Decided to do the long post in the middle this time! Just because!
Episode 6: “Not Afraid”
It’s the Halloween episode, which opens with a lengthy dream sequence where Quinn hallucinates everyone as Zombies, except herself, Brooke and Julian. I love that even in other people’s fantasy, those two are just the best.
Everyone else is taking stock of what’s past, namely, Clay is trying to convince Quinn to take a job in South Africa so that she can clear her head, because she’s having nightmares a lot. She eventually does.
Nathan takes Jamie, Chuck and Madison trick or treating, and he realizes that he’s right where he needs to be hanging out with his kid instead of worrying about basketball, he also talks to a quarterback about signing with him and Clay.
Chase is being kind of a jerk to Mia, who’s trying to reconnect with him. Also, the Halloween party at Tric is an open mic, and Erin, who’s been calling Haley at the crisis center, shows up. Also, Mouth tells Millie that he doesn’t want to get back together and she does not take it well. She goes home with someone else, and he’s really hurt about it.
Julian’s mom shows up and offers to pay for his and Brooke’s wedding and also it turns out that they’re creepy close. So that’s good to know.
Episode 7: “Luck Be A Lady”
OK, so Julian is going to attempt to bond with the guys because he needs a best man for the wedding. Alex suggests that he throw a poker game. It does not go well. Mostly because everyone’s mad at eachother and also Julian is bad at talking to people who he has nothing in common with. Oh, also, Skills buys a manican and names him Lucas. Because of hilarious.
So why is everyone mad? Well, Skills and Mouth are still not quite past the Lauren thing. Clay sent Nathan into a contract negotiation before Nathan was really ready for it, and Nathan was really pissed about it. So there’s that. Fergie and Junk are mad because no one can seem to remember which is which.
Oh also Chase is a collolsal dick to Alex, and it’s an exceptionally bad look on him. Alex winds up crying wishing that he’d just forgive her. She and Julian talk about that and feeling disconnected lately, it’s all very sweet.
Meanwhile, Brooke and Julian’s mom go to a bridal expo, and Mom forces Brooke to do all kinds of tacky bride things that are very un Brooke. She calls Haley to come help, but the vast gulf between what Haley likes and what Brooke likes, plus Haley’s pregnancy hormones, makes that no good. But Julian’s mom also gets really drunk and Brooke has to take care of her.
So there’s something going on there.
Episode 8: “Mouthful Of Diamonds”
OK, so Julian is filming everyone for his documentary. He’s asking them all about their next steps. Jamie’s gotten braces and is really embarassed about it. So Haley’s being really goofy to cheer him up. It’s fine.
Nathan signs the football dude to the Atlanta Falcons. It’s really sweet and it’s nice that Nathan has learned to do a thing, I think. I mean, nice for Nathan, and Clay, who is still have trouble since he was shot and is talking to Will, the ghost who gave him a kidney’s grave worrying about wasting his life.
Mouth and Chase are cleaning out Tric, and it’s a nice little moment. Also, one of Mouth’s friends from the TV station is trying to get him his job back, so that’s nice. Chase also apologizes to Mia for being a dick. Good for you Chase.
Brooke and Julian’s mom continue to feud about wedding planning. After losing everything, Brooke wants to keep it simple. Julian’s mom is willing to pay for a lavish wedding though. In the end they talk it out, at Julian’s encouraging. It’s all very sweet, and it’s nice to see another flawed but loving parent on OTH, we haven’t had one of those since Karen flew the coop. So that’s going to be good I think.
Episode 9: “Between Raising Hell And Amazing Grace”
It’s Thanksgiving and of course everyone’s dinners get messed up, so they all head to Nathan and Haley’s and a comedy of errors begins. Sylvia (Julian’s mom) begins drinking heavily, and she invited a fresh out of prison Victoria with her. Add into the mix a squabbling from Alex and Mia, plus Erin feeling bad about her own family drama and you’ve got an adorably light hang out episode.
