How do you do.
So, the characters have graduated from high school, thus the show is now at a cross roads. Will they wrap things up and bring up a spin off series in their college years, stop the whole thing right there, or would they continue? There were matters that needed to be settled once and for all and even the end of Season Four left a few things unsettled. So, the college seasons are brought in.
In this part, I'll review both seasons instead of going one at a time.
Season Five (A season of a new direction in the same old song)
The college seasons begin where we see Joey in Worthington, Jen and Jack at Boston Bay, Pacey on the dock in Boston harbor, and Dawson at the gates of a film studio in Los Angeles. In "The Bostonians", Dawson enters an internship with a rough, Australian sounding director named Todd, doesn't stand well with his attics, and then gets fired. Joey is invited out to a party with Jen and Jack, plus her roommate, Audrey Liddell, who all want her to move on from Dawson and get away from books. Joey has fun and sends a drunken message to Dawson on her cellphone. Meanwhile, Pacey finds out that his currently girlfriend, Melanie, is heading away and he is in need of a job. He finds one on Dougie's suggestion as a cook. From this springs the new plot lines.
Dawson finds Joey's message in "Lost Weekend", is flirted with by Audrey, and almost goes by to L.A. but Joey catches up to him in the airport and he decides to stay in Boston. Joey doesn't know Pacey is in town, however, until "Capeside Revisited" where she goes to his restaurant and finds him slicing potatoes for practice. One thing no one ever does is reference The Karate Kid. It takes awhile but Joey and Pacey meet up again and they talk. There is some awkwardness in it, however. At the same time, Dawson goes home, tells his parents the news, and they are not happy about it. Mitch now has gotten hard on Dawson and is practically pushing Dawson out the door as he buys airplane tickets and tells Dawson to seize the day. Dawson decides not to, to everyone's disappointment. The episode ends with Mitch going on a shopping trip and while driving down the road and eating ice cream (something I don't support) he is shown stopping while lights flood the windshield.
We don't see what happens next until "The Long Goodbye" as a group of people visit Leery's Fresh Fish and find a notice on the door that says "Closed. Death in the family." We are then shown a somewhat deserted Leery house that almost seems haunted until we see Dawson washing a few bottles. From all this we find out that Mitch Leery is dead. The death of Mitch Leery is an unexpected moment in the history of Dawson's Creek and something that catches everyone off guard. It is also different from with Art Brooks where we have plenty of time before the character dies, thus allowing death to be a theme in the last season. With Mitch, the sudden departure hardly allows one to prepare, which reflects in real life as death can happen without warning. As to why this happened is anyone's guess. My guess is John Wesley Shipp wanted to move on to other projects and didn't want to be known as Dawson's dad. So he agreed to appearing in two episodes and then his character is killed off. "The Long Goodbye" has moments where Mitch Leery appears and speaks with everyone, mostly meant to be a memory of him they are having. So, Dawson in his current age wasn't getting the present, Joey in her current age wasn't seeing the famous ladder being set up, and Pacey in his current age wasn't learning how to drive. The final moments of the episode show the Leerys posing for a picture, which is shown in the opening moments. Dawson then goes to his friends while Gail goes inside with Lily. Mitch lingers to retrieve the camera and then we have a moment of him looking around while the camera goes around him, as though he were noticing his ending coming. One can see that Mitch is now a lonely spirit standing over the world he once enjoyed. The grin he puts up before making a final exit must be from the way things are turning out in the future. Why they did not include similar moments in the rest of the season is anyone's guess, mostly to keep it secular. I also am positive that with the 9/11 Attacks still fresh on everyone's minds (as it happened a few weeks prior), the loss of husbands and fathers would have struck a cord to much of the female audience.
"The Long Goodbye" is also one of two episodes that does not feature "I Don't Want To Wait" being sung by Paulie Cole. The song is instead performed by a solo piano though the credit montage just doesn't fit. The DVDs are a disappointment in not preserving this opening, however.
Dawson gets depressed over Mitch's death and accuses himself of it happening as well as Joey for giving him the break up message that lead to it. Joey tries to help him but can't seem to. Jack and his frat buddies then take him partying where he gets drunk. Ultimately, it is Jen who helps him out the most. She hangs with him, offering a hug at the funeral, and in "Hotel New Hampshire", accompanies him to a film festival where his documentary on Brooks wins. Out of a state of happiness, Dawson thanks Jen while calling her his girlfriend, confirming what may people suspect. Dawson and Jen were accidentally given the honeymoon suite and after thirty minutes of hesitation, they for-fill what was intended in Season One. With that, there aren't any virgins on the show anymore, which is sad, really.
Before Dawson hooks up with Jen, Jen had a small affair with Charlie, a young radio disc jock. Their affair also leads to Jen landing a job in the radio as well. Their affair mostly falls apart as the only thing they have in common is they like to have sex. I always find it interesting how the lack of anything else is why it falls apart, whereas most shows try to force the couple to remain together. It finally ends when Jen spies another girl with Charlie, the latter claims was his sister, catches them about to do it in his dorm, and joins up with the girl to humiliate him. It turns out that they wanted to bring Drue Valentine into the mix, since it seemed near the end of Season Four that he was improving, as was his relationship with Jen. However, the Peter Gallaghan look-a-like decided to not show up for the new season and so they had to come up with a new character, which explains some of the manners of Charlie having with Drue.
Drue may not return but another alumnus of Season Four, Toby, shows up and calls on Jack in "Use Your Disillusion". Toby has transformed when he arrives: gone is the militant gay teen who belittled Jack. Now he seems naive and less militant. He does, however, call Jack the "Uncle Tom" of gay guys for joining a Fraternity. Jack also acts like a jerk around him and it breaks Toby's heart. Toby leaves and is never seen or heard again. In the meantime, Jack rides high as a frat boy and goes a character transformation. Once, he was a scared boy who just wanted to be accepted and to be normal, now he has become a gay jerk who indulges his brothers with girls (he hooks one up with Audrey on the grounds of being nice and easy). He considers being a frat boy a new image after being known as "the gay guy" in high school while still remaining in his sexuality. He also gets into some feelings for another frat brother named Eric and loses a roommate who feels uncomfortable around him. Eventually, Jack's partying with the frat boys leads to his grades to suffer and he is put on academic probation. The frat boys, out of concern for their house, tell Jack to hit the books, which irritates him. He picks a fight in Civilization and is kicked out of the frat house, essentially showing his brothers to be nothing but fair weather friends. He struggles the remainder of the semester, almost commits suicide on a Spring Break trip, gets help from another frat brother, and gets into a relationship with the recently out of the closet Eric.
Meanwhile, Pacey becomes a cook in Civilization, as stated. He dates a waitress named Karen, which I believe was making up for the missed opportunity with Dawson and Niki. Karen is also supposedly having an affair with their boss, Danny, even though he is married. Eventually, Karen disappears all together while Pacey is promoted to chef. Pacey has before been a poor cook and now is an expert at culinary arts. In "Appetite For Destruction", he cooks up a dinner for his friends at Grams' house and refuses to allow people to have snacks in between courses. Another thing goes his way when he hears how his family is proud of him. It does show a nice contrast between him and his college friends, who are yet to thrive while he is already making a way in the world.
A new character is introduced as Joey's roommate, Audrey Lidell, played by Busy Philips. Audrey is introduced as a foil to Joey: Joey is concerned about the grades while Audrey is worried about partying, Joey prefers one guy while bearing the scars of the love triangle whereas Audrey goes from guy to guy, and Joey lost her mom years ago and has found memories of her where Audrey's mom is alive but is a source of tension. One could argue that Audrey is what Joey would have been if none of the problems she faced earlier happened, if she came from a rich family, her mom was alive, and she never became a corner in the love triangle. Even though she is not on the main character slot in this season, she undergoes the same process of developing that Andie and Jack went through in Season Two. Audrey is not as perky as Andie. At most she provides some sex appeal that had vanished after Season Three while having the wit and humor to prove her worth. She is more than just an object of lust, she is her own character, auditioning for Ibiza and helping Dawson out with his movie.
The gang find out about Dawson and Jen in "Appetite For Destruction", where Pacey and Jack are surprised that Dawson goes all the way with her while neither of them even go so far as first base, Joey seems happy while Audrey is fussing about it. This moment provides a repeat of Season One where Dawson is with Jen while Joey is left pinning for him, while also providing a role reversal of Season Four with Dawson being in relationship of another, and losing his virginity, while Joey is left settling for another. Of course, Joey keeps herself occupied by studying and then have a fling with Professor Wilder. Joey Potter has also had a development in Season Five. Once, she was the fourth character of introduction and the sidekick to Dawson, now she has become the main protagonist while Dawson's status has decreased. In fact, "Four Scary Stories" doesn't even feature Dawson. Suddenly, the entire show is revolving around Joey instead of Dawson, something that was different from Season One, and makes one wonder why it wasn't retitled.
