Lovesmk, (or ‘WR’) Lovin the banner!!! thanks so much!!!
Anyway, on to a dump.. hmmm gotta be bad guy flunky’s place.. yep!
We pick up the episode 
with Tarzan (O’Keefe’s goon Towne) and a bomb maker who has been undercover working with Mrs Sullivan for 6 months.. The Bomber heard 
Rawlings’ upcoming speech as he gave Mrs Sullivan a preview..
The bomber reports that Rawlings is intending to go: back to the old boundaries, strict catch limit. If Rawlings makes his upcoming speech- O’Keefe can kiss his fancy fleet of trawlers goodbye.
[Hmm boundaries and limits.. an ongoing theme in this episode!]
O’Keefe needs the bomber to stop this speech.. he says he’s ready to do just that..
I guess at this point, we don’t know who the bomb is for.. Rawlings? or Sullivan?
The scene ends there. Great how we don’t spend too much time with the baddies this week.. get the info we need.. and get out! 
We wants Lee and Amanda! 
Next thing we see the corvette being parked in a part of town we don’t see often. whoooo is this actually on location?? It looks like the corvette parking on that street really is in DC. 
Next thing, we see a close up on beer, poker chips and playing cards all laid out for a game of poker.
The camera pans out to reveal the players are a group of elderly ladies!
rofl..
I think we were to assume they were men from all that beer.. I think smk likes to have fun playing up to or completely subverting stereotypes!
The ladies are holding hands and humming with their eyes closed! [beer buzz?! ]
We see Lee and Amanda arrive, oh LOL call me crazy but this looks like the foyer to IFF!!! They’ve just added a bit of wall and the beads- and those stairs behind Amanda lead up to the Q bureau!!! no?? see for yourself and let me know what you think! I’m going to keep moving here.. 
Lee: the less time we spend with these oddballs the better..
Amanda: you’re pretty cranky when you don’t get your sleep aren’t you.
[Love that Amanda doesn’t let the grumpy sleepless Lee thing slide.. Love feisty Amanda! Lee tries to respond to Amanda’s comment about not getting his sleep but Amanda doesn’t give him a chance 😉 ]
…What’s so oddball about a woman’s club?
[Interesting.. is this Lee putting women into one of those boxes of his? ]
Lee: Let’s just get the info and get out?!
Amanda: right.
Amanda is curious about it all.. and Lee just wants to get out of there.. Lee is far too dismissive- Call me crazy, but the job required finding out about them. not turning up, deciding they are crack pots and leaving – we already knew they were crackpots!
One of the ladies sees them and walks over to greet them.
Lady: Hello I’m Jenny Weeks.
Amanda: hello, we’re from the people’s encyclopaedia and ah we’re making a directory of all the non 
profit groups in this area and we just wondered if we could ask you a few questions.
Lee watches Amanda carefully as she delivers her cover here
– though smiling as part of his own cover.
Jenny: Oh yes, we’re the Ladies Auxiliary of the Cosmic Cabal...
(rofl!! man I’d love to see their cookbook!!)
…We get together on Wednesdays to play poker, and to commune with the spirits of the departed rock and rollers. [so this is Wednesday I guess! 😉 ]
LOL love Lee and Amanda’s reactions to this!
We cut to a view of the ladies.. continuing to humm and err commune! whoo hoo!!! the jiggling bouncing begins too!
Jenny: Ohhh they’ve made contact.
Amanda: what does that mean?
Jenny: we’re talking to Richie Valens. The Big Bopper is with him!!
Jenny rushes over all excited at their connection!
She motions to Amanda to come in and join them. Amanda smiles, Lee looks horrified.. ugh.. 
he so doesn’t want to be doing this. Amanda looks at Lee and shrugs..
who knows what this is all about.. but hey, they are harmless..
Suddenly, Amanda steps into the room. Not checking with Lee.. Lee whispers after her to stop her but she doesn’t pay attention to him.
She moves in closer to the table to find out what the ladies are up to.
Back in the entrance.. Lee is smiling.. but only on the outside.. inside he is cursing being there!
Yep he keeps up the smiling pretence about 2 seconds.. he’s had enough! 
Amanda is doing a better job here than Lee is and he is the one who is suppose to be watching out for her? In fact so far this episode, Amanda is more professional than Lee full stop. He didn’t even turn up to work on time!
The next thing we see is Lee and Amanda exiting.
Lee: well! We were in there, 30 minutes!
[Is that all? boo flippin hoo]
Amanda: well, we had to let them finish singing before we could fill out the questionnaire.
Lee: Ohhhh
Amanda: you’re pretty antsy. Got a date?
Lee quickly: No! (Lee sighs) .. I’m just a little preoccupied that’s all.
Ah! we have arrived at this BIG scene!!! I’m going to need to split it in two- there are two parts to this scene anyway.. you’ll see what I mean..
Amanda: well if you want I could finish these off they’re all close by.
Lee suddenly upbeat: You’re sure?
Amanda: sure.
Lee: Oh that’s great.
…yeah Amanda, remember that new years eve…
…party at the soviet embassy?
