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Episode Title: Weighing of Evils
Season 06, Episode 13
Episode 113 of 344
Written by Scott Hamner
Directed by Lorraine Senna
Original Airdate: Thursday, January 3rd, 1985
The Plot (Courtesy of TV.Com): Karen finally agrees to have the operation and checks into the hospital. Abby wants in on Empire Valley, but Galveston tells her to go home and raise babies. Greg wakes up and Galveston is in his room and says that he is dying and it's time for him to forgive and forget. Galveston says his money has more power than being a senator, and Greg craves power. Greg tells Laura his divorce is final. People mob the station wanting to see Joshua, so Abby gives him a regular segment on Reverend Kathryn's show. The detective reports to Abby on Val, but Abby tells everyone he has no leads since Nevada. In Shula, Val goes to a "social" with Parker, but walks out when people tell her he has a girlfriend. Parker tells Val that they broke up, and he kisses her.
Welcome back. When we last left off in the closing seconds of Uncharted Territory, Karen had finally told the truth to Mack about her medical condition and her fears about seeking surgery, to which he powerfully and unforgettably responded with, “When the choices are slim or none, you go with slim, always; I won’t let you die.” Omigod, what an episode ending, and thank the good lord above that My Beloved Grammy and I didn’t have to wait a whole week to continue this story, but rather just dove right in immediately with the next glorious KL experience, Weighing of Evils.
I’ve mentioned it before, but I’m gonna mention it again, so deal with it. For me, one of the most interesting and enlightening experiences of doing this rewatch has been realizing that, even in the midst of this full serialized nighttime soap storytelling, each episode is still managing to stick out as its own individual snowflake. Upon my first viewing of the series, it was such a madcap dash to watch the entire series that the whole experience kinda blended together. I would watch these whole 30 episode seasons in just a couple of days, powering through a shit ton of eps in one viewing, unable to stop myself from watching more. Now, however, holding each and every ep under a microscope and trying to deeply explore all the different facets, I am seeing that even though we’re in an era where you can’t just dive right into the show and take a sample of an ep here or there, the eps are still standing out as unique and special, and Weighing of Evils is no exception. I’ve said that prior eps like Distant Locations and, most especially, Tomorrow Never Knows, almost feel like little 48 minute horror movies, and I’d say this one has the flavor of something like, say, Terms of Endearment, something very dramatic and serious and sad and profoundly well acted by all involved, something that really speaks to the human condition and the way we behave towards other people as well as the way we face the possibility of our own deaths. Let’s just dive right in.
Most of this ep is concerned with Karen and her getting ready for surgery, and that’s the absolute best stuff in the ep and the stuff I want to explore the most, so let’s go ahead and save it for later and explore some of the other characters and what’s going on this week. I vote for starting with Val/Verna, who, as we catch up with her, is starting to get pretty comfortably established in Shula, continuing her work as a waitress. I have to say that, aside from the big red flag that we’re gonna further explore this week (the red flag named Parker), I actually think things look rather pleasant in this little town and think Val/Verna could be perfectly happy staying here forever. Am I wrong to see things this way? Obviously I want her returned to California because her friends and family are concerned about her and also because Gary is her one true soul mate and she needs to stay close to him, but at the same time I’m not seeing much bad about her current living arrangement. She’s got a nice job waitressing, which she does well, and I’ll bet the money she makes, particularly through tips, is enough for her to afford that cute little apartment that she moved into last week. She seems to be popular with the regulars at the diner and she seems to get along with the boss, plus the town is just sorta cute and small and seems right up her alley, so I don’t really see why Val/Verna couldn’t continue to live here forever and be happy.
Another thing I love about this storyline is that I almost feel like we get to branch off into a whole new series whenever we jump over to Shula. Honestly, it seems like this could maybe be the backdoor pilot for some sort of Val/Verna television spinoff, the way that the Dallas episode Return Engagements served as a backdoor pilot into the wonderful world of KL. I just love whenever we cut away from the gang in California and return to Val’s/Verna’s cozy little life here in Shula, and I feel like I can’t get enough of this. I’ve heard some fans say that this stuff goes on for a little too long, but I disagree; I could have easily lived with even more of it. Also, and this might have something to do with this being the first season to clock in at 30 eps (our last season had 25 eps, while the two prior seasons had 22 eps), but I feel like we really have time to move around and breathe and get comfortable in this world; we’re not just rushing along to the next storyline. Do not mistake this for me saying the season is slow or boring in any way, cuz I’m doing the exact opposite. I just feel like the length of the season really gives us time to get into the intricacies of stuff that might have to be moved along faster if this was a shorter season. I like me some deliberate pacing, so I’m a big fan of this.
