PLOT A SUMMARY: Clare is eager to take full advantage of her internship and does so by e-mailing some of her pitch ideas to Asher. He calls her and asks her to meet him for lunch, and she assumes she’s going to be fired because he thought her ideas were stupid. However, he gives her the opportunity to pitch an idea to him and she chooses Degrassi’s musical. Asher agrees and tells Clare they’re going to write her article. Clare’s excited until Asher meets Eli and does the interview by himself, while sending Clare to go fetch coffee. Clare chases Asher down and tells him she wants to write the article, and despite not thinking she’s ready, Asher lets her. After noticing a mistake in the article after sending it to Asher, she panics and heads to the newspaper to find him. Asher tells her he’s working on rewriting her article because it had a lot of work that needed to be done on it, and Clare breaks down because she feels as if she’s failed him. He calms Clare down and tells her that she can stay and help him edit the article. Afterward Clare is relieved and out of nowhere Asher kisses her, and she runs out of the office horrified.
The next day Clare and Eli expect Clare’s article to be in the paper, but it’s nowhere to be found. Clare talks to Asher, who says the article will be published on another day. He also apologizes for kissing her and tells her not to tell anyone about what happened between them. He invites her to cover a press conference with him and she agrees. While they’re in her car Asher shows her the Degrassi article that will be published, and tries to put the moves on her again. Clare tries to get away, but Asher locks the car doors. She escapes, but not before Asher threatens to ruin her career if she tells anyone. Clare goes to the editor, but finds out that she’s being fired because Asher filed a report saying Clare was infatuated with him. Before clearing out her desk an outraged Clare calls Asher out in front of everyone at the paper for sexually harassing her. Later, Clare tells Alli that she doesn’t want to go to the police and can’t tell Eli because it’ll upset him. Still unaware of what’s happened Eli walks up and gives Clare a present: a framed version of the article she and Asher wrote.
Clare’s plot in Waterfalls will initially draw comparisons to the Season 9 episode Heart Like Mine, where KC’s trust was betrayed by his basketball coach. However, comparing the two antagonists in these separate plots (Coach Carson and Asher) reveals that they aren’t even close to being in the same league. Coach Carson, though he tried to expose KC to alcohol and a prostitute, is really nothing more than a generic creep who loved drinking and women, and tried to introduce it to KC as “something cool to do.” As Carson took an approach that seemed almost too relaxed in a sense, Asher is far more aggressive, and the stakes of the situation are far greater for Clare.
It helps tremendously that Degrassi spent several episodes showing not only how much Clare admires Asher from a professional standpoint, but also how much Clare values the opportunity given to her through her internship. She almost seems to value it TOO much, as if this is her one and only chance to achieve her dream, and one mistake will ruin everything. It’s easy to write Clare off as going back to her extremely whiny ways in situations where she was seemingly freaking out over nothing (her assuming the worst-case scenario if Asher were to read her pitches, and her flipping over splitting an infinitive in her article). But her uptight, almost paranoid behavior displays the beginning of something that’s so incredibly prevalent in society: people are often too focused on the fact that they *might* fail at something that it distracts them from actually succeeding. It never reaches that endpoint for Clare though because the plot’s focus shifts to the vile behavior of Asher.
Clare and Asher’s relationship is disturbingly brilliant in the way it‘s portrayed. Clare is openly eager and naïve, and Asher sees that as Clare being an easy target. It’s extremely important to understand that Clare had no romantic interest in Asher whatsoever. She wasn’t “leading him on” by any stretch of the imagination. This was a case of a grown man trying to take advantage of a young girl, because he thought he could dangle the awards of praise and publishing Clare’s article in exchange for sexual favors from her. This plot made my chest burn. Aislinn Paul was terrific. It’s bad enough watching Clare deal with being sexually harassed by someone she looked up to. Asher abused her trust and his power, putting her in the terrible predicament of risking losing her job or risking losing her sanity keeping Asher‘s harassment a secret. Instead of getting the outcome we’d hope for, Degrassi takes things one step further by forcing us to swallow the difficult pill of a reality that’s far more common: the good guy gets screwed over, the bad guy gets away with everything and justice is nowhere to be found. Sometimes life isn’t fair, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Emotionally draining, this plot is deserving of the old Degrassi tagline, “It. Goes. There.”
