So the Anya pics…ummmmmmmmmm, yeah. Anyone wanna take a guess as to what she’s doing? TeenNick’s episode summary says she lies to Sav about taking self defense classes after school…it looks like she’s actually part of a roleplaying club maybe?
So if you’ve been keeping up with Degrassi as it airs on CTV, I wanted to remind you there is no new episode this week. Degrassi will return on November 1st with the Riley two-parter, “Beat It.” In Canada, I assume they’ll air Degrassi until the end of November, then go on hiatus until sometime in January. TeenNick will be airing new episodes every Friday through November 20. They’ll finish up their “Fall Season” with the episode “Beat It,” and probably return at some point during the Spring.
Here in the U.S., TeenNick will be airing “Close To Me” tomorrow night at its usual time.
I’ve got some random thoughts about Degrassi so I’ll just purge them here:
* Season 9′s first six episodes have already blown Seasons 7 and 8 out of the water as far as the quality of the writing. Let’s hope it’s just as good the rest of the season.
*Production for Season 9 wraps up this week, and they’re about to start producing a new round of Degrassi Minis.
*CONGRATULATIONS to Eleanore Lino, who won at the 2009 Gemini Awards for ”Best Direction in a Children’s or Youth Program or Series” for her work on the Season 8 episode “Fight The Power.”
*I love the new kids (Declan, Fiona, Jenna, Dave) so far…they’ve been a great addition to the cast.
*It’s confirmed that Peter (as well as Danny, Jane and any other seniors) are graduating this season, but there’s no word on whether or not any of them will return for Season 10.
P.S. degrassi.tv is being SUPER slack as far as posting episode pics to use for the review, so sorry it looks so boring. :-(
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If there’s one word that can describe ”You Be Illin,” it’d be WHOA.
I didn’t expect what happened in this episode, and I would’ve never guessed it. After breaking up with Johnny in “Shoot To Thrill,” Alli’s feelings are still conflicted about him. Clare’s reaction is that he’s scum and she should move on, while Jenna steps into a more friendly, comforting role. This caused Alli and Jenna to become closer in this episode, which I will discuss later.
While Johnny is still a jackass, they make it very clear in the way he acts around her in this episode that he still cares about her. Johnny eventually gives Alli the cell phone with her naked photos in it, and it looks like making up between the two is inevitable…until Johnny drops a massive bomb: he lied to Alli about losing his virginity to her, and he has genital warts.
Lead by the talented Melinda Shankar, I love how Alli is once again experiencing fear of something bad resulting from having sex with Johnny. The writers this season have once again stepped up their game, bringing up past situations in order to futher develop the characters.
One thing out of the ordinary is that Jenna becomes Alli’s confidant during this episode, instead of Clare. This is because Clare’s opinion comes off as more judgemental since it’s the exact opposite of what Alli wants to hear. For a second it seemed like a mini subplot was going on where Alli was going to completely shut out Clare and while Jenna plays more of the BFF role, but they make up at the end. Also, Jessica Tyler’s acting is much improved from her over giddiness in the season premiere.
The ending did not disappoint either. Alli’s plan to get Johnny back by getting him to publicly admit having an STI backfired when Johnny admitted he still had feelings for her. Even with that said, Alli didn’t give in and refused to take him back. Watching this episode was thrilling every step of the way, and it was awesome in every aspect: acting, writing, directing and all.
“YOU BE ILLIN” MAIN PLOT GRADE: A+
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SUBPLOT
Peter’s return to the mix ends up being a dud in the “You Be Illin” subplot. Peter just shows up out of nowhere, thinking he can reclaim his gig as the lead singer of Studz. Sadly the band has moved on without him; Jane is the new lead singer, and they really have no desire to have Peter back.
One reason this plot falls flat is because we have no concept of how long it’s been since Peter quit Studz, and we don’t know how long he’s been recovering from the meth addiction.
Ultimately this plot was forgettable. Yeah Danny assured Peter at the end that they’re still friends, but the problem is Peter is kinda useless at this point. He’s not TRULY a part of the band, and there’s nothing I see them doing with his character at this point that would be interesting unless it involved him becoming a meth head again. And THAT is really what we’re all waiting to find out at this point…is Peter going to relapse?
“YOU BE ILLIN” SUBPLOT GRADE: C-
“Shoot To Thrill” deals with one of the few topics Degrassi hasn’t dealt with yet: sexting (unless you count that shirtless pic of Peter that Emma snapped with her camera phone in ”Tell It To My Heart.”)
Johnny really, REALLY hates PDA.
