Chasing Life
Chasing Life- Clear Minds, Full Lives, Can’t Eat (1×06)
What do you do when you have terminal cancer and only 3-4 months to live? You live each day to the fullest. Live it like it’s your last. At least that’s Leo’s plan and he’s hoping to take April in for the ride. And you know she needs it now that her leukemia secret is out of the bag and her mother is literally micromanaging her life.
April still hasn’t told Dominic her big secret and at first I was really upset she was withholding it from him but now, I’m kind of happy. Who knows how he would handle the news and if it was the same way her mother did April would definitely loose her mind. At least she can still find an escape at his apartment, even if it is with her head in the toilet because she’s loosing her appetite and he took her on a food crawl as a surprise.
It’s understandable that Sara is worried about the well being of her daughter, but I guess a key lesson here is not to make your daughter whose already freaking out that she’s sick, feel even sicker. Sara tags along to April’s appointment with George and doesn’t respect her daughters wish of not knowing what will happen until it happens. Sara wants to know everything and she finds out that one of the side affects of chemo is that April might become infertile. Knowing her daughter and her want to start a family one day, she asks John to withhold this information from April. If she knew, she would probably hold off on the chemo risking her life completely. Then she keeps texting April throughout the day panicking when she doesn’t “check in” and setting up meditation seances to keep April calm before chemo. And all of that might still pass but when April comes home from her wild day with the Hendrie’s she finds her room completely torn up. Lamps and curtains are covered in plastic to keep out dust, the mattress is gone and replaced with a blow up until the organic one comes in, and even the frozen waffles have been thrown out because they aren’t organic aka the new lifestyle in the Carver household. April flips out on her mother, expectedly, stating that she has nothing to hold on to, no more hope that one day she’ll lead a normal life. News of infertility also reached her and finding out that her mother knew but didn’t tell her infuriates her even more, causing her to postpone chemo until she gets a fertility test.
April spent a lot of time behind-the-scenes of a Hendrie commercial thanks to Leo, who was trying to rack up some good karma points after last weeks dinner flub. The Hendrie campaign personally requested April as the reporter to come cover the shoot and get a one-on-one with Bruce Hendrie, which drove Raquel crazy. It was really rewarding to see her come give the news to April. Behind-the-scenes of the commercial where no different then expected. Bruce was obviously talking about how much he cares about healthcare reform while Leo acted like a prop, before he figured he didn’t want to participate in all of this. April scored her one-on-one but as it goes with politicians, everything Bruce said had to go through his personal assistant, which means he didn’t say much that wasn’t on the record. All reporters know the stuff that makes a good story is always off-the-record.
Leo ditches the commercial and invites April along for a ride on his bike. Why don’t you live a little, he asks basically telling her she always plays it a little too safe. Sitting behind a desk looking for the next story can do that to you. But when you have cancer, every minute counts and what’s the fun of sitting at a desk striving for a career when you might not live long enough to enjoy it? Instead, Leo want’s April to enjoy the little moments, like stealing a really fast and expensive car from the dealership and driving carelessly before the cops catch up to them. April eventually breaks down a little about not havin a future with kids, a husband and a station wagon, but Leo takes this moment to lean in for a kiss, which may or may not be the start of some epic cancer love story. Police pull them over and April freaks out, but Leo has a seizure on site. At first I thought that it was totally fake and planned so they wouldn’t get in trouble but turns out it was real. The tumor on his brain is growing in size and shortening his life span to about 3 months, which is something he already knew. Bruce Hendrie makes it to the hospital to see his son and informsApril that he didn’t know up until now that the cancer was terminal. This is probably more of a news ploy then anything else. As the parents go to see Leo, we find out he’s disappeared from his bed. Thankfully, April knows exactly where to find him; on the roof enjoying the view. Standing on the ledge, April thinks Leo is about to commit suicide, but as always, he doesn’t do anything seriously and gives her this speech on seizing the moments and living it up. Leo definitely gives April’s life a new perspective, but unlike Leo, she isn’t terminally sick. She still has something to believe in and hold onto and that’s the interesting dynamic between these two. Something tells me that while April really likes Dominic, the idea of having Leo for a limited time will make her develop feelings for him. Plus, he’s really the only one that understands, “cancer friend” and all.
Brenna has come to a realization that she’s totally into Greer. Even though she’s dating Kieran, it seems like she longs to talk and be around Greer. The first person she called when her mother found out about April’s cancer wasn’t her bf, but the lesbian girl she’s been hanging out with. So when Greer invites her and Ford to a party, Brenna is totally excited to go. One thing that has become pretty obvious is that finding out April has cancer and striking up a friendship with Greer really changed Brenna, who isn’t as rebellious and stupid as Ford anymore. When they take a tour of Greer’s house, Ford wants to try on all the expensive stuff and post pictures on their blog, but Brenna knows doing that is really rude. Instead, she goes to find Greer at the party. Meanwhile, Ford texts Kieran back and invites him over. When he shows up, Greer and Brenna are having a moment and Greer looks really upset that it was interrupted by the bf. But that isn’t even the worst of it. Kieran and Brenna take their make out session to Greer’s bed. When she walks in on them, she asks them to leave, but not before Ford appears wearing her mothers wedding dress and drinking expensive champagne from the bottle, which may or may not have ended up all over the dress eventually. Safe to say that party experience didn’t go well.
