Home | |
Season 5, Episode 11 | |
Air date | January 22, 2001 |
Written by | Jeff Olsen |
Directed by | Harvey Laidman |
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Home is the eleventh episode of the 5th season and the 99th episode overall of 7th Heaven. On its original airing, this episode scored 7.43 million viewers, leading the WB and earning 67th place for the week nationally.[1]
Synopsis[]
A month has passed since Eric invited Mary's ex-boyfriend to stay with the Camden's until he got on his feet. Robbie happily continues to act as a member of the household--- and it's driving Annie crazy. Robbie is Eric's latest 'project', Ruthie's new best friend, recipient of Simon's financial advice, and according to Mary, Lucy's boyfriend. He's even cooking and folding laundry (the wrong way!). Frustrated and emotionally strained, Annie starts to think nobody needs a mother anymore. Also, Matt also feels unneeded from the family due to Robbie and pays an unexpected visit to Heather and her new boyfriend.
Plot[]
Robbie is in the kitchen, preparing eggs with cheese and ham for Ruthie and also made pancakes for the rest of the family. As Annie enters the kitchen, it's clear that she is irritated by Robbie taking charge of cooking. Robbie kindly offers Annie something to eat, but she only takes the coffee and insists on making it herself. Robbie then offers to babysit the twins until Matt arrives, but Annie forcefully declines and walks away. Annie runs into Eric in the bedroom and asks if he wasn't available to babysit, who does he think she can get to babysit the twins. Eric begins suggesting names like Lucy or Simon, but when he gets to Robbie, Annie shuts him down, expressing her lack of trust in Robbie. She tells Eric that he needs to find a job for Robbie so he can earn enough money to leave. Eric thinks Annie's anger is because she is too worried about her dad and advises her to just fly to Arizona to check up on him. Their conversation shifts to Mary, and they discuss whether Robbie has informed her about living in the Camden house and how she would react to her former boyfriend now residing with her family. Annie tells Eric to find a way to move Robbie out before Mary finds out.
Matt is in his apartment, gathering his clothes, when the phone rings. Mary informs Matt that Lucy is dating Robbie while he lives in their house. They have a conversation about various topics, including how they miss Mary and how she couldn't take time off from work to be home for Christmas, as well as Lucy dating Robbie. Matt unknowingly confirms Mary's mistaken belief that Robbie is dating Lucy because Mary presented it as a fact. Mary asks Matt to do something about Robbie and Lucy but Matt tells her he can't do anything as long as Robbie is still living in the Camdens household. Mary hangs up and Matt tries to walk out of the door and runs into John. John tells him that he needs Matt to be there to meet Priscilla's parents. Matt has no interest in meeting John's girlfriend's parents and tells him his family needs him. They continue to argue about this, and John becomes angry, telling Matt to leave and never come back as far as he cares. In the kitchen, Mary calls, and Ruthie answers the phone. Before Ruthie can react, Mary offers her money for information about Robbie. Ruthie confirms to Mary that Lucy would never date Robbie as he is not her type. Mary asks about Cheryl, and Ruthie informs her that Robbie was supposed to get married because Cheryl was having a baby but upon finding out she lied about the baby, they called off the wedding. Mary asks Ruthie once again if she is absolutely sure that Robbie is dating Lucy, and Ruthie reassures her that he is not. Ruthie hangs up and approaches Robbie, who has just entered the kitchen, asking if he would tell her if he were dating Lucy. Robbie confirms that he would. Ruthie then goes to Lucy's bedroom and questions her about dating Robbie, to which Lucy also denies any romantic involvement with him. Lucy questions Ruthie on why she was asking that, but Ruthie evades the question and redirects the conversation by asking why Lucy is applying makeup. When the topic returns to Robbie, instead of answering truthfully, Ruthie simply runs out of the room. Meanwhile, downstairs, Matt arrives at the house and informs Annie that he has to move back home because of reasons. He also tells Annie that Mary called him because she believes Robbie is dating Lucy. Annie asks if he told Mary that Robbie is living there but Matt suggests that Mary probably doesn't care and is upset solely about Lucy dating Robbie. Ruthie enters the room, and Annie asks her about the situation. Ruthie explains that it was all a misunderstanding and reveals that Matt did in fact tell Mary that Robbie is living with them. In the kitchen, Eric sits down, staring at the phone. Annie enters and notices that Eric is eagerly waiting for a call from either Mary or someone he spoke with regarding finding a job for Robbie.
