The 2012 Summer Re-Watch: Everwood "Three Miners from Everwood" Review

I don't know when exactly the television movie disappeared from networks. The suggestion that TV movies disappeared from networks might be lazy or presumptive. CBS airs the odd made-for-TV movie once in awhile. ABC may or may not air a made-for-TV movie in primetime every couple of moon cycles. The Hallmark channel, ABC Family, and Lifetime air enough made-for-TV movies to satisfy whatever audience craves their made-for-TV movies. I remember The WB as a weird network that attempted to satisfy a number of audiences. There were supernatural dramas, sitcoms, family-dramas, and poorly conceived reality programs. Really, it's not unlike the current CW lineup. In 2002-2003, The WB aired random made-for-TV movies after the sweeps period. The network, though, liked to cast certain episodes of their shows as 'event' episodes. This dates back to the fourth season of Dawson's Creek when "Four Stories" was billed as a Winter Event. Perhaps it was just a ratings ploy; maybe executives thought folk would tune in if an episode was labeled an event. The atrocious Joey Potter-gets-mugged episode was also an 'event,' so whatever credibility the network tried to establish from its marketing tool was destroyed as Joey tearfully consoled the mugger-with-a-heart-of-gold-who-has-a-daughter-just-like-herself.

The concept of the 'event' episode only worked so far as Joss Whedon episodes went. For instance, the doubleheader of "Fool For Love" followed by "Darla" was truly worthy of the title 'WB Event.' I can't be sure if "Hush" earned the 'event' tag in its preview, but it would've been apt for "Hush." The concept of the 'event' episode could only sustain a sense of importance for so long, and it wasn't helped when The WB seemingly willy-nilly deemed episodes to be an 'event.' I don't have a photographic memory of The WB because I was young during its early days and still young during its Everwood period. Perhaps an episode of Felicity in which she had trouble finding money to do wash was event; maybe an episode of 7th Heaven in which Lucy wanted to marry for reasons pertaining to intercourse with a man was a WB event; or Reba doing something zany on her sitcom was an 'event', the sitcom also titled Reba.

"Three Miners from Everwood" was definitely a WB Event. I remember the trailer, with its shots of Beau Bridges and James Earl Jones, mixed with shots of the doctors heroically saving lives after a mine explosion, and the WB narrator with the baritone voice uttering, "WB Event." I dreaded the episode ten years ago. Absolutely dreaded it. I was a teenager and anxious to find out what would happen next in the Ephram-Amy saga. I did not want to watch a condensed version of a Hallmark movie. My teenage self didn't hate the episode. I watched it with an open mind. The episode isn't bad but it isn't good either. My opinion of it holds after ten years. It seems like The WB executives told Greg Berlanti that they wanted an episode like this and promised him Beau Bridges and James Earl Jones. "Three Miners from Everwood" resembles a made-for-TV movie. There's a dire situation, a lousy romantic element, and town that comes together for something that previously set them apart.

The Everwood mining community is another fun fact Irv tells the viewer about. The mine closed in 1929 but reopened when one figured the town could use a little mine in their lives. Now, it's a source of employment for many of Everwood's citizens. Among the miners are a woman and two men. There's Daniel, married to a lovely and devoted woman who's always wanted to live by the sea and so he decided to build her a lighthouse; there's Will Cleveland, a musician and jazz aficionado; and there's the wife of County's lowly part-time guidance counselor. We learn about these three miners from Everwood in little stories which involve our beloved characters. Ephram met Will because of a scratch he caused to Will's automobile. Daniel is Harold's neighbor, a man who's even crazier than Andy Brown, according to Harold. Ellie Beals is the wife of the part-time guidance counselor, but her experience is used to define Chris Beals more. Ellie experiences complications getting pregnant because of her work in the mines i.e. being exposed to high levels of carbon monoxide and methane.

The episode allows the show to show off the abilities of their fictional doctors. Harold's been the town doctor for years; therefore, he knows everyone. The guy laying unconscious in front of them isn't an anonymous miner, a patient they'll forget about in 12 hours, but, rather, a vital figure in the community because he wants to build a light house. Similarly, Harold can tell Andy that no one really knows Will. Harold's relationship with the town makes the miners recovery more urgent. When western medicine runs out, i.e. painkillers like morphine, Linda swoops in with eastern practices and soothes pain with acupuncture. Linda's also been in desperate villages in Africa where every medical case is a life-or-death situation. She won't be frazzled by anything, which actually causes her to push and push to such a point it becomes potentially dangerous to the patient. Andy, meanwhile, is capable of anything. Self-doubt separates him from greatness in anything he does. Andy performs brain surgery on the spot, somehow prevents Will from losing his arm and keeps Ellie still and calm, despite the piece of shrapnel sticking out of her abdomen. The three miners' lives are saved through a combination of each doctor's unique abilities to heal.

The story heavily focuses on three characters we never met before, so the writers show the viewer why he or she should care about their fates. Will started tutoring Ephram in playing the piano with the help of Art Tatum records. Ephram watched Will play in awe, especially the way he could use his left hand to manipulate the keys. Of course Will's entire left arm is in jeopardy of being amputated because of injuries sustained after the explosion. Daniel just wanted to bring a piece of a seaside town to his wife so, of course, he's stricken with hemotoma in the brain and likely to die. Ellie wanted to bear children; if she left mining, she'd have a chance. But the explosion sends shrapnel into her abdomen, which several damages her uterus, and thus requires surgery to remove it. The material's enough to cause the viewer to rally around the characters. As a whole, they are not very memorable.

"Three Miners from Everwood" was designed for casual viewers who were drawn in by the 'WB Event' nonsense. The episode isn't for the long-time fans of Everwood. The only new revelation about one of the characters is Linda's hesitance to donate blood. The episode originally aired during sweeps period. The audience learns the essentials about the three doctors and their respective off-springs. Amy's still a mess, Bright's trying to get things right but continues to screw up, and Ephram likes to play the piano and continually works to improve his relationship with Andy. The entire town comes together to finish the light house, which shows the sense of community and fellowship the town is about. I don't know what the ratings were, nor do I know whether or not some people became life-long fans of Everwood after this episode. I just know that I don't particularly like "Three Miners from Everwood."

Michael Green wrote the episode. David Petrarca directed it.

UP NEXT: "The Burden of Truth"--J.K. Simmons guest stars as a mechanic who has the ability to 'see' things, which causes all sorts of chaos in Everwood. Also, Ephram insults Madison's band; and Amy makes a bad choice. Watch it here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030FCR9E

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