S08.E23: Making Amends

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Find out whether David's signed a deal with the devil in our latest Again With This podcast!

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[Primetimer]

S08.E23 is full of babyish behavior; we've got the photographic evidence.

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[Nanna]

Kelly saying “I’ve given this a lot of thought” is so stupid. When did she have time for all those thoughts - in the few hours that have passed? Also, what someone should probably tell her is that her chances of becoming a foster parent are not good: a 23-year old single (at least not living with her boyfriend with whom she has an on/off relationship) woman who has a history of drug abuse (how long has she been clean - a year and a half?) and membership of a cult is maybe not the first person to be picked. Add in that her friends all seem to be drug users or drunks, and we’re not really seeing a pretty picture of a good and stabil foster parent to a child (a child she seems to be unhealthely emotionally attached to, maybe because of her own loss of a fetus). Oh, and she nearly drowned her own sister and failed to get her medical attention after, but I guess social services will never know about that.  

[Kimmykun]

Aww, I got a mention. That's awesome.

Speaking of, it's now 12 episodes to bye-bye bray.

[Kimmykun]

The more ridiculous and overworked leuks they give Donna's hair, the more I miss her 80s hair from the first four seasons.

[yousetmeupyoucrud]

Kelly is so infuriating in this episode. She's as much of a big dumb baby as Donna is. I can't believe she brought that baby to work! It's not an orphaned squirrel she can keep in a shoebox on her desk! As much as all the other characters on this show are also terrible, Kelly gets lots of bonus terrible points for being the least like a 23 year old of any of the gang. Except for maybe Steve and his hair plugs. 

Also, can you get a more dated plot line than a radio payola scam? 

Edited May 28, 2018 by yousetmeupyoucrud

[luckyroll3]

Quote

This worst-of-the-'90s styling really needs to be pushed into a ravine. "Fortunately" there's one on Donna's chest.

LMAO!

[WhosThatGirl]

Seriously what actual “thought “ did kelly give in regards to being a foster parent? Other than she wants to and because she’s Kelly Taylor that should be enough? I mean her living situation, includes now a roommate recovering from an OD, so okay? And a boyfriend she has that she just told about this situation and yeah.. none of this seems a okay for fostering but whatever.

And as much as Val’s storyline is.. not good, I would prefer it over every other story. I am confused why she’s all nice to Noah too. But whatever. This show is at least consistent with it’s not consistently and actually.. they seem like they’re aware of it? At least in this point of this shows run, I think the writers and most everyone involved just stopped caring anyway and were just riding this thing out.

[KateeBar]

Are there FOUR unlit taper candles in that scene with Brandon and Kelly making out? Or are my old eyes deceiving me? And if they are candles...what is going on there?

When Donna's hair isn't bound by some army of teeny clips, I think it might be one of her better hair eras. The color is not of earth, of course.

[TeeVee329]

I kinda wish, going forward, they had had expositional scenes between Donna, Kelly, and David take place at NA meetings.

Is this the Kelly Being A Bitch About A Baby storyline where she decides a gay couple shouldn't have the baby?  I thought it was during season 9 when she and Matt, annoyingly, were always on opposites sides of Issues, but maybe not.

[MerBearStare]

2 hours ago, TeeVee329 said:

Is this the Kelly Being A Bitch About A Baby storyline where she decides a gay couple shouldn't have the baby?

I think it is. And if I recall correctly, Jessica Alba decides she wants her baby back and tells Kelly that it's because she doesn't want a gay couple raising the baby and that's when Kelly realizes the error of her ways. If I only I used this brain space to remember useful things...

[purist]

19 hours ago, Nanna said:

her friends all seem to be drug users or drunks

Bwah! Preach.

[RosieRose221]

only 12 more AWT 90210 podcasts we have to deal with you know who...

