Post by ~ ♥ Mariska ♥ ~ on Nov 24, 2008 19:46:04 GMT
'One Tree Hill's' Mark Schwahn Talks Brucas, Leyton & The New Love Triangle
Mark Schwahn gives good interview, my friends. Six years into One Tree Hill, the creator is still so passionate about his series that after just getting off a long flight from Wilmington, North Carolina where the show shoots -- Chad Michael Murray is directing his first episode right now and Schwahn went down to peek over his shoulder -- he has no problem spending over an hour chatting about it... even with a journalist who may have poked a little fun at OTH in the past.
But I have to say that with the exception of the Nanny Carrie storyline -- I'm sorry! I just couldn't get on board with that one -- OTH is enjoying a nice heyday at the moment and I'm liking it more now than ever. Schwahn credits last season's four year jump for the show's revitalization and for giving One Tree Hill a stability that it never had before. Having surfed the cancellation bubble every year prior to the jump forward, OTH is finally in a fairly stable position. When I mentioned to Mark that I couldn't imagine One Tree Hill not returning next season, he laughed at the irony of the show's journey. After all the flack he's taken from the critics and the suits over the years, he does feel like they're in a great place for another season. "Who would've ever thought that would be the case," he mused. "I mean, we were never in a great place for season 2!"
But I'm getting ahead of myself. Before we can talk about a 7th go-round, we've got to get through the second half of this year. And with the midseason finale airing tonight, you die hard Tree Hill fans had quite a few questions for Mr. Schwahn and he was happy to answer them, as your love for the show seems to mean a lot to him. So, without further ado...
What's the deal with B. Davis? Everyone else is happy, but she's just been stripped of everything.
MS: You know, Brooke in many ways -- I don't know if I've ever said this out loud -- feels a lot like Karen to me. Because Karen had been very solitary in raising Lucas. It wasn't until she got closer to Keith -- and Lucas was a senior in high school by then -- that she sort of allowed her heart to let somebody in, since having been burned by Dan. And Brooke also feels like she's chosen this solitary existence. And I think, for the fans, they feel like, if not Lucas, then no one. But we're doing this little dance with Owen right now, which we will follow up on. [Stephen] Colletti is returning, so Chase is in the mix. And there are other directions to go, too. But ultimately, I think the questions are more about Brooke and the choices she's made. Is she going to change her ways or is she going to be solitary as she continues her life? And that's interesting to me.
Is the Brooke-Lucas-Peyton love triangle over for good?
MS: I would say that right now, I'm most compelled to see who Lucas and Peyton are going to try to be as a couple. I don't want to ignore that huge Brucas fan base, I think it's dangerous to ignore them, but while they may feel under served right now, I think if they're fans of both of those characters, hopefully they're still invested in their journeys. A lot of them are just fans of them together romantically, and I understand that they feel a little let down when we choose other paths for the characters, but ultimately, I really doubt that we'll go back to Brooke and Lucas. Although, you know, you never say never on this show.
Will we see Brooke's mom again? Is Daphne Zuniga coming back?
MS: I think we will see her again. I like Daphne a lot and I like that [her character] Victoria can be sort of the queen of mean. People like a villain. You know, there's a reason that Dan Scott is still relevant on the show. But this is something I haven't said to anyone else: You know how sometimes things skip a generation? Like, Dan is being so sweet to Jamie, but he could never be that person to his sons. Well, what will Victoria's reaction to Sam be? Does she see Sam as one of the reasons that Brooke has fallen off the rails and isn't pursuing her clothing line, which Victoria now has? She always saw Peyton as sort of a hanger-on and as just being in the way. So, is that Sam to her, too? Or, does she actually get along with Sam and see that Sam has moxy? Will Brooke be like, unbelievable, you were never this kind to me? I think that that's compelling. I always love when we can pull the curtain back a little bit on our villains and show that they actually have a heart.