[how wonderful is it to see Lee is remembering fondly a new year’s eve party he went to with Amanda! For work – of course ]
Amanda laughs: oh yeah, you tried to match Gorbchov vodka for vodka and you ended up in the Borscht!
[I love that they share a laugh about Lee ending up in the Borscht. Seems Lee and Amanda have been err ‘socialising’ on the job quite a bit more than what we’ve seen on screen! But.. it’s still ‘on the job’ – hmm..]
[these pics are a tad blurry..but have to include them anyway-they are adorable!..they’re blurry because they are ducking below that dumb tree and walking! but.. it’s wonderful to see them both laughing so heartily together]
Lee laughs heartily: right!!
He shakes his head to himself and adds: ahh…
…you sure looked beautiful. [whoa!!!!]
BTW- I hate that tree Lee walks behind as he says this!
Hmm! I find the idea that Lee so readily admits the dress was fabulous and she looked beautiful in it really lovely.
At the same time, maybe it also speaks volumes- that he admits it so readily- that’s how detached he is from his feelings for her right now– denial!
It was such a wonderful moment in Service Above and Beyond when Lee told Amanda ‘you look fabulous’ -I don’t know that we’ve heard him say anything like it since.. but.. here we have confirmation he was thinking it, though he wasn’t saying it or showing it ]
Amanda: Oh thank you.
I am guessing many will disagree with me here- I think Amanda enjoys Lee’s compliments but she is so open with her smiles and enjoyment – I don’t see her as reading anything into it. She accepts the compliment quite simply and naturally.. there’s that wonderful self-esteem of Amanda’s again To me, she does not react here like a woman receiving a compliment from a romantic prospect – she isn’t acting like she has hopes.. To me, she still has Lee firmly in the just friends category. Amanda’s feelings for Lee haven’t popped out into her consciousness yet!! (or okay, out of that Tupperware container yet! ) However.. every friendship has it’s limits!!!- as we shall see in the next post! so I’ll expand more on that next post.
Lee: remember how we danced? [wha?! boooooo.. why didn’t we see this??!! ]
Amanda: Oh yeah..
Lee: Amanda? Amanda: hmmm?
Lee seems to have mentally made a decision here as he moves the topic of conversation onto what he was thinking about when he was preoccupied. Hold this thought! This is a good place to stop as this is the moment where Lee decides to go ahead and ask Amanda about her dress that night..
If we can hold off fully discussing the second part of this scene until the next post that would be great.. Splitting it in two is necessary, but it will also help us to focus not just on the big whammy at the end of this scene, but on the beginning part of this scene also- which can be overlooked by the ending. I think this first half of the scene is full of significance all by itself Can’t wait to hear all your thoughts everyone! byeee!!
Iwsod edited to add: Here’s Lovesmk (WR)’s banner which corresponded with this scene – I’ll add it here so in future anyone visiting this post anytime can see it 🙂
Thanks again Lovesmk!
"Just walk with me.." 
Thanks so much for including lovesmk’s banner for this one! I’m always sad that I missed them when you mention them.
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Hi all. IWSOD, It amazes me how acute you are at noticing the little things that I would never see….I’ll bet I’ve seen this ep 5 times and never noticed the stairs in the background at the ladies auxiliary meeting….I definitely see that this looks like the stairs to the “Q” bureau….I guess it’s a good thing we have you to notice these wonderful little things….it makes me want to pay more attention to what’s going on instead of drooling over Lee all the time …lol
I think Lee is pretty much clueless (like most men are when a woman’s emotions are involved) when he starts the conversation leading up to the “dress”. There he is chatting Amanda up about fun times they’ve had at previous functions, complimenting her on how pretty she looked, getting her “feel good” emotions going then………..he lowers the boom!
IMO… What a jerk!
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Awh! thanks Gruvy Granny! I think it’s easier to find things when you are looking at photos – as opposed to Lee moving around and all swoony 😉
If you think I’m detailed- you should see KC go!!! she’s amazing!!!! 🙂
I like to think we all notice different things – so keep your eyes peeled!!!
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LOL – elderly ladies playing poker and having beer this early in the day, LOL!!! I hope I do that when I’m elderly 🙂 Think I’m a beer/poker age-ed person and not a red hat/purple dress age-ed person. Not that there’s anything wrong with red had/purple dress. I just hate wearing dresses.
Woo hoo! Go feisty Amanda! Love the she calls out Lee’s grumpiness and asks what’s so odd about a ladies group when these ladies are clearly, well, a little odd! But it’s not for Lee to say, he’s a man! If he were a lady it wouldn’t be so bad IMO.
And that does look like the foyer – with an extra wall built between the stairs and the elevator door! Good eye, iwsod!
Cookbook??? ROFLMBO!! I want to see it too!
And I feel for Lee. These people are clearly crackpots. 99.9% of the spring cleaning is crackpots. Superspy Lee doesn’t have time or energy for this right now and is willing to risk it and do a half-a$$ job here just to get out of here. Love how Amanda goes on in without him – I think she is doing this on purpose – maybe a little petty on her part, but Lee deserves it, methinks! And she kept him there 30 minutes! LOL. Good job, Amanda! The best part? Lee can’t complain to Billy about it!!
