WHO'S WHO
Starring
Amanda Bynes (Holly Tyler)
Jennie Garth (Valerie Tyler)
Simon Rex (Jeff)
Wesley Jonathan (Gary Thorpe)
Guest Starring
Michael McMillan (Henry)
Anicka Haywood (Jill)
Scott Stevens (Jamie)
Robin Meyers (Flower Lady)
Written by
Sarah McLaughlin and Lesley Wake
Directed by
Shelley Jensen
SHOW NOTES
One of the most heavily promoted episodes of "What I Like About
You" was shot a mere seven days before it was scheduled to air, so
not a lot about the show was known before it aired. All we know is that
there may be some changes in dynamic on the series regarding the
relationships between the four principals. But it was the focal point of
one of the network's most visible February Sweeps promotions, conducted
in conjunction with America's Dairy Farmers. The Chocolate Milk Mustache
Kiss Watch and Win Contest challenged viewers to watch the WB Friday
shows on Valentine's Day and discover who got a chocolate milk kiss (it
turned out to be Sarah Tobin of "Greetings from Tucson"). The winner of the contest will receive a trip to the taping of a
WB Show, and 500 entries also received a special WB Friday poster.
Sarah McLaughlin and Lesley Wake return
incidental characters to the series for the first time, bringing back
Anicka Haywood (Jill, "The Other Woman"), Michael McMillan
(Henry, "Girls Night Out"), and Scott Stevens (Jamie,
"The Parrot Trap"). Additionally, this episode marks the
beginning of a two-episode arc that will end with "The
Breakup".
At one point Gary and Jill eat candy out of a wooden
moose called the Original Alaskan Poop
Moose. They're hand crafted and have been featured nationally on
"The Rosie O'Donnell Show", "Good Morning America"
and "To Tell the Truth".
During the production of this episode, E!
Entertainment Television made a set visit. It was telecast live on
"E! News Live" on Thursday, February 6, during camera
blocking.
OUR REVIEW/SYNOPSIS
If it wasn't for the show's focus shift away from slapstick and mayhem,
we'd probably be discussing a story involving either a live commercial
for some patent medicine or an out-of-control conveyor belt at a candy
factory. But in the creators' quest to broaden the appeal of "What
I Like About You", they've seen fit to notice that February 14, the
most romantic day of the year, falls on a Friday this year. And they've
noted the occasion as series story editors Sarah McLaughlin and Lesley
Wake have crafted a funny, sweet Valentine which has seen not one but
two potential romances begin to bloom. But all is not red roses this day
of love, as it appears that Jeff and Val are heading down Lonely Street
to Heartbreak Hotel, as they will be splitsville come February 28 and
the eighth consecutive new episode, "The Breakup" (formerly
known as "Healing Val").
It all started quite innocently, with Holly
thinking that Jeff was going to pop the question and ask Val to marry
him. He innocently wanders into Val's bedroom looking for a ring so he
can get her size, and tells Holly he's been looking to present her with
a ring, and that he's been thinking about this purchase for two months.
Holly puts two and two together...what ring do you give a girl on
Valentine's Day that it takes two months to save up to buy? Bingo.
Before too long, Holly brings Val a flotilla of Modern Bride magazines
(and some legal info for those pre-nups -- smart gal, that Holly Tyler)
under the presumption that V-Day is zero-hour for Jeff and Val's
engagement. The two lovebirds are joined by double-daters culled from
other episodes: Gary takes Jill (Anicka Haywood), that knockout from
"The Other Woman", and Holly is cornered into asking out Henry
(Michael McMillan), the guy from the men's room of "Girls Night
Out". During dinner, our junior lovebirds talk about how they would
propose, and even Henry's comment that he would propose to Holly in a
garbage dump brings a laugh from Holly, a laugh Henry is starting to
grow to love. (What have you been waiting for, Henry? We've loved it
from Day One!) It all ends very sweetly for Gary and Jill, and Holly and
Henry...Holly in particular, because she's bemused that she's starting
to fall for "someone who at some point in his life has put on a
magic show".
However, the buildup to Jeff's presentation of
his Valentine's Day gift to Val is too much for her to bear, as she runs
to the restroom to throw up. Jeff then shows Holly the rings he got for
Val -- earrings. Turns out he only wanted to buy Val a nice ring, but
was talked out of it by a jeweler who sold him on the fact that nobody
buys a ring for their significant other who won't get married. And
marriage is the furthest thing from Jeff's mind at this point, and he
flat out tells Val he's afraid of commitment after seeing friends,
coworkers and even his parents (referring back to "The Cheerleading
Incident") splitting up after deceptively looking marriages. The
episode ends in atypical fashion for WILAY, with Jeff and Val stuck in
the tunnel after having a spat about Jeff not wanting to get married --
and of course, Val's all for the idea of marriage. They sit in silence,
wondering what to do now, as they ride in the tunnel of so not love.