As to Dawson and Jen, they return to Capeside over the holidays and meet up with Gail. Dawson lacks direction yet is able to rise to the occasion when the Leery's Fresh Fish needed help. He and Jen then discuss what to do next and decide to head back to Grams. I find it strange that Jen's religious grandmother would approve of them cohabiting, since it is that. However, Grams's attempts at bringing God into things appears to have decreased in Season Five (she even says she and God were not on speaking terms in "The Long Goodbye"). The episodes "Sleeping Arrangements", "Something Wilder", and "Highway to Hell", which deal with them cohabiting, show a realistic portrayal of it: they face the issue of toothbrushes, toilet seat placement, and getting on everyone's nerves. Of course, Dawson tells Jen that he'll not be like her other boyfriends when he hears her on radio. In "Something Wilder", their happiness nearly ruins Jen's image on the radio and she tries to fix it by finding some provocation and gets it when Dawson and Oliver ignore her while talking about a script. Oliver wants Dawson to direct a movie he has in mind and Dawson doesn't. Eventually, Dawson decides to do so. The relationship with its ups and downs, and concerns of being caught by Grams, comes to a conclusion for some odd reason in "Highway to Hell". Jen had heard some talk while interviewing rock stars about being passionate about people and decided to break up with Dawson. This happens on Lily's first birthday. Interestingly, Dawson takes it well. I do wish the Dawson and Jen relationship had develop more but it seems it too was built on sex. Now that they finally did it, it actually makes it less for-filling. However, the chemistry they have is a plus and one would think they were married already.
Dawson films a movie that Oliver wrote and originally starred in in "Guerrilla Filmmaking" but Dawson had Charlie come back to play the leading role and altered the ending of it. The film is then presented to an audience in "Cigarette Burns", though we never actually get to see it ourselves. Quite frankly, the lack of results is what makes "Cigarette Burns" mediocre, though we actually see Grams date a black man (a far cry from the disapproving old woman who didn't like Bodie and Bessie). Even as Jen and Dawson's relationship ends, another begins in form of Pacey and Audrey. Like Dawson and Jen, their relationship is all about the flesh, which is sad after the pure love we saw between him and Joey. As to his ex, Melanie, she appears only once in the mid-season and then leaves, but not before doing one more night in the sack with him. Apparently, Pacey has gone into some kind of gigolo around girls, basically getting into relationships only to wind up in their pants. Yet, as the relationship continues, Pacey's job gets a new boss, a female, and it creates tension. The woman, Alex, hits on Pacey who doesn't notice it, but it's enough to drive Audrey away from him. In "The Abbey", the new boss attempts to transform Civilization in an unjust manner and Pacey then leads a revolt with the other cooks, resulting in his being fired. Of course, Alex is also fired. Pacey returns to Capeside in "Swan Song" where he becomes a cop sort while he is out of a job, and we are spared of hearing Doug and Sheriff Witter talk bad about him.
One of the better episodes is the second part to "Guerrilla Filmmaking", "Downtown Crossing". Here, Joey returns from aiding in Dawson's film and gets mugged at gun point, but not raped. Instead, the man takes away much of Joey's money and then gets hit by a car in a classic Deus ex Machina. Joey calls for an ambulance and chats with him while they wait, where she faints when they arrive. She wakes up in the hospital, meets a little girl who reminds her of herself, and decides to lie about the event after learning from the girl's mother that the girl's father is the man who mugged her. This Joey centric episode shows how far the show has come in having Joey stand in someone's shadow or be a love interest: now she is the protagonist of the episode and the only one at that. The episode also marks a turning point as Joey was previously seeing her professor, something that is illegal. After the episode, Wilder decides to call it off, which opens Joey to dating someone else. It also brings in the remaining episodes to have a role reversal where once it was Joey wanting Dawson back, now Dawson is deciding to give Joey a try while the latter has someone else: Charlie. "Highway to Hell" has this where Pacey doesn't approve of them because Charlie hurt Jen. I have been in something like this and it usually results in one of the girls thinking you are jealous and end their friendship with you even if you turn out right. Thankfully, Audrey is present to cool the guys down while we get to see Joey perform in a bar.
"100 Light Years From Home" has Dawson and Oliver on a road to meet a producer but Dawson keeps thinking of Joey. After some debate, Dawson goes down to Florida and runs into Jack and Pacey, the latter tells Dawson that Joey has moved on. The same episode has Pacey, Jack, Jen, Joey, and Audrey head to a family home in Florida for Spring Break, with most of the stereotypes of it on the beach along with guest appearance of M2M, a Norwegian based girls band. During this, Charlie tracks down Joey and they sleep together. Apparently, the thing is one guy tracks Joey down and gets to sleep with her while another does the same thing and doesn't get her. It leads to "Separate Ways" where they return to Boston while Dawson goes to New York. Their attempt to wow the man fail and Dawson and Oliver nearly end their friendship. Joey and Charlie eventually drift apart and then it's the guessing if Dawson and Joey are going to go back together.
"Swan Song" concludes this with Dawson having a dream of meeting her in an airport and it turns out she is engaged to another. The rest of the episode then has the characters parting ways and Joey and Dawson still not together. Jack meets up with Eric at the airport and Jen is diverted from a Costa Rica trip to be with her parents. Grams goes to Las Vegas with her boyfriend, presumably to condemn the city, while Dawson and Audrey head to L.A., leaving Joey and Pacey in Capeside. Of course, Pacey and Joey race to the airport and speak with their others. Pacey and Audrey then depart on a road trip to L.A. while Joey encourages Dawson to board the airplane, something that had been resisted all season, and lets him know of her love. The episode shows what the first two did not which was how the 9/11 Attacks have affected airport security. In "The Lost Weekend", Joey accompanied Dawson to the gate while in "Swan Song" she has to buy a ticket first, which shows that some of the episodes of Season Five were filmed after the attacks happened.
So now, Joey and Dawson are a couple again but are going to be thousands of miles apart, for now. The last image of the season has Joey pondering on the ticket to Paris, the place she has always wanted to see since Season One and then smiling as though she made a decision.
Season Five is not the best season but it's not the worst. Most fans put it somewhere near the bottom while others put it near the top. The new setting into college provides a fresh look to the show and the adventures are brand new, thus different from what was experienced earlier. The removal of the setting from fictional Capeside to real life Boston is a big risk, as it removes the story from the world we have known. I'm sure the actual Bostonians didn't mind. Besides, it's supplemented by the visits to Capeside. The dialogue is improved and the acting is best (people have pointed out there is more smiling involved than before). It's almost like the show was being renewed or something. Audrey Lidell is a nice edition to the show, mostly to replace Andie. There are a few bad points, such as the show suddenly taking a re-interest in sex after pushing it into the background, Jack's transformation, the romantic portrayal of Joey with Professor Wilder as a couple, and the character of Charlie. I also find the climax too much like the romantic soap operas where the lovers meet up somewhere and exchange the final words of love, something that has gotten too cliche.
Then again, compared to the next season, things were not as bad as previously thought.
The theme of Season Five is definitely change, with the setting placed in Boston, and the characters moving to college or the work place. Change is shown to be a good thing and a bad thing, as exemplified by Jack in the fraternity. Another theme would be getting over a tragedy. Dawson's dealing with his dad's death radiates in the season and it nearly makes him give up on film making all together. Taking a step in the right direction is another theme, since nothing will happen if one just sits there. One could say, Season Five is about a man who has to board a flight to start his dream and he spends awhile trying to board the plane, then finally gets in on the end. These themes make the season very relative in wake of the 9/11 Attacks. The final dream fulfillment is in Joey to Paris which proves the cliffhanger in the season.
The college seasons begin where we see Joey in Worthington, Jen and Jack at Boston Bay, Pacey on the dock in Boston harbor, and Dawson at the gates of a film studio in Los Angeles. In "The Bostonians", Dawson enters an internship with a rough, Australian sounding director named Todd, doesn't stand well with his attics, and then gets fired. Joey is invited out to a party with Jen and Jack, plus her roommate, Audrey Liddell, who all want her to move on from Dawson and get away from books. Joey has fun and sends a drunken message to Dawson on her cellphone. Meanwhile, Pacey finds out that his currently girlfriend, Melanie, is heading away and he is in need of a job. He finds one on Dougie's suggestion as a cook. From this springs the new plot lines.
Dawson finds Joey's message in "Lost Weekend", is flirted with by Audrey, and almost goes by to L.A. but Joey catches up to him in the airport and he decides to stay in Boston. Joey doesn't know Pacey is in town, however, until "Capeside Revisited" where she goes to his restaurant and finds him slicing potatoes for practice. One thing no one ever does is reference The Karate Kid. It takes awhile but Joey and Pacey meet up again and they talk. There is some awkwardness in it, however. At the same time, Dawson goes home, tells his parents the news, and they are not happy about it. Mitch now has gotten hard on Dawson and is practically pushing Dawson out the door as he buys airplane tickets and tells Dawson to seize the day. Dawson decides not to, to everyone's disappointment. The episode ends with Mitch going on a shopping trip and while driving down the road and eating ice cream (something I don't support) he is shown stopping while lights flood the windshield.