Is Sam sticking around for the whole season?
MS: I think Sam will stick around for the whole season. She's not really going to be front and center much, in the same way that Quentin sort of wasn't last year, but she'll be around and I think the story will be interesting. Is this somebody that Brooke wants to adopt and be mother to for the rest of her life? Is Brooke simply providing this foster environment so that Sam can get back on her feet and move on? Are Sam's parents out there? You know, she alluded to her mom in one of the episodes, so is that going to come into play? Also, there's a new character that we're going to meet in [tonight's episode] named Jack. He plays a friend of Sam's and it's going to be a great part. It's interesting to me, because we've only known Sam via Brooke and Haley, but now we're going to see her world a little bit. I think there's some cool stuff to do there, and it all sort of services the Brooke [story line] of, you know, what is family in the face of having a pretty miserable one. And what choices is she going to make, not only in regards to Sam, but in her romantic life and all of those things.
I heard Brooke and Julian are going to get into it. What's that about? Is there something between them?
MS: Well, there could be. I mean, there's a girl code. And we've talked a lot about that. But never say never. [Tonight], Julian and Brooke are going to cross, but it might not be for the reasons the audience is expecting. But, you know, when we put characters in the same universe, it's always interesting to see what direction they're going to go. And [with Brooke and Julian], Sam is involved. Sam writes -- we saw that she wrote that essay about Quentin in the funeral episode -- she has an interest in that, and Julian is a producer, so they're going to cross paths. And how will Brooke deal with this? Is she a very protective mother hen? Does she see the potential for Julian to be a helpful influence? Or is she completely threatened by that? And then, with Julian and Brooke in the same world, what does that mean to Peyton? Is Julian using Brooke as a conduit to get back to Peyton? Does Peyton think he's using her to get to Brooke? You know, there's a lot going on there. And can he be trusted? It's funny because Sam asks him if he would read some of her stuff and he goes, sure. And she goes, well I just kind of heard that you were a dick. And he says, well I am a dick, but maybe I will find something that I can steal!
I think Julian is so hot. How long is he going to be around and what can we expect from him?
MS: You know, I think that Austin [Nichols] is a really great addition. He's such a natural fit with this cast. And I always love when we can hide things in broad daylight. That's one of the reasons I wanted to jump the show ahead, because we can pull in elements from the past. Nobody was really asking what Peyton was doing [during the four year gap], because the active storyline was Lucas-Peyton-Lindsey. But then Julian shows up and you go, of course! Why didn't I think about what Peyton was doing that whole time. But yeah, [Julian] is a bit of a scoundrel. Not as much of a scoundrel as, say, a Chris Keller, but he's not the moral center that Lucas would be. And I like characters like that. Recruiting Austin to do this, we talked about who this guy would be and where we were going with him and we see more of that in [tonight's] midseason finale. You know, Lucas has a decision to make. Peyton went to him after the USO show and said, I think you should stay with the movie, because Julian asked her to. And she said [to Julian], if you're lying, I'm never going to forgive you for it. And so, is he lying? And is Lucas going to continue with the movie? And if he does, what is their relationship going to be like? Certainly, in regards to Peyton, but also in regards to the movie in general and Julian's place in this world and in Tree Hill and, you know, I always like it when the audience is guessing. Half of them will see one thing in him and half of them will see another, just like they did with Lindsey and just like they do with Dan. So, he'll be around for a little bit. I don't know if he's going to stick around for the whole season, but he'll at least be around for another handful of episodes.
Will Lindsey ever be back?
I'd like to bring Michaela [McManus] back. But it might not work out business wise. [Law & Order is] not [obligated] to let her out. And I'm not sure that creatively we're going to need to see her again. But I love [Michaela], I like the character, so if we want to do it, hopefully [the Law & Order producers will] be able to make that work.
Will we ever see Karen again?