The most significant thing to happen to Val/Verna this week is that she officially meets Parker Winslow, the dry cleaner guy that she briefly interacted with in our prior ep. He gave me a sleazy feeling in that ep and that sleazy feeling continues this week, when he formally introduces himself to Val/Verna and invites her to the town social. He doesn’t really do anything particularly lecherous right off the bat, but right away I just get a funny feeling about him, and I think that’s intentional. When we get to the town social, which looks like a fun gathering, we find out that Parker is a bit of a two-timer, at least according to what the other town locals say to Val/Verna. I can’t remember the exact circumstances of how this all comes about, but I believe Val/Verna and Parker are hanging out on a bench, enjoying the meal, when some random people come up and are like, “Hey Parker, where’s that girl that you’re currently cheating on with Val/Verna?” Upon hearing this, Val/Verna marches off and tells Parker that she isn’t interested in being the other woman, but he assures her that that isn’t so, that he actually dumped this girl awhile back and she’s just having a hard time getting over it. Reassured, Val/Verna allows herself to continue trusting Parker, at least for the time being.
Oh yeah, and one other very significant thing. Two weeks back, we were introduced to this P.I. character that Gary hired to go find Val. The only problem is we quickly realized he was in cahoots with Abs, with strict orders to report to her and only her about the locations of Val, if and when he finds her. This week, he manages to track her down to Shula, but then he walks into the diner to find her totally in her element, not only waiting tables but also making kissy faces with Parker. It maybe doesn’t sound too incriminating on paper, but I understand what the P.I. would assume when he sees this, as Val/Verna and Parker are looking pretty cozy as they kiss. Hence, he immediately calls Abs and reports on the whereabouts and also tells her that it doesn’t look like Val/Verna will be returning home anytime in the foreseeable future.
I wanna talk about Greg and Laura real fast since I feel like I’ve been giving them the shaft the last few eps (indeed, I don’t think I even mentioned either of them in the two previous write-ups, even though they were indeed in both eps). For me, Greg and Laura also feel a bit isolated from the rest of the cast at this point, but once again I don’t mean that as a criticism. It’s appropriate with Greg being busy with the senate stuff that he and Laura would be kinda out of the cul-de-sac most of the time, although in all honesty I confess I’m having a hard time figuring out if they’re still in California or hanging out in Washington together; anyone want to help me with that? In any case, Greg actually gets the introductory scene this week, as the ep credits play over footage of him riding his horse and a nice epic sounding musical score. Next, he has a little meeting with Gary in which he tells him he shouldn’t get involved with Galveston, and this is nicely crosscut with a scene of Galveston speaking with Abs.
Galveston may carry an aura of authority and old-fashioned masculinity about him and I may find myself liking the character because of Howard Duff’s charisma and the fact that he kinda reminds me of my Grampy, but his true colors certainly start to come out this week in all sorts of ways, most obviously his blatant sexism. Make no mistake, this isn’t that fun old fashioned just-sorta-out-of-touch sexism that a lot of really old men tend to demonstrate even when they aren’t aware that they’re doing so; this is the serious sexism of a man who truly believes women are inferior and need to stay in the kitchen.
During his meeting with Abs, I kid you not, he actually asks her why she isn’t at home having babies, and it’s a real wow man moment to see a man speaking with such obvious disrespect towards another woman. He also constantly calls her ‘Cookie,’ which could be endearing, but he’s not doing it in an endearing way; he’s doing it in a condescending way. Fortunately, Abs is able to hold her own against Galveston and give a little hint of how tough she can be when she jumps into her car and says how his ideas are hopelessly out of touch and then, just as she’s got the engine starting and purring along, she says, “And one more thing; don’t call me ‘Cookie.’” Then she speeds away, and we know that Galveston probably has no idea who he’s messing with. He hasn’t seen seasons two through five, but we have, and we are privy to the information that Abs is one woman you do not want to piss off in any way.
