Tag Archives: Scarecrow and Mrs King

Time to finish up this episode…
It’s Christmas eve, and we are reminded of all the kids and law abiding chaos happening elsewhere in Titan toys..
Then, we see Falcon approaching his office, gun drawn, ready to kill Lee and Amanda.

{We see Lee and Amanda inside, {{Clagjanet thinks they are trailing a black powder in a line in front of the table,}}
[I’m thinking it’s water being poured, but heck. I don’t know… Either way… ]- they scramble to stand back with the table in between them and door. Falcon enters carefully as they watch.}
Falcon: Hands please.
[I’m guessing this is not KJ and BB. what do you think?!]
Lee: Well, I guess things are going your way. You deserve a round of applause, huh.
{Amanda nods. They lift their hands and begin clapping. Cut to the toy cat emerging, dragging a wire.

As it crosses the black powder, it explodes with much fire and smoke. Under cover of the distraction, Lee and Amanda separate and run. Lee does a {{Clagjanet:completely unnecessary}} somersault, [Iwsod thinks it was completely necessary! whoo hoo!!] … then springs up to grab Falcon through the smoke. They wrestle, the gun fires. Lee grabs some of those loose wires from the toys and ties Falcon’s hands behind his back}
[not looking so smug now are ya Falcon! I love that his last line is ‘Owww’! Hey, so did we ever figure out what Lee needed the doll’s dress for?!]

(Next thing, we hear the quirky Christmas music kick in. Time for some less serious Lee and Amanda hijinks! Santa Lee and Amanda Claus bust in on the engineers.)
Lee: (sotto to Amanda) They’re loading all the data-
{He stops as she pulls his beard down so she can hear what he’s saying.}

[I think it’s an I Love Lucy tribute!]
Lee: They’re loading all the data on the mainframe onto mag cores for the trip East.
Amanda: No prototon?
Lee: Prototype.
Amanda: (wincing) I knew that.
[what do you think of this gag peeps?]
Lee: It’s all electronic. You ready?
{Amanda nods.}
Amanda: Merry Christmas!
{All heads swivel to look at them.}
[Such an image this moment.. bet it was in all the advertising for this ep!]
Lee: Stay in your seats. Federal agents. We’re here to confiscate this materials.
Engineer #1: You two get around.
[Yeah bit weird, one minute they are Titan Security and the next they are Santa /Mrs Claus and federal agents. They sure do get around! this guy really is a genius haaa]

{Behind Lee and Amanda, Ingle has entered and is taking aim with his silenced handgun through the window to the computer room. At this angle, Lee and Amanda have their backs to Ingle, but the Engineer sees him. They react to his look and all three duck for cover as Ingle opens fire, shattering the window glass.

They are crouched behind cabinets. Inge fires again, narrowly missing Lee who fires back as Ingle runs.}
[Santa is packin heat!! I guess that’s Falcon’s gun… it is pretty hilarious to see Santa in a shootout. Only in SMK! ]
Lee: Alright, I’m going to go get him. Call Billy for backup.
Amanda: Yeah.
{She races for phone as Lee runs off.}

