Ever since his death at the end of season two, we've all wanted to know who's gonna get Caleb Nicholl's cash.
Well guess what? Nobody is. That's right. At the time of his death, Caleb Nicholl was completely broke.
And that's not all last night's episode of The O.C. had to offer. Ryan and Marissa finally do the dirty. About time!
Senior year is starting and Seth is worried that it's going to feel like freshman year all over again without Ryan being around. Ryan was like his protector.
Summer is going to be hating life too. Without Marissa around, that Taylor Townsend chick is now in some type of alliance with Dean Hess and they're being really unfair to Seth and Marissa.
Sandy is having problems trying to run The Newport Group on his own while Kirsten is still with Charlotte at Arrowhead Lake trying not to relapse.
So Sandy tells Ryan that he is making some bad decisions and a lot of it has to do with Marissa. Sandy suggests that he and Marissa give each other some space. Ryan's not so sure. But Sandy is right about this. It was definitely a crazy summer and a lot of the craziness had to do with Marissa. I mean, come on, she shot his brother. Things like that just don't go away.
Julie feels the same way. She wants Marissa to get away from Ryan. She even suggested that Marissa go to boarding school with her sister to get a fresh start. Marissa says no way.
Jimmy is anxious to tie the knot again with Julie. He suggests that they get hitched this coming weekend and then head to Hawaii for a two-week honeymoon. Better yet, Julie and Jimmy agree that the best thing for the family would be to get out of the O.C. and move to Hawaii. Will Marissa agree?
Ryan finds out and he actually talks Sandy into letting Marissa stay at their place. That would make for some interesting late nights.
Sorry Ryan, Marissa is going to take one for the family and do her senior year in Hawaii. Ryan understands; he knows the importance of family.
The cool thing is that all of these situations rely on Caleb's will money and up until now, no one knows that there isn't any.
So it's time for the big moment. The lawyer walks in and everyone is shocked. Julie can't believe it, "nothing?" Kirsten is given a letter from Caleb, that's it.
While this is all going on, Ryan has prepared a special evening for him and Marissa. It is the last time they're going to see each other for a while. They have milkshakes and chili fries with Seth and Summer first, and then Ryan and Marissa head to the beach. Ryan, being the romantic that he is, actually built this cool hut on the beach and surrounded it with torches.
They head inside and finally the time has come. Ryan tells her that if they have sex now it's just going to make it harder for her to move be in Hawaii. Marissa says that she knows, but it's going to be difficult regardless. They get it on.
So now Jimmy and Julie are broke. What are they going to do? There's a big problem. Now that Jimmy doesn't have the will money he can't pay off his debts. This guy Tom is one of Jimmy's loaners and he's really been on Jimmy's case about the money. Jimmy promised to get it to him that night, but when Tom shows up and Jimmy's got nothing, it's trouble. Tom and his thugs take Jimmy out to the beach and beat the hell out of him. For a moment, I actually thought that Jimmy was dead.
Next morning, Marissa and Ryan wake in their hut on the beach. Marissa gets a call on her cell. Her and Ryan head over to Jimmy's boat and he's all bruised and nasty looking. Jimmy tells Marissa "I've been a terrible father." He has to leave town or they'll kill him. Marissa says, "if you leave I don't want you to come back." They hug and say good-bye.
Surprisingly, the episode ends quite pleasantly. Kirsten has come home, and she's staying for good. I'm so glad you're back Kirsten!
It could have all gone to hell, though. Kirsten distanced herself from Sandy after she received the letter from her father and actually bought a bottle of vodka and a hotel room for the night.
Thank God she came to her senses and went to Sandy.
When she comes home she still hasn't opened the letter. Now more than ever, Sandy is there for her. Kirsten tells him "I can't do this without you." She opens the letter and it's actually an apology from Caleb. Kirsten is relieved beyond belief. It feels good to have things back to normal, kind of.
Next week: Jimmy leaves town and the Coopers get booted from Caleb's mansion. Marissa begins at the public school and new characters are introduced.
A few quickies before I go:
• What the hell is Ryan going to do? Why not just go to the public school with Marissa?
• Do you really care that Jimmy got beat up? Maybe he had it coming.
• I'm guessing that Kirsten is going to take over The Newport Group.
• I wouldn't be surprised if Sandy and Kirsten offer to take Julie and Marissa into their home. That would be interesting!
So what do you think of this column? Any suggestions or predictions about what is to come this season? Let me know dswier83@yahoo.com. Your comments may appear in next week's column!
Daniel Swier is an associate editor of the Web Devil.