Ahhh, the way Lee says no in response to the date question. That sounds a little suspicious.
About Lee ending up in the borscht. Or is it Borscht? That is disappointing to me. Why would Lee get soo tipsy at the Soviet Embassy of all place that he ends up in the Borscht? Or is that a euphemism I’m not getting? It seems Lee would be on guard at the SOVIET embassy in the 80’s being a spy and all, even if it was a New Year’s party. Guess he was working on his networking skills.
Yes, the you looked fabulous line. I think it’s true that Lee thinks Amanda is a beautiful woman. I think I’m going to stop here and post my next set of thoughts on the next post. But after I read what everyone else has had to say about this post!
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And… (seriously, I’m such a space cadet) — it would have been really funny to have seen the Cosmic Cabal ladies bust out into La Bamba, since it was Ritchie Valens they were talking to, or maybe Chantilly Lace, since the Big Bopper was with him, instead of just shaking and humming!
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Oh, and I’m gonna call prop recycling on the “baseball” dartboard! It was in the bookie’s office when L&A were strapped into the straight-jackets in Sudden Death:
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Yep, wordpress strikes again! It just ate an entire post on my site a few minutes ago and like a dill, I hadn’t saved the draft. Grrrrrr
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The baseball dartboard is also in A Class Act, in the saloon in Dodge City. lol! I didn’t notice it until I was rewatching it the other day, and I thought of this post. 🙂
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Their reactions to the Ladies Auxiliary of the Cosmic Cabal are a perfect example of how — in a number of situations — Amanda is far more open-minded than Lee. Amanda didn’t blink an eye… she went into the (IFF lobby–LOL!–nice catch, Iwsod) room and started taking in what the club was up to. Lee, not so much. However, I think that he might have been a smidge more open normally… here he’s battling his inner demons and it’s made him even more impatient and less open-minded. A bit of a jerk again, maybe? :p Definitely less professional, as you said. (And just because the groups/whatever have been placed into the crackpot folders for spring cleaning, doesn’t necessarily mean that they are all crackpots! Crikey! Isn’t that part of what they’re there to determine? Don’t pre-judge, or you might find yourself believing that a suburban mother-of-two has no place at/would never make it at the Agency…)
Re: the New Years party comments, etc… call me cynical/jaded, or just p&ssed at Lee for being a judgemental ass about the ladies, but I think he’s schmoozing her here — slipping back to early Season 1 Lee — and I’m not liking it. 😦 I like your idea that it’s denial — that gives me warm fuzzies — but I actually think it’s also somewhat calculated… he knows what he’s doing and he’s playing her, to some extent. I know that he’s a confused man, and trying to work through things — sometimes slipping backwards in the process, much like climbing a sand-dune — but here it grates on me. shrug
I guess it was my turn to have my cornflakes tainted today… 😀
[iwsod edited italics 🙂 ]
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Seriously? It decided to italicise everything after the asterisk in p*ssed when it normally refuses to italicise more than just a line or two for me? It’s a conspiracy!!! :p
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KC, WordPress is a bloody minefield! I hesitate every time I press the “Postg Comment” button.
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LOL! I thought it picked up on my “Ms. Crankypants” (thanks, Jule) attitude… 😀
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I agree with your thought that Lee was calculated in his little trip down memory lane. While he was talking, I kept thinking,”What is he setting her up for?”. Definitely in schmoozing mode. He meant what he was saying, but he was saying it for the wrong reasons.
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I was going to add this in to the comments in the last section, but it will work here too. It was asked if it was spring since it was spring cleaning time at the agency. I think the episodes would take placed about the same time of the year as they were aired. In that case they are doing spring cleaning in the fall. So we have 2 seasons of opposing transition, one a dying and one of being born and blooming. So I think we see this with the characters. I think we are seeing the end of Lee’s old dating habits. We are also seeing the end of Amanda’s innocence. She’s got to face using a gun. She’s not so naïve (like not knowing what the trick book was). She’s decided she is going to dive into the agency work head first and be exposed to more things that she didn’t even know existed. But we get to see her flourish with some training and being more involved in cases (like being assigned to do spring cleaning and her judgment will be trusted). And we will get to see Lee and Amanda’s relationship bloom. Just my 2 cents why the writers made it spring cleaning in the fall.
I looked at when the episodes were aired in season 2 and the 3 faces of Emily actually aired December 31 (New Year’s Eve) and Ship of Spies aired January 7. It’s interesting because Lee asked Amanda to be his date in 3 faces because he knew that she would be so happy to see Emily. I could see them going to a New Year’s event shortly after that. However I could not see Lee being so irresponsible and drinking so much if he was supposed to be working. So maybe he was only working part of the night, or maybe it was purely social. It shows how much he trusted Amanda at that time, because I can’t see him drinking like that and leaving himself vulnerable. He had to completely trust that she would get him home and not let a possible enemy take advantage of the situation.
And Amanda could be fishing because she cares. Just like in BO, she wants to know what is really wrong with him.
