Secret Diary of a Call Girl • Tentatively Normal [3.5]
Having completely devastated her boyfriend Alex (Callum Blue), Hannah (Billie Piper) gives up her life as Belle in an attempt to win him back, only to learn that there's a long road ahead of her if she wants to earn his forgiveness. In order to prove that she's in this for the long haul, Hannah gets a day job, cuts ties with the people in Belle's circle, and rids her apartment of anything vaguely resembling something that Belle might have owned.
Only when she breaks down, admitting that she'll keep making mistakes until she makes him love her again, does he realize how genuine she's being and he takes her back, though not without a few hiccups along the way. During their first session of love making he realizes that he can't quite get passed her having been with so many partners, and the two are forced to accept that they need to take things much slower this time round, getting everything out in the open to avoid any potential lies and starting things fresh.
Ben (Iddo Goldberg), on the other hand, is left in the lurch when he breaks up with his girlfriend hoping to be with Hannah, only to then be passed over in favor of Alex. Hannah has repeatedly torpedoed Ben's chances at happiness, though never intentionally, and her recent tryst with Ben is the last straw. He finally calls her out on her behavior, stating that their friendship is over because she never listens and imagines that everything's about herself, and Hannah realizes that, while she had always blamed Belle for complicating matters in her life, there has actually been no one to blame outside of herself.
Daria • The Daria Hunter [4]
Both Quinn (Wendy Hoopes) and her friend Sandi (Janie Mertz) are at odds with one another as they each pose a threat to the other's social standing. While Sandi is worried that Quinn will take her place not only as the president of the Fashion Club but also as the queen bee of the school, Quinn is afraid that Sandi will torpedo any chance she has at climbing the social ladder in an effort to keep her from getting too cool.
The interesting thing about their relationship is that neither one of them is willing to admit what they're feeling, imagining that it will be used against them, and instead play a game of lies wherein both try to convince the other that they're much closer friends than they are. Neither girls are willing to ask for an apology, or admit that one is required of either of them, but are so afraid that the other will use their tenuous friendship to take an advantage that they themselves end up using it for the same first.
It's at a point where whichever one of them learns the truth about the other's underhandedness first is the one that will manage to have the other ostracized from the group. While their friendship is, in some respect, very fake, there remains the possibility that they could genuinely like each other very much were they not so worried about their appearances.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer • School Hard [3]
Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) opens the episode already in trouble with Principal Snyder (Armin Shimerman), hoping to gain some brownie points with him to keep herself out of more trouble. Unfortunately, it appears no matter how much she tries to win him over, his vendetta against her remains as strong as ever, eventually seeking out her mother (Kristine Sutherland) in order to have a private chat.
The rest of the story involves Buffy's attempts to make things up to her mother, trying to take control of a bad situation and make her realize that Buffy is making a genuine effort despite the struggles she may have. While Joyce starts off the night feeling irritated that her daughter is getting into more trouble, she soon changes her tune when Spike (James Marsters) attacks the school, taking the parents and students hostage, and Buffy is the only one to stand against him. Certainly, Joyce worries for her daughter's safety, but is relieved to learn that she can take care of herself and help to save the people inside the building.
While she remains upset that Buffy continues to get into trouble, she gains a better understanding of the fact that not everything is necessarily Buffy's fault. Instead she chooses to see that her daughter is getting into scrapes in the name of protecting those weaker than she, and Joyce relents a little, giving her daughter the benefit of the doubt.
Life on Mars • Stacking the Evidence [3.5]
Gene (Philip Glenister) has never claimed to be a perfect example of law enforcement, but he has always maintained his intention to clean up his streets and fight crime as best he can. Here he finds himself on the opposite side of the law, asking Sam (John Simm) for his help in proving that he didn't kill a man in cold blood despite all of the evidence against him.