MS: Yes. I do miss Moira [Kelly], she's such a talent. But when the kids got to be adults, the adults weren't as necessary. And, you know, with Dan being in prison and all that, it felt like he had a more active storyline [than Karen did]. Karen's activity was often as counsel to Lucas, and I wanted Lucas to become counsel, to his players and to Jamie and to his friends. But we'll see Karen again [before the show comes to an end].
I am so happy that Nathan and Haley are happy. That's all.
MS: What is great for Nathan and Haley is we were able to let them be loving towards each other, even though they're facing troubles... and also, to think of others as they're dealing with their own problems. I think Jamie was such a great balance for that, because when you're a parent, you're not first anymore. And that doesn't mean you can't put yourself first now and then, you should, and they do. But, you know, they've got this great kid and they don't wanna break him. And I don't think the audience wants them to break him either!
Will Nathan's dreams ever come true? Is he trying out for the NBA in this week's episode?
MS: Yeah, he's going to an NBA combine where they invite prospects by invitation. It's basically tryouts for what we call the B League on our show, it's sort of the minor leagues of professional basketball. What's interesting to me about athletes -- especially ones with an injury like Nathan -- it's hard for them to let go of the game. And we already set up this conversation that Nathan had [earlier this year] with the coach of the B League team who wanted him to coach, too. He said to him, I know it's hard to put the game down, especially when those were your best days. But at what point does Nathan let go of it? And maybe he doesn't have to. Maybe he's still as good as he always was. I mean, that's basically what his storyline is in [tonight's hour]. This is the day we're going to find out. And either you're gonna be great, but if you're not great, isn't it time to let go? I actually wrote a line in the script where he says, you know, I hope it's gonna be yes, but if it's no and this is the end of it, then that'll be okay. And then for Haley, I wrote "Haley holds on, hoping for a yes, or [for a] no that they can live with." I think that that sort of describes it in the way that I see it. If it's a no, she just hopes that he'll be okay and he'll still be the guy that she fell in love with. And that's compelling to me. That's good drama to me. So that's definitely his part in this mid-season finale. He just wants to take one more shot at this. You know, maybe he's better than he was before the accident. In working with Quentin, it seemed like he was all the way back. And that would be a great story too. As a matter of fact, we're going to see a glimpse of Quentin in this midseason finale and it's going to be a flashback to the workouts they did together. And it's great because we always saw those workouts, but there's another piece to the puzzle that was going on during [that time] that we'll find out about [tonight].
There's a rumor circulating that Millicent's going to cheat on Mouth.
MS: Oh yeah, who are you hearing she's cheating with?
I'm not sure who she'd be cheating with, but I have heard she's straying.
MS: Yeah, well, Mouth is in a bit of a love triangle. It's not a love triangle yet, but if it becomes one, there's going to be trouble afoot. He's got Gigi and Millicent issues right now and we're going to shine a light on what's going on there. This energy that he's playing with, in regards to Gigi, whether or not he's acted on it, he's still sort of getting off on it. You know, he clearly enjoys having her be into him, which is [understandable]. I think everybody can be guilty of that. It's nice having somebody who sees you as sexy and flirts with you. But if that starts to contaminate his relationship with Millicent, then he's making a mistake. And even if he hasn't really done anything wrong, what does this mean to Millicent? It's not necessarily about Mouth, it's more interesting to me how Millicent feels. If it's breaking her heart, then it's [no good]. So we're going to see where that goes. And, at a certain point, Gigi will be irrelevant to that story line. It'll be more about Mouth and Millicent. And yeah, it's quite possible [that Millicent will cheat on Mouth]. It could be that they're both making terrible mistakes. And it could be that one of them is and one of them isn't.
What's the deal with the Peyton cliffhanger? Why did she collapse?
MS: We're definitely going to address that. Whatever this pain was, whatever this attack was, we're gonna get into that. That's a big storyline in this midseason finale. Now, we might not [completely reveal what's going on], but there's definitely something going on with her and I think the fans will have a lot of those questions answered in this episode. It's not something that she's going to just hide away and refuse to acknowledge. As a matter of fact, I think her first scene in this episode is in a doctor's office.
