So after dinner, Lee and Amanda are together again! They’re two peas in a pod at station one! Which makes it look weird that they never seem to sit together when they are with the group! and.. it makes it strange that Lee was so annoyed Amanda was coming along for the training..[remember that? way back at the beginning?!] this episode is weird!
Anyway, as Amanda packs for her departure the next day, Lee explains to Amanda how Dodge City works.. she is excited to be doing it. I think Lee is sad here that circumstances mean that Amanda isn’t going to do Dodge City after all – but he can’t tell her that yet (what do you think of this rationale behind not yet telling her? does it make sense to you?!)
His encouragement of Amanda here is sweet:
Amanda: Oh well, I’ll just do the best I can!
Lee: I know you will. [Lee must be thinking: you won’t have the opportunity to 
aaaand… he could feel sad because it’s his fault- because he thinks he is the target of the assassin..]
Sooo what’s going on with Lee here- why do you think he asks Amanda if she is sure she wants to do Dodge City?? like he is giving her an out?? when it is clear she wants to do it?? I’ll have a guess.. maybe Lee wants Amanda to say no to it, so he doesn’t have to tell her she isn’t going: when she really wants to so sad!
Amanda: no no no no. ..No listen. Mr Melrose arranged for me to take this course, and I’m not gonna disappoint him. Nothin’s gonna stop me from going through Dodge City!
Lee gives a little smile at this.. IMO, as if to say- noooo you won’t disappoint him! ( because you’re not going).
Hey I’m thinking the next time we see Amanda get any training is in Over the Limit. Would you agree? can you think of anything earlier? It’s going to be interesting to see as we continue to walk through the episodes if her training comes up again..
Back to the downtowner, and the baddies are making their move.. they are suspicious that the change of plans means the agency is close to catching the Pavlova. New plan! Vardosk explains Gregorian (now dressed as a cop) will stop Amanda on the highway and assassinate her on the way to Dodge City.
As back up, Vardosk and Pavlova will be at Dodge City waiting.. [So they expect that if Amanda fends off this first assassination attempt she will simply turn up at Dodge City as if nothing happened??] Okay.. all set for the big showdown!
The next day….[Where did Lee sleep last night?! again!!]
Ouch! Amanda is the only recruit not going to Dodge City, because she is the only recruit they know isn’t the russian plant ( ohh so they are russian.. did we already know that?) Billy and Lee are discussing how Amanda isn’t going to be happy to hear she isn’t going to Dodge City.
My goodness, Lee is so empathetic with Amanda. he doesn’t usually care what she will or will not ‘be happy with’ maybe in season 3 onwards.. – just think of how he destroys her living room in three faces of Emily ( coming soon!) – It doesn’t quite sit right.. but then I am so over this ep by now that I am probably over reacting to everything! [Shadow Shock?! 
] ugh.. oh well..
Wait a minute.. Why is Lee dressed in a suit? Billy still has his trackie on?! And .. why didn’t the suit get blown up in his cabin? Don’t tell me.. he always carries a back up suit in a safe third location nearby Top agents simply must look good as they catch the bad guys.. and that’s our Lee..
I made this meme: Like it?! It cheered me up after being so disappointed by this episode!!
Or how about this one instead??
Which do you prefer? I think I prefer the latter.. but do tell! Anyone think of any other meme’s for our beloved smk?! ohh dear I’m so distracted.. anyway.. back to the episode!
Billy says it’s sad.. it would have been interesting to see how Amanda went on the course. Very interesting.. the script has this line originally being Lee’s!!!
Whoo you can see Peggy in the background about to head off also… Lee tells Amanda to drive, as there is something he wants to discuss with 
her in the car and off they go.. We see one last little regretful look from Billy as they head off – he wants to give Amanda a chance! awhh bless him!
Ahh! we come to the famous dialogue in the car here- I had forgotten it! :
Amanda: this is exciting isn’t it! you and me, a team!
Lee: yeah, Laurel and Hardy never had it so good! 😆
Amanda: Dodge City!
Lee: haaaaa.. yeah..