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Hi LAAL that was me who was asking about the timing – interesting.. I always looked to clues in the episode for what season it was.. probably because I live in the southern hemisphere so I can naturally keep RL American weather out of the picture!
I’m going to ponder this one.. I’ve got to head off – byeee!
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I really like your thoughts here LAAL
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I like your two cents, LAAL!
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I think the Agency gathers information on all “oddball” groups in order to be sure that some are as harmless as they appear. If anything even close to suspicious happened, they would probably be asked if they had checked them out.
I’ve always felt that the growing closeness between them could be attributed to the fact that they must have shared a meal from time to time at the end of a very long day – or several lunches. Just working together does provide some closeness, but there would have to be some “down time” together, too. At least to my way to thinking.
I do think Amanda has categorized Lee as a “dear friend” to whom she is very close. She cares about him and wants the best for him. Any romantic feelings have been carefully set aside. (I do think she has her moments of romantic fantasy, though. I’m sure most any woman would.) Her concern for his well-being would lead her to try to find out what was wrong. If it really is insomnia, then obviously something is reaallly bothering him, and she would want to help. Her responsive laughter as his remembrance is so relaxed and casual that it’s obvious they are comfortable together.
Lee appears a little nervous here, so I think while Amanda was gathering information, his mind was wandering toward something else. As a result, he just decides to go ahead and ask. I don’t think this is a rehearsed speech because I don’t think he is fully prepared for any of the responses.
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HMMMMMM. Was Lee’s speech rehearsed? I am on the fence about that one. (By the way, I am not getting ahead of where we are blogging the episode, but I am going to believe Amanda and Francine’s deduction that there is a new woman in Lee’s life). Lee, on his journey to being a good person and a good friend, realizes that he needs to share this news with Amanda because that’s what good friends do — they share what is going on in their lives. He is not sure why this is causing him anxiety and why he can’t casually mention his new relationship. So he is looking for opportunities to bring up this new woman. But, Lee is a guy and that means he is going to royally screw it up. 🙂
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Agree Cindy. I’m not sure the speech was rehearsed, at least not much in advance anyway. Your scenario of him wanting to share but feeling anxious about it seems to fit best. He’s trying to make his way to the subject by a round-about route but he isn’t his usual confident self here.
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Your responses about the rehearsed comment has me thinking. I guess I don’t mean rehearsed like in a manipulative way, polished, planned or practiced. I am thinking more of how I will often think through how a conversation might go especially if I am nervous about the topic. Does that make sense? Not sure if Lee thought all the way through the possible conversational outcomes though…
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That’s how I thought you mean’t rehearsed Morley- I agree with you 🙂
as we can see he certainly didn’t plan for all contingencies! lol..
but it does seem like he had a strategy, a pre planned idea for how to get around to the subject of the dress ( have just published this part of the scene now)
Cindy your idea that Lee wanted to tell Amanda about it is really interesting!!! It is certainly an indirect way of telling her, and of letting her know there’s someone different in his life..
If Lee is wanting to tell Amanda I’d say it’s an unconscious thing though – because of something he says later (that I have written!).. but we can come back to that!
byeee for now.. gotta get on with my day here.. hope you enjoy the next part of this scene!
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Hi debilyn – I like what you say here, especially your “dear friend” paragraph. They are close friends and she does want to help him even if he is back to his old ways.
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There is a fan fic for the New Years Eve party that I like to include in my SMK world. It is called “The Long New Years Eve” by Dottie. You can find in to fanfic.net or got to the link for it in the “Filling the Blanks” section on Petra’s site in the Scenarios and Cyphers section.
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That is a good one.
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I do like it that Amanda doesn’t leave the sleeplessness and the antsieness alone. I do think she is fishing and generally telling him that she noticed. Once again he denies any other involvement, he is ” preoccupied.” I wonder if his ease in remembering the fun they had together and how beautiful she looked was a practiced ease. I do think he is more comfortable with it, but I guess I just wonder if maybe he rehearsed this conversation, thought about whether he should have it with her, decided to and the plunged ahead and chose to have it? I always try to place when this New Years party would have been in the season 2 line up and I think it must have been right after Playing Possum, maybe around SOS time? Sometime right after BAI, I think and I think that is kind of noteworthy. Lee was growing a lot during then and allowing Amanda in closer as well. That evening might have become a bit of a reference point for him in some changes that were occurring in his life. Maybe I am over thinking that, but it is fun I think.
I still don’t think Amanda spends tons of time wishing she and Lee could have a romantic relationship. I still think she has put it far away from her because he is not that type and she needs someone who could be a dad candidate. But on the flip side, I do think she is treasuring their ever growing friendship and her responses here with that big genuine smile on her face reflect her enjoyment of it. I think that is what is being pushed here in this episode, where are the boundaries of their friendship? What happens to it when other things are introduced or taken away. Can this friendship maintain a status quo, what is the status quo? It has been a constantly growing one, should it, could it ever stop growing, do they want it to? How do they live their own lives in terms of the answers to those questions?
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Hi Morley, Oh I’m so glad you raised the ‘preoccupied’ thing.. I was a bit unsure of how that played out!
