Episode Report Card Ragdoll: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT The House of the Rising Mom
By Ragdoll | Season 1 | Episode 4 | Aired on 10.13.2003
Partial nudity seems to be a standard aspect of each episode these days. This week's show begins with Luke in the shower. He reaches for a bottle of Dove shampoo. The shower looks makeshift, with a hose and a handle rather than an actual showerhead. He starts to scrub his hair, and the water cuts out. Aw, they're so poor. Yawn. Luke yells, "Mom?" Maybe he'll be naked in every show. Meow.Luke's got his bathrobe on in the next shot as he comes into the kitchen. I guess there were no basketballs handy. The robe has nothing on b-ball couture. "Did you forget to pay the water bill?" Karen replies, "Of course I didn't forget to pay the water bill." She gets up and checks the water in the kitchen tap, which sputters and then stops. She turns back to Luke and says, "This is why we need the emergency Visa. Something must have broke. I'll take care of it." Luke stands there with soap in his hair, looking like a wet baby duck. Aw. I might knock a lot of this show, but CMM is damn hot. Ahem. Right. She says, "Come on, let's get you rinsed off." Luke bends his head over the sink, and Karen uses water from a jug that just happens to be on the counter to pour over her son's head. Karen starts to giggle as she pours cold water all over him. Luke says, "Okay, how is this funny, Mom?" Karen replies, "How is this not funny?" See, things break in Luke's world; they break all the time. And I can't believe that we're about three minutes in and we've already had two very subtle bits of product placement. Maybe the WB is working hard to keep this show on the air.
All the way on the other side of town -- you know, where the running water actually works -- Nathan and Dadzilla come home to find Deb there. "Check it out," she says, "it's called dinner." Both Nathan and Dadzilla seem surprised to see her. Dan says smoothly, "Who is that lady, is that my wife? I didn't think you were getting back until Monday." Apparently, Deb sweet-talked some company called Ziodex into doubling their donation to AIDS research. She wraps her arms around Dadzilla's neck. I'm afraid he's going to lash out and bite her, but he kisses her kind of sweetly instead. Dadzilla asks if she's sure she doesn't want to quit saving the world and sell cars instead. Because it is such a rewarding career and has made him oh so happy. Yeah, whatever, Dadzilla. Deb gives Nathan a hug, and then asks her son how he's doing. Nathan replies that he's late for warm-ups. I guess there's a basketball game tonight. She wants Nathan to stay for dinner, but he begs off, basketball's more important than his mom, come on, he's a teenage boy. Dan's across the kitchen with a bunch of strings in his hand. He tugs them slowly. Nathan's head turns. Dan: "Remember what I told you. He can't shoot if he doesn't have the ball." Slowly, carefully, Nathan's head bobs: "Yes, Master, I understand." Or he just nods. Okay, I realize that there's mutual animosity between the two brothers, but how does it make either situation better if the team starts losing?
Whitey's got the team on the sidelines. In the background, the cheerleaders are screaming, "K-I-L-L, kill, kill, kill." They are echoing our sentiments about Dadzilla. Anyway, Woda's not too happy. "Dammit! This is a team, not a Chinese fire drill." Don't quite understand that reference, but hey, it sounds derogatory enough to work. Where would sports be if coaches didn't insult players with socially unacceptable jabs? ["Where I come from, a Chinese fire drill is when you stop your car at a light and everyone including the driver has to pile out, run a lap around the car, and pile back in before it turns green. And that concludes today's installment of 'Kids In Jersey Get Really Bored Sometimes.'" -- Sars] He turns to Nathan: "Scott, you're playing selfish. Get out there and pretend you know each other." The boys drink Gatorade. Nathan and Lucas give each other the evil eye. Three cheers, and then it's back on the court for the team. I guess it's not the Ravenettes yelling, because Brooke turns to Peyton and asks if she can catch a ride to Nathan's after-party. Peyton quips, "I didn't think you were going. Figured you be hiding out in Lucas's backseat again." Brooke: "Jealous." Peyton: "No." Brooke: "What, I can see it. You're both so broody, you can brood together." Peyton raises her eyebrow. Brooke smirks. Shut up, Peyton's eyebrow. I've never seen someone use her eyebrow so much in place of emotion before. Oh, and Brooke rocks. These two are cheerleaders who never seem to cheer. TPTB could at least get them to throw a kick in our direction every once in a while. Or at the very least, some spirit fingers.