I guess Laura is gonna continue to get the shaft from me this week, because I’m looking in my notes and all I have scribbled for her is, “Laura’s awful librarian glasses!” Yes, I believe this is the ep in which The Librarian Glasses first make their appearance, and it’s a really quite awful thing to have to witness. What the hell could Laura have been thinking when she got these? What the hell could Constance have been thinking when she agreed to wear them on the show? What the hell was Travilla thinking when he allowed them to film footage of Laura wearing these? What the hell was CBS thinking when they allowed that footage to be aired? What the hell were the opening credits geniuses thinking during season seven when they actually put footage of Laura in The Librarian Glasses into the amazing scrolling squares? It’s truly just a horrible thing all around, but perhaps I should give some context about what I’m so distressed about. Basically, when we catch up with Laura this week, she’s hanging out in Sumner’s office during some big important meeting or other, and she’s wearing this ridiculously huge pair of, like, square shaped glasses that completely take up her entire face and are exceptionally unflattering. My Beloved Grammy and I both almost spit our red wine out onto the carpet when these monstrosities first showed up onscreen, and we both began to question how God could possibly exist if we live in a world in which these glasses could be made and manufactured and in which a beautiful woman could actually put them on her face and then allow the footage of them on her face to be aired on network television. Yes, The Librarian Glasses are so upsetting that I may, in fact, have to renounce my very belief in the existence of God.
Aside from the introduction of The Librarian Glasses, Laura isn’t too busy this week, but Greg is. Next up, we have him receiving a nighttime visit from Galveston while he’s trying to get some shuteye. This occurs in a hotel, although I am not sure if it’s Greg’s usual California hotel or a different hotel located in Washington. In any case, he wakes up and Galveston is sitting by the bed, totally draped in shadow, being creepy. Now, I’ve never woken up in a hotel room to find a veteran character actor sitting in a chair beside me, but I’ll bet if I did, it would be rather startling. Greg takes it like a champ though and doesn’t seem particularly disturbed by the fact that this man somehow managed to get into his hotel room in the middle of the night. He does, however, seem angry at him and we get the sense that he wants nothing to do with Galveston. We also get some cryptic dialogue about how Galveston can give Greg the power he wants and needs, power that a mere senate seat cannot get him. It’s all very vague, and that’s of course intentional, though I will say that My Beloved Grammy is one sharp cookie (you see what I did there?) and immediately asked, “Is Galveston Greg’s father?” Well, I didn’t answer one way or the other and I don’t plan to answer one way or the other on this blog, but let’s just say we shall be finding out whether or not that is indeed so in just a few short eps.
TO BE CONTINUED
Season 06, Episode 13
Episode 113 of 344
Written by Scott Hamner
Directed by Lorraine Senna
Original Airdate: Thursday, January 3rd, 1985
The Plot (Courtesy of TV.Com): Karen finally agrees to have the operation and checks into the hospital. Abby wants in on Empire Valley, but Galveston tells her to go home and raise babies. Greg wakes up and Galveston is in his room and says that he is dying and it's time for him to forgive and forget. Galveston says his money has more power than being a senator, and Greg craves power. Greg tells Laura his divorce is final. People mob the station wanting to see Joshua, so Abby gives him a regular segment on Reverend Kathryn's show. The detective reports to Abby on Val, but Abby tells everyone he has no leads since Nevada. In Shula, Val goes to a "social" with Parker, but walks out when people tell her he has a girlfriend. Parker tells Val that they broke up, and he kisses her.
Welcome back. When we last left off in the closing seconds of Uncharted Territory, Karen had finally told the truth to Mack about her medical condition and her fears about seeking surgery, to which he powerfully and unforgettably responded with, “When the choices are slim or none, you go with slim, always; I won’t let you die.” Omigod, what an episode ending, and thank the good lord above that My Beloved Grammy and I didn’t have to wait a whole week to continue this story, but rather just dove right in immediately with the next glorious KL experience, Weighing of Evils.
I’ve mentioned it before, but I’m gonna mention it again, so deal with it. For me, one of the most interesting and enlightening experiences of doing this rewatch has been realizing that, even in the midst of this full serialized nighttime soap storytelling, each episode is still managing to stick out as its own individual snowflake. Upon my first viewing of the series, it was such a madcap dash to watch the entire series that the whole experience kinda blended together. I would watch these whole 30 episode seasons in just a couple of days, powering through a shit ton of eps in one viewing, unable to stop myself from watching more. Now, however, holding each and every ep under a microscope and trying to deeply explore all the different facets, I am seeing that even though we’re in an era where you can’t just dive right into the show and take a sample of an ep here or there, the eps are still standing out as unique and special, and Weighing of Evils is no exception. I’ve said that prior eps like Distant Locations and, most especially, Tomorrow Never Knows, almost feel like little 48 minute horror movies, and I’d say this one has the flavor of something like, say, Terms of Endearment, something very dramatic and serious and sad and profoundly well acted by all involved, something that really speaks to the human condition and the way we behave towards other people as well as the way we face the possibility of our own deaths. Let’s just dive right in.