Robbie is playing with the twins in their bedroom and asks Simon if they could him with financial advice over a pizza. Simon is somewhat surprised because he feels that nobody takes him seriously. Matt enters the room and tells Robbie that he needs to stop dating Lucy, as Mary believes they are in a relationship. Eric overhears the conversation and Matt confirms to him that Robbie is dating Lucy, disregarding Ruthie's earlier statement denying it. Ruthie comes in and says that it was all a misunderstanding, as she had mentioned before. Lucy enters and they all tell her that Mary thinks they are dating. They discuss the need to contact Mary and resolve the confusion. However, Ruthie reveals that she has already resolved the situation herself and there is no need to call Mary. Despite this, they all immediately leave the room in a rush to call Mary individually. As they try to make the calls, Eric tells the kids to get off the phone as he needs to make an "emergency call". Eric has second thoughts and puts down the phone. Moments later, Mary calls, and Eric answers, but Mary remains silent and hangs up despite Eric's pleas to talk to him. Annie comes in and tells Eric she already knows Robbie is living there, warning him not to be surprised if she never speaks to them again. Matt is at Heather's apartment, expressing his frustrations about John and Priscilla's relationship to Heather and her boyfriend, Thomas. He shares that he feels like a third wheel since Robbie moved in and how everyone treats him more like a big brother than Matt himself. In the attic bedroom, Ruthie is putting makeup on and tells Lucy she's in love with a guy. Lucy expresses her happiness for her but playfully removes makeup from Ruthie. Meanwhile, John and Priscilla discuss John's insecurity about how her parents will react to his small apartment. Priscilla assures John that her parents won't care about that and encourages him, assuring him that her parents will love him. She advises him to find Matt so that John can feel more comfortable when meeting her parents. At the house, Robbie calls Mary, attempting to clarify the misunderstanding about him dating Lucy, which is false. Mary hangs up in anger, but Eric, who is next to him, tells him to redial and try again. Robbie explains how he was homeless and how Eric helped him by allowing him to stay in the house. Initially skeptical, Mary hangs up once again, but after Robbie calls her again, she eventually believes him. They continue to have a conversation about how they are doing, and Annie signals Eric to come out of the bedroom for a private conversation. Eric informs Annie that Robbie contacted Mary to resolve everything and expresses his desire to hear Mary's voice again since she won't talk to him. Eric returns to the bedroom, but Robbie has already finished talking to Mary. Robbie tells Eric that he believes Mary will eventually call, they just need to wait a little longer. Just then, the phone rings and it's John wondering where Matt is. Eric tells him to try Heather's new apartment.