(Back to the nativity scene event.. Ingle Kringle bursts in and runs across the room hiding behind the nativity stable.
Santa Lee enters gun drawn and is swamped by kiddies. LOL guess he put the gun away for a bit.. But Ingle Kringle aims at Lee through the stable wall) [with all those people around and in the way? yeah right as if.]  
Lee: (off screen) Ingle! Make it a clean shot. Please, don’t fire into these kids, huh?
[Make it a clean shot??? lol. I mean go martyr Lee with all the not wanting the kids to get hurt but.. I think watching Santa get gunned down is going to be pretty traumatic for the kiddies!]
{As Ingle watches Lee being propelled forward by the kids, a tiny “Mary” walks in front of Ingle and smiles at him. Ingle grimaces and lowers his gun.
[That Mary is a super cutie! Not even Ingle Kringle can resist!]  
{Cut to backstage where we see Lee step around a corner, holding a gun on Ingle.}
Lee: Drop it Ingle. (more firmly) Drop it.
{As Ingle drops gun, we hear a woman off screen.}
Woman: Children please. Please take your seat and be quiet.{Lee gestures for Ingle to walk forward, then pushes him ahead of him, still with gun on him off stage.}
Lee: Ho ho ho Merry Christmas, children…do you still believe in Santa Claus?
Kids’ voices: Yeah!
Lee: Tonight… so do I. Let’s go. Raus!
[Ingle Kringle looks so defeated. It’s fabulous. haaaaaa..
Okay I can see Lee knows Ingle Kringle’s name because Falcon said it in front of them before. But… there was no mention of his nationality until he shut the door and mentioned Dresden. Soooo how does Lee know he’s German?!

How did Lee get back his Christmas spirit? He nabbed a bad guy and played the role of BadAss gun toting Santa!!!!!! Oh rofl. So Lee! So SMK! This whole sequence of gun toting Santa made for many a fun SMK Christmas meme!]

Moving on, and… it’s Christmas tag time!!!
{Cut to front doorstep of Amanda’s house. It is snowing and Amanda is carrying an umbrella s they run up to the door.}
Lee: Amanda, I really ought to go see Bernie at the hospital.
Amanda: Are you kidding? It’s freezing out here. Get in the house.
Lee: I can’t.
Amanda: What do you mean you can’t? Yes you can.
Lee: (clearly uncomfortable) Look, after five minutes, they’re all gonna be wondering what I’m doing here.

[Oh my gosh. Lee is so adorable and vulnerable here. I just want to hug him and never let him go!!! his nervous laugh here is so spot on. He’s kinda terrified I think!  Thoughts?]
Amanda: (laughing) They’re not gonna be wondering what you’re doing here!
{Before another protest, Dotty opens the door, wearing an embroidered apron.}
Dotty: Well, it’s about time…
Amanda: Mother, I’m sorry we’re late
Dotty: Oh come on. Come on in.
[Everyone’s talking at the same time.. chaos! too late to escape now Lee!!]
{She pulls them inside.}
Lee: Hi, Mrs. West.
[Mrs West. Hmm do you think this choice of name was a Wizard of Oz reference?]
{Excited chattering, all talking over each other}
Amanda: I have to … (she is closing umbrella)
Dotty: Can you believe this snowstorm? Merry Christmas, Lee.
[yes Dotty. it’s TV, it’s Christmas and there must be snow!]
{Cut to inside the house. Amanda and her mother exchange kisses.}
[Where is Lee’s gorgeous overcoat?! booooo.. and.. he looks in desperate need of a scarf! rofl. I wonder if someone will give him one for Christmas! Haaaaaa!!]
Dotty: Merry Christmas Sweetheart!
Amanda: Merry Christmas! Thanks you Mother. That’s a pretty apron!
Dotty: Aunt Lillian made it, all hand-embroidered. Can you imagine? That’s why she didn’t come down.
Amanda: Really?
[Dotty the tornado, hey we are sticking with the Wizard of Oz references, makes her way into the other room in a flurry of words and activity]
Dotty: Because she was afraid she wouldn’t get it ready for Christmas!!!!

