May 30, 2015
Party of Five 6.22, Falling Forward: Stay in Your Comfort Zone! Trying New Things Is Bad!
I’m as happy as this dog because there are just two episodes left!
Summary: Business is good for Charlie and Bailey, and they’re eyeing some accounts that just came up for grabs. Bailey offers to put together an offer while Charlie takes the evening off to spend time with Kirsten. Julia’s stuck trying to find something to write about now that she’s put her book to bed. Will still isn’t living with Holly full-time, which annoys Bailey. Holly hears them bickering, but Bailey brushes it off, not wanting to tell her about Will’s feelings for her.
Todd’s mother leaves him and Claudia alone in the house, studying, because I guess she thinks they’re only going to study, or if she thinks otherwise, she doesn’t mind. They start making out, and Todd suggests that they take advantage of the fact that they’re alone. He makes it clear that he’s not going to pressure Claudia to do anything she doesn’t want to do. Fortunately for him, she wants to do it…at least at first. She decides she’s too distracted by thoughts of her educational future.
Julia’s also wondering about her future – should she stay at school or move on? A professor thinks she should meet with someone who writes for a women’s magazine. Justin tells her that Maggie called, and Julia wonders why he was hanging around the Salingers’ house all day instead of, say, studying or ending his marriage. Anyway, Maggie’s organizing some conference and wants Julia to speak. Julia’s annoyed that people only want her to talk about her book and her experiences with Ned. Griffin pops in for 30 seconds to notice that Justin and Julia are apparently back together.
Holly stuns Bailey by announcing that she’s going to have her marriage to Will annulled. She’s mad at Bailey for not telling her the truth about Will’s feelings for her. Bailey argues that he was trying to protect her. Her goal is staying in the U.S., so they need to focus on that. Charlie tells Kirsten that he’s going to have to work late a few more nights to get offers together. There’s more bad news when he learns that Mitch, the difficult foreman, collapsed at work and was taken to the hospital with heart problems.
When Charlie gets to the hospital, Mitch is in surgery to repair damage from a heart attack. His wife admits that he had a heart condition he never told Charlie about. She begged him to slow down, but Mitch worked hard to help Charlie reach his goals. Julia looks into an internship at the women’s magazine, Goddess, but is instead offered the chance to try for a monthly column. In light of Mitch’s medical problems, Charlie cuts back the schedule at the factory. Bailey objects, but Charlie won’t budge.
Claudia and Todd compare their college acceptances and rejections; she’s gotten into both Stanford and Juilliard. Todd’s even more excited than Claudia about Juilliard and urges her to go. Claudia says she only auditioned to see if she could get in. She doesn’t want to go because it’s expensive and far away. Bailey goes against Charlie’s decision to slow things down by trying to pick up some new business. Someone suggests that he get a business degree because it could bring him a lot of success.
Julia asks Justin to cancel their plans so she can work on her column. Bailey tracks down Will, who’s moved out of the Salingers’ house and quit his job without telling anyone. Will says it’s too hard to be around Holly now that she knows how he feels about her. Bailey reminds him that he took an oath. Will blasts him for not caring about his supposed best friend’s feelings. He reminds Bailey that Holly can go to med school somewhere else. Bailey needs to figure out why he’s trying to hold on when everyone else is ready to let go.
Julia’s first column doesn’t quit hit the mark, as the editor’s looking more for advice on how the readers will feel if they try to reinvent themselves. Julia realizes that the column wouldn’t really allow her to express herself. Charlie visits Mitch, who urges him not to slow down the line. He blames himself for his condition because he pushed himself to fulfill Charlie’s dreams, which would in turn help his own family.
Claudia and Todd head towards sex again, but he stops when he starts questioning the timing. He thinks Claudia’s trying to assuage her guilt over deciding to go to Juilliard. Claudia says she’s not going, but Todd knows she really wants to. Julia works on another column, taking up the little time she and Justin have together before he goes back to school. He doesn’t like that she’s “blowing off things that actually matter,” like the conference, so she can write silly articles for a silly magazine. I hope she dumps him.
Holly tells Bailey that she’s going back to London. He thinks she’s giving up, but she’s recognized that they’re not meant to be together. Staying there, with him, is just holding her back. At the factory, Charlie gets the horrible news that Mitch has had another heart attack, this one fatal. Julia tells Justin that he was right; she should speak at the conference and not write a stupid column for a dumb magazine. I hate them both.
Charlie gets emotional at Mitch’s funeral, telling Kirsten how much he loves her. Claudia tells Todd she’s going to Stanford because she’s not willing to give up everything she’d have to sacrifice to go to Juilliard. He suggests sex again. Charlie wants to slow things down again at the factory, telling Bailey that it’s more important for them to spend time with their families than to make money for them. He also wants to change the name of the company to Salinger Brothers. Bailey is noncommittal.
In bed, having just had sex, Claudia says things feel different now, but that’s clearly not a bad thing. Will has decided to go back to school, having “wasted” his year. He knows something’s wrong with his life if he could only feel useful by entering a sham marriage. He would do it all again. Bailey acknowledges what a good friend he is and promises that he understands why Will needs to make a change. Music montage! Julia speaks at the conference. Claudia considers Juilliard. Charlie spends time with Kirsten and Diana. And Bailey weighs his options for his future.
Thoughts: Claudia caught Julia’s co-dependence. It’s okay to go to school across the country, guys. It doesn’t mean you’ll never see your family again.
“Waaaah, my girlfriend isn’t 100 percent focused on me because she’s trying to get her career off the ground.” Shut up, Justin.
Claudia: “I had sex.” Todd: “I know. I was there.” THAT’S ADORABLE.
May 23, 2015
Party of Five 6.21, Taboo or Not Taboo: Temptation, Frustration, So Bad It Makes Him Cry
Not a good look for you, Kimberly
Summary: Bailey and Holly are pressuring Will to move out of the Salingers’ basement and into Holly’s apartment to continue their ruse with the INS. Will resists, saying he’s settled where he is. Plus, his girlfriend, Meredith, won’t be happy if he moves in with another woman. Bailey thinks something else is going on, but Will won’t talk about it.
Also not wanting to talk: Julia, who’s avoiding calls from a woman who wants to interview her about her book for an online magazine. Claudia reminds her that the point of writing her book was to help people. She made an appointment for Julia behind her back. Daphne’s supposed to go out for a crazy night with some friends, happy to have a break from motherhood. Kirsten, who’s been focusing a lot on getting ready for the baby, decides to tag along.
Claudia has a paper to write, so she can’t go out with Todd (who can somehow go out a lot despite having a job and schoolwork). A work friend suggests that she get a paper off the Internet and use it to “help” her. Bailey goes to Will’s work to confront him over not wanting to move in with Holly. He thinks it’s because Will doesn’t like her. Will insists that he does, but doesn’t confess that the problem is that he likes her more than he should.
Daphne, her friends, and Kirsten go to a club, but Daphne doesn’t have the stamina she used to. Julia meets with the interviewer, Phoebe, but they’re interrupted by Justin. He announces that he and Laura are done, and now he wants Julia back. She closes the door in his face. Phoebe praises her for what she thinks is Julia standing up to a bad boyfriend.
