12x33/34 Ray of Light—RECAP

Well after the last episode weighted heavy on your hearts with a title like ray of light surely we’ll have a reprieve…..right….wrong….while there are some filler plots for the most part the final arch of season 12 was all about Campbell’s death and it’s fallout which is most likely why the hiatus between Zombie and Time of My Life….

That said this episode opens with Eli, Mo, and Jake playing video games in the student council room since Mo is dating the current president (or did Marisol stay VP while Fiona became president….I don’t think it was said) Mo makes a comment about how when he’s done the enemies of the game will be nothing more than lifeless bodies to which Jake points out that’s un PC to say considering Eli is still getting over finding Campbell in the greenhouse. Eli points out he can here Jake as the plug gets pulled on them by Fiona. Fiona has a film proposal and while Eli tells her that his career is on a hiatus per Clare’s orders (cause a Zombie film is not the best idea) Fiona insists and Jake seconds her insistence.

WHATEVER IT TAKES (and Dylan Aka Campbell is cut from the credits)

Said project was a video yearbook. Imogen is commenting about how bummed she is that the garden is under lock and key while Mo talks about a make out session he and Marisol had in a vacant home ec room. He asks Katie her biggest regret and she says no comment and storms off. Clare admits she’s the one who suggested the project to Fiona cause he’s been in a funk. Eli approaches a girl asking her where she’ll be in ten years….she doesn’t know but her name is Talia and she plans to be at a rave the next night and invites Eli.

Katie is excited….she just got approved for a ten thousand dollar loan and if she can land a decent enough summer job she’s Stanford Bound after all. Marisol however is bummed cause Mo is the biggest Jatie (Jake and Katie) stand and is all moody over the break up and the fact that Jake’s Mo’s best friend and Katie’s Marisol’s makes hanging out all kinds of awkward. Marisol just wants their last semester to be full of fun hangouts cause they’ll all be scattered across the planet come fall. Marisol asks if it’s okay for the four of them to have lunch.

Jenna’s handing out anti-bullying buttons and Luke approaches her. He tells her people can change and he’s sorry he pushed her away. They start to talk about Campbell and how broken up he is about it and then seconds later is making fun of Connor. Jenna tells Luke that Conner is more cool then he’ll ever be and helps him with his dropped books and kisses his cheek.

Mo, Marisol, and Jake are at lunch and Mo is asking what Jake plans to do now that the garden is closed off. He asks if the band needs a singer and starts to sing as Katie shows up taking the boys by surprise. Katie is sorry about Vegas and Mo comments about her apologizing about being a whore. Marisol asks if she got any job leads and Katie nods saying she may have a lead on an Au Pair job. As she’s talking Mo and Jake whisper and Mo then asks if Katie plans on putting Prostitute as a past job on her resume as Jake laughs. Katie says she didn’t sleep with anyone and she just wants to apologize. Jake tells her he hopes it makes her feel better about herself cause it doesn’t make him feel better.

Eli is editing raw footage from the school archives and comes across a video of Campbell and Maya causing him to have flashbacks of the greenhouse.

Conner shows up with flowers and a stuffed animal and asks her out on a date. Jenna tells him that she can’t and Conner asks why….Jenna doesn’t have a reason why and agrees on the date.

Eli is in bed and he has a nightmare of red paint/blood consuming him. He ends up meeting with a counselor and he wonders if something is wrong with him….first his ex-Julia and now Campbell he wonders if he attracts death….keep in mind that after this episode Eli loses someone else close to him and nearly loses a fourth person as well. He thinks that perhaps not talking would be a good answer and maybe doing something fun with Clare.

Jenna tells Alli she’s got a date with Conner…..Conner Conner…as in Conner DeLaurier. Alli rolls her eyes…he’s nice and tall and is so over the whole panty snatching phase. Jenna reminds Alli of her sexting phase and says how Conner’s persistence was kind of hot. Conner approaches and she asks if they are still on. Conner nods and hands Jenna an astronaut uniform and there was allot of debate as to why it was an American uniform and not Canadian….do they have a space program in Canada?

Katie sits with Maya and her friends and asks what they are up to. Tori says they are going to Little Miss Steaks to listen to Maya sing at open mic and Katie invites herself along to watch though it’s clear the underclassmen don’t want a chaperone.

Eli’s showing this cut to everyone and Dallas comments about how Eli didn’t include Campbell in the ice hound section….he still went to the school after all and it’s disrespectful to cut him out. This line is excellent Meta commentary as they did crop Dylan Everett (Campbell) out of the opening as of this episode and as of Never Ever Sam Earle (KC) was cropped out of the credits as well. Eli will add him back in and Clare asks if he’s okay with that and he assures his girlfriend he is…lies all lies…He asks Clare if she wants to go to the rave however Clare thinks Eli is just wanting to avoid working on the yearbook and offers to help him. She leaves and Jake and Mo ask if he wants to play video games….no…but he invites them to the rave.

