SIX FEET UNDER: A COAT OF WHITE PRIMER {FIFTH SEASON PREMIERE} (TV)
Summary
The fifth season premiere in this series about the Fisher clan, a loving -- if dysfunctional -- family struggling to maintain a sense of normalcy in the face of the stressful day-to-day operations of the eccentric family business, a funeral home in Los Angeles. In this episode, Andrea Kuhn learns a valuable lesson from her therapist and begins repairing her familial relationships, but she is accidentally killed by her husband during their confrontation. Brenda, now pregnant, watches the video footage of Nate's wedding to Lisa, and he assures her that their own upcoming ceremony will be different. Elsewhere, George is hospitalized and diagnosed with depressive psychosis, and he undergoes electro-convulsive therapy when the medications fail to work effectively. Rico takes an interest in Janine, Andrea's grieving sister, revealing that he has been dating frequently since his official split with Vanessa. Billy invites Claire to move in with him, as they have been dating for several months, and Ruth declines to attend Nate and Brenda's wedding-eve dinner, adding that George is "not himself yet" and cannot attend the ceremony.
Keith and David arrive for the party, noting that Ruth and Claire are at odds because of her relationship with Billy and decision to take a semester off of school, and Rico has dinner with Sharon, a sweet-tempered dental hygienist. Keith and David discuss their progress in adopting a child, though the conversation becomes uncomfortable when Keith hints that he would prefer a child who is biologically theirs through surrogacy. Rico returns home and talks with Ruth, admitting that he has never truly dated before, and as they sneak a joint together Claire tells her brothers that Billy is "in a good place" with his mental illness, though Nate makes his doubts clear. Brenda then suffers a miscarriage in the night and decides to postpone the D&C until after the wedding, and Claire seems to consider her own misgivings as she imagines Billy's violent jealousy over his sister. David and Keith browse through files of potential surrogates, but after considering several questionable "bachelorettes," David admits that he cannot go through with the process. Vanessa declines Rico's invitation to attend the wedding, telling him that he needs "a real date," though he states that none of his recent girlfriends have been her equal.
George arrives home and shows signs of significant memory loss, though he is determined to attend "his only son's" wedding. Brenda is crushed by her loss but tells Nate that she cannot bear the additional humiliation of canceling or postponing the wedding, and they decide to go through with it after all. Margaret discovers the truth about the miscarriage and uncharacteristically comforts her daughter, assuring her that many women have losses before having a healthy baby. David suggests that Nate should take time to grieve before trying for another pregnancy, though Nate declares that the baby is "for her" and that it must happen again immediately. The two are finally married on a seaside cliff, though Ruth is distracted by thoughts of her own happy wedding, and Claire questions Billy about his feelings on his sister's marriage. Rico tells his date, Sharon, that he is "better with someone special," and Ruth lashes out at Claire when she takes a seemingly insensitive photo of George and frantically tells Nate that there is "no one else" to care for her husband now. David and Keith happily decide to have two children, one adopted and one via surrogacy, though elsewhere Brenda is visited by an embittered Lisa, who mocks her loss and suggests that she is being "punished" for her promiscuity and cannot have a "happily ever after," though Brenda counters that she is alive and with Nate, unlike Lisa. Brenda tells Nate that she does not deserve an idyllic wedding and that something else will surely go wrong, but he remains convinced of their happy future together. All of the couples take to the dance floor, though Claire snaps a photo of Nate in a moment of doubt. Once alone, he finally allows himself to mourn the lost child.
Details
- NETWORK: HBO
- DATE: June 6, 2005 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:54:32
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:87342
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: LGBT Collection; Drama; Comedy; Families
- SERIES RUN: HBO - TV series, 2001-2005
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Robert Greenblatt … Executive Producer
- David Janollari … Executive Producer
- Alan Poul … Executive Producer
- Bruce Eric Kaplan … Executive Producer
- Rick Cleveland … Executive Producer
- Alan Ball … Executive Producer, Created by, Director
- Scott Buck … Co-Executive Producer
- Jill Solloway … Co-Executive Producer
- Kate Robin … Supervising Producer, Writer
- Lori Jo Nemhauser … Producer
- Robert Del Valle … Producer
- Craig Wright … Producer
- Nancy Oliver … Co-Producer
- Michael Carroll … Associate Producer
- Rodrigo Garcia … Director
- Richard Marvin … Music by
- Thomas Newman … Theme Music by
- Peter Krause … Cast, Nate Fisher
- Michael C. Hall … Cast, David Fisher
- Frances Conroy … Cast, Ruth Fisher
- Lauren Ambrose … Cast, Claire Fisher
- Freddy Rodriguez … Cast, Federico "Rico" Diaz
- Mathew St. Patrick … Cast, Keith Charles
- Justina Machado … Cast, Vanessa Diaz
- James Cromwell … Cast, George Sibley
- Rachel Griffiths … Cast, Brenda Chenowith
- Lili Taylor … Cast, Lisa Kimmel Fisher
- Jeremy Sisto … Cast, Billy Chenowith
- Joanna Cassidy … Cast, Margaret Chenowith
- Catherine O'Hara … Cast, Carol Ward
- Tina Holmes … Cast, Maggie Sibley
- Peter Macdissi … Cast, Olivier Castro-Staal
- Veronica Cartwright … Cast, Peg Kimmel
- Julie Dretzin … Cast, Barb
- Jeff Yagher … Cast, Hoyt
- Jenna Fischer … Cast, Sharon Kinney
- Chris Harrison … Cast, Himself
- Maggie Baird … Cast, Andrea Kuhn
- Janice Lynde … Cast, Woman in Turquoise
- Anil Kumar … Cast, Dr. Perry Amaral
- Kate McGregor-Stewart … Cast, Andrea's Therapist
- Mark Harelik … Cast, Leonard
- Tim Maculan … Cast, Father Jack
- Steffani Brass … Cast, Michaela
- Annie Fitzgerald … Cast, Janine
- Deborah Offner … Cast, Dr. Melnick
- Joy Highsmith … Cast, Nurse
- Elizabeth Storm … Cast, Andrea's Friend
- J.J. Gales … Cast, Andrea's Father
- Elizabeth Atkins … Cast, Sierra
- Leyna Juliet Weber … Cast, Dee Dee
- Amber Willenborg … Cast, Lindsay
- DeVera Marcus … Cast, Justice of the Peace
- Giancarlo Rodriguez … Cast, Julio Diaz
- Brenna Tosh … Cast, Maya Fisher
- Bronwyn Tosh … Cast, Maya Fisher