Xenos 

Mamma Mia!!! Pierce Brosnan...Proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy!

OMG, I LOVE this episode!!! Great beginning: "Colby." "Rhodes." "Krebs." "FBI." "Steele?" "Inside." Great ending: "The alumni journal, eh?" "Perfectly legitimate." "Oh, the alumni are gonna be delighted with this, aren't they?" Then WHAMMO!!! Laura grabs the magazine out of Mr. Steele's hand, tosses it in the fire, pushes him down and lays on top of him!!! OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG!!! One of the best endings EVER!!! (Though it was cut off a bit prematurely, IMHO! I can just imagine what happened next! Oh-ho-ho, yeh-heh-HES!!! *STEELEGASM*) And the middle was immensely entertaining, too! 

Doris was a freakin' HOOT in this episode. "There's death behind that door." LOL!!! Pierce was in top comedic form at Veenhoff's place -- both times -- not to mention absurdly good-looking throughout the entire episode. How does he do that?!?! *sigh* Good Gawd!!! The whole "boudoir photog...raphy" scene is PRICELESS!!! And Steph was an absolute riot trying to hide her association with Veenhoff from Mr. Steele and then discovering that she was in Bedside Babes!!! Her little nervous shake and then grabbing the magazine from Mr. Steele was SO well done!!! (The XenosHubby really wants that magazine!!! *rolling my eyes and shaking my head* Just something else to add to his hooker boots/red bikini/fedora fantasy!) Not to mention the wonderfully acted and truly inspired end scene where Laura goes full body on top of Mr. Steele and smooches him hard!!! 

The story was well-crafted, funny and perfectly cast. (Kudos to all!) Kenneth Mars gets a double nod for his portrayal of Douglas Veenhoff. Kinda scuzzy, kinda sleazy, kinda money-hungry...but not an all together bad guy. Loved his conversation with Mildred about his father, grandfather and mother. "Maybe I could make us a pot of coffee," Mildred says, softening a bit. "Could tide us over. Maybe a cookie?" he asks. She turns and points a finger at him. "You go too far." 

Loved all the twists in the case, too. Kept me guessing...Just who exactly was the real threat to Veenhoff -- the FBI? the State Senator? the jealous husband? Aaaaawwwwww! The couple in the witness protection program! John Wirth was certainly tugging on our heart-strings there!!! *sniffle* Thank goodness Mr. Steele and Laura came to the rescue!!! 

Plus, there's the terrific end scene with Mr. Steele and Laura throwing the Bedside Babes magazines into the fire. Oh, how she throws him to the floor and climbs on top of him!!! Every woman's fantasy!!! 

Other quotes of note... 

"Provocative gown? Presidential primary? Where was I?" Um...My guess is that Laura went alone. Different party affiliations perhaps?!  

"I'm gonna wring his fat, greasy neck!" Laura declares. "Oh, Laura, you're taking this awfully personally. After all, it's not as though you were between those pages. The object of desire for every slobbering pervert, every...sex starved Marine, every convict on death row who wishes to kind of..." he motions with his fists. LOFL!!! (Laugh out freakin' loud!) Mr. Steele certainly likes to rub it in, eh? Poor Laura!!! 

"Hey, you're my wife. I love you. We're in this together. It could be worse. We could be at your mother's." He ain't kiddin'!!! Trust me on this. 

All-in-all, a GREAT episode!!! Did I mention the last scene where Laura lays on top of Mr. Steele and kisses him passionately in front of the fire?!?! YOU GO, GIRL!!! 
 

Xenos 

Mamma Mia!!! Pierce Brosnan...Proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy!

Just a little note. Mr. Steele goes to checkout Veenhof's Photography and sees all the teddy-like underware....he smiles...too funny! Another little note that I made that was funny. Mildred flashes Bedside Babes for Mr. Steele to see the woman that Veenhof picked out...and I mean opened and closed really fast!!! HA!! 

