Weeds (season 1)
| Weeds | |
|---|---|
| Season 1 | |
| File:Weeds S1 DVD.jpg DVD cover | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 10 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Showtime |
| Original release | August 8 – October 10, 2005 |
| Season chronology | |
The first season of the dark comedy-drama series Weeds premiered on August 8, 2005, and consisted of 10 episodes.
Plot
Nancy Botwin and her children, Silas and Shane, live in Agrestic, a fictional suburb of Los Angeles. Her husband, Judah Botwin, dies of a heart attack while jogging with Shane a few weeks previously. During season one, Silas is fifteen years old and Shane is ten.
To support her upper middle class lifestyle, Nancy begins dealing marijuana to her affluent neighbors and friends. Her supplier is Heylia James, a major distributor in Los Angeles' West Adams district, whom she met through Judah's younger brother, Andy Botwin. Andy moves into the house after Judah's death to help Nancy out, though he also seems to be there to freeload, and often disrupts her life. After losing customers to a medical marijuana store, Nancy begins baking and selling pot-laced foods, with the help of Heylia's nephew, Conrad. On the advice of her accountant, city councilman Doug Wilson, she opens a retail bakery as a front for her drug sales. Silas begins dating Megan, an attractive deaf girl at his school, and starts to bond with Megan's father, who gives him boxing lessons and teaches him how to drive. Shane, troubled by his father's death, acts out, earning him the nickname "Strange Botwin" from his classmates. Shane's violent and strange behavior worries Nancy, who considers putting him on anti-depressants.
Nancy's chief antagonist is her neighbor, Celia Hodes, who is manic, image-obsessed, and manipulative. She is president of the Agrestic PTA, and does not get along with her cheating husband Dean, nor with her sexually active teenage daughter, Quinn, who she sends off to boarding school in Mexico. Her younger daughter, 11-year-old Isabelle, is overweight and the target of Celia's passive-aggressive comments, although Isabelle seems mature and confident for her age. Isabelle reveals late in the season that she is a lesbian, to her mother's chagrin. In the middle of the season, Celia gets diagnosed with bilateral breast cancer. The brush with her own mortality softens Celia's personality and leads her to treat Isabelle with more courtesy and respect. She quickly returns to form after her recovery. However, before her surgery, she meets Conrad and has sex with him. After Andy is notified to report immediately for his military service (where he will be trained and then sent to Iraq) or be sentenced to a military prison, he announces that he is studying to become a rabbi because he believes it will provide grounds for him to be discharged.
Drug dealing turns out to be more difficult than Nancy thought, as she discovers when she expands her customer base to Valley State College and hires Sanjay, a student at the college, to be her on-campus dealer. She is soon threatened by a rival drug dealer – Alejandro – who considers it his territory. She has a brief sexual encounter with him. At Valley College, Nancy's entire stash of product is stolen by a campus security guard during a fake arrest, threatening the survival of her lifestyle. Unbeknownst to her, Conrad and his friends attack and severely beat the security guard. As a result, the guard returns the marijuana to a puzzled Nancy, apologizes, and offers to help her business in any way he can. Meanwhile, Nancy develops a mutual attraction with Peter Scottson, a single father, and they end up sleeping together. Conrad, who has been growing a special strain of marijuana, approaches Nancy and convinces her to expand by becoming a grower as well as a dealer. The season closes with Nancy and Conrad forming a team, including Doug, Dean, Sanjay and Andy, to work their operation. However, Nancy then encounters a complication: she learns that her new boyfriend Peter is a DEA agent.
