Right before the hand-holding. Photo Credit: Michael Yarish/ AMC.

Read on for my recap & review of Mad Men 4xo6, “Waldorf Stories,” aired Sunday, August 29th, 2010:

On Sunday night, before watching Mad Men, I watched the show win the Emmy for “Outstanding Drama Series,” for a third year in a row.  Matthew Weiner and Erin Levy took home statues for “Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series,” for the phenomenal season three finale “Shut the Door. Have a Seat.”  At the Creative Arts Emmy Awards last week, Mad Men won for “Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series” and “Outstanding Hairstyling for a Single-Camera Series.”  The latter was for the fabulous up-do created by department head hairstylist Lucia Mace, for the Roman get-away episode, “Souvenir.” Well-deserved awards all around.  It was only fitting that while Jon Hamm attended the 62^nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, the fictional Don Draper attended an award ceremony of his own, the CLIO Awards.  Named for the muse of history, the CLIO Awards is actually a real organization, and according to its website, “is the world’s most recognized global awards competition for advertising, design, and interactive.”  Yes, this week’s award themed episode was well-timed, and the CLIO Awards provided a fitting center piece for the episode airing the night of the Emmys.  

Don Draper won the CLIO award for his work on Glo-Coat, the commercial that we watched him view back in the season four premiere.  Featuring the tagline, “Foot prints on a wet floor are no longer a hanging offense,” the ad depicted a little boy in a cowboy hat hiding under a wooden chair in a darkened kitchen.  The bars on the chair brought prison bars to mind, but then things brightened when his mother entered the kitchen, holding a bottle of Glo-Coat floor wax.  This ad seems to be a proud accomplishment for Don.  He watched it fondly, and seemed to have an emotional connection to the little boy under the table, despite his protests to the contrary in “Christmas Comes But Once a Year.” At the awards banquet, sitting next to Joan, he holds her hand in anticipation, and it is clear that he really wants to win.  And he does.  However, this little moment of triumph is quickly followed with oh so much decline.  Oh, Don Draper, how far you have fallen.

Fresh from the victory at the CLIOs, a very drunk Don goes to a meeting with Life Cereal, and it is a disaster.  His hair is a mess, his body movements are sloppy, and he is clearly not in control.  To begin his presentation he states, “I know you want to associate it with health, but that’s not fun. […]  And ‘life,’ that’s a scary word to anyone at any age.”  His concept is to target the mothers’ fears about their children facing the “big bowl of life,” and wants to go for a deeper ad campaign than the clients desire.  They think “it’s a bit smart for regular folks.”  All they want, it turns out, is a slogan.  Don’s co-workers look alarmed at this, worrying how Don will react, and try to step-in and take the pressure off Don.  He won’t hear of it, however, and instead he lists off a number of slogans for the Life executives, each more clichéd than the last, including, “Cure for the common breakfast.”  The Life Cereal execs jump on this one, but there is one problem.  That slogan was an idea thought up by aspiring employee Danny, a cousin of Roger’s wife Jane, and played by Danny Strong of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Gilmore Girls fame.  In a meeting at the opening of the episode, Don and Peggy laughed his portfolio out of the room, but now, in a drunken stupor, Don actually steals his idea.  Taking credit for someone else’s idea, an idea that’s not even a good one, at that?  Certainly a new low for the creative Don.

“Credit,” and whether or not one is getting the credit that he or she deserves, is an important theme in this episode.  Peggy is resentful that Don is the one who gets all the accolades for Glo-Coat.  She feels that it was mostly her idea, and she is offended that Don does not acknowledge that, nor is she even permitted to attend the CLIO Awards.  She has her revenge, of sorts, when she explains to Don the monumental screw-up that he perpetrated with Life Cereal.  Peggy wins, again (but more on her other wins further on).  Roger, meanwhile, resents Don as well.  At the CLIO reception, he gets very drunk, and mopes about looking jealous of Don.  He tells Joan, “He’s pretty proud of himself.”  Joan notes that it’s an impressive accomplishment, and Roger points out, “They don’t seem to provide words for what I do.”  She wonders what exactly that is.  Valid question.  Roger answers, “Find guys like him.”  Hmmm …  When Don’s award goes missing, Roger offers to return it, on one condition: “I’ll give it back to you if you just say one thing: ‘You couldn’t have done it without me.’”  Don: “Did I not say that?  That was wrong.”  The two shake hands, though technically Don does not actually say “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

So, Roger “found” Don.  There is a lot of back story there, and luckily for us, we were able to learn some of it, in a series of flashbacks.  (Yay flashbacks!  I love them so.)  In some ways, “Waldorf Stories” is the “Out of Gas” of Mad Men, in which we learn how our characters first met.  A delightful treat, indeed.  About five years or so before Don’s success in season one, Don was a salesman, selling furs.  Roger comes in, looking for a gift that says, “I’m getting to know you, but I don’t want to scare you.”  He notices an ad in the store reading, “Why wait for a man to buy you a fur coat?”  Roger thinks that’s “a dumb question,” to which I say, “Shush yourself, Roger.”  He asks Don who does his work, and Don replies, “I do.”  It’s a passion of his, so his boss lets him.  When Roger hands him his card, Don realizes that he’s an ad man, and gets excited.  Yes, this flashback era Don Draper was so young and full of life and ambition.  But Roger is old and cynical, and he shuts the eager man down.

Cut to Joan and Roger in a hotel room.  Our beloved redhead is the recipient of the fur cape, and she and Roger are at the early stages of an affair.  Joan, like Don, seems younger and happier, and more hopeful.  Her hair is down, and she is very playful with Roger, and they both seem to genuinely care about each other.  Roger is angered, however, when he sees that Don included his portfolio in the gift box, and throws it aside without even glancing inside.

An uncertain number of days later, Don greets Roger in the Sterling Cooper lobby.  After Roger sees through the thin pretense that Don is running into him accidentally, Don reveals that he left Roger multiple messages and says, “I just wanted to know what you thought of my portfolio.”  Roger replies that he threw it out, and points out that “it was a bad idea” on Don’s part.  Don: “Maybe it was a bad idea, but didn’t you ever try to get a break once?”  This seems to soften Roger up a bit, and he asks where Don’s boss thinks he is.  Don: “He knows I want to do what you do.”  Don continues, saying that he’d do anything to buy him a drink and hear him talk about what he does.  Roger snarks, “It’s 10am.”

Aaaaaand … cut to a restaurant, several cocktails in.  Roger points out, “And how can I hire you, you know too much about me.”  Don: “You know I’ve been discreet.”  Roger: “Once you say that, you’re no longer discreet.  There is more back-and-forth, and it becomes clear that Roger is wasted.  Don walks him out, offering to get him a taxi.  What happens after Don and Roger exit the restaurant, we don’t know (nor does Roger it seems), but we do witness the consequences.  The next morning Don greets Roger at Sterling Cooper, and in response to his questioning, says that Roger told him to come in.  Roger: “The hell I did.”  Don: “You hired me.”  Again, Roger clearly does not remember this, but he seems to accept it.  Do you think Don actually got a job offer?  Or is he manipulating drunk Roger’s poor memory for his own benefit?  Don gets into the elevator with his new boss, a happy smile on his face, as the music plays.  “Up up up the ladder of success.  Once he let me share his dream, but now that they come true it seems … he doesn’t want my love I guess.  Look there goes my happiness.”  Yes, Roger discovered Don, but he was pretty much tricked into it.  Still, Roger decides to take a chance on Don, and it paid off.  So, does Roger expect more credit for that than it’s worth?  I think Don and Roger would both answer that question differently.

In addition to the theme of “credit due,” this episode is also concerned with Don’s continuing decline.  Yes, this episode was not a high point for Don’s character.  Not only did we have Don’s professional screw-up with the Life Cereal, but his personal life is a mess as well.  At the CLIO party Don hits on Faye, but she turns him down.  Smart lady.  However, Don just finds a lady who’s willing, and ends up in bed with her.  When the camera fades into morning, however, Don wakes up with another woman, whom he seems to have no recollection of.  It seems that he has gone on a bender, and has no idea what he’s done since the night of the CLIO Awards.  The phone rings, and when Don answers, Betty yells at him for not showing up to pick up the kids.  She and Henry had a very important brunch, which they have now missed.  Don protests, “I’m coming on Sunday.”  Betty: “It is Sunday.”  He apologizes, but Betty is angry, and sarcastically responds, “Well thank you for the notice, Don.  Thanks a lot.”  After she hangs up on him, Don has to deal with the blonde woman in his bed.  He references the name on her waitress uniform to tell her, “I had a great time, Doris.  Really sorry I forgot I had plans.” Once she leaves, Don pours a glass of whiskey and lies on the couch.  Sigh.  Has Don hit rock bottom?  Will he start turning things around now?  Or will he sink even lower?

But enough about Don.  Let’s talk about the real star of this episode: Peggy Olson.  This is Peggy’s season, people.  Everyone else is just living in it.  As I already mentioned, Peggy spent the beginning of the episode resentful that she was not given proper credit for her work on Glo-Coat.  She is not invited to the CLIO Awards, and instead is ordered to work with Rizzo, the new art director.  And Rizzo?  Well, he has nothing in common with my favorite Grease character, sadly.  Instead, he’s a chauvinistic jerk, and it is hard to believe that he has any artistic talent (though Don says he is talented and experienced).  He also dresses unlike any of our characters, sporting a leather jacket.  He makes me miss Sal so much more than I already did.  But Peggy is stuck with Rizzo, who is obsessed with nudity, is more concerned with flirting with secretaries than working, and constantly criticizes Peggy.

Not only is Peggy stuck with Rizzo, she ends up stuck with him in a hotel room all weekend, in order to make progress on the Vick Chemical account. As Peggy attempts to work, Rizzo reads a Playboy magazine and annoys her.  When the subject of Don comes up, he notes, “I know you have a special relationship.”  Peggy: “What does that mean?”  Rizzo quickly explains that he didn’t mean anything sexual, insulting her in the process, and adds: “I know you’re his favorite.  I bet he takes you hunting and lets you carry the carcasses in your mouth.”  Well, that’s quite an image.  Peggy gets fed up with all his bravado and asks, “So, why aren’t you a nudist?  You talk about it all the time.”  Rizzo replies, “In a liberated environment I might be.  But in the presence of the pope, or say, you, it’s difficult.”  Peggy: “You don’t know anything about me.”  He really doesn’t.  Rizzo: “I know you’re ashamed of your body.  You should be, at least.”

And how does Peggy react to this?  A snappy one-liner?  A shrug and an eye-roll?  An angry diatribe?  Oh no.  Peggy is way too awesome for that.  Instead, she just strips down to her underwear, and tells him the truth, “You’re lazy and you have no ideas.”  Rizzo is shocked: “You’re a fruitcake.”  Peggy: “And you’re chicken shit.”  In response to Rizzo’s dumbstruck expression, Peggy tells him, “I can work like this.  Let’s get liberated.”  As @HitFixDaniel noted on Twitter, that should totally be a tee-shirt.  Peggy, you are my hero.  Rizzo, however, does not take said liberation as well, though he does try to play it off at first, pretending it’s “fantastic.”  He takes off his clothes too, but when Peggy removes her bra, it is clear that he is NOT handling this well.  Peggy just casually says, “Let’s sell cough drops.  Got any ideas?”  Have I mentioned lately how awesome Peggy is?  Because, seriously, she is so cool.  He says he’s thinking, but it’s pretty clear that he’s not thinking of cough drops.  When Peggy looks over, he says, “It’s involuntary.”  Peggy just gets to work: “Now, I don’t think it’s hard to convince people that cough drops are medicine when they taste like it.”  Ha!

Cut to sometime later, and Peggy and Rizzo are still naked.  Peggy is pitching ideas, while Rizzo looks increasingly uncomfortable.  Peggy doesn’t let the guy slide: “Anything you’d like to add?  This pencil is a little dull.  Maybe I should dip that thing in a bit of ink and write with it.”  Ha!  Rizzo: “Fine, you win.”  He stands up and starts getting dressed.  Peggy, feigning innocence, asks, “Win what?”  Rizzo: “Win the prize for the smuggest bitch in the world.”  He then leaves the room, saying that he has “to take a leak.”  Peggy is pretty smug, but deservedly so.  Smiling, she asks, “Hey Rizzo, I’m hungry.  Do you want anything?”  Hehe.  The more uncomfortable Rizzo is, the more carefree and happy Peggy is.  Love it.  Peggy is so much cooler than everyone else.

AMC posted a nudity warning for “The Rejected,” two weeks ago, for a couple naked magazine photos.  But there was no warning prior to this one.  I wasn’t offended by either episode, but while we didn’t actually see naked body parts in “Waldorf Stories,” the episode seems far naughtier than “The Rejected.”  In fact, this episode’s use of suggestion without actually using specific words, could teach a lot of television shows some alternatives to graphic sex.  You don’t have to show or say everything to get the message across.  I’m talking to you, True Blood.  Side-note: According to Matthew Weiner, on AMCtv.com, the Peggy moment is based on a true story from one of the writers.  I want to meet that writer and give her a round of applause.

Additional notes:

• It was so much fun seeing Danny Strong on Mad Men, and he is perfectly cast as Danny (name coincidence much?).  He really is a “superstar.”
• It was also fun to see Grace from Joan of Arcadia show up as Don’s one-night stand, Doris.  Becky Wahlstrom was one of my favorite parts of that show.
• Oh, and one more casting bit: Victor Kiriakis presented Don his award!  And yes, long-time soap-opera actor John Aniston is Jennifer Aniston’s dad.
• Roger is writing a book!  How great is that?
• Ken Cosgrove has joined SCDP.  Pete’s reaction to this news was hilarious, as was the way that Lane manipulated him to get his approval.  I like Lane more and more each episode.
• As suspense for the award was building, at the CLIO reception, Roger held Joan’s hand under the table.  Adorable.  And then Don did the same thing.  Awww.  What would those boys do without Joan?  Less adorable was Don kissing Joan on the lips when his name was called.  Hands off!  I’m going to interpret it as a platonic victory kiss, in the moment, but please don’t go there, show.  Please.
• I didn’t write a recap last week, but I did record a podcast about “The Rejected” and “The Chrysanthemum and the Sword,” which you can listen to here or on iTunes.
• I was curious to see if Glo-Coat was a real company, and I discovered that it is, and also got drawn into watching a bunch of the company’s old commercials on YouTube.  Fun times.  SURFSTYLEY4 points out, “Johnsons Glo Coat thought up the hover skateboard years before the movie BACK TO THE FUTURE DID.”  Amazing.

Mad Men meets True Blood. Photo Credit: Michael Yarish/ AMC.

[Updated post]: Here is the second Heroine TV Podcast, originally recorded and released on August 27th, and edited a few days later to resolve some audio quality problems.  Mad Men talk is first, and the True Blood talk starts around the 63 minute and 20 second mark.  Heads up, there is some vague discussion of the Sookie Stackhouse novels, but nothing too spoilery or specific.  You can also subscribe to the podcast via iTunes.

October 16th, 1988
Dear Diary,

Today kids at school made fun of my name, again. I don’t know what my parents were thinking. My mother said that they’re just jealous of my manly good looks, and called me her lil’ Han Solo. I told her that I am 10 and my name is not Han, but she just laughed. Grrrr. I hate my name.

August 24th, 2001
Dear Diary,

I met the most beautiful woman on campus today. Her name is Isobel, and she said that she is studying parapsychology.  I don’t even know what that means, but she’s really hot.

August 25th, 2001
Dear Diary,

Well it turns that para-whatever is kind of freaky.  That Isobel-chick is into some weird psychic stuff.  Whatever, it’s not like any of that supernatural stuff is real.  She seems really cool, so this is sure to end well.  I just wish she would stop talking about vampires …

September 10th, 2007
Dear Diary,

Isobel gave me the ugliest ring today.  It is just soooo gaudy.  Oh well, I love her too much not to wear it.  I’ll just tell people it’s a family heirloom if they give me a hard time.