[TimeyWimey52]

I have no memory of ever hearing Kelly had a miscarriage on the podcast, so I probably blocked it out. Or I have forgotten due to the crazy length of these seasons. I certainly didn't watch it, I peaced-out around high school graduation. 

[MCMLXXVII]

Out of all the 90s looks here, I’ll admit that I love those pearl station necklaces most of the girls are wearing. I don’t like the look of a solid string of pearls/beads, but those are necklace perfection in my opinion.

[atlanticslide]

I think this is juuuuuuuuust about where I stopped watching during the original run of the show (and where I'd always stop watching during reruns back when it was on Soap Net). The Val/Noah rape/not-rape storyline is insane and stupid, but the Kelly baby bullshit is just really too much, especially when Kelly surprise!homophobia comes up. It's crazy how all over the map she is in this episode - first they can't give the baby to Social Services because "who'll tuck him in at night" or whatever the fuck, as if no one would want to foster or adopt an infant and this kid is going to be left to raise himself in a Dickensian orphanage, then it's "oh, you want his mother to have rights? WHAT ABOUT HIS RIGHTS?!" when they talk about how Jessica Alba will have a chance to take him back. Make up your mind, Kelly! Is a child doomed to a life of loneliness and despair without their biological mother, or are women who initially decide not to raise their children and then change their minds within a legal time-frame just selfish, evil bitches? 

Argh, as someone with several family members who were adopted, Kelly's initial bullshit speech about "who's going to take care of him when he falls off his bike and scrapes his knees" (or whatever it was) is so damn grating. Shut up, Kelly, just because his biological mother might not raise him doesn't mean he'll have no parents or family at all. Maybe you should talk to someone about that experience - like, for example, your friend Steve, WHO WAS ADOPTED. 

Also, yeah, the Val/Noah stuff is such a weird heel turn in this episode. Why does it matter that Noah's brother roofied her? From Noah's side of things, nothing has changed with that revelation. He still fucked her when she was basically incapacitated, even if he wasn't the reason that she was incapacitated. 

Edited May 30, 2018 by atlanticslide

[Flamingo]

I have no memory of ever hearing Kelly had a miscarriage on the podcast, so I probably blocked it out. Or I have forgotten due to the crazy length of these seasons. I certainly didn't watch it, I peaced-out around high school graduation. 

If I recall correctly, she had decided to have an abortion; but, since it was the '90s, all women on teen driven shows were rewarded with a miscarriage before they actually went through with the abortion. This absolved anyone from having to go through with making a valid, legal choice on TV. You get the win for considering it but not the hassle for going through with it. It also gives Kelly many opportunities to be all sad about what could have been when it fits the narrative/her motives in the most annoying way possible.

[Flamingo]

I don't think Kelly really needs to be worried about a newborn, healthy, white baby not immediately getting a loving family that will be there to pick him up when he cries. I'm sure the waiting list is long.

[Flamingo]

No, Val, you absolutely do not owe Noah an apology. It's nice of you to bring Donna flowers but she so doesn't deserve them. Please, make friends with other people.

Only on 90210 can someone develop an opioid addiction, overdose, and recover in two weeks. I guess since someone can be raped, the case reviewed, a civil court trial happen, and the actual victim apologize to the rapist in roughly the same amount of time; it all checks out.

[WhosThatGirl]

3 hours ago, Flamingo said:

No, Val, you absolutely do not owe Noah an apology. It's nice of you to bring Donna flowers but she so doesn't deserve them. Please, make friends with other people.

Only on 90210 can someone develop an opioid addiction, overdose, and recover in two weeks. I guess since someone can be raped, the case reviewed, a civil court trial happen, and the actual victim apologize to the rapist in roughly the same amount of time; it all checks out.