… Lillian, they’re here!!!!! Amanda’s boyfriend is here!!!!!
Amanda: (turns to Lee, quietly). I’m sorry about that.
Lee: (chuckles) Yeah.
[They both look a little shell-shocked. Wha??? why are you sorry for that Amanda?! the yelling? the ‘boyfriend’ thing? Is this maybe because they are not use to their relationship being known by others? I think after Lee giving Dotty flowers the secret is out. tee hee.
I think Lillian lied. rofl. she already had the apron ready to give as a gift, but Dotty was a pain so Lillian needed an excuse to lock herself away! haaaa]
[awh cute, they are holding hands..]
{Cut to Family Room. Dotty heads for the kitchen, Joe is there pouring eggnog.}
Amanda: Hi everybody! Merry Christmas.
Boys: Merry Christmas!
{Boys rush to hug her.}
{Jamie shakes Lee’s hand. While Joe watches on.}
Jamie: Hi Mr. Stetson. Glad you could be here. You should see the gnarly skateboard my grandma got me.
[BB does an amazing job here conveying Lee’s fish out of water feelings, while trying to appear friendly and warm!]
Phillip: Hey Mom, Mom! I made this for you.
{We see a huge wooden shelving unit behind Amanda with a giant festive bow on it.}
[Lee’s jaw gives away his current terror he is feeling at this whoa family thing is finally in the middle of!]
Amanda: Weelll Sweetheart… it’s so… (beat) big.

Phillip: Well, I built the whole thing by myself. Well almost… Dad helped me fix the legs. It kept on falling over.
[so, it’s a mmmm.. a shelving unit for paperwork? a shoe rack maybe?? umm??? whatever it is, it needs to be attached to the wall so it doesn’t topple over!]
Amanda: Awww.
{Joe brings cups of eggnog for Lee and Amanda.}
Joe: Hi Sweetheart.
[Haaaa Clagjanet, I notice your description leaves out how Joe gives Amanda a kiss on the lips here. ugh. quick let’s move on.. someone give me some eggnog!!!]

Amanda: Hi. Merry Christmas.
Joe: (sotto to Amanda) It’s a spice rack…
(Amanda makes a gesture: Ohhhh!!! Like she had no idea. Joe shakes Lee’s hand, and then hands him a drink.)
…Merry Christmas, Lee.
[I guess this is a – you are welcome here dude! even though it’s not Joe’s home, I guess it is welcoming Lee to join his family Christmas celebration. lol I really don’t know what to do this all this tee hee. I keep wondering if Joe spat in the drink. haaa.

But.. then I accept they are actually going for all-round happy vibes, and the look on Amanda’s face here as Lee is welcomed is really lovely! soooo Iwsod is going to try and go with it!
Bah Humbug. Haaaa]
Lee: Thanks Joe. You too.
Joe: Thank you

Phillip: Oh Mom, it can hold 213 spices.

Amanda: Well then, we’ll never run out of room for spices! {Lee is distracted by Jamie over by the tree, who we approaching with a present.}

Jamie: Here you go, Mr. Stetson. It’s a scarf.
{Lee’s jaw drops. Amanda is grinning in the background.}
[Oh my gosh! I had forgotten that Jamie gives him a scarf! well Jamie, he was actually needing one! great work haaaa. I love how he doesn’t even let Lee open it before he spills!]
Dotty: No, no, no, Sweetheart we’re not gonna open presents yet. Honey, I kept it warm, I make no promises. (She hands Amanda two heaping plates of food.) {As she chatters, Jamie takes the present back out of Lee’s hands and puts it back under the tree.
Lee still looks like he doesn’t know what happened.}
[I love how Lee has a little chuckle to himself at what just happened! A scarf!! haaaa!!!
Oh my gosh! this is such a tiny little moment but it really cracks me up!!!!! BB is so funny here!!]
Amanda: Thank you. Oh it looks delicious! Here Lee.
Joe: Jamie! Let’s get some wood for the fire.
Dotty: Now you just sit here and eat. I’m gonna go get Lillian.
Amanda: All right.
{Lee crosses to join Amanda on the sofa, plates of food in front of them on the coffee table. They are alone now.}
[I guess they are late and the others have already eaten and that’s why they are eating on the couch like that?]
Lee: Oh well, look at this.
Amanda: Yeah
[Cue the Christmas-y music, and sentimental chimes!!!!]
Lee: I see what you mean…Christmases here in the King house are pretty special.
[gah!!! it’s dimples time! Merry Christmas everyone!!]
Amanda: (leans in to wrap an arm around him, laughing) Your present’s in the Q Bureau.
Lee: Oh, well… Mine for you is , well, it’s at the apartment…
[hooo haaaa. is that a euphemism?! haaaa. Family show Iwsod! family show!!]
….(beat) But guess what?
Amanda: What?
Lee: (embracing her) I got my present already.
[And he unwrapped it already! Oh bad Iwsod bad bad. Family show!!! FAMILY SHOW!!!!! ]
Amanda: Merry Christmas.
Lee: Yeah. {They kiss and smile at each other.}