Most of this ep is concerned with Karen and her getting ready for surgery, and that’s the absolute best stuff in the ep and the stuff I want to explore the most, so let’s go ahead and save it for later and explore some of the other characters and what’s going on this week. I vote for starting with Val/Verna, who, as we catch up with her, is starting to get pretty comfortably established in Shula, continuing her work as a waitress. I have to say that, aside from the big red flag that we’re gonna further explore this week (the red flag named Parker), I actually think things look rather pleasant in this little town and think Val/Verna could be perfectly happy staying here forever. Am I wrong to see things this way? Obviously I want her returned to California because her friends and family are concerned about her and also because Gary is her one true soul mate and she needs to stay close to him, but at the same time I’m not seeing much bad about her current living arrangement. She’s got a nice job waitressing, which she does well, and I’ll bet the money she makes, particularly through tips, is enough for her to afford that cute little apartment that she moved into last week. She seems to be popular with the regulars at the diner and she seems to get along with the boss, plus the town is just sorta cute and small and seems right up her alley, so I don’t really see why Val/Verna couldn’t continue to live here forever and be happy.
Another thing I love about this storyline is that I almost feel like we get to branch off into a whole new series whenever we jump over to Shula. Honestly, it seems like this could maybe be the backdoor pilot for some sort of Val/Verna television spinoff, the way that the Dallas episode Return Engagements served as a backdoor pilot into the wonderful world of KL. I just love whenever we cut away from the gang in California and return to Val’s/Verna’s cozy little life here in Shula, and I feel like I can’t get enough of this. I’ve heard some fans say that this stuff goes on for a little too long, but I disagree; I could have easily lived with even more of it. Also, and this might have something to do with this being the first season to clock in at 30 eps (our last season had 25 eps, while the two prior seasons had 22 eps), but I feel like we really have time to move around and breathe and get comfortable in this world; we’re not just rushing along to the next storyline. Do not mistake this for me saying the season is slow or boring in any way, cuz I’m doing the exact opposite. I just feel like the length of the season really gives us time to get into the intricacies of stuff that might have to be moved along faster if this was a shorter season. I like me some deliberate pacing, so I’m a big fan of this.
The most significant thing to happen to Val/Verna this week is that she officially meets Parker Winslow, the dry cleaner guy that she briefly interacted with in our prior ep. He gave me a sleazy feeling in that ep and that sleazy feeling continues this week, when he formally introduces himself to Val/Verna and invites her to the town social. He doesn’t really do anything particularly lecherous right off the bat, but right away I just get a funny feeling about him, and I think that’s intentional. When we get to the town social, which looks like a fun gathering, we find out that Parker is a bit of a two-timer, at least according to what the other town locals say to Val/Verna. I can’t remember the exact circumstances of how this all comes about, but I believe Val/Verna and Parker are hanging out on a bench, enjoying the meal, when some random people come up and are like, “Hey Parker, where’s that girl that you’re currently cheating on with Val/Verna?” Upon hearing this, Val/Verna marches off and tells Parker that she isn’t interested in being the other woman, but he assures her that that isn’t so, that he actually dumped this girl awhile back and she’s just having a hard time getting over it. Reassured, Val/Verna allows herself to continue trusting Parker, at least for the time being.
Oh yeah, and one other very significant thing. Two weeks back, we were introduced to this P.I. character that Gary hired to go find Val. The only problem is we quickly realized he was in cahoots with Abs, with strict orders to report to her and only her about the locations of Val, if and when he finds her. This week, he manages to track her down to Shula, but then he walks into the diner to find her totally in her element, not only waiting tables but also making kissy faces with Parker. It maybe doesn’t sound too incriminating on paper, but I understand what the P.I. would assume when he sees this, as Val/Verna and Parker are looking pretty cozy as they kiss. Hence, he immediately calls Abs and reports on the whereabouts and also tells her that it doesn’t look like Val/Verna will be returning home anytime in the foreseeable future.