We don't see what happens next until "The Long Goodbye" as a group of people visit Leery's Fresh Fish and find a notice on the door that says "Closed. Death in the family." We are then shown a somewhat deserted Leery house that almost seems haunted until we see Dawson washing a few bottles. From all this we find out that Mitch Leery is dead. The death of Mitch Leery is an unexpected moment in the history of Dawson's Creek and something that catches everyone off guard. It is also different from with Art Brooks where we have plenty of time before the character dies, thus allowing death to be a theme in the last season. With Mitch, the sudden departure hardly allows one to prepare, which reflects in real life as death can happen without warning. As to why this happened is anyone's guess. My guess is John Wesley Shipp wanted to move on to other projects and didn't want to be known as Dawson's dad. So he agreed to appearing in two episodes and then his character is killed off. "The Long Goodbye" has moments where Mitch Leery appears and speaks with everyone, mostly meant to be a memory of him they are having. So, Dawson in his current age wasn't getting the present, Joey in her current age wasn't seeing the famous ladder being set up, and Pacey in his current age wasn't learning how to drive. The final moments of the episode show the Leerys posing for a picture, which is shown in the opening moments. Dawson then goes to his friends while Gail goes inside with Lily. Mitch lingers to retrieve the camera and then we have a moment of him looking around while the camera goes around him, as though he were noticing his ending coming. One can see that Mitch is now a lonely spirit standing over the world he once enjoyed. The grin he puts up before making a final exit must be from the way things are turning out in the future. Why they did not include similar moments in the rest of the season is anyone's guess, mostly to keep it secular. I also am positive that with the 9/11 Attacks still fresh on everyone's minds (as it happened a few weeks prior), the loss of husbands and fathers would have struck a cord to much of the female audience.
"The Long Goodbye" is also one of two episodes that does not feature "I Don't Want To Wait" being sung by Paulie Cole. The song is instead performed by a solo piano though the credit montage just doesn't fit. The DVDs are a disappointment in not preserving this opening, however.
Dawson gets depressed over Mitch's death and accuses himself of it happening as well as Joey for giving him the break up message that lead to it. Joey tries to help him but can't seem to. Jack and his frat buddies then take him partying where he gets drunk. Ultimately, it is Jen who helps him out the most. She hangs with him, offering a hug at the funeral, and in "Hotel New Hampshire", accompanies him to a film festival where his documentary on Brooks wins. Out of a state of happiness, Dawson thanks Jen while calling her his girlfriend, confirming what may people suspect. Dawson and Jen were accidentally given the honeymoon suite and after thirty minutes of hesitation, they for-fill what was intended in Season One. With that, there aren't any virgins on the show anymore, which is sad, really.
Before Dawson hooks up with Jen, Jen had a small affair with Charlie, a young radio disc jock. Their affair also leads to Jen landing a job in the radio as well. Their affair mostly falls apart as the only thing they have in common is they like to have sex. I always find it interesting how the lack of anything else is why it falls apart, whereas most shows try to force the couple to remain together. It finally ends when Jen spies another girl with Charlie, the latter claims was his sister, catches them about to do it in his dorm, and joins up with the girl to humiliate him. It turns out that they wanted to bring Drue Valentine into the mix, since it seemed near the end of Season Four that he was improving, as was his relationship with Jen. However, the Peter Gallaghan look-a-like decided to not show up for the new season and so they had to come up with a new character, which explains some of the manners of Charlie having with Drue.
Drue may not return but another alumnus of Season Four, Toby, shows up and calls on Jack in "Use Your Disillusion". Toby has transformed when he arrives: gone is the militant gay teen who belittled Jack. Now he seems naive and less militant. He does, however, call Jack the "Uncle Tom" of gay guys for joining a Fraternity. Jack also acts like a jerk around him and it breaks Toby's heart. Toby leaves and is never seen or heard again. In the meantime, Jack rides high as a frat boy and goes a character transformation. Once, he was a scared boy who just wanted to be accepted and to be normal, now he has become a gay jerk who indulges his brothers with girls (he hooks one up with Audrey on the grounds of being nice and easy). He considers being a frat boy a new image after being known as "the gay guy" in high school while still remaining in his sexuality. He also gets into some feelings for another frat brother named Eric and loses a roommate who feels uncomfortable around him. Eventually, Jack's partying with the frat boys leads to his grades to suffer and he is put on academic probation. The frat boys, out of concern for their house, tell Jack to hit the books, which irritates him. He picks a fight in Civilization and is kicked out of the frat house, essentially showing his brothers to be nothing but fair weather friends. He struggles the remainder of the semester, almost commits suicide on a Spring Break trip, gets help from another frat brother, and gets into a relationship with the recently out of the closet Eric.
Meanwhile, Pacey becomes a cook in Civilization, as stated. He dates a waitress named Karen, which I believe was making up for the missed opportunity with Dawson and Niki. Karen is also supposedly having an affair with their boss, Danny, even though he is married. Eventually, Karen disappears all together while Pacey is promoted to chef. Pacey has before been a poor cook and now is an expert at culinary arts. In "Appetite For Destruction", he cooks up a dinner for his friends at Grams' house and refuses to allow people to have snacks in between courses. Another thing goes his way when he hears how his family is proud of him. It does show a nice contrast between him and his college friends, who are yet to thrive while he is already making a way in the world.
A new character is introduced as Joey's roommate, Audrey Lidell, played by Busy Philips. Audrey is introduced as a foil to Joey: Joey is concerned about the grades while Audrey is worried about partying, Joey prefers one guy while bearing the scars of the love triangle whereas Audrey goes from guy to guy, and Joey lost her mom years ago and has found memories of her where Audrey's mom is alive but is a source of tension. One could argue that Audrey is what Joey would have been if none of the problems she faced earlier happened, if she came from a rich family, her mom was alive, and she never became a corner in the love triangle. Even though she is not on the main character slot in this season, she undergoes the same process of developing that Andie and Jack went through in Season Two. Audrey is not as perky as Andie. At most she provides some sex appeal that had vanished after Season Three while having the wit and humor to prove her worth. She is more than just an object of lust, she is her own character, auditioning for Ibiza and helping Dawson out with his movie.
The gang find out about Dawson and Jen in "Appetite For Destruction", where Pacey and Jack are surprised that Dawson goes all the way with her while neither of them even go so far as first base, Joey seems happy while Audrey is fussing about it. This moment provides a repeat of Season One where Dawson is with Jen while Joey is left pinning for him, while also providing a role reversal of Season Four with Dawson being in relationship of another, and losing his virginity, while Joey is left settling for another. Of course, Joey keeps herself occupied by studying and then have a fling with Professor Wilder. Joey Potter has also had a development in Season Five. Once, she was the fourth character of introduction and the sidekick to Dawson, now she has become the main protagonist while Dawson's status has decreased. In fact, "Four Scary Stories" doesn't even feature Dawson. Suddenly, the entire show is revolving around Joey instead of Dawson, something that was different from Season One, and makes one wonder why it wasn't retitled.
As to Dawson and Jen, they return to Capeside over the holidays and meet up with Gail. Dawson lacks direction yet is able to rise to the occasion when the Leery's Fresh Fish needed help. He and Jen then discuss what to do next and decide to head back to Grams. I find it strange that Jen's religious grandmother would approve of them cohabiting, since it is that. However, Grams's attempts at bringing God into things appears to have decreased in Season Five (she even says she and God were not on speaking terms in "The Long Goodbye"). The episodes "Sleeping Arrangements", "Something Wilder", and "Highway to Hell", which deal with them cohabiting, show a realistic portrayal of it: they face the issue of toothbrushes, toilet seat placement, and getting on everyone's nerves. Of course, Dawson tells Jen that he'll not be like her other boyfriends when he hears her on radio. In "Something Wilder", their happiness nearly ruins Jen's image on the radio and she tries to fix it by finding some provocation and gets it when Dawson and Oliver ignore her while talking about a script. Oliver wants Dawson to direct a movie he has in mind and Dawson doesn't. Eventually, Dawson decides to do so. The relationship with its ups and downs, and concerns of being caught by Grams, comes to a conclusion for some odd reason in "Highway to Hell". Jen had heard some talk while interviewing rock stars about being passionate about people and decided to break up with Dawson. This happens on Lily's first birthday. Interestingly, Dawson takes it well. I do wish the Dawson and Jen relationship had develop more but it seems it too was built on sex. Now that they finally did it, it actually makes it less for-filling. However, the chemistry they have is a plus and one would think they were married already.
Dawson films a movie that Oliver wrote and originally starred in in "Guerrilla Filmmaking" but Dawson had Charlie come back to play the leading role and altered the ending of it. The film is then presented to an audience in "Cigarette Burns", though we never actually get to see it ourselves. Quite frankly, the lack of results is what makes "Cigarette Burns" mediocre, though we actually see Grams date a black man (a far cry from the disapproving old woman who didn't like Bodie and Bessie). Even as Jen and Dawson's relationship ends, another begins in form of Pacey and Audrey. Like Dawson and Jen, their relationship is all about the flesh, which is sad after the pure love we saw between him and Joey. As to his ex, Melanie, she appears only once in the mid-season and then leaves, but not before doing one more night in the sack with him. Apparently, Pacey has gone into some kind of gigolo around girls, basically getting into relationships only to wind up in their pants. Yet, as the relationship continues, Pacey's job gets a new boss, a female, and it creates tension. The woman, Alex, hits on Pacey who doesn't notice it, but it's enough to drive Audrey away from him. In "The Abbey", the new boss attempts to transform Civilization in an unjust manner and Pacey then leads a revolt with the other cooks, resulting in his being fired. Of course, Alex is also fired. Pacey returns to Capeside in "Swan Song" where he becomes a cop sort while he is out of a job, and we are spared of hearing Doug and Sheriff Witter talk bad about him.