Yeah.. I forgot to say something about me being confused about why Val is all concerned about Donna.. I mean on a human aspect I totally get it, like it’s normal if David or someone else mentioned it in passing, Val asking about Donna makes sense  but Val going to the hospital with flowers seems a little much. It’s not like she and Donna are even close(although the show goes back and forth on that too, doesn’t it? I mean Val hooked up with Ray just because? And Donna was never even rude to her, like kelly is always downright awful to her and Donna was meh at best to Cal and yet Val made it a point to go after donnas boyfriend? Okay? And then Donna said to ray that Val was her friend after finding out they slept together and I was always confused about that because at that point pretty sure Donna hated her after that, so I’m always confused on their friendship, okay I went off a tangent sorry) and Donna was pretty awful about the rape thing but I don’t know. 

Val was awesome in her first episode of this show and when it seemed like she was going to clockwork orange the gang and whatnot but that lasted for like ten seconds? And then we got some bts and pieces of a backstory that still to this day makes no damn sense to me. And while I only know this show via reruns(soapnet I miss you) they reran this show all the time so I’ve seen a few episodes more than once and still don’t get Val’s backstory.

Also don’t get her attachment to Brandon and the only time I agree with a line kelly says when she asks Val “so is Brandon your lover or your family?” Because that changed for a while there. At times they wanted Brandon to represent her only family and why she kept trying with the group but other times they seemed to want her to be a foil for Brandon and Kelly. 

[MCMLXXVII]

11 hours ago, WhosThatGirl said:

Also don’t get her attachment to Brandon and the only time I agree with a line kelly says when she asks Val “so is Brandon your lover or your family?” Because that changed for a while there. At times they wanted Brandon to represent her only family and why she kept trying with the group but other times they seemed to want her to be a foil for Brandon and Kelly. 

This is funny because I had thought Val was the Walsh twins’ cousin up until like five years ago. I had always missed the Val and Brandon makeout episode, and thought they were forced to deal with each other out of family loyalty. Her attachment to the gang makes so much less sense when she’s a family/childhood friend they never even saw/visited for the first 4 seasons.

[WhosThatGirl]

47 minutes ago, MCMLXXVII said:

This is funny because I had thought Val was the Walsh twins’ cousin up until like five years ago. I had always missed the Val and Brandon makeout episode, and thought they were forced to deal with each other out of family loyalty. Her attachment to the gang makes so much less sense when she’s a family/childhood friend they never even saw/visited for the first 4 seasons.

Yeah and didn’t the show have a line like “she’s like a cousin” to brandon or something? I swear there was a line like that. I feel like the show didn’t quite know how to write her in a believable way to make her attachment to the gang make sense. Because some things can only last so long and that’s why its showing in these episodes. 

[CurlyATX]

18 hours ago, Flamingo said:

If I recall correctly, she had decided to have an abortion; but, since it was the '90s, all women on teen driven shows were rewarded with a miscarriage before they actually went through with the abortion. This absolved anyone from having to go through with making a valid, legal choice on TV. You get the win for considering it but not the hassle for going through with it. It also gives Kelly many opportunities to be all sad about what could have been when it fits the narrative/her motives in the most annoying way possible.

I think they do "punish her" by having it be that Kelly is somehow infertile too.  And, of course they act like only at age 20/21 did she get on the Pill, when we full well know that Jackie would have had her on it.  

I think Gina got the whole "Cousin Oliver" thing... the cousin (secrete sister) you never heard about before.  

And I would have loved to see a better spin off with Val and the club scene. I could totally see her having a Paris Hilton type friendship with the young and beautiful. 

[Cekrypton1]

One thing that has always bugged me about the fashion on this show, post-college is that none of the men dress like 20 year-olds. Look at that shot of Brandon and Steve. They are supposed to be 22 yr old guys, and they look like 35 yr old middle managers hoping to make VP by 40. They never have this problem with the women. For all its risible nature, at least the giant velour was of the style and age of a 20 something guy in 1998.

[Cekrypton1]

I want a "I WANT THAT BABY" t-shirt.

