TV Review: The L Word Episode 3.10

Sunday, March 12, 2006

From Showtime: Alice keeps vigil at Dana's bedside while she takes a turn for the worse; Carmen drops the unexpected on Shane; Bette's attempts at inner peace don't come easily; Lara calls from France looking for Dana; Jenny meets up with her ex-husband Tim and introduces him to Max; Peggy Peabody flies in to save Helena and the company; Tina embraces settles in with Henry.

My Rating: 4 out of 4

Tonight's episode of The L Word titled Losing the Light has to be most powerful episode of this series this season and possibly ever. I knew what was going to happen. It had been spoiled for me weeks ago, but even with the knowledge of this episode events, I still found myself in tears and angry at the way the events played out. I found myself the most involved I have been this entire season with this episode.

The episode opens with a phone call from Lara in Paris. She calls Dana's apartment in Los Angeles, and she says she wants to talk about coming home because she misses her. What she doesn't know is that Dana is in the hospital, and she has been for the last five days. Alice has not left her bedside the entire time, and we know that something big is going to happen the way they are counting down with the clock popping up every so often. Alice does end up leaving Dana's bedside at the urging of a nurse. She leaves for not very long, and she buys Dana a singing flower that sings "You are my Sunshine."

This episode doesn't really focus on Dana's passing, but the events that occur in a span of a couple of hours leading up to the moment of death. We see some surprises as former cast members return. One of those cast members being Tim, Jenny's ex. He has wasted no time at all. He's now married, and his wife is six months pregnant. He is town for a swim meet, and he and wife meet up with Jenny and Max. As soon as Jenny informs him that Max is pre-op transsexual, things get awkward.

The foursome go out to lunch, and things get heated with the former couple. Tim and Jenny both say things to each other, and Jenny blurts out to his wife about their last night tonight in Los Angeles. Tim leaves, and Jenny and Max follow. In the car, they talk, and Max actually defends Tim. I am flashing the Jenny dump Max sign now. This won't work out for them, and that becomes more and more apparent with each episode.

Shane and Carmen are also a focus this episode, and early on we learn that Shane isn't the only one that has cheated. Carmen informs Shane that she has cheated to with a Robin. Shane's immediate, as was mine, as this was Jenny's Robin, but we never know for sure. If it was the same Robin, that was a nice way to connect everyone, especially since Carmen and Jenny were together. It works well with inter connectivity of the chart. You would think with Carmen's confession this couple would be done with. However, it seems to put them on some common ground, and it makes them stronger for it. I saw the previews for next week, and we know this couple is here to stay. However, the Shane proposing to Carmen sounds like The L Word is taking a story line from Queer as Folk, which they have done before.

This episode also continues on the Dylan and Helena story line, as they meet with their lawyers about the sexual harassment charges brought against Helena. It seems Helena has a bad history in this department, so it is best to settle. Dylan's lawyer even shows the tape, and I'm not sure but the tape looked edited to make Helena look even worse. Helena's lawyer doesn't want to settle, but she confronts Dylan one more time and asks her to tell her that she doesn't want to see her again and that she never loved her. Dylan does say the first thing, but she never admits to never loving Helena. I so wanted these two together.

While all this is happening, Tina has just left the hospital to have lunch with Henry, the children and another couple. They seem to be in happy coupledom now, and Tina finally looks more at ease. However, she is bothered when one couple stops to compliment her family and the woman says something that implies she adopted Angelica due to her race. This does bother Tina. Bette is still away at her retreat, but she ends up leaving early. Her time during this episode is spent bonding with an older woman and man as they wait for the bus to pick them up. As for Kit and Angus, she is worried when he doesn't return her phone calls, but not much else happens with them this episode.

As I mentioned, Alice leaves the hospital for some fresh air for a few moments, and while outside she sees Tonya, a much different Tonya than we were used to. She was calmer, and the two end up talking. This exchange goes much better than the one between Jenny and Tim. It appears that Tonya is looking to have a baby, and she even tells Alice how she used to be jealous of her because of how much Dana loved her. Alice is on her way back to the room when Dana flat lines, and she arrives a few moments after. The doctor tells her what exactly happened, and she loses it in the hallway. What bothers me here is that when Dana passed on, she was alone. Others were supposed to show to help relieve Alice, but they hadn't when she left. I know she had to die in the story line, but I really don't like how our beloved Dana had to die alone. That part bothers me.

This episode was the best of this season. It was well written, and the actors did well in their roles. It was also realistic, but I still don't agree with Dana dying alone. It was really nice seeing Tim and Tonya again. At first, I was cheering Tim on in the parking lot, but then I was wanting to smack him when they were at lunch. I felt bad for everyone, but I feel especially bad for Alice. She loved Dana so much. This is going to hit her the hardest. Two more episodes left, and this season of The L Word is a wrap!