Sugz

acey fails his driver's license test on his birthday, and Dawson is so absorbed with his new relationship with Joey that he overlooks Pacey's special milestone entirely. Hurt and feeling like he's being phased out, Pacey throws a huge bash in an effort to expand his horizons. While innocently snooping around Joey's room, Dawson reads some disparaging remarks in her diary that make him question how well he knows his lifelong friend. The budding Dawon-Joey romance affects Jen too, whose loneliness causes her to befriend the group's adversary, Abby Morgan. With boys and booze forever on her mind, Abby proves to be a bad influence on Jen. Meanwhile, Mitch suggests that he and Gale try an "open" marriage as a means to save it.

Sugz

Personally I thought this episode was absolutely pathetic. Not a bad episode per se, good writing, good acting as usual in early season sbut I really think this (not season 3) is where the division was made between Dawson and non Dawson fans. Either you understood or justified Dawson in this episode for reading Joeys diary and forgetting Paceys birthday, meaning you were a Dawson fan or you couldnt believe what an incredible prick he was and didnt understand how anyone could understand him. I never actually was crazy about "Dawson" the entire series but this is where my dislike went from thinking he was just naive and silly to a downright asshat.

Let me also just say that its a very personal thing, a girls diary, and if Dawson were really in tune with Joey he probably wouldve understood that she had her good and bad days just like everyone else and getting them out personally in written form, whether she meant it or not, is fine. She did nothing wrong but all Dawson could see was his own hurt ego.

As for Pacey, well, I guess it just added to his complex that no one remembered his birthday.

In the end everything turned out peaches I guess but I think it was a lot more than it seemed. The events in this episode set up season 2 and a lot of the main issues from this episode turned up again.

sort of beautiful

Not a very good episode,thought it was boring!

coldwater1010

I agree with this and it always bugged me that she felt the need to apologise about what she wrote or even justify it.

I'm not a big fan of this episode either. I think it's ridiculous that anyone would be wearing beachwear and bikinis in the winter in Massachucettes and I didn't really understand why since they'd decided to base the show in that area why something as obvious as the weather changes was such a stumbling block for them. I mean I get that they were shooting in the summer in NC with the heat so I can understand why they wouldn't want to have to walk around in winter coats or whatever all day and all that, but bikini beach parties and skinny dipping and jumping into outdoor swimming pools in the middle of winter? I mean they could still have had Pacey throw his party and made their point without going to that extreme. It just seemed really lazy on the part of the writers.

I do remember liking the scene where Andie gives Pacey the eightball,but that was about it although their relationship really got on my nerves in the early part of the season. I didn't really start to like them until later on and then ofcourse she started seeing dead people.

COOLCAT200

Dawson was wrong to sneak a peak at Joey's diary no doubt. But it did lead to 1 of the most beautifully shot scenes you will ever see and the talk about a song making a scene Kiss The Rain. As for Pacey I did feel really bad for him for Dawson forgetting his birthday but I am glad they patched things up in the end As for Jen well I loved Abby Morgan that's all I can say. I have to agree though seeing them in swim clothes and shorts in the winter made no sense. I did like the Pacey/Andie stuff though.

Brighter Than Sunshine

Aww, i know i love that scene, there chemistry just eploaded during it, it looks as though they can actually read each others thoughts. I loved this episode, i guess being a closite D/Jer does that to me, And the P/An scene towards the end was really great. And Dawson and PAcey's talk at the last scene brang a smile to my face, i was always a fan of there friendship.

COOLCAT200

Me too that is something I missed in the later seasons but I was glad in the finale they had that nice talk at the Ice House.

jediwands

Loved Pacey and Andie in this episode.. I loved that Andie recognizes how hurt and down Pacey is, and I just love their scene while they are sitting on the dock. Too cute.

Regarding the diary.. Yeah, I was extremely irked that Dawson looked at Joey's diary. I REALLY hated to see him do this because it was so wrong on all levels.. I mean, it's bad enough that he reads her personal thoughts, but to turn them on her and act as if it was all about him, and totally ignoring the fact that she could have written ANYTHING in her diary, and he had no right to read it, let alone QUESTION it.. And then, as it turns out, his questioning and interpretation of it was entirely wrong, which even irked me all the more!

