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| Left to right: James Van Der Beek and Krysten Ritter |
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| Left to right: Ritter and Dreama Walker |
It has been a long time since we last left off with Chloe (Krysten Ritter) and June (Dreama Walker). In that time, a campaign has been raised to try and bring the show back. While it wasn't successful, the one major breakthrough was the final release of the remaining eight episodes. While the series suffered from being released out of order, I don't feel like the quality is all that terrible. In fact, watching this episode reminded me why I love covering the show. However, I would like to apologize for the delay in restarting the recap series. I had intent on starting last week. As a consolation, look for another column later today on the next episode: "Original Bitch."
The episode begins with Chloe and June in Apt. 23 reading the news on a laptop. It is shortly discovered that Dean Cain has become a real life hero. This doesn't bode well for James Van Der Beek, who is set to appear on Dancing with the Stars. In fact, it turns out that when Van Der Beek gets nervous, he tends to sweat a lot. With this in mind, he decides to take Luther (Ray Ford) and start training in order to get in shape for the show. They hide out in an undisclosed location as to avoid Chloe from becoming a distraction.
Meanwhile, Chloe is not entirely sure why this would be. She is also unaware about how Chloe and Luther became good friends. The answer is because they share a relation that their grandmothers baked pies. In order to make her a better person, June gives Chloe some advice about how to strike up conversations. This only results in her awkward attempt to comment on people's elastic pants and large breasts. With this in mind, she decides to make her watch a bunch of Kelly Ripa, who she believes to be the nicest person in the world. June thinks that it works when she sees Chloe paying attention and talking along to the TV.
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| Eric Andre |
At work, June notices that Mark (Eric Andre) is having problems of his own. He is part of a book club for his girlfriend in order to hopefully convince her to let him be the bottom during sex. The book of choice is "Moby Dick," which he claims is a chore to read and even when listening to the audio book, it sounds like annoying chipmunks. Also, he reveals that the sure sign to know that sex isn't going to happen is when she puts in her mouth guard.
June is also a friend with everyone on Facebook. She knows everything that is going on in Guam and is also a friend of a salon. At this particular salon, she and Luther go for weekly manicures and just talk. She decides that with Chloe a recovered social butterfly, to head out to see Luther and get the full treatment. Chloe is being nice and joining the conversation in a manner akin to that of Kelly Ripa. However, the twist is that she was only doing it to get to Van Der Beek's cell phone. At which point, she takes a cab to the undisclosed location and kidnaps him.
Not far behind, June and Luther track them down to his apartment. It is revealed that Van Der Beek finds Chloe to be a distraction and that he needs to focus. However, he has stopped sweating profusely thanks to a mix of exercising and injections from a doctor. Things are going well until it is revealed that what really happened was that Van Der Beek's sweat glands rerouted so that he now sweats from his thighs, making it look like he peed his pants. Chloe snaps up the picture and sells it on the internet to a gossip site. It goes viral. Even Robin (Liza Lapira) has seen it.
At first Van Der Beek is upset and Chloe is unwilling to deal with his drama. He hides out at their neighbor Eli's (Michael Blaiklock) house. It is slowly revealed that Van Der Beek is secretly happy about it because despite being ridiculed on the internet, he is confident that it will be far worse than anything that happens to him on Dancing with the Stars. Despite humiliating him, he forgives Chloe. She claims that this was all to be honest with people.
June takes this cue to go over and be honest with Mark. He goes to his apartment and tells his girlfriend to her face that she needs to just toughen up and just have sex. This doesn't work, but it makes June feel gratified. The episode ends with June deleting all of friends on Facebook who she doesn't really have a relationship with, which happens to include everyone in Guam and Miss Piggy. Luther also comes over with a pie, which June shares in and consider it very good.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Maybe I am just excited to be seeing more of the show, but I definitely was ecstatic watching this episode. Seeing everyone up to their old zany hi-jinks was just a nice refresher. At very least, it is confusing why this show was ever cancelled. The only reason logically to think of is that ABC didn't know how to air episodes in sequence. As I've stated before, it takes the continuity to a new level of incohesiveness by jumping from season one burn off episodes to season two. The most obvious way is how Mark and June consistently seem to be dating one week and then Mark is back with his other girlfriend and kind of stupid. I just hope that whenever the DVD comes out, this problem will be solved.
With everything said, this was just a great episode because even if it was clearly an earlier episode, it dealt with the themes that the show did best. Chloe is essentially still the air headed bitch that she is supposed to be. Her social skills are terrible and unlike some weeks where it feels too aggressive, there feels like some sort of a balance here. Even though it is getting redundant for June to suggest that she be nicer to people, Krysten Ritter manages to pull it off nicely. This is one of the better episodes on the sheer fact that she isn't doing anything too illogical. All she's doing is trying to sabotage James Van Der Beek. Okay, maybe not sabotage. Her gesture of humiliating him is more meant to make him a better performer. And that is why this show is endearing.
In fact, I like the satirical element of Van Der Beek in general on the show. This is all about how he can perfect his image by overcoming a simple sweat problem. While the leak portion may be played for laughs, it reflects why he is a great choice for this role and able to ride out the episode with a sense of self while also being able to mock it. Also, I just wish episodes like this came out at respected times so that the latter episodes involving Dancing with the Stars didn't feel a little bizarre. By knowing that Van Der Beek has a certain rivalry with Dean Cain, it would have added depth.
I also enjoy that June and Luther are somehow best friends because they share a commonality through grandmas. It may be mundane, but it is enough for it to work properly. Even the way that they talk suggests great potential stories. It seems like Chloe somehow is not quite as connected to the main group as she normally is. That feels a little bit off, but given the story, it is understandable. Of course, I just wish Luther and June talked more because they have some great lines about the Natural and other pop culture references. I also like the line "I am friends with Salon on Facebook." It is a generic statement that at first sounds like a name, but suggests that June actually befriends pointless stuff.
Of course, the only thing that really feels odd is the final moments where June raids Mark's house and talks to his girlfriend. There isn't necessarily anything wrong with the concept of her being open with people, but to go straight to that seems odd. Has she actually met Mark's girlfriend before? It seems rather brash that she jumps straight towards talking about their sex life. It is also odd, because there's a little Scottish in her voice and it laid on a little thick. Maybe for effect, but it just seems bizarre. I would be with Mark's girlfriend on this and just pass. However, kudos to him on finding ways to make reading "Moby Dick" funny.
Such a solid restart to the recap series. I am going to enjoy covering the remaining eight episodes. Maybe I'll even cover season one when the DVD set comes out? You'll have to wait and see for that. However, I want to remind you that as apology for not posting last week, I will be doing a double count today. Expect another recap to launch later today, probably this evening. Otherwise, there will be only one every Friday from here on out.
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