Cast
Main cast
- Mary-Louise Parker as Nancy Botwin (10 episodes)
- Elizabeth Perkins as Celia Hodes (10 episodes)
- Tonye Patano as Heylia James (8 episodes)
- Romany Malco as Conrad Shepard (9 episodes)
- Justin Kirk as Andy Botwin (7 episodes)
- Hunter Parrish as Silas Botwin (10 episodes)
- Alexander Gould as Shane Botwin (10 episodes)
- Kevin Nealon as Doug Wilson (10 episodes)
Recurring cast
- Andy Milder as Dean Hodes (10 episodes)
- Renée Victor as Lupita (9 episodes)
- Indigo as Vaneeta James (6 episodes)
- Shoshannah Stern as Megan Graves (6 episodes)
- Tressa DiFiglia as Maggie (6 episodes)
- Allie Grant as Isabelle Hodes (5 episodes)
- Becky Thyre as Pam Gruber (5 episodes)
- Shawn Schepps as Alison (5 episodes)
- Maulik Pancholy as Sanjay Patel (3 episodes)
- Vincent Laresca as Alejandro (3 episodes)
- Martin Donovan as Peter Scottson (2 episodes)
- David Doty as Principal Dodge (2 episodes)
- Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Judah Botwin (2 episodes)
- Tyrone Mitchell as Keeyon James (2 episodes)
- Haley Hudson as Quinn Hodes (1 episode)
- Daryl Sabara as Tim Scottson (1 episode)
- Justin Chatwin as Josh Wilson (1 episode)
- Craig X. Rubin as Craig X (1 episode)
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "You Can't Miss the Bear" | Brian Dannelly | Jenji Kohan | August 8, 2005 | |
| Nancy Botwin is grieving the loss of her husband, Judah. In an effort to support her two sons, Silas and Shane, Nancy has turned to dealing marijuana to her affluent neighbors in the picturesque suburb of Agrestic, CA. She buys her product from Heylia James, who runs a marijuana business in the West Adams district. Nancy sells some of her product to Josh, a fellow dealer. When Nancy discovers that Josh has been dealing to young children, she uses newly found personal information about Josh to stop him. Meanwhile, Shane is being bullied at school; he retaliates by spraying his bully with paint from a squirt gun. Silas and his girlfriend Quinn conspire to have sex. Quinn rebels against her mother, Celia, by recording an affair between her father and a tennis pro; Celia later sees the recording and is forced to deal with her husband's infidelity. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Free Goat" | Brian Dannelly | Jenji Kohan | August 15, 2005 | |
| Unable to deposit her pot money at the bank, Nancy is unable to pay her bills, and she turns to crooked city councilman Doug Wilson; Doug suggests Nancy start a cover business to launder money through. To obtain product on credit, Nancy offers her car and wedding ring to Heylia as collateral. Celia shaves the hair off of Dean's head as retaliation for his affair. Silas confronts Celia, concerned over Quinn's disappearance. Celia tells him that she was sent to a reform school in Mexico, but doesn't tell him that it was punishment for recording Dean's affair. Celia confronts Helen Chin, the woman with whom Dean had an affair, and they have drinks at a local bar. Shane grieves for his father by watching old home videos. Nancy later discovers the camera and, overcome with emotion, smashes it to pieces. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Good Shit Lollipop" | Craig Zisk | Roberto Benabib | August 22, 2005 | |
| After being introduced to the medical cannabis clubs in Los Angeles, Nancy discovers that Heylia has been selling her a low quality product. Heylia's nephew Conrad helps Nancy produce tasty Cannabis edibles, which are successful with Doug's poker group. Celia finds out her overweight daughter Isabelle has been sneaking food, and she replaces Isabelle's secret chocolate stash with laxative chocolates. After Isabelle soils herself at school, she retaliates by stuffing Imodium into Celia's pill box. Silas meets a local deaf girl, Megan, and asks her for a blow job; Megan sprays blue paint across his pants instead. Despite his bad first impression, Megan decides to give Silas a second chance. Shane shoots a mountain lion in its face with a BB gun; Shane's violent behavior worries Nancy. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Fashion of the Christ" | Burr Steers | Jenji Kohan | August 29, 2005 | |
| Judah's slacker brother, Andy Botwin, arrives from Alaska. Nancy is not thrilled to see him, telling him "everything you touch turns to shit." Andy recruits Shane to sell T-shirts with a typo (spelling "Chris died for your sins") that offends the religious community; he also engages in a sex chat with Megan using Silas' screenname. Enraged by Andy's behavior, Nancy threatens to throw him out of the house. However, Andy reveals that he had learned of Nancy's drug business through Conrad and asks to join her. Andy also convinces Silas that his chat only encouraged Megan to want Silas more, which prompts Megan and Silas to start an intense physical relationship. Nancy chooses a bakery for her choice of cover business; Doug scouts potential locations for the bakery. After a crate of soda pop crashes into Celia's house, Celia tells Dean that she has breast cancer. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Lude Awakening" | Lee Rose | Devon K. Shepard | September 5, 2005 | |
