Previously: In an episode rife with Buffy crossover magic, Jack got closer to Parker at Capefest, and Joey bonded with Kendra the Vampire Slayer.
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A Weekend in the Country
Democracy Diva: We begin with the dulcet tones of “Ain’t too Proud to Beg,” and the dancing-in-the-kitchen scene from The Big Chill. Dawson, Joey, and Pacey debate over whether people actually dance in the kitchen. (I do, and I am not ashamed to admit it.)
Kirsti: I’m going to copy directly from my notes here. “Excuse you, Joey. Everyone dances in the kitchen if they’re doing life right.” So yeah. I do.
Diva: YEAH. WE’RE GOOD AT LIFE, DAMMIT.
Joey’s agitated because the B&B just opened and there’s no reservations booked. Apparently, that’s where they’re hanging out, because the phone rings and Joey gets all excited like it might be a reservation… but it’s a telemarketer. Joey blames this big dreaming on Pacey, for being so stupidly inspiring. But there’s a knock on the door, so maybe their luck has turned! Or maybe not.
K: YUP. But also, look how adorable Pacey is in that second last gif!
Diva: That sentence is basically the theme of this episode. Tumblr LOVES THIS EPISODE, YOU GUYS.
HEY YEAH YEAH YEAH. Also, I feel like they added lots of Dawson and Joey gazing into each other’s eyes stuff into the credits. When did that happen?
Capeside High. Henry mentions that he’s working at Jen’s favorite restaurant, and getting paid in a free dinner, hoping that Jen will go with him. He hasn’t actually asked her out, because “given the opportunity to say no, you will. So I’m not giving you the opportunity.” Well, that’s one the rapiest fucking things I’ve ever heard. I know Henry is like, fifteen and an idiot, but COME ON. Jen reminds him that “dating is a consensual activity,” because Jen Lindley is my feminist icon, but he doesn’t let up. She doesn’t say no, which thrills him, even though, as she reminds him, a not-no is not a yes.
K: I liked that she called it “a date in sheep’s clothing”. Because YUP.
Diva: Jack approaches an overworked Andie, who’s stressed about the school play. He helps out with designing the program because he’s a good brother and because Andie sucks a bag of dicks at Photoshop. Andie nags Jack about not living at home with her and Jerky McGee. He thinks she’s just saying whatever their dad wants her to, so Andie gets offended and storms off. Guess that program is going to look like shit!
Some judgey bank lady tells Joey and Bessie that they’re basically fucked, financially speaking. She tells them to take out a mortgage on their house to finance the business, which Joey thinks is a terrible idea. Especially because their house is the only link to their mother. Joey says she can’t support this idea, and Bessie reminds her that she’s sixteen and not able to sign legal documents so maybe her support is not all that important.
K: But also, mortgaging a house is not the same as selling the house, Joey. Sure, it’s not ideal, especially if you own the house outright. But calm the fuck down, child…
Diva: True, but since no one except Pacey knows how to do anything at this B&B, their odds of not sinking this business seem shoddy at best. So I do understand her fear, at least as a 16-year-old. Bessie reminds Joey that their mom left her in charge – of the house and of Joey, and Joey doesn’t know what that kind of responsibility is like. Joey insists she does, but Bessie reminds her that she hasn’t had to beg for money from trust fund snobs who made fun of her in high school like that judgey bank lady.
Joey sees Dawson filming her property, like creepers do. He’s going to make a video of the B&B and put it online so they can get some customers. She says they can’t afford advertising – um, then you shouldn’t have opened a business, because that’s a necessary cost – but Dawson insists it’s a good idea, especially to film Joey herself, for some reason.
K: While I agree that advertising is a necessary cost, I’m on Joey’s side here. Because I’m pretty sure that back in 2000, there’s no way in Hell people would have been watching online video if they could help it. Plus, it would probably have cost a bomb to host, and making fliers or brochures or whatever is way cheaper and easier than giving Dawson his regularly scheduled I’m-a-filmmaker ego boost by letting him make an advert for the B&B.
Diva: Excellent points. They still should have budgeted for some form of advertising, but you’re right that this particular method was more expensive/less useful than it would be in 2015.
