Episode Report Card Jessica: C | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Day Out Of Days
By Jessica | Season 6 | Episode 11 | Aired on 01.14.2003
So. Back at the studio. As Todd demands a light for his cigarette, Dawson slips his phone into Todd's pocket and goes out into the hall to fetch said light. However, instead of tracking down a pack of matches, he calls Todd from a phone in the hallway. Dawson stares into the window into the conference room, phone in hand, and implores Todd to pick up. Um, Dawson? Paul Gleason is looking right at you. Finally, Todd picks up the phone, and Dawson commands him to meet him in the hall.
Which he does. Dawson informs Todd that he's digging himself a hole "bigger than the La Brea Tar Pits." Cue some yelling from Todd. Yelling. Yelling. Homoerotic yelling. Todd yelps that they are in charge! They make the calls! Dawson wisely points out that, while Todd would like to think that, the studio holds the purse strings. And Todd needs to go back in there and agree to reshoots. Then Dawson waxes poetic about the beauty of the filmmaking process for, like, twenty minutes and I just tune out.
Back inside the conference room, Paul Gleason tells Todd that the film needs a new ending. "Something that's watchable. Or, at the least, something that makes sense." Paul Gleason IS my soulmate! At this, Todd flies off the hook, leaping up from the table and yelping sarcastically that he can see where Paul Gleason is coming from. "I can see where you and other people like yourself, people of lesser intelligence, might be a bit confused by my movie. And I can see how you actually don't have any ideas of your own on how to improve it, because, after all, you're not actually in the business of having ideas, are you? Oh, that's right. You think you are. Well, you're not. You're in the business of criticizing other people's ideas." Awww, they ARE reading the recaps! Hi, writers! Good work with Todd. He's a peach. And he and Dawson are a really cute couple. Seriously. Anyway, Todd announces -- with great indignant flair -- that he will not direct the reshoots, and he stomps off in an enormous huff.
Wednesday. Joey sits in Flip-Flops's class. What the hell? She hates him. Why would she take another one of his classes? Other than the fact that he's under contract to appear in a certain number of episodes. Anyway, he makes some smarmy comments about Norman Mailer and dismisses class, and because she's a glutton for punishment, Joey saunters up to talk to him. "Oh, that can't be Joey Potter! Guess one D isn't enough to get anyone thrown out of Worthington anymore," Flip-Flops snarks. But…isn't he her advisor? Shouldn't he know that she's in his class? Isn't someone supposed to be keeping track of this? Other than me, I mean. Flip-Flops tells Joey that "no matter how many times [she asks]," it simply isn't possible for her to drop his class without "forfeiting [her] credits from the previous semester." Well…whatever. Nice try. That doesn't even make any sense -- like, is this a series of classes? Because I'm pretty sure that whatever happens in the second semester shouldn't have anything to do with credits for a previously completed course, unless, of course, Joey is retaking the class so as to replace the D on her record…let's just decide that's what's going on, because I have enough logistical concerns about Dawson's plot. I have no time for Joey's inconsistent storyline. Joey, by the way, is wearing yet another new coat. I guess waitressing is really paying off for her. Anyhoo, Joey tells Flip-Flops all about Harley's shenanigans, explaining that she thought he might like to know what his daughter is up to. This leads to Flip-Flops getting all defensive about his fathering skills. He proposes a deal: "You stay out of my life and I'll do my very best to stay out of yours." Joey gets all snippy, naturally, and tells him that she was a fool to think this was about "anything other than his gigantic male ego" and storms off. I just love Flip-Flops's acting here. He really puts the skills he honed on daytime television to good use. And don't get me wrong: I adore daytime television. Passions is one of my favorite shows ever, and if I could write for a soap, I'd be happier than a pig in slop. Anyway, Flip-Flops Gazes Meaningfully Off Into the Distance, Thinking About His Issues And Wondering If He'll Ever Get to Experience True Love Again, Now That His One And Only Is Married To His Brother, Who Really Ought To Drop Dead From His Brain Fog Any Day Now. Oh, wait. That's a totally different show. Instead, he just looks constipated.
Emma. Pacey. Fish. Blah blah childhood, blah blah fake British accent, blah blah blah blah blah blah. Pacey tells Emma that the aquarium is "a window into the person [he] used to be," explaining that he didn't used to be Carl Corporate. Emma tells him to prove it, and dares him to blow off the rest of the afternoon. Pacey tells her that he'll get fired. Girl, please. If Bobby Briggs hasn't fired you for trying to beat him up and totally sassing him at every occasion, taking an afternoon off won't do it. "Like that'd be such a bloody tragedy," Emma drawls. Well, it will be when he can't kick in his share of the rent, pet. She hands him a cell phone and directs him to call in sick. Pacey smiles at her and dials, practicing his phony cough. Emma nods proudly.