Yeah.. you know, your idea that maybe this whole exchange is rehearsed – I like it! that does kinda make sense to me!! Maybe where I said at the end of the post Lee was making a decision here – he had made the decision before he started this conversation – as after all he did raise this topic.. and he knew where he was going with it.. maybe the change in him I felt shifted at the end of this post here was him following through on that choice.. he set it up with the party.. he complimented Amanda.. and at this point where I stopped the post – is maybe the moment where he thinks- now is the time! go on. it’s time to go there!!!
And well.. that is what we see next post 🙂
I think Lee having rehearsed this conversation fits really well with how I see Lee’s character. but I guess I gotta hold off explaining this further for now 🙂
I’m seeing Amanda the same way you are at this point Morley.. well put! Oh yes.. those boundaries get identified in the next post! stay tuned!!
Oh gosh.. I’ve never stopped to wonder when that party would have been! Umm if it was a new year’s eve party, it would have had to be winter I guess.. so somewhere between spiderweb and life of the party?(spring cleaning?) I don’t know!! but before or after Burn Out would be an interesting thing to ponder..oh and LOL we could decide if we want Amanda to have long hair or short hair for the party too haaaa.. that could narrow it down further! After all Lee said she sure looked beautiful 😉 rofl! I don’t imagine that being when she had short hair (whooo aren’t I bad?!)
haaa.. soooo I’ll vote for umm just before Car Wars – as in Car wars Lee says Amanda’s a very very good friend or.. something like that!
Such an inspiring comment this Morley! I enjoyed it!
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Yes.. I am cheeky and replying to myself!
Mentioning Burn Out – I just had a thought!
I remember there was lots of discussion during Burn Out about Lee and his relationship with alcohol.. what we knew about him etc.
I never connected this before – but here we hear of a story where Lee is totally knocking back the drinks at a party – vodka- and he ends up in the Borscht – so that sounds to me like Lee got totally drunk! Soooo I’m sticking with my view that Lee is just like everyone else and has no particular immunity to the effects of alcohol!
Interesting to think back on it.. especially given this New years eve party would likely have happened before Burn Out..
Is anyone putting together an smk time line?? does anyone’s brain enjoy that kinda thing?
Okay bye for now.. signing off..
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I am liking the idea of Lee having rehearsed his speech. It could be argued he’s a bit glib with the compliments, buttering her up maybe?
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I think you are on to something Jenbo…I’ll say more in the next post.
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Hi Morley – LOL – you do like to think about this stuff, don’t you? I love that you do because you think of so many things that I would probably never think to think of! I’m not sure if I think this speech of his is rehearsed or not. I do think he thought about it, but I’m not sure to what degree. They seem like friends here, just sharing a nice, friendly reminiscence. It is nice to see. I agree with you and how you say Amanda thinks of Lee and treasuring their friendship. Neither of them is aware of what is going on inside the other’s head or heart, so I don’t think either of them is ready or maybe even capable of going down that road yet.
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Richie Valens…..I sat there thinking why not Jimi Hendrix LMAO. Now that would have been a hoot if the twinset and Pearl brigade had been into Jimi 😉
I totally know where Lee is coming from. If I don’t get enough sleep I just can’t function well. However hiding behind the facade of poke playing beer swilling grannies there could be a terrorist plot. Take your job seriously Lee, be a professional! Like how Amanda takes charge….show him how it’s done properly 🙂
My oh my not sure we’ve seen Lee so free and easy with the compliments for a long time…..
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LOL.. Lee is a crankypants isn’t he!!!
And then.. once they get outside and he remembers the party he’s all carefree and happy again..
I think the line from Amanda commenting on how he’s a grump when he doesn’t get his sleep is very telling – Amanda an see something is different about Lee.. something is going on.. and making this quip tells us that it’s definitely on her mind.. and maybe she is putting that out there to encourage Lee to talk about what’s going on..
After they leave, she asks if he has a date.. Amanda is totally curious about what’s happening with Lee.. something isn’t right here.. she’s carefully prodding to get some answers to her questions..
In a way, until the upcoming big reveal, Amanda inch by inch finds out more of what’s going on.. it builds- and so far it has built to Amanda asking if he has a date..
All this tension and stress is building up in Amanda in this episode in many ways.. I’m looking forward to seeing where this goes!!
Hear hear Jenbo! I agree with you.. Love how Amanda shows Lee how it’s done – this is how a professional deals with crack pots! 😉
So true! Lee is very free and easy with the compliments! I was quite stunned by how open he was here!!!!
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Yes, Amanda may have outwardly settled a bit since the last scene but inwardly she is clearly very curious about what is going on with him. If it were me I would be fishing for tidbits of info too because clearly his behaviour has deviated quite markedly in recent days/weeks. This seems to be the first instance though where it has become apparent to Amanda that something’s up. Maybe she hasn’t seen him for a few days, or maybe he’s got himself together before he’s had to see her in the last few days. Billy commented on how Lee has had “insomnia” the last 4 days, so I guess Lee has successfully scrubbed up in time the last 3 days before Amanda saw him.
I don’t think she would want to be believe it’s true that he is womanising, but maybe it might make it easier to take if he is just seeing one woman, so maybe this is the info she is trying to worm out of him.
