Episode Report Card Cate: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT The Ring
By Cate | Season 6 | Episode 18 | Aired on 04.21.2002
It's morning in Buffalo, which we can tell from the same old, tired establishing shot of Wilson's apartment building. Even though the buds are just starting on the trees here in Toronto, Buffalo has a surprising amount of foliage already -- including some interesting tropical-looking plants. Honestly, I had no idea Buffalo was so verdant this time of year. Lucy thanks Mary for bringing her to Buffalo and tells her that she and Pea-Brained Moron will be keeping in touch and that he will be visiting her in Glenoak whenever he can. But of course! All the characters on this show jump on planes at a moment's notice, whether or not they have the funds to pay for it or not. At least PBM has a job. So, it turns out, does Mary. She's been hired by JetBlue airlines as a flight attendant, and she's going to be based in Buffalo. Lucy asks if she's just doing this to be close to Ben, a question which is understandable when you consider the lengths people go to on this show to maintain romantic relationships that are only a few weeks, or days, old. Mary pretends that she's really excited about her new career. Mary's been excited about so many different careers already that it's hard to believe that she'll be any more successful at this one than any of the others. She strains our credulity by insisting that she'll be jetting back to Glenoak every week to attend classes with Lucy at Crawford Clown College, and then once again demonstrates her lack of maturity by deputizing Lucy to tell the CamRents that she's not coming back to Glenoak.
Back at the Glenoak Airport, Lucy is walking down a hallway toward the CamRents. Just as she's about to reach them, an extra almost walks into her but swerves at the last minute, smiling sheepishly. Honestly, how much could it possibly cost to re-shoot that tiny snippet of a scene? Obviously more than the WB's top-rated show can afford.
After a flurry of effusive greetings, Lucy has to break the news to her parents that Mary is staying in Buffalo to become a flight attendant. Once Mary's done with her training, she'll be flying the super-prestigious Buffalo-Glenoak corridor. At first I laughed when I heard that, but then I realized that since everyone on this show only travels between Buffalo and Glenoak, the premise is really not so far-fetched. Heh, yeah, right. Lucy tries to lighten the mood by telling her parents that she's met a "really cute guy," but understandably, nobody's interested. Lucy saunters off to the baggage claim area, "feeling lucky," while Eric clutches his heart. I think that, just like me, he's merely hoping to make it to the end of the season unscathed.