Kirsten tells Daphne and her friends that they’re brave for being strippers – she could never do it. She’s a rule-follower and has always done what was expected of her. Will moves in with Holly (sleeping on the couch) and resists any kind of physical contact with her. She and Bailey make plans together, then invite Will and Meredith along.
The interview turns into a therapy session for Julia, who tells Phoebe the whole Justin saga. Phoebe can relate since she has an ex who would come to her crying every time one of his relationships broke up. Then she would sleep with him. Julia says it’s different because Justin’s still in love with her. She admits that she feels the same about him. Phoebe thinks Justin’s selfish, and Julia shouldn’t feel bad about rejecting him.
Todd visits Claudia for a study break, surprised that she says she has to rewrite her paper. Apparently she’s taken one from the Internet and is going to use it as a guide. After some sweet talk, Claudia decides to put off the “rewrite.” Kirsten finds Charlie’s date-night plans for them boring now that she’s had a taste of Daphne’s fun friends and their fun life. He promises that they’ll do something crazy sometime. (As if Charlie could ever even think of something crazy to do.)
Phoebe tries to meet with Julia to finish up her interview, but Julia’s made plans with Justin. So much for all that encouragement Phoebe gave her. Bailey, Holly, Will, and Meredith’s double date goes south when Meredith reveals that she and Will broke up. Bailey says Will should have said something so they wouldn’t have an uncomfortable date. Will objects to the idea of Bailey and Holly wanting him to be comfortable, since it’s so clear he isn’t.
Kirsten complains to Daphne that her night with Charlie was boring. Daphne admits that her friends’ life – her former life – isn’t that great, and she doesn’t miss it as much as she thought she did. Kirsten points out that at least Daphne used to have that life and knows what she’s not missing. Will watches Holly through her shower curtain, which is pretty creepy.
Julia meets with Phoebe to make sure she won’t be portrayed negatively in the interview. She says she had to be nice to Justin because he was upset about his marriage not working out. While they were talking, she realized she’s not mad at him. In fact, they’re back together. Phoebe points out that the article has nothing to do with Justin – why does Julia feel the need to talk about him? If Julia wants to be with him, why does she feel like she needs to explain herself?
Claudia’s teacher praises her for her great work on her paper. Daphne takes Kirsten to see her friends at their strip club, which Daphne now looks down on. A stripper suggests that Kirsten take the stage just to see what it’s like. Justin’s happy to be back with Julia, who wonders if their reunion was too easy. He didn’t treat her that great while he was with Laura. She thinks they’re both rebounding. He thinks she’s overanalyzing it and trying to talk herself out of it.
Bailey tracks down Will in the Salingers’ basement and asks again what’s going on with him. Will finally admits that he has feelings for Holly. He tried to avoid her, but Bailey kept pushing them together. Bailey tells him that if he wants to be Bailey’s friend, he needs to find away to ignore his emotions.
Julia has been cut out of Phoebe’s article, which now talks about taking back the ex who cheated on her. Phoebe says that sometimes you need to rewrite the rules for something important to you. Charlie wants to take Kirsten somewhere fun, as she requested, but now she’s fine with their boring life. When she gets ready for a bath, a dollar falls out of her pants. Oh, Kirsten.
Claudia tells Todd that she failed an exam on purpose to make up for the paper she plagiarized. She needs to spend more time on her schoolwork, which means she can’t go out with Todd all the time. She admits that that makes her feel like he’ll leave her behind. Todd suggests that they turn their time together into study time. He’d rather be with her than go out anyway.
Will apologizes to Bailey for not confessing that he has feelings for Holly, but Bailey isn’t mad. He still wants the plan to go forward, though. He says it’s because Holly could get deported and Will could be arrested if the truth comes out, but we all know it’s really because Bailey wants to keep Holly around, even if it makes Will miserable.
Julia makes a parallel between buying ice cream she likes, knowing she shouldn’t, and being with Justin, knowing it could be a disaster. She thought buying the ice cream/giving into temptation made her weak, but it doesn’t. So the lesson is that you should go after what you want even if it hasn’t been good for you in the past and you could get hurt. Awesome.
Thoughts: Phoebe is played by my girl Kimberly McCullough from General Hospital. Meredith is played by Samaire Armstrong from The O.C. and the just-cancelled Resurrection.
Matthew Fox directed this episode, in case anyone cares. That’s probably why he’s not in it much.
I love that Daphne and Kirsten are friends. They could so easily hate each other. It’s so much better for Diana if her mom and stepmom actually like each other.
“Stop having feelings you can’t control!” Shut up, Bailey. “My relationship is more important than those feelings anyway.” Seriously, shut up, Bailey.
May 16, 2015
Party of Five 6.20, Great Expectations: My Best Friend’s Fake Green-Card Wedding
This hedgehog is taking a soak to get his mind off this endless season
Summary: Will and Holly are at a courthouse, getting married. The judge marrying them asks if Will has anything to say to his bride. “You look nice,” he says. After a short ceremony, they’re officially hitched. Bailey’s a little uncomfortable to watch the new bride and groom kiss. Holly immediately goes on guard, noting that the INS could be anywhere, watching her.
Charlie already has a crib for the baby, but Kirsten worries that they’re tempting fate. (By the way, they haven’t told anyone about her pregnancy yet.) An INS agent surprises the McCorkles, suspicious because Bailey seems to have his own set of keys to their apartment. He sets up an appointment to interview Holly and Will about their relationship. Adam shows up at the Salingers’ after spending some time at an artists’ colony in Mexico. He announces that he’s moving there, but wants to spend the next few days with Julia.
Will’s sure that he and Holly won’t be able to fool the INS agent. He knows that if they get caught, he’ll never be able to run for elected office. Bailey’s like, “Hey, future president, you live in my basement. Chill.” He advises them to pretend Will is Bailey and answer questions as if they’re being asked about him. Will still isn’t assured.
Claudia tells Julia that she had an awesome dream about Todd declaring his love for her. Julia doesn’t think it’s that great – after all, it didn’t really happen. At work, Charlie and Bailey clash with a guy named Mitch who disagrees that they should be training people on a new process so they can increase their output. Charlie tells him to give it a try and go back to his way if things don’t work out.
Adam asks Julia to come to Mexico with him so they can be hipster starving artists together. She resists, so he invites her to just come for a week. He’s sure that she won’t want to leave. Holly admits to Will that she feels bad for making him go through so much so she can get a green card. He’s equally apologetic, calling himself a coward. She thinks he’s actually being selfless.
One of Julia’s professors lectures on Charlotte Bronte, who encouraged her readers to follow their dreams. Kirsten cancels a weekend away with Charlie, worried about being too far away from her doctor. Claudia tries to enact the dream she had about Todd, but he’s not clear on what she’s doing. He’s speechless when she mumbles that she loves him.
Charlie tells Bailey he’s firing Mitch for not following orders. Bailey asks permission to talk to Mitch and try to get him in line so they don’t have to pay him severance. Charlie’s more concerned with the money they’ll lose if the business goes under. He announces that he’ll do Mitch’s job if they let him go. Bailey reminds him that he can’t do every job; after all, that’s why he hired Mitch and Bailey in the first place.
Julia tells Adam she’ll go to Mexico with him for a few weeks. She sees it as a chance to do some writing that actually interests her, instead of writing boring papers. Will asks Bailey some intimate questions about Holly so he can put on a believable front for the INS. He also asks about the couple’s worst fight, which leads to Bailey and Will having their own fight about it.