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PLOT B SUMMARY: Cam asked Maya out, but Maya is worried because they haven’t actually gone on the date yet. Maya goes to her sister Katie for advice, who scoffs at the idea of her dating a hockey player. Katie agrees to drive Maya to her date, but only if she chaperones it. While there Katie grills Cam, but Camaya is able to get alone time by running away from Katie and hiding in a photo booth. The two open up to each other and Cam says their date is the most fun he’s had since he started doing Degrassi, but when Maya goes in to kiss him he turns away. Maya is confused and Tori tells her that guys like to take the lead on dates, so Maya tells Cam to plan where they go on their next date. He chooses the Degrassi garden and things go awkwardly as Maya keeps bringing up hockey and Cam keeps trying to change the subject. The date ends with Maya accidentally spitting juice on Cam’s shirt, then going in to kiss him and missing, nibbling on his ear instead.
In French class Tori and Tristan text Maya about how her date went. The teacher catches them and forces them to translate their texts in front of the class, embarrassing both Maya and Cam. They both question whether one likes the other, and Maya admits she has no idea what she’s doing because she’s never had a boyfriend or kissed a guy. Cam tells her that he liked her because he thought she cared about him and not about him playing hockey up until their previous date. Cam walks off, but visits Maya at home and apologizes, telling her he was nervous and has never had a girlfriend…and then he kisses her.
What happens when you pair two awkward people together? An awkwardly adorable plot. I like how the Matlin sisters are sort of a representation of the “before and after” when it comes to love on Degrassi. You have Maya with a wide-eyed innocence and positive outlook on her potential relationship with Cam…then there’s Katie, who is jaded and has been beaten down by a bad relationship, something that will happen to most girls on this show and in real life at some point.
With Cam we get to see that he’s not only awkward, but guarded. Unlike the rest of the hockey team, which seems to embrace the culture and rewards of being a high school athlete, Cam seems repulsed by it. With the pressure of being the team’s star player, the nonstop talk about how he’s going to be in the NHL in two years and him being away from his family, Maya is his escape from that because she is interested in him beyond his status or talents on the ice. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen such young, inexperienced characters delve into romance, and it‘s refreshing. Watching them try to figure out what the heck they’re doing is fun.
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PLOT C SUMMARY: KC has the academic quiz team over to his house to practice, when his mom interrupts them and randomly starts trying to bond with Bianca. KC and Bianca come up with the idea to hook his mom up with their geography teacher Mr. T. KC casually gets them to meet at Little Miss Steaks then finds an excuse to leave them alone to get to know each other. Afterward she secretly likes him, but doesn’t admit it to KC, saying she doesn’t want to go out with his teacher. KC tells her that if his quiz team wins regionals she has to go on a date with Mr. T, who is definitely interested in her. The team wins regionals and have a celebratory dinner at Little Miss Steaks. KC’s mom gets a phone call and has to break serious news to KC: KC’s dad is getting out of jail, and wants to meet with him.
The purpose of this plot is to re-establish in the minds of Degrassi fans that KC and his mom do exist, as the plot where KC comes face-to-face with his dad is on the horizon. It makes sense because it would be weird for such a heavy plot to just appear out of nowhere with a character who hasn’t had a storyline in quite some time. But with that said, I found this plot to be mind-numbingly bland. If the counter argument is “Well it’s good because it’s laid back to counteract the intense Clare plot,” I’d say you’re right…but the Camaya plot was also laid back. The difference is Camaya gave me a reason to be interested in what they were doing on screen.
Don’t get me wrong, I like KC. I also like his mom, Bianca and Mr. T (I absolutely LOVED Randal Edwards’ character Noah on The Best Years). The KC/Bianca friendship is good, but it’s not utilized enough to make things consistently engaging. More importantly, why should I care about any matchmaking scheme involving KC’s mom and his teacher? It’s great that KC and his mom have established such a wonderful relationship given all that‘s happened, but there’s nothing worth watching here except for the final scene, which guarantees us a plot we’ve been waiting to see for years. This being a setup doesn’t give it a free pass to do nothing to keep my attention.
