by Brian L. Lamkin
It's Christmas-time, and Gabe's hopes are soaring when it seems like Dominic might give him a second chance; Anna is falling when past decisions come back to haunt her. Meanwhile, Sam and Charlie put on a Secret Santa party for the GSA.
After a bit of a break from my reviews, it's time to get stuck back in again, and what better place to start than the ever-popular Pathways. While this season started off a bit slowly for my liking, with some unfocused plots and jumpy character development, things really started to slot into place about six episodes in, and we've been seeing some good quality drama in recent weeks. Let's jump back in with episode nine, then!
And it's a Christmas episode! Bloody hell. This is just a pet peeve of mine, but I find the way most American shows treat Xmas episodes as an absolute cheesefest of the highest order. I just hope to goodness that Pathways doesn't fall into this trap, because I'd hate to drop it some marks just because I'm a curmudgeonly old bastard. Bah, humbug! Gabe's on good form as we open, however, with Lamkin's trademark snappy dialogue leading to some great little one-liners. There's also some good little moments of awkwardness as James watches the Anna/Gabe Xmas rituals in full effect, just to drive home the point that they're far from being a happy family just yet.
Act I brings us back to Brighton Academy, with Gabe hard at work at the Banner as Mr Greyson swings by to see how he's doing. There's a reference to Jacob before Greyson tells Gabe that news of his complicated situation at home is spreading round the school, as such rumours are wont to do in the gossip-hungry academic environment. Greyson seems concerned that Gabe's work is slipping outside of the Banner offices, and it's only a timely arrival from Jacob that gives Gabe chance to extricate himself from the situation. Jacob just wants to get Gabe to admit how he feels, but Gabe's still cruising down a river in Egypt (think about it!) so that conversation's a bit of a non-starter. Shifting scenes to pick up the lovely Alanna (and yes, I am going to keep calling her that) in the middle of rehearsal, sneaking out for a stress relieving cigarette just as Parker shows up, and he flexes his Flirt Muscles a bit more. Oo, drama. Alanna's brilliantly wordy retorts to Parkers 'Me Tarzan, you Jane' approach to things is a great way to show how different they are, but as she exits it's clear things are a bit one way between them. So far. Catching back up with Anna and James for a spot of lunch, but James is still feeling a little shut out of Anna's life. He wants to help with setting the new clinic up, but he seems to be forgetting how used Anna is to sorting things out without needing a man around. Making a previously independent woman adjust to life with a man about the house isn't something that happens overnight, which James would do well to remember! Gabe exits the Banner office and (literally) runs into Dominic, so it's time for one of those cute awkward conversations as Gabe trips over himself again. Dom seems in an amiable mood, though, and agrees to Gabe's suggestion that they should 'talk' about things with the holidays coming up. So you just know that's not going to end well.
Act II opens with Sam and Charlie and their GSA meeting, which seems to be steadily increasing in membership as they plan their Secret Santa gifts. There's a little Jewish joke (shades of South Park in Charlie's reply) before the meeting disbands, and the strong friendship between Sam and Charlie gets some screen time. These two make a great double act - Charlie's pop culture retorts to Sam's camp quips make for some good dialogue. Thing is, Charlie knows the GSA isn't taken that seriously at the Academy, and in telling Sam she accidentally mentions his currently 'confused' sexual preferences. Sam's indignant exit says a lot more than words ever could - she's right, and they both know it. Gabe's out shopping with Mark and Julie, the trio experiencing some capitalism burnout when Gabe drops in having spoken to Dominic. The others try to talk to him about it, but Gabe would rather throw himself into some shopping instead, highlighting his nerves about the whole thing. Charlie bumps into Parker, and her giddy attitude round him is waving a big old 'I've Got A Crush On You' flag. You know, beating up somebody who tried to date rape you'll have that effect on a girl. Parker doesn't seem that interested, but everyone watching can see a good little Parker/Alanna/Charlie triangle developing here.
With the Xmas party at the Blaze opening Act III, Charlie manages to make up with Sam (isn't it great how it's a 'huge fight' one moment and forgotten the next? You may complain, but I find that's exactly what teenagers are like!) before we join Anna and James at home. James is still folding his arms and pouting at being left out, and now it's turning into a 'when are we going ot get married?' line of logic. Anna's being backed into a corner here, and I don't think James is going to like it when she finally comes out swinging. Parker shows up at Alanna's rehearsal (hey, isn't that considered stalking? Kind of ironic, Parker having accused Charlie of the same thing earlier!), and Alanna talks him into babysitting Lynn, the company's resident diva. Dominic shows up at the Blaze and gives Gabe a first edition copy of 'On The Road,' which is Gabe's favourite book as I recall, so things get all teary-eyed and sentimental as we head into the final Act.
Gabe is all dizzy over what to do now that Dominic's made the first step towards patching things up, and Sam sneaks over to speak to Julie. Things are still a little awkward between them, but Julie's bought Sam a friendship ring which seems to elicit the right response from Sam, so things look like they're progressing well between those two. Meanwhile, Parker is being subjected to Lynn ranting about bossy boots Alanna, in that way that prima donnas always do about people who don't fall at their feet. Parker makes it clear he's not going to do that, which seems to please Alanna - maybe this was all a test to see whether his approaches towards her were genuine or not? Gabe's night gets a little more complicated when Jacob shows up, but in a rare display of backbone and willpower he tells Jacob flat out that it's over between them. How long Gabe's resolve will last is another matter, but it's good character growth to see him take this stand after recent lapses in self-control. Parker whisks Alanna off for dinner, her defences gradually wearing down, but the episode ends on a sad note as Anna tells James she's heading off to a conference in Chicago for a few days, hoping that the break will do them both good. James as good as pines like a pet as she hangs up, and that's where we leave things.
So, Pathways continues to stay on the consistently good standard of storytelling recent episodes have demonstrated. Nothing too earth-shattering going on here, but solid progress on the major stories of the season, some great dialogue and plenty of instances where a character's feelings are demonstrated more in what they don't say, showcasing an excellent sense of development and growth as well as the writing skill of Lamkin in getting this across. The longer scenes help this enormously - the show's earlier episodes suffered from being very jumpy, but now we've settled into a style that suits the way Lamkin tells his stories perfectly. And points for resisting the urge to end on a cheesy musical montage or some other schmaltzy Xmas-episode cliche.
ZPM RATING:
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