 

The episode ends here.. I’m gonna leave things on this super romantic feel good note.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this ep when you can get here and share- I know holidays are a busy time… No hurry though, as I’ll be taking a break for at least a month. 

I’ll aim to start walking through Promises to Keep at the start of February, but I’ll confirm closer to the date how I go.. maybe a March start! but I’ll try not to leave it for too long – now there is a promise to keep right?!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year all!!!

Christmas Eve, and on to the King home..  
Jamie: (passing Phillip a present) Here. This is from Aunt Lillian. What do you think?
Phillip: Red sweater, just like last year.
{Dotty enters in background, dressed up and carrying a coat.}
Jamie: Well, if she left the price tag on it again, maybe we can exchange it.
Phillip: Sounds good to me.
{Joe enters, wearing a nice suit.}
Joe: I heard that, guys. Now you leave those alone. We’re gonna open presents right after church. (points at Jamie’s feet) Those shoes could use a little polish…
[hmmm I could skip the whole Joe King being the responsible father thing. Bah Humbug. He makes me grouchy. haaaaa.. lol. and if he is wearing a wedding ring, where is his partner?]
Jamie: Uh, it’s up in our room and Aunt Lillian’s got the door locked.
Phillip: Her headache’s back.
Dotty: I think we ought to leave her here. I mean I don’t need her snoring next to me in the pew.

Joe: I’ll see if she wants to go. (to boys) Now you boys hurry up and get ready.
Jamie and Phillip: (muttering as they go to leave room): Let’s go, come on, come on…
{The boys exit as the phone rings. Joe goes to answer it. We hear him in background as Dotty chatters.}
Dotty: Okay… The goose is in the oven and it’ll be ready when we get back from church. Which, by the way, will be in forty- five minutes.
Joe: (into phone) Of course, Sweetheart…
[Sweetheart? He is talking to his partner right???!!! Nooooooooo!!!!!]
…Well, the boys will be disappointed. Well do you think there’s any chance you could catch up with us at the church?
Dotty: (rolling her eyes) Oh don’t tell me. She’s going to be late again?
Joe: No, don’t worry. I understand. We’ll see you back here for presents . . . Okay, bye-bye.
{Joe hangs the phone up and turns to Dotty, who’s fuming.}
Dotty: Ahhh, just once, I would like to have my daughter home on time on Christmas Eve and my sister’s hands off the goose.
{Joe laughs as they leave room.}
[I bet some of us don’t mind the whole Joe calling Amanda sweetheart and all that. Yeah it’s better than the old cliché fighting with the ex thing.. Super healthy and all..
but.. I just like to have fun with how much I don’t like it lol!
I think back to the supposed original idea for this show, that Amanda would be married and living a secret life as a spy and all – with American Dream the movie being the inspiration – but then they went and gave Amanda a boyfriend instead and well.. Lee and Amanda were the true OTP sooooo boyfriend had to go!
Having a friendly ex-husband is a convenient compromise I guess  – it means there’s that person at home parenting, not dumping on Dotty, and freeing up Amanda to save the country. Leaves Lee and Amanda free to fall in love too all while her domestic life can chug along in the background of all the espionage! Soooooo I guess I can’t really complain he is there. But! ‘Sweetheart’ is crossing a line for me!!!

Anyway, that’s about as much as I wish to focus on Mr Joking!]

