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#1.12 Todd Mulcahy, pt. 1

"Dude!" -Ben

Aired February 9, 1999

In a nutshell: Felicity gets stalked; Meghan gets an infection; Todd makes tasty chicken; Julie pesters her birth mother; Felicity & Elena study (without the M&M's); Todd bumps into a bus.

People who thought this up: J.J. Abrams (the writer & director)

Supporting cast: Stephen Berra (Todd Mulcahy), Amanda Foreman (Meghan), Shan Omar Huey (Blair), Chris Sarandon (Prof. McGrath), Ian Gomez (Javier), Greg Grunberg (Sean), Amy Wilson (seminar student), Robert Patrick Benedict (Richard), Jane Kaczmarek (Carol Anderson), Susan Dalian (Tina).

Tunes: Blondie ("Rapture"--Best of Blondie)

Quotes

Todd just wants to see Felicity, but Meghan's too busy seeing the hole in her nose: get bigger, that is. But she definitely thinks that Todd and Noel would make a cute couple.

Meanwhile, Felicity's watching the minute hands of a clock (something about wanting things badly).

More monumental, though, is McGrath's medical seminar--which only ten students get accepted to each year (I'm wagering that two of them will be a certain freshman frizzhead and her close friend, who'll we'll call Helena).

When Felicity finds out that Todd "T-dash-dash-dash" wants to kiss her, she's sure Noel "N-dash-dash-dash" misheard him. But no, T--- wasn't joking. So Felicity calls Todd and sets up a date, while Richard "barbecue boy" hounds his fraternizing R.A. about a satellite dish.

Meanwhile, Sean is hounding his roomie about milkless cereal, while Julie's stupidly applying for a job at her birth mother's company--without telling her. But hey, Ben's not upset. Even though his father has just threatened to cut off his financial support.

But Blair is--upset, that is--especially after Elena demonstrates her mean right hook (in his face). Guess that serves him right for not walking away--that, and cheating on her with her best friend.

Felicity recounts how things suddenly got out of control.

So while Javier's concerned about his thinness (or lack thereof), Felicity's learning that Todd's only concerned about her: that, and getting an intense smackaroo sometime in the near future. He believes that they are soulmates destined to be together, even though Felicity thinks she looks like a dork.

Definitely not dorky is McGrath, whom a former student describes as sexy. But while Elena and Felicity get the seminar scoop, Todd's fixated on license plates: miniature ones, that is, engraved with Felicity's name. This leaves Felicity with no choice but to give him the kiss off (before he can throw in that kiss).

But of course, that isn't the end of T-dash-dash-dash.

Meanwhile, Julie's going to interview with her architect mom, while Felicity's thinking that Todd's gone a little overboard with his massive mailing (complete with balloons and stickers).

Ben's just thinking his mom might be a potential source of cash, especially when he calculates his non-funds--making it diffcult for him to pay the rent. But Sean is convinced he's got the next generation milkless cereal, even though not being able to watch porn on the 37 inch (or walk around naked) is cramping his style--which is why he needs Ben's supplemental dough.

Julie's learning about style, too--Carol's style, that is, when she learns from her secretary that she gives people jewelry on their birthdays--and is a real doll.

Less of a doll is Noel, when he finds out that Barbecue Boy is up to no good, once again. Richard may just be making a support iron, but Noel's sanctimoniousness has brought out the "drill" sergeant in him. He threatens to report Noel's illicit fraternizing (with Felicity) if he doesn't let him build it (the iron).

So Noel's thinking about parents (okay, not a logical connector, but so what) when he sees Felicity's stash from you-know-who: a personal time capsule circa 1992, intended to help recapture her childlike sense of wonder (or something). Not only has he dared her to go out with him, but he's also given Meghan an infection--and she's got the swollen beak to prove it.

But it's Ben Felicity's thinking about when she consults him on her latest T-dash-dash-dash dilemma. She apologizes for being stalkeresque in the past, but since she's never been the stalkee, Ben offers to take care of the situation by confronting stalker boy himself. And no, she doesn't want a second helping of Sean's Lactos.

Turns out that Ben and Todd are skateboarding buddies from way back (summed up by Ben's hearty "dude!").

Elsewhere, Carol invites Julie to share her hearty sandwich, while questioning Julie about her interests. Julie learns that Carol has two kids, likes seeing things get built, and can't solo very well (on her guitar). But of course.

More important, though, is the fact that Ben needs a job, preferably one at Dean and Deluca (Todd's idea). Even though he didn't stop stalker boy from being stalkeresque (because Todd's a good guy), he thinks it's his due. And he's not even trying to interrupt Felicity and Elena's study session.

Music: Blondie's "Rapture"

So Stalker Boy, still convinced that his soulmate has frizzy hair, decides to ask her proper (for a date). You know, by flashing cardboard signs through a classroom window while said stalkee is taking a test.

Ben is also being tested, as Javier grills him for a position at the coffeehouse. Though Ben may have an aversion to wearing black hats, but can definitely start work tomorrow.

Richard is starting some stuff of his own: namely, satellite dishes and Cuban cigars in his dorm room--which pisses Noel off. Finding Todd sitting at Felicity's doorstep doesn't help much either, though Todd's Photoshop advice is pretty good (something about an extension conflict). That, and he likes Noel's shirt.

Conflict is brewing elsewhere in the cafeteria, where Blair finds Elena eating with Ben and Julie (who is explaining the birth mother saga). But Elena thinks Blair's sleeping with a bitch, which means that Tara is left unsatisfied--something that satisfies Elena just fine. Even though Blair still wants her back.

Meanwhile, Todd and Noel are getting chummy over the Contemptuous Sardonic... a site Todd just "happened" to surf in on [I definitely think they should mention more Felicity sites on the show. But that's just me]. Todd may have fixed Noel's computer, but Felicity's thinking of fixing him up with Meghan and her swollen nose. They agree to meet later that night.

But alas, Noel isn't Todd's target, and neither is Julie, though she did like his chicken. Noel finds out that Ben is working at Felicity's new place of employment, which bugs him, but Felicity's just thinking about that pesky stalker boy and how to unimpress him over dinner.

That's where the bus comes in. While Todd's trying to present himself as an alternative (or something), Felicity's decided he's from an alternate universe, and closes that overbearing window of opportunity by throwing Todd's assumptions down the drain (he's still thinking about getting that kiss). In true cliffhanger style, he then proceeds to get hit by a big 'ol bus--leaving Felicity to ponder over her life. Which is saying a lot, considering he's a chicken eating stalker who once skateboarded with Ben.

(to be continued)