Everyone's debating, Peyton either has cancer or she's pregnant, which is it?!
MS: You know, I didn't know that, but it's funny, those are the two contenders! I mean, she has a history of cancer in her family obviously. She could be pregnant now that she and Lucas are in love and working their way towards their wedding. But we'll get into all of that [tonight].
What was the point of the last episode that Chad Michael Murray wrote?
MS: You know, Chad showed me a bare bones version of that script during the finale last year and I liked it. It got positioned where it did, at this point during the season, because with Peyton getting shot in the end, I thought it would be a great [segway into the cliffhanger of her falling down in pain]. And I thought the episode turned out great. But it's interesting, because you can't underestimate the serialized nature of our show, and I think for the fans that didn't enjoy it, they probably just felt like it wasn't advancing anything. And it wasn't. And you can only do that so often, because we are a serialized show and, you know, we're like sharks, we need to keep moving forward or we're going to drown! But once in a while, you can rest a little bit and just do something fun. Especially in season 6. And I have to say, that episode invigorated the cast and the crew. They enjoyed being able to play. You know, you get into this business -- even a lot of the crew members -- because it's play and because you get to dress up and do things you don't get to do in your regular life. And well, we're six years into doing kind of the same thing. Even though each episode presents new challenges, everyone really enjoyed being able to step outside of it. The girls were so excited about hair and makeup and wardrobe. And the guys were all clean shaven, which I was excited about! So, some fans may have been bored by it or thought like, what's the point? Or maybe they just didn't like it on a creative level, but you know, part of producing is making sure that your team is happy and feels invigorated and this episode came at the exact right time for that...
Alright, people, that's a wrap on Mark for today. Thanks for emailing your questions and don't forget to tune in for 2008's last One Tree Hill episode tonight. Peyton's in distress and I'm pretty sure Lucas is off in L.A. with Dawson Leery...
Mark Schwahn gives good interview, my friends. Six years into One Tree Hill, the creator is still so passionate about his series that after just getting off a long flight from Wilmington, North Carolina where the show shoots -- Chad Michael Murray is directing his first episode right now and Schwahn went down to peek over his shoulder -- he has no problem spending over an hour chatting about it... even with a journalist who may have poked a little fun at OTH in the past.
But I have to say that with the exception of the Nanny Carrie storyline -- I'm sorry! I just couldn't get on board with that one -- OTH is enjoying a nice heyday at the moment and I'm liking it more now than ever. Schwahn credits last season's four year jump for the show's revitalization and for giving One Tree Hill a stability that it never had before. Having surfed the cancellation bubble every year prior to the jump forward, OTH is finally in a fairly stable position. When I mentioned to Mark that I couldn't imagine One Tree Hill not returning next season, he laughed at the irony of the show's journey. After all the flack he's taken from the critics and the suits over the years, he does feel like they're in a great place for another season. "Who would've ever thought that would be the case," he mused. "I mean, we were never in a great place for season 2!"
But I'm getting ahead of myself. Before we can talk about a 7th go-round, we've got to get through the second half of this year. And with the midseason finale airing tonight, you die hard Tree Hill fans had quite a few questions for Mr. Schwahn and he was happy to answer them, as your love for the show seems to mean a lot to him. So, without further ado...
What's the deal with B. Davis? Everyone else is happy, but she's just been stripped of everything.
MS: You know, Brooke in many ways -- I don't know if I've ever said this out loud -- feels a lot like Karen to me. Because Karen had been very solitary in raising Lucas. It wasn't until she got closer to Keith -- and Lucas was a senior in high school by then -- that she sort of allowed her heart to let somebody in, since having been burned by Dan. And Brooke also feels like she's chosen this solitary existence. And I think, for the fans, they feel like, if not Lucas, then no one. But we're doing this little dance with Owen right now, which we will follow up on. [Stephen] Colletti is returning, so Chase is in the mix. And there are other directions to go, too. But ultimately, I think the questions are more about Brooke and the choices she's made. Is she going to change her ways or is she going to be solitary as she continues her life? And that's interesting to me.