(On to Titan Toys again.. Lee and Amanda break in… And inside we find the three wise geniuses from the bar being badgered by Falcon…
Falcon: I strongly suggest we step up the pace, gentlemen. We don’t want to be here all night.
Engineer #1: We could do this on Monday.
Falcon: (off screen) We have an investor who wants the latest. So just get the data on tape and we can all go home.
(Lee and Amanda sneak around and see what’s going on..)
Engineer #1: We’ve got an hour to dump all the databases…Continued Receiver imagery, laser tracking…fiber optics, control monitoring... there’s a lot of systems in that toy…
Falcon: yeah, just do it.
[So these engineers believe they are actually working on toys?!]
Lee: (whispering) Let’s see if there’s another way in.
[Why do they need another way in? They’re in?!]
{They turn to leave and find Ingle (Kringle) standing with a gun trained on them.}
Ingle: Most people use the front.
[Most people are boring. And hey – Santa doesn’t use the front door either!!!!] 

(Elsewhere in Titan Toys, there’s a Christmas children’s nativity event happening..Lots of activity… and children. Lots of children… did I mention there are lots of children?!  Falcon is seen in his office giving a little girl a lollipop. Gag.
The guests leave and join the others.. and Falcon sends Santa and two lady helpers out to be part of the show.
Falcon: Come on guys. You got a couple hundred kids out there going bonkers. Let’s roll, huh?
(Ingle Kringle leads Lee and Amanda into Falcon’s office at gunpoint.
Lee and Amanda try to bluff their way out of it but Falcon isn’t buying it.)
Amanda: Our dispatcher knows we’re here. We already filed a preliminary.
Falcon: I don’t think so. You would’ve shut me down long before I got close to delivery…
..Inside please.
[rofl. I guess politeness costs nothing! And hey, it’s christmas eve! ha!]
{As Lee and Amanda walk into the room, Ingle walks up to Falcon.}
Ingle: American agents inside your operation and we haven’t even received the pilot project.
Falcon: (starting to pull the door closed, closing Lee and Amanda inside) Which is why I insisted on an escrow account, Ingle. The data dump’s gonna be completed by 9. If for any reason we fail to deliver…
[Yeah! let’s just outline the arrangements in front of federal agents. I guess that gesture and the unfinished sentence is the ‘…they need to die’ part]
{Falcon locks door.}
Ingle: True. It is your problem. I’ve got the midnight flight with or without the designs. It’ll be Christmas in Dresden in an hour. They ring the bells, play the Christmas pageant in the church (He chuckles) Oddly enough, they still celebrate Christmas in the GDR.
[soooo what do you all make of this little moment? Seriously weird Ingle Kringle!]
Falcon: Wait for me in the computer room
Ingle: I’ll kill them now.
(Ingle Kringle turns to head back to Lee and Amanda, but Falcon stops him.)
Falcon: Absolutely not. If there’s a chance that these two have backup, we can’t leave the bodies here… And, there’s a couple of hundred children crawling the halls. You want to carry them past the kids like a couple of yule logs? (beat) …I’ll take care of this…first, I’ve got about twenty rent-a-cops that I gotta move away from the back of the plant before I can get them out that way. Go.

{Cut to the office where Lee and Amanda are imprisoned. Lee is fiddling with the lock while Amanda leans on it, arms crossed. Lee looks up with a grunt of frustration. Amanda shakes her head and he sighs, shaking his back. They both sigh and lean on the door.}
Lee: (angry) Just another Christmas Eve trapped in a nest of killers. (beat) This is getting to be our own little holiday tradition.
[whoooo a vague reference to an actual previous event! Merry Christmas fans!!]
Amanda: Look we’re in another jam, but we can’t stew about it. We gotta figure a way out.