…Ahhh Amanda.. ahh I want to talk to you about something and I know you’re not going to like-
Before Lee has a chance to tell her she isn’t doing Dodge city, the fake cop shows up.. they pull over.. the cop gets off his bike, flips his safety clip thingy on his holster ( yes that’s the technical language) and he makes his way towards the car..
whooooo freaky! Is it just me or is ‘the motorcycle cop getting off the bike and coming towards the car, while you know he is about to attempt to assassinate Amanda’ straight out of a terminator 2 movie???!!!!
Lee doesn’t realise anything is wrong at first.. quite suspenseful! Especially given Lee doesn’t know Amanda is the target! The policeman asks Amanda to 
step out of the car, and says he’d like to see her driver’s licence. Lee is stressing about getting to Dodge city and not really paying attention.. Amanda gets out, and begins rummaging in her handbag,
the policeman moves closer, standing next to the car window- right where Lee can see him- he begins to pull his gun out.
Go Lee!! Lee sees and kicks the car door open, knocking the cop to the ground.. phew that was close! [Good thing Amanda left the door open a crack!! what luck ]
Check out this pic I took of Lee pulling his legs up to push the car door. rofl! I was in hysterics – Lee looks like he’s having a baby!
Push Lee push!!! oh and Breathe Lee Breathe! Whaaaahahahahahaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!
I am sure my hysterics are in response to being kind of over this episode! but LOL!
Lee wrestles and fights the baddie.. and Amanda looks 
on utterly confused! Love KJ’s expressions here!! Amanda is open mouthed and stunned at Lee’s high kick! [Don’t worry Amanda- it’s stunt Lee! ] Lee tells the cop to hug the tree, and he cuffs him to it..
This is brilliantly funny! Amanda comes over and brushes off the guy she thinks is a cop: Ohhh Lee!! I’m afraid you might have over reacted! ( brush brush)
…This is a policeman. (Aie!! I think Lee knows it’s a policeman! how can it be so funny and infuriatingly dumbed down?! This joke was funny until Amanda added the guy is a policeman.. typical of this episode – just out of balance and not quite right but.. flashes of brilliance! )
Lee: He’s no cop Amanda, he’s a Russian agent Gregorian, he’s worked with Vardosk before.
[Lee knows him by sight? oooofff course he does.. ]
Amanda: sooo he was sent to kill you.
Lee: Yeah!
[Gregorian must be trying to contain his giggles.. Everyone’s got it all wrong! Vardosk is going after Amanda.. Lee thinks they are after him.. rofl!]
Sooooo.. Amanda gets sent home ‘where she will be safe’ by Lee, who is off to Dodge city on his police bike!
Lee Leeee! Where’s your helmet! I wanted a nice shot of Lee on the police bike!! looking all heroic.. but.. looks like it’s stunt Lee! No helmet needed
Next thing, we find Dotty struggling with the groceries.. 
but never those high heels of hers – she’s amazing! Amanda helps her collect the spilt groceries. As she does.. she notices the bean sprouts –
Dotty: Yes I know you love them. They’re so Californian! ( GROAN!!! ssooo ridiculous!!) Amanda in a flash of brilliance completely uncharacteristic of her in this episode- connects Peggy’s catty remark about Amanda and hot tubs with her reading Amanda’s incorrect personnel file.. and she is off to warn Lee.. come on!.. what is Laurel without Hardy right?!
Hey! Amanda’s driveway has a big wall next to it now?? errr.. okay! (I do love how Amanda tells Dotty that she was just on the phone reporting trash that was littering up the highway! hehehee.. well it is the truth!)
How do all the Californian viewers respond to these California stereotypes???? I had no idea gurus, hot tubs and bean sprouts were Californian!
It is very tempting to rush through the rest of this episode and on to the next episode.. but I will resist.. we’ve come this far – so I will stick at it, plus I am finding now we are no longer at Station one, I am getting my second wind!! soooo one more post to go
Thoughts? comments? insights? Anything you’re loving?? anything you’re loathing?? do tell! byeee and thanks so much for walking with me..
"Just walk with me.." 