September 18th, 2007
Dear Diary,

I can’t believe that Isobel is really gone.  They haven’t found her body, and the police have no leads.  But I will find out what happened to her.  I read all kinds of stuff on her laptop, and it terrifies me.  Vampires are real.  I have to train to kill them so that I can avenge my wife’s death.  But how does one even start?  I guess that I will begin with a Buffy the Vampire Slayer marathon.  I mean, it can’t hurt, can it?

November 12th, 2009
Dear Diary,

Every day I ask myself, W.W.B.D.: What would Buffy do?  But Buffy never taught history in Mystic Falls.  Today I’ll have to figure out how to do things my own way, as I start work at my new job.  I’m so close to learning more about vampires, I can feel it.

November 19th, 2009
Dear Diary,

Today I staked my first vampire: Logan Fell.  He was giving Jenna a hard time, so I kept an eye on him, and realized what he really was.  Not only was he a vampire, but he was snooty, just like all the Fells.  Good riddance.

January 21st, 2010
Dear Diary,

I can’t stop thinking about killing Logan Fell.  I mean, I finally found a vampire.  I found one, after years of research and study.  There it was, right in front of me.  I was terrified.  As I stared it in the eyes, I drove a stake through its heart.  I was right about Mystic Falls.  There is evil here. I can sense it.  Feel it.  It’s everywhere.**

Later that night …
But Logan Fell was not the only evil thing in Mystic Falls.  The vampire who killed my wife is here!  I ran into him at the Mystic Grill.  He’s extremely handsome … those blue eyes are just so piercing.  Um … where was I?  Oh yeah … alas! Alack!  Sigh.  I am so tortured.  I barely have time to shave.  I only have time to shave just enough to remain ruggedly handsome.  I mean, it’s not like I’m trying to go for the classic Marlboro-man look, and I definitely don’t have a picture of scruffy Harrison Ford from the 1970s hanging next to my bathroom mirror.  Really.  Wait, what have you heard?  I just turn out swoon-worthy without even trying.  And have I mentioned lately that I miss my wife?  I’m so damaged and sensitive.

January 28th, 2010
Dear Diary,

Today I read some porn for history teachers.  I love a good first hand account of the Civil War.  Also, I think that the Gilberts are definitely connected to vampires, but I have to learn more.  Let’s see … what else happened today?  Oh, yeah, I chaperoned a dance and my wife’s killer showed up and tried to compel me.  Luckily, I just thought, W.W.B.D., and totally kept my cool.  I’m really starting to get the hang of this whole vampire slayer thing.  Oh, and Jenna totally digs me.

February 4th, 2010
Dear Diary

I had a run in with Stefan Salvatore today.  But don’t worry, I was totally in control of the situation.  Totally.  He even compared me to Van Helsing.  I mean, Van Helsing is not as cool as Buffy, but still pretty awesome.  I am so hard-core.

March 25th, 2010
Dear Diary,

Jenna roped me into a Bachelor Auction fundraiser.  But wait, it gets worse.  I was auctioned off next to DAMON of all people … er, vampires.  And he started talking trash about my dead wife.  Ugh.  I hate that guy.  Though he does have lovely eyes.  But still … such a jerk. Oh, and apparently Isobel had a child before I knew her, and it is possibly Elena.  Why me, world?  Why me?  I am starting to feel like I didn’t know Isobel very well.

But wait, it gets even worse.  I was so pissed at Damon for what he said, that I went to his house and tried to stake him.  I mean, that’s what Buffy would do, right?  Unfortunately, I ended up dead.  Yep, the a#!hole killed me.  Luckily the ring from Isobel protected me.  Ugh, I hate Damon.

April 8th, 2010
Dear Diary,

Today I teamed up with Damon and Elena to save Stefan.  I know, right?  I never thought that I would team up with my wife’s killer to save another vampire.  Hmmm … why did I again?  Oh yeah, nobody calls me “coward.”  I am the Marty McFly of vampire slaying.  Also, I punched Damon in the face.  It was amaaaaaaaazing.  Today was the best day ever.

April 15th, 2010
Dear Diary,

Ugh.  Elena’s uncle has a ring that looks exactly like mine!  And it gets worse: he is the one who gave Isobel the ring that she gave to me!  FML.

April 22nd, 2010
Dear Diary,

The Founders’ Council think that Founders’ Day is more important than WWII, apparently.  Ugh.  So to placate them, I have to interrupt my syllabus to talk about the town’s history.  Studying Texas would be way cooler.  Only wimps have ancestors from Virginia.  Also, I helped Elena with a plan to drug Stefan today.  He’s so out of control that he even choked me.  I thought that we were friends!  I’m totally deleting Stefan’s number from my phone book.  I mean, he was getting close to Fave Five status, but no more.

April 29th, 2010
Dear Diary,

I’m starting to think that Damon’s not half-bad.  Yeah, he killed my wife, and he killed me, but gee he is so much fun.  We went to investigate a tip on the tomb vampires today, and I ended up staking a vampire.  It was so funny, because before we went into the house, I warned Damon not to kill anyone, but then I totally ended up killing someone.  Hilarious!  Okay, maybe you had to be there.  Anyways, after I killed the vamp, we shared some blood and beer.  No big deal.  Oh, and we bonded over unrequited love.  We’re totally Scoobies now.

May 6th, 2010
Dear Diary,

Today was the worst day ever.  I was drowning my sorrows at the bar last night, as I am wont to do, when my dead wife showed up.  She is a vampire!  I am not even kidding, you guys.  She didn’t have any answers for me.  It sucked.  All she wanted was for me to arrange a meeting with her and her daughter, Elena.  When I said no, she threatened to kill my students.  They’re all pretty annoying, but it would be wrong, so I had to arrange the meeting.  When I went to report to the other Scoobies, Damon kept on asking me a million questions.  I was like, “Hello, I was a little too distracted by my dead vampire wife to ask questions.”  Geez, people.

But later Damon and I spent some quality time together, and I’m really starting to understand him.  And I don’t believe that he’s really given up all his humanity, like Isobel has.  But I’m still not letting him kill my wife, evil bit#!  or not.

*This is meant to be entirely silly.  Please take it for the nonsense that it is.  Thanks!

**Actual dialogue from “Bloodlines.”

Okay, all done for now. Please feel free to construct your own diary entries in the comments section.  Have some fun!

Julie Benz stars as Stephanie Powell, a scientist, wife, and mother. Oh, and she also has super speed. Photo Credit: ABC.com.

Good news: if you’re in the U.S., you can view the No Ordinary Family pilot in its entirety, though only for a limited time.  Just go to No Ordinary Family Advanced Screening and enter the case-sensitive password: Extraordinary.  Thanks to No Ordinary Family Online, for posting the info. [Update: KSite TV posted about this advance screening yesterday, and the password was originally discovered by The Stitch Kingdom.]  The series doesn’t actually premiere until September 28th, at 8/7c on ABC, so it is a nice treat to watch more than a month in advance.

Not sure if it’s worth 44 minutes and 15 seconds of your time?  Well, here’s the concept.  The show centers on an oh-so-stereotypical nuclear family: dad, mom, teenage daughter, and teenage son.  Dad is unfulfilled at his job, and just wishes he could make a difference.  Mom is super successful at work, but struggling to balance her duties at home.  Teenage daughter texts all the time and has a teenage boyfriend, who she’s worried might break up with her because she’s not ready to sleep with him.  And teenage son is struggling with school and whines a lot.  But things take a turn  when the family’s plane crashes while on vacation.  They survive, but not unchanged, as each soon discovers startling new abilities.  How will each of these characters deal with their newfound powers?  And how will these new powers affect each family member’s relationships with one another?  These are the questions that the pilot explores, and that the series promises to continue to explore.

Comparisons are inevitable, so let’s just get that out of the way.  There are some elements to remind us of Heroes and The Incredibles, but there is also a lot of everyday family drama.  The tone and scope of No Ordinary Family is drastically different from Heroes.  For one thing, it is far less epic than Heroes ever tried to be, which could work in its favor.  No Ordinary Family is more concerned with Stephanie and Jim’s rocky marriage than destiny and saving the world.  It is about one family, one story, not 15 or so different ones, conveniently combined into one show.  This could allow for greater depth of characters and story lines, as the plot is not constantly shifting to take on new and shiny powers.  However the No Ordinary Family pilot is in no way as strong and moving as the Heroes pilot was.  Heroes started out spectacularly, but couldn’t sustain the momentum.  No Ordinary Family has a less brilliant start, but there is a lot of potential for growth, and not as far to fall and disappoint.  We shall have to wait and see what the series becomes.

All in all, I enjoyed the pilot.  It was heartfelt, while also remaining light and entertaining.  Julie Benz and Michael Chiklis are great in their roles, and I also really enjoyed their respective sidekicks, played by Taylor Townsend and Romany Malco.  The kids are probably the weakest link, so hopefully their characters will become less annoying in the future.  While annoying teenagers are realistic, they are hard to watch every week.  Another problem is that some of the writing is just clichéd and unoriginal.  The dialogue attempted to be witty at some points, but it never quite got there.  The humorous moments ran a little flat.  Still, a show is just starting to find its feet in a pilot, so there is a lot of potential here, and I will definitely keep watching.  

Now for the details.  Here is where things get spoilery, so if you haven’t watched yet, you should wait to read. The episode begins with a voice over by Michael Chiklis, who plays Jim Powell, husband, and father of two.  He talks about how ordinary his family.  Well, if you can call a nuclear family–complete with father, gorgeous blonde mother, one daughter, and one son–ordinary.  It seems more like an orange juice commercial to me than anything resembling normal.  But apparently Americans still like to think that the 1950s ideal is normal, rather than a rarity.  Still, a clear contrast is being set up.  Jim proposes a family vacation, arguing that they never spend any time together.

Next thing we see, the family is boarding a small chartered plane, in Belem, Brazil.  They are going to take a sunset tour of the rain forest, but they encounter terrible weather.  Uh oh.  As the plane is in distress, there is some corny dialogue, as the Powell’s bewail their predicament.  Jim’s voice over then comes on, where he romanticizes the past.  Apparently everything used to be perfect, but the family has been growing apart.  In a series of flashbacks we see that the kids are growing up, and don’t want to spend time with their dad like they used to.  We learn that Stephanie (played by the lovely Julie Benz), has a high-powered career as a research scientist, and was recently promoted to executive vice president of research.  She is very busy with her job, while Jim feels all alone.  Oh, and see how I didn’t call Stephanie “Darla” there?  I’m so proud of myself.

But back in the present, the plane crashes into the water below.  The entire Powell family survives, but the pilot “wasn’t as lucky.”  As Jim’s voice over shares, they held each other close and vowed a new beginning … promises that lasted about 30 seconds.  When the Powells arrive home, Jim is disappointed that the crash didn’t change anything.  Stephanie tries to comfort him, and they make plans for a nice dinner that night.

Cut to Jim explaining his feelings of inadequacy to his friend George, played by Romany Malco.  He played Conrad on Weeds, and I thought that he was one of the best parts of that show, before I quit watching.  Jim explains that as the plane was crashing, he thought “The world needs her.”  As in his wife.  George says that he should tell Stephanie how he’s been feeling, but Jim doesn’t think he can.  George gives him a card for couples therapy, and as it turns out, the voice overs are actually Jim and Stephanie talking to this therapist.

We then follow Jim to work, where we learn that he is a sketch artist for the police department.  He feels ineffectual, and wishes that he could help people.  However, as he’s telling this to a female detective, one of the suspects in the precinct gets hold of a gun.  Jim jumps to block the detective, and the bullet hits him, but it doesn’t harm him.  Man of steel?  Hmmm …

Cut to Julie Benz’s voice over, as she talks about how she never has enough time.  That will be a recurring theme in this episode.  She works at Global Tech, and her current research deals with a flower that has unlimited potential.  It would be interesting if her work as a scientist uncovered the source of her eventual powers, which it almost certainly will.

Meanwhile, the daughter, Daphne, returns to school only to see some other girl flirting with her boyfriend.  She kind of over reacts, however, and seems very possessive.  Clearly her relationship with Lucas is not solid.

Cut to Jim, who goes to a batting cage to test out his new powers.  He pays the guy who works there so that he has the place to himself, and starts catching 90mph balls with his bare hands.  He then messes with the control box to go over 100mph.  Craziness.

At school, Stephanie stops by to talk to her son, J.J.’s teacher.  The teacher recommends that J.J. be tested for a learning disability, but Stephanie will not hear it.  She seems to think that having a learning disability is something terrible, which (PSA alert), it totally is NOT.  J.J., however, hears every word, as apparently no one ever thinks to close doors.  Sigh.  Not that he shouldn’t know about the learning disability, but that is really not the way to present the idea to the kid.

Back at the batting cages, George shows up to see Jim’s ball catching skills.  George seems to think it’s a magic trick or something.  But the humor is knocked out of him when Jim tells him to shoot him.

Cut to Stephanie with Reverend Camden.  Yep, Stephen Collins from 7th Heaven plays Stephanie’s colleague/ boss.  He tells her about having drinks with some bigwig, so she calls her husband to cancel their plans.  Jim takes this surprising well, however, as he now has some purpose in his life.

Meanwhile, Jim tries to convince George, whom we learn is a D.A., to shoot him.  He says: “Something extraordinary’s happened to me.  Something impossible.”  As terrified George tries to get up the nerve, the gun goes off by mistake, and Jim jumps to catch the bullet.  And again, he is bullet-proof.

Then Stephanie’s voice over comes on, discussing “unexplained phenomena.”  She is telling the story of “when it happened” to the therapist.  As she is running late, she breaks out into a run, and suddenly she is going at super speed, and running on the freeway.  In fact, she shatters someones’ rear view mirror with how fast she’s running.  So now we know her power.

Cut to Jim and George on the top of a building.  George is trying to convince Jim that he can fly.  He tells him to just jump off the building.  Jim decides to listen, stupidly, and he crashes on the sidewalk.  Luckily, he gets right up.  ”Okay, you can’t fly.  [Jim then jumps from the street up to building, in a single bound.]  But you can jump.”  See what I mean about the dialogue?

Back at the lab, Stephanie decides to confide in someone, selecting her assistant Katie.  Katie is played by the lovely Autumn Reeser, who played the hilarious Taylor Townsend on The O.C. We don’t learn too much about Katie yet, other than the fact that she’s in therapy and is a comic book fan, but I’m excited to see more from her.  Her love for Kitty Pryde is a good start.  The two go out to a track to test Stephanie’s speed, and Katie asks questions on the part of the audience, about how her clothes and body can safely handle the speed.  Some type of “charged plasma field from the kinetic energy” possibly.  Her new powers will also not affect her clothing size, despite the need for “massive caloric intake.”  Also due to her speed, Stephanie has the time to race home and work with J.J. on his homework.

Meanwhile, Jim is also at work, and it seems that his increased strength has been breaking his keyboards.  Oops.  It also seems that the police have not really made any progress in catching the Obama-Mask killer.  Jim sadly tells the detective from earlier, “You can’t catch ‘em and I can’t draw ‘em.”  Side note: the Obama-Mask killer is an extremely disturbing idea.  I hope that was not one culled from real life.

Cut to George and Jim talking about his new abilities.  They don’t know his limits yet.  George repeats that he needs to tell Stephanie.  And speaking of Stephanie, she calls her husband at that moment for an afternoon booty call.

George goes home and the two have sex, but the happiness doesn’t last long.  The two proceed to fight, and it is clear that they both have some deep-seated issues with each other.  The argument is interrupted, however, when Jim gets a call from George, telling him about chatter on the police scanner.  Jim rushes off.

Jim confronts the Obama Mask criminal, but ends up shot in the back of his neck by a second guy in a mask (or so it seems).  This time, the bullet does penetrate, but it doesn’t seriously injure him.  The variable seems to be that the gun was far closer this time.

Cut to Jim waking up in bed.  George brought him there, and told Stephanie.  Jim is upset, but then it turns out that Stephanie does, indeed, understand.  The two share info on their powers, and they decide that “the only possible variable” was the plane crash.  Jim notes that the whole family was in the water, and at that moment Daphne calls with an emergency.

