S1E5: Parents’ Day

"Snake" Simpson, "Spike" Nelson, Ashley Kerwin, Divorce, Emma Nelson, J.T. Yorke, Jealousy, Liberty Van Zandt, Manny Santos, Paige Michalchuk, Spinner Mason, Terri MacGregor, Toby Isaacs, Uncategorized

Parent’s day is coming up and J.T. and Toby are dreading the day. Toby does not want to see his divorced parents in the same room together and J.T. does not want his parents to find out about the “D” he got on his math test. In homeroom, Emma is concerned with the News About Kids (NAK) commercial that is featured on the announcements. She believes that the school should not endorse products to students and that the commercial has flaws of its own, implying that teenagers are going to use money they earned on drugs.

Ashley has other concerns with the NAK commercials, as she is worried the students care more about the commercials than the announcements she is giving. Terri and Paige tell her to get an agent, and remind her that Toby’s mother is a casting agent. Terri says Ashley’s looks and presence on-screen will assure her a signing from Toby’s mom, but Paige is jealous.

Toby is trying to get J.T. to help him come up with a plan to keep his parents apart. Ashley comes up the two boys and asks if Toby’s mother is indeed an agent, which he confirms. She gets excited when she finds out that his mother is coming, which confuses the boys. They join Emma and Manny at a table, where Emma is ranting about the NAK commercials.

Emma confronts the principal, Mr. Radtich, about her opinions on the NAK commercials, claiming they are biased and used for product placement. He informs her that the school made a deal with NAK, promising to air the commercials in exchange for 18 new computers for the media lab. She argues that this is unfair, so he encourages her to write an editorials for the school newspaper if she is so passionate about it, and she agrees.

Paige is worried that Ashley is prettier than her, so she poses the question to Spinner, who gives no answer. She reveals that Ashley is looking for an agent, and Spinner says he can see her on TV, which angers Paige. Ashley informs Terri that she signed them up for the welcoming committee, so that she will be the first person Toby’s mother sees. Paige takes this as an opportunity to say that she is also going to try and get signed.

In the computer lab, Emma and Manny are working on Emma’s editorial, where Sean interjects saying that he does not appreciate the subject of the article. Toby comes up with a plan to avoid parents’ night. He writes a letter to his parents saying that he is doing so well in school that they do not need to come, and scans Mr. Simpson’s (Snake) signature to the bottom of the letter.

Emma runs to Liberty, the editor of the newspaper, to hand in her article, but Liberty says she is late. After Emma insists she turn in her article, Liberty agrees.

Back at home, Toby’s father is questioning Toby about the letter, claiming it is not real. Toby cracks and tells the truth, that his mother will also be attending, which results in his father blaming his mother for not telling him. Toby says that he wants both of his parents there, just not together, but his father assures him that everything will be okay.

At parents’ day, Toby’s mother is late, and his father makes remarks about her. When she finally arrives, Paige introduces herself and compliments his mother’s outfit. Toby’s mother is obviously annoyed, and the three manage to get away from Paige.

Toby and his parents meet with Mr. Simpson where they begin to argue immediately. The two fight while Toby and Mr. Simpson do not know how to react, until Toby blames his parents for him not doing his homework because of their constant bickering. His parents finally calm down and resume the meeting.

In the hallway, Emma’s mother compliments Emma on her editorial, where Sean and his older brother overhear. His older brother makes a comment on the article, and Emma defends her piece saying that she is right. The two go at it while Sean and Ms. Nelson try to get the two to calm down. Sean’s brother says that without the funding for the computers Sean would not be able to keep up with his school work, since not everyone is as fortunate as Emma is. He crumples up her article and says that there are two sides to every story.

After Toby’s meeting, Ashley greets his mother asking how the meeting went, but before she can finish Paige butts in and greets her. Toby’s mother is uninterested and says goodbye, but Paige hands her a photo of herself before she leaves. As she is leaving she hands Terri her card and says to call, leaving Paige confused and jealous.