One of the better episodes is the second part to "Guerrilla Filmmaking", "Downtown Crossing". Here, Joey returns from aiding in Dawson's film and gets mugged at gun point, but not raped. Instead, the man takes away much of Joey's money and then gets hit by a car in a classic Deus ex Machina. Joey calls for an ambulance and chats with him while they wait, where she faints when they arrive. She wakes up in the hospital, meets a little girl who reminds her of herself, and decides to lie about the event after learning from the girl's mother that the girl's father is the man who mugged her. This Joey centric episode shows how far the show has come in having Joey stand in someone's shadow or be a love interest: now she is the protagonist of the episode and the only one at that. The episode also marks a turning point as Joey was previously seeing her professor, something that is illegal. After the episode, Wilder decides to call it off, which opens Joey to dating someone else. It also brings in the remaining episodes to have a role reversal where once it was Joey wanting Dawson back, now Dawson is deciding to give Joey a try while the latter has someone else: Charlie. "Highway to Hell" has this where Pacey doesn't approve of them because Charlie hurt Jen. I have been in something like this and it usually results in one of the girls thinking you are jealous and end their friendship with you even if you turn out right. Thankfully, Audrey is present to cool the guys down while we get to see Joey perform in a bar.
"100 Light Years From Home" has Dawson and Oliver on a road to meet a producer but Dawson keeps thinking of Joey. After some debate, Dawson goes down to Florida and runs into Jack and Pacey, the latter tells Dawson that Joey has moved on. The same episode has Pacey, Jack, Jen, Joey, and Audrey head to a family home in Florida for Spring Break, with most of the stereotypes of it on the beach along with guest appearance of M2M, a Norwegian based girls band. During this, Charlie tracks down Joey and they sleep together. Apparently, the thing is one guy tracks Joey down and gets to sleep with her while another does the same thing and doesn't get her. It leads to "Separate Ways" where they return to Boston while Dawson goes to New York. Their attempt to wow the man fail and Dawson and Oliver nearly end their friendship. Joey and Charlie eventually drift apart and then it's the guessing if Dawson and Joey are going to go back together.
"Swan Song" concludes this with Dawson having a dream of meeting her in an airport and it turns out she is engaged to another. The rest of the episode then has the characters parting ways and Joey and Dawson still not together. Jack meets up with Eric at the airport and Jen is diverted from a Costa Rica trip to be with her parents. Grams goes to Las Vegas with her boyfriend, presumably to condemn the city, while Dawson and Audrey head to L.A., leaving Joey and Pacey in Capeside. Of course, Pacey and Joey race to the airport and speak with their others. Pacey and Audrey then depart on a road trip to L.A. while Joey encourages Dawson to board the airplane, something that had been resisted all season, and lets him know of her love. The episode shows what the first two did not which was how the 9/11 Attacks have affected airport security. In "The Lost Weekend", Joey accompanied Dawson to the gate while in "Swan Song" she has to buy a ticket first, which shows that some of the episodes of Season Five were filmed after the attacks happened.
So now, Joey and Dawson are a couple again but are going to be thousands of miles apart, for now. The last image of the season has Joey pondering on the ticket to Paris, the place she has always wanted to see since Season One and then smiling as though she made a decision.
Season Five is not the best season but it's not the worst. Most fans put it somewhere near the bottom while others put it near the top. The new setting into college provides a fresh look to the show and the adventures are brand new, thus different from what was experienced earlier. The removal of the setting from fictional Capeside to real life Boston is a big risk, as it removes the story from the world we have known. I'm sure the actual Bostonians didn't mind. Besides, it's supplemented by the visits to Capeside. The dialogue is improved and the acting is best (people have pointed out there is more smiling involved than before). It's almost like the show was being renewed or something. Audrey Lidell is a nice edition to the show, mostly to replace Andie. There are a few bad points, such as the show suddenly taking a re-interest in sex after pushing it into the background, Jack's transformation, the romantic portrayal of Joey with Professor Wilder as a couple, and the character of Charlie. I also find the climax too much like the romantic soap operas where the lovers meet up somewhere and exchange the final words of love, something that has gotten too cliche.
Then again, compared to the next season, things were not as bad as previously thought.
The theme of Season Five is definitely change, with the setting placed in Boston, and the characters moving to college or the work place. Change is shown to be a good thing and a bad thing, as exemplified by Jack in the fraternity. Another theme would be getting over a tragedy. Dawson's dealing with his dad's death radiates in the season and it nearly makes him give up on film making all together. Taking a step in the right direction is another theme, since nothing will happen if one just sits there. One could say, Season Five is about a man who has to board a flight to start his dream and he spends awhile trying to board the plane, then finally gets in on the end. These themes make the season very relative in wake of the 9/11 Attacks. The final dream fulfillment is in Joey to Paris which proves the cliffhanger in the season.
Season Six (A season of loss and of gain before we say goodbye)
Since Season Five wasn't going to end the show, TriStar Pictures and WB allowed an additional season of Dawson's Creek. Season Six begins where Season Five left off, with Joey at the airport hearing about the ticket. We then hear that she decided to not go to Paris after all and spent summer in Capeside. Joey narrates the summer sequences and sets up the season as well as explain how things are going to look. We are then sent into "The Kids Are Alright", an overused title in my opinion. Pacey and Audrey return from a sex filled road trip, Jen and Jack begin another semester at Boston Bay and each have new partners (Jack's boyfriend broke up with him for someone else according to Joey), Grams takes up a class with Jen, and Joey enters a literature class with a hard nosed professor. Dawson does not show up until the episode is almost over, further making Joey the protagonist of the show. When he does, he talks with Joey in a bar called Hell's Kitchen, brings a present for her birthday, and they have sex after years of waiting.
They wake up in "The Song Remains the Same" and Joey's birthday is filled with Dawson bringing her to the set of a film he and Todd are filming. Dawson has gone from intern to Assistant Director under Todd while Oliver had left the lot. They return to Joey's dorm where it turns out Dawson had just broken up with a girlfriend that morning. Joey and Dawson then have a fight that ends their relationship and ruins the birthday celebration. They break up after so much build up in Season Five to their reunion all because Dawson did as the Hollywooders do. This becomes the start of many bad things to plague the season.
Pacey decides to not become a cook again (I guess there would be bad references after Civilization) and takes a job assigned by Audrey's dad, to be a stockbroker. Pacey has greased his hair and grown a beard in the meantime, dresses up in a suit, and goes into his job with more grit than he did as a cook. His job introduces us to Richard Rinaldi who shows him the parts and parcel of being a stockbroker. Not being one myself, I cannot comment on how real the job is in the show. However, I will say that Rinaldi is not a nice person to hang around with, as he tells Pacey everything that contradicts everything I have been taught. He gets Pacey to do more makeover: buy a new car, change ties, etc. As though it rubs off, Pacey spends time on his job which comes between him and Audrey. Audrey is shown to be a spoiled rich girl who prefers to party while Pacey is the blue collared boyfriend who knows better, which leads to differences to spill over. It boils down to "Instant Karma" where they argue on the facts of life with Pacey saying "if I don't want to live on mac and cheese and ramen noodles for the rest of my life, I have to bust my ass and play by their rules." Most people would commend Pacey for it but the show paints it out to be that he has gone to the dark, misogynist side. The loving Pacey who slacked in high school is gone now and replaced, practically, by someone who sold his soul.
By this point, Season Six has become a season of people out of character. Besides Grams in college, we have Joey trying to keep up in class and technology, Dawson hooking up with the leading lady of his boss' movie, and Pacey becoming a slave to corporate America. In "The Importance of Not Being Too Earnest", Joey writes an email that winds up read by the entire campus and leaves her a subject of ridicule in her class. This was 2002, after all. There wasn't much social media around to post nude pictures of herself for all the pervs on campus. Joey also befriends Eddie Doling, who has the mannerisms of John Bender of The Breakfast Club. They share a love of writing and literature and eventually hook up -- on the day of her exam! Joey winds up taking the class twice. Of course, she is also taking a job as a waitress in Hell's Kitchen, which becomes the meeting place in the season (hence the nickname "Joey's Bar"). The bar also introduces Emma, a British girl living in the States, partially a counter balance to Todd as a foreigner.
Jen and Jack remain in character, though both fawn over a professor in Pop Culture (I don't think they have that on the curriculum) while befriending a guy named C.J.. The professor hangs around a few episodes and then departs while C.J. remains. Audrey goes into a spiral following her break up with Pacey. She hooks up with C.J. and gets drunk at a party. In "Ego Tripping At the Gates of Hell", she becomes part of a girl's band with Emma and gets really drunk and rebels against bar rules. In the next episode, "Merry Mayhem", Audrey's further transformation shows a difference from "Appetite for Destruction" where instead of saying how lucky the gang is, she spews out all the bad things of Joey and Eddie while bad mouthing Pacey.
