By Sara M
It's good to be back. This is very easy for me to say, as I have not yet watched tonight's episode of 7th Heaven. I'm sure I'll be changing my mind as soon as I hear that crap-ass bouncy guitar medley that traditionally opens the show. Before then, I'd like to give props to everyone on the forums who wished me well on my move, Pamie and Stee for putting me up when I was looking for an apartment, my friend A-Hill for taping this episode for me since I don't have cable in my apartment yet, and, most especially, Daniel, for accidentally committing himself to recapping three episodes of the worst show that has ever been put on television. I'm sure he has now learned his lesson about volunteering to substitute for a show that he's never actually seen before. Anti-props go out, of course, to Brenda Hampton, who changed the 7th Heaven schedule around so that the week I thought was a rerun in January actually had a new episode, and then the first week of sweeps was a rerun. Because Brenda Hampton is as talented at programming as she is at writing, apparently.
We open on the same establishing shot of Glenoak's high school that we've been seeing since this show began in 1996. Seriously, I think the kids in it are wearing Cross Colors shirts. Inside, Martin is walking down the hall with a friend of his who has really bad hair. Apparently, the friend asked Asslee to get him a date with one of her friends. Asslee informs him that she doesn't "have that many friends." Well, I just find it incredibly hard to believe that someone with such a fun and vibrant personality as Asslee, who spends all her time hanging out with middle-aged housewives, has a hard time making friends. Asslee says that the few friends she does have are seniors who don't want to date sophomores. The guy with bad hair leaves, and Asslee asks Martin why "Mac" can't find his own date. That's a good question, Asslee, although it's too bad that you didn't follow it up with a refusal to help Mac. Instead, you pathetically agreed to keep asking around for him.
Martin leaves, and Asslee closes her locker to reveal some girl named Pam, who was apparently just standing behind Asslee's open locker door, waiting for Asslee to close it. Weirdo. Pam says she'd like to go out with Mac. Asslee says that's great, and asks for Pam's number so she can give it to him. Now Pam has all sorts of reservations, like what if Mac doesn't want to go out with her and other stuff that she should probably have thought about before she got Asslee involved. Asslee tells Pam that Mac will call her, then asks if her parents are okay with her dating someone they don't know. You know, if they're going to make this show into some kind of weird '50s nostalgia trip, they should really do it right and give the characters period hair and clothes to match their period values and names. That way, I won't have to put up with anymore of Asslee's ugly white shaggy doll hair. Pam leaves Asslee to stare around blankly and wait for the theme song to start up. Oh, Asslee, you didn't get any better at acting since I left, did you? How refreshing. No, that's not the word I'm looking for. Ah, here it is -- "nauseating."
RevCam comes home, surveys the situation in the kitchen, and makes to get right the hell back out again. Before he can escape, Annie runs up and hugs him, then buries her face in his shoulder and cries a lot. Then she tells him to talk to Lily about her "commitment-phobia" because she'd "really like to see her get married," proving that even with the most tenuous of ties to a relation, Annie can still nag and nag at her. For her part, Lily does not say that maybe Annie should just mind her own damn business, because she's classy. Like Martin! And if you think I'm being uncharacteristically nice to Lily in this recap, just remember: if we weren't watching Lily right now, we'd probably have to deal with an episode about Aunt Julie and Uncle Hank. I think you understand now.
Mac sees Pam in the hallway and says he was looking for her. She says he doesn't have to ask her out. He says he feels stupid for not asking her out sooner. She asks him if he'll take her out in public, where people will see them together and stuff. He says he can "take it," and why don't they go out on a "pre-date" to plan where they'll go tomorrow night. "Sure!" Pam says, because she's pathetic. Actually, I hope she does date him, have sex with him, and then tell the whole school that he has a really small penis. And then she'll get revenge on him for making fun of her for ten goddamn years, and people will forget about her little incident. She can even make up a nickname for him about it, like "Mac the Mouse." I don't know, I'm just thinking off the top of my head here. And I don't think that's her plan, anyway.
Nighttime at the CamPound. RevCam says he's glad Annie worked things out with Lily. Annie says she is, too, and now she's really looking forward to their trip to Arizona. "That's good, because I definitely am not," says RevCam. "God, a whole weekend with just my retarded sons, senile father-in-law, and psycho wife for company? Remind me to bring a good, long book. Or seven." Ruthie and Peter come in, and Ruthie tells RevCam that he was right about their tabloid, saying that they were not only "really embarrassed," but also "completely humiliated" by their teacher's reaction to their paper today. Peter recites some lines about the lesson we are supposed to have learned today about "sacrificing honor for a shot at a moment in the spotlight" and blah blah blah freedom of the press is wrong blah blah. Ruthie says that they're doing a new project now, but they'll need help. In the form of RevCam and three other people. Uh oh.