While Annie is doing laundry, Simon approaches her and asks if he can have pizza with Robbie. Annie angrily objects, making excuses such as Simon is too young to hang out with Robbie. However, Simon persists, which makes Annie frustrated and she eventually gives in, allowing him to go for pizza. Annie becomes angry that Robbie had offered to help her with dinner and cooking, as she needs to feel needed. Simon runs into Eric, who suggests that Annie's frustration may stem from not being able to visit her father. Robbie joins them, and Eric expresses his belief that Annie is feeling overwhelmed. He suggests that they should do their best to lighten her load until she feels better. As they pass by Ruthie, she enters Robbie's bedroom to leave a pink envelope with hearts on his bed. Meanwhile, Matt is at Heather's apartment, oblivious that he's bothering both Heather and her boyfriend. John arrives and attempts to convince Matt to come home. They argue about meeting Priscilla's parents, with John insisting that Matt needs to be at the apartment when they arrive. Thomas interrupts their argument and fabricates a story about Priscilla being the sole heir to a lucrative sheet-selling business named "Carter's Sheets", implying that she is extremely wealthy. Intrigued by this revelation, Matt quickly grabs his coat and leaves with John to find out more. After they leave, Heather looks at Thomas, who confirms that he made up the story to get Matt and John to leave, as their argument was becoming tiresome. Back at the house, Lucy is talking to Mary on the phone, telling her how Matt's self-confidence has been affected by Robbie and how both Matt and Simon have started imitating Robbie by walking around without a shirt. Moments later, Matt enters the room without a shirt and asks where Robbie is. Simon also enters shirtless, and Lucy informs them that Robbie only goes shirtless when he comes out of the shower, urging them to put a shirt on. Lucy leaves the room, and Matt and Simon mock her, jokingly asserting their masculinity and claiming that they don't need to wear shirts. Downstairs, Lucy reassures Annie that she is sure Mary will call them soon and she doesn't think Mary cares about Robbie living there anymore since she now knows where to find him. Robbie enters the kitchen and t informs Annie that he has cooked pasta and steamed artichokes for her. Annie thanks him politely, and Robbie and Simon leave for pizza. Matt gathers his bags of clothes and belongings and leaves for his own apartment to meet Priscilla's parents. Annie attempts to check on Ruthie, but Ruthie refuses to talk to her and insists on speaking with Lucy instead. Annie begins to doubt herself, feeling unneeded by others, and expresses this to Eric. She attributes her feelings to Robbie taking over everything she used to do. Lucy takes Sam and David into the bathroom to have a private conversation with Ruthie, while Eric tries to console Annie outside. Eric assures her that they do need her and reveals that he asked Robbie to contribute to the household chores to help alleviate some of Annie's stress. However, this plan backfires, and Annie becomes upset with Eric for involving Robbie and feels even more unneeded.
In the bathroom, Ruthie confesses that she's in love with Robbie and how the way he looks at her. Ruthie argues that since Robbie and Mary have broken up, she should be able to have him for herself. However, Lucy tells her that Mary still has feelings for Robbie and would be hurt if Ruthie and Robbie were more than just friends. Ruthie dismisses Mary's feelings and claims that she no longer considers Mary a part of the family. Lucy emphasizes that she does care about Mary and that Mary is still very much a part of the family. Eventually, Ruthie relents and agrees to consider Mary's perspective. Meanwhile, Annie discusses her frustration with Eric, questioning why her father and Ginger refuse to accept any help from her. Eric suggests that her father may not want to burden her while she is in school, drawing a parallel to the situation with Robbie. However, Annie remains adamant and insists that Robbie will leave as soon as he finds a job. Eric gives in and promises to put more effort into finding Robbie a job. He assures Annie that he believes Robbie is eager to move out just as much as she wants him to. However, Annie disagrees and believes that Robbie is trying to please Eric, as Eric's approval would indicate to Mary that Robbie is safe. Likewise, Eric is trying to please Robbie because if he likes Robbie, then Mary will like him. Eric explains that he genuinely believes Robbie is putting in effort with school and genuinely likes him as a person. Annie gets mad and storms off. At Pete's Pizza, Robbie discusses with Simon about a daycare center that urgently needs someone to lead a sports program for boys, exhausting so they don't have any energy to bother the parents when they pick them up. The women at the daycare center offered Robbie the job on the spot when he listed Eric and Annie as references. Robbie reveals that he loves working with children and plans to pursue a major in early childhood education, which is the same as Annie's major. Robbie proposes that if Eric isn't in a hurry to make him leave, he could use the money he has now to buy airplane tickets and save the rest of his paychecks. This way, Annie can visit her father while he builds up his savings. Meanwhile, Matt arrives at his apartment and apologizes to John for being late. He asks about Priscilla's parents but John sits quietly and eventually tells him that they have already left and that they despise him. Priscilla's father told her he will take away her car and refuse to pay her college tuition. John also informs Matt that Priscilla's parents do not own a sheet company. Confused, Matt questions why they would care about his financial status if they aren't wealthy. John explains that they are wealthy, and Priscilla's father is a very rich architect. A few seconds later, Priscilla knocks on the door, and John lets her in, leaving Matt bewildered about the situation. John explains that when Priscilla refused to comply with her father's demands, he took away her aunt's apartment and told her to move back home. However, Priscilla and John declined, and now John asks Matt if he can move back home so that Priscilla can stay at their apartment herself.
