Episode Report Card Jessica: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Highway To Hell
By Jessica | Season 5 | Episode 17 | Aired on 04.02.2002
After the concert, Pacey and Audrey lean against the car and watch Joey and Charlie greeting their fans. "You'd think he was Jimmy Page," Pacey says, nodding toward Charlie. "Yeah, except it's 2002," Audrey snorts. Pacey grimaces and finally explains that Charlie is "just That Guy." And Pacey can't stand him, because he's jealous of how Charlie got to mack on Audrey while they were both starring in Dawson's movie. Huh? That's a pretty bad reason to dislike someone. I'd think that the fact that Charlie cheated on Jen and now appears to be making the moves on Pacey's other friend would be a better excuse for the juvenile macho boy behavior, but I doubt that it would have the same effect on Audrey. "I can't believe you want to punch a guy in the face for me, Pacey," she coos. "It's so disturbingly cute." They kiss. Joey swaggers up and wonders if they can get the hell out of Dodge before one of the men in the crowd drags her back to his cave and make her his woman. But Audrey, see, she's tired. And so is Pacey. And they're going to stay at the No-Tell Motel across the way and Joey can room with Charlie! Won't that be fun? Now, I like Audrey. But stranding Joey in a strange city overnight so she can have sex with Joey's ex isn't very nice of her. Charlie, on the other hand, just watches the beat-up old van containing his bandmates drive past them, smiles, and says it sounds like a good idea to him. Joey makes an irritated face. I'd suggest she pony up for her own room, but we all know that she's spent all her money on several identical pairs of low-slung tight Earl jeans.
Instead of bunking with Charlie, Joey sits poolside and makes faces. Eventually, Charlie joins her, saying he got them a room. She snarks that they probably didn't have any single beds left. "Not a one," he retorts. "Are you nervous?" She grimaces. "About what happens after the prom? I think I'll be okay." Charlie thinks about this for a moment before offering that it must be weird to see her ex and her roommate together. "That's how we like to do things around here," Joey shrugs, and truer words were never spoken. Then Charlie wants to know if Pacey is the only guy she's ever had sex with. "That is so inappropriate on so many levels," Joey sputters. This prompts Charlie to want to know why they can't ever have a serious conversation; Joey wonders why they'd need to. "We don't, I guess," Charlie says, somewhat sadly. He'd just like to know why she doesn't want to make a new friend. "All the rest of your friends are sleeping together," he points out, and I laugh. Joey snickers and agrees, and tells him that, yes, Pacey is the only boy she's even gotten nekkid with. And Charlie tells her that he's only slept with Jen and his high school girlfriend. "Really? I feel really close to you right now," Joey snarks. "You should," Charlie laughs. He stops laughing when Joey calls him on the fact that he also had sex with Nora, the chick he cheated on Jen with. "It's kind of endearing, really. Seeing the Tiger Beat thing end right before my eyes," she says. Charlie grimaces and finally heads for their room, telling her to swing by if she gets "cold or curious…about the room." What a smooth move. He starts to leave, but then turns back to tell her that she was "really great" at the bar, and that he "couldn't resist the urge to be close to something that amazing." And Joey's all, wait until next week when I cure cancer and broker peace in the Middle East!