We know what's going to happen from the title
of the February 28th episode -- "The Breakup". Jeff and Val
agree to stop seeing each other. Holly sees Val a little too optimistic
over the split (she's probably reasoning that Jeff's right in his
decision not to get married) and tries to get Val to face the fact that
it's a breakup, after all.
Now that "What I Like About You" has
given Sarah McLaughlin and Lesley Wake, the two writers of this episode,
the title of "Story Editors", they're getting down to some
serious business, and are doing things no other writer has done on the
series yet. First, the duo is judiciously beginning to reintroduce
characters from previous episodes as possible romantic matches for Holly
and Gary. If Jeff and Val's split is protracted, might we see that
"Other Woman" Dana creep back into Jeff's life? Or could Val
start to grow closer to Vic, her boss at Harper and Diggs? By building
continuity and history, and referring to previous episodes, McLaughlin
and Wake are using the past to build credibility for these characters
and flesh them out in several directions. The ordinary joe Holly meets
at the theme restaurant could wind up being her #1 guy. As Chuck Berry
once said at some wedding, "It goes to show you never can
tell". Also, they've ended tonight's episode with what to some
casual viewers would be an open-ended mini-mid-season cliffhanger. Do
Jeff and Val split? We know they do, but the real question is can some
miracle -- maybe one named Holly -- get them back together again? You
can't really get more "adult and advanced" than the
possibility of Val and Jeff on the rocks, and tonight "WILAY"
ceased being a "kiddie show" once and for all.
Now, for the benefit of those of you reading
this on Amanda Bynes NOW! rather than on the "Valentine's Day"
recap page on WILAY at ABNOW, another reason "WILAY" ceased
being a kiddie show tonight is that Amanda Bynes gave us a sweetly
romantic Valentine's Day treat sweeter than all those sugar hearts with
words printed on them. Falling in love with Henry was something totally
unexpected for Holly, but after the lengths she went through to meet
some guys, it was nice to see her develop a relationship without having
to resort to joining an animal activist group or steal somebody's cell
phone. Not to mention the fact she had to dress up for tonight's date.
This is a girl who was peeling paint off of walls back at age 14, when
she was appearing in party garb at premieres like "Rugrats in
Paris" and on the stage of "The Amanda Show". Now, at
almost 17, the young lady still has it, as she appeared tonight in a
chocolate brown dress that basically screams, "Be mine! NOW!"
Amanda Bynes is one heartstopping young lady.
Unfortunately, lead time is working against
WILAY, with the scheduling of "Holly's First Job" as the next
episode this coming week, and the continuation of this episode for the
28th. That means since January 10th they will have shown eight firstrun
episodes in a row -- a third of the season -- with only five more to go
for the rest of the season. We hope viewers will see beyond the
plate-juggling and the mayhem next week and settle down on the 28th for
the real "What I Like About You"...the one it's evolved into,
the one that more TV critics are staring to take notice of, the one more
journalists are speaking highly of...and most importantly of all, the
one that's getting the best ratings it's gotten since its premiere
weeks.