Stephanie goes to meet Daphne and hears all about it.  At a basketball game, Daphne was fighting with the girl who was hitting on Lucas, when she starts to hear her thoughts: “I can’t believe I actually feel sorry for you.”  Then when the game starts, she also hears everyone else’s.  And the thoughts?  They are not pretty.  Hopefully she can learn to control it, so that this doesn’t become an “Earshot” situation.  It will drive her maaaaaaaad.

We move into a family meeting where the Powells discuss their new abilities.  Daphne doesn’t want to hear it.  She’s in denial about her powers, and she is a total brat to her parents.  J.J. just whines, since he doesn’t have any powers.  Daphne yells some more, and instead of punishing her, her parents agree that she’s right.  Whatever.

Later, Jim goes to work and sketches the Obama Mask guy that he saw.  He covers, saying that a witness saw the guy fleeing one of the crime scenes.  The detectives go off to explore the tip, but don’t let Jim tag along.  Instead, Jim jumps from building to building, presumably on the way to the suspect’s house.

Cut to Daphne and her boyfriend Lucas, and she quickly learns why the girl felt sorry for her.  It turns out that Lucas is sleeping with Emily, Daphne’s best friend.

Meanwhile, the detectives arrive at the suspect’s girlfriend’s place and she lies that she hasn’t seen him.  However, as they exit the building, they run into the guy, who pulls out his gun and fires.  This criminal is very mustache twirly and arch so it’s all a little over-done.

Cut to Daphne telling her mom about Lucas’s betrayal.  Aw, their powers are already bringing mother and daughter back together.  J.J., however, is still being whiny and bitter.

As the masked-killer loads the female detective into his trunk, for insurance, Jim confronts him.  As the two fight, we learn that the bad-guy has powers too.  He can disappear and reappear in a puff of smoke, much like Nightcrawler in X-Men.  Interesting.  The existence of others with abilities provides potential for some interesting story arcs.  Ultimately, however, the detective revives enough to shoot the masked guy, saving Jim.  Instead of thanking Jim for his help, she tells him to get out of there.

Later, Jim and Stephanie talk through their problems.  Stephanie tells him, “You were extraordinary before you could ever catch a bullet.”

Meanwhile, J.J. is at school, taking an algebra quiz, when suddenly different numbers and symbols on the board start to light up.  Suddenly he can figure out quadratic equations.  Seriously, show?  A bit convenient.  I mean, all the other powers did also conveniently help the other three with their problems, but this is just a bit too on the nose.  So far this character is the weakest on the show, but we shall see where the writers go with him.

Cut to George, showing Jim his new LAIR … with wi-fi.  Hilarious.  These two are kind of adorable together.

Then we see the whole family at a shrink’s office.  They have been telling their story to him throughout the episode, with the voice-overs.  The Powell’s therapist is played by Tom Amandes, the beloved Dr. Abott from Everwood.  I love him, so I hope that his character sticks around.

The episode closes on a Powell family football game, echoing the one in Jim’s flashbacks.  They are one big happy family, but this time they use their new powers while playing.  Jim concludes, “And so, we’re no longer ordinary, but after everything, we are a family.”  Super cheeeeeesy ending, but it is a pilot.  Hopefully the show will find its voice as it moves along, and I look forward to more.

What did you guys think about the episode?  Comment below

Wow.  Just what I’ve alwaaaaaaaays wanted.  Thank you, television gods.  Mark your calendars for the season 2 premiere, Thursday, September 9th at 8/7c on The CW.

Photo Credit: Michael Yarish/ AMC.

Read on for my recap & review of Mad Men 4×04, “The Rejected,” aired August 15th, 2010:

This week, Don and Allison both dealt with the consequences of their night together.  Allison cried, she threw something breakable, and finally quit.  “I don’t say this easily, but you are not a good person,” she declares, as she walks out the door.  It was a brilliant exit for her character, and for her portrayer Alexa Alemanni, as we so rarely see women show how they really feel on this show.  Our three female leads—Betty, Peggy, and Joan—rarely permit the world to see what they’re feeling.  But Allison let it all out.  While one could argue that she should have known better than to get mixed up with her boss, and that she really could not have hoped for better treatment from him, it was still almost triumphant to see her confront him.  After all, he is in a position of authority over her, as her employer, so the burden of the blame must be put on him.  The icing on the cake, however, was Don’s punishment at the end of the episode: he is saddled with Miss Blankenship.  At first I thought that perhaps Don’s guilt over hooking up with Allison drove him to request an older woman, so he wouldn’t be similarly temped.  But then I realized, no.  No way.  When Joan saw Allison running out of Don’s office, she sized up the situation immediately.  This is certainly not the first time that she has seen this behavior, and it will probably not be the last.  While Joan can’t control everything, she does control the hiring of secretaries.  This is Don’s punishment, as meted out by Joan.  Thank you, Joan.  (Also, that royal blue dress looked absolutely divine on her, didn’t you think?)

This was also an important episode for Peggy, who had a lot to do.  It was interesting to see her reaction to Allison’s break down in the session with Faye.  Peggy is very sympathetic … at first.  However, when she realizes that Allison slept with Don, and, even worse, that Allison (and probably others too) thinks that Peggy slept with Don too, she gets defensive.  She cares about Don, and doesn’t want to believe the worst of him.  Additionally, she is offended on her own behalf.  Peggy lashes out: “You’re problem is not my problem.  And honestly, you should get over it.”  Waaaaay harsh.  And also a lie.  In many ways, Allison’s problem is Peggy’s problem … or at least it was.  No, Peggy never slept with Don, but she did have an office romance that ended badly: a sexual relationship with Pete that resulted in an unwanted pregnancy.  But Peggy has pushed that part of her past so deep down, that she’s not able to access those emotions to relate to Allison.  Instead she berates her.  Her words to Allison echo those of Joan, back when Peggy was falling apart, but there is a far different tone.  Joan didn’t want any of her girls crying to her about their problems.  Personal problems were to be dealt with outside of work, and on one’s own time.  Peggy is far more defensive, and far less professional.  But knowing what she’s been through, how can you blame her?  

Instead of dwelling on the past, Peggy is ready to live in the present, and start having fun.  She seems to be finally embracing the reality of being a young single woman in New York City.  Key to this development is her new friend Joyce, who works at Life Magazine.  Joyce is young and hip, and “kind of pretentious.”  She is far more modern than Peggy has allowed herself to be up until now, and she introduces Peggy to a whole new world, where her work in an advertising agency is equivalent to selling out.  Like Don’s old Bohemian girlfriend—the one who threw the television he bought for her out the window—Joyce’s artist friends don’t see copywriting for an advertising agency as real writing.  Nor do they see her work as anything of value.  Peggy may start to question that as well.

The party that Peggy attends with Joyce is also notable for being a rare scene featuring racial diversity.  Peggy meets a black woman who modeled for Joyce’s photographer friend, and the guests ambling around the party include far more African-Americans than we’ve ever seen on Madison Avenue.  An art film with a political message is also shown at the party, and it has an effect on Peggy, despite the fact that she doesn’t think she’s “supposed to like it.”  The next day she asks Joey, “Did you know that Malcom X was shot last Saturday?”  He did, and is a little amused at her ignorance.  “Do you ever read the stuff between the ads?” he asks.  I have to think that she probably hasn’t in a long time.  She has been so consumed with work, and getting ahead.  Her night out with Joyce certainly sparked a new awareness of the world beyond advertising.  I find myself very intrigued as to where this will lead Peggy next.

There is also an element of sexual liberation at the party.  Joyce kisses Peggy, but she shrugs her off, good naturedly.  Peggy says she has a boyfriend.  Joyce: “He doesn’t own your vagina.”  Peggy retorts, “No, but he’s renting it.”  Ha!  Best line of the episode.  The idea that it would occur to Peggy to respond in this way, and the fact that she’s not made uncomfortable by Joyce’s advances, is a sign of a new openness.  Two weeks ago, she told her boyfriend that he would never get her to do what people in Sweden do, but this week she looks at nude photos, gets kissed by a girl, and then kisses a man (a near stranger) in a closet.  In a couple of years she’ll be wearing a mini skirt.

However, Peggy can’t completely escape her past.  At SCDP, when a secretary brings in a card congratulating Pete on his impending fatherhood, Peggy is thrown for a loop.  The father of the baby she gave away is now having a baby with his wife.  At the end of season two, Peggy admits: “I had your baby, and I gave it away.”  As she explained to Pete, she could have shamed him into remaining in her life forever but she didn’t.  Peggy rejected Pete.  She rejected their baby.  She rejected that direction for her life.  But she can’t help but be shaken by the knowledge that he is now having a baby with Trudy.  What is going on in Peggy’s head?  Disappointment?  Jealousy?  Regret?  It is just so hard to tell with Peggy.  Regardless of her true feelings, she congratulates Pete.  He thanks her, graciously, but there is a lot of subtext.  Afterwards, she goes into her office and bangs her head on the desk.

Later, as Peggy waits for the elevator with her new hip friends, on the way to lunch, she catches Pete’s eye.  He is surrounded by a whole bunch of older men in suits.  While Peggy’s friends laugh and chat, Pete’s companions talk business.  The contrast is striking.  Peggy is still young and unattached, with her whole life ahead of her, but Pete is now growing up.  He is married, and is now going to be a father, and as such he has taken on certain societal expectations.  But the two still share something, including some pretty darn significant glances.  Is this just a nod to the bond they share?  Or will these significant glances lead to trouble?  We shall see.

The knowledge that he will become a father seems to be the direct impetus for Pete’s progress towards growing up.  At the beginning of the episode, he is given bad news:  Pond’s sees Clearasil as a conflict, so SCDP must drop Clearasil.  As Lane explains, Pond’s is just a bigger account, so it is not up for debate.  As you may recall, Pete brought Clearasil with him to SCDP, courtesy of his wealthy father-in-law.  The idea that he must now drop this account and risk angering his father-in-law horrifies Pete, and he pleads with Roger and Lane to reconsider.  The will not.  In typical Pete fashion, he completely over-dramatizes it, and appeals to Roger, emotionally, arguing that keeping this account has had a “personal toll” on him.  Boo frickin’ hoo.  Roger is not moved however, and tells him to throw himself “on the grenade,” and “protect the agency.”  But is Pete even capable of such selflessness?

It seems that he is … sort of.  Pete goes from terror at the possibility of his father-in-law’s disapproval, to joy at the news that he will be a father.  The news of Trudy’s pregnancy delays the Clearasil news, but ultimately it aids in a striking power play.  While Trudy and her mom are looking at the future nursery, Pete prepares to tear of the band-aid.  His father-in-law cuts him off: “Oh, I know what you’re gonna say …”  Pete interrupts: “Every time you jump to conclusions, Tom, you make me respect you less.”  Wow.  He continues: “I’m done auditioning.  You gave this to us under a certain pretext.”  He explains that he’s done everything expected, and more.  Now it’s time for him to get the big accounts.  His father-in-law is shocked, asking “Are you mad at me?”  Pete explains that it’s not personal; “Clearasil was conflicted by a bigger company.”  He asks smugly, “Who’s doing a better job for you than I am?”  Yes, Pete wants it all.  His father-in-law replies, hesitatingly, “Well, you’ve given me something to think about.”  Pete: “Really?  It seems pretty simple.”  Pete casually and victoriously pours a drink, and his father-in-law mutters, “You son of a bitch.”  Pete just shrugs.  Pete somehow realizes that he is the one with the upper hand, and just takes control of the situation.  So, Pete does do what Lane and Roger ask, but he advances his own interests in the process.  No grenade-falling necessary.

Another important part of this episode was the Pond’s focus group, led by Dr. Faye Miller.  Don gives her access to all of the girls at the office, and she picks all young single ladies—the significance of which I will soon address.  One of them is Allison.  Additionally, the focus group is conducted in the conference room, with Joan’s office as the viewing room.  Joan is clearly annoyed that she has to give up her office for this.  Faye’s methods are very manipulative, but fascinating.  She changes her outfit to one with color, and more youthful, and makes sure to remove her engagement ring (or is it a wedding ring?), before seeing the girls.  She also refuses to take the name tag that Peggy provides her, as her name is spelled correctly.  Faye explains, “I like to correct it in front of the girls.  It makes them trust me.”  She further explains, that it shows that she’s “not that important.”  Wow.

Once Faye enters the focus group, she immediately ingratiates herself with the secretaries: “I don’t have a nametag.  I guess they forgot about me.”  She also tells them about her beauty routine, which she’s been doing since she was a little girl.  Everything she says is carefully constructed to elicit the confidence of the other ladies.  While the discussion of beauty begins with a sweet story from one of the girls, Megan (played by the lovely Jessica Paré), it quickly turns into a sobfest about another woman’s ex-boyfriend.  This is the last straw for Allison, prompting her breakdown (which I’ve already discussed at the beginning of the post).   Sadly, this makes Freddy think that he was right all along: “My strategy was right.  They just want to get married.  They’ll buy anything that will help.”  Shut up, Freddy.

When Dr. Faye Miller goes in to see Don later, he is far less thrilled about the results of the focus group.   Faye recommends the matrimony strategy: “A veiled promise.”  Don responds: “Hello, 1925.  I’m not gonna do that.”  I kind of love Don for that.  She counters that despite how old the idea is, it’s still true.  Don disagrees: “You can’t tell how people are going to behave by how they have behaved.”  Interesting, coming from Don.  Faye wonders why he is being so hostile to her.  Don doesn’t like her methods, arguing “And you know what, not only does it have nothing to do with what I do, but it’s nobody’s business.”  What’s never said, but should have been, is that Faye basically stacked the deck with the response she expected.  None of the married women in the office are chosen, thought they clearly buy beauty products.  And none of the women with higher career aspirations or more important jobs are chosen.  There is not a Faye or a Peggy type in that room.  Instead, it is a room full of single 22 year-old secretaries/ receptionists, who are trying to navigate newly adult lives in the big city.  Of course they all want a relationship that is better than the one they have had in the past.  Of course they wish they could find someone to love them unconditionally, and to be deemed worthy of devotion.  None of that means that every girl who uses Pond’s will do so in order to get married.  As Don says, “Hello, 1925.”  There is so much more than that going on for the women of 1965.  Look at Peggy, and how she rejected the path of marriage and children.  Or at least delayed it, in favor of a career.  Look at the new friends she has made, and their aspirations of making a difference.  Look at Stephanie, and her outlook on the world.  Look at Dr. Faye Miller herself, with her psychology degree.  Goodbye, 1925, thank you very much.

Ultimately, however, we are left with the truth that, most of the time, people don’t want to be alone.  Don arrives home to an empty apartment.  As he is walking down the hallway, his neighbor, and old woman, is also arriving home, to the husband who waits for her.  The old man asks his wife repeatedly, “Did you get pears?”  She tells him, “We’ll discuss it inside.”  Don is struck by this, and at first I didn’t really get why.  But I think it just underscores his own feelings of loneliness.  Yes, that woman is no longer younger and attractive, and the man is perhaps not all there mentally.  But they have each other.  I think this scene gets at the heart of why people want that other someone to share his or her life with.  And there’s nothing superficial about it.  Thus, it both proves and disproves Faye’s strategy.

Additional notes:

• This episode was directed by John Slattery, a.k.a. Roger Sterling.  Well done, Mr. Slattery.  Well done

• Don’s explains the new legal restrictions on advertising cigarettes: no more smoking teenagers, famous athletes, or “angles that make the smoker appear ‘superhuman.’”  Hee.  Roger tries to give this a positive spin: “Even without athletes you can still have sports.”  What is he talking about?  Why bowling of course.  I love you, Roger.

• One of my favorite parts of the episode was when Don is on the torturous call with Lee Garner, Jr. and he suddenly exclaims, “Oh my god, there’s some type of fire!”  Roger backs him up, and explains that they should really find out what’s going on.  Hilarious.