What did you think of this weeks episode? Are you a fan of the Brenna, Kieran, Greer love triangle? How about the Leo, Dominic, April one? You know, the thing you learn really quickly in life is that there will always be more than one person you have feelings for. It’s just human nature. What you do with that is ultimately your decision. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out. Who will Brenna pick? The lesbian girl or her bf? And who will April pick? The terminally ill guy or her soulmate bf?
April Carver just received the worst prognosis of all- Chasing Life has been cancelled by ABC Family after just two seasons.
I, like so many Chasers am seriously upset by this news. What is ABC Family thinking? Why cancel a show that was so unapologetically real and has given viewers an insight into the ups and downs of what it’s like for a young person living with cancer, but shows like Keeping Up With The Kardashians get renewed for 11 seasons? What kind of society do we live in?
I’ve read statements and comments that some just thought the show was too depressing but hey, that’s life. Not everything is about what kind of handbag you’re wearing. And most of the time, despite all the crap that was thrown at April, every episode left me with a positive feeling. No moment during the two seasons have been this upsetting- not even Leo’s untimely death. Chasing Life depicted cancer in a way no other drama has before. That has to count for something, right?
Anyways, the drama ended with only 486,000 viewers tuning it, which was a season low.
The showrunner, Patrick Sean Smith told THR that there was still a lot to explore in season 3 like “April’s emotional state and her big decision to end treatment, there’s a lot to explore with Uncle George and the manuscript and the investigation that’s now in play, and then a lot to explore with Brenna and Finn now that Greer is moving back to town, and also what happens with Beth. I mean, everyone’s life is up in the air right now by the end of the second season.”
But, I guess we’re just supposed to be content knowing that April was content with dying in Italy because she lived more life than any other 25-year-old. Maybe she spent the rest of her days with Dominic? Maybe when she died, Beth had her baby and named it April. Who knows… we definitely won’t.
THR reports that the decision to cancel the show comes with ABC Family’s focus to rebrand and its focus on becoming “becomers.” They are adding a Nicki Minaj comedy and a new show, ShadowHunters.
There are a couple of petitions to “renew Chasing Life” circulating online already. Who knows if that will do anything, but we can hope.
Check it out HERE!
Just when you think things are looking up for April, she gets hit with bombshell after bombshell until she finally surrenders. But this can’t be April’s “final chapter” can it? A lot of loose plot lines were tied up at the end of the hour, but of course, those raised new question… and brought a tear or two to the corner of my eye. Damn allergies.
Beth’s Baby- Beth spent most of her time freaking out about the pregnancy. She’s about 6 weeks in now, so thankfully, we can do the math and figure out Josh is the father! That doesn’t put her mind at ease however because now she actually has to tell him. She finally corners him in the bathroom after watering the fikus with about 5 beers. He’s definitely surprised, but tells her he will be by her side no matter what she decides. Gosh, he’s such a standup guy right? Beth eventually goes to Italy with April and makes her decision there- she’s going to keep the baby. It’s a nice juxtaposition; her best friend is dying but she’s bringing a new life into this world. Possibly a beautiful baby girl named April?
Dominic & April- Well, apparently these two are endgame but just because two people want something, doesn’t mean the timing is right. April is still not over Leo and that’s ok. She has every right to mourn her late husband. But she also has every right to move on. I’ll admit, the kiss didn’t do it for me and maybe because I felt April was doing it all out of fear of missing out. However, I’m perfectly content with them as just friends who love each other right now. We need Dominic to help April with whatever comes next.
Uncle George- He kind of put himself in a predicament by telling the Carver women the truth about their dad. He thought he could trust them and most of them he could… but not Olivia and Natalie. They were shopping around Thomas’s book to get “justice.” And if George wouldn’t give them the rights, Olivia threatened to expose him to the cops. Finally, Natalie made the sound choice and put her sisters before this petty family drama. We thought it was all over, until the cops showed up to question him. Did Olivia betray her daughter and screw George over anyways?
April’s cancer- Sad news, her clinical trial didn’t work. The doc tried to keep her positive by saying there were still plenty of options, but the truth is, April is dying. It sucks and it’s depressing, especially when you read an interview that says the original telenovela that CL is based on “Terminales,” has April’s character killed… albeit by bus after beating the cancer. Hopefully, we go a different route, but you have to be realistic- cancer kills people. And it won’t spare April.