I don't hate Dawson or anything, but some of the dumba$$ things that he has pulled really sticks with me.. I think at the heart of Dawson is a really decent and caring guy, but the few negatives that he does have, SEVERELY irk me..

In all true honestly, Pacey and Andie was the pairing in this episode that grabbed my attention.

Von Trapp Glory

Another classic episode.

Pacey and Andie's storyline was again my favorite. The scene where she gave him the 8 ball was so adorable. "Luckiest Guy" is still one of my favorite Creek songs. Their banter was at its height in this episode.

Dawson and Joey's "Kiss the Rain" scene was so magical and wonderfully done and I loved watching the seeds of Jen and Abby's friendship being planted.

The music was so amazing in Crossroads!

cresta77

Hi all!

This was one of my all-time favorite episodes, maybe even my most favorite, save for the ridiculous Mitch-Gale sub-plot.

The things that others found annoying in Dawson, I think just made him appear all that much more human. Reading Joey’s diary without her permission was wrong, we all know that. But at 15, you do dumb things. Sometimes you realize that they are dumb the second that you do or say them... but it’s too late and you can’t undo them. In fact, how many times do we find ourselves making things 100 times worse by digging in our heels and getting defensive. It’s not right or even admirable... but it is human and very realistic.

I guess that is one of the things that I found so endearing in this episode – we got to see some real vulnerabilities in Dawson’s character – his flaws – his ability to make mistakes, and the fragility of his own ego underneath it all. Maybe everyone had a different experience of being 15 years old, but that was something that I could really resonate with.

Combine these character flaws with a blossoming romance, that itself was still very fragile and vulnerable, and put in the illusion of Dawson and Joey playfully (NAIVELY!) thinking that they knew everything that there was to know about each other, and you have the groundwork for some great angst and drama.

I found the interplay of Dawson and Joey’s characters really invigorating in this episode – here were too teens who grew up together who were entering into some “uncharted boy-girl territory” with the very naive idea that they “would be fine” only to discover that romance sometimes means a lot of mistakes, misunderstandings, the feeling that you can never say the right thing without it being misinterpreted, fights... in short that love isn’t always pleasant and easy.

But then, this episode also showed us their ability to find forgiveness, to heal the hurt and to be more honest with one another than perhaps they had ever been before. They learned in "Crossroads" that they would have to work hard at their relationship, but in the end it would be worth it. The "Kiss the Rain scene" was just a beautiful moment – done without words -- where we saw the potential of their love to really overcome all of the awkwardness and difficulties that their unique relationship was bound to encounter.

Joey was feisty and uncompromising, Dawson was bumbling, self-absorbed and immature; yet their love found a way to overcome those obstacles and bring them back to each other.

While I agree that Joey didn’t have to apologize to Dawson as she didn’t do anything wrong, I think it was important that she offered Dawson an explanation – not because she had to or owed it to him; but because she loved him and cared about him. Although her words written in her diary were never intended for his eyes, he did end up reading them. Although she never meant for him to be hurt by them, his fragile self-image was very seriously wounded. Although none of this was Joey’s fault, she was in the unique position of being able to heal that hurt by offering an explanation – one that expressed her great love for Dawson, even at the expense of Joey sharing an embarrassing admission of her long-pining for him and the internal frustration that she sometimes felt.

Both Dawson and Joey really learned a lot in this episode:

-- Dawson on how to respect Joey and her privacy, and not to presume that he knows everything about her, that she is a much more complex person than he ever expected and that loving her means a healthy regard for that.

-- Joey on how fragile Dawson’s “perfect life” really is on the inside, that his outer strength sometimes can hide an inner weakness, and that caring for him might mean a willingness to share some of her own inner struggles and vulnerabilities.

Well... those are some the reasons why I really loved this episode and will always treasure it. I really felt that this portrayed the great potential that this wonderful couple had to endure. Sadly, it was not to be. It was also a great disappointment to lose “Kiss the Rain” on the DVD. If there ever was one song that was truly “married” to a scene, it was that one! What were they thinking!

Cresta

WhiteOut

Sugz, I agree that this episode did a lot of damage, (at least on this site), when it came to destroying Dawson's image.

I didn't mind though. I liked the episode and the "Sixteen Candles" allusions. I also think that Dawson acted out his age in this episode, and did two really stupid things. It happens! In real life, but especially in teensoaps were you need drama to keep the show going, however contrived. So I never really gave it much thought. I still liked the character.

