This has got to be one of the sweetest, sexiest, most romantic, swoon-worthy episodes ever! Everyone who is Team Charles could not believe the sheer amazing-ness of this episode and had melted into a joyous puddle by the time the credits rolled!
First things first...OMG THAT OPENING SCENE!!! I was not expecting that and boy was it more than I could have ever hoped for! Liza and Charles FINALLY gave in to what they'd been wanting to do for 5 seasons and sealed the deal! It was beautiful, passionate, sexy - and very hot, all at the same time! It was the perfect culmination of their feelings, and interspersing it with scenes of their date beforehand where they cutely admitted to being nervous and remembered with absolute clarity the first time they saw each other, was breathtakingly brilliant!
Anyone who's heart doesn't melt when Charles texts Liza 'I miss you already' less than five seconds after dropping her off the following morning, must be made of stone! Liza, along with the audience collectively swooned!
Fast forward to the New Year when the Empirical crew is back in the office and Liza, Diana and Kelsey (and myself) all stare in confusion at Charles's new facial hair. I can't say that I'm a fan - I much prefer clean shaven Charles! Anyway, Charles is avoiding eye contact with Liza and she is worried about where she stands - all that is erased though with a simple 'Hi' text from Charles, which precipitates the oh so cute 'I missed you' 'I missed you too' conversation in his office. They arrange to meet that evening outside the New York Public Library - very apt for these two book nerds!
As the day goes by, the sexual tension is oozing and these two cannot keep their hands off each other! Who knew that a featherlight touch of a pinky finger to a thigh under the desk could raise the temperature - and heart rates, quite so much! Then there was Charles brushing her back with his fingers as he walked by, and oh yeah - the steamy stairwell make-out session!
They've clearly been thinking about each other a lot over the Christmas break and know they need to define their relationship and figure out how it's all going to work, but for now they agree to stay in their happy little bubble of bliss, just the two of them. And what a beautiful bubble it is! Where do they go for their date? The Seaglass Carousel - and it is the most adorably cute thing I have ever seen, watching them grinning at each other as they sat in their fish, and then Charles leaning over and kissing her hand! I smiled so hard my cheeks hurt! Charles Brooks proved that romance and chivalry are most definitely not dead!
As with most love stories there is usually someone trying to throw a spanner in the works, and in this episode it came in the shape of Pauline. At the world's most uncomfortable lunch meeting, joined by Diana and the Hello Sunshine woman (who are oblivious to the tension), Pauline makes repeated subtle digs at Liza, pretty much blaming her for the failure of her marriage to Charles - which is grossly unfair really considering Pauline managed that all by herself by leaving him for another man and running off to LA for a year without notice! I was however very impressed with Liza finally standing up for herself and not feeling guilty about something that wasn't her fault.
I also liked how Liza told Charles about this encounter as soon as she saw him, which is symbolic of their new open and honest relationship. It turns out that Charles had also had an equally uncomfortable meeting with Pauline that day. The conversation between Liza and Charles that then ensues on the library steps shows how deeply these two care about each other, and it was incredibly heartwarming to watch. Charles tells Liza that he has given up the rights to a Marriage Vacation sequel in exchange for Pauline's silence about their relationship. You can see that Liza feels guilty that the company will lose a lucrative deal, and tells him that she "can't believe you're doing all this for me". Charles's simple response of "Us" pulls at every heart string going and speaks of how deeply committed he is to making it work with her. The rest of the scene is a cuteness overload as Charles tells her he wants to stay in their bubble for as long as they can, and Liza teasingly asks "do bubbles have to be so scratchy?", referring to his holiday beard. It was a joy to see the lighter, carefree side of Charles as he smiled and joked "Oh, so the bubble has conditions now?" As they kiss and Liza does that movie style happy little leg lift, we all rejoice in their happiness!
