[Episode Update] #4.46: Frozen, Part II

[kira]

It's mighty cold out there, as all of us on the Atlantic seaboard know. But it's also figuratively cold in the hearts and minds of several Schuyler Falls citizens in Episode #4.46, "Frozen" Part II.

• When Martina gets news she doesn't want to hear, she makes a rash request of Mike
• Adele warns Laurie to call off her wedding
• Jem finds Chelsea unable--and unwilling--to listen
• Greg realizes he doesn't know as much about Rena as he thinks
• ...and Jonnie feels the noose tightening when someone reminds him of the past.

This episode is a bit longer than originally intended (and longer than Part I, by a scene anyway). The delay was longer, too, but that was due to some unforeseen circumstances...in particular, the sudden unexpected task of writing my second romance novel, which was completed in less than three weeks! More on that later. Anyway, the book has been published and I'm back focusing on ASF. Here's a teaser:

Spoiler

Laurie’s teeth clench. She walks to her usual chair, kitty-corner from Adele's, and whips the ivory, lace-edged damask napkin from the empty plate while sitting down.*“We've been over this. If you invited me over here to start in on that again, you’ve wasted my time.”

Adele takes a sip of her tea. “You know my feelings are shared by your brother.*We think it is inconvenient for you to go through with this marriage.”

“Inconvenient? Aren’t you the matchmaker who set me up with Victor? Well, you made my bed, now I'm lyin' in it.*Too late for you to complain.”

“I think not.”*

With difficulty, Laurie restricts the signs of her agitation to the cold fingers folding and unfolding the cloth in her lap, hidden from Adele’s canny topaz gaze.*“You promised me,” Laurie says in a low voice that's as steady as she can possibly make it under the circumstances. “You promised me that if I delivered that damn necklace I'd be off your leash.*Does your word count for nothin’?”

“I never said that and you know it.*I said you would fulfill part of your responsibility.*Besides, I don't see the necklace in my hands, do you?”

“That ain't my fault.*If you an' your goons can't finish the deal, that's your problem.*Go club that stupid woman on the head an' take the lousy thing for all I care.*I don’t see what else—”

“You failed to accomplish your goal. That is all I care about.”*Adele's mouth curls in what she probably thinks is a smile.*“So now you need to find another way to satisfy your obligation.,,”

ASF's URL is http://www.skyfalls.com. As always, there's a printable version of the episode available on the site, and both a detailed previous episode recap and a quick summary that will remind you of stuff you need to know for this episode. And of course, we have easily accessed character bios so you can learn more about everyone you come across.

Please let me know your thoughts either here, on our mailing list, or via our feedback form. And don't forget to follow ASF on Twitter: @aboutSkyfalls. Thanks!

[Michael]

No matter the gaps between episodes, or the sometimes-frustrating lack of story progress, I always find myself drawn into the one-on-one interactions in ASF. This episode really spotlighted some powerful ones. I started out a little disengaged, because I don't really 'know' Laurie much -- I know she's had a decent amount of screentime, but it all seems very background to me. But her character was very sharply drawn in her scenes, and the dynamic between her and Adele was gripping. I also thought it was a fantastic choice to put her and Jonnie inside the limo for their conversation. It not only made the scene feel claustrophobic for Jonnie, but they were literally locked inside the life that has both of them trapped in separate ways. It added a tension that a regular conversation wouldn't have had. I know I mentioned last time that I'm finding Jonnie quite relatable and intriguing these days, and that continued in this ep. The way he related to Laurie was surprising but grabbed my attention.

I also found the Mike/Martina scenes captivating. Playing the second one from Mike's POV was a smart move; it allowed for a lot of observation about Martina that all the noise in her head wouldn't have given us room for, and it gave us a 'regular guy's' perspective in a fairly over-the-top storyline. I was annoyed with Martina for being such a harpy to him -- not that I don't understand why or think it's unreasonable -- but appreciated that she fought to keep her wits about her. I just really enjoy getting into the details of these people's lives that make them seem like true, rounded individuals: Mike not being super-religious but wanting his family priest at the wedding, practicalities like that.

And it was nice to see a genuinely sweet moment between Rena and Greg! Not sure if this is the first we've really seen and heard of her siblings, but it was a smooth way of bringing Drew into the mix.

[kira]

Hey thanks, Michael. I'm always psyched to see your feedback, which is so well-considered and illuminating.

Laurie hasn't been focused on very much, and not at all recently, so I certainly don't blame you for not feeling any connection to her prior to this. It's rewarding to know this helped flesh her out a bit. With Chelsea down for the count at least temporarily, we need a peppery gal on hand to spice things up. And as I've mentioned before, Jonnie's situation is moving to the frontburner, so if you enjoy him, you'll hopefully find the next stuff even better. (And I'm so pleased the limo scene worked! That trapped vibe is exactly what I was going for.)

Poor Marty! Yeah, she was jumping all over Mike, who's such a good-natured guy but even he has sensitive spots, and the biggest one to him is his family. So naturall he'll get irritated by Martina's not getting how important their being at his wedding is to him. POV is such an interesting way to explore characters differently, isn't it? Like you I use a strict single POV per scene, and when I have two scenes with the same characters, I generally like to shift to a new POV in order to round things out. Creates aRashomon effect -- like interviewing different witnesses to a crime, everyone has his or her own impression of what's going on.

Cool that you liked the Rena/Greg scene! Happy moments don't come easily to me, heh. We've seen Rena's sister, Jordan, very very briefly -- a cameo, really, when Tristan saw her at the Carlsons' Christmas party and was amused that she was flirting with him). But Drew, though he's been mentioned, is a newcomer. (He got de-SORASed, actually. Way back in the 1st season he was depicted as being in college.) He'll be more important later on in a couple of different plots.

Thank you very much for reading and offering your thoughtful comments, Michael. I know my lapses and slowness are frustrating and I'm just incredibly grateful for anyone who sticks with ASF despite those obvious flaws.