There is a touch football game in what I guess is supposed to be Nathan and Haley’s back yard, but doesn’t look like their backyard, but is definitely the Leery’s back yard.
Really, not a lot happens, so I don’t have much to recap. Nathan does admit that he didn’t finish college so he can’t be a full agent, so Clay tells him to finish up. Also, Quinn comes home and it turns out that she’s been stalking Crazy Katie, so that’s something, I guess.
Oh! And Chase keeps Tric open by himself and has his own little pity party. Meanwhile, the whole time I was just humming, “What’ll It Be?” from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, “It’s 5:55 on Thanksgiving, not one customer’s walked through the door…”
Episode 10: “Lists, Plans”
OK, so we’re back to the plot. We open with Brooke having a nightmare about her hillbilly wedding. It’s actually a reasonably adorable scene, which once again takes place in a spot that seems way more Dawson’s Creek than One Tree Hill, but I’ve told myself that I can’t watch or indulge in any further Dawson’s recollections until I push myself through this. When she explains to Julian how sad she is that they’ve had to scale back her dream wedding. Then they find the bucket list that Millie made for Brooke and Julian creates low budget versions of all the things and it’s the cutest thing to ever happen.
Mia and Alex have a bartending competition at Tric, while Erin opens for Kid Cudi. It is also ridonkulously adorable. Alex also tells Chase that she wants to get back together, but not to tell Mia, since they’ve just become friends. Oh boy.
Nathan starts college and his professor is unimpressed by him, and has a chip on his shoulder about athletic scholarships. His professor, by the way, has a point about this, but you know, we’re on Nathan’s side. So while everyone else is at the concert, Nathan stays home and studies with Jamie, who is preparing for a spelling bee. It’s completely adorable.
Quinn tracks down Dan and asks him for murder lessons because she wants to kill Crazy Katie. This seems like, not really in Dan’s wheelhouse, since when he killed Keith it was a split second crime of passion, not a premeditated murder. But he talks her through it with an aim to get her to reconsider. After all that, she decides not do it and throws her gun in the river. But you know, Katie’s back and coming for her. A storm is also coming.
Episode 11: “Darkness On The Edge Of Town”
Partially to spare myself later in the season, I tacked this episode on, and partially, because Springsteen.
So does this bit of melodrama live up to the title of a song that I once describe as close to prayer? Of course not! But it’s still pretty good, as latter day OTH goes. Anyway, a hurricane is passing through town, on the night of Jamie’s spelling bee, which he loses to Madison. He also blows off Nathan and Haley, to ride home with Lauren, Madison and Chuck.
Brooke and Julian are having a fight about staying in Tree Hill or moving back to LA. Brooke storms out and drives into the storm.
Quinn is home alone, and Katie shows up. They have an epic horror movie style battle. Much like Carrie and Jack’s creepy brother, it just does not deliver the way that Crazy Derek did, but, I mean, whatever. It’s fine. Quinn wins and Katie gets carted off. It’s over, probably. I mean, Derek and Carrie came back, so maybe not…
Brooke comes upon Chuck standing idly in the middle of the road, he says there’s been an accident, and it turns out that Lauren’s car has flipped. Chuck clearly has a concussion, Lauren is unconscious and Madison and Jamie are very scared. Brooke gets Madison and Lauren out, and starts cutting Jamie from his place when Julian finds them and then something blows up and the wind up in the water. There’s a split second once they get out where Brooke isn’t waking up and then Julian revives her and everything is fine.
Overall Analysis Of this Arc
Bro, I don’t even know anymore. I mean, it was good to see Dan again, I guess. And Julian’s mom is sort of fun, and Erin’s alright. I just don’t care anymore. I’m trying, really hard, and I refuse to quit, but oof, it’s just that there’s so much, and I don’t have a lot of time. But I’ll finish, I’ll do it, if it kills me!
The Fangirl's Dilemma 