The teenagers speak a sophisticated language; they use advanced vocabulary. The writers liked to show off their education through Dawson's Creek dialogue but they never strayed from the essential emotions of their characters. The teenagers get hurt easily. They cry. They laugh. They sometimes launch into monologues. They also need a support system. No matter how grown up they try to act, like Jen's misguided thought that she'll be able to live alone at sixteen, or Joey's tough exterior of independence and strength. Joey and Jen want to protect themselves, so they build walls. Pacey broke down in "Uncharted Waters" when he carried his drunken father to a beach, and he told his father everything he's wanted to say to him since he was a little boy. Dawson's too stubborn to admit why he doesn't want his mother moving to Philadelphia; his parents break-up becomes a day-to-day reality for him.
Joey and Bessie benefited the most from the presence of their father. Mike's plans for The Ice House would free the Potters from their debt. The Ice House would become the number one place for good food and good entertainment in Capeside. Mike's re-introduction into society was met with hesitance but the family quickly overcame the glares and stares and whispers behind their backs. Dawson spotted Mike dealing in the penultimate episode but kept the secret to himself. In the finale, the Capeside police have staked out The Ice House and Dawson feels torn between telling and not telling. Things get worse when The Ice House is lost in a fire started by rival drug dealers.
The swiftness of the drug war and the burning of The Ice House seems forced and contrived, a choice made only because it is the season finale and shit needs to go down. Dawson tells Joey the truth about what she saw. Joey refuses to believe her boyfriend and says they're relationship won't survive if he persists in saying it. Dawson thinks the truth is worth the risk. Joey and Dawson watched The Age of Innocence in the teaser and talked about unrequited love, sad love stories, and so on. Joey liked sad stories because characters loved someone regardless of the circumstances whereas Dawson liked happy stories because they ended with two people happily in love. That's foreshadowing the dramatic final scene of the finale.
Joey decides to wear a wire when she asks her dad for the truth about his drug-dealing. Dawson and his parents accompanied Joey to the police station where her options were discussed. The experiences for
Dawson and his parents were different than Joey's. Later, Mitch told Gail how glad he was that they were both there for Dawson when he needed them, that he thought of it as a sign they should get back together and she should not move to Philadelphia. Meanwhile, Joey's life is drastically changing again. There is no support system for her. She thinks she is betraying her dad by turning him in. Mike tells his daughter that he's weak when he confesses as a reason why he regressed. Joey watches his father leave in the custody of the police. And then she tells Dawson she'll never forgive him for what he did and that she wants to forget him.
Katie Holmes brought the emotion and pathos to the storyline. The conclusion to Mike's arc felt hollow. Perhaps it's because there wasn't enough time spent with him and Joey. The few scenes in which Joey contemplated the normal life she would have now were the best parts of the arc. The conclusion was designed to break Dawson and Joey up again, too, even though Dawson didn't behave badly or make up the drug dealing thing. Leery tried to help; it was one of his most genuinely helpful and selfless acts this season, and he got screwed for it. The writers succeeded in making Dawson sympathetic at least, but it won't last. Oh no, it will not last at all.
The Joey/Dawson/Mike storyline isn't too big of a problem, though it's inevitably forgotten by the series. Mike becomes an off-screen reference who Joey thinks about every now and again, and there isn't a ripple effect from the final two scenes. The biggest problem in the finale is the depiction of Jen, which I went on and on about three weeks ago in the Abby Morgan review. Jen was the cool girl the last two weeks. In the finale, she's suddenly suicidal and near-tears in every scene. Jack's playing the role of a helpline volunteer. During the fire, Jen looks like she wants to walk into the flames and burns, which she later sort of confirms but she adds she's just unhappy and not actively trying to die. Jack's concerned and frankly tells her the truth: she needs a home, she needs her grandmother, she needs stability, and she needs to feel love. Jack knows how numbing hating one's self can be and he won't watch Jen continue to hate herself.
Grams and Jen finally reconcile in the last act. Jen lists three things she needs in order for their reunion to be pleasant and lasting, last of which is a room for Jack, but the first two are about respect and communication. Grams gushes just to have her granddaughter home. Grams understood the error of her ways and apologized; Jen finally stops being a teenage drama queen and understands the necessity of Grams in her life. Jen had a strange and inconsistent journey in season two. I won't repeat the many words I wrote three weeks ago, but the final storyline of Jen's represented her strange and inconsistent journey. I don't think Kevin Williamson ever figured out this character.
Pacey and his father reconcile as well but not without a struggle. Mr. Witter insults his son's pain over Andie's departure. Pacey's told to focus on school and man up. Father and son get physical too. Pacey admitted his need for his father earlier in the season. Pacey cannot communicate the need to his father because his father won't listen. The two come to peace with another. A conversation with Andie made Mr. Witter realize the depth of his son's pain, so on a sun-drenched morning in Capeside, Pacey's father apologizes. Pacey hugs his father and weeps about how much he misses Andie. Pacey would've been lost without Andie if not for his father realizing the mistakes he made and his attempts to make up for many times he wasn't around when his son needed him. The most triumphant moment of the season is reconciliation between father and son.
And so here ends the 2012 Summer Re-Watch of Dawson's Creek. The season's not the smoothest arc-wise. It's broken up into three distinct acts, so the whole feels scattered; however, season two is the show's strongest season. There are good-to-terrific episodes, terrific character moments, great scenes of Dawson being a jackass, and Katie Holmes is never better than in season two. I forgot how consistently good Kerr Smith was throughout the season, but I was disappointed to remember how involved Pacey is with Andie because his characterization suffers as she somewhat becomes him. I felt more disappointment in seeing how lousy Jen's portrayed, how scattered and inconsistent the character is. I felt especially disappointed that Rachel Leigh Cook stopped by for one episode; my memory betrayed me, as I thought she was around for 2 or 3 episodes.
I'd like to stick to my word and declare that I'll never write about another season of Dawson's Creek again; however, I quite enjoy writing about this melodramatic teen soap. I do think this must be the end of the line, though.
Greg Berlanti wrote the finale. Kevin Williamson left the series after season two to work on his short-lived ABC drama Wasteland. Berlanti ran the show in seasons three and four, if I'm not mistaken, before he left the series. Season 3 is a good season and season 4 is decent. The show goes to hell when Kapinos takes the reins for the college years.
THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE YEAR
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