My friends and I always laughed at that line, and somehow (through many beers and discussions) settled on the idea that the phrase was being said by a crimelord demanding that his henchman capture the meddlesome baby that is ruining their plans.

[WhosThatGirl]

44 minutes ago, Cekrypton1 said:

I want a "I WANT THAT BABY" t-shirt.

My friends and I always laughed at that line, and somehow (through many beers and discussions) settled on the idea that the phrase was being said by a crimelord demanding that his henchman capture the meddlesome baby that is ruining their plans.

That would be an awesome shirt!!! Please podcast hosts, please?!!!

Also it is hilarious that Kelly really does seem to think that you get to pick what baby you want when you have no familiar connection to being the chosen parent? She treats fostering like getting a purse or something.

Also again.. love how she tells Brandon that she’s going to foster a kid and he has to deal. And it’s going to live in her apartment that she shares with a just recovering from an od roommate. Hope Donna doesn’t like sleeping because babies are known to cry at all hours of the night and day.

Edited May 30, 2018 by WhosThatGirl

[ZeroDiscipline]

19 hours ago, atlanticslide said:

Shut up, Kelly, just because his biological mother might not raise him doesn't mean he'll have no parents or family at all. Maybe you should talk to someone about that experience - like, for example, your friend Steve, WHO WAS ADOPTED. 

I don't mean to interrupt your excellent rant about everything that is wrong with this, but Steve doesn't truly qualify as an adoptee, as Rush is his bio dad and the whole thing was a lie.

[Jax7917]

3 hours ago, Cekrypton1 said:

One thing that has always bugged me about the fashion on this show, post-college is that none of the men dress like 20 year-olds. Look at that shot of Brandon and Steve. They are supposed to be 22 yr old guys, and they look like 35 yr old middle managers hoping to make VP by 40. They never have this problem with the women. For all its risible nature, at least the giant velour was of the style and age of a 20 something guy in 1998.

Agreed ! David is probably given the most age appropriate ( albeit downright ugly ) clothes . Brandon looks like he's pushing 40 and steve wears socks up to his knees and looks like he's going on 50 . ( somehow , he looks the best out of all of them now ) ... as for the girls , Donna is given the more age appropriate clothing even though she pretty much just wears a string the whole series .. Kelly was cute until season 8 ( I think by then , all departments hated her especially hair ) .. and aaaaahndrea looked like she was going on 80 when she was 15. Val didn't look 20 but she did look good ! 

[WhosThatGirl]

I totally forgot to mention Kelly’s rant about how the baby is going to have an awful life because they’re just going to put the baby in the system and not look for the mother.. and her “what happens when he cries?” And look a lot of foster situations and adoptee situations don’t end up happy sunshine and kittens but kelly was talking about a baby missing a mother it doesn’t know yet and a mother who is only a teenager and probably can’t give the baby the best life. It being adopted will give it a mom who can take care of it.

She was talking about the baby as if the baby was a child who was four  or five and knew their parents well. I never understood that rant. 

And also knowing what we learn later about Teenage baby mom Jessica Alba, she really had no beings to being a mom and was somehow able to hide a 9 month baby belly from her mother so.. kelly talking about this baby’s wanting a mom.. and crying out for teenage Jessica alba uh. Probably not. Her rant never made sense.

[Flamingo]

5 hours ago, CurlyATX said:

I think they do "punish her" by having it be that Kelly is somehow infertile too.  And, of course they act like only at age 20/21 did she get on the Pill, when we full well know that Jackie would have had her on it.  

Oh, right, I completely forgot about that storyline.  Thanks for the reminder.  Now I remember there was something about that that seriously bugged but I don't care enough to revisit the episode for a refresher.  

[Kimmykun]

I do wonder if it was the actors' own personal style that got mixed in with the costuming. 

Val, David, and Donna probably dressed closest to their ages, because the actors themselves were more or less the ages of the characters they were playing. Everyone else was 4 to 11 years older than their characters were. Ian was 34 in this episode and he dressed like a 34-year-old. Too bad Steve was only 23. 

