Hiya my wonderful fellow smk fans!!
As promised.. time to discuss the episode order of We’re off to see the Wizard (Wizard) and Over the Limit (OTL)..
*All opinions are welcome!!*
This is a safe place to think what you like without someone telling you your wrong!! There is no wrong.. we just disagree..that’s okay! We can still enjoy smk together!!
So.. bring it on!!!!
To start us off…
1)I’ll give a quick recap of the events in Over the Limit- without interpreting.
2) Happy Camper has compiled a summary of ideas about the ep order mentioned on JWWM so far (Huge thank you to Happy Camper!!).
Note- JWWM blogged the first 5 episodes of season 3 in an order suggested by Morley, due to the fact that there is an obvious problem with the Q bureau episode order, and I didn’t want to watch the episodes before blogging them. So we may or may not agree with the order the eps were blogged in on JWWM. Let’s see!! [but thanks again Morley for sharing your order with us!!] I tend to think it’s better to stick with the airing order, if there is no good reason to change it..(In the original airing order, Wizard aired before OTL).
So, here’s the OTL recap of Lee and Amanda moments:
Post 1– Amanda discovers Dotty looking at the Rebecca’s fantasies catalogue.
Post 2– AT IFF, Billy is conducting a meeting in 
the bullpen for everyone- allocating spring cleaning jobs and Lee walks into the 
bullpen meeting late, and looking a little unkept.
Billy signs up Amanda for gun training.
Francine assumes he is a ‘midnight rambler’ and a woman has been keeping him up.
Lee says it’s insomnia.
Billy notes the insomnia is chronic, and has been happening the last 4 days. He assumes it’s a woman.
what does Amanda think? this is unclear..
Billy wants Lee to accompany Amanda on spring cleaning, but Lee thinks she can handle it fine alone. Billy orders him to. The scene ends with Lee looking at ‘enthused’ Amanda..
A little sad and thoughtful as Billy tells Lee to ‘take care of Amanda’
Post 3– Amanda and Lee visit the Oddball 
women’s auxiliary.. After, Lee is distracted.. Amanda asks if Lee has a date. Lee denies this saying he’s just preoccupied. Lee reminds Amanda of a new year’s eve party they attended together at the 
soviet embassy,
Lee got drunk and went for a swim in the borscht, but… Lee also remembers Amanda looked ‘beautiful’ that night. Amanda smiles and thanks Lee for the compliment. Lee reminds Amanda of how they danced..
Post 4– continuing.. Lee reminds Amanda of the 
‘fabulous dress’ she was wearing that night.. Amanda smiles..
Lee gets a bit of a description of the dress from Amanda.. remarks it was 
‘gorgeous’ and asks where Amanda bought it. But, she made it. Lee remarks ‘it’s one of a kind?’ disappointed, because he has a ‘friend’ he wants 
to buy a present for.. and ‘she would look you know..grrr.. Great!’ in that dress..
Lee, 
imagining his friend in Amanda’s dress doesn’t realise Amanda is not happy with this 
comment.
Amanda walks off and leaves Lee. Lee is left confused at what just happened.
Post 5– Amanda meets the guru and save the bay.. and heads to the rally. We later learn Lee is off at this point buying a dress for his ‘friend’. The bomb goes off and Secretary Rawlings is murdered at the rally.
Post 6-Lee is distressed about the bombing and searching for Amanda. Unsure if she is safe. He finds her standing at a distance. Runs to her, comforts her and they hug.
Lee doesn’t hold back here in showing his caring for her, nor does Amanda hold back in seeking comfort. There’s no hint of awkwardness.
They are interrupted by the policeman and Amanda takes note of Lee here –how? you can decide for yourselves 
The post ends with Elizabeth Sullivan being arrested, and Amanda’s not happy about it.
post 7– At IFF, no one is interested in helping Elizabeth Sullivan, or in hearing what Amanda saw at the rally. Amanda decides regardless, she will help Elizabeth and storms off.
post 8– Lee chases after her, to stop her – 
Amanda says:
‘with the sleep you’ve been missing and a new girlfriend and all, I’m 
surprised you noticed’
Amanda leaves Lee and 
he calls after her: ‘who says I have a new girlfriend?!’
At the police station, Amanda tries to help Elizabeth and her family. Lee comes too and gets Elizabeth released on bail. He has helped out too and looks on the family with real affection (IMHO? anyone not see this?)
Amanda is still cool with Lee, though 
acknowledges what he has done for her and the Sullivans.. and he responds shyly.
Post 9– Lee and Amanda hear the Sullivan’s story.. and looks like Lee is ‘on board’ with helping this 
family stay together too.
Post 10– Dotty’s package arrives! hoo haaa
Post 11– Amanda has her gun lesson with Leatherneck.. Lee gives Amanda 
the bad news- Elizabeth Sullivan is back in jail because they’ve found more evidence implicating her.
