I Still Think About This Buck 9-1-1 Plot From Three Years Ago Because It Was So Out-Of-Character

Oliver Stark is a pillar of 9-1-1 as Evan “Buck” Buckley, but not every storyline he’s gotten makes sense for his character. 9-1-1 follows Buck and the rest of LAFD station 118— Captain Bobby Nash (Peter Krause), Howard “Chimney” Han (Kenneth Choi), Henrietta “Hen” Wilson (Aisha Hinds), Ravi Panikkar (Anirudh Pisharody), and Eddie Diaz (Ryan Guzman) — as they attend to medical and ecological emergencies in the greater Los Angeles area. The 118 has dealt with tsunamis, earthquakes, wildfires, and deadly viruses, but some of the most painful episodes in the series are about the characters rather than the rescues.

Aside from the harrowing near-death experiences in 9-1-1, the ensemble cast is often responsible for progressing the overarching narrative via personal character development. The best episodes of 9-1-1 anchor themselves to a few characters, narrowing the scope in order to maximize the plot’s depth. Nearly every 9-1-1 character has had episodes devoted to their backstory — “Chimney Begins” (9-1-1 season 2, episode 12), “Buck Begins” (season 4, episode 5), and “Bobby Begins Again” (season 2, episode 16) to name a few. However, some of the biggest decisions the characters make are in the present timeline, and they’re not always for the better.

Buck Kisses Lucy Donato In 9-1-1 Season 5 While He’s Dating Taylor Kelly

Arielle Kebbel Had A Brief But Consequential Character

During 9-1-1 season 5, Buck makes one decision that goes against everything he stands for: He cheats on his girlfriend, Taylor Kelly (Megan West), with fellow firefighter Lucy Donato (Arielle Kebbel). After an exhilarating rescue ends with celebratory drinks at a bar, Lucy kisses Buck — but he doesn’t pull away. Instead, he kisses her back. Nothing progresses beyond the first kiss, but it is enough for Buck to immediately feel guilty. Rather than come clean and try to salvage his relationship, Buck makes another baffling mistake in 9-1-1 season 5: he asks Taylor to move in with him.

Admittedly, Buck and Taylor were never 9-1-1‘s best couple. They first get together in season 2 for a brief, friends-with-benefits-type relationship that fizzles out until Taylor returns in season 4. After a season of painstakingly obvious build-up, Taylor becomes Buck’s girlfriend, and they’re dating by season 5. After Buck admits he kissed Lucy, they all-too-quickly bulldoze past it, only for the two to break up in the season 5 finale— not because of Lucy, but because Taylor ran a story on the 118’s angel of death killer (Bryce Durfee’s Jonah) that Buck asked her not to.

Why Cheating Is So Out-Of-Character For Buck

He’s Loyal To A Fault

Buck and Taylor’s separation may have been inevitable, but it feels like 9-1-1 made Buck cheat just to sow the seeds for a breakup storyline. Looking at the character’s history, infidelity just doesn’t fit. After his girlfriend, Abby (Connie Britton), leaves in 9-1-1 season 1, Buck stays in her home for months and refuses to admit it’s over, turning down advances because of his “relationship” when Abby hasn’t spoken to him since she left. Every relationship Buck has, he goes all in on. Right before Tommy (Lou Ferrigno Jr.) dumps him, Buck even asks him to move in.

Buck’s unwavering loyalty to his friends, family, and partners is a defining characteristic for the 9-1-1 character, and kissing Lucy simply doesn’t align with the values he allegedly holds. Given how it’s never really brought up or critically examined again, it’s easy to write off Buck kissing Lucy as a blip, but the fact that 9-1-1 thought it was plausible in the first place implies a deeper issue. The long-running drama has created amazing characters with rich prologues and clear motivations — it just so happens that the show itself sometimes forgets that and prioritizes drama over the continuity.