| Nancy experiences the dangerous side of dealing when a shootout occurs at Heylia's. Distraught by the shootout, Nancy contemplates leaving the business. Andy meets Doug, and they instantly bond over their love for porn and pot. Andy approaches Nancy about working with her for the sham bakery. When Nancy turns him down, Andy buys an ounce of weed from Heylia to sell in Agrestic; he is caught by a police officer and gets arrested. Silas dumps Megan and then tries to woo her back. Celia reels from her breast cancer diagnosis by giving away lots of clothes and furniture to her housekeeper. Shane writes a rap song about killing a fellow student; Nancy verbally chastises him. Shane has a discussion with Celia about how they both make people uncomfortable. She advises him to "Let your freak flag fly." | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Dead in the Nethers" | Arlene Sanford | Michael Platt & Barry Safchik | September 12, 2005 | |
| Following his arrest, Andy is ordered to attend Narcotics Anonymous meetings. After his first meeting, Andy gets high with his female sponsor. Nancy signs Doug's paperwork needed to open the sham bakery. Conrad visits Agrestic to help Nancy set up the bakery. In the process, Conrad meets Celia, who invites him and Nancy to join her at a dance club before she undergoes breast removal surgery. Celia ends up having sex with Conrad. Silas and Megan normalize their relationship. Shane makes a fake terrorist video that shocks Nancy. Nancy's housekeeper Lupita discovers Nancy's cache of marijuana in her closet; she blackmails Nancy into giving her a raise. Nancy mourns Judah's death by watching a tape of them making love. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "Higher Education" | Tucker Gates | Shawn Schepps | September 19, 2005 | |
| Silas' tutor, Sanjay, confides to Nancy about needing more work. Nancy decides to recruit Sanjay to deal pot as she expands her sales territory into Sanjay's community college, Valley State. Shane makes a new friend at school, and Andy has sex with the friend's mother. Andy wants to stop having sex with her due to her unusually rough antics, but Nancy orders Andy to "keep fucking the biter", as it could jeopardize Shane's one friendship. Celia's obnoxious mother makes life at the Hodes' house difficult until they kick her out. Someone throws a roll of pennies at Nancy's car; Conrad hypothesizes that another dealer is threatening her. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "The Punishment Light" | Robert Berlinger | Rolin Jones | September 26, 2005 | |
| The Botwin family unveils Judah's headstone during a small ceremony. Nancy meets single father, Peter Scottson, after Shane bites the foot of Peter's son during a karate tournament. Nancy and Peter get to know each other at a restaurant, and they share an unexpected kiss. Since Nancy is still coming to terms with Judah's death, they ultimately agree to temporarily part ways. While Nancy is away, Andy and Doug bond by hunting a rodent and trashing Nancy's house. Celia confesses to Dean that she had sex with Conrad, resulting in an argument, which is followed by a round of passionate sex. Alejandro, a rival drug dealer who threw the pennies at Nancy's car, confronts Lupita. After Lupita informs Nancy of the incident, Nancy confronts Alejandro in an alley; they have an unexpected round of sex before she threatens him with a BB gun. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "The Punishment Lighter" | Paul Feig | Matthew Salsberg | October 3, 2005 | |
| The sham bakery opens. Unfortunately, a security guard at Valley State who also deals drugs threatens to arrest Nancy, before stealing her $14,000 worth of pot. Nancy confides to Heylia and Conrad. Alejandro offers to professionally partner with Nancy. Silas bonds with Megan's father and begins to spend more time with her family. Nancy considers starting Shane on anti-depressants. Shane steals Silas' cigarette lighter, which is confiscated when he takes it to school. Silas angrily punches Shane for losing the lighter, as the lighter was a gift from Judah. Celia begins chemotherapy and reclaims her leadership position of the PTA. Nancy is surprised when the security guard, having been beat up, returns all of her pot. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "The Godmother" | Lev L. Spiro | Jenji Kohan | October 10, 2005 | |
| It is revealed that Conrad and his friends beat up the security guard; Heylia lectures Conrad over the fight and orders him to cut off all contact with Nancy. Silas reveals to Nancy that he knows she deals pot. Andy advises Nancy to inform Shane about her business, as Silas was angry about being lied to, but Nancy ignores his advice. Andy tells Doug that he enlisted into the Army Reserves in Colorado to impress a girl and "forgot" about it; Andy is now being ordered to report or face jail time. Celia shows her disapproval when Isabelle comes out as a lesbian. When Heylia refuses to start growing Conrad's new special strain of marijuana, Conrad approaches Nancy about becoming a grower. Nancy agrees, and the two form a team consisting of Dean, Doug, Alejandro, Sanjay, and Andy to work their operation. Nancy chooses to make time for Peter. After having sex, Nancy discovers that Peter works for the Drug Enforcement Administration. | ||||||