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How do YOU grade Waterfalls?
You can grade the plots in Waterfalls by voting below!
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Kary's Degrassi Blog 
I feel like clare and asher’s relationship is starting to feel like kc and his coach’s previous relationship. I absolutley could not stand clare this week. All she talks about is Asher!
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That’s exactly what I thought. When he poured her wine, I couldbt hell but think about the coach handing KC a beer. The only difference is Asher wants Clare’s sweet sweet loving for himself instead of hooking her up with a prostitute.
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I meant couldnt and help… But I’m sure u knew what I was talking about
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I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought Clare was terribly annoying this week.
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Adam is currently the most annoying character and Connor become a douchebag
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Connor is anything but a douchebag.
If anything, he is one of the reasons to keep tuning in.
Clare received some more karma for how annoying and bitchy she has been the past few years.
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Towards “lame”- How can you possibly say that getting sexually harassed is karma for being annoying. that is actually horrible that you believe that is true.. Loosing a contest is karma, sexual harassment is not…
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I think lame is referring to Connor’s tweet “Clare says” as karma from her being annoying, not the sexual harassment.
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You have to admit, Eclare is pretty adorable.
As is the niners. Seriously. They are precious.
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I thought what Cam did was real, something that Maya would appreciate.
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Clare was annoying as hell this week, kept waiting for someone to bitch slap her each time she said something about Asher. Now he’s harassing her and as bad as this sounds, I dont feel bad for her because she made it look like she wanted him. I know its no excuse for sexual harassment or forcing yourself on a young girl but come on, she was on his dick ALL WEEK! Even I was like “Clare needs to back off” halfway through the episode because she was sending him the WRONG message. “Asher says that………blah…..blah……blah.” Next time she wont be so naive, oblivious and neurotic.
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Way to blame the victim. Asher is an adult who made the decision to take advantage of a girl who really just wanted to learn. What a real supervisor would have done was told her she was being unprofessional and that would have stopped her. Clare didn’t want him, so there is no way she is responsible for anything that happened to her. This attitude is the reason why people get away with this sort of harassment and worse because people would rather blame the victim than accept the fact we don’t have influence over other people’s actions and these things can happen to anyone of us.
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your really missing the point here. Asher is a GROWN ASS MAN and if he can’t find girls his age he should just die alone instead of taking illegal actions and sexually harassing Clare. Clare admired him and he was the reason she was so close to her career dreams that she could literally taste it! People do get a bit crazy when they are so close to their dreams. Clare is SO not naive, and neurotic but, she was a bit oblivious to how her attitude was affecting everyone else around her and she was TRYING to fix that. Clare did needed to back off but, think about how you would feel if a person was your exclusive pass to your career dreams and he used you like some hairy-tongue prostitute?
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Okay, I’ll start off with saying that I am completely enjoying Clare’s plot. That aside, I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t obsess about Cam…
After the whole ordeal in the photo booth, I admit that those two are very cute together. And I am bracing myself for a kiss at Maya’s house tonight. But the one thing that stood out to me was before the whole date ever happened.
It seemed to me that Cam was not too pleased with hearing Tristan’s “happy song.” You could tell that it was not sincere and was only a how for Maya. But I love how they made a point to show Cam’s facial expression. As if he was saying, “Um, please don’t say that…” These two will definitely be meeting up later on down the road, perhaps even sooner. I even got the impression that Tristan was hiding a dirty little secret. It would really be something if those two were dating behind Maya’s back. Not saying that’s the case, but anything is possible.
Lastly, I’m amused at how many people around the web have taken Cam’s comment about not liking hockey so seriously. If he said it, it must be true! Yeah, nobody ever lies. What else would he say? “Well, that sucks for you!”
I’ve been ridiculed for looking too much into things, but when you take everything for what it appears to be, you are opening yourself up to be mislead.
Anyway, I’ll be back soon. Hope my hunches are right! Peace!
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Don’t repost on multiple pages, if no one replied the first time, there’s probably a reason.
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I hate mean people.
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I <3 you!