The next day in the computer lab, Emma instant messages Sean, who is sitting next to her, apologizing for her argument with his brother. The two go back and forth until Sean admits the article was not garbage.

Mr. Simpson stops Toby to ask him about his parents, and he apologizes for the meeting, but says that it cleared the air and things can now change. Mr. Simpson confronts him about the fake letter he wrote and tells him to write a ten-page paper on why falsifying documents is wrong. He admits that is proud of Toby and that his parents should be too.

S1E3: Family Politics

"Snake" Simpson, Ashley Kerwin, Emma Nelson, J.T. Yorke, Jimmy Brooks, Liberty Van Zandt, Manny Santos, Mrs. Kwan, Paige Michalchuk, Revenge, Sibling Rivalry, Spinner Mason, Terri MacGregor, Toby Isaacs, Uncategorized

Ashley is on the phone with her friend, Terri, talking about how they are going to make this the best year ever. She ends the call to continue working on her student government election posters. Ashley tries to get ready in the bathroom, but Toby is already in it, and an argue ensues. It is revealed that Toby’s father and Ashley’s mother are in a relationship, and the two families have recently moved in together.

At school, Toby complains to J.T. about Ashley, while Ashley complains about Toby to Terri. Ashley and Terri are hanging up Ashley’s posters when they run into Paige and they examine her clothing before Paige says, “new year, new look, new Paige.” She tells Ashley how typical it is of her to be focusing on the election rather than her appearance.

Emma and Manny enter school and are immediately harassed by Jimmy and Spinner, both eighth graders. The two demand the girls have hall passes or they must leave, then laugh it off, making fun of seventh graders. The girls ignore it and meet up with J.T., Toby, and Liberty before going to their homeroom, media immersion with Snake. The eighth graders, Jimmy, Spinner, Paige, Ashley, and Terri, join in their homeroom with Mrs. Kwan, who commends Ashley on starting her campaign early.

After class, the seventh graders notice Ashley’s posters, which Toby dislikes because no one is running against her. He tells J.T. to run a mock campaign against her, but he refuses. Toby convinces him by saying that it’s great practice since he one day wants to be famous, and he agrees, only if Toby does all of the work.

Liberty approaches Ashley and Terri while they are hanging up posters. She introduces herself, saying that she is running for secretary and wants to discuss the lack of a school newspaper, but Ashley tells her to wait until after the election. Meanwhile, Toby is making flyers and posters for J.T.’s election in the media room.

Ashley and Terri run into Toby putting up the posters, and notice that they have J.T.’s name on them. She says that they are wasting their time, since school presidents are always eighth graders, but Toby assures her that this year things will be different. He mocks her by saying that she is just afraid of competition.

J.T. begins his campaign claiming he is going to do what real politicians do, “absolutely nothing!” while Ashley talks about starting a recycling program. She begins to get annoyed when she realizes people are paying attention to J.T. more, simply because he is funny.

Later, at home, Ashley confronts Toby for helping J.T. run his campaign, which results in an argument. Ashley’s mother comes in to try and break up the fight, which she thought resulted because Toby was running against Ashley. Once she realizes that Toby is only helping J.T. with his campaign, she says that he has every right to help his friend. Ashley is upset because she believes that she is taking Toby’s side.

The next day, Toby and J.T. check the polls and see that J.T. is winning with 52% of the votes. This worries J.T. and he reminds Toby that the campaign was supposed to be a joke, and if he wins he will actually have to work to help Degrassi. Later, J.T. is at his locker when Jimmy and Spinner forcefully take him to the locker-rooms, where Ashley is waiting. She bribes him with $60 to drop out of he race, but he refuses, lying and saying his parents will be upset if he loses. She continually raises her bribe up to $80, until he finally accepts. She gives him half of the money and promises the other half once he drops out of the election in front of the whole school.

Spinner sneaks up on Manny and Emma and blows a spitball at Manny, making her cry. Emma tells Spinner to leave, and comforts Manny, while Terri comes up and makes Spinner go away. Once he is gone, Manny reveals she was fake crying to make him go away.

