The team races to the rescue in the aftermath of an ATV accident. Romantic tensions are high between Em and Will as well as Kainalu and Hina.
Em will make an excellent captain. Sonny tells her that repeatedly. The more he does though, the more it seems like him trying to convince himself. She is his chosen successor. He won't allow another decision be made. He believes his opinion is the only one that matters in this regard. He's certain in his decision to retire. He has made peace with it. Only now is he talking to Jarrah about what she thinks. She remains concerned about their finances. She worries about how he will handle all the newly available time. She's confident they will figure it out. It needs to remain an ongoing conversation between them. Moreover, Jarrah provides the crucial insight into Sonny not setting Em up for success. How is she suppose to learn the job if Sonny always does it for her? Sonny provides opportunities to his lieutenant. She is qualified for this position. And yet, Em is largely focused on the title. She remains unprepared for what the job actually entails. That's striking. It defines nearly every plot that has occurred since Sonny made his plans known. He introduces her to the realities of the job. And then, she struggles. She doesn't grow either. That's the frustrating part. She's allowed to keep believing that she is doing everything right.
Em is asked to represent the district at a city council meeting discussing the construction of a new tower. It's needed to ensure the safety of the people who visit the beaches every year. Em delivers a statement written out for her. All she has to do is stick to the script. It's delivered with no real passion whatsoever. Sonny knows how to deliver results. He has exploited his dynamic with the mayor to get a ton of new resources for the district. These connections must continue. The district isn't completely set because Sonny delivered. They have to keep going back to the politicians to ensure their continued support each year. It's a delicate balance. One that must play to their egos. The people in charge of the budget have to be respected. Em can speak passionately about the importance of the tower. She laughs at the idea of it disrupting the ocean view and lowering property values. The lifeguards do a lot. They are responsible for capturing the criminal who stole an ATV. The police officers give themselves a round of applause for doing nothing. Em speaks to this. Yet her outburst is seen as counterproductive. It inspires the lower ranks of lifeguards. Those in charge view it as disruptive behavior that is immature from someone who wants to be respected in an authority position.
Em has the potential to learn so much. That's not the direction the story pursues though. Instead, it pivots back to the tortured romance between her and Will. It gets more complicated because Julie is returning to town. Will still plans on moving forward with the wedding. He has been cheating on his fiancée. No one seems to have any problem with that. It's meant to be okay because Em and Will are a couple that belong together. Yet they don't actually have honest conversations. That's the scariest prospect to Em. She jumps into action when people need help. She saves multiple lives every day. But she can't express her personal feelings. She has walled herself off for so long in pursuit of career advancement. She now sees the true demands of that ultimate goal. It's within her grasp. And then, she declares her love for Will. That's not what should have happened. It's the characters prioritizing themselves and disregarding the pain they are causing others. Everyone continues to talk up Will and Julie's wedding. They expect it to happen. They don't even question it. That's bizarre. It seems like an open secret that Will and Em are back together. They try their best to hide it. The tortured dynamic is almost unbearable. It produces what is meant to be a sweeping romantic moment. Instead, it just highlights how awful these characters truly are. It's a misunderstanding of what should be appealing in this narrative. And so, the viewer should feel comfortable discarding a huge chuck of the narrative.
That's true elsewhere as well. None of these characters are particularly memorable or engaging. Laka is angry after getting scammed. He's embarrassed. He tries to prove himself by being overly masculine and rude. It's unappealing. No one with any true authority over him calls him out either. Instead, he's given the grace to manage it all on his own. It makes for a rough shift for Kainalu. Laka should be disciplined for how he speaks to a family after rescuing them. He screams about the dangers of stepping away from the current. He demeans a woman for worrying about her ring. He presumes the worst. It's awful. Kainalu understands that but doesn't have the conviction to call him out. Plus, it's then meant to be conveyed that Laka learns his lesson. He understands the importance of working alongside the members of his team. It only gets more destructive if he goes at things by himself. He needs to be humbled. That's the only way to recover from this mess. He stays behind to find the ring because he sees how important it is. He reaches out with that empathy. It's a horribly contrived moment though. Again, it showcases the characters going through the motions of plot without any true depth attached. That's incredibly frustrating. It makes it really difficult to keep watching and wanting to discuss the show weekly.