The gang unites this way in "Merry Mayhem", the first Christmas episode since Season Four. The episode is notable for the moment a drunken Todd uses prayer to air out dirty laundry about Dawson and all, and Audrey adds a few before crashing into the Leery house. Pacey and Doug have a spat as the latter thinks he is doing something illegal in his job and Pacey considers that an attack. Dawson and Natasha, the actress, cool it in the relationship. Mike Potter got out of prison in Season Five and is present in the episode. He disapproves of Eddie (and for a good reason) which leads to the latter to disappear for a few episodes later. Meanwhile, Jen becomes a peer councilor with C. J.'s help. As the season progresses, they get into a relationship which seems just about normal for Jen. The same cannot be said for Grams, whose boyfriend never shows up. Eventually, they write the character out all together by having them breaking up all because he wanted her to convert. C.J. decides to pair her up with his Uncle Bill, who is just a stock character of the embarrassing uncle. In the past, when people say the things he said near Grams, she would bite their heads off. Here, she just laughs.
As to Audrey, gets drunk and high in a concert, alienates her friends and band mates, and has to go into rehab over the course of a few episodes. Of course, Joey and Eddie have to take her there because she won't go willingly, leading to the road trip episode "Rock Bottom." She goes to rehab in L.A. and improves there after. However, the damage to the character is evident. Meanwhile, Dawson is assigned to direct a few re-shoots. He tries to do it his way and finds his authority questioned. He adopts Todd's manner and gets them done. After that, Dawson goes to Capeside in "That Was Then" where he sees a new generation of aspiring film makers in Mr. Gold's class and comes up with an idea of a film about a few friends. Yet, it turns out to be recycled plots from his high school film "Creek Daze." He pitches the idea to the producers, one of who is played by Paul Gleeson.
Pacey and Emma have chemistry and appear to date in "Day of Days". That ends in "Clean and Sober" where she starts to marry a stoner to keep her green card, even asking Jack to marry her. After this episode, she disappears with no explanation. "Clean and Sober" also brings back the Pacey and Joey plot and it's further explored in "Castaways" where they are trapped in a K-Mart (which looks more like Wal-Mart compared to my home town's). I don't know what the story behind the episode was or if it improved sales in the store, but all I do know is allowed Pacey and Joey to reconnect and think of the love they once had. Eventually, they become a couple again, with Pacey chaperoning a prom with her while Joey babysits a teen girl named Harley. The dating is stalled not just by Joey's babysitting but by Pacey rushing home to see his father who had a heart attack. Gretchen never shows up, nor do we see the other Witters. All we see are Sheriff Witter and Doug. Here again, we are treated to the rehashed daddy issues Doug and Pacey feel and the problem Pacey has with his family.
From "That Was Then", we start to see better episodes with more human qualities. One of the ways human qualities comes is when Jen finds out Grams has breast cancer. Yet, of course, we have the filler episode "Lovelines" which has Dr. Drew and Adam Carolla appearing in a made up speaking at Boston. Jen goes in to host and it ends in disaster for her relationship with C.J.. The sober Audrey takes over and Carolla gives Eddie some pieces of advise about having girlfriends (after reading his book, I am glad the writers kept his language clean). Joey and Eddie briefly reunite but break up by "Catch-22." In there, he departs from Dawson's Creek for good. Meanwhile, Pacey is riding high. In "Castaways" we saw Joey shave off Pacey's beard, which seems to have approval from his female fans. He also helps to finance Dawson's film when Hollywood does not. However, the problem with the Stock Market rears itself when the stocks fall and the money is wiped out. Pacey goes to his boss for help but gets fired instead. Penniless, Pacey returns to Capeside in "Goodbye, Yellow Brick Road" just as Dawson and Joey do. The episode has Pacey eventually coming clean on the money loss and Dawson gets mad. As you would expect, the argument causes them to pull out all the bad things that had happened in the past out and make things worse. The greatest part is how they point at each other when Dawson critiques Pacey for being a successful businessman and then demands to know if Pacey was so good at his job why is he broke, to which Pacey cries "That's life! I didn't make that choice! I have lost everything! Does that make you happy? That you are back on top?" Dawson then claims that he and Pacey were never friends during the past two years, saying that Pacey turned his back on him long ago, to which Pacey points out is revisionism. They part and leave Joey to conspire her next move. Jen brings Helen Lindley (who divorced Mr. Lindley earlier and is now played by Mimi Rogers) over to convince Grams to get treatment. Grams almost becomes the stereotype religious fanatic who feels her cancer is God's will and will decline all medicine and help to see it through. However, Grams learns that she is given a gift and accepts it. Finally, we come to "Joey Potter and the Capeside Redemption", which really shows Joey's standing because her name is in the title. Joey has gone from the girl at Dawson's side to having her own episode, narrate the new season, and now she gets her name in the title of an episode. As to the episode, Joey spends the episode gathering everyone together to help Dawson film his movie. Eventually, it succeeds. Dawson films what turns out to be scenes from "Pilot" and has Patrick and Harley play him and Joey. Pacey is redeemed and he and Dawson come to an understanding and repair their friendship. Jen, Jack, and Grams leave Capeside again to get treatment for Grams while Audrey helps and then prepares for a summer semester. Before she does that, she gives Todd a shoulder rub and then goes to Gail's room to sleep with him, making this their final appearance. Last image of Season Six proper has Joey in Paris, concluding a dream from the start.
The two part epilogue.
Of course, it's not really the end. On May 14, 2003, we are given "All Good Things Must Come To an End", a two part series finale to Dawson's Creek. The episode takes place five years into the then future 2008. Dawson Leery is now a high time director and producer of a show called "The Creek", Joey Potter is a book editor living with her new boyfriend in New York, Pacey Witter is the maitre d'hotel of the new Ice House, Jack McPhee is a high school teacher in Capeside, and Jen Lindley is a single mother in New York who runs an art gallery in Soho. The five reunite in Capeside where other changes have come. Gail has finally decided to remarry, Bessie is still a single mom and running the Potter Bed and Breakfast, Grams is still alive with her cancer, Sheriff Witter has either retired or died and so Deputy Doug has taken his place and has at some point come out of the closet, making him Capeside's first gay sheriff. Of course, this progress comes with a few things remaining the same. Pacey has kept afloat through extra-marital affairs, one of which is done with Virginia Madison, which results in him getting beaten up by a bunch of husbands in one scenes. Fortunately, Pacey survives. Like I said, Pacey has become somewhat a gigolo in this season and when Kevin Williamson returned he decided to have Pacey sleep with a few wives.
Gail is married and everyone dances and it's alright until Jen collapses. It turns out, Jen, at the same time she gave birth to Amy, had developed a medical condition in her heart, an abnormal pulmonary artery, and has been supporting herself with medication. It got worse in Gail's wedding and the bad news comes that she is dying. Death hangs over Jen like a cloud for the remainder of the special and we see the gang attempt to keep her happy (sort of "keep a stiff upper lip"). Jack brings Andie back and she has a talk with Pacey, suggesting a reunion. However, because Meredith Monroe wasn't staying long, the thread is abandoned (they even cut her scenes out when it aired). Dawson films a video with her for her daughter to see in a few years. In this video, Jen gives a few words of advice to Amy. One thing I took note of was the advice concerning God. Jen doesn't say it but I believe she finally found God, thus bringing her a long way from the atheist who first arrived in Capeside. She also requests that Amy believe in Him, something that every mother hopes for in their children. Then Jen talks with Jack who calls her his soul mate. The last is ironic that after so many relationships with guys, both consider the other to be a soul mate. After a sad montage, and a video of the opening credits in Season One being replayed on a VCR, Jen dies with Grams watching.
With Jen gone, Jack takes over in raising Amy (though why Jen's parents weren't called over is a mystery) and helps his new boyfriend come to terms. The man Jack is with turns out from the start to be Doug. Considering that Doug was in his twenties when Jack was still a teenager, I find it strange that he hasn't aged a bit in this special. At the same time, Lily and Alexander have gotten big and are friends. As though to complete the circle of life, we see Alexander climb the ladder to Lily's bedroom with Dawson and Joey watching. There is now one last thread to tie. Joey broke up with her boyfriend when she discovered a ring and freaked out. Then she discovers the chemistry between her and Pacey and Dawson. Eventually, there's a few scenes of them talking (plus a scene that turns out a dream with Joey and Dawson getting married) before Joey tells Dawson that they are soul mates. The final scene is the most debated part in Dawson's Creek. Joey sees the ending that Dawson had been laboring on and enjoys it. She then turns to her partner who turns out to be Pacey Witter. They kiss and then call up Dawson who announces that he is meeting Steven Spielberg. We are then given a montage of all the events leading up to that point with "Say Goodnight, Not Goodbye" playing in the background. Thus ends Dawson's Creek.
The final scene is ambiguous in more than the final choice Joey made. Is it possible the tears Pacey weeps are symbolic tears of joy at the final decision, and possibly sadness at the show ending? Then there's the choice. Does Joey choosing Pacey in the end mean an end to all the drama and the two will get married and live happily ever after? Or will it be, as history shows, a doomed relationship and eventually, Joey will go back to Dawson and Pacey will reunite with Andie? Such questions may never be answered as this was the series finale after all.
Conclusion.