Back at the house, Simon and Robbie enter the kitchen where Annie is. Simon goes upstairs to give them privacy, and when Eric joins them, Robbie shares the news that he has secured a job as a sports director at a daycare center. He also reveals that he bought airline tickets for Annie and the twins, Sam and David, to visit Annie's father. Both Annie and Eric are in disbelief but express gratitude towards Robbie before he goes upstairs to sleep. The phone rings, and Simon descends the stairs to inform Eric that it's Mary calling. Eric answers, and Mary thanks him for taking care of Robbie and everything else. Mary expresses how much she misses everyone and admits to realizing her own ingratitude and selfishness. She tells Eric that she loves him but isn't ready to come back home, before he hands the phone to Annie, allowing them to talk. Upstairs, Robbie opens Ruthie's envelope from earlier and asks if she wrote the message inside. In a attempt to cover herself, she tells him it's Lucy's handwriting and rushes out. At that moment, Lucy enters the room, and Robbie shows her the envelope, which contains the words "I love you!" and that they need to talk. Lucy, initially confused, takes a few seconds to understand the situation and realizes that Robbie mistakenly believes she wrote the three-word love note. Frustrated and unable to articulate that Ruthie was the actual author, Lucy rushes out of the room to catch Ruthie, with a strong sense of frustration and the thought of "I'm going to kill her" lingering in her mind. Back in the kitchen, Matt enters and tells Eric and Annie that he has to move back there, even though they don't really care at that point. When the phone rings, Mary asks why he is at the house, and Matt explains that John wants him to move back. Mary convinces Matt to admit that he doesn't like Robbie living there and hopes that if he moves in, he can make Robbie leave. Mary expresses disbelief in Matt's plan and but Matt insists that he can be very annoying. She asks to speak to Robbie, but Matt hangs up. Shortly after, Robbie comes downstairs without a shirt, and the phone rings again. Matt gives in and informs Robbie that it's for him. Robbie and Mary have a conversation while Matt leaves the kitchen, feeling annoyed.
Notes[]
- This is the one and only appearance of Joe Michael Burke as Thomas.
Trivia[]
- When asked about the most recent funniest blooper, David Gallagher (Simon) said in a online chat: "In the episode that we are shooting now Barry and I have a scene where we are talking to Lucy without shirts on and some of the stuff we were doing was hysterical!!! Use your imagination. We were goofing around so much. So much in fact that he walked in on one take and just started laughing. Couldn't even get his first line out! Then I did the same thing. It was great."[2]
- This episode originally aired on Beverley Mitchell's (Lucy Camden) birthday, when she turned 20 years old.
- This episode marks the first episode in 7th Heaven set in 2001.
Cast[]
Main Cast[]
Featured in the opening credits are:
- Stephen Collins as Eric Camden
- Catherine Hicks as Annie Camden
- Barry Watson as Matt Camden
- David Gallagher as Simon Camden
- Jessica Biel as Mary Camden
- Beverley Mitchell as Lucy Camden
- Mackenzie Rosman as Ruthie Camden
- Chaz Lamar Shepherd as John Hamilton
- Adam LaVorgna as Robbie Palmer
Guest Stars[]
- Andrea Ferrell as Heather Cain
- Andrea Pearson as Priscilla Carter
- Joe Michael Burke as Thomas