Dylan also had the same problem. As the show moved away from 80s fashion in season 4, Dylan went from looking like teenager in baja tops to a 30-year-old in suits. 

Edited May 31, 2018 by Kimmykun

[atlanticslide]

6 hours ago, ZeroDiscipline said:

I don't mean to interrupt your excellent rant about everything that is wrong with this, but Steve doesn't truly qualify as an adoptee, as Rush is his bio dad and the whole thing was a lie.

Wasn't he still adopted by Samantha though? 

[ZeroDiscipline]

12 hours ago, atlanticslide said:

Wasn't he still adopted by Samantha though?

Yes, I suppose she wasn't in on the fact it was Rush's real baby it at the time. But that whole thing rolled out so awkwardly, Steve hardly got his head around the fact that he was adopted, then he went straight into finding out his birth mom was dead, then finding out Rush was his real dad all along and Rush knew it and didn't say anything, so he's like adopted and not adopted but the real story is that his family is a bunch of drama queen jerks. Too complicated to offer any practical advice to Kelly and that baby she wants.

[yousetmeupyoucrud]

If I remember correctly (this was only like one season ago!!!!!!) Kelly was like, "I guess I'm ready to have a baby!" and then she miscarried, though she was dumb enough to think it was her period. 

[MCMLXXVII]

Yes, Donna’s wardrobe is really on point since she started the design job. I noted her super short suit skirt in a meeting, but I guess Ally McBeal made that a thing. 

[txhorns79]

I just love that they go from some random dramatic sad moment straight into the credits.  I think we have a future "Valerie might have AIDS" storyline coming up, and I hope against hope we get something like this type of scene:

"You meant I might have AIDS?"  Followed by sad music and then Dun dun dun, dun dun dun...

Oh and Kelly, my understanding is that it can take months, if not longer, to become a foster parent.  It's not like you sign up at 9am, and get a selection of babies to choose from delivered to your door at 10am.  And that doesn't even take into account that you were a cocaine addled drug addict like two years ago!  You couldn't even handle looking after Baby Donna, much less be trusted with an infant.       

Edited June 1, 2018 by txhorns79

[StatMom]

I just love that they go from some random dramatic sad moment straight into the credits.  I think we have a future "Valerie might have AIDS" storyline coming up, and I hope against hope we get something like this type of scene:

"You meant I might have AIDS?"  Followed by sad music and then Dun dun dun, dun dun dun...

Oh and Kelly, my understanding is that it can take months, if not longer, to become a foster parent.  It's not like you sign up at 9am, and get a selection of babies to choose from delivered to your door at 10am.  And that doesn't even take into account that you were a cocaine addled drug addict like two years ago!      

And like, in a cult not too long before that.

[Sarah D. Bunting]

And an amnesiac A FEW MONTHS AGO.

[benteen]

I remember an interview with Garth back in the day where all the stuff that happened to Kelly was brought up and she said "I want as many bad things to happen to Kelly as possible" or something to that effect.

[CurlyATX]

5 hours ago, benteen said:

I remember an interview with Garth back in the day where all the stuff that happened to Kelly was brought up and she said "I want as many bad things to happen to Kelly as possible" or something to that effect.

I remember that.  She even used the phrase "when bad things happen to beautiful people" .  Like it's ok for ugly people to have problems? 

[Scarlett45]

On 5/30/2018 at 2:58 PM, ZeroDiscipline said:

I don't mean to interrupt your excellent rant about everything that is wrong with this, but Steve doesn't truly qualify as an adoptee, as Rush is his bio dad and the whole thing was a lie.

I think Steve qualifies- he was adopted by Samantha (legally) so yes he’s an adoptee. Many women have raised the children their husbands have had “on the side” and mothered them well, being raised by a parent that’s not your bio parent counts as being adopted in my book.