Top 10 Shocking Moments From The Fosters

Teen pregnancy is never an easy subject but the writers on this show knew how to make it that much more emotional. Emma was the last girl we expected to get pregnant and it couldn’t have come at a worst time, with Jesus still recovering from his seizure. It was easy to empathize with Emma as she confided in Brandon about keeping the pregnancy a secret, but our hearts were torn as Jesus struggled up the stairs on his crutches to see her. It was a loaded secret for the two to keep, which only fuelled the drama over the course of the season.

This has to be one of the show’s most unexpected plotlines. After Matt didn’t want to have sex, Mariana feels hurt, leading to her getting drunk on the beach. Wyatt then finds her and the pair have sex. It was a big moment for Mariana, as it was her first time and it was a rash decision that had consequences on her relationship with Matt. To some fans it seemed like an odd choice for her to make, since Wyatt hadn’t been a regular on the show for a while, but it’s a great example of how this drama is unpredictable in all the right ways.

The bond between Callie and Jude is one of the show’s strongest since they were there for each other throughout their tumultuous childhood. But in the season one finale, the Adams Fosters were set to adopt both Jude and Callie when it’s revealed there’s a problem with her paperwork. Robert Quinn turns out to be Callie’s father, not Donald, and the abandonment papers he signed for her and Jude are void. Our hearts broke collectively for Callie, who finally found a family to love her, and they broke even further when she begged for Jude to get adopted without her.

The finale of any season is always rife with drama, but this moment had our hearts in our throats. Anna offers to drive Jesus and Mariana home but feels pain in her abdomen and, unsure if she’s in labor, they decided to drive to the hospital Instead. Unfortunately a car comes out of nowhere and slams into them. It then cuts to Stef being called to the scene of a car accident with one fatality, with the program ending just before she arrives at the scene. It was a major cliffhanger and we’re still not over it.

After Jesus goes missing and the family fears he’s with Ana somewhere unsafe, Stef and Mike go to Ana’s boyfriend’s house to track him down. Instead of finding Jesus, they walked into a home full of drugs and shots being fired. We don’t see the actual shooting take place but audiences were still stunned when Mike finds Stef on the ground with a gunshot wound to her abdomen and the shooter dead across from her. They keep audiences guessing if Stef will be okay for the of the episode with a masterful use of suspense.

What makes this show so great is it’s ability to deal with tough issues in a realistic way. When Callie breaks up with Brandon, he’s distraught and turns to alcohol to cope. Dani, Mike’s girlfriend, finds him drunk and upset over the break-up and instead of acting like a responsible adult she violates the law and takes advantage of Brandon by sleeping with him. It’s a terrible decision and the show makes it clear that Dani crosses the line with Brandon, who’s a minor and under the influence.

Gun violence is an all too real problem in the US, and this episode sheds light on this grim reality. After Nick witnesses Mariana and Matt embracing each other, it sends him into a downward spiral and he steals his father’s gun and brings it to school. After Stef and Mike suspected him of burning down his father’s warehouse and fearing he’s stolen the gun, they made the decision to put Anchor Bay on lockdown. It’s one of the most harrowing and riveting scenes in the show since no one knows where Nick is, and audiences are made to think his gun could go off at any moment.

Callie and Jude have had a tough life with foster homes that didn’t work out. By the time they get to the Adams Fosters it’s hard for both of them, especially Callie, to trust anyone. As their backstory unfolds, it comes out that one reason for Callie’s mistrust of others is that she was sexually assaulted by her old foster brother, Liam. In a powerful moment she confides in Brandon about her relationship with Liam, and that their relationship wasn’t consensual. Her confession is hard to hear but her growth from that moment has been incredible to watch.

The Adams Fosters have a full house, but Lena’s always wanted to give birth. The road to her pregnancy is bumpy, with donor drama and an early fake-out, but eventual elation at her pregnancy. When the doctor tells Lena that she must deliver the baby at 20 weeks due to high blood pressure, there’s no chance that the baby will survive. After tough a conversation with her mom, she realizes she’ll be putting herself at risk if she carries to term, and so she makes the tough decision to give birth. The moment feels true to life—messy, complicated, unfair—but these difficult emotions are what we’ve come to expect from the program.

Before we unveil our number one pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

When Sophia destroyed Callie’s abandonment papers
When Callie ran away
When Frank died

From day one Brandon and Callie have been the show’s ultimate will-they-won’t-they couple. We’ve seen their relationship go up and down over the course of the series and while they kissed, it seemed like they’d never cross the line and consummate their relationship… until season three that is. Callie was convinced that she wouldn’t be adopted after social services found out she kissed Brandon at the Girls United fundraiser, so she and Brandon finally give into temptation and years of pent-up tension. It’s a jaw dropping moment since their relationship seemed like a thing of the past, but with these two you can never be too sure.

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