Pacey saunters in with fabulous news – he got some Fancy Pants B&B Reviewer from the New York Times to come stay there and talk about how great it is! Pacey, dammit, that is amazing and you are wonderful. (K: Agreed. Intern Pacey can sweet talk people on my behalf whenever he likes) (D: Also, he can sweet talk ME whenever he likes.) But of course, Joey flies off the handle and says they’re not ready for this. Now I’m hoping Bessie’s serious about not letting her make any of the decisions, because Joey sucks at this whole business thing. Anyway, Pacey solves the “but what about other guests” problem by introducing their perfect guests: Grams, Jen, Jack, and Andie. And, he announces, Gail and Mitch are here to play the perfect romantic married couple! Oof. Awkward.
Joey and Dawson drag Pacey outside to yell at him. Joey’s mad because she’s nervous about the business and doesn’t understand that her business should probably be at least mostly-functional by its opening day, and Dawson’s mad because it was kind of insensitive for Pacey to drag Mitch and Gail into this. But surprise, it was actually Mitch’s idea to bring Gail along. And Pacey tells Joey she’s being pretty damn ungrateful to all these people in her life who are there to support her. She hands him a phone and tells him to cancel on Fancy Pants, because you don’t show a movie reviewer an uncut version of the film. I object to that faulty logic – it’s not like they’re having a reviewer come when there’s only three walls and no kitchen. You are fucking open for business. If you’re not ready to have people stay in your B&B, DON’T OPEN IT.
Anyway, Joey tells them how much is on the line, because of Bessie’s plan to take out a mortgage. Pacey gets serious face and says he’s going to fix this, now that he understands how high the stakes are. Some guy shows up and Joey sasses at him, before he introduces himself as Mr. Fancy Pants.
K: Oh, Jo. This is why I try and restrain myself on the sass front until I know who people are…
Diva: Dawson notes to his folks that they’re staying in the honeymoon suite. Gail insists it’s just to help out the Potters, and they’re not both spending the night there. Dawson says, and you didn’t think that this might upset me? He’s using stupidly large words that make this sound overly dramatic, but you know what, that is pretty fucked up for them to do to him, at least without telling him first. Dawson tells his parents that they don’t know what they want, which is probably true, and storms out.
Fancy Pants tells Joey that it’s too cold. She babbles about how they’re environmentally friendly, but doesn’t mention the fact that seasons do not actually exist in Capeside. He’s a total grump, and his face when he realizes the bathroom is communal is way too judgey. It’s a B&B, dude. Aren’t most of them converted houses? I’d be shocked if every room at a B&B had its own bathroom. (Though I bet the honeymoon suite does, so they should probably kick Gail and Mitch out of that room and bump up Mr. Fancy Pants, since his opinion is the only one that matters.)
K: TRUE. But also, I’m pretty sure every B&B I’ve stayed in has had private bathrooms. That said, I haven’t stayed at a B&B since I was a small child, so I may well be wrong. (I have very fond memories of this one B&B in the Cotswalds that had puppies we could play with, so the rose tinted glasses of nostalgia may have helped me block out the bathroom situation…)
Diva: Yeah, I haven’t been in one since I was a kid, either. I’m basing this mostly on TV portrayals of B&Bs, and I feel like they’re always just small, floral bedrooms covered with cats, in the houses of crazy old ladies.
Andie continues guilting Jack about not living at home. He tells her not to spend the weekend nagging him about this. She just smiles, knowing that he cannot stop the Andie McPhee Guilt Machine.
Bessie and Joey watch Fancy Pants be unreasonably grumpy, Pacey’s fixing a broken toilet, and Dawson is outside brooding by the creek, because, you know, that’s the thesis of this show. Mitch joins him and tells him that he’s right. Mitch asked Gail here for a reason – he’s heard through their mutual friends that she’s having trouble finding a job. Dawson can’t believe she didn’t tell her son about that – her son, who she’s much closer with than her ex-husband, he declares. Dawson gets angry because he can’t keep up with his parents’ changing relationship. Mitch says he and Gail care about each other and are trying to be friends.