• When Peggy arrives at the party, Joyce says, “You look swellegant.”  Kind of an odd compliment, seeing as how the word was coined by Cole Porter, and featured in the 1956 film High Society.  You’d think that would be an old-fashioned inspiration for the hip and pretentious Joyce.  Perhaps she is quoting Cole Porter ironically?  Or it is a veiled insult towards Peggy?  Hmmm.

• I really like Megan, the receptionist, played by the gorgeous Jessica Paré, another Jack & Bobby alum.  On Jack & Bobby, John Slattery (Roger Sterling) played her father, and Joey Baird (Matt Long) was her love interest.  It would be fun for her to share a scene with one or both of her old co-stars.  Loved her line to Peggy, “I don’t even like magazines, but I brought in a book and they told me it didn’t look right.”  It is a sad world.

• Ken Cosgrove is back!  And he calls Pete out: “I would appreciate it for the future if you did not say shitty things about me behind my back.”  Ha!

• Best scene of the episode?  Peggy’s head popping up behind the glass in Don’s office, spying.  Love it.

• Don decides to type a letter when he gets home: “Dear Allison, I’m very sorry.  Right now my life is very …”  He crinkles it up before he finishes that sentence, and goes to lie on the couch.  Oh, Don, you can do better.  But your life is so very … something.  Just figure out what that something is.  Also, alcoholic-Don is depressing.  He needs help.  Maybe Peggy will confront him, and pull him out of his hole, like he did for her after she had her baby.

• I recommend that you read EW.com’s interview with Cara Buono, who plays Dr. Faye Miller.  Important fact I learned from said interview: Cara Buono played Christopher’s wife, Kelli, on The Sopranos.  I knew she looked familiar!  (Also, now I miss Adrianna all over again. *sob*)

• Additionally, AMC.com has online extras for episode 4, which are definitely worth checking out.

The consequences of glamping. Photo Credit: ABC Family.

My sister Francesca (the author of much of the “sister commentary” on this blog and on my Twitter) agreed to let me record our latest conversation.  So here is my first attempt at a Heroine TV Podcast.  We talk about Pretty Little Liars, Mad Men, and True Blood … and lots of other stuff too.  In case you don’t watch all three, the PLL discussion is first, and then the Mad Men talk begins at the 39:20 mark.  Skip ahead to 92:40 for True Blood.  Tangents include Edith Wharton’s masterpiece The Age of Innocence, One Tree Hill, The Hunger Games, Harry Potter, Gilmore Girls, Jack & Bobby, Kelly Cutrone, and more.  We have a sliiiiiight problem staying on topic.  Take a listen if that doesn’t bother you.  Enjoy!

Update: You can now subscribe to the podcast via iTunes.

A rare glimpse of Joan's home life. Photo Credit: AMC/ Michael Yarish.

Read on for my recap & review of Mad Men episode 4×03, “The Good News,” aired August 8th, 2010:

Previously on Mad Men, we learned that Don was really Dick Whitman, but had taken on the identity of dead soldier Don Draper.  Snag?  The real Don Draper had a wife, who knew that Dick was not really Don Draper.  The two made friends, however, and the con worked out.  This week, we saw this original Mrs. Draper again, as Don went to visit her in Los Angeles.  Also previously, Joan learned that her husband, Dr. Greg Harris, was not the talented surgeon that she dreamed he was.  His failure prompted him to join the army—a decision that will most certainly result in him being sent to Vietnam.  But back to the present … er, the very end of 1964.

The episode opens on Joan’s appointment with her gynecologist.  We have met this doctor before, and I believe that he and Joan even once had a romantic relationship.  That is all in the past now, as Joan gets advice on getting pregnant.  He asks when she stopped taking her birth control pills, and warns her that it can take a while before she’s fertile.  Joan quips, “All this time I’ve been afraid of skipping one, and it can take two months?”  He suggests that she join her husband at basic training in San Antonio, but Joan explains that they don’t know when he’ll be going.  The doctor is surprised that Joan and her husband have been married for two years, but are only now trying to start a family.  Joan tells him, tersely, “We have a plan.”  And I imagine that plan did not include Greg coming home one day to tell her he joined the army.  The doctor adds that he only went to Korea because they made him: “I didn’t have a choice or a wife.”  Not very comforting.  Joan: “Walter, I just want to make sure … well, you know that I’ve had a couple procedures … I just want to make sure they don’t affect anything.”  Dr. Walter: “A couple?  I only remember one.”  Joan explains, “There was one before that.”  The doctor asks, “Was it performed by a physician?”  Joan: “She said she was a midwife.”  He reminds her that she got pregnant after that, and adds: “Like the song says, whatever will be, will be.  Happy New Year.”  Wow.  While the word “abortion” is never used, clearly Joan has had two.  I’m not exactly surprised, as this was possibly hinted at in earlier seasons.  Still, it is sad to think about Joan’s rocky road towards love and success.  Like Peggy, pre-marital sex is fraught with peril and consequences for Joan, in stark contrast to their male counterparts.  This reality is why Peggy could not be swayed with arguments of what one does is Sweden.  It also contributes to how Joan holds on so tightly to the respect she has earned in the workplace.  

Cut to the SCDP offices, where Don greets Allison.  Things are still forcefully polite between the two.  Also, I can’t help but notice that Allison’s hair is awfully puffy—later sixties, I’m not sure that I approve.  Harry then enters Don’s office, pointing out that Don has a 24 hour layover in L.A. on his way to Acapulco.  Lane enters soon after and rather subtly (or not) mocks Harry’s job.  Hee.  Lane then shakes Don’s hand in farewell, and Don tells him to enjoy his family.  When Don and Allison are left alone, he makes small talk, asking what she’s doing for New Year’s.  Allison: “Don’t worry.  I’ll be here ‘til the bitter end.”  Yikes.  There is more forced politeness, as she tells him her plans to go to Time Square with “a bunch of girls.”  Don adds: “And sailors.”  Shut up, Don.

Elsewhere at SCDP, Joan arrives at Lane Pryce’s office and brushes past his secretary.  She is sweet as pie as she tells him that she’s sending Caroline out to get lunch, and asks if he’d like fried chicken: “Breast?  Thigh?”  This is then followed by a request for time off in the second week of January.  Lane reminds her that she has New Year’s off.  Joan explains, “My husband’s a doctor.  His schedule is not flexible.”  Lane, however, is a stickler.  He snottily tells her to go home and ask her husband how he’d feel about a nurse asking for time off right after returning from vacation.  He then adds: “And I understand that all men are dizzy and powerless to refuse you, but consider me the incorruptible exception.  Fried chicken, indeed.”  Joan is shocked to get this response.  Lane then twists the knife: “Don’t go and cry about it.”  Joan, who NEVER cries at the office, asks, “Excuse me?”  Lane repeats, even more harshly, “I said don’t go and cry about it.”  Ooohh.  I am boiling up with rage all over again as I type this.  To Joan’s credit, she does not slap him, nor does she cry.

My two cents?  Yes, Joan does often rely on her “charms” to get what she wants from men.  Lane thinks he’s above such superficial nonsense.  However, I cannot admire that, as he is actually just as blinded by Joan’s beauty and sex-appeal.  So blinded that he ignores Joan’s true worth.  If Joan’s power over men were a superpower (which it IS), then she certainly uses her powers for GOOD—for the firm.  She helped build SCDP, but she is rewarded far less than the rest.  If he paid closer attention, he might realize that Joan’s people skills are a valuable asset, not to be derided, and that keeping her happy and REMAINING at SCDP is well worth a week off in January.  Just look at the way she finessed the Lee Garner, Jr. situation.  Lane just sees the immediate economic value of Joan’s presence in the office, not the big picture.  Yes, his practicality is a valuable asset, but he is far too small-minded to be in charge of personnel.

Cut to a beautiful shot of Don, driving with the top down along the California coast.  He arrives at Mrs. Draper’s house.  Mrs. Draper, Anna, is wearing a cast on her leg, and the two embrace before making their way inside.

Anna’s sister, Patty, and niece, Stephanie, arrive.  Patty is very disapproving of Don’s presence.  Stephanie, however, is rather happy and carefree—a blonde girl with messy hair, befitting the new generation.  Don, or Dick as he is to them, is surprised by how much Stephanie has grown up.  The last time he saw her, she didn’t have front teeth.  He snarks about her university life: “Berkeley?  Are you sitting in?”  Ha!  Stephanie answers diplomatically: “I agree with what they’re doing, but somebody’s got to go to class.”  Hmmm.  After disapproving Patty leaves, Stephanie asks her aunt, “Why am I staying?”  Anna: “I wanted him to meet you, and I know you’ve got grass.”  You know, this show features a lot more drug use than one might expect.

Meanwhile, Joan arrives home.  Her husband is there, but he is on his way out.  She tells him to wait a bit, while she heats up his dinner.  Joan fills him in on her boss’s decision, and the two argue.  Greg asks, “Why don’t you just not show up?”  See, THIS is what Lane should worry about.  Joan: “Because I’ll lose my job.”  The subject of Vietnam comes up, and this is clearly a sore subject between the two.  As he exits, she says, “You don’t even know when you’re going.”  This uncertainty seems to really be what’s killing Joan.  She is the type of woman who has a plan, but nothing is certain in war.  Her world is completely upside down.

Back in Los Angeles, Don, Anna, and Stephanie eat dinner out.  Stephanie tells them stories about college.  It really is a whole new generation.  When Stephanie gets up to put music on, Don asks Anna how she’d feel about him bringing the kids out.  She is thrilled with this idea, but asks, “So, what?  I’ll be their aunt?”  Don is hesitant to tell Betty the truth, despite the fact she knows who he really is now.  He explains to Anna, “After I told her, I felt relieved.”  However, he adds: “I could tell from the minute she saw who I really was, she never wanted to look at me again.  Which is why I never told her.”  Awwww, that almost makes me feel bad for Don.  Anna definitely has compassion for him: “Oh, Dick.  I’m sorry she broke your heart.”  Interesting interpretation.  Did Betty break Don’s heart, really?  Hmmm.  Don admits, “I had it coming.”  True.  Hmmm … this conversation brings up an interesting perspective on the divorce.  It is interrupted, however, as Stephanie returns, and then she and Don get up to dance.  Anna warns Don, “Keep your hands at 10 and 2.”  The combination of Don and this young woman dancing, and her commentary on the old “corny” song playing, provides an interesting picture.  Like Bob Dylan sang, in that very same year (1964), the times they are a-changin’.

Cut to later that night, as Don and Stephanie bring Anna home, ready to pass out.  Stephanie says she should get home, so Don offers to drive her.  She says she’ll just “hitch.”  Don does not like this idea: “You’ll get picked up by some creep.”  Stephanie: “I guess this is safer.”  Ha!  Think again, Stephanie.

In the car on the way home, Stephanie asks, “So, are you married or divorced?”  Don wonders why he can’t just be single.  Stephanie: “I’d be surprised.”  She asks if he goes on “dates,” and seems to find the notion antiquated and ridiculous.  She notes: “Nobody knows what’s wrong with themselves.  But everyone else can see it right away.”  Interesting.  Certainly applicable sometimes, but the opposite is also true.  I do love a paradox.  Don decides to make his move, saying that his flight is tomorrow is at noon … unless she thinks he should change it.  She asks what he’s doing.  Seriously, old man.  Don: “I don’t know.  You’re so beautiful and young … and I never had a romantic relationship.”  I don’t even know what he’s talking about.  Stephanie nips this moment in the bud: “Anna is … she has cancer.”  Don is shocked.  Stephanie explains, “That’s why she broke her leg.  It’s in her bones.  It’s all over her body.”  Don: “Cancer.  Oh, shit.”  Indeed.  Stephanie apologizes for telling him this way, but explains that Anna doesn’t know.  Yep, Anna herself doesn’t know she has cancer!!!!  Stephanie explains that the doctors say she doesn’t have long, and they don’t want to make it any harder on her.  Hmmm.  She begs Don, “Please don’t make me sorry that I told you.  I didn’t want you to leave and not know.”

Don goes back to Anna’s house, and sits up all night, alone on the couch.  The next day, he paints the wall, where there was a water stain from a leak … in his underwear.  Anna comes in and is relieved: “I woke up in a panic because I thought that I missed you.”  Don says that he’s going to stay longer.  She is happy about this, and says that she is not about to turn down Dick Whitman painting her living room in his underwear.  Ha!  She then lights up a joint and starts talking about UFOs.  Seriously. Don is a little worried about her state of mind.  Anna then tells him the best thing anyone can tell anyone: “I know everything about you, and I still love you.”  Awwww.  Getting a little verklempt over here.

Then Patty, Anna’s sister, shows up.  She is not happy to see Don still there, and definitely not pleased that he’s in his underwear.  She smells the marijuana, and complains that they’ll get arrested.  She also snarks to Don that he can’t keep his pants on. Interesting.  So what did go on between Anna and Dick Whitman in the past?  What exactly was the nature of their relationship, before Don met Betty?  Hmmmm.  She also notes that she heard Don’s car at 2 a.m., so maybe she’s just referring to his flirtation with her daughter.  Hmmmm.

Don goes out to the car with Patty, to help her bring in groceries.  He confronts her about keeping Anna in the dark about her cancer: “And she’s gonna see some real doctors and she’s not gonna live in the dark.”  Patty sheds some light on how Anna can be ignorant of her condition: “She had Polio.  She’s been going to doctors since she was eight.  And maybe … she hasn’t let on, so this is the way it’s gonna be.”  She actually makes some sense, though I think I would definitely rather know.  Don replies, “She is very important to me.”  Patty puts her foot down: “You have no say in the affairs of this family.  You’re just a man in a room with a checkbook. I’m sorry.  Please do the decent thing.  The longer you’re here, the more likely you are to say something.”

And surprisingly, Don actually listens.  He goes back into the house, and Anna comments: “If it wasn’t for my niece, we would have killed each other by now.”  Don: “She means well, and she’s family.”  Anna: “You have your kids.  I bet that’s better.”  Don: “That’s different.”  He then says that he has to tell her something, looking serious.  But instead of spilling the beans about the cancer, he says that he has to go.  Anna: “Oh, I don’t care.  I want you to.  I want you do everything you want to.”  Anna is disconcertingly selfless and saintly.  Everyone deals with suffering in different ways, and I guess her method is to turn into Mother Teresa or a Buddhist monk.  And what is it about Don that she loves so much?  How has he helped her?  Or what does she see in him?  Thing to ponder …

Back in New York, Joan is readying the office for vacation, which includes taking pencils down from ceiling.  Ha!  Peggy hands her a box of flowers, presuming they’re from Joan’s husband.  They’re red roses.  Peggy naively comments, “It’s so encouraging to see someone happily married around here.”  However, Joan, upon reading the note, is distracted, and cuts off Peggy’s excitement about telling Joan that she’s spending New Year’s with her boyfriend.  Joan bursts into Lane’s office, and she is more angry than we’ve ever seen her.  Lane is just lucky that he didn’t send the flowers in a vase.  Yes, it seems that the roses she received were from Lane Pryce, not Greg.  Joan reads the note aloud and asserts: “I am not your darling and I don’t want your kisses.”  Way to go, Joan!  Although, Lane is not actually deserving of this rant.  He yells for his secretary, and it is revealed that he also sent flowers to his wife in London, and somehow the florist got the orders mixed up.  The secretary tries to defend herself, but Joan cuts her off: “But the fact that you’re the kind of person that cannot accept blame is egregious.”  Soon-to-be-fired-secretary: “I don’t know what that means.”  Ha!  Best line of the episode.  Joan asks what the note intended for her said: “It said ‘Joan, forgive me.  Lane.’”  Joan is mollified, and also probably realizes that now Lane will be in a lot hotter water where his marriage is concerned.  Awkward.  Joan tells the frightened secretary to get her things.  She’s fired, and she’ll be paid at the end of the year.  Such a well done scene.  My absolutely favorite part of the episode, hands down.

