Pan Am Review #5

Danielle returns to cover Pan Am episode 5...

It's another high-flying episode of adventure and espionage (and romance!) for the ladies and gentlemen of Pan Am this week as the crew flies to London and Monte Carlo. The stakes are certainly raised in "One Coin in the Fountain," as we see not one, but two, of our characters engage in some dangerous liaisons!

As the crew's first flight takes off (to LHR), Dean and Ted receive a visitor to the cockpit - the enticing, self-titled "interloper passenger," Ginny. This attractive, perfectly groomed, mink-clad brunette charms the captain and his first lieutenant with racing tales (they had previously been discussing Formula One) and hangs out for a bit with the best view onboard despite Kate's attempts to remove the stowaway from the front of the plane. Watching the scene unfold was a true testament to the times - I doubt very much a lady, no matter how pretty, could park herself with the pilots in this day and age - air marshals would be all over her! Later that evening in London, Ginny returns the favor and takes Dean for a ride (literally pulling him into a car) and the two spend the night together. The quickie quickly becomes complicated when Ginny's relationship status is revealed on the flight to Monaco the next day. She's the "secretary" to a Pan Am senior executive, aka: highly restricted airspace! Ted counsels Dean against continuing the romance and crudely puts the situation into perspective, "a wife is the block he grew up on, a mistress is where he's living now." Despite the warning and knowing the impact her powerful boyfriend could have on his career with Pan Am, Dean continues the affair when Ginny invites him along for a drive and the two spend an afternoon picnicking in the hills above Monte Carlo. Something is definitely up in air with Ginny, too, who seems a little too comfortable stepping out. When Dean half-heartedly questions her about the cheating, Ginny's response is merely to scold Dean for not asking enough questions about her lifestyle before she dragged him into the backseat of her car.

Despite the compelling new female onboard, it's Kate who steals the spotlight this episode after she snags a handsome first class passenger (delicious Goran Visnjic - you'd know him as Dr. Kovac from ER) from Maggie...mostly with her impressive skills at the pool tables. Unbeknownst to the Maggie, however, Kate's initial interest in the Yugoslavian diplomat Nico Lonza is a matter of national security. She's been instructed to gain entry to a private VIP gambling room at an elite Monte Carlo casino (via Nico) and gather the fingerprints of a female Soviet secret agent who is also a guest there. Kate pulls off her mission with flying colors and has the rest of the night to entertain her new friend. In the end, Kate wins big ... bringing her spy "homework" to bed with her in a sexy nocturnal scene and then even back to the Big Apple! I'm curious to hear more about Kate's compensation for all the risky business - several comments are made during the episode alluding to the fact that Kate is not receiving any payment for her service to the United States. The Pan Am takeaway? The girls loathe first class "breakfast duty" with all those picky passengers and their made-to-order eggs!

In a less steamy sidebar, Laura and Ted face-off over Laura's engagement ring. You see, when Laura left Greg at the alter she ran off to New York City without any money, so naturally she decided to pawn her ring for cash with the intention of retrieving it later. Now the time has come for her to return the ring, but the pawn shop actually sold her jewelry and Laura has to go to Harlem to track down the buyer. Ted insists on coming with, and the two meet "Shoop Man" where Ted interferes with the transaction and a furious Laura has to go home empty-handed after calling the co-pilot "horrible" a few times. In the end, Ted saves the day - revealing that he swapped his Rolex for the ring and presents it to Laura, proposal-style, in front of a fountain in Monte Carlo.Pardon my caustic tone, but this storyline was a little contrived. And the elderly "Shoop Man" hardly seems like he's about to get down on one knee to anyone, so it's a little far fetched that he would have bought Laura's ring. I guess the writers wanted to introduce 60's Harlem into the plot, one way or another.
Next week promises to continue the illicit Dean/Ginny, Kate/Nico, and Laura/Ted fireworks. So be ready to return to your seat, stow your belongings and get ready for some bumps along the way!
A se revede, Danielle

[card card-name='Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express ' card-id='22035076' type='javascript' bullet-id='1']