I love the little side storyline with the stolen Auburn!!! Mildred is just great with this whole script!! 

Another informative scene...Ford Stevens at his house. Just loved this scene too! Laura finally sees her picture in Bedside Babes and all these guys can talk about is that there is probably 100's in the city..1,000's in the country!! HA!! 

Another great car scene, on their way back to the office after talking with Ford Stevens, Mr. Steele has a field day with Miss Holt! LOL Great! 

Love the scene between Mildred and Veenhof. At the end of the scene, Mildred has agreed to making coffee and Veenhof says "maybe a cookie:...Mildred: "you go too far." Too funny!! 

What a creep Veenhof is. I did it cause I needed the money. I would have said exactly what Laura said. "YOU NEEDED THE MONEY!!" 

Don't know if one golf ball would do all that to a guy!? Little bit much for me!! 

Last, but not least in any sense of the word!!! What a great tag scene. Loved it, loved it, loved it!! Xenos I'm with you! 

Jilly

Looking forward to your post... 
Xenos 

Mamma Mia!!! Pierce Brosnan...Proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy!

I think this is just a fun episode that highlights the comedic skills of all three principals. 

Memorable Stuff 

- Mildred switching back into bureaucrat mode the second Colby & Rhodes walk through the door. She speaks their language! 
- The look on Mr. Steele's face when he sees "Laura" in Bedside Babes. Priceless! 
- Jackie the waitress mistaking Mr. Steele for Veenhof. Love how he just works with it. She's such a hoot! 
- Mildred on the ledge. You go girl! And she manages to hang on to Veenhof's dinner while she's at it! 
- I crack up at the car thief actually WAVING to Mildred as he takes it. 
- Cute scene in the back of the limo when Mr. Steele is trying to gently pry some info about Veenhof out of Laura. 
- Cute comedy bit on Laura's couch where Laura is signaling to Veenhof behind Mr. Steele's back. 
- Like the way Mr. Steele intentionally crowds Laura as he leans over her to confirm that women actually pay Veenhof for his budoir photos. 
- LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Laura's reaction when she sees "herself" in the magazine! Kudos to Steph. Her hands shake. Her eyes are just bulging wide open. Hilarious! Nice job by the other actors in the scene of remaining deadpan and to PB who plays it ever-so-cool. 
- Like the way she continues the emotion into the next scene, practically boiling with anger and yet not wanting to take it out on Mr. Steele. Such a kick to see him goading her as though he doesn't know what's in the magazine. 
- Nice touch to see Veenhof examining the photographic elements of Mr. Steele's "wall of fame". 
- Hooray for Laura for taking Veenhof by the lapels and shaking him! I hope they had some plastic on the floor to catch all the coffee that splashed out! 
- The finale at the minature golf course is certainly memorable, though the very idea that Laura could be accurate enough using a PUTTER (which has no loft angle) to hit Colby is ludicrous. She could have just thrown it at him! Better idea to use the putter to club Rhodes over the head. 
- Funny moment when the Auburn arrives...in pieces! Nice double-take by PB, pulling down his sunglasses as if to confirm that he really did see what he thought he saw. 
- Most memorable moment: Laura FINALLY jumping Mr. Steele! Kudos to whoever's idea it was to convert the script's phrase "Laughing, they embrace" into full-body contact. 

Character Development 

- I'm a bit disappointed that, upon a second inspection, Mr. Steele didn't realize it wasn't his Miss Holt in that magazine. I mean if the centerfold had "the body of Venus de Milo"...um, love her as we might, but that sorta rules out our favorite lady detective. Plus, shouldn't he notice the lack of freckles?! 
 