I wanna talk about Greg and Laura real fast since I feel like I’ve been giving them the shaft the last few eps (indeed, I don’t think I even mentioned either of them in the two previous write-ups, even though they were indeed in both eps). For me, Greg and Laura also feel a bit isolated from the rest of the cast at this point, but once again I don’t mean that as a criticism. It’s appropriate with Greg being busy with the senate stuff that he and Laura would be kinda out of the cul-de-sac most of the time, although in all honesty I confess I’m having a hard time figuring out if they’re still in California or hanging out in Washington together; anyone want to help me with that? In any case, Greg actually gets the introductory scene this week, as the ep credits play over footage of him riding his horse and a nice epic sounding musical score. Next, he has a little meeting with Gary in which he tells him he shouldn’t get involved with Galveston, and this is nicely crosscut with a scene of Galveston speaking with Abs.
Galveston may carry an aura of authority and old-fashioned masculinity about him and I may find myself liking the character because of Howard Duff’s charisma and the fact that he kinda reminds me of my Grampy, but his true colors certainly start to come out this week in all sorts of ways, most obviously his blatant sexism. Make no mistake, this isn’t that fun old fashioned just-sorta-out-of-touch sexism that a lot of really old men tend to demonstrate even when they aren’t aware that they’re doing so; this is the serious sexism of a man who truly believes women are inferior and need to stay in the kitchen.
During his meeting with Abs, I kid you not, he actually asks her why she isn’t at home having babies, and it’s a real wow man moment to see a man speaking with such obvious disrespect towards another woman. He also constantly calls her ‘Cookie,’ which could be endearing, but he’s not doing it in an endearing way; he’s doing it in a condescending way. Fortunately, Abs is able to hold her own against Galveston and give a little hint of how tough she can be when she jumps into her car and says how his ideas are hopelessly out of touch and then, just as she’s got the engine starting and purring along, she says, “And one more thing; don’t call me ‘Cookie.’” Then she speeds away, and we know that Galveston probably has no idea who he’s messing with. He hasn’t seen seasons two through five, but we have, and we are privy to the information that Abs is one woman you do not want to piss off in any way.
I guess Laura is gonna continue to get the shaft from me this week, because I’m looking in my notes and all I have scribbled for her is, “Laura’s awful librarian glasses!” Yes, I believe this is the ep in which The Librarian Glasses first make their appearance, and it’s a really quite awful thing to have to witness. What the hell could Laura have been thinking when she got these? What the hell could Constance have been thinking when she agreed to wear them on the show? What the hell was Travilla thinking when he allowed them to film footage of Laura wearing these? What the hell was CBS thinking when they allowed that footage to be aired? What the hell were the opening credits geniuses thinking during season seven when they actually put footage of Laura in The Librarian Glasses into the amazing scrolling squares? It’s truly just a horrible thing all around, but perhaps I should give some context about what I’m so distressed about. Basically, when we catch up with Laura this week, she’s hanging out in Sumner’s office during some big important meeting or other, and she’s wearing this ridiculously huge pair of, like, square shaped glasses that completely take up her entire face and are exceptionally unflattering. My Beloved Grammy and I both almost spit our red wine out onto the carpet when these monstrosities first showed up onscreen, and we both began to question how God could possibly exist if we live in a world in which these glasses could be made and manufactured and in which a beautiful woman could actually put them on her face and then allow the footage of them on her face to be aired on network television. Yes, The Librarian Glasses are so upsetting that I may, in fact, have to renounce my very belief in the existence of God.
Aside from the introduction of The Librarian Glasses, Laura isn’t too busy this week, but Greg is. Next up, we have him receiving a nighttime visit from Galveston while he’s trying to get some shuteye. This occurs in a hotel, although I am not sure if it’s Greg’s usual California hotel or a different hotel located in Washington. In any case, he wakes up and Galveston is sitting by the bed, totally draped in shadow, being creepy. Now, I’ve never woken up in a hotel room to find a veteran character actor sitting in a chair beside me, but I’ll bet if I did, it would be rather startling. Greg takes it like a champ though and doesn’t seem particularly disturbed by the fact that this man somehow managed to get into his hotel room in the middle of the night. He does, however, seem angry at him and we get the sense that he wants nothing to do with Galveston. We also get some cryptic dialogue about how Galveston can give Greg the power he wants and needs, power that a mere senate seat cannot get him. It’s all very vague, and that’s of course intentional, though I will say that My Beloved Grammy is one sharp cookie (you see what I did there?) and immediately asked, “Is Galveston Greg’s father?” Well, I didn’t answer one way or the other and I don’t plan to answer one way or the other on this blog, but let’s just say we shall be finding out whether or not that is indeed so in just a few short eps.
TO BE CONTINUED
