Episode Report Card Deborah: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT La Vie En Rove
By Deborah | Season 1 | Episode 22 | Aired on 05.13.2004
Helen runs into Luke in the hallway: "Hey, honey." He tells her he won't be home for supper, since he's going to study at the library. Helen says he has to eat, and that she'll drive him over after supper. Luke says he can just get something from a vending machine. Helen: "I'll bring you a sandwich." Luke bursts out: "No, Mom! I'll be fine!" A few students stare as Helen stops in the doorway of her classroom. She tells Luke calmly, but with obvious hurt, "That was inappropriate." Luke hangs in the doorway and apologizes. When Helen asks him what's wrong, he claims it's finals. She gently tells him it's not finals, and asks if it's Glynis. He denies this. Helen: "I know you're fifteen and it's embarrassing to talk to your mom…" Luke: "I said I'm sorry." Helen: "No, no, no, it's not…it's not about me." She walks closer to him: "You just…seem like…a jumble of feelings that you don't want to look at. You're a scientist…shouldn't you…examine the things you don't understand?" Professor Frink: "Good tactic." I'd make a mental note, but I already learned that approach to dealing with him about nine years ago.
Luke, obviously uncomfortable, replies, "No, feelings are ephemeral, okay? And, as such, cannot be reliable scientific determinants." Frink beams and gives him a big thumbs-up. He doesn't really mean that -- well, he probably does, but since this was aired on Frink's birthday, I'm not going to give him any grief. But Helen didn't just fall off the Erlenmeyer flask truck: "But they affect behaviour, which in turn, affects perception, which, as Heisenberg taught us, affects reality." Luke: "How do you know about Heisenberg?" Geez, Luke, she's not the village idiot. And Heisenberg's not exactly a state secret. Helen replies softly, "I listen to you." Huh. Who knew? Seems more like everyone in his family tries to tune out the youngest child's droning. Luke seems surprised to hear it, and he relents enough to tell his mother some of what's on his mind: "Glynis and I made sense…you know…and now I've hurt her, and I feel guilty and sad and angry." Helen: "Relationships that work don't always make sense." Big fat word to your mother, Luke. Trust me. I know whereof I recap. Luke snorts a bit and says, "Okay, great. But what am I supposed to do with all these feelings that I know are gonna make me look like a fool?" Helen just looks at him questioningly. Luke continues, as he slips his backpack off, "Mom, I need a logical explanation for why, against all reason…" He produces a beautiful, sparkling egg-shaped piece of celestite (according to a reader), and continues, "I bought this." Helen comes over to look at it and says, "It's beautiful. For Glynis?" Luke: "For Grace." That little squeeing sound is me. I'm all schmoopy here. I love rocks and crystals and geodes. If someone had given me one like that -- amethyst would also be good -- in high school I would have followed him to the ends of the earth, even though I'd more or less stopped collecting rocks by the time I reached adolescence. Hey, I'm easy. Helen looks at her son sympathetically as he grabs his backpack and leaves.