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And I’m confused…
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For some reason during the Cam & Maya date, I kept flashing back to Sean and Emma’s first date. I think they’re (Cam & Maya) really cute because of all their awkwardness, it’s adorable and relatable.
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I thought the same thing. It is beautiful, and makes me love them all the more.
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hmmm… i think this episode would be better if they had done the dating thing differently for KC or maybe another plot all together not involving KC.
I don’t want to say i don’t like KC, because that’s not how i feel (at least i think so because i really enjoyed the adoption story line) but right now KC could die in a ditch somewhere and i would just be like “huh, i guess they can give more airtime to someone else.” Is it just me? I just didn’t even care about KC and his mom, i just felt like “ugh this is so boring please let me see more maya and cam. or eclare.” Which by the way i’m loving (caya and eclare).
I did get annoyed at clare and her little crying mini drama, come on girl please just hold back on the drama (didn’t you ever love me at all?! LOL). But even annoyed and rolling my eyes i understood and then at least she admitted how stupid she was being.
The hockey comment, i dunno i feel like there *might* be something there. Yes he could have lied, but then again he could have said “it’s my whole life” if he really loved it or just smiled at her, he didn’t have to lie, but hey he was nervous so maybe.
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I think that was the whole point of Clare obsessing over Asher! They had her so in love with him that not only was his actions towards her wrong, they were a betrayal of the trust she placed in him. She idolizes Asher and for him to hurt her like that is worse than anything he could have done to her. Although I agree Clare was repetitive and annoying during the episodes so far this week, we have to realize this is like a dream come true for her! When something you are so passionate about takes a place in your life, then you can obsess over it… its kind of like Eli and the continual mentions of his NYU portfolio… Clare was annoying but I think the writers and Aislinn did it on purpose.
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CLARES VOICE IS SO LOUD AND ATTENTION GRABBING WHEN SHE YELLS. LIKE GIRL SHUT UP SOMETIMES. LOVE HER PLOT THO
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I think the way they protrayed Asher’s attempt to kiss Clare very well. I think it was kind of the way she totally rejected it and she immediately slid away and he almost banged his head on the table that made it so believable and intense at the same time…
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I didn’t find Clare annoying at all this week. I think she was adorable and Aislinn Paul is a terrific actor. And shame on all of you saying Clare deserved it. I know it’s just a show, but no one deserves to be sexually harassed. And it’s pathetic if you think otherwise.
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To me she can be a bit of annoying, but it’s more of a little sister annoying. I guess it’s because I watched her grow and change as a character on this show so I can’t help but care for her.
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Agreed
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If I were Clare, I would dump Eli’s Hot Topic ass and get with a real man like Asher
Hell, I might just go gay for him myself
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O
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WHAT KINDA..LMAO.
NOW GOING GAY FOR MIKE I WOULD UNDERSTAND CUZ PAPA CAN GET IT
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Anyone else think that Slide show looks like a UK Skins ripoff?
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I thought I was the only one who thought that too lol.
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It’s an Aussie version of it. I was gonna watch it but it starts the day before I go back to school.
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I’d be crying too after turning all of THIS down!
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If only Asher drived by Clare on the bench, honking his horn, pointing his finger and yelling “You Just Got SERVED!” as he drives away laughing.
Now that would have been hilarious
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Why do I even bother…. enjoy your Maybell talk… ARRGH!!!!!
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I love cambell he is so cute and sweet talking kc’s plot was kinda boring but i would like to see his father and if he would trust his father like his mother claires part was a bit annoying but her acting was good
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This episode for the exception of KC’s plot was pretty well. Why must Clare be so naive? If he made a move on you once, he will most likely do it again. I think it’s just me but I wanted Eli to go ballistic on Asher once she would tell him about what happened.
Cam/Maya: What else can I say? Adorable. I don’t ship couples often but this is one ship I’m totally on board here. I’m getting sick and tired of the assumptions that Cam is gay. Just because a guy is shy around girls and possibly suffers from Anxiety doesn’t mean he’s gay. I’ve met a few guys who were really shy about making the first move.
