Nashville Season 5 Episode 1 Recap: The Wayfaring Stranger

Oh, darling Nashies. It’s been a rough time for you, first thinking you might never see your precious Rayna again and then wondering who, if anyone, survived the plane crash that ended season 4 with a fiery bang.

Here be spoilers.

The good news is that Juliette survives – but barely. She’s somewhat battered and bruised (in the way that only gorgeous TV stars do) and having a hard time feeling much below the waist. But don’t despair; rumor has it that Hayden Panettiere, who plays the troubled and troubling Juliette Barnes, is scheduled to appear in every single episode of Season 5. I’m predicting a tear jerker when we see her take her first wobbly steps again after a tough rehab period.

And cue the exhale.

So what else happened on Nashville’s eagerly anticipated return to television, albeit to a new network, CMT this time around, and with new show runners Marshall Herskovitz and Ed Zwick — of Thirtysomething fame? A lot. Stories take some time to play out, but they do feel slightly choppy in the extreme back and forth.

The episode begins with Rayna (Connie Britton) driving a vintage red Mustang convertible down a dusty, but decidedly pastoral road. She stops for gas at a spot that wouldn’t be out of place in reruns of The Andy Griffith Show (or maybe The Walking Dead, post zombie apocalypse). She spies an old, blind man playing a spiffy looking stringed instrument (maybe a mini guitar or mandolin?) but not before she’s recognized by the gas attendant who immediately asks for her autograph. Rayna and the blind man chat for a moment during which she recognizes the tune he’s playing as  “Wayfaring Stranger.”

And then we zip back three weeks to the fiery carnage of the plane crash. We spy bodies on the ground and a good Samaritan weeping and calling for help. She counts out a few bodies until she spies one Juliette Barnes, moving amidst the wreckage. Our Samaritan pulls a fluffy white blankie to cover Juliette and tries to sing with her, as you do when trying to urge someone back from the brink of death; and of course, this being Nashville, she has a pretty fantastic churchy sounding voice.

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News of the crash travels pretty fast and we see Avery (Jonathan Jackson) rushing to the hospital and then learning along with Rayna and Deacon (Charles Esten) and the girls all crowded into bed together and watching the news on TV, that Juliette was the sole survivor of the crash. We continue to hear our Samaritan warbling as Juliette is rushed to the emergency room (shout out to first responders!) with blood trickling down her face.

And then we fast forward another three weeks to Juliette sitting rigid in a wheelchair as her agent urges her to give an interview or connect with the fans. Avery brings over baby Cadence and we see Juliette genuinely light up, that is until her doctor fills her in on the full extent of the damage affecting her vertebrae and legs and informing her it could be months before she truly begins to heal.

Back at Rayna’s, there’s a cuddly scene between her and the hubs as they talk about Juliette’s condition, a concert she doesn’t want to perform at and random parental chatter.

Poor Juliette. Back at the hospital, rehab isn’t going great when Rayna pops in for an uncomfortable visit. A teeny, tiny whisper of a scar on Juliette’s forehead mars her perfect features as she weeps to Rayna and blames herself for ruining her own life and ultimately somehow being responsible for the crash. There’s talk about angels having saved her (remember the white blankie? Apparently, it made quite the impression on Juliette) in a slightly awkward scene, but hey. It works.

Meanwhile, business Rayna heads back to the office and learns from Bucky (David Alford) that Maddie’s (Lennon Stella) out of her awful contract (hurrah!) to the tune of $275,000 (oy to the vey). Money is scarce and there don’t see too many options for Rayna. Some very big bumps in the road, according to Bucky.

Nighttime. Rayna’s on the couch at home watching some videos, while Deacon’s being all domestic and adorable and reassuring. Because he’s totally OK if the company fails and they lose everything as long as they have each other. Hashtag blessed.

The next morning, golden sunlight pours through James/Claybourne home as Rayna hustles to get ready for her trip to Silicon Alley to perform at some fancy pants event. Anxiety blends with some hugs during the leave taking. Maddie and Daphne (Maisy Stella) do what they do best—bicker. Now on the private airplane, Rayna has some flight related PTSD as turbulence sends her to a very bad place.

At the hotel in Silicon Alley, we see Rayna pretty much shaken to the core. On the phone, Deacon informs her she’s had a panic attack and Rayna seems oblivious to the cause of her panic. Seriously, TV people, why isn’t she in serious therapy and making PSAs about panic attacks? You know the fictional Nashville inhabited by Rayna and Juliette would eat that up with a spoon.

