The Scarlet Letter Jacket - Once And Again / Season 1, Episode 3

In the third episode of Season One, Lily Manning finds herself coping with the unexpectedly gossip-prone setting (on second thought, maybe not so unexpected...) of her daughter's high school carnival, where game and concession booths are manned by teens and their maritally-challenged moms and dads as well as supposedly unchallenged ones, who have mastered the art of purveying and evaluating the best neighborhood and school gossip about ''friends'' or classmates. You know, those people you smile at in the hallways and at the grocery store all the time. Her daughter Grace is likewise experiencing gossip issues with the high school ''mean girls,'' and the similar struggle between mother and daughter only serves to reinforce Lily's strong memory of a formative incident that occurred when she was a teenager involving gossip about her, which in part caused her to not take action when her feelings were involved in a potential life-changing situation.

In a black-and-white sequence, she relates how gossip regarding her feelings for a young man, Robbie Howard, ruined her friendship with Deb Mullikin for life. Later, she still had a chance to act on potential feelings for Robbie, and to decide for herself what she wanted. A date with Robbie was set, the time to go came -- and went. Lily has chastised herself to this day because, as she says, ''I never went.'' She asks Rick to let her go slow, and he -- being the superhumanly patient guy he somehow is at this point -- agrees, but she sees the pattern all too well. She... just... never... goes.

Rick is working at a game booth outside with Jake Manning (Lily's not-yet-official-ex), still getting along fine after earlier joking with each other about kicking each other's asses. Karen Sammler is still working outside at a game booth, in visual range to have her downer-moment of the week any second now. Matter of fact, the looks on everyones' faces are to die for in this last minute. Into the clear, brilliant, day Lily advances, traversing her irreversible course towards second chances -- towards Rick Sammler.

In some very meaningful sense, especially if ABC had canceled Once And Again prematurely as they are so wont to do over the years, Lily and Rick cast their lots together forever spiritually at the end of The Scarlet Letter Jacket. They themselves didn't know it, would never have admitted it, and many fans wouldn't agree that love can or should be that fast. But tv shows like O&A, and couples like Lily and Rick, are close to Once in a lifetime in so many regards. And I know MANY fans WILL agree with me, in their hearts. Lily threw caution to the wind, and Rick was never happier. At that moment, nothing else existed for them. The Scarlet Letter Jacket is almost, ALMOST, my favorite episode for that reason -- it has a dear, dear place in this O&A lover's heart and in so many others. L + R 4EVER!!!

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