Switched At Birth: “Ecce Mono”

The exact origin of the idea that it takes a village to raise a child may be unknown, but Switched At Birth is quietly making the case that for the Kennish/Vasquez family it might just be the only way they can survive. It’s a notion the show has been slowly circling to ever since the pilot, when Regina and Daphne moved onto the Kennish property so everyone could get to know each other better. Then, bit by bit, this subtext builds until it explodes into actual text in “Ecco Mono,” a “What if?” episode that explores what could have happened if Regina would have revealed the switch to the Kennishes 13 years ago when she first found out.
Alternate universe episodes can be a lot of fun or a complete disaster, depending on the intent and execution. Switched At Birth makes the smart choice of playing the drama occurring solely in John’s unconscious brain completely straight, as an honest-to-goodness look at what could have actually happened if John got exactly what he wished for in the previous episode: that the Kennishes raised both Daphne and Bay without any involvement from Regina. By treating the concept with seriousness and respect, an episode that could have been a simple flight of fancy or momentary diversion becomes something more: A genuinely moving, character-illuminating hour that proves just how important these two very different families have become to each other.
Despite the straightforward nature, the episode still has plenty of fun along the way playing with the characters’ developed personas and tweaking them to fit these new circumstances. In John’s coma-dream, Regina told the hospital of the switch the second she discovered the issue, which snowballed into the Kennishes taking custody of both girls when Regina’s alcoholism is revealed in court. This one decision changed everything in the girls’ lives, mostly for the worse—especially because Regina’s inability to quit her alcohol habit (or John’s refusal to see the changes she made; it’s never quite clear) means both Bay and Daphne grew up with no contact with her whatsoever. Combine that with Daphne’s cochlear implant and Bay’s feeling that she never really “belonged” in her own family, and it’s basically a recipe for disaster.
What’s great about how all of this plays out within the episode is that the writers never really spoon-feed the audience these developments—other than an awkward line about Daphne not being a vegetarian in this universe, most all character differences come through in the writing and performance rather than overt nods to the changes. The biggest difference by far is Daphne, who through her cochlear implant at a young age and inability to sign, completely loses her deaf identity. Without it—and under the coddling Kennish influence—Daphne is a sort of shallow empty shell, desperate to feel like she belongs anywhere and making the poor decisions that come along with that desperation. The missing pieces of her—pieces of Regina, of Adriana, of the recognition of her hearing loss—are things she doesn’t even know she’s missing, holes she tries to fill any way she knows how.