We then cut to Joan at home.  Greg arrives, and begins to tell her about his day.  However, this is interrupted when Joan cuts her finger and screams in pain.  She tell her husband to just take her to the hospital, but instead he tells her to sit down.  He’s going to take care of it himself.  Joan: “Greg, you don’t have to do this.”  I think a part of her doesn’t trust him not to mess it up.  He will not hear it though, and gets to work.  Joan: “Isn’t there some medical ethical law about operating on your wife?”  Greg: “For me, this is like … I don’t know, filing some papers for you.”  Joan: “I don’t do that anymore.  I have other people do it for me.”  Hee.  Of course you do, Joan.  He then is forced to use tactics he claims are used for calming children, while he stitches her up.  As he tells jokes, she laughs, and then cries, adding: “I’m not crying because it hurts.”  Greg: “Everything is going to be okay.”  She cries some more.  We really see her vulnerable side—a rare moment.  Greg assures her: “Joanie … I can’t fix anything else.  But I can fix this.”  Sad.

Cut to Don arriving at the office, not Acapulco.  It seems he wasn’t in the mood for vacation anymore.  Lane is also still there.  The two have a drink, and Lane shares some good news: “I made a discovery.  Although things are precarious, financially, it’s been a magnificent year.”  Well then.

Some time later, Don reads off movie times to Lane.  Titles include Zorba the Greek, It’s a Mad Mad Mad World, and The Guns of August.  Don’s response to the last one is classic: “I hate guns and I hate August.”  Hee.  Another option is The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.  Between this mention, and the recent shout-out on Huge, I really must see that film.  Don is happy about the prospect of Catherine Deneuve, but Lane adds: “Apparently, it’s for all the young lovers of the world.”  Cut to the two watching Godzilla (I think).  Ha!  They pass a flask back and forth, and are both absolutely drunk.  Don motions around the theatre, and whispers, “You know what’s going on here?  Hand jobs.”

Then the two go to a restaurant, where much hilarious and drunk dialogue is to be had.  Lane: “You remind me of a chap I knew in school … he died in a motorcycle crash.”  Nice.  He shares that his wife, Rebecca, convinced him that the whole office was on holiday together, without him.  Don does admit that they could have been more welcoming.  Lane says that his wife is “quite severe with people,” including him.  He wanted to bring the family to New York for the holidays, but she was homesick.  After a series of arguments, she left.  He then weakened and sent flowers.  She called to say she was not returning.  So are these the flowers addressed to Joan?  Did this just happen?  Seems that way.  Don notes, “That’s tough.”  Lane asks, “How did you know when you were done?”  Don: “It wasn’t my decision.  And I’ve learned the hard way not to give advice in these situations.”  Ha!  He must be referring to the Roger-Jane debacle.  Don was so angry that Roger interpreted his advice as an excuse to divorce his wife and marry his secretary.  Lane: “I suppose you’ll tell me to get on a plane.”  Don: “Is that what you want?  Or is that what people expect from you?”  Isn’t that just THE question of the entire era?  Don then lightens things up by mentioning that he was going to call a lady friend of his.  He asks if Lane would want her to bring a friend.  He declines, but Don asks: “What are you going to do?  We could pretend it’s New Year’s.  It actually is.”  Ha!  Lane agrees, and then does an uncharacteristic little bit with his steak: “I got a big Texas belt buckle.  Yee-haw.”  Ahem.  I did not need to see that.

The two go to a clup, where a stand-up comedian is performing.  He selects Don and Lane as his targets: “Aawwww, I see we have an anniversary tonight.  George and Martha.”  He asks Lane, “Does it bother your parents that he’s so ugly?”  Lane drunkenly yells, “We’re not homosexuals.  We’re divorced.”  After more joking, the comedian welcomes musician on stage, “whose mother says he’s the next Bob Dylan.”  Then Don’s lady friend, Candace, arrives, with a friend.  The comedian quips: “I guess I was wrong.  You’re not queers, you’re rich.”  Ha!  Then the classic “House of the Rising Sun” begins to play—a cover of The Animals’ 1964 version.  Love it.

Later that night, the group returns to Don’s apartment.  Candace’s friend gushes, “I love your apartment.  It’s very manly.”  Don: “It came this way.  I think Norman Mailer shot a deer in there.”  Hehe.  Don can be pretty funny sometimes.  I like that side of him.  As Candace prepares drinks, Lane comments, “She seems to know her way around in your kitchen.  What’s that like?”  Don reminds him, “I told you, I don’t like giving advice in these situations.”  Candace’s friend then wants to look around the apartment, and Lane joins her.  As they’re about to go into one of the rooms, Don says “Not in there.”  Aw, that must be kids’ room.  Lane and the woman instead go into Don’s bedroom.  She kisses him, he loosens his tie, and then it presumably escalates from there.

The next morning, Lane wakes up very thirsty.  The girls are gone.  He asks Don what he owes him.  Don says he took care of it, but Lane insists: “The girl.  How much was she?”  Don: “$25.”  Lane gives him the money, and then takes his leave.  “Thank you for the welcome distraction,” he adds.  Don nods his head, and then goes into his room to crash.  Thankfully he takes off the sheets before lying on mattress.

After the holiday is over, everyone returns to work.  As the SCDP executives get ready to start a meeting in the conference room, Joan asks, “Alright, gentlemen, shall we begin 1965?”  Yes, please.

The episode opened on “good news,” like the title indicated.  Joan should be able to start a family.  However this “good” news is tempered by the reality of the two “procedures” Joan once had.  This is followed by all sorts of disaster.  Anna has cancer, Lane and his wife are getting divorced, Joan’s husband could be sent to Vietnam at any time.  But there is a silver lining:  despite it all, SCDP had a “magnificent year,” and 1965 has the potential to be far better.  What did you think?  Reactions?  Questions?  Rants?  Predictions?  Comment away.

Don is totally blocking Joan in this photo. I do not approve. People want to see the red dress! Photo Credit: Michael Yarish/ AMC.

Read on for my recap and review of Mad Men 4×01, “Christmas Comes But Once a Year,” aired August 1st, 2010:

Previously on Mad Men, it was made very clear that the fortunes of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce (hereafter referred to as SCDP) are directly tied to Lucky Strike.  The cigarette company is by far the firm’s largest client—making up 70% of their business.  An “untenably insecure position,” indeed, Mr. Pryce.  Lee Garner, Jr. has power over SCDP, and he’s willing to use it, just for sport.  The extent of Garner Jr.’s selfish cruelty was already made apparent with his treatment of Sal back in “Wee Small Hours” (I miss you, Sal!), so his behavior this week was no surprise, sadly.  This time around, Jr. set his sights on Roger Sterling.  No, not sexually, but he used his power to force Roger to dress as Santa Claus.  A small act, but one aimed to humiliate and send a clear message as to who’s in charge.  These machinations, of course, took place with the holiday season in the background.  Despite the title of the episode, Christmas does come more than once this year.  And the early Christmas present is just what I always wanted (and some stuff that I could do without).  I mean, we got a heartwarming letter to Santa, a Conga Line, amazing dialogue, and Joan wrapped up like a present.  Thank you, Santa AMC!  Unwanted, however, is Don’s treatment of his secretary.  For shame, Don Draper.  For shame.  On to the recap …

It is snowing when the episode begins, and we see Betty and family shopping for a Christmas tree.  Bobby and Henry seem to have a good relationship, which is interesting.  Sally is definitely less happy with the new arrangement.  Suddenly a boy calls Sally’s name.  It is Glen—that weird neighbor boy who was obsessed with Betty and asked her to cut a lock of her hair for him.  Shiver.  Sally politely greets him and he reminds her, “It’s Glen.”  Sally, like the viewers, knows this.  Glen protests, “Well, you all walked right by me when you came in.”  Ouch.  Sally apologizes.  He tells her that his mom got married.  Remember her? The scandalous divorced woman?  Betty was oh so disapproving of her.  My, how things have changed.  Anyway, Bobby explains that she got married, and now he’s supposed to live with his new step-father.  Bobby asks if Glen is buying a tree.  No, he explains, he’s working.  His job is to bring twine over and then he gets to cut it.  He proudly shows the kids a lanyard that he made, attached to a knife for cutting said twine.  Aaaand the creepy child is ARMED.  Uh oh.  Bobby is impressed, and possibly Sally is too.  As the Draper children prepare to leave, Glen tells Sally, “Maybe I’ll call you.”  Yikes!  Be afraid, Sally.  Be very afraid.  

Cut to the shocker of the episode: Don typing.  Yes, the man knows how to use a typewriter!  Who knew?  His secretary, Allison, enters with mail for Santa Claus (aka Daddy).  Adorable.  She reads it to him.  I guess Don has mastered typing, but not reading.  Seriously?  Her job is to read mail aloud to him?  Although, I really shouldn’t complain, as her reaction to reading the letter shows far more emotion than we would have received from Don.  The letter is written by Sally, who is quite aware who really buys her Christmas presents, but since “Bobby thinks this is going to the North Pole,” she tells her dad that they should keep up the “r-o-o-s.”  After Allison spells out Sally’s version of “ruse,” Don quips, “Too much television.”  Ha!  I’m just impressed that Sally knows what a ruse is.  On second thought, OF COURSE she does, knowing her parents.  Allison continues to read off the list of requests that Bobby has, though he is aware that he may not deserve them, since he apparently “left the freezer door open.”  You can just imagine Betty’s looming presence with that line.  Also, baby Gene wants a “fireman,” though Sally doesn’t know what that means.  Hee.  Then we get to Sally’s request, which is sweetest of all: she wants a necklace with her initials on it, but most of all, she wants her dad to be there to give it to her on Christmas morning.  “But I know you can’t be,” she adds.  Allison is a bit teary-eyed at this, and Don is affected, but hides it.  He lists the things he wants Allison to purchase for the children, including gifts for “her” and “him,” presumably Betty and Henry, and hands her some money.  Allison takes this opportunity to ask if she can bring someone to the Christmas party.  He explains that Lane has scaled back the party, due to budget concerns.  He does assure her, however, that she will still be getting a bonus, even if he has to fund it himself.

Cut to Roger’s office, where the arrival of Freddy Rumsen is announced.  Yes, Freddy is back.  Remember him?  He’s the sweet but alcoholic ad man who peed himself in the office, and then Pete orchestrated things so that he was fired.  Freddy looks much improved since we last saw him in season two.  His commentary on Roger’s minimalist and oh-so-modern office design is perfect: “Geez, it’s like an Italian hostel.”  Ha.  Roger explains: “Jane had it decorated.  I feel like with my hair, you can’t even see me in here.”  Funny.  But also true.  Roger offers him a drink, but Freddy says, “Maybe later.”  Freddy explains that he walked out of his last job with a client: Pond’s.  Also, he’s now clean and sober.  The “maybe later” comment was to be polite.  Freddy offers SCDP the account, and Roger accepts.  Freddy does have one caveat though: he doesn’t want Pete Cambell involved.  Neither do we, Freddy.  Neither do we.  In fact, Freddy expresses surprised that Roger and company took him along.  Roger replies, diplomatically: “No comment.”

Freddy and Roger enter a room where Peggy, Don, and Peter await.  Peggy greets Freddy enthusiastically.  Aw, I remember that they were friends.  He calls her Valerie, though, and I don’t get the reference.  Anyone?  Pete asks how he’s doing.  Freddy: “I was just talking about you.”  Ha!  The others are filled in on the fact that Freddy has brought them a two million dollar account: Pond’s cold cream.  As Don pours a drink, Roger makes a comment about it being too early.  Aw, that comment seems to be for Freddy’s sake.  Roger is kind of a sweetheart.  Don, however, has no compunction about offering a drink to the alcoholic, and sports a very surprised look when Freddy declines.  Shut up, Don.  When Pete speaks up, Roger tells Campbell that he himself will be handling this account.  Pete still doesn’t know when to quit, and is about to bring up Freddy’s drinking problem: “I hate to bring this up, but I do believe it’s on everybody’s mind …”  Roger interrupts: “We want to know if you can be Santa at the Christmas party.”  Freddy: “Role I was born to play.”  Roger wins this scene.

Meanwhile, in suburbia, Glen calls the Draper home, asking to talk to Sally.  However, when Carla answers the phone, he says his name is Stanley.  Sally doesn’t even question Glen’s oddity, which really makes me worry for her dating future.  Glen asks, “Don’t you want to know why I said this is Stanley?”  Sally: “I guess.”  No, Sally, the proper response is to hang up the phone.  Glen explains, “Because this is private.”  Uh oh.  I don’t know if I like the sound of that.  Glen asks why she hasn’t moved.  Sally’s response is rather sad: “I don’t know.  I hate it here.  I really really do.”  He asks why, and she says that every time she goes around a corner she thinks she’ll see her dad.  Sadness.  Glen: “I’m sorry.  But they’re not going to get back together you know … One day they’ll wake up and they’ll want to move.”  Hmmm.  As we shall see, Glen may try to hurry along this natural process.

Cut to a meeting at SCDP, complete with a conference table.  Yes, the gang has finally purchased a table.  Some type of presentation is going on, and the speaker introduces Dr. Faye Miller, who helped develop “the carefree gal in white pants.”  Faye says, self-deprecatingly: “It’s right up there with the polio vaccine.”  Ha!  I kind of like her.  Joan is far less impressed.  Perhaps because she wouldn’t wear white pants, nor is she ever carefree?  Or perhaps because Dr. Faye Miller is representative of a new generation of woman—one that received far more choice and opportunity than hers?  Hmmm.  Dr. Miller passes around a test, designed to find out “feelings that exist below the surface.”  When she encourages them all to take a cookie, Harry asks, “What does it mean if we don’t?”  Faye deadpans: “You’re psychopath.”  Ha!  Harry makes sure to grab multiple cookies.  Don excuses himself quickly, with the excuse that he has an appointment.  Riiiiight.  As he is on his way to enter his office, he sees new boy Joey flirting with his secretary, Allison.  Aha!  Methinks that Joey’s dislike of Don, so apparent last week, has now been explained.

Back at his apartment, Don is woken up by loud banging.  His neighbor, a nurse, is hammering something to the wall.  Is that Laynie Hart, aka Eden from Heroes?  Yes.  (By the way she should totally have been cast as Alice in Twilight.)  But in this show she is Phoebe.  She is not really sorry for waking Don up, especially since he is clearly running late for work.  She is also is very aware of him, and thinks he’s been aware of her too: “Don’t pretend that you’ve never noticed me.  You always grunt when you put your keys in the door.  It’s not good.  That’s why I’m inviting you to my party.”  Hmmm.

At the office, Freddy and Peggy (hee!) brainstorm about the Pond’s campaign.  Freddy thinks that Tallulah Bankhead would be perfect as the face of the campaign.  Peggy says that all the research says that they’re trying to get young women, but Freddy persists.  Their difference of opinion is interrupted when Roger enters.  He is returning from a meeting with Cal Rutledge from Pond’s, clearly wasted, and says that he has to go lay down.  Peggy sighs, “I can’t believe that’s his job.”  Let’s just hope that this job doesn’t provoke another heart attack.  I can’t handle Roger dying!  Freddy is alarmed by this news, and calls Calvin.  He asks, “Did you just have lunch with Roger sterling?  And you have nothing to say to me?”  Ooooh … Freddy must be Cal’s AA sponsor.  Awww, he’s looking out for him.  Freddy makes plans to meet with his friends, and then tells Peggy that he has to go.  He tells her to continue thinking of names: “I’ll do ‘em too.  Don’t worry.  I’m sure yours will be better because you’re girlier.”  Peggy is not exactly thrilled.