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EPISODE IMAGES
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Holly's at home reading while Jeff and
Val are out at a dance exhibition. |
When Jeff starts dropping the Igpay
Atinlay, you know something happened on the cabride hime. |
Or, "ome-hay". |
Holly gives a sly smile, and wants Val
to tell her just what went on. |
Holly assures Val that she's cool with
the two of them talking about sex. |
Except when it's Holly's turn to talk. |
Holly notices Jeff skulking around in
Val's jewelry box, looking for a ring so he can see what size
she wears. |
He's looking to get Val a ring for
Valentine's Day he's been waiting two months to buy, which to
Holly means it's an engagement ring. |
Jeff hopes he can trust
Holly with the knowledge that he's buying "a ring" for
Val...but it's a faint hope. |
So Holly locks up tight and swears to
Jeff she won't tell. |
This being "What I Like About
You", it won't last long. |
But after Jeff leaves, she has a
change of heart. |
So she's open for business -- the
business of gossip! |
She interrupts Val, who I think is
taking a shower, and tells her... |
...that she has big news, only she
can't tell what it is. |
But it's such good news! |
Holly consults her magic mirror for advice,
and then acts on it. |
She tells her that Jeff is going to
ask for her hand! (That's only what she thinks!) |
Just wait'll Jeff finds out! |
Holly is lunching with Gary and his
friend Jill, whom he met after he saved her boss from choking. |
They have a Valentine's Day date
planned, but Gary's fretting because he doesn't think he's
romantic enough. |
He wants Holly to come along with them
just so he doesn't act the fool. |
Although Holly has a secret
wish for the evening. Isn't it romantic? |
Henry, who's been overhearing the
whole thing, thinks he's a good fellow who could take Holly out
on the date. |
Gary wants Holly to go along with it,
more for him than for her. |
Holly agrees, and will do it under one
condition... |
...that it not be referred to as a
date. A dateless date. |
Nervous prospective bride to be Val
summons the spirits to ward off the engagement night jitters. |
Which Holly promptly
takes note of. |
Holly shows Val a sheath of bridal
magazines. |
...and a legal magazine in case she
may have to sign something before the night is out. |
They ooh and aah over the bridal duds. |
Holly wonders about hoe big the ring
is going to be, but Val says that doesn't matter as long as
there's love behind it. |
Right, Holly? |
No matter if it's small or
large...Val's getting engaged! |
So here are your dates for the
evening...Henry, Holly, Jill and Gary. |
Henry gives his non-date a pair of
roses, one red and one white, with the stems entwined. |
Holly watches as Gary mangles sweet
talk to Jill. Too bad there's not any food around. |
Meantime, Val's looking for that ring. |
The talk now turns to how the junior
dates would handle their own proposals. |
Gary thinks it would be romantic to
ask for Jill's hand while Free Willy jumped over them on the
beach. |
Henry has the sad duty to inform Gary
that Willy is lying near death in Norway. What a happy thought! |
Holly beams as Henry says he wants to
ask Holly to marry her in a dump, because later in life it would
make Holly laugh when she's blue. (Right now, brown will do.) |
After watching Val fork a piece of
cheesecake (based on Holly's suggestion),
he announces there's something he wants to bring up. |
He brings a jewelry box out of his
pocket, says he loves her, and begins to present... |
Actually, Val has a little something
she'd like to bring up, too. |
Holly watches sister head for the
bathroom. |
Jeff wonder why Val would throw up. He
shows Holly the gift earrings. |
Earrings? Holly doesn't understand. |
After all, everyone knew Jeff was going to propose, right? |
Val's doing cleanup after barfing. |
Holly finds it odd that Val's brushing her teeth in the
restroom... |
...and odder still that she's got an extra toothbrush. |
Val's worried about how she's going to
answer Jeff's proposal after throwing up. |
Holly tells Val not to worry... |
...because there was no proposal. |
Holly tells Val that in the mystery
box was a pair of earrings, so no proposal. |
Now who could have placed those
thoughts of marriage in her pretty little head? Hint: she also
has a pretty little head. |
Val thinks the vomitus was a sign that
she's not ready to go through with it. |
So Holly encourages her to just put it
out of her mind, finish dinner and enjoy a weekend with Jeff in
Vermont. |
But Holly still needs to know about the guy with the twisted
roses, and if it's really love. |
Stuck in the auto tunnel, Val tells Jeff about how Holly
thought he was going to propose. |
Which elicits laughter from Jeff, because he's not the
marrying typel |
In fact, he's light years away from being married, maybe
even further. |
Gary thinks he was a flop on his date with Jill cause he's
not romantic. |
Jill, though, takes fun over romance anyday. |
Gary presents her with a keepsake souvenir of their first
date: the ticket subs from "Bob the Builder on Ice". |
And Jill gives Gary a deluxe poopin' moose! |
Valentine candy from the heart -- well, not in this case,
but you get the idea. |
Henry walks Holly back to 34C. |
She laughs at the story of the banjo
player on the subway, and his inflated claims that he was Jesus.
(There's that laugh again!) |
Holly thanks Henry for a lovely
Valentine's Day date. |
That's right...date. |
Holly sweetly kisses her date goodnight. |
But things aren't going too well in the outbound tunnel, as
Jeff tries to explain the source of the traffic delay. |
Jeff's seen too many marriages -- including that of his
parents -- go up in smoke to know that it's a good thing. |
But Val wants to get married, have it be legal and all of
that. |
Val asks, Jeff, "What do we do now?" Yes, what...? |
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