Is the Brooke-Lucas-Peyton love triangle over for good?
MS: I would say that right now, I'm most compelled to see who Lucas and Peyton are going to try to be as a couple. I don't want to ignore that huge Brucas fan base, I think it's dangerous to ignore them, but while they may feel under served right now, I think if they're fans of both of those characters, hopefully they're still invested in their journeys. A lot of them are just fans of them together romantically, and I understand that they feel a little let down when we choose other paths for the characters, but ultimately, I really doubt that we'll go back to Brooke and Lucas. Although, you know, you never say never on this show.
Will we see Brooke's mom again? Is Daphne Zuniga coming back?
MS: I think we will see her again. I like Daphne a lot and I like that [her character] Victoria can be sort of the queen of mean. People like a villain. You know, there's a reason that Dan Scott is still relevant on the show. But this is something I haven't said to anyone else: You know how sometimes things skip a generation? Like, Dan is being so sweet to Jamie, but he could never be that person to his sons. Well, what will Victoria's reaction to Sam be? Does she see Sam as one of the reasons that Brooke has fallen off the rails and isn't pursuing her clothing line, which Victoria now has? She always saw Peyton as sort of a hanger-on and as just being in the way. So, is that Sam to her, too? Or, does she actually get along with Sam and see that Sam has moxy? Will Brooke be like, unbelievable, you were never this kind to me? I think that that's compelling. I always love when we can pull the curtain back a little bit on our villains and show that they actually have a heart.
Is Sam sticking around for the whole season?
MS: I think Sam will stick around for the whole season. She's not really going to be front and center much, in the same way that Quentin sort of wasn't last year, but she'll be around and I think the story will be interesting. Is this somebody that Brooke wants to adopt and be mother to for the rest of her life? Is Brooke simply providing this foster environment so that Sam can get back on her feet and move on? Are Sam's parents out there? You know, she alluded to her mom in one of the episodes, so is that going to come into play? Also, there's a new character that we're going to meet in [tonight's episode] named Jack. He plays a friend of Sam's and it's going to be a great part. It's interesting to me, because we've only known Sam via Brooke and Haley, but now we're going to see her world a little bit. I think there's some cool stuff to do there, and it all sort of services the Brooke [story line] of, you know, what is family in the face of having a pretty miserable one. And what choices is she going to make, not only in regards to Sam, but in her romantic life and all of those things.
I heard Brooke and Julian are going to get into it. What's that about? Is there something between them?
MS: Well, there could be. I mean, there's a girl code. And we've talked a lot about that. But never say never. [Tonight], Julian and Brooke are going to cross, but it might not be for the reasons the audience is expecting. But, you know, when we put characters in the same universe, it's always interesting to see what direction they're going to go. And [with Brooke and Julian], Sam is involved. Sam writes -- we saw that she wrote that essay about Quentin in the funeral episode -- she has an interest in that, and Julian is a producer, so they're going to cross paths. And how will Brooke deal with this? Is she a very protective mother hen? Does she see the potential for Julian to be a helpful influence? Or is she completely threatened by that? And then, with Julian and Brooke in the same world, what does that mean to Peyton? Is Julian using Brooke as a conduit to get back to Peyton? Does Peyton think he's using her to get to Brooke? You know, there's a lot going on there. And can he be trusted? It's funny because Sam asks him if he would read some of her stuff and he goes, sure. And she goes, well I just kind of heard that you were a dick. And he says, well I am a dick, but maybe I will find something that I can steal!
I think Julian is so hot. How long is he going to be around and what can we expect from him?