Claudia’s written Todd a Dear John letter, and says Julia was right about how she shouldn’t have read too much into the dream. Julia feels differently now, and praises Claudia for saying “I love you” before Todd did. Claudia tears up the letter.
Bailey’s annoyed with Holly for telling Will about their fight; he feels like they’re exposing everything about their relationship. He accuses her of caring more about her green card than him. Holly angrily says that might be true. She calms down and tells Bailey that the only thing she’s ever felt sure of is her desire to be a doctor. She knows it’s her future, and she can’t afford to jeopardize it.
Julia finds Kirsten crying in the Salingers’ house, where she’s picking up some of Daphne’s old pregnancy books. She’s bleeding, so Julia takes her to the hospital, but everything’s okay. Her doctor urges her to have faith that things will work out so she doesn’t stress herself out so much worrying about something that might not happen.
Will and Holly meet with the INS agent, who asks the one question they can’t answer: How did they fall in love? Will talks about how great Holly is, and it becomes clear that he’s speaking from the heart. Todd tells Claudia that his parents always said “I love you” to each other, even though they were having affairs, so the phrase never meant anything to him. Instead of saying it to Claudia, he demonstrates his love for her by letting her drive his beloved car.
Mitch comes in to get his last paycheck, and Charlie tells him that he was right about his method being a bad idea. He recognizes Mitch’s hard work and would like him to stick around. They agree to try to trust each other more. Instead of meeting Adam to leave the country with him, Julia meets him to tell him she’s staying put. She needs to be close to her family because they give her strength.
Holly’s pleased with the way Will snowed the INS agent, apparently clueless that he’s actually in love with her. She and Bailey make up, as he says he’s grateful that she told him how she feels. Will’s saddened to see them close again. As Charlie and Kirsten finally announce their pregnancy to the family, Adam leaves Julia a message asking her to change her mind and join him in Mexico. She ignores it so she can celebrate with her family.
Thoughts: How pregnant is Kirsten supposed to be now? She found out weeks ago, and she’s still not showing.
Holly knows they have doctors in England, right? Why does she hate to be one in the U.S.?
Scott Grimes (Will) is really good in this episode. It’s too bad they never gave him more to do.
Julia, you can leave your family for a few weeks. Try to work on not spiraling into co-dependence.
May 9, 2015
Party of Five 6.19, Isn’t It Romantic: Indecent Proposals
I bet Daphne made these
Summary: Apparently Adam has gone to an artists’ colony in Mexico, but Julia isn’t mad, since the stuff he said about her not doing things for herself was true. Claudia’s surprised that she’s stopped working on her book. Julia says it just has problems and people don’t get it; otherwise, it would have been published. The sisters suddenly spot Ned and everything goes into slow motion. They leave before he can see them.
Bailey has signed up for three classes but is now considering going back to school full-time. He’s thinking of going to Stanford, which is where Holly wants to go to med school. She tells him she’s probably not going to be able to go after all – she has to work full-time to pay her rent, but that violates her student visa, which has now been revoked. After exams in a few weeks, she has to go back to England. Holly’s optimistic that her lawyer will work things out for her.
Kirsten makes Charlie breakfast in bed to commemorate the first anniversary of the day they got back together. Charlie’s too overworked to remember the anniversary. He offers to skip a meeting that night so they can celebrate. Claudia encourages Victor and Ross to talk, since Ross knows a little about custody issues, and Victor now wants custody of his daughter, Charlotte. Victor quickly catches on that Claudia’s trying to hook them up. He notes that he and Ross aren’t automatically compatible just because they’re both gay.
Holly’s lawyer doesn’t have good news for her, and she can’t think of any other options to keep her in the U.S. Bailey suggests a green-card marriage. Holly doesn’t want to put any pressure on their relationship, since they haven’t been back together that long. Plus, they could get caught lying. Bailey says that people only get caught when they don’t love each other. Holly can start keeping some of her things at his house, and everything else will stay the same.
Julia’s jumpy knowing that Ned’s in town, and she’s considering being proactive by going to see him before he can ambush her. Griffin hears her and Claudia talking and objects to the idea of Julia visiting him. Julia insists that he’s not going to hurt her, but Griffin notes that she’s scared anyway. He tries to get her to promise not to see Ned. Charlie and Kirsten’s romantic evening is interrupted when Daphne and Diana show up a week ahead of schedule. Daphne says they may be back in town for good.
Julia ignores Griffin’s concerns and goes to see Ned, blasting him for taking away a year of her life. After only about a minute, she leaves. Daphne tells Kirsten that Luke travels a lot and there’s nothing to do where they live, so she decided to come for a visit. She wonders how Charlie and Kirsten find time for each other. Kirsten admits that she’s not sure how she manages to be as patient as marriage requires her to be.
Bailey calls for information on getting married, pretending he’s looking for a fishing license when Will walks in. Will’s not as dumb as he used to be, and he easily figures out that Bailey wants to marry Holly so she can get a green card. Bailey insists that he’s only being helpful; he doesn’t really want to get married. Will’s happy that Bailey has finally made a solid decision about something. If he felt the way Bailey does about Holly, he’d get married, too.
Claudia’s matchmaking has been half successful, as Ross is now interested in Victor. Claudia tries to let him down easy, telling him that Victor would rather stumble across a guy he likes than be set up. Kirsten tries to talk to Charlie about Daphne, but he doesn’t think they should worry about her. She just needs to be patient while Luke gets settled. Kirsten feels bad that Daphne’s alone with Diana in a place she doesn’t see as home. She doesn’t think Daphne will stay at the base long if Luke keeps traveling.
Holly’s annoyed to learn that Bailey discussed their marriage with Will. He tells her to relax – this could be fun! There’s almost no chance the INS will catch on! This is a totally brilliant, not-at-all-risky plan! Bailey thinks a honeymoon will be a good way to convince the INS that they’re a legitimate married couple.
Ned goes to the Salingers’ to apologize to Julia, telling her that his abuse landed him in jail for two weeks. He’s trying to become a better person, and has made a vow not to date anyone until he’s sure he won’t hurt her. He wishes people would stop looking at him like he’s a monster. Julia points out that it’s not up to her to make him feel more human. Griffin walks in and chases Ned off.
Ross tries to chat with Victor when he comes to the house to meet Claudia, who claims she forgot he was coming. Ross calls Victor on saying Ross wasn’t his type because he’s too smart and sweet for him. He thinks Victor has the wrong idea about love – working for it is hard, but it’s worth it. After all, he worked hard to adopt his daughter, and he doesn’t love anyone more than her.
Luke makes a surprise visit to San Francisco with the news that he wants to be home more. Charlie admits to Kirsten that he got Luke to see what Daphne needed. Kirsten isn’t impressed – she needs Charlie to make the same kinds of promises about being home more. Otherwise she’ll feel like a single mother, too.
Griffin thinks Julia’s crazy for wanting to talk to Ned, but she wants to forgive him. She thinks that will help her forgive herself. After all, she did love Ned, and she wants to feel like that wasn’t the wrong decision. Griffin thinks that forgiveness will make Ned believe that his abuse was okay. Holly tells Bailey that she appreciates him for coming up with a solution to her problems, and she loves him, but she can’t marry him. She doesn’t want a relationship where they’re confused about what’s real.