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I find it kind of odd that Eli saw nothing wrong and was so quick to move on to a topic that revolved around him… Clare was not acting like herself at all and for someone who claims to know her so well… he didn’t seem to think anything was wrong… also as a side note: I love Ali and Clare and I’m glad she at least went and told someone!
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Me too. Eli should’ve suspected that something was wrong with her since she was crying. Alli makes such a wonderful support character.
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Eli sucked in this episode, sometimes it’s like he’s just not the same character at all anymore. I wanted to punch him in the head since the first scene with the “but that article was supposed to get me into NYU crap!” No it wasn’t, stfu, Clare’s the one whose article wasn’t published, what the hell kinda thing is that to say at a time like that?!
Goddamn Jake would’ve done a better job. I want batshit crazy, ftw Eli back. I want him to drag it out of Clare and then go blow up the Interpreter. But, new “improved” Eli would probably just find some reasonable way of dealing with it anyway. *SIGH*
Clare’s plot was infuriating. Now I want to hit something. But it’s hilarious that they have theme music for when Asher is about to put the moves on.
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Thank you, Thank you and Thank you. How can Eli be that oblivious. You can tell in her face something is not right. Damn Alli picked it up pretty darn quickly. I understand why she didn’t tell Eli anything at first. She should have told him when he gave her the framed artical. Eli would have been upset but understanding. This is what couples do they talk about the good and the bad. This is not healthy for their relationship. If Clare keeps keeping these type of secrets from Eli he will leave her.
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It kind of sucks that KC’s plot will be put on the back-burner next week since it seems like it could be a good plot.
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I really enjoyed Waterfalls!
Clare: What a great plot. I’m glad they didn’t screw it up by putting emphasis on Eli (that will probably be for later). When Clare was being fired by that lady, her storyline in Closer to Free made so much sense. The whole twitter thing was to make her look like a young teenage girl in love with her mentor. She had admiration for him, not love. I also thought the final scene with Eli was perfect, how the dialogue reflected her feelings. Clare: “I sacrificed a lot to get this.” Eli: “And now you’ll never forget it.” Ouch.
I give this an A
Cam/Maya: Oh, the awkward date, what would Degrassi be without those. What can I say, this was simple, yet very cute and at times, cringe-worthy. Especially that ear kiss…oh god. I’m looking forward to seeing this relationship develop in the next episode.
I give it an A-
KC: It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t good either. I get that the whole point was to bring the news that KC’s father was out of jail but I felt like an 1min intro before an episode could have done the entire trick. I really like KC and Bianca so I still enjoyed this plot, but it didn’t bring anything really to the show. They could have spent that time fleshing another character who needs more spotlight.
I give it a C+
PS: The french class scene was so hard for me to watch. I’m french canadien and hearing the teacher speak with our accent was so weird.
PS…again: Really, he had to be named Kevin? I just saw the movie a couple months ago (We Need To Talk About Kevin) so I giggled when she said that.
Okay, enough random thoughts, see you folks next week for more drama and finally a look inside Imogen’s life (you know since she’ll probably leave after season 12, she deserves one episode)!!
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oh my god, yes. That made me laugh so hard, love that movie though
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That movie was good & Kevin was hot lol.
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I, for one, appreciated K.C.’s storyline and seeing his mother. I’m glad it ended up being a lead-in to a more exciting plot. I honestly have no clue why there’s so much hate for him, I’m glad they brought his more relaxing story into Clare’s traumatic one, because it makes the episode in whole a lot more balanced. Him and Bianca’s friendship is fun to see too, since it’s like a continuation from their season 10 friendship.
I think it’s safe to say Clare’s mom is off the show, at least for now. She really should’ve been at least consulted or appeared in this episode. That’s one thing about Degrassi that can get under my skin sometimes; The parents are rarely involved in their kids lives (Besides Drew and other plot-device parents),and it doesn’t make sense when there’s really traumatic stuff happening in their lives. I’m probably wanting it to be too realistic sometimes.
Cam isn’t gay, but he is adorable, and I like the pairing with Maya. I’m interested in Cam’s plot next week, and Katie. I just hope they don’t push the “new” Katie way too much too fast.