Conner’s built his own personal version of Mission Space for Jenna to ride…sans the motion sickness of the Epcot attraction and Blondie be impressed.

Maya is on stage singing while Tristan pry’s asking Katie who dumped who. Katie tells him he got an offer that was too good to be true and she lost Jake because of it. Maya finishes her song and comes back to the table with the business card from one of the managers of the restaurant.

Conner is pointing out the stars to Jenna who asks why he doesn’t have a girlfriend. Conner says his brutal honesty and love of science sometimes are a turn off. They aren’t for Jenna and they end up kissing.

The three boys show up at the party and see that it’s a white room where people are getting high and painting each other. Eli trips and spills a bucket of red paint and begins to feel some PTSD. He asks Jake if he’s holding but Jake’s dry. Talia doesn’t have weed but offers him some MDMA instead.

Maya’s playing darts with her friends when the manager comes over reminding her to give him a call. Katie sees this and flips the manager over and starts to drag Maya out telling her to never except business cards from men cause their intentions are never pure. Maya wants to know what the hell happened in Vegas cause Katie’s been off ever since getting home….she’s avoiding Jake she’s not hanging with her friends….she needs help.

The drugs start to take their toll on Eli and he’s going on a fantastic trip…..tbc

Eli shows up Monday still on a high. He’s in such a great mood and knows he’s going to ace his NYU interview. Talia gives him his shirt back and comments about coming down before handing Eli a little favor in the form of a bag of pills. Eli tosses them admitting about taking drugs at the party and it was a one-time thing however once Clare leaves he picks them up to pocket.

I KNOW I CAN MAKE IT THROUGH

Maya walks out of the councilors office and makes Katie go to a session cause she promised she’d talk. Katie comments about how after blowing soccer and the presidency Jake was her rock and she admits she screwed up with the whole Darrin thing.

Conner and Jenna are talking about space and science and Conner is shocked Jenna is so smart. Jenna admits that she was in the gifted program and Dallas, Becky, and Alli start teasing Jenna about it.

Fiona’s quizzing Eli on interview questions and candidly tells him that she’ll finish the video yearbook. Clare told Fiona she doesn’t think it’s a good idea after all and Eli’s pissed at Clare for getting into his business. Clare says she’s just looking out and that maybe he should postpone his interview. Eli won’t.

Becky apologizes for teasing Jenna about Conner and tells Jenna that before she commits to Conner she should really give Luke a second shot.

Jake shows up at the PTA meeting and Katie is surprised that he showed up. He tells her that Marisol told him she was trying to get his garden re-opened and he wanted to show his support. Jake wants to know why and Katie says it’s important.

Eli has his interview and he seems to of blown it….that is until the interviewer tells him that Romeo and Jules is one of the strongest High School submissions that she’s seen. Eli wants to celebrate an interview well done however Clare wants to talk about the drug use and that she’s sorry she lashed out at him before the interview. Eli zones out and has more flashbacks to that night as he looks at his pill bag.

Katie, Jake, Mo, and Marisol are waiting in front of the garden waiting for the PTA to deliberate but Katie can’t wait and she hops the wall around the garden and begins to kick it down with a hammer….the others start to help her out as Simpson sees. The garden was Okayed to be re-opening but they have detention for breaking down the walls.

Eli’s in the girls locker room shower fully clothed when Clare and Alli walk in. Eli admits he may be on drugs and he blames it on the fact that Clare is forcing him to talk and talk and talk and talk. Eli strips down and he comments about how Clare didn’t want to have sex with him cause he was damaged….does he look damaged? HE’S A FREAKING SUPER HERO….. He then starts running down the hall naked.

Jenna asks Luke why he didn’t say something and made Becky be his go between. Luke starts to grope Jenna and she tells Luke to stay away….Conner then sucker punches Luke and Jenna is upset cause she thought Conner wasn’t ‘that guy’

Simpson tells Eli that what he did was grounds for suspension…possibly getting expelled…..however he gets what Eli is going through cause he found the body of a kid when he was Eli’s age. Eli just doesn’t want to talk about it 24/7. He admits last year he could of easily been in Campbell’s place and he promises to not flip out again.

Jenna officially lets Conner know that she wants to be his girlfriend.

Katie apologizes to Jake about Vegas. He was the best boyfriend ever and he didn’t deserve what she did. He passes her a flyer about a soccer camp looking for councilors. He tells her he heard she was looking for a job and the doctor cleared her months ago and she should get back to doing what she loved.

Eli’s in the greenhouse trying to get passed things cause that’s what his shrink told him to do. He tells Clare that he regrets taking drugs and that he can’t get better with her hovering over him and that they need to take a break. Campbell isn’t the problem …. She is.

Katie and Maya start to kick the soccer ball around in the parking lot. Maya asks if she’s going to apply for the job and Katie says yea though it means they won’t have the summer together before she goes off to college.

Eli shows the final cut of the yearbook to the seniors and Campbell has been edited back in.  Everyone complements him as he looks across longingly at Clare.