Reception
Reviews
The season received generally positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season of Weeds received 79%. The site's critics consensus reads: “Weeds is a cheeky comedy with dark, humorous, and sometimes outrageous moments centered around a talented female-led cast including Emmy winner Mary-Louise Parker.”[1] On Metacritic, the first season received a 70 out of 100, indicating generally favorable reviews.[2] Gillian Flynn of Entertainment Weekly spoke highly of Parker and Nealon's performances, and praised the acting of Perkins as Celia Hodes, writing “Perkins is so perfectly, nastily desperate that she gets away with it.”[3] David Wiegand of the San Francisco Chronicle also praised the acting of Parker and Perkins, and stated “Weeds may indeed be the best written new show of the year.”[4] Alessandra Stanley of The New York Times wrote "Weeds is well written and engrossing, and has a slick balance of satire and soap opera."[5] Ed Gonzalez of Slant Magazine gave a mixed review of the season, praising the performances of Perkins and Gould, but criticizing the characterization of Nancy, commenting: “There’s a sense that the writers of Weeds are as lazy as their main character, that they understand her as little as she seems to understand herself.” However, Gonzalez spoke highly of Parker's acting, writing “Parker brings a great performance to a less than one-dimensional part.”[6]
Some critics criticized the depiction of Heylia and her family, believing that the characters perpetuated harmful black stereotypes. Dana Stevens of Slate Magazine gave a positive review, but commented “the black characters, led by a sassy matriarch named Heylia [...] seemed to embody the most egregious of African-American stereotypes.”[7] In an NPR interview, commentator Betty Bayé stated “[Weeds is] the latest chapter in a long history of negative black stereotypes in the media.”[8] In response to the criticism, series creator Jenji Kohan commented that the characters of Heylia, Conrad and Vaneeta were inspired by her friends in Venice Beach, stating: “Heylia and her family are kind of [a] homage to that time in my life and those guys,” further commenting “I knew them, and this is my experience of how they spoke and how they related.”[9]
Accolades
The first season received numerous awards and nominations, including three Golden Globe Awards nominations with one win. Mary-Louise Parker won for Best Actress in a Television Series Musical or Comedy. The series was nominated for Best Television Series Musical or Comedy, and Elizabeth Perkins was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film. The show also received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations. It was nominated for Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series, Outstanding Main Title Design, Outstanding Single-camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series, Elizabeth Perkins was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, and Craig Zisk was nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series. Parker won a Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy Series, and Perkins was nominated for the same category.
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy | Mary-Louise Parker | Won | [10] |
| Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film | Elizabeth Perkins | Nominated | |||
| Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy | Weeds | Nominated | |||
| 2006 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series | Weeds | Nominated | [11] |
| Outstanding Main Title Design | Nominated | ||||
| Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series | Nominated | ||||
| Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series | Craig Zisk (for ‘’Good Shit Lollipop’’) | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | Elizabeth Perkins | Nominated |
References
- ^ "Weeds". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ "Weeds: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ Flynn, Gillian (August 5, 2005). "Weeds". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ Wiegand, David (August 5, 2005). "Smoldering frustrations in suburbs spark up in Showtime's superb 'Weeds'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ Stanley, Alessandra (August 5, 2005). "Mom Brakes for Drug Deals". The New York Times. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ Gonzalez, Ed (August 30, 2005). "Review: Weeds: Season One". Slant Magazine. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ Stevens, Dana (August 5, 2005). "Chronic Condition". Slate Magazine. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ "'Weeds' Continues to Grow Negative Stereotypes". NPR. August 16, 2005. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ Bolonik, Kera (August 7, 2007). In the Weeds: The Official Companion Book to the Hit Showtime Series. Simon Spotlight Entertainment. p. 5. ISBN 978-1416938781.
- ^ "Weeds". goldenglobes.com. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ "Weeds". emmys.com. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
External links
- Weeds at IMDb
- Weeds at epguides.com