Date of airing: September 21, 2001 (Disney Channel)
written by: Nina G. Bargiel, Jeremy J. Bargiel
directed by: Anson Williams
Here we go... some people have finally realized that their best friend had a crush on them a couple of grades ago. Does this mean that Gordo and Lizzie are destined to become the It couple of the series, or was this just a storyline randomly thrown into the (back-)story for the sake of awkwardness between the characters? Granted, Lizzie’s crush on Gordo in the fourth grade is typical elementary school stuff that you can bring into a middle school or high school conflict to mess things up for an episode or two (or to make fun of it all), but I am still a believer of Lizzie and Gordo locking lips at one point in the series (so that they would have potentially gotten married in the canceled revival series), which means the writers were needing to get into the premise of the two being “in love” sooner rather than later. Then again, this is a kids’ show, so where will there ever be a romantic storyline that goes way beyond the ordinary “I’ve got a crush on you” material?
One could write a dissertation about romantic storylines on Disney Channel sitcoms, as they could be a general issue the writers were having to deal with at one point: Create a storyline involving two characters of the opposite sex that is engaging for the younger audience to create shipper names for, but never go as far as depicting kisses on the cheek or a quick hug. The Disney Channel was (still is?) known for rarely putting a kiss on-screen (usually turning it into a season highlight when it concerns an actual on-screen couple), which is understandable, considering their main stars are generally minors, but if you cannot depict romance on screen, then maybe do not write them?
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| Hollywood is going to go wild for this kind of middle school drama. |
The episode was solid enough. I loved the premise of a documentary being shot in school, and I loved that the core three were very much the only ones able to keep it together in front of the camera, while everyone else drove themselves nuts doing their thing in their special costumes they put themselves in for the camera, essentially seeing themselves in the middle of a photo shoot or a catwalk, hoping for their big break. It seemed natural in the narrative that either Gordo or Lizzie/Miranda would become the lead of Stan Jansen’s documentary, and it was logical that the future fame would go above Gordo’s head, as he is pretty much doing what “Hollywood” was telling him to. The episode essentially shined a spotlight on Hollywood’s ugly antiques – if Gordo could not keep himself from turning evil during the production of a documentary film, then how are actual actors going to handle pushy directors?
If only the episode had focused a little more on the conflict between Gordo and the girls... That way, Stan Jansen would have been able to realize that the triangle relationship between the three best friends was the most important and interesting thing this school had to offer, maybe even story-wise. This way, the episode might have been something special, and maybe Stan Jansen would not have been depicted as the asshole director that he was in the end: Going after a kid with a ketchup bottle in his hand. However, I am questioning if Stan Jansen was deliberately portrayed in this capitalist and pushy manner to put a bit of a meta-joke into the episode. We all know that Hollywood is evil, but would a kid audience watching LIZZIE McGUIRE get that?
Meanwhile, Matt’s story was good for a change, and consider me impressed that this can, in fact, be the case on LIZZIE McGUIRE. Melina helped make Matt a more interesting character, as the boy was finally dealing with a power he could never hold in his hands himself: the talent for pure mischief. His thing with Melinda could be a running joke throughout the series, as he finds himself in something of a boyfriend/girlfriend thing, as well as having himself a nemesis to deal with who never stops putting him into trouble with the school authorities, parents, or pushy directors shooting a documentary feature. Plus, Melina was generally an intriguing character for a kid in this series, so here is to hoping she was turning up in a couple more episodes. LIZZIE McGUIRE was in serious need of some more recurring characters, since the ones currently employed never brought a lot to the table for the central trio.
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| The star has had enough of this production. |
Besides that, I was hoping for Matt to get a love interest for an episode or two, joining his sister in the process, and having one who can metaphorically hold the liquor and even drink him under the table every once in a while makes for a story that has him growing up a little and stop being the kid prick he has been for most of the show. Matt needs to taste his own medicine, and the series needs a character who is pure evil – kid-friendly evil, but evil nonetheless. There was one such character in GIRL MEETS WORLD (Ava), and she was fun every time she popped up on screen. I am hoping to get the same out of Melina.
