he denied having sent Rayna any of those letters. If he didn't, who did? Was it Zach?
Of course, we won't find that out this week. It looks like we can look forward to discovering the identity of the famed stalker during the next episode. I'm excited to see where that takes the show, and what happens to Rayna during the duration of her stalker's visit to Nashville.
