This week we sipped St. Francis cabernet while we unpacked Season 2 Episode 13: “Cyrano.” Ever see an episode of a TV show where a conventionally attractive (but less intellectual) character gets help wooing a sophisticated lover from a less popular (but more eloquent) friend? Well that (arguably overused) plotline is inspired by a late nineteenth century play called “Cyrano de Bergerac” by Edmond Rostand. Much respect to Susan Estelle Jansen for being explicit with the reference! Cory and Shawn read the play in Turner’s class while accidentally helping Frankie woo Harley Keiner’s girlfriend. Oh, and Alan learns that a trash compactor is not a gift for an anniversary, but rather, for a Tuesday. Cheers!

This week we sipped A to Z Wineworks Pinot Noir and watched Season 2 Episode 12: “Turnaround”. Cory learns “you dance with the one that brought you” in this Pygmalion-inspired episode about a Sadie Hawkins-style “Turnaround” school dance. This is the one where Shawn and Cory give a Swedish-American girl a makeover (a la “She’s All That” or “Pretty Woman” or “My Fair Lady”) to make her “cool” so Cory, her date, can be cool-by-association—because according to Eric, the caliber of girl who asks you to the Turnaround determines who you are forever. We laughed, we unpacked gender norms, and we learned that “smorgasbord” is a Swedish word. Skol!

Cory and Sean are definitely NOT the good guys in Season 2 Episode 11: “The Beard”. Sean can’t choose between two girls, so he asks Cory to keep one of them “off the market” by dating her until Sean decides whether or not he wants her. We unpack Cory’s famous line, “What am I Tupperware?” and determine that: the girls are reduced to “meat”, Cory’s reduced to “Tupperware”, and Sean sits at the top of this pyramid of dehumanization. Don’t worry, the whole cast “boos” them both, making for a surprisingly satisfying ending to this episode packed with important lessons for adolescents! Oh, and we had Imagery Sauv Blanc in this one. Cheers!