Episode Report Card Couch Baron: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT One Small Step For Kevin
By Couch Baron | Season 2 | Episode 17 | Aired on 02.24.2005
Chewy catches Will at work and tells him that the kids were right -- Stevie Marx wasn't adopted, but died in a fire when she was two, fourteen years ago, in Dallas. Uh oh. And Joan thought this was a mess before. Will says it adds up to identity theft, and notes that the mother also died in the fire. The name? "Erica Marx." Oh dear.
Kevin, in a suit, wheels into the kitchen as Luke enthusiastically asks him how it went. Kevin, far too casually, says he turned them down. He goes straight for a beer. Have we seen him drink at home before? Luke: "Did they want you to do the news naked or something?" If that's the case, they're pretty ratings-savvy for a local affiliate. At Luke's further inquiries, Kevin wordlessly tosses him some literature on the story they wanted him to do. Luke reads: "Electrical Stimulation Therapy for Spinal-Cord-Injured Patients." Kevin says that it's a gimp story, so they wanted a gimp reporter, so they can feel good about themselves. Luke excitedly points out that the procedure probably has a waiting list, so by doing the story, Kevin could bypass it. Man, I love Luke. Kevin tells him to drop it, and tosses the papers in the trash. He leaves the room, and Luke looks at the papers concernedly.
And it's Parent Teacher Night. Stevie, Adam, and Joan are working as greeters. A tall, thin, bespectacled blonde woman wearing an ornate, funky sweater comes up to Joan and enthusiastically greets her by name. Joan looks at her appraisingly, and figuring, as I admit I did, that she's an avatar, snarks, "Great! I knew you wouldn't be able to keep away! Where'd you get that sweater, a dumpster?" The blonde woman is shocked, but Joan, taking out her anger about the Stevie thing, lays into the woman some more, until Glynis, also wearing a guide's badge, comes bounding up and says she's so glad Joan met her mom. HA! Oh, that's funny, even though it's sad, too. I love Mageina Tovah in this role, and from her reaction here, it's obvious she's told her mom all about Joan in fairly glowing terms. Anyway, Glynis's mom excuses herself right quick, and Glynis's smile melts into a look of horror before taking off after her mom. It's so wrong that an encounter I find fundamentally sad is making me giggle so hard it's interfering with my typing. And the fun isn't over yet, as Joan sighs to herself, "Oh, God," and behind her, an old man wearing a name label that reads "A.VATAR" pipes up. Heh. A lot of forum posters took that as a shout-out to Deborah, and given that I don't recall the use of the word "avatar" on the show before, I'm going to have to agree. ["Figures they'd wait to bust it out until she's taken a week off." -- Sars] Joan takesin Grandpa God (nickname not my creation, people), and asks, "What is the big lesson supposed to be here?" If the thing before wasn't a shout-out, that certainly is. Grandpa God tells her that Joan tried to share the truth with Stevie, which is hard to accept sometimes. Grandpa God continues in what's frankly a very tiresome rhetorical vein, prompting an eye-roll from Joan. I haven't felt this way toward your character much this season, but word, sister. Grandpa God charges Joan to make Stevie understand, and leaves, not too soon for me. As he goes, Will walks up to Joan. Joan surprised, as she thought he had to work, but that Luke will be psyched, as he's doing his "Geekapalooza speech." I'm surprised Friedman didn't swim to shore to get here for that. Once Chewy and a female cop who just happens to be black appear and flank Will, Joan realizes that something's going on. But before I do, did we ever even find out what happened to Toni? Because I really liked April Grace, and having her disappear with no explanation bugs. Will asks Joan if Erica is there, and then sees her down the hall with a man that's presumably her husband. Without further ado, the cops march down the hall. Will interrupts Erica's conversation with her husband and asks if she's "Alice Sokel" as he flashes his badge. Ericalice: "Call a lawyer, Charlie." Will offers, "We don't have to do this in front of everyone." Joan looks on in mounting terror as the five adults head into an empty classroom…