|
3-25 2006.05.18 |
A Twig, Snapped The kids graduate; Sandy thinks about returning to the D.A.'s office; Kaitlin returns to town for good; and Marissa finally dies in a montage of recycled bits from seasons past. |
| 3-25 Recap |
A Twig, Snapped
The Graduates - The kids graduate; Sandy thinks about returning to the D.A.'s office; Kaitlin returns to town for good; and Marissa finally dies in a montage of recycled bits from seasons past. |
2006.05.18 2006.05.24 |
D |
Sara M |
| 3-24 Recap |
Stating The Obvie
The Man of the Year - The world of Orange County has gone insane. Sandy isn't acting like a proper dad, Ryan helps Volchok steal a car, Marissa helps her sister, and Seth gets arrested. The only normal thing happening is that Kirsten is drinking again. |
2006.05.04 2006.05.10 |
B+ |
Keckler |
| 3-23 Recap |
Pirates!
The Party Favor - That's the theme of Harbor's prom, attended by all the kids despite none of them really being together anymore. When Marissa's date openly cheats on her and steals five thousand dollars of after-party cash, Ryan practically kills him. Sandy finds out he's being investigated for the illegal business activities he isn't involved in. Argg! |
2006.04.27 2006.05.03 |
C |
Sara M |
| 3-22 Recap |
Keep Trying
The College Try - The four kids go off to visit their college campuses, only to return to Newport less thrilled about their future plans than ever. The O.C. hopes against hope that bringing back popular characters from the past will win its viewers back. |
2006.04.20 2006.04.26 |
C- |
Sara M |
| 3-21 Recap |
The Yawn Patrol
The Dawn Patrol - Ryan goes to Albuquerque to see his mother and give her tickets to his graduation. But first, he has to hook up with her creepy co-worker. Seth dumps Summer for no good reason. Marissa realizes that bad boys aren't all fun and games when they're trying to rape people. Even if those people aren't very nice. |
2006.04.13 2006.04.19 |
B |
Sara M |
| 3-20 Recap |
The Day After Yesterday
The Day After Tomorrow - Even ripping off the name off of a recent blockbuster movie can't save this episode, in which the kids get their college acceptance (or, in Seth's case, non-acceptance) letters and promptly ruin their relationships with each other. Sandy continues to pretend he's a businessman. Adam Brody, you are no Jake Gyllenhaal. |
2006.04.06 2006.04.12 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-19 Recap |
Character Assassination
The Secrets And Lies - Who is Matt and why is he bleeding? |
2006.03.30 2006.04.03 |
C- |
Djb |
| 3-18 Recap |
Another Tertiary Character Returns
The Undertow - Jess the Drug Ho comes back just in time to help Ryan get over his White Knight complex and start a relationship with Sadie. Sandy continues to be the most boring businessman ever. Everyone has sex. |
2006.03.23 2006.03.30 |
B |
Sara M |
| 3-17 Recap |
Journey To Nowhere
The Journey - It's Ryan's eighteenth birthday, and it serves only to show us that, while this show may have advanced three years, it's still in almost exactly the same place. No one cares about Ryan, Julie loves money, Ryan's mom is a loser, Seth lives vicariously through Ryan at Ryan's expense, and Marissa is a drama queen who's attracted to the Wrong Guy. Except now, it's not new, fresh, and cute anymore. |
2006.03.16 2006.03.22 |
C |
Sara M |
| 3-16 Recap |
The Replacements
The Road Warrior - No one's ever lonely for very long in The O.C.! Ryan and Marissa break up and immediately find themselves some new prospects in Sadie and Volchok, respectively. Julie and Dr. Neil are hooking up and trying to keep it a secret. And Kirsten and Sandy pretend to still be relevant. |
2006.03.09 2006.03.15 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-15 Recap |
Broken Heads, Broken Hearts
The Heavy Lifting - Johnny's severe head injury death puts only a slight damper on the Valentine's Day festivities as Newport's couples scramble around to make up with each other. All but one succeed: looks like Ryan and Marissa are over. Again. Some more. |
2006.02.09 2006.02.15 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-14 Recap |
Dear Johnny
The Cliffhanger - Marissa is forced to make a decision between Ryan and Johnny. She chooses Ryan, and writes Johnny a letter informing him of her decision. Johnny doesn't take the news well at all. Dr. Neil dates another Newpsie. Julie doesn't take the news well at all. She doesn't throw herself off a cliff about it, though. |
2006.02.02 2006.02.08 |
A- |
Sara M |
| 3-13 Recap |
The Plot Burier
