Where is Marissa when all of this is happening? Drunk at home, of course! Her mom is out of town, doing research for the new magazine. Personally, I think that Julie wanted an excuse to get out of Newport and get her another little piece of Jimmy Cooper, but her absence means Marissa has free reign over the house. She's dancing around in her camisole (it looks like Mischa might have decided to eat something in the last couple of months, because she actually had some shape in her boobs), having a screwdriver and playing her music as loud as she wants to. Things are going fine, except that Caleb has decided he wants to, you know, act like a father. He knocks on her door, and then walks in when there is no answer.

Although she has spent most of the summer walking around in a bikini that is far more skimpy than her nightshirt, Marissa suddenly gains some modesty when Caleb walks in. He tells her she has to go to school, but she says she is sick, i.e. she is just skipping shcool. Thank God somebody in this town is doing normal teenage activities, right? Caleb doesn't make a fuss and we soon learn why Marissa was so preoccupied. She calls Alex, and it turns out that they have been "hanging out all week". I guess that makes sense. After all, she did spend a drunken evening in her living room sharing suggestive looks. Maybe I need a little more feminine insight, but what exactly did Alex and Marissa find in common that they would hang out every day of the week. I just don't see Alex getting excited about her next pedicure. Whatever, we all know they just sit around and get drunk together. It's really the only thing Marissa is any good at.

The rest of our teenagers are back at Harbor, discussing various topics. Lindsay is complaining to Ryan how her relationship with Caleb is going. It's not going well because, well, she doesn't speak with him. This girl obviously hasn't been around Newport for very long. If she wanted to get to know him, why doesn't she just go to his office and barge in. Caleb's a dick, but he's not going to have his own daughter arrested.

In the cafeteria, Summer and Zach are grabbing a cup of coffee when Summer notices that it looks like Seth is not enjoying himself. Again, I say he is becoming reacquainted with his inner dork. Summer needs to know what is going on, so she sends Zach over to investigate, which turns out to be one of the dumbest things she has ever done in her life. In the process of trying to help Seth through his difficult time, Zach gets lured in by the process of something that will serve a higher power. We call that higher power Seth's plan at an original comic book. Oh comics! The perfect excuse to ignore the hottest girl in school! Good thing there aren't any cooler people around in this school that would snatch her up as soon as she is neglected.

Have you ever noticed how you can't get a handle on what is going on during the school day for these people? They seem to come and go as they please. Case in point we have Ryan Atwood, who apparently took his lunch break to see Caleb Nichol at the Newport Group offices and pull out some of that excellent sanctimonious attitude we have all been trained to vomit as we hear it coming on. Seriously, what was the point of this interaction? We know Ryan hates Caleb and Caleb shares that same sentiment. We know they are going to clash over Lindsay, so you don't have to spend more than thirty seconds establishing that fact. And what kind of lunch break does this guy get that he can travel around Newport bothering executives. And finally, what kind of jerk is he that he visits the Newport Group and doesn't say "Hey!" to Kirsten when he has the chance? Chances are she is having some issues with her husband, and Ryan's power knows no bounds. He was able to guilt her out of her own closet, he might even get her to stop drinking.

Posted by J-Unit on January 28, 2005 2:11 AM