Maria once again reviews
the last episode, telling us about how things didn’t work out as planned because the
prom sucks. Liz and Max basically broke up for good, Kyle found he liked Tess more as a
friend than a girlfriend, but the bright spot was Alex, who had come back from Sweden a
new man, and Isabel finally noticed. Maria states that with her and Liz’s help, those
two might actually find true love.Alex is on the phone with Isabel, guitar in hand,
while Maria and Liz coach him in the background. Isabel wants him to come out and play,
but the girls tell him to say no. Alex is hesitant – he really wants to go, but Maria
and Liz tell him to be strong. He finally turns her down, reluctantly, biting his own hand
in agony. Isabel tells him she’ll be at the Crashdown in case he changes his mind.
They hang up, and Alex collapses on his bed disgustedly. "This blows," he says
crankily, but Maria and Liz are proud of him, saying Alex now has Isabel chasing him. Alex
can only think that Isabel is right now thinking of him. The girls begin to leave to go to
work, once again patting Alex and telling him to "Be strong!" At the door, they
encounter a delivery person, who’s bringing Alex dinner. Alex opens the bag to
discover the food is cold. He begins saying things about being so sick of this, always the
same thing, everything is always cold, always the same thing -- "Why does life have
to be so wrong? Why does everything have to be a lie?" The slightly freaked-out
delivery boy gives Alex the receipt to sign, and takes off, leaving Alex to sit and stare
at a picture of his Swedish girlfriend.
It’s nighttime, and Valenti comes upon the scene of a car accident. He asks his
deputy, Hanson, if there are any fatalities, and if it’s anyone he knows. He goes to
the wrecked car and looks in. His face registers shock.
Everyone is at the Crashdown, where Isabel, Kyle, and Tess are laughing over prom
pictures, Maria is working, Liz appears to be doing homework, and Max and Michael are
arguing over the respective merits of The Matrix versus Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon. Max commits heresy by insisting "You simply cannot prefer Keanu Reeves to
Michelle Yeoh." (Well, Max...I guess it might all depend on your sexual orientation.)
Valenti comes into the back of the Crashdown, and apparently tells Maria the news about
Alex, sending her screaming to the front to hug Liz tightly. Valenti enters the dining
room and soberly announces that there’s been an accident, and Alex is dead.
Outside the city morgue, the gang convenes near the Coroner’s van holding
Alex’s body. With a determined look on his face, Max strides purposely toward the
van. Isabel narrates: "He'll need to use his powers to open the doors," as Max
does exactly that. She continues, "He'll take a deep breath, put his hands on his
chest, and bring him back to life. And Alex will sit up suddenly, and Max will jump back,
and the whole wagon will shake a little." Inside the van, Max looks a bit sick as he
unzips the body bag and puts his hand inside. Isabel goes on: "The whole wagon will
shake and they'll come running back here with big, goofy grins on their faces... we'll
have to come up with a cover story for Hanson and everybody…" But as Max exits
the van without Alex, it becomes obvious that his healing powers didn’t work this
time, and Alex is really and truly gone. Isabel is devastated, walking away by herself, as
Tess tells Max to go after her.
