TeeJay

I can't say too much about this episode, since Joan and Erica wrote it and I "only" acted as editor and contributor to some scenes. However, I would like to explain to you--the readers--why it took us over two months to post this one. You wouldn't believe the details we discuss, and how much discussion back and forth one little comment can cause! Let me give you an example:

In scene #15 there's a dialogue between Alex and Isabel. At first Erica commented that for one of Isabel's lines she would rather use the word "thought" instead of "think". That fired up a wild discussion about Isabel's attitude and point of view. Then one of the beta readers commented that in the same scene, Isabel wouldn't say a certain phrase the way she did. An almost 4 pages long discussion ensued about this. :o)

We like to take suggestions seriously and are always considering different options if someone is not happy with the way a scene or a line is written. So, as you can probably imagine, it can take a long time until we come to a consensus. I'm pretty sure a lot of readers are eagerly awaiting new episodes; I have been in the same position myself, waiting for the continuation of a particular fan fiction story or novel series. Our aim is to write stories that are thought through and that we feel continue the premise and the spirit that Roswell's first season established. We're doing our best to stick to this goal; I hope it's worth the wait for all the avid readers out there.

Joan Pickering

Because a number of our beta testers voiced concern over the Michael/Maria break-up and the Isabel/Alex/Kyle triangle (concerned that they might be plot devices) I thought I would share with you how they came about and where we are going with them. Note: my explanation for these events might be considered a mini spoiler, so if you are a "purest" you may not want to read further. ;-)

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First the break-up. Now, I know it's hard to forget all that came after Sexual Healing but try to remember that in our Roswelliverse they've only broken up once--Heat Wave. :-) Actually, it wasn't my intention to break them up, the scene just sort of wrote itself. It grew out of the scene where Amy tells Michael her concerns about their relationship. When writing that scene, I was thinking about what Amy said to Maria in ID: "No, not 'whatever'. Maria, as you so subtly pointed out last night, my history with men has pretty much been a train wreck. And I don't want you to make the same mistakes. Now, I can't go back and change my life, but I will be damned if I watch yours go down the same way. I love you too much." Therefore, I felt that her main concern was that M&M would do something that would ruin Maria's chances for a happier future, so she would want to make sure that Michael would not do anything that would hurt Maria. After having Amy tell Michael that she didn't want Maria getting hurt, it reminded me of Michael's statement to Max in Heat Wave: "But all week long I've had this weird feeling. Like I was gonna hurt her or something. That just being who I am is gonna hurt her." I felt that having Amy mention it too would make Michael realize that he was right--Maria is going to get hurt just by virtue of who he is. Although Michael broke up with Maria in Heat Wave, it was because of his fear that Maria was getting under his skin, breaking through his stone wall facade, not his fear of hurting her. In this case it is his fear that she will be hurt. The break-up seemed to me the natural course of action for Michael; it would be how he would deal with it, just as he did in Destiny. This scene also made me realize that we need to address the fact that the humans are risking their lives by being friends, and more, with the aliens and why they are willing to do so and also how the aliens feel about it.

Now the "triangle". In the first sixteen episodes, it was indicated that Isabel dated but only casually, not letting anyone get close. They also indicated that she was curious about Alex but, although he knew her "secret", she was not yet ready to let him in on a more emotional level. I wanted to show Isabel's transition from keeping her relationships with guys at arm's length and casual, to starting to let someone in and felt Kyle would be a good vehicle for that. Isabel had a good first date with Alex but does not let herself dwell on it. She notices that she is starting to have feelings for Alex that she's not used to and it scares her. She dreamwalks Kyle to see what he's up to and, subconsciously, to distract her from thoughts of Alex. Like her dreamwalk of Alex, she is pleasantly surprised by Kyle; she realizes that he has depths she hadn't seen before. She also senses that a relationship with Kyle would be casual--safer. Part of her wants to keep dating guys that she can just have fun with, but another part of her is intrigued by the feelings she has with Alex. My personal feelings are that Isabel uses Alex's awkwardness and insecurities as an excuse to not allow herself to get too close, but as Alex grows and becomes more sure of himself, she will find it much harder to resist. :-)