He did take Randi home but then Randi I think might have been his first attempt to carry on a more normal, consistent dating relationship.
I still think Amanda is inwardly unsettled. This scenario would not have bothered her nearly as much a few months ago.
Iwsod I still see Amanda as being closer to falling for Lee mainly because she is more in touch with her feelings and has a more normal reaction to what she is feeling, and so can accept and embrace those feelings more readily. Lee has to overcome some not so great life experiences and some warped thinking about love before he can feel comfortable with the thought of a true love based relationship. There is an upcoming episode that supports my theory, but we’ll get there all in good time.
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Haa yes true.. if it had been 4 days why had Amanda only notice now?? this is the same issue we had at the beginning of Burn Out – why is it all such a surprise? lol.. good call!
Unsettled is a great word kiwismh!
Whooo you think Amanda is closer to falling for Lee? interesting! I’m going to ponder this one some more.. All you say about Lee overcoming so much is so true… Maybe I’m thinking that means Lee falls harder.. and I do see him as having a very different journey to Amanda.. for me Lee started to fall much earlier than Amanda.. so maybe that’s a part of it..
Amanda always thought he wasn’t looking for love and marriage, whereas he always knew Amanda wanted a real relationship.. And at this point – I guess Amanda still has no idea Lee might want it. Oh boy.. I get the feeling it’s quite possible how I am seeing things could have changed by the end of this episode! I guess it will have for Lee and Amanda too!!
Anyone else like to share? bye!
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I am trying to figure out what I think is the difference between how and when Lee falls and how and when Amanda does. MAybe part of how I see it isn’t the presence of feelings it is how the two of them respond to the feeling that are present. Amanda seems to control them and I don’t think I will call her having fallen in love until she lets go and lets those feelings have their way with her. And I don’t see that happening yet. I think she is aware that there is potential for her to have very strong feelings and she packs them up very tidily and puts them on a shelf. I actually think her honesty helps her to do that, but I also think that she isn’t as honest as she needs to be. That may change soon. Maybe she goes through moments when she needs to relook at those feelings, maybe they grow while they are in the box and she isn’t aware of how big they have become until they start out growing their box and she needs to take them out and repackage them again.
Lee doesn’t have that control because of what he needs to go through still, he still has so many defense mechanisms to turn off, and so I think his feelings ambush him. He tries so hard to put them in a safe compartment, I think that is what he is trying to do here, but he really can’t do it. I don’t think he has the ability to do with his feelings as Amanda does because if he could have kept them at bay I think he might have for ever. This is a pretty risky thing for him, look at how it is messing with him here.
I also think it is a matter of perspective. Amanda likes Lee, maybe even loves him, she does as a person at the very least. But she doesn’t think he is the right type for her to really let herself fall for him. I don’t think there is any judgment coming from her in that, it is just a fact and she is adjusting to it. She may have seen some changes in Lee, but nothing (yet) that would show her that they could really risk their friendship to try for something more that wouldn’t ultimately lead to disappointment and damage to that very important friendship.
I think Lee, at this stage, also thinks he is not the right one for Amanda. And I think that is a very different sort of thing, because he knows he is changing. I wonder if he is beginning to wonder if these changes may be taking him that much closer to being the kind of man that could have a relationship with someone like Amanda if not Amanda herself. Risking that friendship, which I do believe has become a very precious and front and center par of Lee’s life, would still be a huge hurdle for him to get over though. Does he want her enough to risk that? Not sure. Is there any other way that that precious friendship could be risked? Hmm? Is that friendship something that he would protect at all costs. To quote Lee in Car Wars,” That Lady is a very, very good friend of mine!” He meant it then enough to threaten the Swedish Meatball, I think he would add a few more very’s now. And Lee is pretty serious with his use of “very’s” I think (thinking of when he used them in an early season 4 episode…)
Ok that is enough from me, I will let everybody else comment now
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Love what you say, Morley, very, very much so!
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Oh boy, Morley, there’s lot of ‘wonderful’ to process in this comment of yours! I’m going to try to do it though and share some of my thoughts to your thought provoking comment 🙂
I definitely agree, I do not see Amanda falling for Lee yet. He is not the right man for her – he is not what she needs, he is not dad material, and I don’t think she thinks he is ready to commit to one woman forever. I also agree that she is not judging him in any way, just accepting him and being his friend and work partner.
I also think I agree with how you say that Lee doesn’t think he is the right one for Amanda. I’m also not sure where I think Lee is in regard to the idea of being a step-dad yet. Part of me thinks he knows that a relationship with Amanda is a full-on kids/mother-in-law relationship. But another part of me thinks that he might be in a bit of denial about that aspect. He’s only pursued women before and I doubt if he’s ever pursued one that has children. I wonder if there isn’t a part of him that is just thinking about Amanda the woman and not always Amanda the woman, mother, and daughter. Does that make any sense?
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Hiya iwsod! I think Amanda knows Lee pretty well. And she thinks of him as a good friend. I think it is natural for her to be asking him these questions – to see what’s going on with him, she wants to help him. It’s been going on for the last 4 days (right?) and she’s waited until now to say something to him. That says to me that he hasn’t been available to talk to or perhaps her curiosity was piqued more than usual that morning with Francine’s comments and the mismatched socks. Maybe she waited until now because she is a patient person with him, but if she thinks he’s back to his old ways, well her patience may be wearing a little thin in that area.
I know I’m late to this party, but better late than never – and I finally have some time this coming week to binge on SMK 🙂 (knock on wood!!)
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Amanda seems reasonably happy and relaxed again after the shock of the last scene. Now she’s had time to think she has probably decided she was being silly in concluding that Lee is tom-catting again simply based on a mismatched pair of socks and Francine’s comments. And she may also be telling herself that even if he is seeing someone, it’s really none of her business and it shouldn’t bother her. She putting a lid on those feelings again – we’re just friends, leave it at that, be happy with that I can hear this mantra going on in her brain.
Now that Amanda has had time to think and rationalise, she has settled again. She is very forgiving but then this is a weakness of most of us women – we’re far too forgiving sometimes and far too enthusiastic to justify or rationalise male bad behaviour…. don’t get me started
There were a couple of comments in the last post about why the mismatched socks were important. Along with Francine’s commentary they were central to the plot in the last scene – we are supposed to see that Amanda is rattled by the fact that Lee is possibly tom-catting again. Okay, a pretty weak plot device and, yes, how could anyone see his socks were mismatched unless he was wearing his walk shorts and Roman sandals that day, but the writers chose to go with mismatched socks to make the point so we just have to run with it.
I think this current scene builds on the idea of the last scene in that we get a glimpse of the fact that Lee and Amanda have been spending more and more social time together – work related of course – but I believe this is why Amanda was convinced Lee had matured out of his playboy ways. I would also think that if they have been spending more social time together (probably since Burn Out) their friendship will have naturally deepened, probably without them even being aware of it. Hence, one or other of them deviating off into bad or tiresome behaviour is now going to have considerably more of an impact than it would have had prior to Burn Out.
As for Lee, well he clearly can’t make sense of what he’s feeling and is still clearly denying what he is feeling or Amanda. He’s a mass of contradictions at the moment – Amanda must be sensing this too. One minute he tells her she “sure looked beautiful”, and the next….
Well, I’ll stop there otherwise Iwsod will tell me off. But no wonder he’s got insomnia!
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I’m on board with all this kiwismh!
‘Iwsod will tell me off’ – Booo! I don’t want to be the bad guy! Can we play good guy good guy? [want me to explain my reasoning for not jumping ahead? I am happy to- It’s not arbitrary, there are reasons for it. I’ve explained it sort of scattered throughout the blog but maybe it would be helpful for me to explain it – maybe in the ‘about’ section of the blog??]
Soooo true kiwismh! that’s the big take away from this section of the scene for me.. just how close these two now are. how comfortable and how in harmony they are..I guess more and more I’m coming to the conclusion now that they are now both well and truly in denial of what they are feeling!!!! [though I still believe Lee is further along in falling in love than Amanda.. does that make sense?? where do you all see them right now?? ]
Roman sandals? too funny!!! Yeah.. we did still get those weird looks at Lee’s feet.. annoying! lol.. they did cut the socks dialogue – so we didn’t end up getting it in the end, we just got the reaction to it! Confusion really does reign in this episode lol..
Indeed Lee is a ‘mass of contradictions’ so true kiwismh..
[edited to separate quote of kiwismh’s from my response! sorry for confusion 🙂 ]
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Iwsod, did you write that last paragraph in the italics or was that someone else? Cause I like it. I also think that Lee is further along in falling in love than Amanda at this point. And I agree at this point they are both also so confused
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Hiya oh thanks for pointing that out Morley! I have fixed my comment so it’s clear what I said and what I was replying to..
I’m in the middle of work now but will get back here later to reply to everyone..gotta run byeee!
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Looks like we’ve got some baddies planning something stupid elaborate.
Yes, definitely looks like the IFF foyer here. Love the strings of beads across the doorway. I seem to remember this look – hanging beads instead of doors – in the 1970’s.
The Ladies Auxiliary of the Cosmic Cabal are a riot. But I can see how Francine wants to avoid this particular chore. I wonder whether the Agency, short staff and short of money, really needs to waste agent time on this sort of thing – would Russians and terrorists really be using a nutcase organisation as a cover? Or does the Agency just see these groups as a breeding ground for trouble?
Good to see that Lee has sharpened himself up before they went out to meet the nutcases – properly suited up, changed his socks I hope, brushed his hair. Lookin’ like Grade A1 Eye Candy again. 😉
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Brilliant decision to divide this scene, Iwsod! It really does help us appreciate all the warm and implications that are stuffed into this first part. I agree, the fact that Lee is so casual about his recollections shows that he is not yet thinking about Amanda romantically. He is still seeing her as a friend, although a great one! Someone he can be comfortable with, let his defenses down, laugh with. Your point about Amanda taking this similarly at face value as a conversation about friendship, not romance, it interesting too. I love seeing the relationship having advanced to this point of easy friendship, both professionally and socially. Yes, socially. They may think it’s all work, but we know otherwise!