MS: You know, I think that Austin [Nichols] is a really great addition. He's such a natural fit with this cast. And I always love when we can hide things in broad daylight. That's one of the reasons I wanted to jump the show ahead, because we can pull in elements from the past. Nobody was really asking what Peyton was doing [during the four year gap], because the active storyline was Lucas-Peyton-Lindsey. But then Julian shows up and you go, of course! Why didn't I think about what Peyton was doing that whole time. But yeah, [Julian] is a bit of a scoundrel. Not as much of a scoundrel as, say, a Chris Keller, but he's not the moral center that Lucas would be. And I like characters like that. Recruiting Austin to do this, we talked about who this guy would be and where we were going with him and we see more of that in [tonight's] midseason finale. You know, Lucas has a decision to make. Peyton went to him after the USO show and said, I think you should stay with the movie, because Julian asked her to. And she said [to Julian], if you're lying, I'm never going to forgive you for it. And so, is he lying? And is Lucas going to continue with the movie? And if he does, what is their relationship going to be like? Certainly, in regards to Peyton, but also in regards to the movie in general and Julian's place in this world and in Tree Hill and, you know, I always like it when the audience is guessing. Half of them will see one thing in him and half of them will see another, just like they did with Lindsey and just like they do with Dan. So, he'll be around for a little bit. I don't know if he's going to stick around for the whole season, but he'll at least be around for another handful of episodes.
Will Lindsey ever be back?
I'd like to bring Michaela [McManus] back. But it might not work out business wise. [Law & Order is] not [obligated] to let her out. And I'm not sure that creatively we're going to need to see her again. But I love [Michaela], I like the character, so if we want to do it, hopefully [the Law & Order producers will] be able to make that work.
Will we ever see Karen again?
MS: Yes. I do miss Moira [Kelly], she's such a talent. But when the kids got to be adults, the adults weren't as necessary. And, you know, with Dan being in prison and all that, it felt like he had a more active storyline [than Karen did]. Karen's activity was often as counsel to Lucas, and I wanted Lucas to become counsel, to his players and to Jamie and to his friends. But we'll see Karen again [before the show comes to an end].
I am so happy that Nathan and Haley are happy. That's all.
MS: What is great for Nathan and Haley is we were able to let them be loving towards each other, even though they're facing troubles... and also, to think of others as they're dealing with their own problems. I think Jamie was such a great balance for that, because when you're a parent, you're not first anymore. And that doesn't mean you can't put yourself first now and then, you should, and they do. But, you know, they've got this great kid and they don't wanna break him. And I don't think the audience wants them to break him either!
Will Nathan's dreams ever come true? Is he trying out for the NBA in this week's episode?
MS: Yeah, he's going to an NBA combine where they invite prospects by invitation. It's basically tryouts for what we call the B League on our show, it's sort of the minor leagues of professional basketball. What's interesting to me about athletes -- especially ones with an injury like Nathan -- it's hard for them to let go of the game. And we already set up this conversation that Nathan had [earlier this year] with the coach of the B League team who wanted him to coach, too. He said to him, I know it's hard to put the game down, especially when those were your best days. But at what point does Nathan let go of it? And maybe he doesn't have to. Maybe he's still as good as he always was. I mean, that's basically what his storyline is in [tonight's hour]. This is the day we're going to find out. And either you're gonna be great, but if you're not great, isn't it time to let go? I actually wrote a line in the script where he says, you know, I hope it's gonna be yes, but if it's no and this is the end of it, then that'll be okay. And then for Haley, I wrote "Haley holds on, hoping for a yes, or [for a] no that they can live with." I think that that sort of describes it in the way that I see it. If it's a no, she just hopes that he'll be okay and he'll still be the guy that she fell in love with. And that's compelling to me. That's good drama to me. So that's definitely his part in this mid-season finale. He just wants to take one more shot at this. You know, maybe he's better than he was before the accident. In working with Quentin, it seemed like he was all the way back. And that would be a great story too. As a matter of fact, we're going to see a glimpse of Quentin in this midseason finale and it's going to be a flashback to the workouts they did together. And it's great because we always saw those workouts, but there's another piece to the puzzle that was going on during [that time] that we'll find out about [tonight].