Season Six is sometimes considered an improvement over Season Five, as well as a disappointment. Through out the season, the Creek gang are separated and thus a network of friends is set up with each one as a center. This does reflect the real world. There are, of course, episodes where they reunite again and it's like seeing a high school reunion. One thing I have noted in the seasons where Williamson had little control over there are episodes where they meet and have dinner. I always find those dinner scenes special as it allows for characters to develop and say a few things of themselves. Holiday themed episodes seems cliche but it is an improvement. Those things are more common in Seasons Three to Six than with One and Two. As to the content of Season Six, it's cringe worthy. "The Kids Are Alright" goes Jerry Springer with the censors in one scene, involving the bleep sound, which makes the scene funny instead of important. As though M2M was not enough, they also had an episode revolving around the concert of No Doubt, another pop band that was riding high in popularity at the time. Yet, where M2M interacted with one of the characters and provided a song that matches the them of the season, No Doubt is kept away (it's just footage of them spliced with the show) and episode's conflict just cuts around it. I never liked Eddie when I saw this and still don't. Either Pacey or Dawson, I wish someone would just push the guy away from Joey.
On that matter, the thing of the Joey, Pacey, and Dawson love triangle is non-existent in the season, despite what fans say. When Dawson was with Joey, Pacey was happy with Audrey. Then for the longest time, we had Pacey with who ever came onto his lap, Joey with Eddie, and Dawson with Natasha. When Joey gets with Pacey, that's when a triangle comes, which is actually Joey, Eddie, and Pacey. The only time we see Joey weigh in between Pacey and Dawson is in "All Good Things Must Come To An End". I can say that as a teenager and younger college student, I wanted Dawson to get Joey in the end: given the soul mate talk and it seemed they had the most obstacles to face. As I got older, I now believe Pacey was the better guy for Joey. One way to look at it is compare the two with Joey. With the good things, Dawson accompanied Joey to see her father, wrote a good letter of reference, and gave her some money for tuition, plus the mentioned good deeds from when her mother died. Pacey, on the other hand, he rescued her from a drunk guy (and Dawson took credit for it), gave Joey space when asked, stood up for her then boyfriend when he came out, gave Joey a shoulder to cry on when Dawson rejected her, helped out with Bed and Breakfast, found the guy who defaced Joey's mural, rallied her protest rally, picked her up from her trip to her college boyfriend, got her a wall to paint on, respected her decision to not do it when they were on the boat, went with her to see college people, took her to prom, be protective of her against an ex-boyfriend of a friend of theirs, got her to the airport to see Dawson, gave her a job with his, made up for his parading her around when they were locked up in K-Mart, went with her to chaperon a prom, and he helped help Dawson. At the bad, Dawson ignored Joey for the most, laughed her inspirations, forced her to choose between him and Pacey, almost kill Pacey to win her heart, used the date at a prom to rub in another guy's face, close himself off from her when his father died, even accusing her of murdering him, and he slept with another woman. Meanwhile, Pacey only joked about Joey, did things she disapproved of, picked a fight with a guy, break up in the middle of prom, and treat her as something to parade around work. Clearly, Pacey is the better mate, though there were times in the show's run that I wonder if Joey is right for either one of them.
There is another reason why I say Joey has progressed to being the protagonist in the later episodes. If you noticed, she is the only character to appear in every single episode of the show, be it the main protagonist or have one or two scenes. This compared to Dawson, who was once the protagonist, is absent in four of the twenty-two (plus series finale) episode run of Season Six, which combined with two in Season Five give him a total of six episodes of no-show. However, because it was Dawson's Creek, after all, they did not swap the locations of Katie Holmes and James Van Der Beek in the opening credits.
Since "All Good Things Must Come to An End" takes place five years in the future (2008), we can look over the episode and see what it got right and wrong. Some of the things not shown or mentioned were because none of it was known to happen in 2003. No one knew that Massachusetts would become the first US state to legalize gay marriage which explains why Jack and Doug are not married. This also explains why there is no mention of the 2008 election (in fact, nothing was said of the 2000 election either). Social media was coming on its own in the year Dawson's Creek ended, but The Facebook wouldn't be launched for another year (hence the lack of characters maintaining contact with it) nor do we see Joey and Pacey contacting Dawson via videochat. However, a few "predictions" did come out right: the increase in same-sex couples adopting children, lack of antipathy in car drivers, and television, soap opera, dramas with teen angst and love triangles involved becoming the rage on television (like the ones that are airing on ABC Family).
Seasons Five and Six cover college and the real world, some of which is done well. One would want another season or two, however the actor's contracts were about to expire and they would want to move to other projects. Not only that, the show was never high in the ratings and by Season Six they had sunk very low that another season wouldn't work. Yet one can dream. I believe if the show went on and had a Season Seven, it would feature the Creek Gang turning 21, with some snarking on how hypocritical it is to make booze legal to them now after they had already tasted it, Grams going through chemo therapy, Joey applying to an internship, Pacey going back into cooking and running into Danny, Dawson getting into another project, and Jen and Jack taking a break from college while in New York and possibly entering an LGTB group. It's possible more outside events would come in to the mix, like the War in Iraq and flying in the Concorde Airlines before it closed down. If prompted, a Season Eight would see conclusion of college for Joey and some reflection, Audrey turns over a new leaf and becomes more buckled down since we first saw her, and we see how Jack gets into a position of teaching and dealing with the image of child molesters. That could leave Season Nine to handle the Creek Gang as adults on their own with very few times of them seeing each other but the new social media being on the rice makes it possible for them to connect and send email and video mails to each other. In the tradition of bringing outside world events, we could see them reacting to the 2004 tsunami in Indonesia, Massachusetts legalizing gay marriage, and even the 2004 Olympics in Greece. At some point, we would have seen Joey get together with Pacey, or Dawson, and see Jen in a relationship that actually works (possibly lasting three seasons). Those are just thoughts on how such seasons would have happened if they started with Season Seven.
Then again, it was best they stopped at six. With Season Six, the innocence that made Dawson's Creek so popular and work so well in the Nineties is gone. In it's place is something else. We see the characters completely out of character, supporting characters who are just not sympathetic, and it seems everyone is getting into relationships just to get into someone's bed. In the previous seasons, sex was known and treated as a goal, but the characters focused on the relationships as they matured. The season tosses that out the window and makes sex just as part of the relationship as dating. Seasons Five and Six feature Dawson, Pacey, and Joey getting into a relationship with people that often leads to sex (except for Alex, Emma, Sadie, and Professor Wilder). Jen has also gone into having sex a lot, after two seasons of her being more chaste. Even Jack is implied to get into bed with lovers (though gay sex is not depicted in any form in comparison to hetero sex). In short, it has become Friends and Sex and the City as a result. I am quite frankly surprised no one has caught AIDS but at least they have Jen getting pregnant in the end, which brings realism to the mix. I also find the whole people frowning and talking down to everyone at anyone who has a shred of morals (or smirking at it) as well as the attitudes people give to one another to be unpleasant. Given the way Season Six is, I am sure Season Seven would be worse.
As to the possibility of Dawson's Creek having a spin-off, a sort of "Dawson's Creek: The Next Generation", that is depending on the people involved. So far, that can only be the dream of the fans.
That will wrap things up with Dawson's Creek: Review and Commentary.
Since Season Five wasn't going to end the show, TriStar Pictures and WB allowed an additional season of Dawson's Creek. Season Six begins where Season Five left off, with Joey at the airport hearing about the ticket. We then hear that she decided to not go to Paris after all and spent summer in Capeside. Joey narrates the summer sequences and sets up the season as well as explain how things are going to look. We are then sent into "The Kids Are Alright", an overused title in my opinion. Pacey and Audrey return from a sex filled road trip, Jen and Jack begin another semester at Boston Bay and each have new partners (Jack's boyfriend broke up with him for someone else according to Joey), Grams takes up a class with Jen, and Joey enters a literature class with a hard nosed professor. Dawson does not show up until the episode is almost over, further making Joey the protagonist of the show. When he does, he talks with Joey in a bar called Hell's Kitchen, brings a present for her birthday, and they have sex after years of waiting.
They wake up in "The Song Remains the Same" and Joey's birthday is filled with Dawson bringing her to the set of a film he and Todd are filming. Dawson has gone from intern to Assistant Director under Todd while Oliver had left the lot. They return to Joey's dorm where it turns out Dawson had just broken up with a girlfriend that morning. Joey and Dawson then have a fight that ends their relationship and ruins the birthday celebration. They break up after so much build up in Season Five to their reunion all because Dawson did as the Hollywooders do. This becomes the start of many bad things to plague the season.
Pacey decides to not become a cook again (I guess there would be bad references after Civilization) and takes a job assigned by Audrey's dad, to be a stockbroker. Pacey has greased his hair and grown a beard in the meantime, dresses up in a suit, and goes into his job with more grit than he did as a cook. His job introduces us to Richard Rinaldi who shows him the parts and parcel of being a stockbroker. Not being one myself, I cannot comment on how real the job is in the show. However, I will say that Rinaldi is not a nice person to hang around with, as he tells Pacey everything that contradicts everything I have been taught. He gets Pacey to do more makeover: buy a new car, change ties, etc. As though it rubs off, Pacey spends time on his job which comes between him and Audrey. Audrey is shown to be a spoiled rich girl who prefers to party while Pacey is the blue collared boyfriend who knows better, which leads to differences to spill over. It boils down to "Instant Karma" where they argue on the facts of life with Pacey saying "if I don't want to live on mac and cheese and ramen noodles for the rest of my life, I have to bust my ass and play by their rules." Most people would commend Pacey for it but the show paints it out to be that he has gone to the dark, misogynist side. The loving Pacey who slacked in high school is gone now and replaced, practically, by someone who sold his soul.