Great screen caps all around, Iwsod, but I especially loved Jenny’s great expressions of excitement. These ladies are wonderful, I love them. They definitely fall into that “quirky SMK humor” category that we don’t see enough of these days. Lee being stand-offish with the ladies’ “originality” and Amanda being undaunted and open-minded is much like the initial James Brand dynamic.
Lee is looking mighty fine in all these screenshots! Yet another reason OTLimit is in my Top 10! (And as always, kudos to BB for his knack for understated comedy. His ability to play off Amanda/KJ like this is huge for the whole life of the show.)
And yeah, that does look like the stairway to the Q-Bureau to me. What’s on the floor in the corner in that screen cap where Lee is pushing back the beads trying to call Amanda back? Is it just a pattern on the carpet?
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Like this, raffie, especially the part about their friendship. I like how they let us know that Amanda and Lee have been spending time together. I guess we can assume that it was work-related, but Amanda must be the go to date for these functions. We know they danced and enjoyed it and by their reactions they had a great time. Although I’m wondering how Lee got home after he ended up in the Borscht. That had to be something.
They are so relaxed and at ease with one another here. There is a comfort zone of friendship. These pics of Lee and that dimple are just killing me. Heavy sighs all around.
He does seem pretty cranky as Amanda says. Since this episode is connected to fishing I wonder if Amanda was doing a little fishing of her own in asking if Lee was antsy because he had a date. I’m not sure if she truly believes him as she next volunteers to finish the rest of the visits on her own, leaving Lee to wander off. If he didn’t have anywhere else to be he could have reminded her that he said he was preoccupied. Seems fishy to me.
Sometimes I replay the first part of the scene a few times. The way BB plays this is just so funny to me.
Doesn’t the actress who plays Jenny Weeks show up again in a later episode this season? I’m thinking the Pharaoh’s Engineers, one of the sisters. I think she played one of those sisters on the Waltons as well.
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Oh, come on Lee! How often do you have even a semi-legitimate reason to watch a poker game with senior citizens who believe that they can contact the spirits of rock stars? Or any spirits for that matter? If I had a job like this, I’d ask if I could play a hand with them . . . purely for research purposes, of course. (Why, yes sir, they were actually playing poker. Five card draw, aces and deuces wild.) 😉
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Actually, the Ladies’ Auxiliary of the Cosmic Cabal reminds me of the women’s spiritualist group from The Ghost and Mr. Chicken.
Karo Taro Suliman!
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OMG! Jestress, I love The Ghost and Mr. Chicken. That movie was hilarious and those women were something else.
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It’s one of my favorites! 😀
The women at the boarding house were fun, too:
Mrs. Natalie Miller: Well, they say there are still bloodstains on the organ keys…
Mrs. Hutchinson: That’s right; they’ve never been able to get them off.
Mrs. Cobb: And they used Bon-Ami!
Mrs. Natalie Miller: Everybody says he still comes there and plays, at midnight…
Mrs. Cobb: Doesn’t play as well as he used to!
And my favorite line:
“The horribleness and the awfulness of it will never actually be forgotten?”
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What am I thinking? I should have included a quote from the head of the spiritualist group:
Police Chief Fuller: I’m sorry Mrs. Maxwell, Nicolas Simmons gave me strict orders. No one’s allowed on this property.
Halcyon Maxwell: Oh, Mr. Fuller, you don’t seem to understand. We’re followers, we’re on the path of the occult.
Police Chief Fuller: I’m afraid you won’t find anything like that around here.
Halcyon Maxwell: Oh, well, it’s obvious you don’t understand. Our society is dedicated to contacting the other world.
Police Chief Fuller: The Communists?
Halcyon Maxwell: The spiritual world!
Lovely Cold War sentiment in there, too! Maybe the Ladies’ Auxiliary of the Cosmic Cabal should bear closer watching. Maybe they’re really trying to contact Karl Marx!
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Again, hilarious! That Bon Ami line comes up again during the trial. That Bon Ami must have been some great stuff, except for blood stains.
Loved how Luther would say his whole body was a weapon.
Favorite line….’Atta boy, Luther!’
Now I’m gonna have to get that on DVD. I’m just cracking up over here.
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Well I’m completely lost!
Maybe you guys need to start a thread about it over at Ned’s?? No need to limit your chatter about it because you are here on JWWM.. head on over to Neds and you can share away.. I’ll get over there eventually and see what you guys are on about 😉
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lol! I’ll go put the explanation under the Favorite Films thread. It’s funny! 😀
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Haaa cool! I’ll get to it when I can Jestress! 🙂
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Yep, Lee sure loses his sense of humour when he is sleep deprived.
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I know, How often do you get a chance to have some demented and serious fun on a work assignment? I would sure be glad to join in for a round or two of poker. Mr. Crankypants needs to lighten up!
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IWSOD — You are such a tease! Leaving us hanging like that………. 🙂
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But I just wanted to say, I am loving the direction Amanda’s character is going. Taking initiative, following her instincts without always waiting for Lee. Feisty, confident Amanda is back! Hooray!
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