I love the final few moments of the episode as Diana, whilst chatting to Liza, spots a freshly shaven Charles stroll into the office the next day and tells her quietly, "He shaved." Liza spins round in her chair and Charles's eyes lock solely on her as he greets "Morning" before disappearing into his office. Liza's happy, cat got the canary smile when Diana adds "Wonder who he did that for" tells us she knows that yes, he did that for me! ...Cue rewatching multiple times over!
Anyone who's heart doesn't melt when Charles texts Liza 'I miss you already' less than five seconds after dropping her off the following morning, must be made of stone! Liza, along with the audience collectively swooned!
Fast forward to the New Year when the Empirical crew is back in the office and Liza, Diana and Kelsey (and myself) all stare in confusion at Charles's new facial hair. I can't say that I'm a fan - I much prefer clean shaven Charles! Anyway, Charles is avoiding eye contact with Liza and she is worried about where she stands - all that is erased though with a simple 'Hi' text from Charles, which precipitates the oh so cute 'I missed you' 'I missed you too' conversation in his office. They arrange to meet that evening outside the New York Public Library - very apt for these two book nerds!
As the day goes by, the sexual tension is oozing and these two cannot keep their hands off each other! Who knew that a featherlight touch of a pinky finger to a thigh under the desk could raise the temperature - and heart rates, quite so much! Then there was Charles brushing her back with his fingers as he walked by, and oh yeah - the steamy stairwell make-out session!
They've clearly been thinking about each other a lot over the Christmas break and know they need to define their relationship and figure out how it's all going to work, but for now they agree to stay in their happy little bubble of bliss, just the two of them. And what a beautiful bubble it is! Where do they go for their date? The Seaglass Carousel - and it is the most adorably cute thing I have ever seen, watching them grinning at each other as they sat in their fish, and then Charles leaning over and kissing her hand! I smiled so hard my cheeks hurt! Charles Brooks proved that romance and chivalry are most definitely not dead!
As with most love stories there is usually someone trying to throw a spanner in the works, and in this episode it came in the shape of Pauline. At the world's most uncomfortable lunch meeting, joined by Diana and the Hello Sunshine woman (who are oblivious to the tension), Pauline makes repeated subtle digs at Liza, pretty much blaming her for the failure of her marriage to Charles - which is grossly unfair really considering Pauline managed that all by herself by leaving him for another man and running off to LA for a year without notice! I was however very impressed with Liza finally standing up for herself and not feeling guilty about something that wasn't her fault.
I also liked how Liza told Charles about this encounter as soon as she saw him, which is symbolic of their new open and honest relationship. It turns out that Charles had also had an equally uncomfortable meeting with Pauline that day. The conversation between Liza and Charles that then ensues on the library steps shows how deeply these two care about each other, and it was incredibly heartwarming to watch. Charles tells Liza that he has given up the rights to a Marriage Vacation sequel in exchange for Pauline's silence about their relationship. You can see that Liza feels guilty that the company will lose a lucrative deal, and tells him that she "can't believe you're doing all this for me". Charles's simple response of "Us" pulls at every heart string going and speaks of how deeply committed he is to making it work with her. The rest of the scene is a cuteness overload as Charles tells her he wants to stay in their bubble for as long as they can, and Liza teasingly asks "do bubbles have to be so scratchy?", referring to his holiday beard. It was a joy to see the lighter, carefree side of Charles as he smiled and joked "Oh, so the bubble has conditions now?" As they kiss and Liza does that movie style happy little leg lift, we all rejoice in their happiness!
I love the final few moments of the episode as Diana, whilst chatting to Liza, spots a freshly shaven Charles stroll into the office the next day and tells her quietly, "He shaved." Liza spins round in her chair and Charles's eyes lock solely on her as he greets "Morning" before disappearing into his office. Liza's happy, cat got the canary smile when Diana adds "Wonder who he did that for" tells us she knows that yes, he did that for me! ...Cue rewatching multiple times over!