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Decent episode. I’m guessing that they have Clare’s really develop after the Summer Block since it looks like they’ll be focusing on the “Them vs. Us” plot the last two weeks.
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I enjoyed these episodes a lot
Clares one of my favorite characters and eventhough she could be annoying at times it was great to see her somewhat back to the old Clare where she isnt soley focused on a relationship, and instead her career. I felt so sick when Asher kept pushing himself on her, but I loved that she kept Eli away from the issue but I cant way until he figures out.
I love that KC got some attention again but other than introducing the dad storyline, it was somewhat useless. But I do love seeing how KC has changed over the years and the fact that him and Bianca who have had their bad streaks have become the good guys.
I still think they have been hinting at Cam being gay, but I love seeing him and Maya together and how awkwardly they are exploring relationships and their feelings. One thing im worried about is that Cam will become the new Craig/KC/Eli aka the tortured cutie, its been done so many times and its kind of annoying….Other than that im so excited to see where this relationship will go.
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I’m kind off sensing a Romeo and Juliet love story for Cam and Maya since this season’s theme is “Showdown.” Plus it helped that the play is a version of Romeo and Juliet.
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Don’t really care all that much about K.C anymore. Campbell and Maya make a cute couple. I also think he’s straight, but just cripplingly shy.
I think this past week has featured some of Aislinn Paul’s best work yet. Her transition from starry-eyed, idealistic journalist to a bitter and shocked victim of sexual harassment was organic, engaging, and emotionally exhausting. I’m looking forward to seeing what lies next for Clare.
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First off i actually liked KC’s plot for what it was a light hearted setup for some drama!
Next- ugh i feel bad for Clare because it seems like down the road it will be easy for her to blame herself for the harassment. Also im very interested to see how Eli will handle thi when he finds out i just hope he doesnt take 3 steps back from him getting better.
Lastly-omg i love Cam and.maya the french class scene was perff! And when he got on his knees it was so cute ugh love the so much <3
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Lots of people blame Clare for Asher’s motives, but the truth is that Clare was sexually harassed by him and then his pansy ass got Clare fired. Does anyone else not see what’s wrong with half the fandom on here saying that Clare got what was coming to her? As for Cam and Maya, people have really become desensitized as far as the gay stereotypes. Cam is a shy guy who just wants to have real friends. I still don’t get how his awkwardness makes him gay… And for Eli, I enjoy him more as a support character right now. I feel Eli should end on a high note. K.C.’s plot was cute, but I like that every episode sets up for another one with a more dramatic premise following. Degrassi TNG had its highs in Seasons 2-5, and then dipped, but since Season 11, the plots have become much more relatable again throughout, and enjoyable as well. And note to the Clare bashers: I’m sure if you had a dream co-op job like her you’d be just as excited. She’s 16. Just because she loves her job doesn’t mean she’s riding Asher’s dick.
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^ That exactly. Thanks Max!
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Question!!!!! ok so next week cam skips practise for Maya do you guys think thats what the whole dallas and katie confrontation is about ultimatly leading up to the jake and dallas fight?
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Mmm some of the comments here worry me slightly, and show how important the sexual harassment plot was. Yes, Clare loved her mentor, yes she admired him, became obsessed with him. But that does not justify in anyway his actions, and all calls of “she led him on”, “she gave him the wrong idea”, have clearly missed the point of the episode (even if made as a joke). I think it’s great that they first showed Clare’s enormous passion for the job, how much it meant to her, and then subsequently contrasted that with Asher’s behaviour. It illustrated just quite how tough sexual harassment is: victims don’t speak out for fear of losing their job. I think Degrassi sent out the right message: you have to talk, otherwise it just gets worse. (Darcy, anyone?) Having this happen to Clare, and seeing her get fired just illustrates quite how difficult (and unfair) the situation is.
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Seriously, people saying Clare deserved the sexual harassment or led Asher on are making me sick to my stomach.
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Cam’t read this yet, but, wow. This was really not a good week for me at all in terms of watching Degrassi. After barely being tuned in for Closer To Free, I fell asleep during the last commercial break for Waterfalls Part 1 and accidentally missed Part 2 for the same reason. Not sure what happened, a few of the plots this week had good meaning but just didn’t pull through. Lol it’s all good though. I’ve been watching this show since 2003, one not-so-intriguing batch of episodes isn’t going to turn me away. On that note, I should probably go finish Waterfalls now.
