9x01/2 Just Can’t Get Enough RECAP

The season opens just weeks after the events of last season/the movie special as Studz hot off their theatrical debut in Mewsical High are rocking it at Degrassi. As they are singing in the gym cut to a limo pulling up in front of the school as two well-dressed students exit from it. They are Declan and Fiona Coyne, their father is some sort of diplomat and it’s unclear whether they are American, Canadian, or duel citizens as while they call New York their ultimate home they are world travelers. Chantey introduces herself to the twins’ camera in hand ready to vlog. They ask who the important people are…. Holly J the president, Studz Degrassi’s own movie stars and the lead singers girlfriend famed model Mia just home from Paris. I assume the shoot that was canceled/delayed in the movie happened and she flew from LA to Paris then back home which was why she had millions of dollars of cloths with her on the bus….see it all comes together. Holly J tells the band they are on the set list for the Winter Beach Bash while Peter comments they ARE the set list and informs Mia he’s so close to landing a spot in the music master class.

WHATEVER IT TAKES this season it’s a new vocal track of the theme song as well as some new scenes as Derek and Mia are now gone and the four new characters this season are added. The changes are as follows: The Leia/Derek scene is now Declan/Fiona, between the Anya/Chantey and KC/Clare/Connor/Alli scene is now Leia/Holly J, then after the grade nine quad are new grade niners Jenna and Dave…. Finally with Holly J in a new scene the one of her and Mia is obviously gone….

Degrassi Goes Hollywood:Recap

While I am tagging the previous episode as the season finale this movie can alternately be known as 8x19-22 Paradise City though for arguments sake I’m just going to list Danger Zone as the finale…. Anyway since this is two hours (probably about an hour and a half ish on the DVD since it’s without ad breaks) this may be lengthy. Also this is the first and for Ellie, and Craig last time you’ll see some older characters which have been absent since season seven (Marco appears next season while Paige appeared in a webisode during the back end of season eleven)

Anyway the movie begins with some scenery porn of California (I don’t remember if its location shots or stock footage but it’s stunning) Paige is on the phone with Marco gushing about her life as a Hollywood Stylist. He wants to visit but she tells him she’s swamped with clients….. though by client she really means a Diva starlet named Hailey who’s a part of the show ‘The Shores’ which is an inverse take on the Hills (despite Anya implying that the Hills is an actual show in-verse) to whom Paige acts as a personal assistant AkA glorified maid to. Hailey asks how her ‘acting’ is on the show and Paige tells her its reality TV. Hailey asks if she can help her with an outfit for some party…..for her dog. Paige picks up her cell and tells Marco….yea totally not the best time for a visit as the dog ends up taking a piss on her.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x18 Danger Zone—recap

This is another early A-B-C plot episode most likely because it’s a season finale.

Blue uses his art final performance piece to ask Holly J to the winter dance in a rather romantic way. She tells him she can’t cause she’s working and Chantey questions as to whether there is another guy and if he is he must be really special to of blown off Blue’s advances.

WHAEVER IT TAKES

8x17 Up Where We Belong—RECAP

The Juniors are talking to the guidance counselor because they are getting ready to plan their schedules for the second semester which is a building block for their final year and future both at Degrassi and in the real world. Mia is failing English and she’s freaking out. She’s already a year behind cause of having a baby and she doesn’t want to be in school forever. (Sweetie talk to Spinner) the councilor suggests that maybe she needs to tone down her modeling to focus more on school. As for Sav he’s at a crossroads cause the music classes he wants to take conflict with the engineering ones his father wants him to do. Mia plans to handle both modeling and school cause she HAS to while Sav…..we’ll hear from him a bit later.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x16 Heart of Glass--recap

Alli and Johnny are making out in his car however it’s almost nine and he doesn’t want her to be late for her curfew. He’s trying to be respectful however she thinks he’s not into her. She comes home and her mom asks how studying at the library was and Alli wines saying it’s stupid. She then slumps in the living room puts on West Drive and calls up someone presumably Clare wining that she hates her life. Seriously Alli do you want some cheese to go with your wine….god.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x13/14 Jane Says RECAP