Sometime later, Roger is woken up from his nap by the phone. It’s that snake, Lee Garner, Jr., big honcho at Lucky Strike.  He wonders where his invitation to the Christmas party is.  As Roger tries to explain, Jr. says: “Madison Avenue, office Christmas party?  I’ve seen the movies.  You find me.”  Uh oh.  Roger then tells Pryce that they now have to have a real Christmas party.  Pryce: “How did that happen?”  Roger: “It happened.”  Pryce recommends taking Jr. to the Four Seasons, where he can have three courses.  Roger knows what’s what: “This man doesn’t care about food.”  No, he cares about control.  Pryce is not so convinced, and lectures Roger about the value of money.  Roger then calls him “Olivier.”  Hee.  Pryce asks, “What about other clients?”  Roger: “We have no other clients.  If Lee Garner, Jr. wants three wise men, we bring it to him.”  He yells for “Joanie,” and she arrives.  He explains that the party needs to be upgraded: “We need to change its rating from convalescent home to roman orgy.”  Ha!  Joan takes charge.  Problems like these are the kind she excels at.  She says that she will allow all the girls escorts, and take care of Jr.’s wishes.  Roger says, “You’re off limits.”  Joan: “I don’t think he’s the one that needs to be reminded.”  Awwww.  Why do I still like those two together?  He tells her that he still thinks about the dress she last wore to the office Christmas party—the red one with “the bow on the back that makes [her] look like a present”—and asks if she could wear it.  Joan good naturedly tells him to “Stop it,” clearly pleased, as she sashays off.

Cut to Peggy and her boyfriend, arriving at Peggy’s apartment.  He is all over her, and she tells him to knock it off.  He keeps pushing, saying that he’s tired and wants to lie down with her.  Peggy: “My bed is covered with work.”  Boyfriend: “That’s kind of symbolic.”  Ha!  Boyfriend is not as dumb as he seems.  He asks, “How long is this going to go on?”  Peggy gets angry, “I’m sorry if you think you’ve put in the time.”  He complains, “We’re not doing anything.”  Peggy: “We’re doing some things.”  Boyfriend: “We’re not doing anything that I can’t do myself.”  Shut up, Boyfriend.  He again pushes: “Can’t we just get undressed and lie together?”  She says that she wants him so much that she wants to wait, which prompts him to say that he wants to be her “first,” and calls her “old-fashioned.”  Peggy assures him that she’s not.  Given what we know about Peggy’s past, this scene has so much more meaning for the viewer, meaning which Boyfriend is completely ignorant of.  He gives examples of pre-marital intimacy from Sweden.  Really?  Peggy retorts: “You’re never going to get me to do anything that Swedish people do.”  BEST LINE OF THE EPISODE.  She then tells him that she thinks he should go home.  He kisses her and then obnoxiously tells her to “Think about THAT,” and leaves.  Really?  Peggy, you can do sooooo much better. (Update late at night on 8/06/10: Oh my goodness, I just learned via Twitter that Peggy’s boyfriend is totally played by Karl from Lost!  No wonder I thought he was annoying.  Also, how did I miss this?  Bad Lostie.)

Later that night, Don arrives home, drunk, late at night.  His cute neighbor, Phoebe, is cleaning up from her party, so Don missed it.  He says he might have a vacuum, and then drops his keys.  Well, at least the thought to help the girl clean crossed his mind.  Progress?  She asks, “Where the hell are you coming from?”  Don: “Work.”  Phoebe asks, “Where do you work?  White Horse Tavern?”  Ha!  In response to comments about her party, Don says that he hates parties.  She says, “Of course, and you hate Christmas.  Don: “I don’t hate Christmas.  I hate this Christmas.”  Awwww.  Now I kind of feel bad for the guy (spoiler alert: it won’t last that long).  Phoebe helps him open the door, and make his way inside.  He asks if he can get her something, but she tells him that he needs to go to bed.  As she deposits him in bed, and removes his shoes, he comments: “You’re good at that.”  Her explanation?  “My father was a drunk.”   He wonders how she can stand to work at the hospital, but she says she loves it: “I love working at the hospital.  Coming into the world, people leaving it … everything happens there.”  Yeah, she is waaaaay too good for Don.  She says goodnight and leaves, and he calls out good night too.

The next day, presumably, preparations for the SCDP Christmas party are being made.  Joan directs, as she does best.  I love when she is in charge … which is most of the time that she is in a scene.

Meanwhile, Freddy and Peggy continue to brainstorm about the Pond’s account.  Freddy’s ideas are all beauties of a previous generation: Tallulah Bankhead (he still can’t give her up), Jessica Tandy, Barbara Stanwyck (sidenote: every time I hear her name I think of Emily Gilmore—thank you, Gilmore Girls, for taking over my life), and Doris Day.  Peggy: “I don’t even understand your list.”  Ha!  I love you, Peggy.  Freddy explains that the idea could be that the Pond’s cream makes women look good.  Peggy: “Nothing makes old ladies look good.”  Hee.  Also, mean.  Freddy clumsily tries to explain, and Peggy starts to think that maybe indulgence could be a good angle.  Freddy: “No.  If you use Pond’s you’ll get married.”  Peggy is offended: “That’s not what I saying.”  Back away, Freddy.  Sadly, the guy doesn’t get my message, but continues: “Or we could go the other way.  Don’t use Pond’s and you won’t get married.”  Peggy has had enough.  She blows up at him (or at least a Peggy-version of “blowing up”) and calls him “old-fashioned.”  She says that, “Everyone was right about him.”  Waaaaay harsh.  Interesting that she chooses to throw her boyfriend’s insult to her at Freddy.  Thoughts on this?  When Peggy’s secretary buzzes, in Freddy puts on his hat, and gets up to go.  Peggy apologizes.  He tells her not to worry about it.  Trying to regain friendly ground, she asks, “Is Violet coming.”  Freddy lies, “Oh, she wouldn’t miss it.”

Then we are treated to a Mad Men-esque commercial, for Dove.  If you DVR’d the show, I hope that you didn’t skip all the commercials, because it was kind of fun.  When we returned from break, I was a little worried that I had changed the channel and was now watching a horror movie featuring creepy children.  Alas, no.  It is night, and the house is dark.  Glen makes a phone call to Sally again, but no one answers.  Creeeepy.

Cut to the Christmas party.  We see Roger and Jane, Pete and Trudy, Harry and his wife, and Don all alone.  The other couples talk about their various holiday plans: trips to the Bahamas and the mountains.  Don says that he is going to Acapulco, and when pressed, says that he’s not taking anyone special.  Jane interjects that it’s his own fault.  I guess she took her blonde friend’s rejection personally.  Roger, however, sarcastically expresses pity for Don in the “sea of bikinis.”  Hee.  Peggy and her boyfriend arrive, and Don tells the man that it’s nice to see him again.  I disagree.

We then see other little moments at the party, but Joan is the star, wearing the red dress with the bow in the back.  Roger, of course, notices: “Nice dress.  Where’s Mr. Holloway?”  Mr Holloway!  So true.  Joan answers, “Saving lives.”  Then Lee Garner, Jr. arrives, and they make a big production over him, which kind of makes my stomach turn.  Joan says, “We have gifts, girls, and games, but first I’m gonna get you some food.”  Lee: “Well, that’s a good idea, Red.  I’ve been drinking all day.”  Uh oh.  A drunk Lee Garner, Jr.?  Not a good sign.

Back in suburbia, Glen and a friend enter the Draper house, which still seems to be empty.  They open the fridge and start dumping food all over the kitchen.  Ewwww.  People making a deliberate mess stress me out.  Oh, who am I kidding?  People making a mess, period, stress me out.  This is like those food-fight scenes in movies, where everyone just throws sticky things around.  Or like those car-chase scenes, when people nonchalantly knock over fruit stands.  Ugh.  It upsets me.

Back at the party, Joan is leading a Conga Line.  Fun times.  Then things slow down, and Lee wonders where Santa is.  Roger says he didn’t make it, but he left presents.  Lee is not satisfied by that, and thinks that Roger would make a good Santa.  Roger protests, hoping the tobacco heir is joking.  He’s not.  Roger has to bow to Lee’s pressure, as Lucky Strike is just too big a client.  Poor Roger.

Meanwhile, Henry, Betty, Bobby, Sally, and Gene arrive home to a mess.  Henry suspects that it’s just kids, but he goes to check out the house, just in case.

At the party, Roger is now in the Santa suit.  Poor Roger.  Lee pokes fun of him, and kind of leans in on Jane.  Ugh.  Roger pretends it doesn’t bother him though, and presents the company’s gift for Lee.  It’s a Polaroid.  He says that it reminds him of when he was a kid.  There is some longing there, of times gone past.  But I still wouldn’t mind if Lee suffered a debilitating disease.  As they all exchange gifts, Don tells Peggy, “Merry Christmas, sweetheart,” which I found kind of jarring.  It seemed to be presented as a sweet moment, but it was just weird.  Since when does he call her sweetheart?  It’s a bit patronizing and/or familiar.  I guess it reflects that the two now share a closer relationship?  Hmmmm.  I am probably over-thinking this.

Back at the Draper-Francis residence, Sally’s goes upstairs to find that her room is fine, and not messed with.  Bobby, however, finds eggs in his bed.  Hee.  I should probably find that less funny than I do.  Sally does learn that Glen was in her room though, as he left his lanyard behind on her bed.  Sally smiles.  Hmmm.  I am worried for Sally.

At the party, Faye (the blonde doctor who thought up “the carefree girl wearing white pants”) enters Don’s office.  She is a little offended that he walked out on her presentation.  He’s disappointed that she came in to fight, not flirt.  She tries to explain the worth of her job, but Don is not convinced.  He snarks: “I’m sorry, but I don’t understand how understanding my childhood will help us sell floor wax.”  Oh, but that ad about floor wax told us so much about your childhood, Don.  Sigh.  He is the opposite of self-aware.  She points out that she can already tell from the test that he is the type who walks out on the test.  Yes, indeed he is.  Don then changes the subject, asking if she wants to get some dinner.  She says no thank you.  But she does leave him with this consolation: “But don’t worry, you’ll be married again in a year.”  Don is all like, “Excuse me?”  Faye replies: “I’m sorry.  I always forget: no one wants to think they’re a type.”  She is not sorry one bit, I think, and her reply was calculated to let Don know that she has his number, and thus proving the value of her work.

Elsewhere at the party, Lee does obnoxious things.  Ugh.  Every time I see that guy I want to punch him.  Plus, I miss Sal.

Cut to later that night.  Don arrives home, stumbling as he looks for his keys.  They’re not there.  He knocks on his neighbor’s door, but there is no answer.  Then he goes to a pay phone and calls his secretary, who finds them on the floor of his office.  Allison agrees to bring them to him.  Joey then comes into the office, telling her that they’ll give her half an hour and then meet up at X.  She replies: “Better make it an hour.  I might have to get some food in him.”  Joey: “He’s pathetic.”  And inside, Joey wishes that Allison found her handsome boss pathetic too.  Sadly, for both Joey and Allison’s sakes, she does not.

Allison arrives at Don’s apartment and lets him in.  She then gets him water and aspirin, but he says no to food.  She gets ready to leave, but Don he pulls her onto his lap.  She says “No,” but that he replies “No what?”  Really, Don?  Seriously?  But then she seems to get into it, and kisses him back.  He tells her that she smells good, and she takes off her shoes.  Uh oh.

Cut to adorable Sally Draper, as she looks out the window.  Oh, I hope that Glen isn’t out there watching her.  I am really worried about little Sally, you guys.

Cut to the Don and Allison aftermath.  She giggles, and says, “My goodness.”  He says, “I know,” and strokes her face.  So did they have sex?  Yes, it seems that they most definitely did.  At least that is the assumption made in two interviews with Allison’s portrayer, Alexa Alemanni—one with NYMag.com and once on the AMC blog.  Disappointing, Don.  Very disappointing.  Allison then says that she’s supposed to meet somebody, and that she should go.  He asks if she’s sure and she says yes.  She’s smiling, and definitely seems pleased, albeit flustered.  She says she’ll see him tomorrow and kisses him goodbye.

At work the next morning, Peggy enters her office to see Freddy at her desk.  He explains that it was the cleanest.  I love that no one dared to party in Peggy’s office.  Hee.  She asks if he’s okay, as he didn’t come to the party.  Freddy is fine.  He explains that the Santa suit often comes with a bottle in the pocket, and he didn’t want that bottle.  Awwww.  Peggy is relieved: “Oh good.  I don’t want to worry that every time I hurt your feelings you’re going to start drinking again.”  Smooth, Peggy.  Smooth.  Freddy’s response is priceless: “Why don’t you stop hurting my feelings.”  Easy enough solution.  Peggy apologizes, again: “I’m sorry.  I’m sorry that I said that you’re old-fashioned.”  Freddy: “And I’m sorry that I said that you wanted to get married.”  Peggy reveals, “I do want to get married.”  Freddy notes, “You’ll have to work less.  Find someone.”  She says that she already has a boyfriend, but she clearly is afraid of ending up alone.  Freddy advises: “My two cents: If you want to marry him you can’t do anything physical.”  Peggy asks, “What if I don’t know?”  Freddy: “Well, you can’t lead him on.  It can be painful.  That is not a joke.”  Sigh.  Freddy means well, but he is, indeed, old-fashioned.  Still, some good advice is hidden in the awkward package, as Peggy does have to decide whether she wants to stay with her immature boyfriend.  Does she want to take the relationship to the next level physically?  And what are the implications of that in the long term?

Roger arrives in the office, making light of last night’s humiliation.  He quips to Don, “My father used to say that this was the greatest job in the world, except for the clients.”  Oh, Roger.

Don greets Allison.  Awkward.  She has a big smile on her face as she enters the office with him.  It seems that she may have seen last night as a date of sorts.  Hmmm.  Don sees the pile of presents, and she explains that they’re for his children—the ones he asked her to buy.  She asks if she wants him to get the door, and if he’d like some coffee.  Don replies that he “overdid it” last night—as in he had too much to drink.  He adds, “I’ve probably taken advantage of your kindness on too many occasions.”  She seems confused and a bit upset by this.  He thanks her for bringing the keys, very professionally and impersonally, and apologizes for taking advantage of her kindness.  He also gives her the promised bonus, but his tone is very distant.  He is clearly pretending that last night didn’t happen, as he wishes her a merry Christmas.  Allison’s crestfallen expression is rather heart-breaking.  She goes to the desk and opens the card, which holds $100 cash.  She then puts a piece of paper in the typewriter, and gets back to work.  Her sad face looks out the window.  While it was unrealistic for her to expect a different reaction from Don, I can’t help but feel sympathetic.  Badly done, Don.  Badly done.

Cut to Peggy and her boyfriend, who just had sex.  He asks if she’s alright, as he is still under the impression that he’s her first.  She says “Of course.”  He then he asks if she feels different.  She gives him a quick kiss and then just stares blankly ahead.  So, is this a sign that Peggy decided her boyfriend’s not marriage material?  A sign  that she is refusing to be “old-fashioned”?  A sign that she just gave in?  Regardless, she certainly doesn’t look happy or in love.  Oh, Peggy.

Back as SCDP, Don turns off the lights, and exits his office.  As he carries home the pile of presents for his children, “I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” plays.  Bookends?  Hmmm.  I guess we open on a letter to Santa, full of all the innocence of childhood, while we close on a song about perceived adultery?  He plans to buy the presents and then he brings the presents home?  I don’t know.  The beginning and end are both Christmas-y and involve presents.  I give up.

Thoughts?  Reactions?  Questions? Comment away.

The original foursome. Oh, they look so young!

Thanks to a Christmas gift of Dawson’s Creek: The Complete Series I embarked upon an angst-filled marathon in late December 2009, finishing all six seasons an alarmingly short time later.  Joey loves Dawson.  Dawson loves Jen.  Dawson loves Joey.  Pacey loves Joey.  Joey loves Pacey.  Exhausting.  It was a whirlwind, and kept my mind off the long winter hiatus.  It was my first time completely through the series, though I had previously attempted to watch a few years ago.  The first time around, I gave up on it, after a slow second season, and the horror that was Eve.  I promptly forgot all about it, determined that it was not a show for me.  However, after becoming obsessed with The Vampire Diaries, and falling in love with Kevin Williamson’s writing on that show, I really wanted to give Dawson’s another chance.  And I’m really glad that I did.  Throughout my marathon, I developed a complex, love-hate relationship with the show.  It was the best of times, it was the worst of times … but I totally get why it was such a seminal show now.  I will attempt to break down my thoughts, and provide some analysis below.  Warning, spoilers for the series abound, and I tend to go on and on, so get caffeine and some snacks.

