Episode Report Card Jessica: B+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Lose The Boss?
By Jessica | Season 1 | Episode 9 | Aired on 11.22.2006
Queens. Daniel is talking to Justin about his homemade ornaments, while Santos gives them the evil eye. Eventually, he suggests that they go outside and "toss a football," a.k.a. "stop acting like such a fruit." Justin points out that they're busy decorating the tree. That one line was delivered very well. You can tell that Justin has no interest in spending time with Santos at all, and resents him for swinging back into his life at this late date and trying to pretend like it's normal. Santos presses, though, telling Justin to give the glitter a rest: "Come out and be a normal kid for an hour." The adults exchange looks, and Daniel speaks up, saying that he "needs Justin's eyes" or the tree will look like crap, gently telling Santos, "He's got a gift." Santos says that Justin should be learning other things: "Things that no one else is teaching him in this house." Hilda shoots him a dirty look: "What is that supposed to mean?" I maybe would have gone with "and whose fault is THAT?" She drags Santos off, asking who the hell he is to judge any of them. Santos counters by wondering if Hilda thinks he can just watch Justin "play with chenille" and not say anything about it. Justin looks awkward, which breaks my heart a little bit, and Daniel looks sorry for everyone. Hilda tells Santos that she and Justin are totally comfortable with who he is, and that if Santos doesn't like it, he doesn't belong there. And so he leaves. Good riddance, I say. He sure is cute, but he ain't much help, and Justin deserves so much better from a parent. Ignacio looks sad, and to break the awkwardness, Daniel asks Justin's help with the ornament he's making. Justin silently gives him a hand, but you can tell he's glad to have something to do. Poor Justin. I wish he lived next door to me. He could come over and watch musicals and read fashion magazines and talk about my complexion all day long.
At the office, it's time for the Betty-centric Montage of Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves: she's very busy approving outfits, and telling the team that they're going to style the shoot like the Garden of Eden, with Tim and Chloe as the twenty-first-century Adam and Eve. Hey, that's a pretty good idea! Maybe she's learned something after all.
While Betty's doing everyone's work for them, Wil and Marc are still stuck in Dante's Seventh Circle of Hell, Wil berating Marc for not having any cash or his ATM card on him. He tells her he only has seventeen bucks in his account, anyway: "We could go to the bank, but I swear it would only be a social call." Wil looks around the very sketchy neighborhood and wonders if taxis even come to this part of the world: "Where ARE we?" Marc looks around and notes that he totally doesn't even want to ask the only two other people there -- these two cracked-out-looking hookers -- but Wil tells him that they have no choice. And what ensues then is rather hilarious. Seriously, Vanessa L. Williams is so great in this role. She strolls up to the hookers, smiles, and informs them that she and her assistant are in "an absurd situation." See, they were on their way to the airport.... "There ain't no airport around here," says Hooker #1. "See! That's what I told the driver!" says Wil, and introduces herself as the creative director of Mode. The girls react with blank looks. "Well, perhaps you don't subscribe," Wil says, waving a hand. They do subscribe to her albino lynx coat, though, and start touching it predatorily. "Um, okay. Back off, girlfriends. Stop pawing...my piece...'less you gonna...show me some benjies. You...know what I'm saying?" Wil manages to force out. Behind her, Marc realizes that this is going to end very poorly. "'Benjies'? Where you from?" asks Hooker #2. Marc finally steps in: "Okay, Lil' Kim, Visiting hours are over." But Hooker #1 has some visiting left to do. "You gonna charge me to TOUCH YOU?" she asks, very confrontationally. And so Marc goes, "She's new in the field, girls, and her corner's a long, long way from here, so...." And it is at this moment that Hookers #1 and #2 start taking off their earrings in preparation for the rumble. "Um, run," Marc tells Wil, and they take off.