Back in Nashville, the paparazzi go wild as Juliette heads back home from the hospital. Reporters speculate about whether the rumors of paralysis are just that, rumors. They also discuss whether the wheelchair means she can’t walk, or is just standard procedure when heading home from the hospital.

Over on the West Coast, young app entrepreneur and Rayna fanboy Zach Wells (Cameron Scoggin) walks Rayna to the green room before she’s to perform at a benefit concert. There’s lots of food and drink and especially heaping, glistening black caviar, because, you know…even though sushi would probably make more of an appearance, the black stuff always symbolizes lots and lots of money to burn on TV. We also find out Rayna will be performing at a benefit to raise $1.5 million dollars for Scleroderma. Hmm. Money. There’s lots of talk of disposable income and fund raising when our heroine is in a tight spot.

At Juliette’s, Avery is being extremely supportive. But back to the concert. Rayna is singing her little heart out while everyone in the room ignores her and chats over her songs. Well, not everyone—our mogul du jour, Zach is soaking up the music. Back home, Maddie is obnoxious yet again to Daphne as she tries to help her work through her music. Poor Juliette is plagued by nightmares and visions of angels with white blankies. She wakes up and insists that Avery take her to the crash site. Again, TV people—why don’t you make like The Sopranos and get these people some therapy?

Meanwhile, sisters Maddie and Daphne are having some serious sibling rivalry going on about their musical talents, this time in front of ooey gooey adorable Scarlett and Gunnar (Sam Palladio) and an increasingly annoyed Deacon.

We find out some backstory about mogul Zach. Apparently, he’s not only a nerd, but bonds with Rayna over tales of his country music fanboy-ness brought on by his close relationship with his late mother who he nursed through illness—the aforementioned Scleroderma. When asked, Rayna confesses that she hasn’t recorded anything lately for various reasons, mainly trying to keep her label afloat but also trying to figure out the ever-evolving vagaries of Nashville tastes and preferences, likely true in fictional and real Nashville. We also find out that the first country song she ever loved was Bill Monroe’s “Wayfaring Stranger.” There’s some awkward flirtiness or double entendres about her finding out “how to shiver again.” Probably not though, but rather just some awkward dialogue.

The crash looms large as Juliette and Avery visit the crash scene, with Avery wheeling Juliette through the debris before lifting her to the now empty site. Rayna worries about her upcoming flight home and calls Deacon to say she can’t get on the plane back home. Deacon offers some lukewarm support. Flash to Juliette weeping and wondering why she didn’t die. Cathartic, but really, at the risk of repeating myself again (again) why aren’t these people talking to TV versions of qualified mental health professionals instead of each other?

Deacon surprises Rayna at her hotel room by posing as room service. Yay! Rayna refuses to go back with him to Nashville and rents a car instead. She’s lost, not afraid and she feels like it’s all relentless and she’s given up her life and wants to find herself again. Boo? But now we understand why she was driving along those dusty, twisty roads at the beginning of the show.

Maddie barely apologizes to Daphne and the sisters collaborate on a song. Nice! That’s what we love most about Nashville, the amazing music. Oh, the harmonies. Gorgeous.

Juliette and Avery stop for smoothies on their way back to Nashville and Juliette hears singing from a church nearby and hurriedly wheels herself into the building. The woman leading the choir is of course the Samaritan who quite literally sang Juliette back to life. It seems to be working a second time as well.

And, back to the gas station scene from the beginning of the show. The old blind man urges Rayna to sing more and find the joy within her soul after she admits to singing a little bit. And fade out as Rayna listens to him sing “Wayfaring Stranger.”

While it’s really nice to have Nashville back, there wasn’t a ton of tension in this episode and the cutting back and forth was a bit distracting. But here’s what we probably can expect in the weeks ahead—Juliette’s struggle with her physical condition and new reality; Rayna’s turning point in her own career and that of her management position; Maddie and Daphne perhaps figuring out how to work better together than apart. As for the crash, based on the way the episode played out, it almost seems as though we’re supposed to think that Juliette’s in a better headspace and Rayna’s over her fears. Who knows.

So what did you think of the episode? Meh or amazing?

Catch up on the first four seasons of Nashville on Hulu and watch new episodes on CMT, Thursdays at 9 pm. ET.

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