Julia finds a website for victims of abuse where people can share stories of their experiences. She wants to upload her book so people can read it. She’s added an afterword about seeing Ned again, and now thinks the book is “good enough.” She thinks it’s ready, and hers is the only opinion that matters. Claudia runs into Victor at a coffee shop and apologizes for trying to fix him up with Ross. Then she spots Ross and realizes that the two of them have decided to go on a date after all.
Charlie comes home from work early and promises Kirsten that he’ll work shorter hours a few nights a week. She doesn’t think he’ll be able to keep that promise. Thanks, Kirsten! Will has a proposal for Bailey and Holly: He’ll marry Holly so she can get her green card without jeopardizing her relationship with Bailey. Holly agrees to this, clearly not having thought this through. Julia gets positive feedback about her book, from women who are happy to have someone to relate to. One woman says that now that she can count on herself, she’s never alone.
Thoughts: How is Victor single, though? He’s such a catch!
“Person I abused, don’t you feel sympathy for me?” Go away, Ned.
“I know I told you that you should take over the factory, but now I’m mad that you did.” You go away, too, Kirsten.
April 25, 2015
Party of Five 6.17, Getting There: The Sense of an Ending
You can tell Fiona’s wacky beacuse of her curly hair
Summary: Adam’s working on a writing assignment, but Julia’s stuck on the ending to hers. She may be distracted by the idea of ramping things up with Adam, even though they agreed to take things slowly. Adam’s on board. There’s a scene with Bailey with Holly, but part of it is cut off, so I don’t know what’s going on.
Charlie wants to take care of Kirsten while she goes through morning sickness, but she sees it as a positive – it means she gets to have a baby. She thinks Charlie should look at the hassles at his job in a positive way as well. They’re all steps getting him toward his goal. Todd’s stressed about an audition for first chair, but Claudia thinks he has it sewn up. She’s wrong – she’s gotten the honor.
Adam wants to sleep after sex, but Julia wants to talk, now that she has a ton of ideas for her story. He goes back to bed while she gets to work. Bailey goes to Holly’s place, which has been taken over by her sister, Fiona, an aspiring fashion designer. Holly confides to Bailey that Fiona will lose interest in this pretty quickly, like she’s lost interest in all her other hobbies. Bailey thinks she should keep trying to find what she loves to do. Holly assures him that she’s talking about Fiona specifically, not people in general looking for their callings.
Charlie meets with a buyer from a hotel chain who wants to use his chair design (called the Diana – aww!) in all the chains. That means building thousands of chairs. Charlie notes that the company is small, so the buyer tells him to get bigger. He’s hesitant to accept the job because he doesn’t think the company is equipped to handle it. The buyer thinks he would be crazy to turn her down.
Griffin and Will pretend to help fix Fiona’s sewing machine, but it looks like they just want to hang out with her. Griffin offers to let Fiona sleep on his couch to give Holly her apartment back. Will invites her to stay in the house, like there aren’t enough people there already. Bailey just wants the sewing machine to get fixed so Fiona can get back to working and discovering her calling and making him feel better about needing to find his, I guess.
Charlie looks for new space for the factory, realizing that it’s a lot more complicated than he expected. He’s advised to figure out his business strategy. What a concept! Julia wants to have sex while Adam’s trying to write; he thinks she’s procrastinating, but she thinks sex will inspire her, since it did last time. Adam resists because he really needs to work (and also, they’re in the library – keep your pants on, Julia).
Todd claims he’s totally okay with Claudia being first chair, but it’s obvious he isn’t. Claudia may not be either, since the new dynamic affects her playing. Charlie finds Bailey with an aptitude survey in hopes of figuring out what he should do with his life. The test says he should manage a restaurant. Heh. Charlie tells Bailey about the big hotel job, asking him to help get the new factory location up and running. Bailey doesn’t want to waste more time on a job he doesn’t love, when he could be looking for what he’s supposed to be doing.
The next day, Bailey learns that Fiona’s hooking up with Griffin, much to Will’s dismay. Fiona’s excited to tour Alcatraz with Griffin, but Bailey urges her to work instead. After all, he’s lined up buyers for her, so they’ll need something to look at. Fiona decides that she needs to put on a fashion show. Todd thinks Claudia’s faking humility, as she’s done in the past, and that she messed up on purpose to make him feel better. She calls him on pretending to support her when he was mad about losing first chair to her. He says she can’t handle competing.
Julia’s stuck on her ending again, which annoys Adam – “it is always about the ending with you.” He’s annoyed that she’s using him to finish her story so she can get published. Julia doesn’t see a problem with having that as a goal. Adam argues that the point of writing is writing, not to have people read it. He tears up his story, telling Julia that rewriting it will be better than having sex.
Kirsten is no longer as positive about her morning sickness and savoring the journey and all that. Charlie laments that he can’t find someone to help him out on such short notice, and he can’t do it himself, so he’ll have to turn down the hotel job. Like Bailey, he doesn’t want to spend time on something he doesn’t like when he could be enjoying his time with his family.
Fiona holds a show for Bailey’s buyers at the restaurant, using Bailey, Griffin, and Will as models. (The clothes are awful, by the way.) Holly thinks Bailey’s doing too much for something Fiona will lose interest in. He’s giving her breaks she won’t get in the real world, and feeding her fantasy. He may think he’s helping her, but he’s not. Julia thinks she and Adam should have tantric sex to tap into their creativity. She admits that he’s right about how she approaches endings, but with tantric sex, there isn’t an end.
Bailey and Holly make up, and he admits that he led Fiona down the wrong path. Holly, however, likes that Fiona’s happy – in fact, she’s happier than Holly, who supposedly has her life figured out and is going somewhere. Claudia and Todd do a really stupid dueling-violins thing. I want those 30 seconds of my life back. Apparently they’re inspired by each other, and also turned on by the competition. They kiss while I beg for the sweet release of death.
As we all expected he would, Bailey agrees to help Charlie so he can accept the hotel job. He doesn’t want to run around looking for something new and end up making a mistake. Plus, he would enjoy working with Charlie again. Julia and Adam are good now. Bailey and Holly appear to be back together, making out at a café. He’s ready to slow down a little and savor their time together.
Thoughts: I’m so over this show. It’s SO BORING. This season is ENDLESS. Also, I already know what I’m going to recap after this, and I’m eager to get started, which makes this show even more boring.
And thus Claudia learned at a young age the perils of the workplace romance.
No, no, no! Adam’s wouldn’t rip up his work if he actually liked it! Or if he did, he’d start screaming once he realized what he’d done.
April 18, 2015
Party of Five 6.16, Blast from the Past: Better Call Bailey
Imagine being married by this guy
Summary: Bailey’s at group therapy in rehab, being heckled by a guy named Oliver. Bailey says he’s not scared about relapsing because he feels like he can switch it on and off now. Oliver doesn’t think he should be in rehab, since he only had one slip. He doesn’t believe Bailey really has a problem with alcohol. He should go home and live his wonderful, fantastic life.
Adam catches Julia reading an email from Justin announcing that he and Laura are eloping in Vegas. Adam wonders if Julia’s going to go to the wedding. Julia doesn’t know if Justin wants her there – is he inviting her or asking her to stop it? Adam encourages her to go. Kirsten tries to sympathize with the distraught mother of a girl in a depression-drug study, but the mother doesn’t think Kirsten can really understand how she feels. Little does she know that Kirsten can.