Toby finds out about the bribe and confronts J.T., but J.T. reminds him that the entire campaign was a joke and offers to split the money with him. Toby says that he just wants Ashley to not get everything that she wants.

Later, when J.T. begins his speech, Toby pulls Ashley into the hallway and confronts her about the bribe. He threatens to tell the school, but she tells him that J.T. already accepted the money. Toby lies and says that he took the money as evidence, which scares Ashley. She then says her entire life is already terrible, so Toby might as well make it worse. She says that her mom only cares about Toby and that she just wants one thing, to be school president.

At the end of his speech, J.T. says that he is dropping out of the election and tells the school to vote for Ashley. Out in the hall, Ashley begs Toby not to tell the school, and he agrees.

Jimmy walks Ashley home to find Toby sitting on the porch. He congratulates her on winning and apologizes for setting J.T. up against her. The two realize that as long as they are living in the same house, they might as well be nice to each other.

S1E2: Mother and Child Reunion (2)

"Snake" Simpson, "Spike" Nelson, Cailtin Ryan, Emma Nelson, J.T. Yorke, Joey Jeremiah, Manny Santos, Online Predators, Toby Isaacs

Snake gives Caitlin, Joey, and Lucy a tour of Degrassi, while Keith gets drinks out of boredom. Joey and Caitlin begin talking and agree to put the past behind them and be friends. Later, Joey overhears Keith flirting with a Degrassi alumni, Allison, revealing his doubts about his marriage to Caitlin. Allison encourages him by saying that he should be open to new experiences because he is an artist. She says she like to visit him in California, and he agrees, saying he will show her around.

Emma calls Manny to tell her that she has concluded to not meet Jordan, but still has to miss their movie night because she is watching “Wildlife Refuge” on television. Later, Emma takes a taxi to the hotel Jordan is at and waits in the lobby. Meanwhile, Manny goes to J.T.’s house where she tells Toby and J.T. that she is suspicious about Emma. She informs that she was not at home, not answering her calls, and “Wildlife Refuge” is not on that night. The three agree that she is meeting Jordan, and Toby tries to hack her email.

At the hotel, Emma is approached by a man who claims he is Jordan’s teacher. He invites her upstairs to meet Jordan and the rest of the class. She agrees after he says that Jordan brought his petition all the way from home for her to sign. They go up to a hotel room, where the man offers her pizza while he shows off his video camera, saying that the class is making a video journal.

After some time, Emma grows suspicious, realizing that the man knows an alarming amount about the emails and that no other kids would be coming. She tries to leave, but the door is locked, so she locks herself in the bathroom and comes to the conclusion that the man is Jordan. Through the door, Jordan says that he is going down to the lobby, and that she can leave if she wants.

She waits for a few minutes before deciding to leave the bathroom, but Jordan was in the rom and immediately closes the door. He threatens that if she screams he will tape her mouth shut and sets up a video camera to record the two of them. Jordan whispers in Emma’s ear, saying that they will be together for awhile.

Back at Degrassi, Joey confronts Keith about what he overheard and the two get into a heated argument, before fighting. Snake and Spike break up the two, as Caitlin leaves in tears, realizing that Keith did not want to marry her. Joey and Caitlin talk outside, where she confides in him. The two have a heart-to-heart and reconcile their relationship after 10 years.

Back at J.T.’s house, Toby gets access to her emails. The three go through Emma’s emails, realizing that Jordan had been hacking Emma’s emails to make it seem as they had common interests. They find what hotel and room Emma had planned to meet him at, and quickly go to Degrassi to inform her mother. They confront Snake and Spike, and immediately the two call the police and head to the hotel.

At the hotel, Jordan begins kissing and brushing up against Emma, as she is shaking. Snake and Spike arrive just in time to save Emma. They bang on the door, and Emma bites Jordan in order to escape to the door. She hides behind her mother as Snake threatens Jordan. Soon after, the police arrive and arrest him, informing them that he is a repeat offender.

