Date of airing: February 10, 1998 (WB)
Nielsen ratings information: 6.48 million viewers, 4.8/7 in Households
We just went through first kisses and sex talk, and now the show is diving straight into conversations about virginity and how one has lost it while other people still have it and wouldn’t wish more than to get rid of it, creating a conflict between those groups of people, because for some reason teenagers can’t think of anything else than having sex and cuddling in bed, preferably in a way that would suggest they are in a relationship. Back in the day, watching this show as a teenager myself, this episode might have had an interesting premise, as well as another instance of vicariously living through fictional characters (because really, did you have friends your age with which you could talk sex about?), but as a thirtysomething watching the show, it has become a heavily dated premise, a dusty story, and a discussion about a topic we all should know about already if sex ed had been a thing in high school (judging by the American educational system, I can excuse the missing of knowledge about this topic).
In hindsight, the virginity conversations may not be able to stand the test of time, simply due to the ever-growing sexual culture on social media and in TV shows and movies. To think that in 1998, DAWSON’S CREEK was a progressive and racy show... Today, it would be considered tame – although the storyline of a student and his English teacher having a sexual relationship would still be considered scandalous, especially after the development the story partook in this episode. Certain Republican politicians would start yet another culture war over this. Or maybe they wouldn’t, because, in 2022, DAWSON’S CREEK would air on HBO and be retitled into “Euphoria.”
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| They shouldn't even be seen together out in public. |
This hour was okay. I was hugely annoyed by some things Dawson and Pacey had done throughout, but in this narrative, there was something great about this episode, beginning with Pacey being in an actual relationship (after fearing he would never be in one), going over to the great talk of friendship Dawson and Joey had at the end of the hour, ending with the fact that the adulterous story in Dawson’s household is about to be blown out of proportions and into the faces of his parents, now that the eponymous character knows about the town’s biggest secrets. It’s weird that the two most secretive things the town is currently going through, both related to secret sexual relationships, are known to Dawson only. I loved seeing that Dawson and Joey were able to get past the moment of distrust and the potential end of a friendship and I like the idea that Dawson is still able to be friends with Joey after what transpired, even if the subtext of Dawson and Joey is still keeping their story alive, although the writers were barely touching it here. This being 1998 TV though, it was to be expected that Dawson and Joey’s separation of friendship wouldn’t last past this episode.
I guess Dawson couldn’t have been talking to Jen about his issues
with her, because there aren’t a lot of feelings or emotions in that
relationship in the first place, and Dawson didn’t seem to be able to talk
to Jen because the writers needed him dumb and stupid about his romance
with her. Besides, the kid is potentially about to go through every
kid’s nightmare – the separation of his parents – so it’s somewhat
understandable that he may not have the clearest of minds about what is
happening in his life. He almost ended his friendship with Joey, he is
shocked about his girlfriend Jen’s sexual past, and he just found out
his mother is cheating on his father. Oh yes, Dawson is about to fall
off a metaphorical cliff. I can understand that Dawson’s ground below
his feet is being ripped apart, thanks to his mother’s infidelity and
Jen’s unexpected sexual experience Dawson himself is lacking, and both
things at the same time are like repeated gut punches, although that
shouldn’t cause such a rift between him and Jen. I mean, shouldn’t
Dawson be happy that Jen is so open about herself to him, and in the
process show her willingness to be in a relationship? There isn’t
anything better than a self-conscious 15-year-old girl that has had
sexual experience (note how there wasn’t a single word about
drug use) questioning her past moves and making way for a redemption arc in
the eyes of the almighty Lord, sponsored by her almighty grandmother. Dawson's should be ecstatic about his prospects with Jen.
And yes, Pacey’s story annoyed me to no end. The guy does not know life at all, and his disappointed eye roll when Ms. Jacobs took her hand away from him made me think that someone needs to give this guy a life lesson, pronto. When he learns that a sex tape of him and his English teacher exists, all he can think about is how it’s going to ruin his life when it comes out (not for one second does he think about how it might ruin her life as well). All he can think of is to get into an even more serious relationship with her, even though people are starting to learn about their relationship. For Pacey, nothing else exists in this world right now, making him self-obsessed and turning him into an apathetic character.
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| Jen realizes she is not a good voice actor. |
And in the meantime, Ms. Jacobs seems to have recapitulated and decided to go all-in with Pacey, after having been anything but willing to be sexually involved with the teenager. If she wasn’t already a statutory rapist previously, she is one now. This entire plot is filled with the convenience and inconsistency of real life. Maybe depicting the story through Pacey’s point of view only might have been a mistake. I would have loved to know the thought process of Ms. Jacobs when she found herself sitting in bed with Pacey, talking about random stuff. I would have liked to see her having a conversation with one of her best friends about being in a relationship with a kid, like Pacey had a conversation with Dawson about having sex with a teacher.
