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I don't need you to apologize to me for all the pain that you've caused me, and I don't have to forgive you. All I have to do is forgive myself for these things that I can't change.
—Jen to her dad

Eastern Standard Time is the 18th episode of Season 4 of Dawson's Creek.

Synopsis[]

JOEY AND JEN SET OFF TO NEW YORK TO CONFRONT JEN'S FATHER - It's senior ditch day at Capeside High and while Joey (Katie Holmes) and Jen (Michelle Williams) head to New York to confront Jen's estranged father (guest star Don McManus), Dawson (James Van Der Beek) and Gretchen (guest star Sasha Alexander) hit the road for a romantic adventure together and Pacey (Joshua Jackson) and Drue (Mark Matkevitch) form an alliance that ends in handcuffs.[1]

Starring[]

James Van Der Beek as Dawson Leery
Katie Holmes as Joey Potter
Michelle Williams as Jen Lindley
Joshua Jackson as Pacey Witter
Special Guest Stars
Sasha Alexander as Gretchen Witter
Dylan Neal as Doug Witter
Mark Matkevich as Drue Valentine
Special Appearance By
Pat Hingle as Irv The Mechanic
Guest starring
Don McManus as Theodore Lindley[2]
Rob Nagle as Tom Frost
Co-Starring
Shea Broom as Big Ace Waitress
Jenifer Crowell as Vera Waitress
Julie Ann Horanski as Donna
James Martin Kelly as Mack
Josh Moore as Junior Boy
Cedric Pendleton as Typo
Mike Piniewski as Dr. Rochford
Toi Svane as Junior Girl

Quotes[]

I still have my distortions and my delusions. I still think that everything should be perfect, and that Joey and I should have slept together for the first time. What I realized is that I gotta let go. You know, it's time. And there's so much ahead of me. I mean, there's college, there's...there's this new baby.. and there's you
—Dawson to Gretchen
I'm in love with you, and I no longer remember what we're waiting for
—Dawson to Gretchen
Gretchen – I want to make love to you so much. So much. And I really believe that that was why we came here, but it's not. I guess just as much as I want you and I love you, we're not gonna do this
Dawson – Why not?
Gretchen – Because when we go there, it's not gonna be because you have something to prove to yourself. It's gonna be because we love each other, and because we're prepared to show each other what that really means
A city like New York where everything's moving all the time at this constant driving pace, right? It's like a living organism breathing and changing, and over time your relationship to it becomes like this incredible romance, you know? At first, it's intoxicating, irresistible, and then slowly it becomes comfortable and safe. You have this cellular connection to it, as if you've known each other forever, like your oldest happiness, and sometimes you're on the outs, and sometimes you're making up, and every now and then you catch yourself in this transcendent moment where you think to yourself, "oh, my god, I'm madly in love with you, and I always will be." And I think that's when it surprises me
—Theodore Lindley

Locations[]

Trivia[]

  • Jen recalls a suppressed trauma of discovering her dad having sex with a coerced 18-year-old Annie Sawyer, a girl who lived in the apartment downstairs from Jen's.
  • Gretchen and Dawson say that they love each other but do not have sex.
  • After visiting NYC and confronting her dad, Jen realizes that she does not need to go to therapy anymore.
  • Drue gets Pacey a fake ID with the name "David Kebo" from Rhode Island. Drue's "name" is Gilbert.

BROADCAST

  • The episode was watched by 4.13 million people upon its original airing on the WB.[3]

Films[]

WATCHED
REFERENCED
The Hitcher (1986)
Star Wars (1977)[4]

Music[]

last lament | SUSAN JAMES
dawson and gretchen in dawson's room
i can't wait to meetchu | MACY GRAY[5]
jen and joey arrive at grand central station
bring you down | RED DELICIOUS
jen and joey run into jen's friend
you belong to me | HYPNOGAJA
jen reveals to joey that she came to see her father
love in 2 parts | ERIN MCKEOWN
d + g walk to the garage
the preacher | FROSTBIT BLUE
gretchen orders food
sad eyed woman | TRICKY WOO
pacey and drue at the bar
the world is crazy | JOHN CAMPBELLJOHN
the bartender talks to pacey and drue
letters from the wasteland | WALLFLOWERS[6]
jen and joey split
show me | VANESSA DAOU[7]
dawson tells gretchen he loves her
sweet jane | COWBOY JUNKIES[8]
jen and joey reunite

Photos[]

Notes and references[]

  1. "Eastern Standard Time" official synopsis archived from The WB on dawsons-creek.com
  2. First and only appearance on the series of Jen's father, Theodore Lindley
  3. Ratings Ryan — Dawson's Creek (WB): Ratings Recap
  4. Pacey quotes the line "Mos Eisley. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious."
  5. Replaced on DVD and streaming with "Free" by Julie Kim
  6. Replaced on DVD and streaming with "Looked Around" by Frank Jordan
  7. Replaced on DVD and streaming with "Fearless" by Amber Asfour
  8. Replaced on DVD and streaming with "Every So Often" by Jennifer Gibson
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