Bailey’s discharged from rehab but sticks around to try to talk to a counselor. The counselor urges him to talk to his family instead. Claudia and Todd find it awkward to spend time alone together. Julia’s decided to go to Vegas, but she’s stalling her departure for Vegas, telling Claudia that she’s not sure what to say to Justin. She sees two options: Ask Justin to get back together, or encourage him to move on. Claudia invites herself and Todd along on a road trip.
In Bailey’s absence, Charlie’s putting in some time at the restaurant. He clearly feels uncomfortable working with Joe the thief. Joe’s hurt that Charlie doesn’t trust him, but…come on. Will’s the only person home when Bailey arrives, so Bailey faces his first night home alone. Kirsten tells Charlie how difficult it is to see the kids in the drug trial, struggling with depression. Charlie thinks she’s having a relapse of her own depression because she went off her meds to get pregnant.
Will brings Holly over to see how much progress Bailey has made. Bailey confides that he’s sick of people telling him how great he looks. He feels like quitting drinking was easy, but he feels worse than he did before. He may look fine, but he’s not. In Vegas, Todd gets distracted by showgirls. I think we’re supposed to think that he’s sexually frustrated. I don’t care. Justin’s happy to see Julia but scampers off right after just a minute of chatting.
Kirsten allows the distraught mother to pull her daughter out of the drug trial, which her boss is upset about. Kirsten thinks she did the responsible thing, since the kids on the drug aren’t improving and the kids not on the drug are miserable. Her boss argues that the kids are in the study so thousands can get help. He’s noticed that she’s been acting strange lately.
Bailey goes back to the rehab center to see the counselor, and while he’s there, Oliver steals a bottle of pills. Bailey stops him with a tackle, reminding us all how he was a wrestler in high school. Adam shows up in Vegas to give Julia a very When Harry Met Sally-like speech listing what he loves about her. He wishes she would let Justin go and pair up with him instead. Justin shows up, sees them together, and runs off again.
Julia catches up with Justin, who tells her that marrying Laura is a leap of faith. He wants to go through with it, even though he still loves Julia. He’s not sure he’s supposed to take the leap with her or Laura. Julia says she’s not sure what she wants. Joe calls Charlie on his attitude toward him, like…you stole from his business. You’re lucky you still have a job there, dude. Joe thinks he should be forgiven because they have 20 years of history. Charlie won’t budge, so Joe considers quitting.
Bailey goes back to the rehab center yet again, and Oliver tells him that taking the pills wouldn’t have killed him, so Bailey stopping him was a waste of time. Bailey just wants to know what’s wrong with Oliver. Oliver recognizes that he and Bailey are both fans of crises. In Oliver’s case, he likes being rescued. In Bailey’s case, he likes being the rescuer.
Claudia catches Todd watching porn and asks him to start noticing her instead of other women. Todd says he’s been trying not to come across as a dog because he knows what happened with Claudia and Derek. Claudia kisses him, assuring him that they don’t need to move quite that slowly. Julia goes to Justin and Laura’s wedding but stays out of sight and leaves before it’s over.
Charlie tries to catch Bailey up to speed on the restaurant, but Bailey stops him. He admits that he hates working there even though he’s good at it. The only time he feels useful is when someone calls him needing to be rescued. If their parents hadn’t died, he wouldn’t have a reason to live. Bailey continues that the high point of his life was when Charlie got sick – Bailey was able to take charge and prove his worth. He hates that he needs people to suffer so he can feel successful.
After Bailey’s meltdown, Charlie goes home to deal with his wife’s ongoing struggle. Kirsten confides that she felt like her depression had come back, but a trip to the doctor told her otherwise: She’s pregnant. Her mood swings have been hormonal, not related to a mood disorder. Charlie manages to be happy, despite the fact that they’re throwing a baby into the mess the family has become.
Julia leaves Vegas to tell Adam that she wants him in her life. She’s happy he came to tell her how he feels. Charlie asks Bailey to help Owen with his homework, but Bailey recognizes that Charlie’s trying to keep him busy. Owen shows Bailey a letter he wrote while Bailey was in rehab, and the effort he put into it makes Bailey emotional.
That night, Charlie invites Joe to join the family (and Will) for dinner at the house. He wants Joe to stay on at the restaurant until they figure out what will happen with Bailey. Bailey learns that the family has been having dinner together once a week, a new old tradition. And then I assume Charlie and Kirsten announce their pregnancy, but we don’t get to see it.
Thoughts: We only see him for a few seconds, but the minister at Justin and Laura’s wedding is played by Doug Jones. He’s been in tons of stuff, but is usually unrecognizable because he plays a lot of creatures in heavy makeup. If you’ve seen anything by Guillermo del Toro, you’ve seen Doug Jones.
How are all these people paying for this Vegas trip? And don’t they have school?
’90s music alert: Filter’s “Take a Picture.” Ugh, that song.
April 11, 2015
Party of Five 6.15, What If…: It’s My Life. Well, at Least According to Bailey
This is how Bailey thinks Charlie would dress if their parents hadn’t died
Summary: Bailey drives his car into a stoplight post, then imagines the conversations of the people in the car he swerved to void hitting. Suddenly Will’s in the car, yelling at him for running a red light. Will wants to check on some other people, but Will warns that if they call the cops, the two of them will get in trouble for drinking – and Bailey’s parents will be furious.
Bailey and Charlie head to the restaurant, where Julia and Joe are planning a party for Mr. and Mrs. Salinger’s 31st anniversary. Charlie doesn’t get why they’re making such a big deal out of it. Julia doesn’t think last year’s party was a big enough deal. Claudia arrives, home from a music tour. Julia’s annoyed because her visit was supposed to be a surprise for their parents.
Julia goes home to Justin, her fiancé, though they haven’t announced their engagement yet. He thinks they should do it at the anniversary party. Julia admits that she sometimes wonders if they’re together because they love each other or because their parents always wanted them to be together. Mrs. Salinger leaves a message reminding Julia to take her car in to a garage.
Bailey and Will take Claudia to their place, and she scoffs at her brother’s smoking habit. She thinks he’s working to screw up a really good life. Bailey complains that their father wants him to take over the restaurant. Claudia points out that he gets free beer, and his money doesn’t go straight into a trust. Will thinks Bailey will find the courage to get out, like Charlie did.
Julia takes her car to the garage, where she meets Griffin. Looks like he’s hot for her already. Charlie hangs out with his girlfriend, who tries to encourage him since he’s hit a rough spot working on his designs. An ex named Felicia shows up and announces that she’s pregnant. She wants him to come with her the next day to talk to someone about their options.
Claudia and Julia go shopping for lingerie for their mother, which is really weird. Julia’s surprised to learn that Claudia has some lingerie of her own, because she’s not a virgin. Claudia’s equally surprised to learn that Julia’s only ever had sex with Justin. Will bugs Bailey about not telling Claudia his plans, but Bailey doesn’t want her to tell their parents. Will can’t believe that Bailey hasn’t yet let them know that he’s quitting college. (The guys apparently want to be roadies.)
Claudia hangs out with Ross, who’s more excited about her tour than she is. She admits that she’s considering taking some time off from recording and touring. Ross doesn’t get why someone who’s been touring since she was 11 might want to spend more time with her family.
