ROSWELL on PLANET-SF

PLOT

At the Crashdown, Alex is playing his guitar for Liz and Maria. His band have an audition and he's confident that they'll be opening at the concert on Friday.

On the radio, the DJ is about to announce the winners of the blind date contest. Liz dismisses it as stupid, but Maria believes that it's romantic. They listen as the DJ enters the café and announces the winner - Liz, who says that she didn't even enter the contest. An excited Maria admits that she entered for her.

At school the next day, Liz is wearing a disguise because she's completely embarrassed by the whole blind date thing.

Max watches her get mobbed by a group of girls. Kyle tells him that he sympathises with him because he's worked out Liz's pattern - she's a man-eater and he pities whoever the radio station fixes her up with.

Alex's band have lost their singer so Maria volunteers her services, showing up at his garage and giving them advice on how to play. Using the logic that a radio station who is doing the judging, she suggests they play the sort of songs radio stations play, not the alternative stuff favoured by the band.

At the Crashdown, Max, Isabel and Michael discuss Nasedo. Michael tells the others of a hallucination he had that the cave painting is a map. Max still believes that the fourth alien is a killer, but Michael refuses to believe this or Hubble's claims. After failing to get Isabel's support, he leaves, telling the others that he's going to find him.

After he's gone, Isabel tells Max not to treat Michael like that because hope is the only thing that keeps him going. She adds that if she'd spent the last 50 years on her own she doesn't know who she'd be and is prepared to at least give Nasedo the benefit of the doubt.

Across the room, the DJ is asking Liz who her dream date would be. Looking across at Max, she describes him as a serious, dark-haired, mystery man from somewhere exotic.

Alex's band auditions for the promoters, who are growing restless with the instrumentals they're playing. Maria shows up late, introduces the band as her and tells them to play the track they performed the previous day.

Later at the Crashdown, Liz tells Maria that the contest has completely taken over her life. She admits that she's been too busy to even think about Max, at which Maria tells her that it's "mission accomplished." Besides, it'll be all over after the concert tonight.

Maria's attempts to control the band include buying them outfits so they won't look like high school geeks, although Alex points out that they are high school geeks. Maria tells him that the only got the gig because of her, but Liz suggests that they do one of her songs, followed by one of the band's and that they should be thankful they're not going on a blind date with the entire town watching.

Michael shows up outside Isabel's window and tells her that he thinks he can read the map. Isabel wonders about telling Max, but Michael replies that he didn't seem too interested in discovering anything earlier.

Liz, dressed up for her date, sees Max outside her window. He tells her that he'll always love her and they share a kiss until a car horn breaks up her daydream. Downstairs, the DJ introduces Liz to her date, a University freshman named Doug, who appears to fulfill her criteria.

Max is listening to this on the radio at home when Kyle and his friends show up outside. A drunken Kyle says that he wants to bury the hatchet and that he knows that Max is as keen to see Liz's date as he is. Max claims he's not interested but reluctantly takes the keys when Kyle tells him it's either that or he and his friends will have to spend the night on Max's front lawn.

Liz and Doug are having dinner, with the DJ reporting their conversation to the listeners.

Max and Kyle are amongst the crowd gathered outside. Max tells Kyle that he can walk to the club for there and that he'll give him his keys back in the morning. Kyle tells him that the date is just getting interesting as, following the DJ's suggestion, Doug gives Liz a kiss. Max is stunned.

Kyle offers Max a drink. Max claims that he doesn't drink but eventually takes a sip. Everything goes blurry and Max is clearly drunk. He offers to race Kyle to a mailbox but cheats and starts running before saying "go".

Michael and Isabel drive to the library, which is the place pinpointed by Michael's dream. He proceeds to talk Isabel through all the symbols on the cave painting, although he's at a loss to explain how he knew this.

Kyle runs after Max, who he finds up on the porch of a nightclub. He tells Max to get down before he breaks his neck and everyone blames him for getting Max drunk. The pair get on a lot better while drunk that when they're sober, and when Kyle asks what they're going to do, Max tells him that they're going to win Liz back.

Liz and Doug return to the Crashdown, which they think is the last place anyone will look for them. Doug wants to get to know the real Liz, but she's more concerned about missing the concert since Alex and Maria are playing.

Michael pours petrol onto some rope lying on the grass outside the library. Isabel is worried that if Michael finds what he's looking for, he won't need her or Max any longer, although Michael assures her this won't happen. He sets fire to the ropes, which are in the shape of one of the symbols from the cave painting.

On the roof of the Crashdown, Kyle turns his back while Max uses his powers to draw a heart with ME + LP on the wall outside Liz's bedroom. When Max is finished, the discuss how far they both got with Liz - Max says they saw into each other's soul, while Kyle had to make do with second base. Max suggests they leave, but Kyle wants to stay.

Downstairs, Doug tells Liz about why he chose UNM when she spots the KROZ van. They rush upstairs, where they find Max and Kyle, who is going through her underwear drawer. Doug asks who they and Kyle replies that he and Max are the rejects who are there to win Liz back. Worried that Max might have said something to Kyle, Liz claims that Max has a tendency to make things up when he's drunk, although Max says that this is the first time he's been drunk.