The Pot Stirrer - Potentially good storylines about Seth's college anxiety and Sandy's move to the Business World Dark Side are pushed to the side so that we can watch Kaitlin continue her bad-girl lifestyle of "seducing" Johnny, selling pot to Seth, and sharing her love of The Sound Of Music, and Marissa continue to be worried about it. I don't think Kirsten and Ryan even exist anymore. |
2006.01.26 2006.02.01 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-12 Recap |
The Sister Can't Act
The Sister Act - A brand-new Kaitlin returns to town after not setting foot in it for the last two years, and she's just as flat of an actress as her sister. She steals money, storylines, and her sister's non-boyfriend. Fortunately, Seth spreads rumors about genital warts and redeems most of the episode. |
2006.01.19 2006.01.25 |
B |
Sara M |
| 3-11 Recap |
Harbor Is No Longer Safe From Marissa
The Safe Harbor - And neither is any of the show's characters, all of whose presence in this episode -- with the exception of Kirsten, who never gets to do anything anyway -- is to help Marissa get back into Harbor whether she wants to go or not. |
2006.01.12 2006.01.18 |
C- |
Sara M |
| 3-10 Recap |
A Man Walks Into A Bar (Mitzvah)
The Chrismukkah Bar Mitz-vakkah - Ryan has an honorary Bar Mitzvah to raise money for Johnny's knee surgery, even though Johnny keeps moving in on Marissa, and tries to rob mini-marts at gunpoint for no good reason. |
2005.12.15 2005.12.21 |
C |
Sara M |
| 3-9 Recap |
Summer Stole Everyone's IQ Points
The Disconnect - Summer gets super-awesome SAT scores, making Seth feel jealous and inadequate. Ryan interns at the NewNewport Group, only to be taken to a strip club by wunderkind-turned-moron Matt. Sandy smartly fires Matt for this, and then stupidly rehires him on the word of a stripper/lawyer. Kirsten starts to discover that nude maid and sweet corn ravioli-loving Julie might not be the best business partner. Marissa fails to understand that Johnny has feelings for her even after he outright tells her about them. |
2005.12.08 2005.12.14 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-8 Recap |
The Lame Plan
The Game Plan - College applications are due soon, and the kids suddenly have to figure out where they're going next year. They base their decisions on trivial things like weather and boyfriends, causing all kinds of laptop-throwing, relationship-ending, knee-destroying things to happen. Julie moves to a trailer park. |
2005.12.01 2005.12.07 |
A- |
Sara M |
| 3-7 Recap |
Mismanagement
The Anger Management - Ryan's plan to get out of fighting Volchok is to challenge him to a fight to the death and hope he runs away. Sandy and Matt have their first day at the head of the NewNewport Group, and immediately have to fire nine people. 7 'n 7's plans to steal the upcoming charity function money and run off to lawless Puerto Rico are totally destroyed by Julie, a microphone, and a real charity. Taylor Townsend tries to get Seth to like her by stealing Captain Oats. |
2005.11.17 2005.11.23 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-6 Recap |
Welcome To The Marissa Show, Bitch!
The Swells - ...not like it was ever anything else. Marissa and Johnny get close, leaving their real significant others to wonder what's going on. Casey does something about it, hooking up with Johnny's surfing rival. Ryan broods and fights Johnny's battles for him. When other characters get a few seconds to do something non-Marissa-related, Seth is the first person to be nice to Taylor Townsend without having an ulterior motive. Julie figures out 7 'n 7's ulterior motives for being so nice to her. Sandy gets a new partner for the Newport Group. |
2005.11.10 2005.11.16 |
C+ |
Sara M |
| 3-5 Recap |
Gone Fishin'
The Perfect Storm - Ryan gives up on his future, quits school, and gets a job on a fishing boat. Everyone else does their fishing on land, as Summer fishes for incriminating evidence of Taylor Townsend and Dean Evil's relationship, 7 'n 7 fishes for a new mark in penniless Julie, and Seth fishes for a storyline that doesn't limit him to buying or being a Sidekick. |
2005.11.03 2005.11.09 |
B |
Sara M |
| 3-4 Recap |
The Vast Schmaltz
The Last Waltz - Marissa goes to public school, where everything, including her new friends, is a gross and cheap version of Harbor. She ditches Homeschool Ryan a few times, but they make up and dance to a song from the O.C.'s latest soundtrack CD. Elsewhere, Julie's house gets repoed, and Kirsten decides to close the Newport Group, much to 7 'n 7's dismay. |
2005.09.29 2005.10.05 |
C |
Sara M |
| 3-3 Recap |
Psych!