Favorite lines 

Rhodes (indicating "Laura" in Bedside Babes): You know her, then? 
R: Obviously not as well as I thought. 
-------------- 
L: Your imagination never stops, does it? 
R: At the moment it's working overtime. 
-------------- 
L: Is there something you're not telling me? 
R: Whatever gave you that idea? (beat) Is there something you're not telling me? 
L: Whatever gave you that idea? 
-------------- 
R: Isn't it a wonderful feeling, Laura, being on the same wavelength? It's almost as if we can read each others' thoughts without having to actually articulate a thing. (Well, it's not usually to tell what's on HIS mind! But what goes on in Laura's head sometimes, I just gotta wonder.) 
-------------- 
R: And don't worry about Veenhof. I have a feeling he's gonna get what's coming to him. 
-------------- 
L: I'm going to wring his fat, greasy neck! 
R: You're taking this awfully personally, Laura. It's not as though YOU were between those pages, the object of desire for every slobbering pervert, every sex-starved Marine, every death row inmate who... 
L: (near tears) Mr. Steele PLEASE, I've got a headache. 
-------------- 
R: Your picture appears in a porno magazine and I'm the pervert? 
L: It isn't MY picture! 
 

Hair & Clothing 

- I think this may be the only time we see Mildred in trousers but I just love her outfit. (After all, it wouldn't be good to have to navigate the ledge of the apartment building in a dress!) I think it's among her most stylish outfits. 
- Love that blue shirt on Mr. Steele. It brings out the blue of his eyes. 
 

Goofs, Headscratchers & Misc 

- When Mr. Steele breaks into Veenhof's studio, the music is like some kind of extra funky version of "Axel F". 
- I think this is only time we see Mildred driving the Auburn. Of course it's no wonder after what she does to it! 
- L & R are waiting for the elevator and when it arrives, they wait for a man to get off before they get on. He's balding with blond hair and a mustache. He must be one of the "regular" extras as I've seen him in several episodes. In License he's a workman who gives Gordon Hunter a clipboard to sign and I believe it's in Bonds that Laura growls at him when she exits the elevator after returning from her wind-tunnel & kidnapping experience. 
- What happened to Blake Clark? I miss our Fred... 
- Stephanie places the golf ball so carefully and gets such loft out of it - with a putter - that I think she must have set it on a hidden tee. 
- Kenneth Mars, who plays Veenhof, is quite the character actor and appeared in 2 of Mel Brooks' films: The Producers and Young Frankenstein 
- Peter Elbling, who plays the shabby PI, Coyle, is now a children's author and filmmaker, as well as a singer. http://www.peterelbling.com/ 
- Jane Marla Robbins (Emily Stevens) is now an author and acting coach: http://www.janemarlarobbins.com/ 
- Dinah Lenney (Karen Press, Ford Stevens' campaign manager) is also an author: http://www.dinahlenney.com/ 
- And I couldn't leave this episode without a reference to the delightful (and adult!) fiction by Xenos and Zinger who tell us what SHOULD have happened after the final credits! http://krebsfiles.com/xenoszingblushing.html

I have been thinking about the tag scene (what red-blooded RS fan wouldn't!!!). Anyway, I've been trying to understand Laura's motivation for jumping our Mr Steele. I think it could be 

1) "What the heck - let's give him something real to be shocked about!" 

2) "The only way I'm gonna get him to shut-up is... to kiss him!" 

3) "Hmmm... let's see if I can live up to his expectation of centrefold Laura!" 

4) All of the above! 

5) None of the above - her self-control just suddenly vanished and she finally came to her senses! 

BTW really didn't like her outfit - she was covered up, buttoned up and braced up tighter that Fort Knox! (Probably felt safe kissing Mr Steele, because he'd have to have his lock-picking equipment handy to unbundle her from those clothes - LOL) 

Oh, and someone posted that it was strange that Mr Steele didn't notice that the body in the photo didn't match the body in real life - I think that's quite possible - in fact, it probably matched the fantasies he'd had about her anyway LOL!!! 

BTW - great bit of fanfic, Xenos!!!!