What makes this case so difficult for Gene's people is that they are pitted directly against the man that they've taken orders from for so long, half of them convinced that he's innocent while the other half are unsure of how to proceed without his guidance. While Chris (Marshall Lancaster) has a difficult time figuring out how to deal with Gene's apparent betrayal, it's Ray (Dean Andrews) who is left the most devastated by the state of things, defending Gene as best he can until finally, having been convinced that Gene is guilty, flipping entirely and determined to take him down at all cost.
When it seems as though Gene will need to apologize to everyone he's let down, he manages to prove his innocence, and it's his staff that's left with explaining to do; however, in typical Gene Hunt fashion, he provides a round of drinks, lets bygones be bygones, and offers his renewed friendship and loyalty to any and all who will accept it.
Better Off Ted • The Lawyer, the Lemur and the Little Listener [3.5]
Linda (Andrea Anders) is soon forced to admit that she needs to ask Phil (Jonathan Slavin) for forgiveness when it's noticed that the cartoon lemur in her children's book bears an uncanny resemblance to her friend. Fortunately, Phil is pleased with the likeness, trying to live vicariously through the fictional adventures of his counterpart and refusing to punish Linda for her creativity.
Unfortunately, Linda soon finds out that, contractually, Veridian Dynamics owns anything she creates while on the clock, meaning that whatever profits she might gain from her book she will have to share with the company. After selling her book to a separate company, Linda learns that her character is being used to sell beer to children in Asia, and she's forced to seek Veronica's (Portia de Rossi) help in getting the rights back, putting her in the position of owing the company a favor.
Meanwhile, Ted (Jay Harrington) uses his daughter Rose's (Isabella Acres) ability to seek out information to use when he starts gathering clues as to who may be getting laid off. Through a series of miscommunications, Ted has someone fired only to later learn that he had been misinformed and is forced to rehire said employee while begging for forgiveness.
Firefly • Objects in Space [4.5]
With her medications still not under control, River (Summer Glau) finds that she's made a nuisance of herself among the crew, feeling unwelcome and unwanted by most everyone around her and wondering if there really is a place for her on Serenity. Certainly one could argue that her place is with her brother Simon (Sean Maher) and that, with his induction into the crew, their place is aboard the ship, but her ties among the rest of the crew are very tenuous, and until she can learn to relate to them she won't find peace here among them.
As bounty hunter Early (Richard Brooks) works his way through the ship, disposing of those that are in his way and using the rest for his own means, River takes her time to study him. Noting that everyone would be safe were she to simply leave with him, River gives her case and, in her own way, says her goodbye to the ship and the people aboard, hoping to find a way to stay but understanding that that might not be in everyone's best interests.
It's as River and Early converse that everyone else is finally made aware of what they mean to her, what Serenity means to her, and they start to realize that there's much more to River Tam than what they've seen. River is aware that there is a lot that she must answer for, a lot of apologies she needs to make that she can never truly say, but in the end there is no need. Mal (Nathan Fillion) welcomes her back to the ship with open arms, ready and willing to start a new relationship with her, and in Serenity River finally finds a home.
Winner of the Week • Firefly
There was not much to dislike about this week's episode of Firefly, and the fact that it's the final episode of the series is incredibly upsetting. Not only was it well-written and fantastically directed, but the characters all came together so well here, in very subtle ways, that it's an episode that can be repeated immediately to a very different viewing experience from the one just had.
Early is very specific in his methods of disposing of the crew, and it would have been interesting to see how he would have handled Zoë (Gina Torres), Jayne (Adam Baldwin) and Wash (Alan Tudyk) to see if it would have been in the same manner as some of the others or completely unique to them. The story's strong point belongs to River's self-reflection, unable to speak on her own behalf when confronted by those she cares about, but instead capable of acting as the ship itself in order to convey what she's really thinking. Her methodology is incredibly abstract here as she pretends to be Serenity, but somehow it manages to make sense to everyone on board to finally gain the acceptance that she's been seeking for so long.
Everything is very spot on here and it's a perfect way to explore River's character as it allows the rest of the cast to reflect on her without necessarily interacting with her directly. This story is the perfect example of everything that this series could be, and it's astounding that it was cut short so soon here.
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