Charlie’s late to Felicia’s appointment with a pregnancy counselor, who happens to be Kirsten (with a bad haircut). He’s surprised that Felicia’s considering keeping the baby. Kirsten has no sympathy for Charlie, blasting him for not thinking of the possible consequences of unprotected sex, and showing up late for the appointment.
Julia arranges to run into Griffin at a bar, and they start chatting. He reveals that they went to the same high school, but he dropped out. Griffin’s figured out that Julia came to the bar to see him, not to use the phone. He invites her to his apartment, but Julia doesn’t want to get that close to him. Bailey and Will do their roadie thing, and Bailey gets a moment on stage where he realizes he really does want to leave school and go on tour with the band.
The next day, Julia and Bailey discuss the fact that a couple of their parents’ friends won’t be able to make it to the party. Bailey doesn’t want their parents to get any bad news. Julia makes it worse by revealing that Claudia wants to quit touring. Bailey wants everything to go as their parents have always wanted, so his news won’t be seen as bad. He encourages Julia to announce her engagement, but Julia says it’s her life and she’ll do what she wants.
While Felicia’s with a doctor, Kirsten apologizes to Charlie for the way she spoke to him when they met. He confides that Felicia’s considering abortion, but Charlie kind of wants to raise the baby by himself. However, he knows his parents won’t think he’s capable. Kirsten tells him that parents don’t know everything. Charlie replies that his know more than he does.
Claudia and Ross go to the Salingers’ to get scrapbooks, and she’s saddened to see that her room is now for storage. Will leaves for the band’s tour, but Bailey hangs back. Julia goes to see Griffin again, telling him she remembers him from high school. She thought he was cute, in a bad-boy way. They kiss, so…sorry, Justin.
Charlie thinks Bailey’s going to catch up with the tour after the anniversary party, but Bailey’s worried about how their father would react. Charlie points out that he never did what Mr. Salinger wanted, and now they barely talk. Bailey needs to figure out what he wants, not what Mr. Salinger wants him to do.
Julia visits Griffin yet again, finally telling him she’s in a relationship. He doesn’t like that she used him to “figure stuff out.” Charlie goes to see Kirsten, telling her that he and Felicia are going to place the baby for adoption. He adds that they’re not getting back together, so, you know, he’s single, if Kirsten’s interested.
At the party, Claudia tells Ross that she’s not going to announce her decision to quit touring tonight. She wants to let everyone stay happy for a while. Justin has an engagement ring for Julia, but she tells him she wants to put the brakes on things. She needs to make sure they’re together for the right reasons, not because they think they should be. She asks him to hold on to the ring until she figures things out.
Bailey tells Charlie that he tried to talk to Mr. Salinger, but stopped when Mr. Salinger started discussing all the plans he has for them and the restaurant. Charlie thinks Bailey will be disappointed in himself in five years, when he realizes he made the wrong decisions. Mr. and Mrs. Salinger arrive, and everyone puts on happy faces while Bailey drinks.
Bailey’s vision of everyone turns black and white, and suddenly he’s back in the car, having just crashed. He goes home, where he tells his worried siblings that he was in an accident but no one was hurt. He knows now that he can’t blame his parents for the way his life has turned out. Bailey’s already arranged to go to rehab.
Thoughts: Felicia’s blond, so Charlie officially has a type.
Who buys lingerie for THEIR MOM?
Bailey and Will are roadies for the Flys, who had one ’90s hit, “Got You (Where I Want You).”
Even in Bailey’s fantasies, Julia’s horrible at relationships. I guess that’s one thing that had nothing to do with their parents’ deaths.
March 21, 2015
Party of Five 6.12, Bad Behavior: Teach Your Children Well. Or Not at All. Whatever
Julia’s new boyfriend. Maybe this one won’t be a big mess
Summary: Bailey comes home after a night out and pretends he got up early to go to the gym. Owen notices that he’s wearing the same clothes he wore the day before. Will and Victor know that Bailey’s been hooking up all week; they approve. Will mentions that he’s in a new relationship with a woman named Deborah, and things are going slowly. They’re about to go even slower since Deborah’s sister is coming to visit. Bailey offers to entertain the sister so Will and Deborah can be alone.
Daphne accidentally interrupts Charlie’s work presentation, then saves it by making a sale. Julia has trouble with a class assignment that doesn’t give her any specifications. One of her classmates gets right to work while Julia faces writer’s block. Victor tries to clarify arrangements for a sleepover Owen’s having with a friend, but the friend’s father changes the plans to keep his kid from going to the Salingers’. Julia’s surprised to see that her classmate wrote something good in a short amount of time. She asks him for tips to overcome writer’s block.
At a concert, Claudia runs a guy named Todd, who she used to compete against in strings competitions. He’s stuck with music and is surprised that she gave it up. He invites her to sit with him. Charlie tells Kirsten that Daphne’s a surprisingly good salesperson. Kirsten falls asleep, but I don’t think it’s personal. Deborah’s sister Megan wants to go to a club after their double date with Will and Bailey; Deborah objects, but Bailey agrees to go. After he leaves, Deborah tells Will that she doesn’t like Bailey.
Claudia hangs out with Todd, who plays violin on hip-hop tracks for a living. He asks her to a party, and she balks until he assures her that he just wants her to meet some of his friends. Julia tracks down her classmate, Adam, who works on a historical ship. She’s thinking about using him as her character in the writing assignment she’s struggling with. She reveals that she’s figured out that he doesn’t really go to her school.
Victor tells Bailey that he thinks Owen’s friend’s father had a problem with his son spending the night under the guardianship of a gay man. Bailey decides that he doesn’t want his brother hanging out with homophobes. Victor advises him to explain things to Owen so he gets what’s going on. Charlie goes to a work party with Kirsten, who encourages him to leave early to help Daphne get some furniture ready for a convention.
Todd praises Claudia after a jam session, telling her she may already have a job offer in the works. He tells her that this job involves really listening to the music and trusting your instincts. He kisses her, but she runs off. Adam tells Julia about his dead father and runaway mother, who left him with no money. She thinks he should apply for financial aid. Adam’s worried that he’ll get busted for auditing classes; he doesn’t want to take the risk.
Bailey’s late to the restaurant, and Will accuses him of hanging out with Megan. Apparently Bailey slept with her the previous night, and she was a virgin before that. Now Megan’s upset that Bailey didn’t call her. Bailey tells Will that Megan basically begged him for sex, and if he hadn’t slept with her, someone else would have. Will still thinks Bailey’s a bad guy for…sleeping with a virgin, I guess. I don’t know.
Kirsten’s late getting to the convention, which Daphne has jazzed up with naked women (might as well put pretty women in a bed to sell the bed, right?). Julia finds Claudia practicing her violin in the shed, apparently trying to hide that she’s playing again. She tells Julia about Todd and how stable and adult he is. She wanted to kiss him back, but after the situation with Derek, she’s not sure she can trust her instincts.
Owen tries to avoid Victor, eventually calling him an extremely offensive word he learned from his friend. Victor calmly asks him not to use it again. Owen doesn’t know what the word means, but he knows it’s bad. His friend said Victor would turn him gay. Victor’s annoyed that Bailey didn’t explain things to Owen. Victor tries to use people’s likes and dislikes to explain that everyone is different, and it doesn’t make anyone good or bad.