Don't really have anything else to add to the post except that I too don't like Laura's outfit in the tag scene. She wears it again in the episode with Vinne. Not only is it too conservative even for Laura, it just isn't flattering. 

The other line I like in this episode is when Mr. Steele is saying goodbye to Veenhoff - "Just put it in drive and pray you never cross her path again" or something like that:) 

Also, in the office when the 4 of them are trying to figure out about the witness protection program and Mr. Steele references the movie and Veenhoff says "brilliant" and Mr. Steele replies "Not really, rather dull actually". Good comic timing and also demonstrates Mr. Steele's "Steele" trap mind. A movie he probably only saw once and yet he still remembers the annotation:) 
 

Second...Jilly and Mick...Wonderful as always! How the HECK do you know so much trivia about the guest stars, Mick?!?! *shaking my head in disbelief* 

Third...Glad you're getting into it, too, auroracat!!! I didn't really think about that last movie reference and Mr. Steele's dismissive nature. Very interesting! Think I'll watch that scene again now. Thanks for pointing that out! 

Fourth...Great question, Ms. Streep!!! Whatever Laura was thinking -- IT'S ABOUT FREAKIN' TIME!!! *fanning myself* YOU GO, GIRL!!!  And your comment about Laura's "Fort Knox outfit" is freakin' HYSTERICAL!!! I always referred to it as her "clown outfit" (she wears it again in Steele Alive And Kicking) but now I'm gonna have to amend my choice of words. LOL!!! 

And thanks for the fanfic nod, Ms. Streep! Most appreciated. 
 

Xenos 

Mamma Mia!!! Pierce Brosnan...Proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy!

Now, I must go and read the rest of the posts! 

oh Wow!! Now that I've caught up on my reading!!! Wonderful posts by everyone! 

Merryl - excellent deduction about Laura's outfit!!! and very funny, I might add! LOL 

Mickey...I will have to go back and listen to that music stuff. Didn't notice that. Very interesting. 

Auroracat...agreeing with Xenos, nice input about the movie reference! 

Xenos, I'm glad you enjoyed my post and might i add that your post was very amusing and enjoyable as usual. 

Jilly

And that's the point I tried to make. I can see why at first glance he thought it was her. But after Colby & Rhodes left, you KNOW he had to sneak another peek. Perhaps when he in the limo on the way to Veenhof's studio. And that's when he should have realized it wasn't her body.

Jilly

For some strange reason I just don't like this episode all that much. It has a lot of things I do like. I mean porn magazines,with a hint of politics, what's not to love, but something is just off. 

This is probably one of the better episodes for Mildred. She has never been better dressed, except for the one outfit at the end. I would have hoped Doris would have pitched a bigger fit for a step up in wardrobe by now. After all, Mildred has seen a few raises by now. 

Laura's loft, which I secretly lust to live in...okay it's not that big of a secret, is fully decorated, well lit and shows just beautifully. Barbie's Dream House stinks in comparison. Take that Ken, she's got James Bond too!!! On a side note, while admiring Laura's decor I noticed three copper molds hanging on one of the support beams between the couch and the kitchen. The bottom one is suppose to be a lobster, claws down. But given the risque theme of the episode and a naturally dirty mind, I thought it looked like something Xenos would actually take cooking lessons for. Give it a look, it may inspire you to heat something up! 

Another thing I would like to mention, (especially since I'm sure XXXenos really didn't comment on it), but the opening scene with RS in the office....Oh my....am I glad to be able to appreciate just how xeno-liscious he is looking! Mamma Mia! Fit and tan, coiffed with slightly longer hair in that great blue shirt...I think I actually purred while watching him....HHMMM where was I again... FOCUS!!! 

Thirteen and a half minutes before Laura shows up in this one, did SZ get a long weekend off? Anyway, shades of season one... Laura and Steele spend an equal amount of time fighting with each other as chasing the bad guys. Nice to revisit that theme, but the dialogue wasn't as snappy or crisp as season one. 