April goes to Italy to complete her one last “wish” of traveling the world. That’s when she realizes, by 25, she’s done everything on her bucket list. When she gets the call that the only option left for her is to get the transplant and hope her death isn’t painful, she realizes this is the last chapter in her memoir. I mean, you only write a memoir if you know how it’s going to end, right? Beth begs Ape not to give up but she replies, “It’s not giving up because I’ve already won. I could die happy here.” With that, she looks out into the sunset, while Beth and Dom look at each other concerned. Would they really let April just die without putting up one last fight?
Brenna & Finn… and now Greer- Finn gets super sick because cancer is a bitch and ends up in the hospital. That’s when he breaks up with Brenna and breaks her heart. He has to be focused on getting healthy and she’s kind of doing the opposite. “Maybe it isn’t meant to be,” he wonders, but alas, I think it is. And so does Brenna when she puts two and two together and finds out that she’s Finn’s donor! What are the odds? That kind of puts Greer’s return on the back burner, although Bren was really excited to see her ex, who surprise, is moving back to town! Can’t wait to see that traingle.
Chasing Life hasn’t been renewed for a 3rd season, but I’m seriously hoping this wasn’t actually April’s last chapter. I need to know what happens- the good or the bad. Does George get arrested? Do the Carver’s disown Natalie? Will April fight another day? Will she live out her end in Italy after publishing her memoir? How will Beth’s fashion line go? Will she embrace the pregnancy? Will April & Dominic get together again? Will Brenna and Greer? Will Finn be healthy? Will he find out Brenna is his donor. Listen to me ABC Family- renew this show right now!
Cancer, marriage, babies, high school hook ups- it’s all part of chasing life and it’s quite a beautiful thing. No matter what happens, you can expect this journey of ours never to be boring. I know April can vouch for that.
Since we met April, she’s gone through some drastic transformations. That presented itself this week when she met up with her friend Ellie, who I immediately knew was going to be trouble. Really? Skin cancer scare? Give me a break… I know people are desperate but to stoop THAT low and actually steal someones heart-wrenching diseases. Gross. Of course, instead of getting mad and even, April let nature take its course… well sort of.
April seems to have this stupid luck- when she realizes her book agent, who is really just starting out, hasn’t gotten her a secured deal with BookSmart, she takes matters into her own hands and fakes a seizure to get into a party to meet with the publisher. There she just so happens to run into Raquel, who just so happens to be buddy-buddy with the manager of the whole company. Cha-Ching! When April chats her up, turns out she’s really been invested in Ellie’s book and how she compared “cancer” to “herpes.”
Soon after, April’s chapter of the book leaks to The Post and she’s convinced that Raquel did it to sabotage her. But- she’s wrong! The positive comments on the chapter actually convinced the editor to publish April’s book! Rejoice everyone; April is now a published author! We did it!
And in other April news, she’s finally realizing that she still has feelings for Dominic. I can’t be mad about this though I hoped the writers weren’t going to throw her back into this relationship. Realistically, these two were together and broke up while they still had feelings. Those feelings were never resolved, she just fell deeply in love with Leo. But now that he’s gone, how long can April really mourn? How long can she be single? Be Leo’s widow? Maybe moving on is really the healthiest thing she can do. She isn’t forgetting, but she’s living. She’s chasing life.
Brenna finally succumbed to the cheesiness of milestone moments and asked Finn to go on a date to junior prom. Honestly, how adorable are these two together? After the dance, things get a little awkward when they end up in a room together. Kissing without a mask is dangerous because of Finn’s cancer, but he just wants to feel normal for a night. He wants to feel the high without the lows and who could blame him? So… he goes for it with Brenna. I believe the outcome will be dangerous, but watching them together was magical. Also, we’re getting closer to them finding out that Brenna is actually his donor! Both of them think cilantro tastes like soap. Absurd! Will that bring them closer together?
As for Beth, she’s been sick and emotional… and pregnant! I definitely didn’t see this storyline coming, but I am so excited. There have been little storylines aside from April’s cancer, but none as big as a pregnant best friend. They always say as one life begins, another ends. That’s really true in this case. Unfortunately, as fun as babies are, not knowing who the dad is becomes quite a problem. Especially cause it’s either her ex Grahm who she had a one night stand with or Josh, the dude she’s really falling in love with. I’m secretly hoping it’s Josh’s.
Everyone is chasing life in their own way, even Olivia Ortiz- Natalie’s mom and Thomas’s secret baby momma. Last week, she revealed that she had both parts of her ex’s spy novel and now the agent told April that she was shopping around his father’s book. Does Natalie know? I would think probably not, but her mother is spiteful and she’s definitely going after the money Thomas didn’t leave her, which is really unfortunate for the kids. And also- this is potentially scary for Uncle George, who revealed he pretty much assisted Thomas with his own death. You know, I really liked Natalie and this is pretty upsetting. But can you blame her? She’s the black sheep of the family, was never loved by her dad and her sister stole her BF…. not fun.
Next week is the fall finale. What do you think will be the most explosive part? Are you ready for a Dom and April relationship to heat back up? Will Finn get sick after hooking up with Brenna? Will Greer return?
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