Episode Report Card Wing Chun: D | 2 USERS: A- YOU GRADE IT High Risk Behavior
By Wing Chun | Season 2 | Episode 10 | Aired on 01.12.1999
This episode of Dawson's Creek is brought to us by the movie She's All That, or as I like to call it, Gender-Bending Can't Buy Me Love. But why not let Ace tell it?
"She's All That: Mini-Review of A Movie We Haven't Seen
"The cool jock guy (he's either a jock or rich, because those are obviously the only two ways for a guy to become popular in teen movies) bets he can turn a nerdy, unpopular girl into the prom queen. How can we tell that Leading Lady is a nerd? Well, she's uncoordinated, studious and (get this) wears glasses. These are all cutting edge characterizations of a nerd, never before seen on the silver screen. Those of us in the audience with any taste will like Leading Lady when she is a nerd. She'll be nice to other nerds and have nerdy (but cool to us) interests. After her transformation into Prom Queen (effected through buying contact lenses, a reduction in her clumsiness and Jock Boy waving his "magic wand" in her direction), she'll most likely reject her nerd friends and become a vapid piece of eye candy, clinging to her Jock Boy's arm. The movie will present this change as desirable and "romantic". Those of us with taste will now hate the Leading Lady for the shallow little sell-out she is and lose all interest in the movie. Leading Lady finds out that Jock Guy only dated her on a bet. She rejects him and most likely has to grovel to return to her old nerd friends. We'll hate the nerd friends for forgiving her and urge them under our breath to poke her eyes out. Jock Guy realizes she's the best piece of ass he ever had -- oops -- I mean, realizes she's the real thing and that he loves her. He asks her to forgive him and after a few minutes of non-convincing stand-offishness, she does. We are supposed to be happy that true love has conquered all (and that a deserving pretty girl has been saved from the horror of having a brain and her own interests), but instead are sickened by Shallow Little Sell-Out and her spineless caving in to the siren call of popularity and getting porked by a cute boy with no ethics and a bunch of creepy friends.
"The End."
Thanks, Ace. ["Word." -- Sars]
Scenes of idyllic, bright green Capeside. We hear, before we see, that Jen "Cochon Terrible" Lindley is shilling for the auditions soon to be held for Dawson's movie. Dawson catches up with her, also with a sheaf of flyers in his hand, and asks her how it's going. She says that her "instincts as a first-time producer" tell her that there will be a huge turnout. She hands out another flyer with about a second's worth of explanation, causing Dawson to exclaim that she's "a natural" at this. I say that if the movie tanks she could always turn her skills to handing out flyers in front of strip bars, but whatever. Jen tells Dawson not to expect too much from her since she's "no Joey." Dawson says that Joey had no experience either, when she started. Whereas Dawson was a regular Roger Corman, I guess. Whatever. He says he has the utmost confidence in her. She calls him "Mister Writer Slash Director." I commence retching. Dawson scans the quad and tells Jen, "Hey, be sure you get a flyer to James Lowell. He'd be perfect for the lead." The camera alights upon this character, who is blond, blandly good-looking with curly bangs and thick brown eyebrows -- in other words, a Dawson doppelganger. Jen responds, "Ew." Hee hee!
Dawson protests: "'Ew'? He's, like, the classic leading guy. He's kind, and he's funny, he's self-effacing; he's like Jimmy Stewart meets Tom Hanks." Isn't that a little redundant? Jen counters, "Yeah, and about as sexy as a bucket, Dawson." Heh. Dawson is momentarily silenced by this slam (by proxy) to his ego, and says simply, "Okay." Jen catches sight of another guy and says admiringly, "Now, Dave Pacelli: that's the leading man." Cut to a slightly greasy guy who looks like he's about 24, with a moustache and goatee. Dawson (rightly), says, "Excuse me?" Jen says, "Yeah! He's like, dark, and brooding [yeah, those are meaningful adjectives]. And, Ray Liotta meets --" "Sewer rat," Dawson finishes, which is a bit harsh. "No way," he adds. Jen says, "I'm just saying he's got a certain...appeal." Dawson scoffs. Jen continues: "I mean, people don't necessarily go to the movies to see their kind, sweet next-door neighbour [ouch! That's gonna leave a mark]. They go to see that slightly dangerous guy that they desperately want to sleep with but never will in real life. 'Sexy' will always win out over 'nice.'" Dawson's body language conveys that he remains unconvinced, so Jen adds, "I'm just saying that everyone casts Tom Hanks, you know? Try to make a less obvious choice." Dawson shrugs for several seconds, bizarrely, and then they separate.