Lee: Yeah.
{They both turn and begin running their hands around the door frame looking for weak spots.}
Lee: Well, we’d need a satchel charge to blow these hinges… I suppose you’re gonna say we can count on a miracle or two.
Amanda: Well, it’s the season for them.
Lee: Yeah.
Amanda: Three years ago, we were surrounded by a bunch of Russians. We got out of that.
[whoooo a very specific reference to an actual previous event! Very Merry Christmas fans!!]
{Lee climbs up on a chair and steps on the large table in the middle of the room to check the ceiling.}
[Bet you never guessed you would get the chance to see up Lee’s left nostril. haaaaaaa..]
Amanda: There’s gotta be a way we can get out of this.
Lee: (pushing up on ceiling tiles) Well, we’ll never get out through the ceiling There’s six inches of overhead.
Amanda: Okay, well, come down.
{She steadies him as he steps back down onto chair and then to floor.}
Lee: We don’t have a heck of a lot to work with, Amanda.
Amanda: Uh-uh. (she picks up a toy train)
{{Clagjanet:which is waaay nicer than the one Lee wanted to get for P&J!}}
Lee: (chuckles and starts picking up toys) Walter the Singing Frog.
..Baby Teardrops…
[How does Lee know Baby teardrops? is there a cut scene? anyone read the script?]
…Ah. And the good old trusty Tombstone Fanner…
…It’s all I ever needed when I was eight.
{Lee pulls the trigger and sets off a cap. Amanda jumps and gives a little yelp. Cut to the robot cat toy from Bernie’s emerging from under the table. They both laugh with relief.
Lee leans down and picks up cat. Suddenly we see his expression change as he stares at cat then at the gun. Amanda can tell he’s thought of something. He puts down the cat and starts pulling the gun apart.}
[It’s Macgyver time!!]
Lee: Amanda…
Amanda: Yeah?
{Lee pulls the roll of caps out of the gun.}
Lee: Check the shelves. See if you can find some more caps and batteries. These things must come with batteries.
{Amanda starts looking at a shelf covered in Harry the Things while Lee searches another shelf nearby. He pulls down a toy police car as Amanda finds a stockpile of batteries.}
Amanda: Okay, I got some batteries. They’re double-‘A”s… they’re only a volt and a half.
{Lee is looking over one of the Walter’s, opening the base. He yanks out a four battery holder trailing wire.}
Lee: That’s fine, that’s fine…we’ll wire them together in a series
Amanda: Yeah.
{Amanda is pulling all the batteries and boxes of caps from the shelf. She joins him at the table.}
Amanda: Here’s a whole bunch of caps and a whole bunch of batteries.
Lee: (picking up doll) How do you make her cry?
Amanda: Oh, well you just, uh…
{She places the baby in her arms and starts rocking it back and forth.}
Amanda: (crooning) Rock the baby, rock the baby.
Lee: (sighs, exasperated) Amanda? Amanda.
{Amanda snaps out of it and grabs the baby and presses its stomach with her thumbs.}
Amanda: You squeeze her stomach. You squeeze her stomach, just like this
[rofl. I guess they couldn’t have them rip her head off and find the bladder inside the toy in a christmas episode.. the kiddies would have been traumatised!]
Lee: Yeah
Amanda: Look tears, See (Keeps squeezing)
[I do love deadpan Amanda.
All the preparing to do something stuff has quite the build up. You know I actually do not remember what they end up doing!]
Lee: Okay. Let’s find something to contain the water.
Amanda: Uh-huh.
{Lee goes to shelf and plucks off another couple of remote controlled cars.}
Lee: Oh, and give me her dress.
{Amanda looks surprised.
Lee gives her a “well, go on” look and shrug.}
[LOL I think they could have had Amanda mishear what he said. Because when I first heard it I thought he was saying – give me your dress. A Freudian slip if ever there was one haaa.. but it would have been pretty funny if Amanda thought he was after her clothes, and not the dolls!]

It’s wonderful to see Lee and Amanda working together and sharing a few moments! Thoughts anyone? Happy New Year all!!!