‘9-1-1: Lone Star’: Are T.K. & Carlos Ready to Even Talk About Marriage Soon?
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[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 3, Episode 4 “Push.”]
The episode “Push” closed not only the ice storm chapter of 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 3, but also that sad time for Tarlos fans in which paramedic T.K. Strand (Ronen Rubinstein) and police officer Carlos Reyes (Rafael Silva) were broken up.
When the season began, fans were shocked to hear that the couple had broken up off-screen, and it wasn’t until Episode 4 that we finally found out why. While T.K. was in a coma following a rescue during the storm, Carlos stayed by his bedside, even as he wondered why he was holding vigil for a man who didn’t want him in his life. Paramedic Nancy (Brianna Baker) assured him that T.K. loved him and that’s why he never wanted to hear his name. Then why’d he break his heart, Carlos asked.
Off his mother’s urging, Carlos even spoke to his unconscious ex-boyfriend, which offered a hint as to what happened between them. “I’ve been here for a while. I don’t even know if you want that, but I guess you’re not in any position to walk out this time,” he said. “I’m so mad at you right now, and the worst part about this is if this is goodbye, I can’t even hold your hand, can’t run my fingers through your hair or kiss your head, not without it feeling like it’s some kind of violation. Believe people when they tell you who they are.”
But it was in T.K.’s dream world, with a vision of his mother Gwyn (Lisa Edelstein) acting as his subconscious, that we found out what led to the split. After Carlos’ townhouse burned down, they moved in with T.K.’s father Owen (Rob Lowe) while they looked for a new home. Carlos found a nice loft, but they were looking for buyers, not renters — and T.K. couldn’t come up with the down payment. Carlos then surprised him by getting the loft and putting him on the deed, making him half-owner even though he knew he didn’t have the money. Things were too good, so T.K. panicked and blew it up. And so T.K. worried that Carlos wouldn’t want to take him back.
He needn’t bother, considering that when he wakes, Carlos is at his side (and breathes when T.K. tells him to). And when we see T.K. out of the hospital, it’s when he walks into his home — with Carlos and all his stuff. Yes, his boyfriend moved him in, and that’s that.
“Hey, baby.” 😭 😭 😭
Carlos wasn’t the only one holding his breath… 😮💨#911LoneStar pic.twitter.com/qBvBex13Dg
— 9-1-1: Lone Star (@911LoneStar) February 1, 2022
That’s sweet and all, and don’t get us wrong, we’re very happy to see Tarlos back together, but the resolution was pretty fast considering the circumstances and the fact that we didn’t see any of the conversations they had to have between T.K. waking up and walking into the loft. (If they didn’t have the discussions they need to, what would keep them from ending up where they were at the beginning of the season?)
The breakup came just as we’d been wondering if this season could include a Tarlos wedding. Showrunner Tim Minear told TV Insider at the end of Season 2, “there could be a wedding in their future, but I’m not sure it’s going to be right away,” also noting, “there’s a lot to explore.” We have yet to see that happen on-screen, so chances are there won’t be a wedding any time soon. But we think that’s a good thing.
After all, as Rubinstein recently pointed out, “marriage is tricky” for T.K. Remember what happened in the series premiere, when his boyfriend revealed he was in love with someone else? Plus, his parents are divorced. “Stable marriage is not really predominant in his life, so he probably is not too excited about it,” the star said. “But if Carlos is truly his person — which in my heart, I think he is, and I know everybody hopes that he is — maybe that’s the person that could change his mind about that. That’s the other thing: if and when that happens, who knows when? I was very convinced it would happen this season, but there’s so many crazy things that have happened so far.”
So now that they’re back together, what needs to happen next to get to the point where they’re ready to even talk about marriage? First of all, we need some indication that they did resolve the issue that broke them up off-screen and they’re not ignoring that just because T.K. almost died. And we’d like to see them just enjoy being and living together without trying to take another major step so soon, especially given that T.K.’s fears aren’t just going to go away overnight. (We’d also love it if T.K. didn’t end up in the hospital again, but we might be asking too much.) That being said, it does seem like it is possible that the season could end with an engagement.
So yes, while we’d love to see a Tarlos wedding on 9-1-1: Lone Star, we also don’t want to miss out on the necessary conversations and moments leading up to it. After all, the breakup at the beginning of the season was hard enough. Let’s not have that happen again.
9-1-1: Lone Star, Mondays, 8/7c, Fox