Jane is waiting outside the school for Lucas to arrive with the car so that she can go out and take her road test for her license. She comes home and shows her mom she passed and she’s excited that she did it on the first try no thanks to Lucas. Her mom doesn’t know what to do with him and Jane says that maybe if he can spend more time with Isabella he’d change his life around.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x12 Heat of the Moment---RECAP

Holly J is looking in at Mia now captaining the squad looking upset. Alli and Clare come up behind her and Alli makes a comment about how maybe Holly J can use her newfound free time to find true love. It didn’t seem to me that Alli’s comment came off as malicious however Holly J then comments about how thanks but no thanks she doesn’t need relationship advice from a niner and then asks if Alli is even dating. Alli explains yes but when asked who claims she’s keeping it on the DL….cause yea you know her bad boy senior boyfriend is totes ashamed of her. Holly J comments how cute it is Alli has an imaginary boyfriend so she says it’s Johnny. Holly J walks to Johnny and ask if it’s true and he comments he’s a senior…yea right and Holly J tells Alli looks like she should be looking for true love too. Alli vows to kill her.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x07 Money For Nothing recap

Holly J has big news however first Chantey points out they have an audience. Holly J goes to tell Blue it’s a closed practice though he wants to know if she’ll go see Pink Floyd with him. Seriously what teenager even four or five years ago listens to Pink Floyd? He tells her the cost of the tickets and she tells them it better be good or a second date is out of the question. Holly J’s announcement is that they made it to a major completion in Florida that’s $350. This is a huge achievement since last time the squad tried to compete well World War 3 nearly broke out.

Holly J comes home and her mom tells her she has bad news. Her dad made some bad investments and they are going to have to make changes. Her mom cuts up Holly J’s credit card and she flips.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x05 Man With Two Hearts recap

Before you guys get too excited no….this isn’t about some mad man in a blue box who comes to Toronto and takes an unsuspecting female character on an epic journey through time and space though that would have been totally EPIC. Though this episode does kick off Riley’s character arch and plants the seeds for one of my favorite (non cannon) SLASH ships.

Speaking of…..Riley and Peter are going for a run. Peter trips and Riley helps him. Riley comments that if he has any guys then he’d go try out for cross country. They get back to school and Mia says she has some free time before a shoot and asks if Peter wants to walk her to set. He tells her no he’s going to go to the meeting and Riley comments about blowing off a hot model once Mia walks away. Peter comments about how he just got his heart stomped on by Darcy and doesn’t want to get involved (Spoilers he does and she leaves him for the CW too) Riley tells Peter he can relate and Peter nods asking if he has girl troubles too….. (Oh you can’t imagine)

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x04 Didn’t We Almost Have It All recap

Liberty is worried about making a first impression for the sorority. Even though she’s a legacy since remember her mom went there…..she still needs to look good. It’s all about connections. She’s approached by a girl from another sorority who knows all about her. The dean of the university is an alum and she comments why settle for a safe bet when you can compete to be part of an elite group.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

8x03 fight the Power recap

Jane is trying out for the football team and Darcy and Spinner are showing their support.  There is some trash talk because Jane is much better then Derek on the field. Jane asks if she’s in but Shep has to get it green lit by the board as to if a girl can play on a boy’s team.

WHAREVER IT TAKES

8x01/02 Uptown Girls—Recap

As a new season begins Degrassi’s new football team and the newly rebranded Power Squad are practicing/holding tryouts during the last week of summer. Mia’s late and hopes she can still try out however Holly J is now in charge of everything cause the new Principal, Principal Shepard AKA ‘The Shep’ who ran a pre-fire Lakehurst is now in charge and he’s always had a sweet spot for Holly J. She tells Mia she’s not going to let her try out because she’s unreliable.