I think Lee’s protests were solely for Billy’s benefit. I don’t think he wants anyone realizing just how fond he’s gotten of their new recruit! He’s okay showing the warmth around Amanda now after the Partners handshake, but he doesn’t want to admit just how much she’s changing him to the others.
LikeLike
Something that made me laugh is when the scene at Amanda’s house opens, during the music they zoom in to the dining room window (random!) and then it immediately cuts to Dotty walking from the driveway and spilling her groceries (nothing to do with dining room…unless they thought she was going to be cooking and serving the bean sprouts instead of spilling them on the sidewalk…)🤣🤣🤣
LikeLike
I laugh every time I hear reference to sprouts, as here the term generally refers to Brussel sprouts which are the devils vegetable 😦
Oh my. I think the writers decided to do a Freaky Friday body swap. Lee secretly because Amanda and vice versa. It’s the only explanation for his oodles of empathy!! He’s got her brains and sensitivity and she’s got his brawn 😉
It is funny when Amanda gets wrong end of the stick and thinks Lee has over reacted. Especially when she starts dusting him off, as if that would make a difference if he really was a cop lol
So Amanda never actually finds out she isn’t supposed to go to Dodge City. I am kinda glad, it’s a shame they couldn’t reschedule that part of her training for another day……
LikeLike
My California friend would laugh about being from the land of “fruits and nuts”, with “fruits” having a very dated connotation to it that we have gotten past since then, thankfully. At least SMK had the common sense to not use that particular expression. Bearing in mind that the writers live around Hollywood, perhaps the gurus, hot tubs, and bean sprouts reference hit closer to home. (OK, who’s stereotyping now? Guilty.)
I love stereotypes as a satire (and SMK does that so well!), but as a plot point they are lazy and unimaginative.
Could have sworn the cop scene was one where Lee and Amanda looked like they were barely keeping from laughing. I’ll have to check it out again … maybe it was just me who got the giggles — I do enjoy that scene.
LikeLike
Nah, must just have been me. Amanda’s expressions are priceless in the cop scene though!
LikeLike
Hiya Raffie! I have no idea what the ‘fruits’ is referring to! Honestly.. I can’t work it out! Or is it so awful you can’t say? Tee hee.. I don’t know! But yeah stereotyping as satire is genius.. I use to think any stereotyping was wrong- but now I see that it is actually a normal mental shorthand that people use – or there is too much information to take in.. it’s not malicious.. it’s adaptive – but! Sometimes they can go awry so we should definitely be making fun of them and questioning them whenever possible 😉 Lazy and Unimaginative plot device Raffie? – couldn’t agree more!! And very boring!!
Whooo I love scenes where there are fits of giggles.. Ah I see you had a look at that scene – hope you still enjoy it as much! Amanda is having a chuckle.. I can’t shake that feeling that it is the old smk that dogde city sequence – and the rest? Well.. I’ll try to forget it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
San Francisco had a controversial reputation at the time due to its openly gay population. “Fruit” or “fruitcake” was a slang term for homosexual. As I said, I’m thankful that our society has come a long way since then and I think will continue to do so.
I like your statement of stereotyping being a mental shorthand! That’s exactly why it works so effectively for satirical moments (you can instantly convey a lot of superficial thoughts), and also why it does not work for moments that merit deeper thought. I find satirical stereotypes intriguing and while I laugh at them as they pass by, I find I often reflect back on them later.
LikeLike
Bean sprouts (and little baby ears of corn) have been part of most any California joke I heard growing up – as if they were the first people to ever go organic or something. (Personally, I don’t like stereotype jokes. They irk me.)
Did some checking – apparently the writer’s strikes were in 1981 and 1985 – for three months (81) and two weeks (85). So, I don’t think we can blame it. Oh, well….
LikeLike
“I had no idea gurus, hot tubs and bean sprouts were Californian!”
I lived in Calfornia for one year and it has never crossed my path either.
Loved your picture of Lee having a baby.
LikeLike
So growing up in California, I have no idea where this stereotype came from. Although I do love sprouts on my sandwiches and salads. I really think the writers were stretching on this episode. But I love how you point out the great, the good and the not so good along with the wonderful pictures.
LikeLike