Things are great between Alli and Johnny, except that Johnny doesn’t like PDA. What’s so bizarre is that he primarily hates PDA when it happens specifically in front of Bruce, and the no-name kid they hang out with. For some reason Johnny can’t handle being teased by them about it. In one scene Alli sits on his lap and feeds him in front of Bruce, and Johnny lays into her. I felt sorry for her when that happened.
The cell phone has unlimited text, aka unlimited Alli nakedness.
The workaround Alli discovers to Johnny’s anti-PDA attitude is to give him a cell phone and send him naked pictures of herself on it. Johnny’s all about it and all about showing Alli love until he see’s a blown up picture of himself cuddling with a stuffed toy on the art wall…a picture that Alli took.
While watching the sneak peek for this episode I was with Johnny on Alli needing to cool it with the affection in public. But watching the episode in full he is a jackass. Retaliating against Alli posting the picture of him by texting her naked pic to Bruce was wrong, and Johnny keeping the phone was even moreso. He’s obviously an intelligent, sweet guy (when it comes to Alli), but in public still insists on being known as a bully/loser.
Bruce gets a peek at the "Bhandari Twins..."
This storyline was well done, and even though Ms. Hatzilakos’ return as Degrassi’s principal came out of nowhere with no explanation, I love how she threw in the speech about the dangers of sexting. Melinda Shankar’s acting is much improved from last season. You also know what’s improved? The way Degrassi is dealing with the storylines. The fact Johnny kept the phone with Alli’s dirty pictures shows they’re realizing the mistake of last season with “One and Done” storylines. They didn’t wrap the episode up in a neat bow at the end only for everything that happened to be forgotten right after. Hopefully they stick to that philosophy the rest of the season.
...and so does Mr. Simpson.
“SHOOT TO THRILL” MAIN PLOT GRADE: A
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SUBPLOT
If Riley wasn't gay, he and Fiona would make a really cute couple.
Fiona is tired guys hitting on her. Riley needs a “beard.” How perfect is this? What’s intruiging about their interaction is that Riley knows Fiona is using him to keep the guys off her, but Fiona doesn’t know Riley is using HER to hide the fact that he’s gay.
Or at least she’s not completely onto him yet. While Fiona and Riley are hanging out the guy known as “SoccerStud” reappears. He confronts Riley, who apparently stopped talking to him altogether. After SoccerStud asks why Riley avoids him, Riley grabs Fiona and hastily leaves, denying to her that he knows the guy.
He's baaaaaaack...it's SoccerStud!!!
I LOVED this subplot…mainly because it’s setting us up for Riley’s upcoming two-parter, “Beat It.” They suddenly dropped Riley’s sexuality storyline in Season 8, a believe it has the potential to be one of the best storyline’s this show has had over the last few seasons.
“SHOOT TO THRILL” SUBPLOT GRADE: A+
What started off as a promising storyline hits a plateau in “Wanna Be Startin’ Something.” This followup to “Close To Me” involves Jane and Holly J becoming friends: Holly J because all of her other friends are always spending time with their boyfriends, and Jane because she has no female friends.
Holly J rear ended Declan, who has been rear ending Jane...my oh my.
The two decide work together on a class project, and it leads them to create and manage their own babysitting service. One day while talking business in the school parking lot Holly J and Jane rear end Declan’s car. He brushes it off as no big deal, but he instantly catches Holly J’s eye (something bout the way he shines maybe?)
Little does Holly J know that Jane and Declan are having an affair…and they have been for weeks.
Even worse than Jane cheating is her attitude after Holly J catches her.
That is, until she swings by one of Jane’s babysitting jobs and see the two kissing on the front porch. If the point after that was to turn Jane into an unlikable character, they succeeded. Or wait…are we supposed to feel sorry for Jane because she has no female friends? I’m not sure. One minute Holly J confronts her and Jane tells her to mind her own business. The next minute we’re supposed to feel sympathy because Jane really “needs a friend right now…” I was lost trying to figure out how the writers wanted us to perceive Jane in this episode.
What killed this episode’s likability factor was the ending. I love the fact Holly J gave Jane an ultimatum: end things with Declan, or she’ll tell Spinner about Jane’s love affair. And so Jane chooses: they show a scene where Holly J watches Jane and Declan talk, then part ways. At The Dot, Holly J makes sure Jane made the right choice, aka choose Spinner. She did.
And that’s it.
Really? That’s all folks? At the end Holly J says that she won’t tell Jane’s secret…foreshadowing maybe (the end of Spane and the beginning of Spolly J)??? I hope so. The way this episode ended there was no indication that this whole cheating storyline will continue, making this a pretty lame ending if that’s the case. I REALLY hope I’m wrong about that.