Liz and Max go out onto the roof, where Liz tells him that they need to get him somewhere safe until he sobers up. Max tells her that he only had a sip and it's not wearing off. He then makes the symbol on the wall glow like a neon sign.

The DJ bursts into Liz's room, where he finds Kyle and Doug struggling on the bed and Max and Liz making their escape via the fire escape.

Max continues to fool around, causing all the streetlights to light up in a pattern and setting off a car alarm to impress Liz. She tries to get him to calm down and tells him that what they've got can never be normal. Hearing this, he sets some parking meters sparkling and asks her what is so great about normal?

Nasedo hasn't shown up at the library, so Michael has Isabel use her power to destroy the symbol they burned into the grass. Following their failure, he tells her that Nasedo will never come.

Liz is trying to order a taxi for her and Max but while she's on the phone, he flags down the KROZ van.

Backstage, Maria is hyperventilating and won't go on stage. One of the promoters tells her that the other band have pulled out, so they are the only entertainment they've got.

The DJ enters the club with Liz, Doug, Max and Kyle. Liz wants to get Max home because she can't control him or Kyle, but the DJ tells her that she has to make a choice for his listeners. Max and Liz kiss, and see flashbacks of the times they've spent together and the DJ declares him the winner.

A dazed Max walks off into the crowd. Realising that the band have to do something, Maria starts singing In The Air Tonight as Liz runs after Max. He can't remember what's happened and apologises if he's ruined her night, but she tells him that he didn't.

Nasedo leaves another sign for Max, Michael and Isabel - dropping a photo of the three of them onto a fire in the shape of one of the alien symbols.

CAST

James O'Shea stars in THE FORSAKEN as a racer and is also one of two of the guest cast who have appeared in CHARMED, playing the Goatee Guy in DREAM SORCERER; Joshua Hutchinson was Dick in BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WITCH FOR.

CONTINUITY

Alex's band are called The Whits (Maria: "just an 's' away from what you really are), whose lead singer Wendy Lavely has got mono from Peter Gulla ("she lucky that's all she got"). Their set includes Hurt By Love and Love Kills.

Maria and Liz spend Wednesday nights at the Pizza Pan, where Maria (at least) "is so good at karaoke".

Kyle weighs 160lbs.

NOTES

Max uses his powers to spray paint ME + LP inside a heart on the wall outside Liz's window and then to make it glow like a neon sign when the pair make their escape. He also superimposes his face on a photo of Liz, Alex and Maria, causes the streetlamps to light up in a pattern, sets off a car alarm and sets parking meters off like sparklers. He tells Kyle he used a ladder to climb up on to the nightclub roof but there's no ladder present (does he levitate or fly somehow or simply conjure up a ladder?)

Isabel erases the burned grass outside the library.

MUSIC

Dramarama - Anything, Anything (I'll Give You); Joe 90 - Truth; Our Lady Peace - Is Anybody Home?; Blink 182 - Adam's Song; Kevon Edmonds - 24/7; Lenny Kravitz - Stand By My Woman. Majandra Delfino sings Phil Collins' In The Air Tonight.

COMMENTS

A nice balance between Max and Liz's relationship, Michael and Isabel trying to find Nasedo and Max and Kyle out on the town.

Jason Behr manages to be both hilarious and sweet while drunk, and for the first real time we get to see Max and Kyle together. This is easily Kyle's best episode so far, with some great lines when he's bonding with Max.

It's just a shame that the Max/Liz plot suffers from a cop-out ending with Max unable to remember what's gone on between the pair. Although since Liz's dad has previously been very protective so would he even allow her to go on a blind date with a college student?

Michael and Isabel also get a few scenes together while Max is drunk, and even Alex gets some screen-time for a change. BACK TO THE TOP

BLIND DATE

Written by THANIA ST. JOHN

Directed by KEITH SAMPLES

STARRING
SHIRI APPLEBY
Liz Parker

JASON BEHR
Max Evans

KATHERINE HEIGL
Isabel Evans

MAJANDRA DELFINO
Maria DeLuca

BRENDAN FEHR
Michael Guerin

COLIN HANKS
Alex Whitman

NICK WECHSLER
Kyle Valenti

and WILLIAM SADLER
Sheriff Jim Valenti

GUEST STARRING
JAMES O'SHEA
Radio DJ

MICHEL YURCHAK
Doug Shellow

CO-STARRING
JONATHAN DAVID BOUCK
Markes

DERREK BRODY
Chris

BEN BUSCH
Nicky

PATRICIA SKERIOTIS
Female Judge

JOSHUA HUTCHINSON
Male Judge

MATT WALDEN
Matt Walden

KRYSTA BURGOS
Girl #1

US/UK TRANSMISSION DETAILS
The WB: 9 February 2000
Sky One: 13 April 2000
BBC2: 14 December 2000

EPISODE RATING: 9/10

NEXT EPISODE:
INDEPENDENCE DAY

PREVIOUS EPISODE:
THE CONVENTION