California. Oh how we have all missed California and the simplistic yet somewhat catchy O.C. theme song.
Fox made the loyal viewers of The O.C. wait till November to find out what was going to happen to Ryan, Seth, Summer and the rest of the Newport Beach crew. Well was it worth the wait? The answer”¦.Maybe!! On to the review of the show.
We come upon the renovating of the Cohen house. The house is filled with buff hunky construction men. Ok, I worked construction for 3 summers, I don’t want to stop the female population from running to their yellow pages to call up contractors to do unnecessary home repairs, but it’s not like that girls. Just when I am thinking, Oh man this is how they are starting the season, The O.C. does what it does best, it makes fun of itself. Sandy complains to the head contractor asking him to tell his workers to put shirts on as the neighbours are calling his house “The Manhole.”
We then get a glimpse of how the summer has been for Sandy. Kirsten ignoring him and blaming him for Seth running away. Kirsten calls his parenting style “Hippie parent psycho-babble.”
Now something for the boys. We get to see the girls, Summer and Marissa, sitting by the pool, in skimpy bikinis. Summer comments that Marissa doesn’t need to do any more cardio which leads to this humourous exchange:
Summer: “But you are looking a little thin.”
Marissa: “I eat.”
Honey those little cherries you put in your drinks don’t count.
We also get to see what Marissa has been up to all summer. She has been creating new alcoholic beverages, the Newport Beach Ice Tea. Well maybe this girl does have a future.
Summer on the other hand has been dating some guy named Zach as a way of forgetting Seth. Ok the only Zach that is allowed be on TV is Zach Morris from Saved by the Bell. If you are too young to know what that is”¦.well you just suck then.
Off to the sad existence of our favourite Chino, CA resident Ryan. We see Teresa dropping him off at work with a bagged lunch. Aww”¦how sweet and yet sad. It’s like he went from 17 to 35 in a summer. Poor guy.
So it looks like Julie is enjoying the fruits of her marriage with Caleb. Flower delivery every week, who is she Elton John? Caleb is worried about the D.A investigating him. He thinks his phones are bugged and the flower delivery truck is spying on him.
Julie then decides she needs to spend even more money by purchasing Catlin needs a new pony because the other one was hairless. Hairless ponies?? And they say you can’t learn anything from watching TV.
Back to the lovely Cohen household and we are shown a picture of the family xmas card on the fridge. I can feel the strings pulling on my heart. I am tearing up”¦ok it’s passed.
Kirsten calls Luke’s new place in Portland to talk to Seth. Seth is busying playing video games. Hockey video games, now that’s really speaking to me. I was kind of hoping they would show a bit more of it so I could make a guess as to which game they were playing. Any guesses people? Oh yeah sorry I got off track there.
Seth doesn’t want to go back to Newport and hangs up on his mom. Hey that’s not nice Seth. BAD Son!! Don’t you know you are breaking your mom’s heart? Oh wait that hasn’t come up yet.
Sandy goes to visit Ryan at work. He asks him to come to Portland to help get Seth back. Teresa shows up to see this exchange. Sandy gives him a plane ticket, just in case. Can you say FORESHADOW? I mean honestly how many times in a movie or TV show has someone been given a plane ticket “just in case” and that plane ticket then becomes the pivotal moment of the show?
We then get a deeper glimpse into Ryan’s hell. He is lying in bed, living the ghetto quasi-married life. Heck they might as well have separate beds. Ryan seems to be letting his beard go. Sadly he isn’t having much success. How can he become the next Luke Perry if he can’t grow proper facial hair?
Caleb and Sandy meet in parking lot for some covert meeting. Caleb’s paranoia leads him to believe his office is bugged. Sandy tells Caleb there isn’t anything going on, but perhaps maybe there is. Sandy says either the D.A’s office has no case or a really good case. I am sure that makes Caleb feel ALL that much better.
Back to lovely Portland and Seth drawing Summer-esque cartoons. There is a cute blonde in a bikini, Jane, who is flirting with Seth. Luke does the typical guy thing telling him he has to get some action from her ASAP. I agree. Go for it Seth.
Marissa and Jimmy drop by the Cohen’s house. Marissa has a new car, “Mom got it for me.” B#%CH!! Marissa looks at pool house and the bed where she no doubt had some good times.
Luke’s dad is cooking up a nice dinner for the boys when Sandy shows up. It seems Luke has moved to Portland to live with his dad which means bye bye from show. I assume at least. Seth and Sandy have a fight, Seth claims he let Ryan go so he should let him go as well.
Back to Marissa on a beach late at night by herself drinking some hooch straight from the bottle. I think they are trying to make me feel bad for her. I just keep hoping she passes out and the tide comes in and takes her out to see to be eaten by sharks. Marissa calls Ryan but does no more then heavy breathing. Teresa is awoken and none to pleased as she suspects what is going on.
Sandy and Seth wake up in the morning. Sandy has decided he is going to let Seth stay. We learn that Sandy left home at Set’s age. Then Sandy pulls the perfect Dad moment, “I love you and the door is always opened,” followed by a big hug. Oh Sandy you get my vote for dad of the year.
From lovely Portland to sketchy Chino. Ryan has forgotten Teresa’s doctor appointment. Ryan tells her he has decided to go to Portland. Teresa is getting a wee bit controlling. However she relents and allows him to go.