“WANNA BE STARTIN’ SOMETHING” MAIN PLOT GRADE: C
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SUBPLOT
Johnny doesn't really like it when you pee on one of his friends.
Can Dave be Degrassi’s new go-to guy for comedy relief subplots? Possibly…
As a niner, Dave just wants to be popular. He tries to get his cousin Chantay to write about him in her blog, but she won’t do it unless he does something worthy of attention. Dave has the perfect plan: embarrass Bruce the Moose.
This subplot is funny and I’m surprised they actually WENT THERE with the prank: Dave pees in a bottle and pours it all over Bruce’s locker and shoes. He’s forced to meet Bruce in the alley after school, and a crowd gathers to watch. Instead of obviously beating Dave into a pulp, Bruce just pegs Dave with a balloon full of something that’s NOT water, lol.
Think about it: that pink balloon is filled with urine. Degrassi: It's About To Get Real.
In the end everything is cool and the boys shake hands…and Dave gets the popularity he wanted. It was a silly storyline, but thoroughly entertaining. It’s great to know Degrassi still knows how to deliver funny subplots like they did way back in the day when J.T. and Toby were Degrassi’s comedy relief kings.
“WANNA BE STARTIN’ SOMETHING” SUBPLOT GRADE: A
If there’s one that’s apparent in the Degrassi universe, they DO NOT like they idea of characters having long-term relationships…with Jane being Spinner’s third long-term girlfriend on the show (Manny doesn’t count), is he doomed to be the lonely Dot manager in Degrassi The Next NEXT Generation?
Jane wants to have her cake (Spinner) and eat it too (Declan).
Right off the bat this episode addresses Jane’s relationship issue: she and Spinner are TOO comfortable for her taste. They’re always together, and the “spark” in their relationship is gone for her. Jane is now the lead singer of Studz, and Spinner even tells Jane she’s “just like one of the guys.”
…and so enters Declan stage left; he and Jane are in the same theatre class, and Declan doesn’t hide the fact that he wants her. Jane wards off his advances at first, yet secretly enjoys the thrill of getting attention from him. Things get confusing when Spinner moves into Peter’s old apartment (Peter transferred the lease to Spin, and he also quit Studz). Spinner asks Jane to move in with him, and a confused Jane leaves without giving him an answer.
The #1 commandment of the Boycott The Caf Bible? Thou shall not cheat on Spinner.
The juicy part of the episode comes when Jane goes to Declan’s house to work on their theatre project, and they kiss. Of course it was no accident; Jane knew that she was going to act on her feelings before arriving.
Now the question is…Is Jane cheating on Spinner an out-of-character move for her? Jane has never given the impression until this episode that she’d be the kind of girl to cheat, or string Spinner along. Also, since when is she all of a sudden not happy in her relationship with Spinner?
Despite being blindsided by those two thoughts, “Close To Me” was still interesting to watch, and it’s a solid episode. Jane actually cheating seems OOC, but the feelings she experienced through it all feel realistic and relatable. The ending was really great as a conflicted Jane was standing there hugging on Spinner as Declan stood there smirking. Jane is one of the better characters to watch because Paula Brancati is a good actress. And I still love Declan, he is just so condescending and manipulative…a character like that who is around solely for the purpose of causing trouble hasn’t existed since Jay Hogart before his “I-Love-Manny-Santos” days.
“CLOSE TO ME” MAIN PLOT GRADE: B
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SUBPLOT
In this episode’s subplot we get another peek into KC’s past. The basketball coach encourages him to do his best, even though he’s a niner (and they are usually just benchwarmers). The coach even lets KC play in one of the games. However, KC doesn’t play well and the coach pulls him out and yells at him. Because his parents treated him like crap, KC interpreted it as the coach basically telling him he sucks at basketball…so he quits the team.
As much as I wanted to slap KC for overreacting (AGAIN), I have to keep reminding myself they are using a slow-build technique for his character. Instead of KC vomiting his entire backstory in one reflective moment, they’re gradually giving us tidbits into who he is and how his past has shaped him. In the end the coach talks some sense into KC and reassures him that he’s not alone, hopefully establishing some sort of trust between KC and at least one adult.
“CLOSE TO ME” SUBPLOT GRADE: B
NOTE: This is the last week CTV will be airing Degrassi episodes out of order. They’re airing 903 (Shoot To Thrill) and 905 (You Be Illin’) this Sunday 10/18. TeenNick will be airing Shoot To Thrill this Friday 10/16.