By this point, Season Six has become a season of people out of character. Besides Grams in college, we have Joey trying to keep up in class and technology, Dawson hooking up with the leading lady of his boss' movie, and Pacey becoming a slave to corporate America. In "The Importance of Not Being Too Earnest", Joey writes an email that winds up read by the entire campus and leaves her a subject of ridicule in her class. This was 2002, after all. There wasn't much social media around to post nude pictures of herself for all the pervs on campus. Joey also befriends Eddie Doling, who has the mannerisms of John Bender of The Breakfast Club. They share a love of writing and literature and eventually hook up -- on the day of her exam! Joey winds up taking the class twice. Of course, she is also taking a job as a waitress in Hell's Kitchen, which becomes the meeting place in the season (hence the nickname "Joey's Bar"). The bar also introduces Emma, a British girl living in the States, partially a counter balance to Todd as a foreigner.
Jen and Jack remain in character, though both fawn over a professor in Pop Culture (I don't think they have that on the curriculum) while befriending a guy named C.J.. The professor hangs around a few episodes and then departs while C.J. remains. Audrey goes into a spiral following her break up with Pacey. She hooks up with C.J. and gets drunk at a party. In "Ego Tripping At the Gates of Hell", she becomes part of a girl's band with Emma and gets really drunk and rebels against bar rules. In the next episode, "Merry Mayhem", Audrey's further transformation shows a difference from "Appetite for Destruction" where instead of saying how lucky the gang is, she spews out all the bad things of Joey and Eddie while bad mouthing Pacey.
The gang unites this way in "Merry Mayhem", the first Christmas episode since Season Four. The episode is notable for the moment a drunken Todd uses prayer to air out dirty laundry about Dawson and all, and Audrey adds a few before crashing into the Leery house. Pacey and Doug have a spat as the latter thinks he is doing something illegal in his job and Pacey considers that an attack. Dawson and Natasha, the actress, cool it in the relationship. Mike Potter got out of prison in Season Five and is present in the episode. He disapproves of Eddie (and for a good reason) which leads to the latter to disappear for a few episodes later. Meanwhile, Jen becomes a peer councilor with C. J.'s help. As the season progresses, they get into a relationship which seems just about normal for Jen. The same cannot be said for Grams, whose boyfriend never shows up. Eventually, they write the character out all together by having them breaking up all because he wanted her to convert. C.J. decides to pair her up with his Uncle Bill, who is just a stock character of the embarrassing uncle. In the past, when people say the things he said near Grams, she would bite their heads off. Here, she just laughs.
As to Audrey, gets drunk and high in a concert, alienates her friends and band mates, and has to go into rehab over the course of a few episodes. Of course, Joey and Eddie have to take her there because she won't go willingly, leading to the road trip episode "Rock Bottom." She goes to rehab in L.A. and improves there after. However, the damage to the character is evident. Meanwhile, Dawson is assigned to direct a few re-shoots. He tries to do it his way and finds his authority questioned. He adopts Todd's manner and gets them done. After that, Dawson goes to Capeside in "That Was Then" where he sees a new generation of aspiring film makers in Mr. Gold's class and comes up with an idea of a film about a few friends. Yet, it turns out to be recycled plots from his high school film "Creek Daze." He pitches the idea to the producers, one of who is played by Paul Gleeson.
Pacey and Emma have chemistry and appear to date in "Day of Days". That ends in "Clean and Sober" where she starts to marry a stoner to keep her green card, even asking Jack to marry her. After this episode, she disappears with no explanation. "Clean and Sober" also brings back the Pacey and Joey plot and it's further explored in "Castaways" where they are trapped in a K-Mart (which looks more like Wal-Mart compared to my home town's). I don't know what the story behind the episode was or if it improved sales in the store, but all I do know is allowed Pacey and Joey to reconnect and think of the love they once had. Eventually, they become a couple again, with Pacey chaperoning a prom with her while Joey babysits a teen girl named Harley. The dating is stalled not just by Joey's babysitting but by Pacey rushing home to see his father who had a heart attack. Gretchen never shows up, nor do we see the other Witters. All we see are Sheriff Witter and Doug. Here again, we are treated to the rehashed daddy issues Doug and Pacey feel and the problem Pacey has with his family.
From "That Was Then", we start to see better episodes with more human qualities. One of the ways human qualities comes is when Jen finds out Grams has breast cancer. Yet, of course, we have the filler episode "Lovelines" which has Dr. Drew and Adam Carolla appearing in a made up speaking at Boston. Jen goes in to host and it ends in disaster for her relationship with C.J.. The sober Audrey takes over and Carolla gives Eddie some pieces of advise about having girlfriends (after reading his book, I am glad the writers kept his language clean). Joey and Eddie briefly reunite but break up by "Catch-22." In there, he departs from Dawson's Creek for good. Meanwhile, Pacey is riding high. In "Castaways" we saw Joey shave off Pacey's beard, which seems to have approval from his female fans. He also helps to finance Dawson's film when Hollywood does not. However, the problem with the Stock Market rears itself when the stocks fall and the money is wiped out. Pacey goes to his boss for help but gets fired instead. Penniless, Pacey returns to Capeside in "Goodbye, Yellow Brick Road" just as Dawson and Joey do. The episode has Pacey eventually coming clean on the money loss and Dawson gets mad. As you would expect, the argument causes them to pull out all the bad things that had happened in the past out and make things worse. The greatest part is how they point at each other when Dawson critiques Pacey for being a successful businessman and then demands to know if Pacey was so good at his job why is he broke, to which Pacey cries "That's life! I didn't make that choice! I have lost everything! Does that make you happy? That you are back on top?" Dawson then claims that he and Pacey were never friends during the past two years, saying that Pacey turned his back on him long ago, to which Pacey points out is revisionism. They part and leave Joey to conspire her next move. Jen brings Helen Lindley (who divorced Mr. Lindley earlier and is now played by Mimi Rogers) over to convince Grams to get treatment. Grams almost becomes the stereotype religious fanatic who feels her cancer is God's will and will decline all medicine and help to see it through. However, Grams learns that she is given a gift and accepts it. Finally, we come to "Joey Potter and the Capeside Redemption", which really shows Joey's standing because her name is in the title. Joey has gone from the girl at Dawson's side to having her own episode, narrate the new season, and now she gets her name in the title of an episode. As to the episode, Joey spends the episode gathering everyone together to help Dawson film his movie. Eventually, it succeeds. Dawson films what turns out to be scenes from "Pilot" and has Patrick and Harley play him and Joey. Pacey is redeemed and he and Dawson come to an understanding and repair their friendship. Jen, Jack, and Grams leave Capeside again to get treatment for Grams while Audrey helps and then prepares for a summer semester. Before she does that, she gives Todd a shoulder rub and then goes to Gail's room to sleep with him, making this their final appearance. Last image of Season Six proper has Joey in Paris, concluding a dream from the start.
The two part epilogue.
Of course, it's not really the end. On May 14, 2003, we are given "All Good Things Must Come To an End", a two part series finale to Dawson's Creek. The episode takes place five years into the then future 2008. Dawson Leery is now a high time director and producer of a show called "The Creek", Joey Potter is a book editor living with her new boyfriend in New York, Pacey Witter is the maitre d'hotel of the new Ice House, Jack McPhee is a high school teacher in Capeside, and Jen Lindley is a single mother in New York who runs an art gallery in Soho. The five reunite in Capeside where other changes have come. Gail has finally decided to remarry, Bessie is still a single mom and running the Potter Bed and Breakfast, Grams is still alive with her cancer, Sheriff Witter has either retired or died and so Deputy Doug has taken his place and has at some point come out of the closet, making him Capeside's first gay sheriff. Of course, this progress comes with a few things remaining the same. Pacey has kept afloat through extra-marital affairs, one of which is done with Virginia Madison, which results in him getting beaten up by a bunch of husbands in one scenes. Fortunately, Pacey survives. Like I said, Pacey has become somewhat a gigolo in this season and when Kevin Williamson returned he decided to have Pacey sleep with a few wives.
Gail is married and everyone dances and it's alright until Jen collapses. It turns out, Jen, at the same time she gave birth to Amy, had developed a medical condition in her heart, an abnormal pulmonary artery, and has been supporting herself with medication. It got worse in Gail's wedding and the bad news comes that she is dying. Death hangs over Jen like a cloud for the remainder of the special and we see the gang attempt to keep her happy (sort of "keep a stiff upper lip"). Jack brings Andie back and she has a talk with Pacey, suggesting a reunion. However, because Meredith Monroe wasn't staying long, the thread is abandoned (they even cut her scenes out when it aired). Dawson films a video with her for her daughter to see in a few years. In this video, Jen gives a few words of advice to Amy. One thing I took note of was the advice concerning God. Jen doesn't say it but I believe she finally found God, thus bringing her a long way from the atheist who first arrived in Capeside. She also requests that Amy believe in Him, something that every mother hopes for in their children. Then Jen talks with Jack who calls her his soul mate. The last is ironic that after so many relationships with guys, both consider the other to be a soul mate. After a sad montage, and a video of the opening credits in Season One being replayed on a VCR, Jen dies with Grams watching.
