Episode Report Card Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Cat-In-Hat
By Niki | Season 1 | Episode 19 | Aired on 04.02.2000
Inside, Karen's furiously scrubbing one of those stubborn, baked-on messes, and Leo walks into the kitchen behind her. He tells her not to worry -- he's not going to stay overnight. No, he's not, Karen says emphatically, letting him know it was never even a germ of an option. She tries to explain to him that "this is [her] life. [She] has domestic things that [she] does," and it's inappropriate for him to show up uninvited. Leo thinks this is ridiculous. She explains that she has to have boundaries -- that their relationship needs to fit in a compartment that's separate from her home and work life. Leo tells her that's no way to live. She tells him there's a line between being a parent and not, and it's not easy for her to do.... "What you want?" Leo finishes. He says that just because she's a parent it doesn't mean she has to stop being a person. Thankfully, they start kissing which means they're unable to continue their "I'm a free spirit," "Well, I'm a grown-up" conversation. Karen breaks the kiss abruptly when she hears Eli walk past the kitchen. Leo takes his cue and leaves. Not before crashing and banging his bike in the doorway, though. A sassy little maneuver on the writers' part to let us know that Leo's busting in all over Karen's neat and tidy life (like the Cat in the Hat, get it? Somehow the show's writers saw the connection). Oh, and Karen's cringing reaction? That's to let us know she's not exactly comfortable with it. Just in case we were watching some other show for the past forty minutes.
After commercials, we return to find Jessie trying to convince Karen that her thumb is swollen and she might have to skip her tae kwon do class that night. Always helpful, Karen reminds her that her test is the next morning, and she thinks Jessie would want to practice as much as she could. Jessie gets agitated, and Karen can tell there's more to it than a sore thumb, but Jessie doesn't care to share.
Eli comes in and asks Karen if he can borrow the car the next night. Karen wants to know why and where he's going. Eli launches a circuitous explanation meant to distract Karen and deflect attention from the fact that he wants to venture into the big bad city. Karen cuts through it all, though, and says she doesn't want him driving alone downtown at night. Eli insists they're going to a safe neighborhood, so Karen says that she'd be happy to drop him off if Creep's mom will pick them up. Eli would, of course, rather eat his head than get dropped off by mommy in front of a club, so he shifts into spoiled-brat mode by having a tantrum. He wants to know why he can't just get his own way, especially since he was so honest and up-front with her about his plans (aside from the fact that he neglected to mention he's going to a bar with the rather dubious name of Doghouse). He acts all insulted that she's saying no, and when she says they can talk about it and try to compromise, he tells her to forget it. He insists it's a waste of time since she won't budge -- she never does. Eli sulks off to go suck his thumb or something.