a pointless blog
gathering moss
"I’ll be drinking moon juice with President Jonathon Taylor Thomas, I won’t be writing you no paper check." —John Mulaney
It’s here: the best episode of all time. (Note: unproven) Like the pilot, this episode packs in a TON of story, so this recap is going to be a long one.
1.18 Weapons of Class Destruction
Score: 22
Before we dive in, a quick recap of where we are in the season arc:
Abel Koontz for sure did not kill Lilly Kane but took the fall in exchange for the Kanes paying a giant settlement to his estranged daughter while he died of cancer in prison. Lilly’s time of death was falsified, probably with help from Clarence Wiedman, and Jake and Celeste definitely lied about where they were on the evening of Lilly’s death. Duncan has some sort of obscure (invented) epilepsy that causes fits of blind rage. Two of these were witnessed by others: Logan saw Duncan try to throttle his dad, and Carrie Bishop’s friend’s boyfriend saw Duncan brought into the ER screaming Veronica’s name. Keith found Duncan’s soccer uniform in the laundry the night of Lilly’s murder. So as of right now, all signs point to Duncan as Lilly’s killer.
Oh, and also, Veronica might be Jake Kane’s illegitimate child.
Characters (+3)
Logan (+1)
Mac (+1)
Corny (+1)
Guest Stars (+4)
Jonathon Taylor Thomas (JTT): He plays Ben, an ATF agent, as a mix of Christian Slater's JD from Heathers and Johnny Depp's Tom Hanson from 21 Jump Street.If you don’t know who JTT is, that’s probably because you’re too young to have watched Home Improvement, on which he played the most charismatic of Tim Allen’s three kids. INCREDIBLY FUN FACT: Caz Truman, ex-boyfriend of Sabrina (from the last episode), played the oldest son on Home Improvement. (+2)
Theo Rossi: Norris Clayton; later played Juan Carlos ‘Juice’ Ortiz in Sons of Anarchy. (+1)
Joey Lauren Adams: Ms. Stafford; famously played Amy in Chasing Amy. (+1)
Story: 5/5
We start strong with the cold open revealing that Keith is dating Wallace’s mom (Alicia). There is a literal record scratch.
The story details remain unchanged and are formatted similarly for readability.
Iconic Lines (+6)
I gotta say, Veronica, I’m getting a little tired of doing you favors.
Dream on, Jump Street.
Oh, I will bust him. Be sure of that.
Detention? Me? I think not, Mr. Clemmons.
(clumsily throws throwing star into target’s hand)
Try filling out that form left-handed!
Earth to Mars!
They will have to really speak sharply to me before I will reveal my sources.
Cringe (-1)
Veronica: And what, exactly, are you hoping to see [inside the apartment]? Our good china? The screening room?
Leo: I wanted to get a good, long look at your bedroom ceiling.
GROSS. Leo, she's in high school.
Song of the Episode
A Momentary Thing by Something Happens. This plays during Veronica and Logan’s first kiss. Logan and Veronica scenes always get the best songs.
Outfit of the Episode
WHAT IS THIS. Lime green polo shirt under an argyle vest??? What is Veronica’s thing with argyle? I don’t remember argyle being this popular in the early 2000s.
Anachronism of the Episode
Jump Street. As iconic as it is that Logan calls Ben this, that was an old-ass show in the 2000s (running 1987 to 1991) and wasn’t rebooted until 2012. Logan and Veronica would have been babies when it aired, and it wasn’t a big enough show to end up in syndication. On the other hand, Logan is often the one to reference old entertainment media, so maybe this is just a quirk of his character.
