THE OC: WEEK IN REVIEW 4.15.05

Hey, no one said this review was going to be a rager!  Woooooo, this is the place.  Gather my bong sucking, crack snorting, inked sluts as we explore themes of condemnation and redemption in Southern California.

Poopernickle: “Ev’ry roooooose has its thorn.”

It’s an obvious writing technique to put characters through periods of transgression and redemption in order to keep them interesting.  If someone is too evil all the time sooner or later it gets old.  So, following several weeks of soulless Marissa jerking the white trash lesbian around just to get at her mom, the past two weeks have shown her with a heart trying to do her best to help Trey.  This works well enough to give her some dimensionality but the transgression redemption game gets old if it then becomes the predictable. 

I’m already tired of the Trey yo-yo.  He’s good. He’s going to straighten his life out.  He’s bad.  He’s going back to jail.  Ryan should trust and forgive.  Ryan should have known better.  He didn’t steal the watch.  He stole the damn egg.  He’s good, nope he’s bad, no he’s alright, he’s horrible.  Enough already.   At first I thought they were setting Trey up to be a new, permanent character.  After two straight weeks of bait and switch, I don’t know.  He may be joining Alex in the retirement home for OC hasbeens.  What’s that cop’s problem anyway? The whole point of girl’s like that is to help you “celebrate your birthday.”  They don’t find cures or work at soup kitchens.  As a byproduct of this service to society some of them end up face down in a pool OD comatose.  Not looking the other way when this occurs is like demanding the Mexicans who are going to clean up that party get a fair wage.  Some evils are just necessary in society. 

Aye Curumba! Mio Dios! 

Poopernickle’s back and she’s packin’.  She wants you to know what it feels like to have your life taken away... or, in the alternative, to have something shot in your face ‘cause she knows both.  We have the footage to prove it.  After you feel that, she’d love you to buy her a drink.  In one of the fastest redeeming turnarounds in history, the pornographer becomes the old pal over a couple shots and some hair rock.  Yes, Poopernickle, every cowboy does sing a sad, sad song.  And Caleb better watch out because she’s now a trophy wife with nothing left to lose.  She’s obviously the literary object of sympathy at the moment.  But just wait because no one stays good or bad for long in Newport.  Queue Elton John: Circle of Life. 

But, even though there was a scene that included mouthing the lyrics to Poison and slow-dancing with a pornographer, it didn’t win the prize for most stomach churning.  The winning gross out moment for me came just after Marissa squealed and threw out the threesome in progresso.  Then she and Ryan just dove right into that VD pool.  Baby, hold me, just mind the damp spot.  If that slut hadn’t screamed who knows what biohazard those crazy kids would have created.    

I wish I had a Sandy in my life.  He just throws cash at people.  He always stays even keel even when you’ve done something wrong.  He assumes the best about you.  He does more than anyone should do for someone and he still offers to do more.  When are they going to find the garbage bag full of babies in his basement because something has got to balance this guy out?  One problem I have to mention is the TV convention that attorneys are jacks of all trades.  That’s not how a law degree works.  In the past few weeks we’ve seen Sandy as criminal defense attorney, civil liable attorney, extortion expert, and real estate advisor.  Lawyers work in one field. The one who writes your will can’t keep you out of jail.  But, we already know Sandy is a superhero so maybe his special power is multiple practice areas.  That’s almost as lame a comic character as The Vixen. 

Speaking of everyone’s favorite comic threesome… related to redemption is sweet, sweet revenge.  Seth ‘stole’ Summer from Zack thus breaking his heart.  Then Seth finally finds someone that’s a good a fit for him and whose arm is she on?  Payback’s a bitch, Cohen.  For a nerd Seth seems kind of dumb.  He was quite surprised to find out there are girls out there that share his interests.  Granted a comic loving female is rare but did the thought really never occur to Cohen that he could do better?  I picture a future where Seth and Jay LARP together with their kids and Summer marries one of those party-jocks of equal cognition.  He can be a sports obsessed manchild who can’t meet her needs and she can get excited about manies and pedies and live stupidly ever after.   

And Seth says he picks up a little gay vibe from Zack.  Well if that aint the pot calling the town of Newport black. 

Comments

[gradiant]

Don't forget to notice the well tuned ear of those who live in the OC. My personal favorite ~ the inclusion of a Bloc Party song in the soundtrack this week. The album came out a mere three weeks ago. So did the producers have the album early? Or did they add the song of the promising UK rock band in a later add as a nod to the growing popularity of Pitchfork?

[residualbliss]

they've had promo singles out for a long while now...

[snortykills]

and UK radio stations have been pushing that for-evah.

[gradiant]

they played two songs ~ one not off the EP. I dont know about the promo - and I certainly dont know about british airwaves - both explaining my naivety about the music selection.

[bluemonday1047]

a few things of interest to me:

I generally watch this show with a lot of enthusiam (and a few beers/glasses of wine). I am oft cheering, hotting, catcalling, screaming, and arguing at the TV/with the characters throughout the episode because, to be honest,... its a lot of fun. But for whatever reason this week's episode moved me so little, I think I ended up sober. Possible exception: totally thought Seth was gonna break the egg.

notes and corrections:
1) Ryan and Marissa never "did it"
2) I don't see a love-sald-triangle-thingy developing there. I equate this to the ron/harry/hermione thing where I think many people, seeing 3 characters involved in different degrees of intimacy together, and assume that male and female characters can only exist in sexual relationships. I back this up with this evidence: the sideway look. Whenever the writers of the OC want you to read into what they've just shown you, the scene always ends up with either Ryan or Marissa giving the crappy sideways look (for Marissa, this is one of 3 forms of emoting he knows how to do)... the look implies attraction/wonder/sexy results... and not once have I seen that look form marissa nor trey in regards to each other. But hey, I could be wrong.
3) not NOOPSY but NEWPSIE... as in "Newport Beach" - Newp. Like people from DC are called DCsies or people from Arlington are called Trendies or people form Maryland are called Gods.

werd. nice summary. me likey.

[ediblemouse (me)]

All good points. I too was a little let down by this episode. Thanks for explaining Newpsie to me because I just didn't get that. I want a spinoff sitcome called Poopernickel the Newpsie Porn Star with hilarious antics. I think Trey has been giving Marissa some looks though. and he, oops, made too much breakfast. I predict he's going to keep showing interest in her but we'll see.

Can't wait for next week.

[Davextreme]

I enjoyed the Ferris Bueller-esque egg sequence.

I don't enjoy much involving Marissa, and I think the Summer/Seth/comics love triangle was forced.