Episode Report Card Jacob Clifton: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT It's What Comes Before "Terra Firma"
By Jacob Clifton | Season 4 | Episode 12 | Aired on 01.09.2003
Everyone's gathered in the living room, D'Argo explaining procedure. "The charges are almost ready. They'll create more smoke than fire. Your father'll have a quarter of an [hour] to get you out." Aeryn sighs. "I'll set a perimeter, make sure we're not interrupted." She gets off the couch as Noranti joins John: "I've made enough syrup to keep the kid unconscious for three [hours]. Oh, don't worry, I've tested it on the enforcer so the boy won't wake in the middle of the rescue." John's not sold on the drug stuff, of course. "We'll see. I'll go get my...self, and I'll be right back."
John and Chiana crawl through some weeds outside the Crichtons'. They watch as Jack bends over Leslie, kissing her forehead. "Mmm, you smell nice!" She thanks him and they smile at each other. He sits near her at the table; she takes his hand. "Well, what do the cards say?" She assures him he's definitely staying. She laughs and kisses his hand. In the bushes, John wonders at how happy they are, whispering: "I didn't see my parents like that very often." Leslie tells him to pick a card, they laugh. "I never saw that in my sires," says Chiana. She puts his head on John's shoulder, where it belongs. Where she couldn't rest, before Earth. Leslie laughs at her husband as he pretends to read the card he's drawn: "...Definitely going!" They laugh and play with the cards; John shakes his head. "You just want 'em to stay like that...they think they've got all the time in the world, but pretty soon it's doctors, tests..." Jack takes another card: "Well, this one isn't too bad!" Chiana and John leave.
Johnny stands on the bank, throwing rocks into the canal; Kim sits up in Betty, fixing her hair. John crouches around the truck, hiding from Johnny, and gets inside with Kim. She smiles, happy to see him; they have an easy, almost flirty rapport. It's cool, not weird. "Hi. I did what you told me. Johnny doesn't want to be here, but I told him we had to talk. He thinks I'm breaking up with him." John murmurs to himself, "Well, you will." She asks him what he said. "Nothing. He's just...you know, a girl like you..." Kim asks if he's flirting with her, and he gets flustered, and of course Chiana appears. "Hey!" Kim turns to look at her and Chiana immediately knocks her out. I love this. Chiana giggles; John's horrified. "Why the hell did you do that?" Chiana shrugs -- "We're in a hurry" -- and looks down at Kim, sniffing; jealous of Johnny. "So, this is what...you're into." John protests that Kim's a nice girl, and Chiana laughs and asks if he'll take Kim so she can be in charge of Johnny. No questions asked.
Some kids knock on the door, which is open behind the curtain. Rygel sits on the couch, back to the door. "Trick or treat! Trick or treat! Trick or treat!" the kids scream, and Rygel invites them in. "Over here." A skeleton, a pirate, and a vampire enter the room. "Trick or treat, money or eats," says the pirate, and Rygel laughs. The skeleton approaches Rygel with bag held out. "Cool toy," he says, and reaches out to touch Rygel's mouth. Rygel opens his eyes and mouth, growling loudly, and the three kids take off screaming like hell. Rygel growls and then laughs madly and the kids cry to their moms. The skeleton drops his bag on the couch and all three kids scream and run out of the house. Rygel continues to growl and laugh as John comes in past the screaming kids. He grabs the bag from Rygel and tells him to cut it out. "But I love this! And you won't buy me any more! I want a Kit-Kat and M&M's and Pez and Reese's Pieces. All for me!" John takes off with the bag, ignoring him. "D? You all set?" Smoke comes from the fuse box, where D'Argo's setting the last charge.