WHATEVER IT TAKES (so the titles are back to the seasons 3-5 format though the backtrack vocals are new. The opening includes 8 new characters, Clare (though she was technically introduced back in season 6), Alli, Connor, KC, Kelly, Blue, Leia, and Riley as well as three minor characters bumped up to titles (Bruce, Johnny, and Chantey) All the graduates  sans Emma, Liberty, Manny and Spinner are gone as well as Christine (Emma’s mom) and Darcy. It’s common in the fan communities to refer to any character introduced after this Generation 2 (and some even refer to Maya, Tristan, Tori, Zig, Campbell, Miles, Zoe, and Winston as Generation 3….)

SEASON 8 CHARACTERS

7x21 Everything She Wants recap

Study guides are being passed out for the science final and Anya and Mia plan to study together in a couple’s only study date. Lucas is in trouble again and he comments that someone said she was the second prettiest girl in school. Jane comments about how he better behave at dinner and he tells Mia that their mom is having her latest internet date over. Mia suggests she and Isabella come for backup.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

7x16 Sweet Child O' Mine recap

The episode opens as Mia is re-auditioning for Spirit Squad. Manny is glad she’s finally back in her rightful place however Holly J is a bit skeptic because of Mia being a teen mom. Not because it’s a sin like Darcy had thought last go but because she’s worried that she’ll shirk on her squad obligations. She wants Mia to prove her worth. Lucas goes to Mia commenting how she has it all yet something is missing.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

7x09 Hungry Eyes-recap

First off I love this episode because it’s another bottle episode where the majority of the plot takes place at Degrassi and how the A and B plot both revolve around the same event (the intermural tournament)

 Emma and Manny are heading toward the school and Emma is commenting how she hasn’t heard from Sean in a while and that she’s been stuck on her admissions essays…..um I know I’ll comment about this when I get to season twelve too but timeline wise it’s most likely February or March not that you can tell from the weather outside or the wardrobe and by now letters would start coming out cause application deadlines were like December or January…..anyway rant aside the school is being taken over by Purple Dragons and not of the friendly little Figment variety no…. it’s a corporate sponsor for the school badminton tournament….. Seriously maybe it’s just a Canadian thing but I’ve never heard of people playing it intramural in school before. Liberty is set against this but Damian thinks it’s great and rally hopes Emma auditions to be one of the sample girls. Manny agrees and tells Emma she needs to spice up her boring life.

WHAEVER IT TAKES

7x08 Jessie's Girl||recap

Jesse hangs up the phone at the Core office and wants the presses to be stopped and Ellie’s story to be dropped from the cover. He just got Bill Nye to be a guest speaker at the school for some big Q and A interview. Ellie’s pissed because he’s been promising her a cover spot and she worked her ass off. He tells her it’s just business and to take it for the team.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

7x4 It’s Tricky—recap

I remember in a season one re-cap I’d gotten this episode title and season six’s Can’t Hardly Wait Confused. I think it’s because both had Jimmy/Ashley plots and to be honest with over 300 episodes sometimes titles just blur together.

Spinner is listening to Craig’s first album that dropped and I’m LOLing that the cover art is a season four gallery still. Toby comments how if Craig were still around the talent show line up wouldn’t suck and Emma points out how some of his songs are clearly about certain people. She’s The Ash (Ashley) Thong Girl Wrong Girl (Manny) Red Headed For Trouble (Ellie). He’d wrote all the songs in rehab except for My Window which Ashley says she wrote. Jimmy is giddy because he got a shout out in Craig’s liner notes….Ashley didn’t even though he used her music. Toby tells her he’s putting her up to play at the showcase.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

SEASON 7 CHARACTERS

6x13 If You Leave|| recap

The episode opens with the spirit squad having practice. They are good but it’s important to note that the male team members are now gone. They finish up and know they are going to win at finals. Emma tells Manny how this doesn’t feel right with JT only dying two weeks ago. She’s still on edge from it all and asks Manny out for coffee. Manny can’t cause she has an important date…not with new boyfriend Damian but with her mom as she thinks it’s about time she comes back home.

WHATEVER IT TAKES