Episode Report Card Niki: D | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT My Brilliant Career
By Niki | Season 1 | Episode 20 | Aired on 04.09.2000
At the restaurant, Jake is walking past Grace when she blurts out that Jared is black. Jake stops dead, pauses, and then says, "Well, that's interesting." She wants to know what he means. I rub my hands, thinking we can add "bigot" to our list of reasons to hate Jake, but it's not to be. Jake's as cool with it as he could be. Jake says it's interesting that she felt the need to tell him. Grace says she just wanted to warn him, so he doesn't look surprised when he meets Jared. Jake jokes that that's good, and he hopes she warned Jared that he'll be, you know, white. They head over to the bar, where Zoe's trying to talk the bartender into teaching her how to make a cosmopolitan. The bartender declines, citing jail as her reason, but offers to make Zoe a Shirley Temple instead. ["All right! Make one for me, too!" -- Wing Chun] Jake takes a seat and starts mock-lamenting to the bartender about how his girls are just growing up too fast. Perhaps this is why he feels the need to pick up another child -- Tiffany, I mean. She's just walked into the restaurant, and Jake rushes over to kiss her. Grace is stunned. Zoe doesn't even bat an eye, and she gives Grace the skinny. Tiffany's going to hang out with her while Grace is on her date with Jared. Grace is no less stunned when Zoe finishes. She seems to have forgotten about the maraschino cherry that was on its way to her mouth. She's just sitting and staring with her mouth hanging open. Zoe doesn't get why she's so wigged out. Ah, the little innocent.
Meanwhile, Lily's trying to show initiative at work. She offers to take home a stack of editing from Crusty's in-pile. Crusty's got nothing to lose, she argues. Crusty asks what about the kids, and Lily says they're staying with their father so she "can easily give it a shot." "Oh, well, if [she] can easily give it a shot..." Crusty's voice trails off, and I suspect her unfinished thought can't be good. Lily doesn't clue in that the supreme bitch isn't exactly thrilled at the offer.
Cut to Grace wearing some weird attempt at Bohemian: A crocheted skull-cap and some eastern-inspired printed polyester shirt. She's definitely more colorful than usual. Funky music is blasting, and she's watching Zoe get down with Tiffany. When the song ends, Tiffany flops down in a chair next to Grace and tells her she looks nice. She asks if Grace is wearing make-up. Embarrassed, Grace admits that she is, "sort of." Tiffany offers to give her some tips on how to put on make-up, since she took a course in it. Of course she did. Jake walks in with his arm around Jared. Jake dispenses with the introductions and then throws on some Wilson Pickett. He slips on some shades and he and Zoe get down with their bad, bad selves. They're having a great time, and Jared loves it. He joins in, but Grace refuses. She's mortified, but by the end of the song, she relaxes and ends up smiling.