Season 2, 7 Episodes - Breaking the Ice and the Fourth Wall

[BlackberryJam]

Another short season, but this one is fantastic. The writers and actors really hit their stride.

Spring Break, which is the ice thaw episode, is just great. Ed taking on the role of detective and finding out that Chris is the Spring Thief, Ruth-Ann* giving Joel porn mags, Joel and Maggie finally kiss!

I really appreciated Maurice in the episode, ironing clothes, making tea, all to impress Officer Semanski, who is completely unimpressed. Diane Delano was great.

Scene note, Ed comes to The Brick and he’s talking to Shelley and Marilyn about the stolen radios. Shelley is reading The Rainbow, a book that had been banned and burned in England. I thought that was such a good choice. But the really funny part of the scene is Marilyn putting five or so teaspoons of sugar in her coffee. I’m not sure how many cuts or times they filmed it, but she just keeps adding sugar. That cracked me up. Then her line hearing about the stolen radio, “White people. They get crazy.” So much Marilyn love for me in that scene. 

And the episode ends with Joel stripping off his clothes and joining in the annual “Running of the Bulls”. He embraced the madness. So much fun. 

 

*I was in college when this aired and reading a lot of Dylan Thomas/doing that college intellectual thing, acting like my generation invented talking about masturbation. When Ruth-Ann used the word “onanistic” I remember practically doing a spit-take. That wasn’t a word I expected to ever hear on TV! Especially not out of a woman Peg Phillips’ age.

[possibilities]

I loved Officer Semanski, but I was so disappointed in her when she rejected Maurice for ironing her uniform. 

[BlackberryJam]

On the one hand, I would have loved Semanski to be perfectly comfortable with Maurice doing her ironing, and even finding that attractive. On the other, I enjoyed Maurice getting smacked down by his own toxic beliefs about masculinity.

Another sour note for me in this season was Lightfeather Duncan. Just a reminder on who she is: Ed sees her in the store, she’s the daughter of the local preacher. Ed gets Chris to write a letter to her expressing his love. It’s something …terrible like, “Can I compare you to a Harley hog.” The letter itself is cheesy, but Lightfeather’s obsession with the words is weird. Lightfeather’s family of multiple sisters who look just like her, all being raised by the pastor. 

Ugh. The whole Duncan family felt like a cult. Ed is so sweet about her, but he’s all confused about love because he thinks it’s like the movies. Lightfeather feels nothing for Ed and is just into the letter. Ed has sex for the first time and she’s not even into him. Ed deserves better. I could have one without that whole storyline.

A small hilarious bit in S2 happens when Joel is going to go on vacation, but Maggie dreams his plane crashes and dies. At Chris’ Founder’s Day speech, he mentions how much he’s enjoyed getting to know Joel and will miss him. Joel is sitting right there. Ruth-Ann stands up and talks positively about him as well. Ed says something about how nice it is Joel can attend his own funeral. But the really funny part is Marilyn. Her memory/something nice about Joel is, “He taught me to use the hold button.” Her delivery cracked me up. 

[possibilities]

Ed never did find love, did he? Later on, he has that relationship with

Lester's daughter, who is using him to make her father angry

. Gut punch. But in general I found his character was the most consistent, and did a lot more interesting things than some of the others, who were often doing the plot rehash and cliche redux.

One thing I like about the show, generally, is that it wasn't all driven by romantic shenanigans. People had all kinds of relationships. But it does seem notable that Ed was particularly alone in that regard. He was friends with everyone, but still seemed a bit lonely.

[BlackberryJam]

It was in S2, The Big Kiss, that we got the first appearance of One Who Waits and Ed searching for his parents. 

I was so angry when he went to the bingo hall to speak to his great aunts and ask them about his parents and they just gave him shitty vague answers. 

[possibilities]

Them all being on the same page about it made me think there was something very wrong with his birth parents, that they were trying to avoid telling him about.

Or maybe they just didn't know. 

[Orcinus orca]

"Maggie, Rick went up on the roof".  BWAHAHAHAHAHA!  A classic line.

I remember bursting out in laughter at the funeral all those years ago and I did it again.  Brilliant scene!