The police take Emma’s computer for evidence and urge Spike to keep it out of her room. Spike confronts Emma about her decisions, and Emma argues saying that her mother does not know what it’s like to be 12. She breaks down and cries in Spike’s arms.

S1E1: Mother and Child Reunion (1)

"Snake" Simpson, "Spike" Nelson, Cailtin Ryan, Characters, Emma Nelson, J.T. Yorke, Joey Jeremiah, Manny Santos, Online Predators, Toby Isaacs

The episode begins with Emma and her best friend, Manny, reading an email from Emma’s online boyfriend, Jordan. The two, along with their friend J.T. Yorke, drop off boxes at Degrassi for the scheduled reunion for the classes of ’92 and ’93. The girls discuss Jordan’s petition for wildlife reservation, which has 6,000 signatures.

Joey, a Degrassi alumni, tries to sell a used Volkswagen to his friend, Lucy. She is reluctant about buying the car, but he suggests testing it out until the reunion. Angela, Joey’s daughter comes out and reminds Lucy that Joey has not yet confirmed he is going to the reunion, and that it has been a year since her mother and Joey’s wife, Julia, has passed away. Lucy claims that Julia would be upset if she knew he was cutting himself off from people, and he quickly changes the subject.

Back at the school, the three kids find Snake, a teacher at Degrassi, and give him the boxes. He begins to reminisce on his high school experience, before the three wander off. They find the new computer lab where they find Mr. Raditch, the principal, giving a tour to Toby Isaacs, J.T.’s friend from camp. J.T. introduces the girls while Toby’s father and Mr. Raditch continue with the tour. The boys stand guard while Emma and Manny enter the computer lab to check Emma’s email. She receives an email saying that Jordan will be in Toronto over the weekend, and would like to see her. Emma is eager to agree, but Manny warns her of the dangers.

Caitlin Ryan, a now-famous Degrassi alumni arrives at the school with her fiance and Joey and Lucy arrive soon after. Joey shares a long glance with Caitlin, the two realizing how much they have changed since high school.

J.T., Toby, Manny, and Emma are on the playground discussing Emma’s dilemma. J.T. teases saying that Jordan is probably creepy, but Toby seriously warns Emma of the dangers of meeting a stranger from online. She claims that he is not a stranger, and that he is coming to Toronto on a school field trip. J.T. notes that it is the middle of the summer, but Emma quickly informs him that the trip has been scheduled since the spring.

Emma comes home to her mother, Spike, and Caitlin looking at the reunion website. She exclaims that she is a major fan of Caitlin’s work. Later, Emma and Manny are going through all of Jordan’s emails, trying to prove that Jordan is not a creep. Manny says that J.T. is just looking out for her, but Emma says that he is just immature. She continues by admiring the fact that Jordan is more mature than any other guys her age, but Manny argues saying that Emma has never had a boyfriend before.

Spike, Snake, Joey, and Lucy meet Caitlin’s fiance, Keith, for the first time at a bar. Keith is a movie producer in Hollywood and quickly criticizes one of Joey’s newest commercials, advising him to ditch the “shifty cars salesman vibe”. Caitlin says that Joey is still the same old Joey from high school, but he remarks that he has changed a lot. Joey then gets up and sits alone at the bar, but Snake joins him. He criticizes Joey for cutting himself off from everyone else and encourages him to go to the reunion.

Later, at Emma’s house, Spike, Lucy, and Caitlin return home. Emma consults Caitlin for her advice on Jordan, saying that her friends say it’s dangerous. Caitlin urges her that sometimes you just have to go for it, not knowing that Emma met Jordan on the internet. She decides that she wants to meet Jordan, so she goes to her computer and emails him.

Guide to Degrassi

Your guide to everything Degrassi!

“Snake” Simpson

S1E5: Parents’ Day

S1E3: Family Politics

S1E2: Mother and Child Reunion (2)

S1E1: Mother and Child Reunion (1)