Secret Diary of a Call Girl • Moonlighting [3.5]
Hannah/Belle (Billie Piper) introduced us here to the concept of the "girlfriend experience," wherein she and her client Ash (Ace Bhatti) live in a fantasy world of his own creation. She plays the part of the doting girlfriend, having created a fictional history between the two of them in their many meetings with one another.
While Hannah's lifestyle is one necessitating many lies, to both those she loves and those she's working for, this is the first time that we see an accepted lie on both sides of the operation. Hannah and Ash work together to form the narrative of a play that they both accept is an illusion, but when they are together it is as though it's completely real.
The deception grows deeper when Hannah's offered another client in the middle of the night, forcing her to conceal her clandestine activities from both men paying her in an effort not to upset the man she's pretending to pretend she loves.
Daria • College Bored [2]
In an effort to display the tedium of college applications, this week's episode of Daria takes place almost entirely on a campus tour, wherein the protagonists remain as unengaged in the experience as the audience does, resulting in a relatively dull story where every character tries to get out of their assigned duties and no one seems to be bothered by that fact.
Quinn (Wendy Hoopes) is quick to abandon the tour when an easy lie lands her an invite to a college party, leaving Daria (Tracy Grandstaff) to lie about her sister's whereabouts. Daria herself is less bothered by this turn of events because it allows her to also abandon the tour in favor of watching television and leads her to a lucrative business opportunity.
The students of Middleton University contract out their college assignments to Daria, for a price, leaving the teenager to consider the ethics behind her actions and whether or not she's bothered by what she's doing. Ultimately, it's the workload that gets to her, and it's up to her parents to correct the situation by denying her the profits she had made.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer • Witch [3]
Amy (Elizabeth Anne Allen) is desperate to live up to her mother Catherine's (Robin Riker) legacy, putting herself through a grueling training regiment just to try-out for the cheerleading squad. Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) grows suspicious when Amy's competition starts getting taken out in mysterious ways, leading to the revelation that black magic is involved.
Catherine is so determined to relive her glory days through her daughter that she finally trades their bodies, convinced that she can do justice to the youth that she feels Amy is wasting. Scared and alone, trapped in an older woman's body, Amy is stuck at home, worried that her situation will only grow worse when her mother decides she's no longer necessary.
Life on Mars • Family Matters [3.5]
Determined to keep his son (Andrew Knott) from going to jail, Ted Bannister (John Henshaw) confesses to a crime he didn't commit. Sam (John Simm) is well aware that it wasn't Ted who committed the murder, but he cannot bring the guilty party to justice when Ted is more than willing to go to prison in an effort to keep his family intact.
Only later, when Sam learns that no crime had truly been committed, does he come across the Bannister's son in the middle of another heist, and while he genuinely empathises with these men and their plight, he has a job to do upholding the law.
Unsure of whether his actions are right, just though they may be, he wonders if he might have let Gene (Philip Glenister) believe that Ted was the original culprit if only to spare the Bannisters of having to jail their son.
Better Off Ted • Through Rose Colored HAZMAT Suits [4]
Ted (Jay Harrington) throws the office into disarray when he brings his daughter Rose (Isabelle Acres) into work. Forced to censor themselves during meetings in an effort to shield the girl from the company's shadier operations, the employees of Veridian Dynamics find themselves unsure of what they're talking about.
Ted's efforts to conceal the truth from Rose results in her spending the day with Veronica (Portia de Rossi,) who finds use for her in other ways. Ted's belief that he needs to hide Rose from his real-world dealings only end in her being even more exposed to them, even taking part in firing people from their jobs. While Ted is understandably upset, it is Rose that puts him once more in his place, explaining that she can only learn negative lessons from any concepts he may try to alter in order to keep the truth from her.
Firefly • The Train Job [4]
Forced to lie about their exact relationship with one another, Mal (Nathan Fillion) pretends that Zoë (Gina Torres) is his wife, leading to an investigation of their fake marriage. Peppering half-truths throughout their conversation, Mal's ruse is saved only when Inara (Morena Baccarin) arrives to expose their lie as a fraud in favor of her own.
Mal is a man of honor, and when given the opportunity to confront those who fought against him in the war, whether they battled face to face or in spirit only, he chooses to instigate a situation he's hard-pressed to escape from. Mal's sense of right and wrong gets muddied here in his efforts to win a war already lost, speaking volumes about his tenacity, and it is his need to fight against oppression that leads to his ultimate decision regarding his stolen goods.
Winner of the Week • Better Off Ted
In a week where every show features lies to family, for family, or about family, it is Better Off Ted, where the lies are to protect family from potentially upsetting knowledge that wins the week.
The lies in Ted are never malicious, and are almost always portrayed in a light-hearted and humorous manner, whereas the other shows on the docket tend to put a darker or more sinister spin on their situations. Ted manages to make a series of lies that are increasingly entertaining without destroying the narrative in the process, and is a delightful watch throughout.
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