Dawson’s Creek premiered on January 20th, 1998, during my junior year of high school.  Back then, I turned my nose up at the show.  In my 16-year-old mind, it seemed like television for preppy people who wore Abercrombie & Fitch, and the actors looked straight out of a J. Crew ad.  This did NOT appeal.  Looking back at the fashions for Beverly Hills, 90210, a show that I did watch loyally, my fashion snobbery is mind-boggling.  Also the theme song seemed sappy and annoying, and I harbored the mistaken notion that I was too cool for such things.  Again, I will point out that I watched Beverly Hills, 90210.  Sigh.  I have since learned that there are few things that I am too cool for.  Also, working against The Creek was that none of the actor’s conformed to my 16-year old notion of attractiveness—neither girls nor guys.  A preppy show with a ridiculous theme song, and no prospective beauty idols or imaginary TV boyfriends?  As if.  

But, Lucia, you say, “Katie Holmes is gorgeous! What are you talking about?  And Joshua Jackson, is beyond sexy!  I mean, how could you?”  (Hmmm … I can’t help but notice that none of you are trying to defend Dawson.)  First of all, let’s just get this out of the way now: I love Joey Potter.  I adore her.  I even added her overalls-wearing self to my blog header.  And Katie Holmes is totally my new girl-crush.  Before watching Dawson’s Creek, however, I just did NOT get the Katie Holmes thing.  Now I do.  Case closed.  And Joshua Jackson … well, he was a little awkward looking in the YM, Seventeen, and Teen photo spreads back then.  His baby face made him look a bit pre-adolescent, though he was actually 19 years old when the show premiered.  Evidence.  It was Pacey’s charm and personality that made him so attractive, something that was not showcased until well on in the series.  Now, however, Joshua Jackson is all grown-up, and he grew up goooooood.  Evidence.  Absolutely perfect.  In fact, I’ve dumped all other imaginary TV boyfriends in favor of Peter Bishop.  Sorry, Dean Winchester.  Anyway, I was 16, I was an idiot, and I promise that I’m not as superficial as I seem in this paragraph.  I grew up a lot since then.  Really.

And speaking of “growing up” (awkward segue alert!), that is really what this show is about.  Growing up and falling in love.  Because of this, watching the series has a very nostalgic feel, capturing those little moments on life’s journey where you are figuring out complicated things like “I like that boy, but I don’t know if he likes me!”  You know, the really important issues.  The nostalgia factor was also increased for me by the fact that these kids were growing up right around the time I was also growing up.  I mean, the phrase “Be kind, rewind,” was actually used in season one.  That’s how old it is.  That’s how old I am.  A lot of you probably don’t even know what that means … I need a cocktail.  Sigh.  Also, the music was like a time machine, and it brought back a lot of memories—though I’m told that the original music was not on the dvds, they picked some 90s and early aughts classics—both good and bad.

The thing that really struck me about Dawson’s Creek, and both fascinated and infuriated me, was the meta level on which the show operates.  I mean, the show is so self-reflective that it is baffling.  On the one hand, this sets it apart, and gives it a distinctive style.  And there is much clever dialogue to be had.  On the other hand, this can veer towards too much “muchness.”  I mean, the first season is sweet, heartbreaking, and beautiful, but the characters are pretty much as self-reflective as you could possibly imagine characters being.  These characters, of course, are a reflection of the experiences of the series’ writers, from their teenage lives.  Then, the second season proceeds to be all about that season that already happened, reflecting on that self-reflection.  Dawson spends the entire second season making a movie about the first season!  Ultimately, the series ends with Dawson creating Dawson’s Creek, though it is called simply, The Creek, and he changes the names.  We end with Dawson’s friends, upon whom he based his characters, watching this series.  It boggles the mind.  There is also a lot of awareness of other teen dramas in Dawson’s Creek, and the way that things have generally be done in film and television, so watching is sometimes quite a cerebral experience.  I have divided my thoughts up by character, with an extra-special “Favorite Joey and Pacey Moments” list added in for good measure.

This photo displays Joey Potter's signature "scornful glance." It is closely related to the "Dawson is making my eyes roll" look, which she wears so well.

Joey Potter

Like I mentioned above, I heart Joey Potter.  If I had realized how cool she was, I would totally have been watching Dawson’s Creek long ago.  I love her sass and snark, and her constant eye-rolling at everything Dawson says.  I love that she calls everyone out on their sh#@.  I love that she’s super smart and ambitious, and can’t wait to get out of Capeside.  I love that she’s from “the wrong side of the Creek,” and has a criminal for a father.  I love how she carries around the tragedy of her mother’s death for the entire series.  Honestly, I would not have made it through the series without her, as some of the other characters *cough* Dawson *cough* made me want to tear my hair out.  Also, this show is slooooooow paced—frustratingly so at times—so I needed to care about a main character in order to justify the sometimes painstaking journey.  Thank you, Joey.  Now, she is not perfect, especially in the later seasons (she IS perfect in season one), and I certainly do NOT agree with a lot of her life choices, but ultimately I cared about her and sympathized with her.

Some of my favorite Joey moments

• In season 1, episode 7, “Detention,” Joey is standing in line in the cafeteria, when an as@#ole jock in a letterman jacket, Grant, gives her a hard time.  He cuts in line and makes dirty jokes about the report she just delivered in class.  He says: “We’re like the shoguns and this school is like our castle.  Whatever we want we get.  You can either be my servant, or my concubine.  So what will it be?”  Her response?  She knees the guy in the nuts, knocks his friend out with her food tray, and then punches Grant for good measure.  “Neither,” she replies.  My response?  I love that girl.  Normally I don’t sanction violence, but it was a lovely moment.

• Joey sings “On My Own” in season 1, episode 12, “The Beauty Contest.”  Lovely.  I mean her voice is not the strongest, but it’s pretty, and vulnerable, and the song is perfect for her.  Oh, Joey, if only you didn’t love Dawson.  Look to the left: Pacey is RIGHT THERE.

• Joey visits her dad in prison.  This happens in season 1, episode 13, “Decisions,” which is also the finale.  Joey has been avoiding the prospect, but it’s Papa Potter’s birthday, and since her sister did birthday duty the previous year, Joey’s number is up.  Joey’s anger at her father is well justified: the man cheated on her dying mother, and then dealt drugs, and got arrested, leaving her parentless.  She goes to the prison and meets with him, and it is sad sad sad.   Joey is too angry to really talk to her dad, and before she leaves, she tells him that their family no longer exists.  Later, she has second thoughts, and with Pacey’s help (more on that below, in my favorite Joey and Pacey moments) she returns to the prison and has a heart-to-heart with her father.  “Do you really love me though?  Because I’m fifteen years old, and I go through every day of my life thinking that nobody loves me.”  I may have cried.  Tears.  Whatever.

• Drunk Joey!  This happens three times in the series, but the latter two times really showcase Katie Holmes’s drunken acting, which is highly amusing.  In season 4, episode 4, “Future Tense,” Joey is stressed out about college and the future, so she decides to drink at Jen’s fake birthday party.  DrunkJoey takes a walk with Jen, and hilarity ensues.  When DrunkJoey makes a toast for Jen’s birthday, Jen reminds her that it’s not really her birthday.  DrunkJoey: “That’s alright.  I mean, we’re not really friends.  I’m just kidding.  I’m kidding.  I’m kidding.  We are.  I think we are.  Do you think we are?”  Hee.  A fitting description of their friendship thus far.  Also, when Andie joins them, she asks whether she’s really controlling.  DrunkJoey provides this piece of wisdom: “Some people like salad dressing on the salad.  And some people like it on the side.”  Well said.

• Drunk Joey, reprised!  In season 6, episode 14, “Clean and Sober,” Joey gets drunk at another party.  Bearded-Pacey is disapproving of her drinking, of course, though he eventually finds it amusing.  This episode shows how much the series lightened up about things such as FUN—something which was highly disapproved of in the high school years.  Anyway, DrunkJoey takes the opportunity to tell her friends’ significant others’ embarrassing stories about them.  Love!  Highlight: DrunkJoey tells Jen’s boyfriend C.J. (played by Jensen Ackles): “You know, C.J.,  I just, I really think it’s great how you’ve turned Jen around.  Because before, believe me, I mean she was a troubled young lady.  She killed a girl once.  Abby Morgan.  Killed her with champagne.  You want some?”  Ha!  Then, later, she tells Pacey: “You’re still not over me.”  She further explains, “That was one of Audrey’s comments.  You’re still not over me.  That must suck.”  Pacey: “Oh, it does.  You have no idea the hardships I go through trying to maintain a friendship with a dream girl such as yourself.  But Jack and I cuddle.  It eases the pain.  He’s very loving.”  Ha! Also, DrunkJoey’s antics lead to a Joey-Pacey kiss, something which I always approve of.

• When she sings “I Want You To Want Me” at karaoke night.  Despite the fact that this episode—season 5, episode 11, “Something Wild—includes Chad Michael Murray, it was nice to see Joey having fun for a change.  Fun of any kind is a rare commodity on this show, even more so when it comes to Joey.  Fun involving hair tossing?  Priceless.

• ANY time she gives her Joey-patented eye-roll.  It’s my favorite.

• ANY time she is mean to people.  That’s my other favorite.  I’m possibly a terrible person.

Dawson Leery

Dawson cries on the dock, after releasing Joey from his Vulcan death grip. Meanwhile, Joey and Pacey sail off into the sunset, aboard the True Love. Good conquers evil. This photo is all over the web, so it's hard to attribute. I got this particular version from Gizmodo.com, but I cropped it further.

Oh, Dawson.  *Eye-roll*  I must admit that Dawson is definitely my least favorite character on the show.  (Sorry, James Van Der Beek.  You, however, seem rather hilarious and likeable.)  Nevertheless, he’s the title character, so I must address him.  In season one he is blindly unaware of Joey’s crush, and head over heels for the new girl, Jen.  Stupid boy.  He also suffers from Peter Pan syndrome, like his idol Steven Spielberg.  Actually, Dawson’s movie-obsession is my favorite thing about his character, as I appreciate geeky tendencies.  But back to the Peter Pan syndrome: Dawson is not ready to grow up.  He loves the idea of Jen, but not her in reality.  The same goes for his eventual feelings for Joey.  He is just not prepared for a mature relationship.  He is also supremely selfish and self-absorbed.  This changes after his father dies, however, when he must step in and help out his mom and baby sister.  Of course then in the eyes of all other characters he immediately goes from selfish-teen to martyr.  Sigh.  Oh, poor Dawson, taking care of his family!  He’s so put upon!  Sigh.

Another frequent complaint is that he is condescending and judgmental, even towards his closest friends.  His relationship with Jen was particularly frustrating in this regard, as he was constantly putting his foot in his mouth when it came to her “past.”  When it came to women, Dawson tended to oscillate between romantic notions of championing the damaged damsel, to contempt for her lack of virginity.  He never hesitated to throw Jen’s sexual indiscretions, or rocky relationship with her parents, back in her face, whenever things became heated between them.  Ugh.  He needed to be slapped upside the head.  Despite his seemingly open mind, his rather conservative and narrow notions about life were apparent throughout the series.

In order to balance out the crying photo, I posted this. The hair is MUCH improved. He kind of looks hot. I mean, you can hardly recognize the boy in this photo, from season 6.

Most frustrating for me, as a viewer, were the ups and downs of his relationship with Joey.  The two were soul mates, supposedly, and he loved her.  However, his love was always constricting.  He had this emotionally manipulative hold on her, which limited her growth.  He was always holding her back, and keeping her from moving on.  She gave up Paris for him.  She gave up Pacey for him (thankfully that didn’t last long).  Additionally, any time that things became romantic between them it just made me uncomfortable.  I would have preferred a brother-sister relationship between the two, because their attempts at romance were so non-sexualized that it was just weird.  There was no heat.  They always just seemed like two kids playing at kissing or something.  Again, it made me uncomfortable.  Not to mention that each time they went down that road, one or both of them sabotaged it within about five minutes.  All that build-up, and then … nothing.  Annoying.

Still, Dawson wasn’t all bad.  I think at heart he was a good person, and often tried to be a good friend.  I especially liked the relationship with Jen that he had in the later seasons, after he had matured.  Those two actually had some great chemistry in season five, when they had sex in New Hampshire.  I was kind of sad that they ended things so soon, though it was probably for the best.  Also, Dawson definitely wins the award for Most Improved Hair.  It is an important victory for his character.

Pacey Witter

There is no question who my favorite Capeside boy is: definitely Pacey.  I love his roguish charm and his witty banter.  I love that he knows his way around a sail boat.  I love his daddy issues.  I love his sensitivity and vulnerability.  I even love his ridiculous shirts.  But most of all, I love the way that he loves Joey Potter.  Yes, I will admit it: I ship Joey and Pacey.  Normally I avoid fixating on any one couple on a show, quite firmly.  However, in the case of Dawson’s Creek, it is a show about love and relationships, so you really have to become invested in at least one to make the show worthwhile.  And really, there was only one romance worthy of hooking viewers, in my opinion.  Honestly, I find it shocking that anyone, least of all the writers, would want Dawson and Joey to end up together, when PACEY IS RIGHT THERE.  From the first biting remarks exchanged between Pacey and Joey, their chemistry was clear.  It’s only shocking that the show took so long before the two got together.  Making us wait until season three?  That’s just cruel.  However, along the road towards their true love, there were a lot of great moments.  Even in season one, the seeds of their romance were planted.

Favorite Joey and Pacey moments

• Despite the fact that Pacey was cast in the “bad boy” role, he was always a sweetheart, and rarely selfish … unlike OTHER boys on the show.  Ahem.  In season 1, Season 1 episode 8, “Boyfriend” this is made especially clear.  Dawson forgets all about Joey at a party, and goes off with Jen.  Idiot.  Then an uglier version of Legolas (seriously—go rewatch the episode) plies lonesome Joey with drinks.  Pacey steps in to help his vulnerable friend: “Alright, Jo.  Say goodbye to the nice serial rapist man.”  Legolas takes a punch, and misses.  Pacey punches him.  Joey collapses (that’s how wasted she is) and when Dawson goes over to check on her, she call DAWSON her hero.  Ugh.  Pacey rescues her, and Dawson gets the credit.  Story of Pacey’s life.  He always gets the fuzzy end of the lollipop.  The boys take Joey home, and she kisses Dawson, while Pacey takes care of the baby and is a total sweetheart.  Team Pacey.

• A couple of episodes later, in “Double Date,” Joey and Pacey offer more than a hint at their chemistry.  Exhibit A: Pacey, dripping with sarcasm: “You know, it’s amazing.  A personality like yours and you still can’t get any dates.”  Joey: “Even more amazing, a personality like yours and you can.”  Her exchanges with Pacey in the episode are adorable, and near the end, Pacey realizes that he has some feelings for Joey.  Ultimately, he steps back for Dawson’s sake, and due to an awareness of Joey’s inexplicable crush on Dawson.  Still, this episode does feature Pacey and Joey’s first kiss, though she quickly spurns him.  He sadly asks, “If by some chance you would have kissed me back, you would probably been thinking of someone else, right?”  She just gives him her Joey-look.  Sigh.

• In season 1, episode 13, “Decisions,” Pacey plays a key role in Joey’s reconciliation with her father.   After visiting her father in prison, Joey is a mess.  However, after hearing about Pacey’s daddy issues, she recommends that he have a talk with his dad.  This gives Joey the realization, that she needs to do talk to her father too.  She asks Pacey to steal his dad’s car, and he obliges, though refers to it as “borrowing.”  Awww.  Also, he bribes the prison guard, because it’s after visiting hours.  I mean, doesn’t every girl want a guy who’s willing to bribe prison guards for her?  It’s the dream.