Bessie and Joey sit on either side of Mr. Fancy Pants, being overwhelmingly chatty about the B&B. Bessie puts her hand on Fancy Pants’s leg and makes everyone super-uncomfortable. (K: My notes say “BESSIE OMG STOP”) They also seem to think this guy’s idea of a good time is meeting the on-site handyman, Pacey Witter. Pacey says everything is under control, until the furnace makes some big booming noise. Ah, so that might be why it’s so damn cold in there.
Joey tries to fix the furnace and makes a dig at her sister for trying to flirt her way out of the situation. Frantic, Joey goes on about how she has to make sure all their friends don’t freeze to death. Joey reminds Bessie that being sixteen is having all of the responsibility but none of the authority. She still has to keep this inn from going under, but she can’t actually make its decisions or, you know, order a glass of wine. Bessie says she didn’t exactly dream of being here, at 26, taking care of two kids by herself. She says some nonsense about how she begs Bodie to come home but he knows they can’t afford it. Joey gets offended, but Bessie says, if you want to leave Capeside so bad, why are you putting so much work into this place? Which is probably not something you should say to the person trying to fix your broken furnace. Joey says Bessie’s right, and storms off.
K: This scene was pretty rough, but it’s also the scene that reminded me of just how much I love the sibling relationship between Bessie and Joey. Because this is one of the rare episodes where we see things from Bessie’s perspective. She’s been raising Joey single handed since she was in her early 20s AND trying to run a business (which her father rudely burnt down) AND trying to maintain a long distance relationship AND trying to raise an actual tiny human. And I love that we get that perspective on the sibling relationship, Bessie trying to walk the fine line between parent and sibling. Aaaaaand I’m officially caring about this way too much…
Diva: I had that thought a lot this episode.
Outside, in a moment of total fan service, Pacey is chopping wood for the fire. Intern Pacey, I promise that if you come to my apartment, I will not make you chop wood, if only because I do not have a fireplace. (K: I might make him chop wood. But only so I could watch…) Mitch comes out and asks what’s wrong. Pacey says this is all his fault. It was his idea to refurbish the old furnace instead of buying a new one, AND his idea to bring Mr. Fancy Pants here. Mitch tells him Joey and Bessie are lucky to have him in their lives. Pacey insists he fucks up everything he touches, but Mitch says that’s not true.
I get a little feelsy, because even though Mitch generally sucks, he’s a good surrogate dad to Pacey.
K: Agreed. Mitch is a big bag of dicks like 80% of the time. The other 20%, he’s being awesome towards Pacey, who desperately needs a hug at least 99.9% of the time. But also, that “what makes you care so much?” gave me feels because the unspoken answer is his Joey Feels. SQUEE.
Diva: Upstairs, Dawson apologizes to his mom for yelling at her earlier. Gail says the post-divorce landscape is confusing for everyone. Dawson just can’t understand that his parents still like each other, and Gail agrees that it’s complicated. They know, though, that they’re better apart, which makes the still-caring-about-each-other part all the more difficult. Gail tells him it’s like his breakup with Joey. It’s not one decision, to be apart – you have to make that decision every day. I don’t really see the connection, but fine, let’s go with it.
Jack and Andie go off to Grams’s place to find a space heater. Andie sees something that says ‘Jack’s milk’ on the fridge and asks what it means. It’s whole milk – Grams is skim, Jen’s 1%, and he’s whole. Andie sees a coffee mug with his name on it too. She gets upset, realizing that he’s part of this family with its own inside jokes. Andie starts to tear up, realizing that no one would want to move back in with a man as cold and distant as their father when they have such a warm family life right here. She realizes how lucky he is. And Jack realizes that it’s Andie who wants him home, not their father. Andie doesn’t want to make him feel guilty, she just really wants him there when things are hard. I don’t want Jack to leave the hilarious sitcom that is his living situation with Grams and Jen, but I feel for Andie right now.
K: YES. I love how Jack made his own weird little family, and I love my brOTP. But poor Andie. Everyone leaves her – dead brother, mentally ill mother, distant father, gay brother who found himself a new family, loving boyfriend who dumped her for being a dirty cheater – so it’s not surprising she has feels when she sees a loving household.
Diva: +1 to all of that.