Post 12– Lee and Amanda head to the rest home to chat with an old lady.. and figure out Transoceanic has the lady’s car. Lee challenges Amanda – is she up to trying to get into transoceanic?
Amanda responds she can still flirt- if she wants to.
She hands Lee the red rose she was holding and he smiles at her cheekiness.
He reaches out to take the red Rose from Amanda.
Post 13– Amanda gets into transoceanic.. in a 
round about way. Lee approaches O’Keefe saying he and Amanda are blackmailing him and he is to call them and pay up. the leave. Together they head back to Lee’s to wait for his call.
They are both complimenting each other’s work and enjoying working together. They find someone is in Lee’s apartment..
post 14– Lee’s new ‘friend’ is revealed for the first time. 
Lee hides his gun from Leslie.
Leslie has surprised Lee with dinner.. and is making herself at home. Amanda is shocked when she sees Leslie.
Amanda meets Leslie for the first time.
Leslie is portrayed as a professional woman, who is no Randy, Betsy, Debbie or Pamela. She is dressed modestly.
Lee does not look thrilled to have the two women in his life meet!
Leslie reveals to Amanda that Lee has bought her a dress for a soviet 
embassy party they are attending the next night.
Leslie is portrayed as a normal woman, looking for a real relationship, though they are dating long distance.
Post 15– Amanda is shocked that Leslie is 
normal – this is not Lee’s type. She’s even a bit cranky and jealous at this discovery. She tells Lee a normal person would never understand him or what he does.
Lee counters: …She has a top security clearance from the UN as a diplomatic translator……She’s been to Moscow for the start talks. …she can guess what I do.… that’s why it works out so….. perfect!
Lee’s definition of ‘perfect’ has changed. And it is all a complete shock to Amanda. And she’s mad!!!
Lee sends Amanda home.. and she’s really mad.
Lee offers to replace Amanda with Francine for the op.
Oh boy.. This really really really makes Amanda mad!
Post 16– Lee returns to 
the apartment for dinner with Leslie. Lee has a slip of the tongue- and calls Leslie ‘Amanda’. 
Lee sees Leslie in the dress…
seeing the dress on Leslie was not as Grrrrr 
Great as he thought it would be earlier.. Leslie tells Lee Amanda is very nice and he is lucky to 
have her, Lee agrees: yes, Amanda is very special.
They go to kiss but are 
interrupted by O’Keefe (Bless him) wanting to meet. Lee and Francine show up to meet O’Keefe, it’s a set up, and Amanda saves both their butts (and the corvette) from being blown up.
Post 17– Lee and Francine held at gunpoint are 
again saved by Amanda.. and Lee is cranky with Amanda for not shooting O’Keefe.
Post 18– The next day, Lee and Amanda see the Sullivans.. wish them well.. and Lee invites 
Amanda out for dinner tonight. ‘you know just the two of us.. err alone..’
Amanda asks about Leslie.. because Lee was suppose to attend the Russian embassy party with Leslie in that dress that night.
Lee brushes it off.. saying Leslie will be fine. There is no indication Lee has broken things off permanently with Leslie, only that he won’t be attending the party with her.
Lee is quite subdued, a little nervous in asking Amanda to dinner here.. Lee: ‘…No I thought err maybe err you know a nice steak errr……a bottle of red wine..a baked potato on the side……no shop talk for a change?……you know we……errr we…don’t do enough of that…Do we.?’
Amanda smiles and agrees: Not by half.
And the episode ends there..
So there you have it!
Now.. on with Happy Camper’s notes…
[Which are not Happy Camper’s thoughts- rather Happy Camper has simply compiled different ideas mentioned on JWWM already!]
Starting point: we know that Wizard is out of place in the airing order, because it includes the Q-bureau, which is introduced in Weasel, aired later. [iwsod adds-or Weasel is out of order] There is no Q bureau in OTL. Its absence doesn’t exactly prove anything, but it would be interesting to know how many other episodes don’t show the Q Bureau after it is introduced. Also, if Wizard comes before, then Weasel has to as well.
Points based on the storyline:
*The Cut Leslie Scene
In Wizard- there was a scene with Leslie in the script, but it was cut. I think it doesn’t exactly read like an introduction. Why was the scene cut? Because they didn’t think it was a good introduction for Leslie, or because they had already introduced her and decided not to take that storyline any further? The deleted scene has her sneak into Lee’s apartment and surprise him, just like in OTL. That seems redundant, especially when she goes to lengths to explain that she got the doorman to let her in. Maybe when the scene was cut they reused the idea, which argues for Wizard first. It also seems a little odd to me, if Wizard came after OTL, that there was no attempt made to warn Leslie. On the other hand, the deleted scene addressed just that, so Wizard could have come after, and that plot point simply got forgotten when the scene was dropped. Maybe the powers that be decided that it detracted too much from Lee’s concern for Amanda to have to have him concerned for Leslie.
