WOW, what an astounding discussion!!!
GREAT questions, Diane!!
Holy cow, you made me notice a whole bunch of things I had never thought about... THANKS EVERYBODY!
To be honest, I don't know if I'll be able to add new material to this thread... Your comments are so profound...
OK let's get started!
OMG there's so much to say about this episode!!! I think I'll be writing all night long! ;D
First of all, I wish to say this episode has a special place in my heart... I watch it almost every night, from 2 a.m. on... It keeps me company while I'm studying... It's kind of apt: it's so warm, delicate, nightish.....
Personally, I think this episode is...
A MASTERPIECE!!!
THIS is ML!!!! ;D
It has everything...It's simply perfect.
Drama and Comedy are seamless, they interlock flawlessly.
The dramatic scenes are so thought-provoking... And what about Comedy? Well, I'm sure one of these days I'll get a hernia!!! ;D
OK, enough of it. Let's get straight to the answers...
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1. What attracted Maddie to Paul McCain? Clearly she was not the type of woman who would "moon" over a radio
commentator.Oohh...This is a challenging question.
First of all, I believe Maddie's "crush" on Paul and her and David's growing relationship obviously intermingle. I'll explain this later. Stay tuned...
Maddie spurns Paul McCain at first, because Sonny Brezner's description of him brings her to believe he's an amoral man.
Therefore she gets to the conclusion that McCain got what he deserved.
We are all familiar with Maddie's worst flaw:
Prejudice.
She despises David, the employees and anybody else, just because they're "easy", just because they don't keep their
emotions under lock and key like she does.
At what point during this episode does her disposition change?
The scene which is, IMO, crucial, is the "boinking" banter (LOL! ;D BTW, Did you know the invention of this term is
credited to Bruce?). This scene spotlights one of the countless qualities David has: he's a damn good judge of character.
I mean, how long have David and Maddie been together so far?
Three episodes! Only three episodes, but he already knows so much about Maddie, about the place she comes from, without asking
anything to her.
He knows she's an "essed" woman, a lonely heart who's in bed (alone) exactly at 9:30 pm...
David can see through Maddie... and she hates this.
I bet David is the first man who has ever managed to push her buttons to get her do what he wants, in this instance, to
accept the Paul McCain case.
Anyway... David sows a doubt in Maddie's mind: maybe she's not as happy of her life as she pretends to be... Maybe she is,
like David, a lonely heart, too.
Yes, I do believe David is lonesome...He listened to Paul McCain's show, after all...Beneath all that big-boy tough-guy attitude, lies a sensitive soul that plays Casanova.
On this issue, the difference between him and Maddie is that David is aware of his condition. He makes no mistery over the
fact that he used to listen to Paul McCain. David is at ease with himself. Even if he's lonely, he's not repressed, because
he does not ignore his "needs".
Maddie IS lonely, IS repressed and DOES censor the urges every human being has experienced at least once in his/her life.
She's not aware of that...until the "boinking" banter occurs.
That same night, at home, she lives the same routine: she has dinner alone, feeds the fish, hits the hay. Alone.
But this time it's different, because David's words still echo in her mind.
He was right about her, and this makes her crazy. That's why she breaks her rout and rushes to the streets of L.A. ...
Alone in her car, she starts listening to one of Paul's tapes...
Unintentionally, David himself pushes Maddie "into the arms" of Paul McCain. IMO, if David had not made those rude remarks on
her private life, she'd never have mooned over a radio commentator.
What attracted Maddie to Paul McCain?
Paul speaks for her heart. He is able to convey with words what Maddie feels and can't describe.
He sounds like he has all the answers, Maddie herself says it. And Maddie looks like she NEEDS answers...About her, about
her relationship with David...About a lot of things. Things she never dealt with seriously.
Clearly she's intrigued...Or better still, she literally hangs on his every word.
Paul can see through her just like David...With a major difference, though: Paul is more delicate in doing it.
Maddie is a smart, sensitive woman: a man who's not tactful (or pretends not to be...) can't find the key to her heart.
This truth surfaces in the episode: Maddie cracks an embarassed smile when David speaks the word "sex" (just before
getting in the car), then gets mad at David during the "boinking" banter... When they arrive at Paul's place, she's
scandalized by David saying "and defiled his dames"...
Paul's persuading voice captures Maddie's imagination. His presence is very real to her... BTW, did you notice that back at the office she says "I think we could begin with where McCain
lives"?! Not "lived"...
Maddie idealizes Paul, just like a teen idealizes a singer or an actor (I agree with you,
Anne!).
Nevertheless, she soon finds out he's not the perfect man. Paul has weaknesses and flaws, just like everyone else.