Dawson and Jen stare up at a beautiful, polluted sky. Jen asks him what he was scared of when she told him about her sexual history, back when they were dating. Dawson explains that it was the unknown – he didn’t know anything about that kind of life experience, and it scared the shit out of him. She asks if other boys would probably react the same way. He says, he wishes no, but he’s not sure. But finally, he admits that how he reacted was wrong. And that what’s beautiful about Jen is the reality behind her. It only took him three years to figure that out!
The men do manly things like bicker while trying to light a fire. Grams is all, move aside, boys, and manages to do in a hot second what one grown-ass men and three teenage boys could not figure out. (K: 1430 to Grams!) She says she used to build a fire every night during the winter. They all gather around and listen to Grams reminisce about her husband reading to her until he fell asleep. I may or may not have a lot of tears in my eyes as Grams says she knows how much you love someone, when you can just spend the whole night watching them sleep. I am remembering my own grandparents and fully crying right now, so THANKS A LOT, GRAMS.
K: And then they cut to Pacey at the end of the speech and my little shippy heart explodes.
Diva: But I do love this scene, more than any serious scene this show has ever done, of Grams talking about love and everyone sitting around listening to her and warming up by the fire and sharing their own memories. The smell of the fire reminds Grams of 46 years of lighting fires in the hearth. Gail reminisces about Mitch smelling like vanilla. Jen tells a story about hiding in the drama club’s prop closet at her school in New York, protected by these fabulous costumes and the smell of mothballs. Jack recalls a grape juice from summer camp that was really just Hi-C. Pacey says his first memory is the smell of snow, and Joey smiles as he describes the beautiful scene.
K: SQUEE. (Guys, I can’t not squee at every tiny thing when I can see the future. Sorry not sorry.)
Diva: We’ve gotten pretty squee-ful as this episode has approached, so you can’t blame us for being on squee-overload right now.
Andie loves new car small – when the McPhees went on vacation, they’d always get a new rental car. Joey remembers the smell of bacon, coaxing her into being awake. Bessie remembers it too – their mom would make breakfast every Sunday. She hated working at that bar every night, Joey explains, but told her daughters not to worry, because one day, she would save up enough money to open her B&B. Joey’s almost crying, and so am I, and I think so is Pacey, as Joey says that’s why she wanted to open this inn. And she thanks her friends for coming and helping them. But she tells them they can all go home now, and she sees Mr. Fancy Pants and apologizes for what a bad experience this has been. She says it might not be five stars, but her mother would have loved it.
The next morning, Joey is asleep. Slowly, she wakes up and hears some hustle and bustle around the house. She yawns and heads to the kitchen, and her silly friends are making breakfast and dancing to “Aint too Proud to Beg,” just like in the Big Chill. There’s a menu, and everyone is grooving, Jack and Andie and Dawson and Pacey and Jen. It’s the happiest, and that food looks awesome.
K: I’m also like 80% sure that Joey stares at Andie’s arse when she’s shaking her groove thing.
Diva: It can’t be helped. Who could possibly keep their eyes off of Andie’s mom jeans?
They sit down to breakfast with the grown-ups, Mr. Fancy Pants included. He almost even smiled! And as he takes a bite of the food and gushes about how warm this places is (despite the lack of actual warmth) and the pancakes are the best in the county. Joey knows something is up, because Bessie’s pancakes aren’t good – HOW ARE YOU OPENING A BED AND BREAKFAST WITHOUT SOMEONE WHO CAN MAKE PANCAKES?! – and they all start cheering for the chef. The chef comes out to take his bow, and it’s BODIE! And he’s holding baby Alexander! You guys, I really didn’t remember this part happening. It also doesn’t explain why he’s gone – this B&B clearly needs a chef, and he is a damn good chef, so putting him in charge of their kitchen would probably have been their best move from the beginning – but let’s chalk all that up to the Powers that Be Contriving.
K: It was definitely the Powers That Be Contriving. But I’m too busy squealing over Bodie’s return to care.
Diva: While Kirsti and I continue to squee and squeal and make similar noises, Bessie pulls Joey aside and says she thought about what Joey said last night. She shows Joey a guestbook that their dad gave to their mom years ago. Joey and Bessie signed their names in it as kids. Bessie feels terrible for forgetting about their mother’s dream, but Joey says she’s been taking care of two kids and that’s pretty overwhelming, so she’s allowed to let a few things slip through the cracks.