Steele asking where the agency gun is and it's still MIA, was worth a grin. Unfortunately, this episode also probably has the most amount of gunfire in it. Not just an occasional kiss interupting shot, but an actual gun battle at the OK Corale of the valley better known as a mini-golf course. Too bad they didn't stop at the survivalist store on the way, hand grenades would have made a bigger splash and they could have turned them into sand bunkers later. And while I'm at the golf course, didn't Mr. Witness Protection look like a porn actor with that bad haircut and cheesy mustache?? Perhaps he was as embarassed as I was watching that part get played out. 

Then the saddest scene of the entire series, the auburn dismembered on the back of a flatbed. I can't tell you how many weekends of mine have ended with me in a similiar situation. Most of them were in the past year and coincidently in California, but the Vow of St. Costello prohibits me from naming names, unless I'm pleading to a lesser charge. 

The tag scene which has drawn some interesting discussion, speculation and fanfic is intriguing. Some of the best comments may include...Yeah! It's about time. Go Laura! and my favorite..."Don't yell cut!" 

Finally, how many of you are going to look for the lobster? 
 

Are you serious about the lobster? I didn't see anything...and I'm not going to look either!! LOL well maybe next time I get my DVD's out. 

Jilly

Just loved your comments and though I have not re-watched this ep. (sorry, still busy watching "Bones") I have to agree with you about not caring too much about this episode. It is not that it is a bad episode, because it isn't, it just lacks something. Unfortunately, I cannot figure out what that "something" is. 

Your "don't yell cut" is priceless. Thanks Auburn, nice job. 

Isabel

Loved the first two seasons! 

Jilly

Auburn/Tilda/PW/Knuckles...LOFL!!! (That's "laugh out freakin' loud".) "The episode that the Auburn is violated... and not in a good way." Heh-heh-heh!!!  

And laugh at my cooking abilities if you must, but you weren't the one picking feathers out of your teeth for a week after a botched attempt at making chicken with vegetables!!!  
 

Xenos 

Mamma Mia!!! Pierce Brosnan...Proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy! 

When Laura and Remington finally have their first scene together, she seems very aloof. I thought she just went 6000 miles to see him. To bring him home. Why is she so distant? 

Also, when this scene begins, Remington keeps dabbing his lip and checking for blood. This continues even into the limo. But when he removes the cloth it seems there is no visible wound on his lip or any blood on the cloth. I DO love how she "whacks" him with the door to the agency. 

Why would Laura go to Veenhof? There has got to be thousands of other less-sleazy photographers to choose from. And where exactly did she have her photograph taken because it’s obvious his studio is for “other” kinds of pictures. 

I LOVED the smile on Remington’s face as he walked through Veenhofs’ studio, feeling the lingerie. I also loved the look he gave Laura when he came into the campaign headquarters wearing those funky sunglasses. 

I LOVED all of the scenes with Remington and Laura. In the office, in the limo, at her loft, at Ford Steven’s house, in the Rabbit, at Veenhofs’ studio. GREAT dialog! GREAT acting!!! 

Loved when Mr. Steele repeated, “boudoir photog . . . . raphy.” So funny! 

The couple at the end seem to be LOST in their own mini-golf course. Wouldn’t they know the best places to hide since they live and work there? Why do they run right through the middle of the pond? That just slowed them down. 

A couple of food related observations. When Mildred took Veenhof’s order over the phone, he asked for a diet cola. But she didn’t bring one. Also, when the two “FBI” thugs were waiting by the pay phone at the All-night mart, one asked the other to bring him a sandwich, which he didn’t. (I must have been hungry when I watched this. LOL!!!) 

I too loved Remington’s blue shirt and tie. I noticed in the 2nd scene at Veenhof’s studio that Laura was wearing “sensible” shoes. I guess she only wears the heels in scenes where she is running, jumping, climbing or stomping on Mr. Steele’s foot. LOL!!! 

Susan