*Similar dialogue
There is a similarity in the words Lee uses to Amanda in OTL and Wizard: Go home, I’m not going to fight about this. The difference is that in OTL he uses those words when he’s not thinking about Amanda’s well-being, while in Wizard that’s exactly what he’s thinking about. Perhaps this is an intentional contrast by the writers, but is it intended to highlight an improvement in Lee’s relationship with Amanda, or a deterioration?
*The Smell of Roses
Lee can’t stand the smell of roses (they make him sick) in Wizard, but Lee seems to have laid it to rest by the end of that episode. In OTL, Amanda gives him a rose and there is no mention that it makes him sick. [iwsod adds-and no adverse reaction from Lee to the rose]
Points based on Amanda’s character development:
*Amanda Jealousy/Black Books
Amanda’s reaction to Lee’s black books includes basically no jealousy. But her reaction to Leslie is very different. If Wizard came first, we can think that she hadn’t yet reached the point of being jealous, but maybe the events in Wizard gave her a new sense of her specialness to Lee which she felt was threatened by Leslie. If OTL came first, we might think that Amanda had her bout of jealousy but by the end he became closer to her than before, so that she was not threatened by the revelation of how many other “friends” he had. If Wizard came first, it might also explain some of Lee’s surprise at her jealousy about Leslie. However, if OTL came first, it might explain Lee’s eyes pleading for understanding when Amanda finds out about his 4 books.
Points based on Lee’s character development:
*In Wizard, Lee really has to come to grips with his “harmless” dating habits, although he sometimes seems to act as though he has regretted it for a while. I think we agree that his attempt at a serious relationship with Leslie springs from at least a subconscious rejection of his previous lifestyle, but if this happened after Wizard, it would likely be much more deliberate, a conscious choice to seek a more permanent kind of relationship. Or do we think that after the events in Wizard, Lee wouldn’t be so quick to get into another relationship? (although according to the script he’s already in it). Either the events in Wizard make Lee uncomfortable enough with his dating habits to try something new (Leslie), or he has independently become dissatisfied with the kind of relationships he is used to. Is Leslie “perfect” because he’s just revisited his black books of all the women who could never really know him? But if he’s after a relationship where he can be himself, why not tell Leslie, especially if she can guess? Wouldn’t he be sick of a cover?
Points based on the relationship:
What clues about episode order can we get from Lee and Amanda’s relationship?
There is Lee’s reaction to Amanda’s danger in both Wizard and OTL. Wizard doesn’t have the same hug and gladness at seeing she is alive.
-Also in Wizard, Amanda seems surprised that Lee cares. She seems less surprised in OTL. But, we could argue that the circumstances are quite different (Amanda is still in danger in Wizard), and there are other things that could have caused Amanda’s surprised reaction.
-Lee’s “I need to talk”, and the way he confides in Amanda about Dorothy- does it seem more likely after the re-establishment of communication between them in OTL, or before the interruption of it?
–It may be difficult to see Amanda giving Lee that little peck on the cheek before the step he takes in OTL; it seems like something she would not do for fear he might misunderstand. On the other hand, it could show she was beginning to entertain at least a momentary thought about a relationship, which would explain some her jealousy when she finds out Lee is looking to someone else.
–Lee’s treatment of Amanda in OTL is definitely worse than his behaviour to her in Wizard. I’m not thinking about a romantic relationship here, just the way Lee’s character and his appreciation of Amanda grows. It might be difficult to believe his treatment of her takes such a nosedive. However, there are many signs of closeness in OTL as well, even though they have such a huge difference of opinion. The “eyespeak” in Wizard is a beautiful moment. But an equally beautiful and caring moment can be found in OTL, when Lee secures Elizabeth’s release from jail because he knows Amanda is concerned, but he won’t come right out and admit it. I think he is talking with his eyes there, too — Amanda is about to go out the door, but he looks at her and she comes over to him.
-There is more appearance of trust, openness, and closeness between Lee and Amanda in Wizard than there is in most of OTL. Some people see this closeness as a sign that the rough patch of OTL is behind them, and they are closer than before. However, it is possible that this very closeness is what sent Lee looking for a different relationship, and caused some of Amanda’s anger and turmoil.
Iwsod: I’ll just add one more thing- Please stick to discussing the order of Wizard and OTL only. We’ll discuss the order of the first five episodes in Season 3 once we’ve walked through A Lovely Little Affair – coming up next! :)
Looking forward to interesting discussion!!!
byee!!!
[Thanks again Happy Camper for your help!]