With Jen gone, Jack takes over in raising Amy (though why Jen's parents weren't called over is a mystery) and helps his new boyfriend come to terms. The man Jack is with turns out from the start to be Doug. Considering that Doug was in his twenties when Jack was still a teenager, I find it strange that he hasn't aged a bit in this special. At the same time, Lily and Alexander have gotten big and are friends. As though to complete the circle of life, we see Alexander climb the ladder to Lily's bedroom with Dawson and Joey watching. There is now one last thread to tie. Joey broke up with her boyfriend when she discovered a ring and freaked out. Then she discovers the chemistry between her and Pacey and Dawson. Eventually, there's a few scenes of them talking (plus a scene that turns out a dream with Joey and Dawson getting married) before Joey tells Dawson that they are soul mates. The final scene is the most debated part in Dawson's Creek. Joey sees the ending that Dawson had been laboring on and enjoys it. She then turns to her partner who turns out to be Pacey Witter. They kiss and then call up Dawson who announces that he is meeting Steven Spielberg. We are then given a montage of all the events leading up to that point with "Say Goodnight, Not Goodbye" playing in the background. Thus ends Dawson's Creek.
The final scene is ambiguous in more than the final choice Joey made. Is it possible the tears Pacey weeps are symbolic tears of joy at the final decision, and possibly sadness at the show ending? Then there's the choice. Does Joey choosing Pacey in the end mean an end to all the drama and the two will get married and live happily ever after? Or will it be, as history shows, a doomed relationship and eventually, Joey will go back to Dawson and Pacey will reunite with Andie? Such questions may never be answered as this was the series finale after all.
Conclusion.
Season Six is sometimes considered an improvement over Season Five, as well as a disappointment. Through out the season, the Creek gang are separated and thus a network of friends is set up with each one as a center. This does reflect the real world. There are, of course, episodes where they reunite again and it's like seeing a high school reunion. One thing I have noted in the seasons where Williamson had little control over there are episodes where they meet and have dinner. I always find those dinner scenes special as it allows for characters to develop and say a few things of themselves. Holiday themed episodes seems cliche but it is an improvement. Those things are more common in Seasons Three to Six than with One and Two. As to the content of Season Six, it's cringe worthy. "The Kids Are Alright" goes Jerry Springer with the censors in one scene, involving the bleep sound, which makes the scene funny instead of important. As though M2M was not enough, they also had an episode revolving around the concert of No Doubt, another pop band that was riding high in popularity at the time. Yet, where M2M interacted with one of the characters and provided a song that matches the them of the season, No Doubt is kept away (it's just footage of them spliced with the show) and episode's conflict just cuts around it. I never liked Eddie when I saw this and still don't. Either Pacey or Dawson, I wish someone would just push the guy away from Joey.
On that matter, the thing of the Joey, Pacey, and Dawson love triangle is non-existent in the season, despite what fans say. When Dawson was with Joey, Pacey was happy with Audrey. Then for the longest time, we had Pacey with who ever came onto his lap, Joey with Eddie, and Dawson with Natasha. When Joey gets with Pacey, that's when a triangle comes, which is actually Joey, Eddie, and Pacey. The only time we see Joey weigh in between Pacey and Dawson is in "All Good Things Must Come To An End". I can say that as a teenager and younger college student, I wanted Dawson to get Joey in the end: given the soul mate talk and it seemed they had the most obstacles to face. As I got older, I now believe Pacey was the better guy for Joey. One way to look at it is compare the two with Joey. With the good things, Dawson accompanied Joey to see her father, wrote a good letter of reference, and gave her some money for tuition, plus the mentioned good deeds from when her mother died. Pacey, on the other hand, he rescued her from a drunk guy (and Dawson took credit for it), gave Joey space when asked, stood up for her then boyfriend when he came out, gave Joey a shoulder to cry on when Dawson rejected her, helped out with Bed and Breakfast, found the guy who defaced Joey's mural, rallied her protest rally, picked her up from her trip to her college boyfriend, got her a wall to paint on, respected her decision to not do it when they were on the boat, went with her to see college people, took her to prom, be protective of her against an ex-boyfriend of a friend of theirs, got her to the airport to see Dawson, gave her a job with his, made up for his parading her around when they were locked up in K-Mart, went with her to chaperon a prom, and he helped help Dawson. At the bad, Dawson ignored Joey for the most, laughed her inspirations, forced her to choose between him and Pacey, almost kill Pacey to win her heart, used the date at a prom to rub in another guy's face, close himself off from her when his father died, even accusing her of murdering him, and he slept with another woman. Meanwhile, Pacey only joked about Joey, did things she disapproved of, picked a fight with a guy, break up in the middle of prom, and treat her as something to parade around work. Clearly, Pacey is the better mate, though there were times in the show's run that I wonder if Joey is right for either one of them.
There is another reason why I say Joey has progressed to being the protagonist in the later episodes. If you noticed, she is the only character to appear in every single episode of the show, be it the main protagonist or have one or two scenes. This compared to Dawson, who was once the protagonist, is absent in four of the twenty-two (plus series finale) episode run of Season Six, which combined with two in Season Five give him a total of six episodes of no-show. However, because it was Dawson's Creek, after all, they did not swap the locations of Katie Holmes and James Van Der Beek in the opening credits.
Since "All Good Things Must Come to An End" takes place five years in the future (2008), we can look over the episode and see what it got right and wrong. Some of the things not shown or mentioned were because none of it was known to happen in 2003. No one knew that Massachusetts would become the first US state to legalize gay marriage which explains why Jack and Doug are not married. This also explains why there is no mention of the 2008 election (in fact, nothing was said of the 2000 election either). Social media was coming on its own in the year Dawson's Creek ended, but The Facebook wouldn't be launched for another year (hence the lack of characters maintaining contact with it) nor do we see Joey and Pacey contacting Dawson via videochat. However, a few "predictions" did come out right: the increase in same-sex couples adopting children, lack of antipathy in car drivers, and television, soap opera, dramas with teen angst and love triangles involved becoming the rage on television (like the ones that are airing on ABC Family).
Seasons Five and Six cover college and the real world, some of which is done well. One would want another season or two, however the actor's contracts were about to expire and they would want to move to other projects. Not only that, the show was never high in the ratings and by Season Six they had sunk very low that another season wouldn't work. Yet one can dream. I believe if the show went on and had a Season Seven, it would feature the Creek Gang turning 21, with some snarking on how hypocritical it is to make booze legal to them now after they had already tasted it, Grams going through chemo therapy, Joey applying to an internship, Pacey going back into cooking and running into Danny, Dawson getting into another project, and Jen and Jack taking a break from college while in New York and possibly entering an LGTB group. It's possible more outside events would come in to the mix, like the War in Iraq and flying in the Concorde Airlines before it closed down. If prompted, a Season Eight would see conclusion of college for Joey and some reflection, Audrey turns over a new leaf and becomes more buckled down since we first saw her, and we see how Jack gets into a position of teaching and dealing with the image of child molesters. That could leave Season Nine to handle the Creek Gang as adults on their own with very few times of them seeing each other but the new social media being on the rice makes it possible for them to connect and send email and video mails to each other. In the tradition of bringing outside world events, we could see them reacting to the 2004 tsunami in Indonesia, Massachusetts legalizing gay marriage, and even the 2004 Olympics in Greece. At some point, we would have seen Joey get together with Pacey, or Dawson, and see Jen in a relationship that actually works (possibly lasting three seasons). Those are just thoughts on how such seasons would have happened if they started with Season Seven.
Then again, it was best they stopped at six. With Season Six, the innocence that made Dawson's Creek so popular and work so well in the Nineties is gone. In it's place is something else. We see the characters completely out of character, supporting characters who are just not sympathetic, and it seems everyone is getting into relationships just to get into someone's bed. In the previous seasons, sex was known and treated as a goal, but the characters focused on the relationships as they matured. The season tosses that out the window and makes sex just as part of the relationship as dating. Seasons Five and Six feature Dawson, Pacey, and Joey getting into a relationship with people that often leads to sex (except for Alex, Emma, Sadie, and Professor Wilder). Jen has also gone into having sex a lot, after two seasons of her being more chaste. Even Jack is implied to get into bed with lovers (though gay sex is not depicted in any form in comparison to hetero sex). In short, it has become Friends and Sex and the City as a result. I am quite frankly surprised no one has caught AIDS but at least they have Jen getting pregnant in the end, which brings realism to the mix. I also find the whole people frowning and talking down to everyone at anyone who has a shred of morals (or smirking at it) as well as the attitudes people give to one another to be unpleasant. Given the way Season Six is, I am sure Season Seven would be worse.
As to the possibility of Dawson's Creek having a spin-off, a sort of "Dawson's Creek: The Next Generation", that is depending on the people involved. So far, that can only be the dream of the fans.
That will wrap things up with Dawson's Creek: Review and Commentary.