Erin from www.degrassi-fans.com posted a video from ET Canada, who we behind the scenes of Degrassi’s Season 9 movie (and season finale) “The Rest of My Life.” This movie will be directed by the awesome Stefan Brogren, and will take place in New York. As of right now, the only thing we know for sure is that Jane, Holly J and Degrassi newcomers Declan and Fiona are in the movie. You can watch the video clip below:
NOTE: Just a reminder that these promo pics are from episodes 904 and 906, since CTV is running episodes out of order. These two eps. will air Sunday 10/11, while 903 and 905 will air Sunday 10/18.
To me, it has become very apparent that Degrassi doesn’t know how to produce solid season premieres. When Doves Cry (Season 2) and Standing In The Dark (Season 7) were great. Heck, I’ll even throw in Ghost In The Machine (Season 4) as being pretty good. However, the rest range from mediocre to forgettable; Just Can’t Get Enough is no different.
Declan? He's a jackass. Fiona? She seems nice, from what little we saw of her.
Degrassi’s power couple (Peter/Mia) ends up meeting the new kids, brother/sister duo Declan and Fiona. I instantly took a liking to Declan because everything he said (when directed at Peter) reeked of sarcasm in that “I’m better than you” tone. He was a jerk in this episode for no reason at all, and I enjoyed that.
What I didn’t enjoy was Peter spiraling out control. After learning that Mia is moving to Paris for a modeling gig, she and a saddened Peter attend a party at Declan’s house. Declan slyly humiliates Peter by getting him to play one of his Studz songs solo in front of a pretentious crowd, who snubs him. Another party guest gets Peter to take meth to liven up things.
Thanks to meth, Peter loses his freakin' mind.
Throughout the rest of the episode it’s just Peter acting randomly, with the writers trying to force the obvious symptoms of meth addiction down our throats. While the constant scratching and erratic behavior were there, his addiction never hit home because we never ACTUALLY saw him do meth. Heck, they barely showed him fiddling with the package it came in…think of it as a weak version of Craig’s coke addiction back in Season 6.
Jamie Johnston’s acting was fine until the moments when Peter completely spazzed out, or just started yelling at the people around him (Mia, and Studz to be exact). Those moments were horrendous to watch because of his overracting. The best moment of this episode was when Peter started freaking out on a median between two busy streets, and Riley and the Studz came to help him. They surrounded him, took him home and let him know they were there for him.
Degrassi says goodbye to Mia...Peter loses another girlfriend to the CW.
Peter acting a hot mess overshadowed the fact this was Mia’s final episode. Her sendoff was so casual that if you hadn’t heard Nina Dobrev left the show, you wouldn’t have realized Mia was never coming back.
Unfortunately, Just Can’t Get Enough wasn’t the spark I was hoping for to kick off this new season of Degrassi. Something was “off” from beginning to end. Normally Degrassi is great at resetting and making it feel like it’s truly a brand new semester/year, but it didn’t feel like it at all…this episode felt like it could’ve taken place during the middle of a season. I know better episodes are to come, but Season 9 of Degrassi has gotten off to a disappointing start.
“JUST CANT GET ENOUGH” MAIN PLOT GRADE: C-
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SUBPLOT A
Jenna: talented musician and professional boyfriend stealer.
Welcome Jenna, the overly nice, over-the-top bubbly new girl in the niner’s world. I absolutely adore Alli, but she annoyed me in this episode with her jealousy toward Jenna, who took an immediate interest in being friends with Clare.
Jenna’s overbearingly nice attitude creeps me out…it’s just so fake, and it’s throwing me off because they made it BLATANTLY clear to us viewers that Jenna is a maneater, and that she will be going after KC. Jenna is going to create so much drama in the future…I liked this subplot because I like the fact Degrassi used it simply as a setup for future episodes, and nothing more. I can’t wait to see how this plot unfolds.
“SUBPLOT A” GRADE: B
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SUBPLOT B
I don't think I was ever truly sold on Holly J/Blue as a couple.
Holly J and Blue were dating? Could’ve fooled me. As student body president, a tame Holly J gives into random demands from people because Blue keeps stepping in and saying “She’ll take care of it.” Basically he’s trying to force her into being this sweet girl who cares about other people, and that’s not who she is.
With Blue making all of her decisions for her and Holly J just taking it, this was a boring, useless subplot. A storyline with Holly J isn’t interesting if she isn’t acting in her own self interest, or acting like a bitch in general. At least she gets back to her old, normal self at the end. Sadly, this means Blue will probably go back to being his old self: a boring, useless character.
“SUBPLOT B” GRADE: D