Kirsten arrives at the end of the convention, and she and Charlie bicker about how they’ve been unable to be there for each other at work functions. He points out that he was able to make time to go to Kirsten’s work party. One of them will need to make a concession. “Are you volunteering?” Kirsten sasses. Adam blasts Julia for using him for her assignment, because a professor figured things out and he’s been banned from campus.
Victor confronts Bailey for not talking to Owen, who now has that new vocabulary word. Bailey claims that he just got Owen out of the house because he didn’t know how to explain things with him. Victor reminds Bailey that he’s not Owen’s parent. He’s considering leaving so Bailey will have to take care of his brother instead of passing him off to someone else.
Julia tells Adam that she talked to someone on the school’s board (uh-huh, sure), and if he applies, he might get a spot. Adam admits that he never finished high school. His mom left and he had to work to support himself. Julia encourages him to finish and then apply to college. Adam doesn’t want her help. Bailey finally pretends to be a responsible adult, telling Owen that he’ll always be there for him.
Claudia asks Todd to meet her for a talk, which he commandeers by admitting that he’s still the same geek he always was. His sister has been helping him seem cooler, but he realized he couldn’t keep up the charade forever. Claudia asks him to help her get the job he thought she might get offered. Julia bugs Adam again, advising him to let her help him study for the GED. She accuses him of being afraid of having his work judged along with everyone else’s. He accuses her of being afraid to try new things. When she agrees to work on that, he makes her create a character on the spot.
Charlie calls Kirsten at work so they can discuss staying connected while they’re both so busy. Their conversation veers toward phone sex, so…I guess that’s their solution. While cleaning up the kitchen at the house, Bailey casually grabs a beer from the fridge and takes a few sips. Dun dun!
Thoughts: Adam is played by Sean Maher (Firefly). Todd is played by one of my childhood crushes, Thomas Ian Nicholas (Rookie of the Year, the American Pie movies).
As a writer, Julia would know to NEVER read someone’s writing without asking. Adam was right to try to avoid her.
Victor: “You know how some people like D.C. Comics and some like Marvel?” Owen: “Right. I like both.” You heard it here first, folks: Owen is bi.
Ugh, I hated this he’s-not-really-a-student plot on Dawson’s Creek, too. At least that one had Roger Howarth as an entertainment factor.
February 28, 2015
Party of Five 6.9, Ties That Bind: Less Money, Mo’ Problems
This might be the worst publicity still I’ve ever seen. At least pretend to be happy, guys!
Summary: The Salingers gather at the house to discuss Griffin’s medical bills. Guess what, guys – hospitals are expensive! Julia suggests that they each give up a portion of their shares from the restaurant’s profits. She also offers to pay more than the others, but everyone agrees to chip in equally. They all think of things they can cut back on for a little while. Charlie and Kirsten pretend that they can completely afford trimming 30 percent off their monthly budget.
Griffin needs further surgery for nerve damage in his hand, and Julia approves it. Griffin doesn’t know that the Salingers are paying his bills. At the house, Bailey prepares for a yard sale while Will, who’s just moved in, tries to talk him into going to a party. (Apparently he works for the 49ers now.) Bailey doesn’t see the point since he never meets a woman he likes at those parties. Will thinks he’s messed up over Holly.
Charlie and Kirsten discuss their fertility treatments and how helping Griffin hurts their budget. Kirsten suggests postponing the treatments, which would give her time to take a job she wanted. Charlie would rather move forward, even if it means giving up luxuries like frozen yogurt. Kirsten makes up the difference a little by stealing sweetener packets. Hee. Holly shows up at Bailey’s yard sale and gets the cold shoulder.
Claudia visits Ross (hey, it’s Ross!) at his studio space and tells him she wants to start playing again. She can’t pay for lessons right now, but he’s willing to start her on credit. Holly goes to the Salingers’ and tells Bailey that she thinks she can get Griffin into a special rehab program at the hospital. Bailey questions her decision to come by the house instead of calling. He orders her to apologize for judging him based on one incident, and when she does, he asks her out again.
Daphne visits Griffin in the hospital, apologizing for crashing his motorcycle and injuring him. They decide that they don’t owe each other anything. Griffin asks who’s paying his hospital bills, and though she pretends she doesn’t know, she eventually admits that it’s the Salingers. He immediately leaves the hospital, but Julia tracks him down at home and blasts him for putting his recovery at risk. Griffin’s mad that Julia made decisions for him that left him in debt to the family.
Ross gives Claudia a lesson at the house, and though he says she’s doing well, she’s frustrated that she has to relearn some things. She announces that she signed up for a competition and needs to perfect what she’ll be performing. Bailey takes Holly to a football stadium so they can have a picnic on the field. He insists that it didn’t cost him anything since Will works for the 49ers. They’re saying nice, romantic things to each other when the sprinklers come on.
Charlie and Kirsten are trying to save money by living like the Amish. Charlie thinks they can also get her fertility drugs at a lower price from some not-so-legal back channels. Griffin has trouble working on his bike with one hand in a cast. Bailey and Holly go to a locker room to warm up in the shower (and make out, of course). They take the date back to her place, and after they have sex, she tells him that she’s surprised by the speed and intensity of their relationship.
Griffin calls his mother from a bar and asks her to let him stay with her for a few weeks while his father is out of the country. She says no because the Holbrooks are horrible people. Claudia’s nervous before her competition, sure she won’t win. Bailey and Holly’s date is interrupted by a guy she’s been seeing; he’s upset to learn that she’s seeing someone else now. Holly lies to Bailey about who came to the door.
Charlie and Kirsten meet their drug contact, who seems like a nice guy who just wants to help out people with problems because he and his wife also had fertility issues. Claudia doesn’t think she’s up to the level she was before, and Ross is surprised that she didn’t already know that. He thinks she was right to give up her lessons before because it gave her the chance to have a normal life. Kirsten realizes that she and Charlie got ripped off – their drugs are expired and the dealer is gone. Oh, and then their car gets booted because they have outstanding tickets.
Griffin tells Julia that he’s moving out of the shed – he can’t pay rent because he can’t work and earn the money for it. Julia assures him that he can still stay, but Griffin isn’t going to accept charity. She reminds him that they don’t have a business relationship, and that the Salingers didn’t just pick out a random person to help. Plus, he’s helped them plenty of times without any obligation. “It’s too late to say you’re not a part of this family,” Julia says. He took care of them, so now they’re taking care of her.
Holly worries that she’s freaked Bailey out by telling him how she feels. Charlie calls Bailey to ask for help getting his car back, and Bailey jumps at the chance to get the heck away from Holly. Kirsten and Charlie end up telling Bailey about the treatments, and he offers to help them with savings bonds. Kirsten wants to put the brakes on the process for now. She reminds Charlie that he wanted to trust fate – maybe fate wants them to hold off for a little while.
Ross tries to remind Claudia that not being the best at something doesn’t mean you’re not good. Claudia wishes she still had something to count on, like always winning. If she can’t be the best, she doesn’t want to play. Bailey tells Will that things with Holly are going awesomely, and he sees them on the edge of making a big commitment. He’s hanging out with Will right now so they can spend a little time apart, but then he calls Holly and ignores Will.
Griffin agrees to keep his things in the shed for now, but he tells Julia that he doesn’t want to be a burden or ask anyone for help. Daphne sees the two of them hugging and…is jealous? I don’t know. I don’t care. That whole thing is weird.