The End of Innocence - Despite the pre-show warnings of violent content and the ominous music, Jimmy is not murdered, because he was fortunate enough to borrow money from really nice loan sharks. Marissa is thisclose to leaving town for Hawaii, but then stays when Jimmy leaves Julie at the altar. We all thought Ryan and Marissa were having sex this whole time, but it turns out they were waiting for a Very Special Montage to do it. |
2005.09.22 2005.09.28 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-2 Recap |
The Shape Of Things We've Seen Before
The Shape Of Things To Come - No one has learned anything in the last two seasons. Jimmy is still a weasel, Seth is still self-absorbed, two-dimensional characters of evil still abound, and Ryan still doesn't know how to control his Fists of Fury. The only difference now is that Ryan and Marissa won't be attending Harbor. |
2005.09.15 2005.09.21 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 3-1 Recap |
Resistance Is Futile
The Aftermath - In the aftermath of Season 2, Trey has survived Marissa's gunshot, but remains in a coma. He finally wakes up to face Julie, who offers to pay him off if he accuses Ryan of shooting him so that Marissa can go to college. Ryan is arrested, and Marissa dons a candy-striper uniform to infiltrate the hospital and talk some sense into Trey. He recants, freeing Ryan, and then leaves town, making Ryan cry. Meanwhile, Kirsten's having so much fun in rehab with her new Borg friend that she doesn't want to come home. |
2005.09.08 2005.09.14 |
B- |
Sara M |
| 2-24 Recap |
The Dearly Beloved
The Dearly Beloved - Sandy stages an intervention; Kirsten goes to rehab. Marissa blows a hole through Trey's chest to protect Ryan, which sort of dilutes the happy news that Julie and Jimmy are getting back together. But hey, there always has to be equilibrium in Newport -- where there's glee, there's gore. |
2005.05.19 2005.05.25 |
A- |
Heathen |
| 2-23 Recap |
The O.Sea
The O.Sea - After Julie aborts her plan to poison Caleb, thus preventing him from filing the divorce papers, he goes ahead and has a fatal heart attack. That was nice of him. Kirsten and Sandy grow further apart when she doesn't take her alcoholism seriously. Ryan tracks Trey to Chino and bumps into Theresa. Summer and Seth reunite at the prom. George Lucas has a massive neck. |
2005.05.12 2005.05.17 |
B |
Heathen |
| 2-22 Recap |
The Showdown
The Showdown - Seth and Zach get into a fight at the Atomic County launch, and they force Summer to choose. She picks neither, but it won't last. Marissa is too traumatized to be with Ryan, who now thinks she and Trey might've hooked up. And Sandy confronts Kirsten about her drinking; they fight, and while they're making up, Kirsten's car is slammed into -- and practically pancaked -- by a truck. |
2005.05.05 2005.05.11 |
B |
Heathen |
| 2-21 Recap |
The Return Of The Nana
The Return Of The Nana - The Nana's goin' to The Chapel, so Sandy takes The Kids to Miami to check out The Fiancé. Meanwhile, The Wife upgrades to vodka after kissing The Other Man; The Twig gets roughed up by The Coked-Up Brother; and The Whiner sees The Tool make a Spring Break ass of himself, so she plants one on The Water-Polo Player. |
2005.05.05 2005.05.09 |
D |
Heathen |
| 2-20 Recap |
The O.C. Confidential
The O.C. Confidential - Seth and Summer continue to bicker, ending in her walking out on him at a party he tricked her into attending. Zach may be trying to win her back. Sandy and Scoobies II: Atwood Boogaloo stage a ridiculous sting to get Trey off the hook, and Kirsten spends the whole hour looking like she wants to cheat but doing nothing. |
2005.04.21 2005.04.28 |
C+ |
Heathen |