Writer
Jill Gordon
Director
Scott Winant
Air Dates
2/27/90, 7/31/90
Guest Stars
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Writer
Director
Air Dates
Guest Stars |
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Patricia Arquette as Stephanie; Corey Parker as Lee Owens; Shawn Levy as Robert
Synopsis
Melissa and Lee break up.
Summary
Melissa and Lee have acquired a stray dog named Lou. After another Fairfield project meeting at the Steadman home, the women sit around and discuss the state of their sex lives. While Susannah and Gary try to steal a few minutes for themselves, Emma starts crying and has to be pacified with Dudley Turtle, but while Gary is gone, Susannah falls asleep. Lee and Melissa go out on the town with some of his younger friends, Stephanie and Robert, and even though Melissa is yawning, they end up going out to another club afterwards. While there, Melissa is trampled, thrown up on, slammed into, and insulted by the bartender. Falling asleep at D.A.A. the next day, Melissa and Michael trade stories of their evenings. There are a series of interview clips asking people on the street what their opinions on sex are. Susannah and Gary try to carve out a few minutes for each other, but Gary steps on Dudley Turtle as he's carrying Susannah to the bed, smashes his head into the wall and begins spurting blood from his forehead. Lee is invited out with guys from work to see a band and he calls Melissa to invite her, but she wants to stay in and they engage in several rounds of "Oh no, you first, I insist." Nancy finds some issues of Playboy under a floorboard in Ethan's room and Elliot is delegated to speak with him. Lee returns from the club and Melissa gives him the cold shoulder until he teases her into getting into a huge water fight and they passionately make love. Elliot arranges a romantic, relaxing bath for Nancy, but she isn't quite ready for sex yet after the operation. Gary does his very best to get Emma to sleep and she finally responds to "Wooly Bully." Meanwhile, Dudley Turtle begins rolling toward the bedroom to the tune of "Jaws" and sends Gary flat on his back. Melissa and Lee experience more scheduling conflicts between a ski trip he's been invited on and Melissa's Mom's birthday party. They start making love, but Lee backs off and Melissa has a vision of all the friends sitting around and chuckling over their predicament. The next morning, Melissa and Lee blow up, wondering if the previous night was symptomatic of something deeper. Melissa finds herself discussing it with Stephanie. Elliot finally talks to Ethan about the Playboy issues before apologizing to Nancy for moving a little too quickly and they end up making love. Lee returns to the apartment and he and Melissa apologize. Gary exiles Dudley Turtle to the trash pile, but locks himself out of the house. The documentary camera finally catches Melissa and as she fumbles through the question "Is sex important to a relationship?" she realizes that things are already over between her and Lee, but they just haven't accepted it yet. That night she falls apart some, tells him to go on the ski trip, and they break up. A montage of scenes follows--Michael, Hope, and Janey playing on the bed, Nancy and Elliot eating takeout in the kitchen in their bathrobes, Susannah and Gary, collapsed after sex, and Melissa standing alone outside the loft.
Notes
Music
Cole Porter's "(Let's Do It) Let's Fall in Love" plays over the opening
Gary sings a few phrases of "Woolly Bully" (made famous by Sam the Sham and the Pharoahs) to Emma to try to get her to sleep.
Cindy Isaacs has identified the jazz music playing over the credits at the end of the episode: "It is an old standard called "When I Grow Too Old To Dream". (I think that it is Nat King Cole, but don't quote me yet- I have to check). It used to be almost impossible to find, but I can tell you that it is available on the "Northern Exposure" TV show soundtrack CD (I guess that those directors liked it too !), and that CD can be found pretty easily.
Fashion
Melissa's one earring appears.
Quotes
"Gary and I used to have sex. Now we have Emma." --Susannah
--"I miss sex." --Susannah
--"I miss my feet." --Hope, hopelessly pregnant
--"Dad, what's 69?" --Ethan
--"Uh...that's the year the Mets won the World Series." --Elliot, ever quick on his feet
--"Did Melissa always have a voracious appetite for sex? Don't answer that." --Susannah
--"No. Of course, that had nothing to do with me." --Gary
Analysis