Mitch helps Gail put on a necklace. He says her vanilla story brought back another memory, that he would open a fish place. They had the idea when Gail was pregnant. But Mitch explains that that wasn’t really his dream – it was hers. She was more successful at journalism, and he knows that things are rough now, but there’s some real estate by the river that she should check out if this is something she really wants. Gail says thanks but no thanks, but Mitch gives her the info on the real estate anyway.
Jen and Henry sit creekside as she tells him her sexual history. She can’t understand why he isn’t acting self-righteous or intimidated (because, you know, DAWSON.) But Henry says he just doesn’t feel that way.
Jen smiles, in disbelief that she’s found someone so nonjudgmental (if confused on what consent means).
K: I feel like this scene was meant to give me feels, but NOPE. Go away, Henry. I’m sick of you.
Diva: At least it made me appreciate the fact that even this consent-ignoring idiot is better than Dawson. Because everyone is better than Dawson.
Dawson and Pacey have a bro chat about how quickly things are changing. Dawson doesn’t know what’s going to happen in the future. He uses Pacey as an example – he’s gone through this whole metamorphosis into, you know, one of the greatest men to ever walk the face of earth.
Dawson says he went above and beyond, and Pacey just looks wildly uncomfortable. He overcompensates with glibness like he used to, and says it’s been no picnic – that Potter girl never shuts up! And women with opinions are just the worst!
K: There are literally no words left to describe how much I hate Dawson Leery. He continues to be the Actual Worst Friend of Ever. Because if you paraphrase his speech here, it’s basically “Wow, you grew up. I totally didn’t think that was possible for you to do! I thought it was all an act because you were getting laid! Hey, BTW, thanks for being a passive entity that I can order around. That’s really helpful in keeping the girl who’s been in love with me for years on the back burner while I sort out my shit.” Pacey, honey, come to Snark HQ. It’s safe there. And we have a dartboard with Dawson’s face on it.
Diva: A+ and 1430 for all of that.
Grams and Jen leave the B&B and Grams is literally singing. Jack approaches and confesses that he needs to move home and take care of Andie. He tells them how generous it was to offer them a home and a family, but now he needs to do the same thing for his sister. He tries not to cry and apologizes and thanks them again for all they did for him. But they’re not mad, they just kindly tell him to go home and give him hugs because this trio is glorious.
K: FEELS.
Diva: Back at the B&B, Pacey finds Joey asleep on the couch, by the fire. He covers her with a blanket. We cut to Bessie, Bodie, and the baby, having a creekside picnic as a happy family. (K: Alexander is so cute in his little puffy jacket!) Then we see Henry and Jen, having their own romantic moment. Then Gail, looking at the property Mitch mentioned to her. Then Jack, packing up his room in Grams’s house. Then Dawson, brooding up at his John Lennon poster. And back to Pacey, sitting and watching Joey as she sleeps, like Grams used to watch Gramps by the fire.
SQUEEEEEEEE^infinity. The business plot of this episode may have made little to no sense, but this episode was packed with Pacey, and nostalgia, and grandparent-feels, and love, and awesomeness. I approve.
K: Don’t get me wrong, I’m still inclined to think that watching someone sleep is kinda creepy *cough* EDWARD CULLEN *cough*. But I love the crap out of this episode. Well. Not the parts that involve Henry. Or Dawson. Or Joey being a 16 year old girl who has no idea how real life works. But the Pacey stuff and the Grams stuff and the Jack and Andie stuff was all A+ fabulousness. So I’m firmly on the Squee Train, bound for OTP City. Choo choo, Traumateers. We’re nearly there.
I'm a J.D. by day/blogger by night who directs her snark and judgment primarily towards celebrities and their many red carpet mishaps. Blogging from the style capital of the world (just kidding - I live in DC), I rant and rave over the best and worst in fashion and pop culture.
I'm a 30-something librarian and I still live with my parents because I'm super broke. Leader of Team Heartless Cow. I have an inexplicable love for 90s television, eat too much chocolate, and read more than is good for me.
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