Off to the opulence of the O.C. and Marissa sunbathing. Julie is trying to talk to Marissa who won’t take her headphones off. Julie asks what is bothering her? Wait for it”¦ Marissa snaps and we witness what is possible the worst display of acting in television history.
Her response you ask? “AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!” I wonder how long it took Mischa Barton to memorize that line? She then starts to throw the pool furniture in the pool. So now we know the future for Mischa Barton’s acting career. Can you say Halloween 17? She can take over when Jamie Lee Curtis dies.
Thank god that is over. Ryan shows up in Portland just as Sandy is leaving.
Summer drops by the Cohen’s home to drop off Set’s “crap”. She tells Kirsten some crap about some sort of electrochemical new age crap. You know what I think about this discussion, “AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!” Summer then goes to dump all of Set’s “crap” on his bed. Why didn’t you burn it like every other girl does when they break up with a guy? Oh yeah that’s right because you still love him and are just waiting for him to come back.
Back in Portland Luke and Seth talk about video games. So much better to heard about Madden football then anything Summer talks about.
Ryan shows up and apologizes to Seth. Ryan and Seth discuss their life and future which leads to a classic Seth line, “Hobo’s are hot again.” I bet all the guys in the shelter are glad to here you have their back.
We are shown Jimmy visiting Julie to discuss Marissa’s latest spaz fit. Julie describes Marissa as a spawn of Chucky and Keith Moon. I don’t think I have ever liked Julie more then I did at that moment, too bad the moment passed in half a second. We are informed that Julie is sending Catlin away to boarding school. She tells Jimmy she wants to set up family Sunday dinners.
Now back to the most useless subplot as Caleb stops by to see Sandy. Sandy tells him the D.A. is about to come after him, all of us. Uh oh”¦all of us? Does that mean Sandy and Kirsten are going down too? Please some how have Julie arrested. She has now gotten two husbands into problems with federal officials. I hope someone warns whomever she marries next.
Back to Portland and more hockey video games. Can I move in with Luke and Seth in Portland? Ryan gets a call from Teresa who tells him she has lost the baby and says, “I think we should see this as a sign.” She continues saying Ryan is not happy, DUH. The only reason he stayed with her was for the baby, again DUH! So now Ryan is a free man. Wow that was nicely wrapped up”¦or was it?
Ryan has a dilemma. How does he react to this news from Teresa? Seth goes to console Ryan in the heterosexual guy way, a back pat.
Flash back to Chino and a scene of Teresa’s mom “Did you tell him?” Teresa nods. “Did he believe you?” Screeeech. Wait a minute”¦ so maybe this isn’t wrapped up so neatly. Well here is what I think about this scene. It tells me the kid is not Ryan’s and Teresa knows it. Or she isn’t pregnant. There is NO way Teresa’s mother tells her to dump Ryan if the kid is his. Yeah let’s see, single mother in the ghetto vs. couple with a kid where the father has a good job, is a loyal upstanding guy who is willing to give up the luxury of Newport for the drive-bys of Chino. Oh and this doesn’t even get to the fact that Teresa is probably Latino which means she is most likely Catholic. If anything Teresa’s mom would pick up a baseball bat and get Ryan to the alter not send him packing.
I have no doubt somewhere during the February or May sweeps this topic will resurface. If they stick to a tight timeline I am guesstimating Teresa could have the baby just in time for May sweeps.
Ryan is leaving Portland and goes to catch a cab to the airport. Seth is on the back porch with a pensive look, his feet are getting antsy. He runs to cab and meets Ryan at the door. The O.C. fans CHEER. Seth and Ryan are coming back to the O.C. together. Another classic Seth line upon his and Ryan’s “reunion”, “We don’t have to hug or anything like that right?”
Back to the Orange County with Sandy and Kirsten eating dinner in Casa Cohen when the two boys come back. Aww the family is back together.
So what has Set’s flight to Portland taught him? He can bbq now. Good for you. You are a man now.
Seth tells Ryan his story of sailing to Portland. Which is basically how he sold his boat and took a bus.
Well this episode was nothing special. It wasn’t bad, it wasn’t great but it tied up the whole summer in one episode and got the show back on track for next week. While the solving of the “how to get Ryan and Seth back to the O.C” was done rather hastily I for one am glad it wasn’t dragged out until next week.
Next week on The O.C. we see Seth dealing with Summer kissing some other guy, Ryan witnessing Marissa whoring it up with the gardener.
Random TV thoughts
I love timeshifting. I got to watch Survivor and The O.C. thanks to the west-coast feed.
Speaking of Survivor remember how when you were in grade school or heck even in college/university there were one or two people no one in the class wanted to hang out with? How cool/cruel would it be if there was a reality show where the group of people on some island vote off one person they just really don’t want to hang out with. Then that person instead of going to some resort has to stay on the island but live alone, separate from the rest of the tribe. They have to watch while the rest of the people on the show make friends, hang out and participate in challenges.
After watching the CNN coverage of the U.S. election is it just me or does Anderson Cooper sound like an accounting firm than a reporter?
Oh and everyone should check out Fox’s The O.C. webpage. The site loads up with the song “Any Way You Want It” by Journey. So good. I must have reloaded the intro at least 5 times.