The camrawork and scenery in this eppy was top-notch. The ending in the rain was beautiful. I also think Jens storyline in this episode was treated well and foreshadowed things to come in an intelligent fashion.

Not one of the greatest moments of the show but overall a decent episode.

A solid 6/10!

Cheers,

newmom5497

Good post Cresta--I agree with everything you said.

And as someone else mentioned, we have to keep in mind that these kids were suppose to be only 15 yrs old...and I'm sure many of us were just as self-absorbed as Dawson was portrayed to be....and did some dumb things.

I liked "Crossroads". I especially like the Pacey line: "I'm sick and tired of being Dawson Leery's sidekick. I'm going to get my own storyline." And then Jen agreeing with him.

And they both did in Season 2.

I always loved how the writers poked fun at themselves/the show within the character's dialogue.

jediwands

The thing that bothered me about Dawson reading Joey's diary was that it seemed as if he still was not 100% convinced that invading her privacy was completely wrong. Yes, he said he understood, but I still did not get the general feeling that he completely felt like what he did was entirely wrong.

The other thing, it is bad enough that he read the diary, but to actually turn it on her and make it all about him, AGAIN, will always rub me the wrong way. What I mean is most people that would actually read a diary like that would be so scared to even tell the other person that they read it, so they would never comment on what they read as it would immediately give it away that they read it! Dawson, on the other hand, had absolutely no problem telling Joey that he read it, let alone turning it on her and being angry about it. That is cringe worthy to me.

COOLCAT200

You are right he was wrong no excuse for that. The only thing I can say is Dawson was crushed thinking the person he loved the most thought he had no talent. He did say in a later episode he learned his lesson about things like that.

cresta77

Wilpen –

I don’t think Dawson really thought he was actually invading her privacy at that moment. Remember the dialogue just moments before:

Dawson: “When I think about you and me together, it's perfect. There's none of that pretentious getting-to-know-you crap. I already know everything there is to know about you. What you think, what you feel.”

Joey: “Really?”

Dawson: “Yeah.”

Joey: “You think you know everything about me Dawson?”

Dawson: “C’mon Joey we've spent most of our waking, and sleeping for that matter, moments together. Yes, I think it's fairly safe to say that I know everything there is to know about you.”

Joey: “What you don't know about me, Dawson, could fill a book.”

I think that at that moment, when Joey left the room to care for a crying Alexander, Dawson felt as though he really did know everything about Joey, and that there couldn’t possibly be anything that she had written in her diary that he didn’t already know. Before truly thinking through his actions, he decided to test that theory of his, since Joey just challenged it. Dumb thing to do, but hey, again, we’re talking a 15 year old teenager who was just making out with his girlfriend. Was he really being rational at this moment?

The cringe-worthy part for me was as a member of the audience, watching this happen, we KNOW that it is going to be a problem... just like watching a car accident in slow motion.

One of the ironic twists in this episode that I also found very telling, was the scene at the dock party that Pacey was hosting when Dawson finally catches up with Pacey:

Dawson: “Hey.”

Pacey: “What's up?”

Dawson: “Alright, look, I don't know what's going on between us but obviously it's something that set you off.”

Pacey: “Me? I can't imagine what that would be. Hmmm.”

Dawson: “Look, I'm about 2 seconds away from blowing it with Joey. You and I know everything about each other and I really need your advice.”

Pacey: “You know everything about me, huh? You know how I got this scar on my chin? You know why my father hates me? You know why I ride the fine line between insecurity and self-confidence? Correct me if I'm wrong, Dawson, but you don't know the answer to any of those questions. In fact, I bet you don't even know when I was born!”

Again, here Dawson presumes that he knows everything about one of his friends, and again, in that presumption fails to see and hear what is really going on. At this point in his life, his character who is such a dreamer, has this tragic flaw that keeps him from really seeing what is right in front of him. This was a major theme in Season One in his dealings both with Jen and Joey, and now it continues in this episode. In some ways, this dreaming is an essential aspect of his character – a flaw to be certain, but also a part of him that creates tension and drama. I think it keeps Dawson’s character and storyline interesting, because I found myself always cheering for Dawson to overcome this fault.

Just a thought...

Cresta