He sounded like a wise person...... But would a wise person fake his own death just to be with one woman? Obviously not. It's a
spontaneous, yet immature act... Definitely something "Maddie's" Paul wouldn't be willing to do.
When she finds out the truth, sipping some wine and speaking to the man who once was her "dream mate", she's visibly
disappointed. Still, Maddie seems to admire Paul's self-sacrifice and his sensitivity in matter of women.
But no, she's not hung up on this guy anymore...
Yo, Dave! Make your move, bro!! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. What is YOUR favorite classic ML moment in this episode?Good golly...I love every single moment of it!!! Do I really have to choose one scene?
OK OK....
They're 2!!
1)
(oo) What you want
(oo) Baby, I got....
(oo) What you need
(oo) Do you know I got it?
(oo) All I'm askin'
(oo) Is for a little respect when you come home (just a little bit)
Hey baby (just a little bit) when you get home
(just a little bit) mister (just a little bit)
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Find out what it means to me
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Take care, TCB
Whoa, baby!
THE BAR SCENE!!!!!!!This scene made me
a Ray Ban girl!!!!
I also started eating pretzel sticks...*crunch crunch*
And yes, I confess: sometimes I put on my Wayfarers, play "Respect" on my 100W stereo, and sing into a stick!! ;D
All of this....without even a sip of alcohol!! Hey, what can I say, folks...I'm inebriated with life! ;D
Yo, David! I'll pick up the check, if you pick up some coffee!! -----------------------------
2)
"Get your mitts off me, you scarlet pimpernel." ;D LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;D
This entire scene is where I run the risk to get a hernia most.
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May I quote my favorite line,too? PLEEEASEEE?
"Me? You? No. Nothing on my mind except you. And this luxuriously thick head of hair."LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
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3. How about that location shooting? Anybody recognize any sites? What did use of location shooting add to this episode, if
anything.No, I'm sorry. I've never been to L.A. ...Yet!
One of the many reasons why I love this episode is the location shooting:
- I love in particular the opening scene, set at the radio station. The camera wanders from room to room, tiptoeing across
a deserted corridor and finally reaching Paul...A lonely man behind a microphone.
- I think the night scene with Maddie behind the wheel of her car has got the same meaning... This scene is the key to empathize with her.
- The bar scene with David singing "Respect": again...Loneliness.
David is surrounded...and alone at the same time. He's alone with his sufference and his suspects. No one tries to
understand why he's getting wrecked. They just laugh at him, thus proving their lack of empathy.
- The final scene on the roof of the radio station: I found it very suggestive... It reminds me of a medieval tower, a background against which fierce battles fought to win a woman's love are often outlined.
BTW, do you remember the close up of David being pushed over the edge of the catwalk, red neon light on his face?
It brings to mind those amazing scenes from Die Hard, the ones shot on the roof... Anyone noticed it?
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4. So....about the relationship -- is David really feeling something special or is he in the throes of a "crush" on his new
employer? How about Maddie......does she know there is something there yet, or is she just flattered by David's attentions? Maddie and David
sitting in a car
B-A-N-T- -E- -R-I- -N-G ;D LOL!!! Of course there's something special! ;D
David gets SOOO jealous when he realizes Maddie is hung up on Paul McCain!
And boy, how she ENJOYS this!!! She already suspects something's going on...
Why would they banter so much if they were not "in care" with each other, already??
Why would she say things such as: "You sound threatened. You sound jealous" ?
Maddie loves him.....She just can't stand him!! Maddie hates his ability to know her, orchestra to balcony...
And the bar scene... Aretha Franklin speaks for David, just like Paul McCain speaks for Maddie.
Besides, there are lots of hand-holdings, lots of glances, arms wrapped around the waist... Not to mention some lewd
suggestions...
If this is not mutual attraction..........
BTW, Watch the scene where Sonny Brezner's dead body is in close up and Paul and Laura bend over it...Look at the
background... If you had not noticed before, you can see David and Maddie exchange a sweet, tender embrace.
I'm always stunned by the way she clings to him...Her arms spasmodically grabbing his back... *sighs*
Looks like love to me............Unspoken, subconscious, Mad, True Love.
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Epilogue:
Glenn Gordon Caron said in "Memories of Moonlighting", the documentary featured in the Season Three DVD Box Set:
"At one point I said to Bruce: If our kids are looking at this stuff when they're in college and it's gonna make some
laugh, this is all I really care about, that's the mark I wanna hit."Mr. Caron, Bruce, Cybill...If you ever happened to read these words... From the bottom of my heart:
Thank You.