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I was so super excited when I heard them play the old degrassi get in a situation song u know what I’m talking about? Wtg Degrassi I’m really enjoying this season!
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Yes! I know excactly what you’re talking about. When Clare was talking to Alli in the garden. It really brought back memories of the older episodes of TNG.
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Yes yes it did :) made me think of Jimmy Craig Spinner etc :)
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I noticed that too, it was awesome. I know they want to use music to set the tone nowadays, but sometimes Degrassi’s in-house stuff works just as well.
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I think it would have been more exciting to set up KC’s mom with Bianca’s “auntie.” Now *that* would have been fun to watch.
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I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by Waterfalls. I thought the writers would wrap everything up neatly with Asher getting busted for his actions. Instead, they went for the more realistic ending. This episode made my skin crawl. I actually found myself fearing for Clare’s safety when he locked the car doors & grabbed her arm. I also agree with the people that are saying Eli mishandled things when he saw Clare crying. How can you look at your girlfriend in tears & just ignore it, even if she says she’s ok? Granted, she definitely should have told him what happened. To some, it may seem that she was implying his bipolar was a factor in her not telling. But, I don’t think that’s what she meant when she said it would kill him. When something bad happens to someone you love, it does kill you, no matter what the circumatsnces are. I think she genuinely just wants to spare him any more pain. I am worried about what will happen when Eli eventually finds out about the Asher situation. Maybe I’m overanalyzing things, but I feel like it’s a bad omen that Eli stayed silent when Clare said I love you to him.
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Ironic how Darcy blamed an older man for hitting on her when she was really hitting on him and a older man blames Clare for hitting on him when he was the one hitting on her.
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I don’t think you can blame Eli for not speaking up…for one, he’s been taught since he was diagnosed as bipolar to control paranoia and not believe it, therefore he will basically believe that when Clare tells hims she’s ok, then she’s ok. And two, he knows that Clare is an emotional person and with that fake lie about Clare and Alli talking about the Notebook and something else I couldn’t catch makes total sense for Clare to be crying over. However, I do agree with you when you say that Clare shouldn’t have lied about being ok and just told him.
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I brought up something in the Closer to Free episode review thread about the Twitter thing and how it might have been a bit rash. Now I see that it did, in fact, cause major problems for Clare. There’s no doubt she was taken with Asher on a professional level, but it was the result of desire. Not desire in the sexual sense, but that feeling that you “want something so bad you can taste it”. Clare wants to be a journalist more than anything– it’s her lifelong dream. It’s true, she threw herself off balance by putting her dreams above the thoughts and feeling of others, but the Twitter thing was mean spirited and inevitably ruined any chance Clare might have to prove herself when it came down to Asher’s claims. I think that Clare was so dazzled by her internship and her famous boss that she lost sight of the way she was acting around others…but the point is, she wasn’t TRYING to be mean, she was simply oblivious. Connor and Adam purposely set out to “knock Clare down”. Why? Are we suddenly a society that advocates intentionally hurting someone for trivial revenge? What about opening up a dialogue and telling someone that they made you feel shitty as opposed to doing the same thing they did by making them feel shitty? Isn’t that a little hypocritical? I mean, it seems that revenge is just a vehicle for becoming what you didn’t like in the first place– an aggressor. Add in the internet and you can fuel a campaign against someone FOREVER because, as everyone knows, once something goes on the internet, it never dies. This is an interesting commentary on social networking itself. How can we ever really know if what a person posts as “truth” is really truth at all?? One nice thing about the Twitter / Asher hullabaloo was Clare’s reaction. She handled the situaiton with strength and grace. It was refreshing to see.
KC’s plot was totally predictable. As soon as the cell phone rang I knew it had something to do with his dad getting out of jail. Ho hum, Degrassi…but I did enjoy the interaction with the teacher and the kids. And I absolutely ADORE KC’s mom. She’s so damn cute.
