#stop using pain as plot

🚫 What Should NOT Happen:

1. Buck “explores” queerness by dating multiple men or women before realizing Tommy was “the one” → Bisexuality doesn’t need to be proven through hookups. Tommy is not a test run.

2. Tommy stays emotionally stuck, waiting for Buck to figure himself out → That’s not love. That’s sidelining. Tommy deserves a story that isn’t on pause.

3. Buck returns with no growth, just longing → Love isn’t a Band-Aid for what you refused to confront. Do the work or stay away.

4. Tommy is framed as Buck’s “first but not true” queer love → This is the starter-boyfriend trope. It’s outdated, demeaning, and Tommy deserves better.

5. Tommy starts dating someone else, but they’re just filler before Buck returns → New relationships aren’t fake just because they’re not with the protagonist.

6. Tommy is punished by the narrative for moving on → Moving on is not betrayal. Stop treating emotional survival like a character flaw.

7. Buck’s queerness is only shown through hookups or heartbreak → Being queer doesn’t mean suffering has to be your default love language.

8. Tommy’s new partner is written as toxic just to make Buck look good → That’s not drama. That’s manipulation dressed as plot. Let Tommy choose well.

9. Buck dates someone awful just to realize Tommy was “the good one” → Let Buck grow — not get traumatized into appreciation. Regret isn’t a love story.

10. Buck avoids accountability, hoping time will “solve” things instead of talking to Tommy → You don’t magically become ready in the next relationship if you never faced the last one. Passivity is not a personality. It's avoidance.

If Buck truly loves Tommy — he should talk to him. Be direct. Be honest. If he doesn’t love him — then he should stay away.

✨ Bonus Tropes to Watch Out For in Season 9:

(Because Sometimes Writers Can’t Help Themselves)

11. “Now that he’s queer, Buck must suffer more than anyone else” → Buck has already carried a mountain of emotional pain. Queerness shouldn’t mean more punishment.

12. “Tommy should forgive anything, because Buck’s figuring it out” → This is the same trap Hen/Karen fell into. Hen cheated, Karen had to be “understanding.” Emotional labor ≠ love.

13. “Now that Buck is bi, he becomes hypersexual or ‘confused’ by everyone” → Being bi doesn’t mean you lose your emotional depth or loyalty.

14. “Queer love is always tragic; straight love is stable” → Hen/Karen? Nearly broken up. Buck/Tommy? Already broken.

15. “One queer character is deep, the other becomes a plot device” → Tommy should not become “the guy Buck almost texts.” He deserves his own arc, not ghost-status.

16. Buck’s queerness is “proven,” then erased by pairing him with a woman → Bisexuality isn’t a checkbox or a detour. If Buck dates a woman just to “balance” the narrative, that’s not representation — that’s quiet erasure.

🛑 For contrast: Lone Star handled queerness with more care. (not perfect or that they didn't frustrate with lazy writing)

TK and Carlos already knew they were gay — and their story began with clarity, not confusion. Buck’s journey is different. That’s valid.

But Lone Star gave its queer characters stability, love, and respect, even while showing their flaws.

Carlos’s past marriage to a woman was treated with emotional honesty — not used to erase his queerness.

Neither of them needed to “sleep around” to prove their identity or seriousness about each other.

And their pain (drug abuse, deaths, etc ) didn’t define their queerness — their commitment did.

Mainline 9-1-1 could — and should — learn from that.

💬 Before You Write the Next Chapter:

Buck doesn’t need to date more men or women to figure out if he loves Tommy. Either he does, or he doesn’t. What he doesn’t get to do is use other people as stepping stones to decide. Queerness isn’t a test you pass by hurting people. And love isn’t something you discover by leaving a trail of emotional casualties. If Buck loves Tommy — let him show up. If he doesn’t — let him leave him alone. But don’t make someone else suffer just so he can answer a question he’s too scared to ask.

💬 Final Thought:

If Buck and Tommy reunite, let it be because they choose each other again — from a place of growth, honesty, and mutual readiness. Not because everyone else failed. Not because one waited while the other wandered. And not because the show needed one more tortured queer arc.

If they don’t reunite — then let that be a choice that respects them both. No more tropes. No more lessons. No more ghosts. Just grown-ups. Talking. Feeling. Choosing.