Thoughts: Holly, you can go away now.
I sure hope Victor’s watching both Owen and Diana, because neither kid is ever around. They weren’t even mentioned this week. Maybe Charlie should spend less time trying to have a baby and more hanging out with the child he already has.
What’s up with Claudia? When did she become like this? I thought maybe she was competing to win money, in which case her frustration would make more sense, but no, she’s just being weird.
I feel like there was a deleted scene between when Bailey leaves to get Charlie and Kirsten, and when he’s with Will, telling him how great things are going with Holly. All of a sudden, everything’s good?
February 14, 2015
Party of Five 6.7, We Gather Together: Regrets Only
A lot of people on this show could use some time with this crew
Summary: Charlie’s back in the principal’s office, eager to do something about Myra and her mother’s accusations. The principal, Mary Anne, tells him that they won’t file charges if Charlie resigns. Charlie refuses – quitting would be like saying he’s guilty. Mary Anne disagrees, arguing that it would be like saying it never happened. If charges are filed, all the other parents will immediately see Charlie as guilty, whether he is or not.
Julia spends the night at Evan’s, then wakes up to find his son, Brian, in the house. Brian is also a college student, and he’s not thrilled that his father’s dating someone so young. He’s been reading Julia’s manuscript and wonders how she could have so many life experiences in so few years. Evan is disappointed to learn that Brian dropped out of college, but Brian thinks it’s just because Evan can’t get his tuition back. Evan accuses him of ruining his college career out of spite. Brian shoots back that Evan cares more about other people’s children than his own.
Joe has no Thanksgiving plans, so he wants to have a meal at the restaurant. Bailey invites him to have dinner with the rest of the Salingers. Tracy stops by the restaurant to confront Bailey for avoiding her calls. He tells her he doesn’t want to get involved with someone who’s already married. Tracy thinks her husband’s already cheating, so why shouldn’t she have some fun, too? Bailey still resists, but he doesn’t look happy about it.
Claudia returns to school after playing sick for a while to avoid Derek. He admits that he had too much to drink and got “out of control,” but it was all in fun. Claudia clearly doesn’t agree. Victor tries to help Daphne look for a job, but she’s distracted at the sight of Griffin, who she suddenly has the hots for. Victor thinks she should go for it. Daphne resists, so Victor gets Griffin to give her a ride somewhere. It’s all very high school.
Julia questions Evan and Brian’s relationship, which has been bad for years. (Evan gives the exposition that he was 18 when Brian was born, so don’t go thinking he’s old or anything.) He wonders if the badness is his fault. Joe invites Victor to the Salingers’ Thanksgiving, which already various non-Salingers anyway.
Kirsten agrees with Charlie’s first instinct not to quit, but Charlie’s reconsidering – they could use the money he would get as severance. He also wants Kirsten to avoid stress; she’s already undergone IVF treatments and could be pregnant. Claudia confides in Julia that Derek tried to rape her. Julia comforts her, then urges her to report him. She thinks Derek has probably assaulted other girls, and if Claudia doesn’t say something, he could attack another girl. Claudia’s not ready to speak up.
Charlie and Mary Anne meet with Myra’s mother and a lawyer so Charlie can resign, but Myra’s mother also wants him to apologize. He wonders why she’s offering a deal if she thinks he’s guilty. Myra’s mother says it’s so Myra doesn’t have to face Charlie in a courtroom. Charlie blasts her for being a horrible mother. Mary Anne tries to negotiate wording that Charlie can agree with so he’ll just be saying he regrets how he handled things with Myra.
Claudia tells Alexa about Derek’s assault, now also thinking that she should report him. Alexa thinks Derek should get a pass – he was drunk, he regrets what happened, and an accusation like this could ruin his life. If there was no actual rape, then no one got hurt. Alexa adds that she believes Claudia, but other people won’t.
At Evan’s, Brian accuses Julia of playing house to make her family think everything’s great. Julia tells him to come out and tell her whatever his problem is with her. Brian doesn’t like that his father is dating someone so young, and that Julia’s acting like his mother when they barely know each other. Evan walks out during the argument, which is always mature. Kirsten tells Charlie that she got a false positive on a pregnancy test.
The next day, Charlie and Claudia go grocery shopping and discuss the Myra situation. He’s decided to fight back. Claudia warns that the whole school will find out about Myra’s accusations, and everyone will be talking about him. Charlie knows it’ll be tough for both him and Claudia, but he wants the truth to come out. When they get home, they’re impressed with how nicely Victor has decorated the house. Evan and Brian are both there, so this is going to be awkward.
Will wants Bailey to go on a double date with him; he’s caught the attention of two ring girls. He reminds Bailey that he wanted to be more spontaneous. Daphne and Griffin start drinking, which can’t end well. Brian blows up at Evan, then runs off. Evan doesn’t see the point in chasing after him since they always have the same conversation. Julia points out that Brian doesn’t have anyone else to chase after him. A drunk Daphne and Griffin head to the basement to look for more alcohol but only find balsamic vinegar. They console themselves by making out.
Myra shows up and promises Charlie that she never made any accusations; her mother made inferences and took things too far. Not that Myra denied them, of course. She’s upset that taking the case to court could lead to Charlie accusing Myra’s mother of being a bad parent, which might get Myra taken away from her. After Myra leaves, everyone else sits down to dinner, which kicks off with Victor singing grace.
After dinner, Bailey goes to Tracy’s to tell her he used to be fun. She kisses him and invites him inside. Charlie goes to Myra’s to tell her mother that Myra’s going to testify that the accusations are false. Both of them want to protect the people they love, so he would like Myra’s mother to do the right thing for her daughter.
Daphne and Griffin have an awkward conversation, avoiding discussing their hookup while agreeing to still be friends. Maybe friends who make out. Claudia tells Julia that she’s decided to keep her assault quiet so people won’t start talking about her. Julia thinks that’s a bad idea, not least because she’s going to have to keep going to school with Derek. Claudia just wants to pretend it never happened.
Will surprises Bailey at work, ready for their double date with the ring girls, and Bailey is suddenly so spontaneous that he cancels plans with Tracy to go out with them. Charlie’s ready to move on from the whole Myra mess, and he tells Kirsten that he’s optimistic that she’ll get pregnant. She thinks they should wait before trying again, but he notes that they fought through their struggles and things turned out all right.
Julia’s meddling worked, and Evan and Brian have patched things up. Plus, Brian has decided to go back to school (partly so he doesn’t have to pay his father back for his tuition). He knows Julia talked Evan into doing some actual parenting for once. Brian still thinks Julia’s too young for Evan, but he doesn’t mind her so much anymore. In fact, he minds her so little that he tries to kiss her. Now that’s awkward.
Thoughts: Brian is played by Eric Mabius from Ugly Betty. He looks so scrawny here.
I can’t remember ever seeing an assault plot on TV where the person who was attacked wants to keep it quiet. Usually the show wants to send the message that you shouldn’t let the attacker get away with it.
They really overloaded the cast this season. There are way too many people on the show. I wonder at what point they knew this would be the last season, and they decided to just do whatever they wanted.
“If you report this, you could, like, ruin his life.” Go away, Alexa. Juliet would have already beaten the crap out of this guy.
'90s Flashback 