• There are a lot of great Pacey and Joey moments in season 3, but one that really stands out is in episode 12, “Weekend in the Country,” when Pacey helps out the Potter B&B.  He somehow gets a hotshot critic/ reporter type to visit the B&B, but things go awry.  In the end, of course, it all works out, but his concern and worry for Joey is soooo apparent throughout the episode.  He tries to play it off like he’s only doing it for Dawson, because of their RIDICULOUS deal (ugh), but the truth is apparent.  At the end of the episode, he goes to see Joey, but she is asleep on the couch.  He sits in a nearby armchair and watches  her sleep.  And not in a creepy Edward Cullen way, I promise.  He’s in loooooooove, even if he doesn’t know it yet.

• Another highlight is in season 3, episode 14, “The Valentine’s Massacre.”  The whole gang ends up in jail, after a party.  (Sidenote: partying is bad and wrong, and you will end up in big trouble!  You got that kids?  No fun for you.)  In jail, Pacey makes this amazing and on the nose speech: “The ballad of Dawson and Joey.  Will those crazy kids ever get back together?  […]  I mean, honestly, do you have any idea how exhausting it is to exist on your periphery.  To witness this perpetual dance that you two have.  One week you’re soul mates, the next week you’re giving each other up for the greater good.  I mean, do you think it’s possible that sometime soon you could make up your mind, please?  And the reverence that you two treat this little saga of yours with, it’s enough to make a guy wanna puke.”  Thank you, Pacey!  You say everything that the audience is thinking.  Gag.  Then everyone makes bail except for Pacey.  (See, I told you.  Pacey always gets the fuzzy end of the lollipop.)  Deputy Doug comes to visit his cell, and asks what the problem is, guessing it’s a girl.  Pacey: “I’ll tell you something though, she is really really annoying.  Yeah, I mean this girl is amazing.  There’s not a single subject on the face of the planet that she doesn’t have an opinion about.”  OF COURSE, he’s talking about Joey.  Doug says that must be a nightmare.  Pacey then defends her OF COURSE: “No, it’s not quite like that.  You got to understand, the girl’s really smart, and when she argues it comes from this really beautiful, pure place, so how can you fight against that?  Especially if you’re a jackass like me.”  Doug asks if she’s pretty.  Pacey: “Yeah, she is pretty.  She is very very pretty.  She is actually the kind of pretty that gives you butterflies.”  Doug: “So the question is, little brother, what are you going to do about it?”  Pacey: “No, I don’t think you’re really properly grasping the gravity of this situation, Dougy.  You see, if I was actually to do something about this, there is the strong possibility that the sun would cease to shine, that the tides would cease to rise.  In fact, I’m betting there’s a pretty good chance that the very earth would crack open and Capeside would become home to a huge Hellmouth that would spew forth endless hordes of monsters and demons that would choke the denizens of this city, make them fall to their knees, and make them pray to return to the days before I took action.  That’s really what we’re talking about here.”  Poor boy has bought into the Joey-Dawson saga.  Sigh.  Also, bonus points for the Buffy reference.  Pacey goes to apologize to Joey later, for, you know, telling THE TRUTH.  Then he teaches her to drive, which previously Dawson totally failed at.  Team Pacey.

• Season 3, episode 15, “Crime and Punishment” is also memorable.  Now, I’m not one to swoon over Pacey beating some guy up for Joey, but there’s more to Pacey’s defense of Joey than fisticuffs.  He asks if she is going to thank him, and she replies: “Pacey, if I was going to thank you, it would be for being yourself, and you know, not caring what anyone else thinks, and for knowing in your heart what’s right and wrong, and for being there for me this year, when I needed you the most.”  Pacey: “You’re welcome.”  Exactly.

• Then, in season 3, episode 16, “To Green with Love,” Pacey buys Joey a wall.  Do I really have to say more?  It is almost as good as a really really tall guy building you a car.  Almost.

• And of course, this is soon followed by Joey and Pacey’s first real kiss, in season 3 episode 17, “Cinderella Story.”  The episode doesn’t start off promising, as Joey goes off to visit A.J. at college.  However, when things go south with the new guy, she calls Pacey, knowing he’ll be there for her.  Joey is upset during the car ride home, “Because I’m sixteen and in my entire life there have been only two people who have actually known me, Dawson and …”  Pacey cuts her off: “This A.J. guy didn’t know you.  I don’t care how you felt about him, Jo.  He didn’t know, cause if he did, he never would have walked away.”  Sooooo in loooooove.  Joey: “I was going to say you, Pacey.”  He pulls over the car, and asks her what she meant by that.  She asks by what.  Pacey: “About me, knowing you better than anyone else.  Joey: “Exactly what I said, Pacey.  You know me, okay.  In a way that nobody else besides Dawson ever has.”  Pacey is very agitated: “I’m not talking about Dawson right now.  I’m talking about me.  You can’t keep doing this to me, Potter.”  He asks her why she called HIM in the middle of the night.  Joey: “You were the first person that I thought of, Pacey.”  Pacey: “And what does that mean, Jo?”  Joey: “It means that I can talk to you and that you’re there for me.”  Pacey: “Don’t you get tired of talking?”  Joey: “No.”  Pacey: “I don’t want to talk anymore.”  Aaaand, he proves it.  Smooches!

• Season 3, episode 18, “Neverland,” picks up where previous episode left off.  Still kissing!  She then pushes him away.  Boo.  At the end of the episode, they lie to each other that it meant nothing, and shake hands, but don’t worry, that’s not the end.

• In the next episode, “Stolen Kisses,” the two SPOILER ALERT steal kisses.  Pacey stands up for himself though, telling her: “I can’t be the one who’s always initiating this.  I can’t be the one who’s always giving you the answers.”  Word.  He’s ready to walk away: “If you felt even one shred of what I feel for you, then we wouldn’t be standing here having this conversation.”  Joey finally steps up, calls his name, and kisses him for a change.  Awwwwwww.

• In season 3, episode 20, “The Longest Day,” Dawson finds out about Joey and Pacey.  He takes it like you’d expect a selfish immature brat to take it.  Shut up, Dawson!  You have avoided Joey all season.  You even hooked up with Eve!  And now you have the nerve … ugh.  Just, ugh!  At the end, Joey ends things with Pacey, due to Dawson’s emotional blackmail.  Pacey cries a single tear to rival Dean Winchester.

• In the season 3 finale, “True Love,” things come to a head.  Dawson makes a speech about forgiveness at his parents’ wedding, and finally realizes how selfish he has been.  He tells Joey:  “Pacey’s this year’s Paris.  And this time, you have to go. […]  You’re free.  You can do whatever you want.”  Joey is hesitant, as she doesn’t want to lose Dawson as a friend.  See what I was saying about emotional blackmail?  Dawson tells her to go, before he takes it all back.  She does.  And then he cries, see the photo above.  Joey runs to Pacey’s boat, aptly named “True Love.”  She explains: “Look, I don’t want to stop you, Pacey.  And I don’t want to stop Dawson.  And I don’t want to be stopped.  Not by either of you, not by any one.  That’s what this whole year has been about.  We’ve been trying to stop each other from moving on and growing up.  But not you.  You’re different.  You’ve challenged me every step of the way, and you’ve been there every step of the way.”  Exactly.  He asks her to get to the point.  Joey: “I think I’m in love with you.”  Pacey: “You think or you know?”  Joey: “I know.  [Long pause.]  I’ve known it since the moment you kissed me, and maybe even before that.  And as scary as it is, I don’t want to deny it anymore, Pacey.  I don’t want to run from it, and I don’t want it to run from me.”  Finally!  He asks her what they’re gonna do and she says she wants to go with him.  She says, “I want to stop standing still.  I want to move forward.  I want to come with you.”  He gives her permission to come aboard, and the two sail off into the sunset.   Part of me kind of wishes that the show ended there, but alas.

• Instead, we learn that Joey and Pacey spent three months ALONE on a boat, and didn’t have sex.  I mean, this show has some unrealistic plot points, but that is the ultimate.  In fact, Joey and Pacey don’t have sex until season 4, episode 14, “A Winter’s Tale.”  Joey acts weird about it all episode, and makes me uncomfortable.  It makes Pacey uncomfortable too, so he brings up Dawson: “I’ll tell you what, do you want to know what I’m scared of?  […]  What I am scared of is that little piece of your heart that will always belong to Dawson Leery.  Ok, I’m scared of that piece of your heart that always envisioned your first time being with him.  I’m scared of that part of you that just doesn’t want it to be me. ”  Sadness.  Pacey then tells a random blonde girl: “For me, it’s not about wanting to have sex, it’s about wanting to share the most intimate thing two people can share.”  Joey overhears.  They kiss and make up.  And they finally make love.  Sadly, things go downhill from there.

• After Joey and Pacey break up (NOT listed on my favorite moments), the two eventually become friends again.  Of course, eventually, sparks fly again, though it takes forever and a day.  Sooooo frustrating.  In season 6, episode 14, “Clean and Sober,” mentioned above due to hilarious DrunkJoey,  the two have a couple major moments.   DrunkJoey tells Pacey: “You’re still not over me.”  She further explains, “That was one of Audrey’s comments.  You’re still not over me.  That must suck.”  Pacey: “Oh, it does.  You have no idea the hardships I go through trying to maintain a friendship with a dream girls such as yourself.  But Jack and I cuddle.  It eases the pain.  He’s very loving.”  Ha!  She says that she is a good catch, and then leaves the room, leaving Pacey deeply considering this idea.  Sooooo not over her.  Later, he brings her home, or at least to a bed.  She says, “See, I’m a lovely drunk … people love me.”  He agrees.  As she falls asleep, Pacey drops this bomb: “What you said earlier was right: I never did.  How could I?  Just look at you.”  Then she kisses him.  Woo!

• Luckily, we don’t have to wait too long for another Pacey-Joey moment, which comes in “Castaways.”  It is my very favorite episode of the series.  And the only regulars in the episode are Joey and Pacey.  No Dawson, no Jen, no Jack, no Audrey.  Just Pacey and Joey.  My bias should be clear.  Joey goes to a work party with Pacey as a favor, and she is not having any fun.  Pacey is flirting with a blonde, and makes plans to meet up later.  Pacey makes a pit stop at a K-Mart for the appropriate one-night stand supplies.   Pacey and Joey engage in their usual adorable fighting, and then end up trapped inside the store overnight.  He agrees to do one thing he really doesn’t want to do, since she had to do something she really didn’t want to do.  Joey knows immediately what she wants.  You see, Pacey was sporting unfortunate facial hair in season six, and she is going to make him shave it.  Smart girl.  Pacey asks, “How does changing my physical appearance help YOU?”  Joey: “Believe me, if I don’t have to look at that thing on your face anymore, I’ll consider myself helped.”  Word.  Pacey runs.  Adorable chase scene ensues, but then Joey gives him a reprieve.  Eventually, however, Pacey consents to the change, and lets Joey shave the beard off.   “Hello, chin, you’re back,” she says victoriously.  Love.  Then they kiss.  Love.  Joey asks, “How come you don’t look surprised?”  He reveals that he’s been wanting to do that all night.  She asks, “So, is this some sort of recent new development in your life?”  Pacey: “Wanting to kiss you?  No.  It’s sort of always there.  Like white noise.  Or the secret service.  Or the threat of nuclear war, for that matter.  It’s just something you get used to.”  *Swoon*  He adds: “What I know is that you and I were one of the few things, perhaps the only thing, that ever made total and complete sense in my life.  That’s what I know.”  She reminds him of the fighting and the valid reasons for their break up, and how her life is finally on track, etc.  She’s flattered, stunned, and confused, but wants to sleep on it.  Wrong answer, Jo!  Ugh.  After they lay down to sleep, Joey does take the opportunity to kiss him, and he kisses her back.  She tells him that she misses him, and he misses her too.  The next morning, Pacey buys the items they used, on the way out of the store.  He says: “I got it.  It seems a small price to pay for a dream come true.”  Swoooooon.  Sidenote: the clerk’s name is Lucia.  This is clearly a sign or something.

• Pacey and Joey end up together.  Relief!

Jen Lindley

“This isn’t a funk.  It’s my personality.”  That quote pretty much sums up Jen.  Sorry, is that too harsh?  It is.  I actually eventually came to like Jen, after a lot of seething dislike.  When she was introduced, it was in the part of the “fast city girl” and “blonde bombshell,” and that role did not suit her.  Eventually, she becomes more quirky and interesting, and one of the less annoying characters on the show, though her storylines are all pretty dull.  Also, we must thank Jen Lindley for a reason to have Grams on the show.  What would Dawson’s Creek be without Grams?  Far lesser, I’m sure.

Looking back, one of my favorite Jen moments was in season 2, episode 19, “Abby Morgan, Rest in Peace.”  Remember DrunkJoey’s line that Jen killed a girl once, with champagne?  She wasn’t lying.  Yes, Jen and Abby were partying (which is bad and wrong, in case you didn’t know!), and Abby falls off the dock and dies.  Seriously.  At the funeral, Jen offers this speech: “My name’s Jen Lindley, and I was friends with Abby … as much as anybody could be, because Abby had a toxic personality that bordered on radioactive.  Abby could be cruel, and Abby could be spiteful, and Abby could certainly be petty.  She spent her days mischievously causing trouble and creating calamity, and generally taking pleasure in other people’s pain.  You know, in Sunday school, they teach us that God made man in his image. Well, if God made Abby in his own image, then what does that say about God?  God has always been such a mystery to me, I mean, what sort of deity creates a world that is so full of suffering and is so full of tragedy.  I’ll tell you what, Abby taught me a lot.  That girl taught me how to do a tequila shooter with one hand behind my back.  And she taught me how to live my life according to my own set of values, and not to just follow the crowd in hopes of winning some phantom popularity contest.  But most of all, what’s most important is that Abby taught me the sadistic nature of our God.  And while that knowledge is disturbing, it’s true, and it’s real.  And in a world that is so saturated with phoniness and with lies, for that small amount, for that little bit of honesty, I will always be grateful to her.”  Gotta love a girl who struggles with her faith, and has the guts to say that in a church.

Jen really became more palatable as a character with her friendship with Jack.  The two were adorable together.  Of course, all her romantic entanglements still make me want to tear my eyes out, but as a person (um, fake person), I now judge her favorably.  Also, what was that whole C.J. relationship about?  I mean I love Jensen Ackles as much as the next girl, but his character made no sense.  So odd.  And bad hair too.  Ultimately, I cried when she died in the finale.  I mean, I’m not heartless.

Final Thoughts

Yes, I know I still haven’t written about Jack and Andie McPhee, nor Audrey Liddell.  But I have to end this post now, as it is getting unbearably long.  If I keep going, I fear that I will never finish, and it’s already taken me forever to post this.  I’m planning an additional post covering the characters that I’ve missed, and my thoughts on the series finale.  I will leave you with a couple more things though.

• If you are a Dawson’s Creek fan, make sure to visit Teen Drama Whore.  Shari (@sizzlemaker), who runs that site, was my Creek-sensei when I was watching the show back in January, and tweeting about it all the time.  She has some really great interviews with the writers, producers, and cast members that you do not want to miss: Teen Drama Whore interviews.
• Also, thanks to all my tweeps who talked all things Capeside with me during my marathon, and shared my love of Joey and Pacey.  Thanks, guys.
• Back in March, when I visited L.A. for PaleyFest, I had the opportunity to be in the room while Kevin Williamson answered a question about Dawson’s Creek.  The only Dawson-Joey fan who exists (she must be, right?) was there, and she was sad that Joey didn’t end up with Dawson.  Kevin explained to the girl that Joey and Dawson ARE together: “Joey and Dawson are forever … She’s having sex with Pacey.”  That got a big laugh from the audience.  Kevin echoes these thoughts on the dvd commentaries as well, explaining that there are a lot of different ways to be soul mates.  Anyway, that was a pretty cool moment for me.  Squee!  (Shhhhhh … don’t tell anyone about the squee-ing.)

Kevin Williamson explains things. Photo taken by me, Lucia.

*All photos not otherwise attributed are from the DawsonCreek.com official gallery.  No copyright infringement intended, so please don’t sue me.