There's a rumor circulating that Millicent's going to cheat on Mouth.
MS: Oh yeah, who are you hearing she's cheating with?
I'm not sure who she'd be cheating with, but I have heard she's straying.
MS: Yeah, well, Mouth is in a bit of a love triangle. It's not a love triangle yet, but if it becomes one, there's going to be trouble afoot. He's got Gigi and Millicent issues right now and we're going to shine a light on what's going on there. This energy that he's playing with, in regards to Gigi, whether or not he's acted on it, he's still sort of getting off on it. You know, he clearly enjoys having her be into him, which is [understandable]. I think everybody can be guilty of that. It's nice having somebody who sees you as sexy and flirts with you. But if that starts to contaminate his relationship with Millicent, then he's making a mistake. And even if he hasn't really done anything wrong, what does this mean to Millicent? It's not necessarily about Mouth, it's more interesting to me how Millicent feels. If it's breaking her heart, then it's [no good]. So we're going to see where that goes. And, at a certain point, Gigi will be irrelevant to that story line. It'll be more about Mouth and Millicent. And yeah, it's quite possible [that Millicent will cheat on Mouth]. It could be that they're both making terrible mistakes. And it could be that one of them is and one of them isn't.
What's the deal with the Peyton cliffhanger? Why did she collapse?
MS: We're definitely going to address that. Whatever this pain was, whatever this attack was, we're gonna get into that. That's a big storyline in this midseason finale. Now, we might not [completely reveal what's going on], but there's definitely something going on with her and I think the fans will have a lot of those questions answered in this episode. It's not something that she's going to just hide away and refuse to acknowledge. As a matter of fact, I think her first scene in this episode is in a doctor's office.
Everyone's debating, Peyton either has cancer or she's pregnant, which is it?!
MS: You know, I didn't know that, but it's funny, those are the two contenders! I mean, she has a history of cancer in her family obviously. She could be pregnant now that she and Lucas are in love and working their way towards their wedding. But we'll get into all of that [tonight].
What was the point of the last episode that Chad Michael Murray wrote?
MS: You know, Chad showed me a bare bones version of that script during the finale last year and I liked it. It got positioned where it did, at this point during the season, because with Peyton getting shot in the end, I thought it would be a great [segway into the cliffhanger of her falling down in pain]. And I thought the episode turned out great. But it's interesting, because you can't underestimate the serialized nature of our show, and I think for the fans that didn't enjoy it, they probably just felt like it wasn't advancing anything. And it wasn't. And you can only do that so often, because we are a serialized show and, you know, we're like sharks, we need to keep moving forward or we're going to drown! But once in a while, you can rest a little bit and just do something fun. Especially in season 6. And I have to say, that episode invigorated the cast and the crew. They enjoyed being able to play. You know, you get into this business -- even a lot of the crew members -- because it's play and because you get to dress up and do things you don't get to do in your regular life. And well, we're six years into doing kind of the same thing. Even though each episode presents new challenges, everyone really enjoyed being able to step outside of it. The girls were so excited about hair and makeup and wardrobe. And the guys were all clean shaven, which I was excited about! So, some fans may have been bored by it or thought like, what's the point? Or maybe they just didn't like it on a creative level, but you know, part of producing is making sure that your team is happy and feels invigorated and this episode came at the exact right time for that...
Alright, people, that's a wrap on Mark for today. Thanks for emailing your questions and don't forget to tune in for 2008's last One Tree Hill episode tonight. Peyton's in distress and I'm pretty sure Lucas is off in L.A. with Dawson Leery...