Maya and Cam– ADORABLE!! I love these two together. Their bumbling embarrassment has made the relationship totally realistic. I can remember being a Freshman and how nerve wracking it was when I liked a guy and vice versa. Kudos to Degrassi writers for making this fun and somewhat cringe worthy couple a reality!
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I have to agree about Eli; it’s really annoying that he can’t tell that something is wrong with Clare! Honestly, I hope that at some point in the season that Eli will find out, than he will totally freak out on Asher. Not like killing him or anything, but it would be nice to see Asher get some sense beaten into him
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Everybody is on Eli’s shit because? Everyone used to bash him for being so in love and crazy about Clare. Now that he’s sane,yall trippin…for what? I like this new Eli
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there were plenty of people who like the old insane, obsessive eli- they just all got bashed or labeled as a crazy fangirl for saying so
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Okay ixnay on what I said earlier, I was obviously just really tired this week. While yes I found Closer To Free to be somewhat different, Clare’s plot in Waterfalls was amazing! It’s kind of sad to see that Clare looked up to Asher on such a professional basis that the fact that he could possibly have actual feelings for her would have never crossed her mind. Yes she was a bit overtaken by the internship. but her determination has always made her a bit naive. Her getting as the end result and no one believing her was heartbreaking, but it does shine light on some things that actually happen nowadays. Apparently she tries getting even with him in the summer finale, but for her sake I hope sexual harrassment remains the worst of Asher’s actions, because that could end very badly. The guy seems to be unstable.
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*Her getting fired as the end result.. I swear WordPress deletes words sometimes
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Anyone think it was weird that Eli had no idea what a split infinitive was? I mean, I he’s a WRITER. As for his seeming not to care, like it or not, he’s a 17-year old boy who is now on medication that lets him act like a 17-year old boy. He had no idea that Clare was going through the whole sexual harassment/losing co-op business. He thought the framed article would make her happy and that’s where his focus was.
Clare’s plot was handled beautifully, and I did love her reactions to what was happening with her job. It’s only a matter of time until she tells Eli or Ms. O about the harassment. This isn’t the last time we’re seeing this. I’m thinking the storyline will be something similar to the way Paige’s rape was handled. It may be next month, or next year, but Clare will eventually reach a tipping point where she won’t stop until Asher pays.
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this is seriously the BEST episode of degrassi since season 5. SOOO INTENSE
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Anyone else see the photo of Darcy on Clare’s desk?
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Yes, I liked how they put that in the shot as a sort of foreshadow. Excellent episode. I hope Clare tells her parents and gives Darcy a call.
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I think this is the best episode of the season. I got serious chills thinking about Paige’s episode when she was date raped & the aftermath when everyone blamed her for it. This is probably the best acting I’ve ever seen Aislinn do since she started on the show way back in season 6. The scene when she exposed Asher’s lies to the entire office was so intense and emotional. She really hit that moment hard.
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Kind of off topic to the main plots of the episode, but has anyone else noticed that the academic quiz team has continuously failed to answer the question of what country has the most coastline? I thought that was pretty clever on the writer’s part.
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I liked Clare’s plot, but I don’t think it was as good as it could be. A B+ maybe, but not an A+. I personally prefered Heart Like Mine. I thought it was more creepy and emotionally raw. Maybe if Clare had gotten harassed earlier and we got to see her deal with it longer, instead of her being so obsessive, I would have liked her plot better.
The whole Cam/Maya thing was so adorable. I didn’t like the niners much in season eleven, but now I love them.
KC’s plot was… Well, the idea of finding his mom a boyfriend doesn’t seem like it’ll be made into a good storyline. No explanation needed. However, I did find this interesting. All of KC’s relationships and interactions with the other characters were amazing, in my opinion. I love his mom!
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Waterfalls was so good , it’s been two days and i’m still not over it , Eli asks numerous times what’s wrong and Clare said she was okay . He don’t want to pressure her about it , about him not saying i love you back , we already know he loves her and he find out in sabtoge 1&2 .
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[…] episodes of the show, I thought it was at least OK. But I needed a second opinion. So I went to the most popular degrassi fan site on the web and read Kary’s […]
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