Static Shock "Pop's Girlfriend" Talkback (Spoilers)

[James Harvey]

Discuss today's all-new episode of Static Shock!

[Naraht]

WOWOWOWOWOW!
I heard the title, and thought this ep would be junk...it wasn't. It was no Frozen Out, but it was fairly good, and played well.

=D Anyway, what're your thoughts? I've got to go watch Digimon (and JCA's in the VTR...)

[JohnStewart-GL]

it was a fun ep.
i gave it a 4.

[James Harvey]

Definatly an enjoyable episode. This series is quickly becoming a gem, and I hope to see it continue! It looks like the SS team has found a comfortable niche and are churning out some great shows.

[DR. BELCH]

So is there talk of Trina Jessup as a (semi-)regular character? Maybe she'll be the one, as the mother-figure, Virgil finally tells his secret to. Note he doesn't slip up and call her by her first name when he meets her as Static, which shows he's being a bit more careful after Sharon got too close to the truth. The bugs were a touch on the camp side, but then again a giant roach is a pretty scary prospect....

[James Harvey]

I've bumped this thread back up to help spark interest in Static Shock discussion. Besides, it's better than opening a new thread that'll be exactly the same as this one.

Anyways, what I enjoyed more in this episodes was the downtime stuff - Virgil dealing with his home life, and not the superhero antics. There was great acting between Virgil and his Dad during their little squabble in his room. Alot of this episodes played out exactly as it would in real life. Virgil's in a bit of a tough situation, with his Pop's girlfriend and all, and it was great to see. Hopefully we'll see more of her.

[The Old Maid]

Well, if Jim Harvey can do something exceptional (revive an old thread) then I guess I can too. Those of you who know me know that The Old Maid Is Not Here On Weekends! (I think there's a law or something.) However this episode is worth the trouble of going to the lab to comment.

I could support Officer Jessup's original excuse to stop Virgil -- at first. The police were looking for boys with backpacks in a certain bad neighborhood. Admittedly even this line of reasoning puts all boys in a bad neighborhood at risk. (Being poor doesn't automatically qualify you as a crook.) But then Trina Jessup takes Virgil to a cafe to insist, "You fit the profile." Is she kidding? Royce was twice Virgil's height and weight, and he had almost no hair. Frankie was Virgil's size and weight, but he was White. So how does Virgil fit the profile? "We were following the backpack, not the owner" is plausible. "You look just like them" is not.

Either the victim (the courier) provided a fantasy description of the suspects, or the police cannot take a realistic description of the suspects. I would have liked to know which one is the case.

Also, without seeing just why Pop's happiness is ruining Sharon's life, it makes her look like a huge brat. Maybe the "turning everything upside down" is all in her head, but we didn't spend enough time with them to confirm that. What did Trina do that was so terrible -- eat food other than Sharon's? All they did was go out to dinner.

This episode might have made a good two-parter.

[DR. BELCH]

The Old Maid:
...Trina Jessup takes Virgil to a cafe to insist, "You fit the profile." Is she kidding? Royce was twice Virgil's height and weight, and he had almost no hair. Frankie was Virgil's size and weight, but he was White. So how does Virgil fit the profile?
From a psychological standpoint, witness testimony can be very unreliable, esp. after time passes or if there are leading questions asked of the witness (eg. "How fast was the car going when it smashed into the mailbox?") Two suspects could easily become one in a victim/witness' mind in all the confusion--a blend of Royce's color and Frankie's body shape. Or maybe the cops thought there might be a third man they passed off the pack to?


[W]ithout seeing just why Pops' happiness is ruining Sharon's life, it makes her look like a huge brat.
Sharon can be a brat, and a bit selfish--in "Brain Puppets" she pitches a fit over Virgil borrowing her psych book, although I bet she hasn't cracked it open in weeks (supposedly she's in college, but we never see her in class, unless it's summer/she graduated). Plus it's not unusual for a child to resist divorce/the percieved encroachment of the new bf/gf/spouse...esp. girls, who tend to react by becoming distant/violent/etc. I've heard stories that would curl your har, Maid my dear....

[The Old Maid]

Originally posted by DR. BELCH
Sharon can be a brat, and a bit selfish .... Plus it's not unusual for a child to resist divorce/the perceived encroachment of the new bf/gf/spouse ..especially girls, who tend to react by becoming distant/violent/etc. I've heard stories that would curl your har, Maid my dear....

No argument there. Without playing "Can you top this?" I've seen a few so-called grownups who would turn your hair white, dear Belchie.

So before we all have bad hair days, I was thinking more along the lines of Sharon acting too one-dimensional. This turns her apology into a function of the plot rather than of her character. Time constraints aside, the heavy hand of the network probably didn't help.

What I think deserves a follow-up episode is whether the family really understands what it would mean to have Officer Jessup as the second Mrs. Hawkins. After all, the first Mrs. Hawkins was killed by a gun. Trina's presence brings a gun into their home -- and that's before they realize that she can be killed on the job any time, any day.

There are other issues too : whether Static's identity will be endangered ; whether Trina's enemies will come to the house ; and when Sharon will ever go to college or move out. A second parent is much more likely to encourage such things since he/she isn't as starved for companionship as Pop was alone.

Overall, a good episode but leaves considerable room for growth.

[DR. BELCH]

The Old Maid:
What I think deserves a follow-up episode is whether the family really understands what it would mean to have Officer Jessup as the second Mrs. Hawkins. After all, the first Mrs. Hawkins was killed by a gun. Trina's presence brings a gun into their home -- and that's before they realize that she can be killed on the job....
There are other issues too: whether Static's identity will be endangered; whether Trina's enemies will come to the house...
I'm surprised we didn't see Trina in "Brain Puppets", actually, as one of Madelyn's drones...but maybe in season three we'll see both more of her and Pops' love life, and--since we've seen Virgil coping with it a few times--how Sharon deals with her mother's death (I'm leaning towards licentious tendencies myself; maybe she and Adam get a bit closer than Mr. H. would like?). As for enemies finding the house, there's already jokers like The Rough Pack or Puff and Onyx out there perfectly capable of that; Static poses just as much danger to his family as Trina would, and I'd hate to see her blame herself/consider breaking off the relationship if something like that does go down.

[noahrave]

Searched and found, didn't have to write a new one... wheeeee!!

So it reaired, so comments will be stated. VA for Robert Hawkins has range of emotions, he blew up in Virg's face for running from a police officer as excepted from a decent parent. This episode, sucks to be you V. Standard fare but very good characterization. Even doubt Terry on BB ever got the chewing out like Virgil did, well maybe but he ran out with that squabble with his dad in the first episode but I disgress. Although it does comes to mind that Terry and Virgil are really two different animals with comparison of home life and personalities. I never really got that with Teen Titans (that can be taken with a grain of salt however). Throw-away villian today (reject of Big Time from BB). And yes, the prospect of a giant cockroach freaks me out as well.

3 stars

Burning Knight Raven

[Fone Bone]

The first time I saw this ep, when the doorbell rang, I knew Pop's girlfriend was gonna be the cop. And that's cool. The story was headed in that direction and wasn't afraid to go there. I like that. A very good episode.

[JohnStewart-GL]

I wish His girlfriend had appeared in more eps.

[noahrave]

I wish His girlfriend had appeared in more eps.
I know I may get in trouble for this... Virgil's dad MUST have a thing (fetish) for women in uniform? His first wife was a paramedic and now he's "kickin' it" with a police officer. Heehee (insert evil laughter) :evil: