"Brothers & Sisters" returns to a Walker family in mourning

I'm one of the few people left who still watches and enjoys "Brothers & Sisters," but I don't care. At this point, it really is comfort food. I can just relax with the Walker family, people I've known for years now. I actually have some hopes for this season since they finally got rid of the Ojai storyline. That really bogged down the show the past few years and I'm hoping they will use the new Ojai-less, one-year-hence show to make some interesting stories for the family.

A one year jump into the future is an easy way to just skip over all the initial grieving. Sure, the family still needed to confront their grief this episode but the shock of it all had worn off. I liked that they jumped forward rather than let themselves get trapped in what plenty of other shows (especially on ABC) do - you get a dramatic, traumatic season finale in May but then you have to deal with the results of the trauma in the fall. Just this season alone, look no further than "Dexter," "Grey's Anatomy," and "Private Practice" for starters. I liked that we just skipped on ahead and brought Justin in, of all Walkers, to shake everyone out of their limbo state. Justin has always been my least favorite Walker because he's whiny and immature. It looks like he finally got the army bug out of his system so he can stop whining about how his life had purpose back in the Middle East but at home he's useless. I'm hoping this new, mature Justin sticks around and fights for his wife. Speaking of Rebecca, she had a perfectly legitimate reason to leave him. There's a giant accident, her mom nearly dies but survives with what appears to be brain damage or convenient TV amnesia, and then her husband just takes off. The poor girl is completely justified and Justin has a lot to make up for if they're ever going to get back together. And you know what? I hope they do, because I actually like them as a couple. Their biggest obstacle was always Justin's immaturity and I'd like to see more stable, adult relationships on this show. I'm not sure if Emily VanCamp is coming back to the show or not yet, so checking up on that would answer how their relationship is going to turn out.

I enjoyed the inversion of the usual Walker chaos. Until Justin came in, they were just staying away from so many taboo subjects that they weren't talking to each other. He made a good point that they need to be yelling at each other to show that they're invested in each others' lives. Nora's silence was the most obvious, since she's normally the first one to rile up her kids. Sarah was justified in saying Justin couldn't come back and just judge everyone for dealing with issues he ran away from, but in the end Justin was necessary to remind everyone who they really are. We've had a whole summer to say goodbye to Robert, but I'm still going to miss him on this show. He was redeemed a lot with Kitty's cancer storyline and I still liked having him around as another non-Walker family member.

On random other notes, I liked the quips about Luc's underwear ad. I missed Kevin and Sarah's banter, so it was nice to hear a few jokes amidst such a dark episode. I'm not sure what Sarah is going to do with the Narrow Lake money or what she's going to do for a living now, but I'm hoping we don't end up with another Ojai situation where they think a Family Business will be the only way to keep the family together. My last question, aside from where Sarah's kids are, is why does Nora have a job? Perhaps I'm just forgetting, but did she encounter money problems last year? Or did she just want something to do, to distract her from all the misery post-accident? Either way, I'm glad to have "Brothers & Sisters" back. Many people have jumped ship, and it's not the hot new thing anymore, but I don't think it's absolute crap yet. It's enjoyable in its own way, especially if you've been tuning in all along.