Splitting Up and Stepping Back

Roswell Review of 'The Balance'

by Kate Ancel

copyright December 16, 1999

"This whole thing is going to work out. We just have to be prepared for whatever comes along."

The Balance was a beautiful blend of real-time events and dream-like sequences that filled in a lot of the missing pieces of the aliens' heritage. Thania St. John penned an emotional episode that gave us a closer look and deeper understanding of the dynamics of the relationship between Michael, Max and Isabel. With that, we were also given more clues as to what drives their interaction with those outside their little circle.

We were finally given the details of how Max, Isabel and Michael all met. The images of the small, frightened children wandering the desert looking for each other were vivid and completely in keeping with the teenagers they turned into. I could imagine Isabel taking Max's hand while they searched for Michael and Michael watching them from the cover of a rock while he made up his mind to trust them or not; Max urging Michael to take his hand when they saw the lights of the Evans' car; Michael, unwilling to trust anyone enough to go with them; and Isabel, crying every night about leaving him behind until they found him again three years later. The Balance ceremony not only allowed them to heal Michael in the present, but maybe also allowed them to heal the damage done in the past when Michael couldn't trust them and Max and Isabel were forced to leave him behind.

This look at their past helped us understand why Max feels so responsible for what happens to Michael. I think he feels guilty for having left him all those years ago and what Michael has had to live with as a result. This would explain Max's motivation in breaking up with Liz as well. It doesn't have as much to do with the fact that they are different, as it does with the fact that Liz distracts him from his responsibility to Michael and Isabel. He's not used to putting his own happiness above theirs; it throws him out of balance. He feels he should have been able to prevent Michael from going to the reservation alone, thus preventing the events that led to his illness. But he allowed himself to put that situation on the back burner for the night so he could enjoy an evening with Liz. And the result was almost fatal. Also, it was obvious that it tore him up to see Liz so afraid for him. I don't think he ever wants to be the cause of that kind of fear for her again.

Random Thoughts:

I was glad to see that Max did make a copy of the drawings on the cave wall. I was afraid after the last trip to the cave, he had just committed them to memory.

I've noticed that Michael and Isabel seem to set higher standards for Max to live up to than they do for themselves. They don't feel any need to make their own dating habits a group decision and yet they jump all over Max for even considering going on a real date with Liz. He shouldn't have to justify that to them. Maybe it's the fact that they are aware that, with Liz, it's not just casual dating. But I do think Michael's "I'll be just as trustworthy as Max" comment was way out of line.

In spite of Liz's brave words that they just need to be prepared for whatever happens, Maria is really the one who handled the whole crisis with aplomb. As worried as she was for Michael, she kept her head and didn't panic. She seemed to be the only one with any real clue how to treat the more obvious symptoms. Which is not really what I would have expected from the self-proclaimed wacky friend, but was glad to see, nonetheless.

I wonder what Michael's newfound determination not to run away from complications means for his relationship with Maria? Let's hope it means a return to each other and a more meaningful relationship.

Anyone else wonder who they left running the Crashdown when Liz and Maria went upstairs to help take care of Michael?

Dislikes:

• There was a complete lack of fallout over the fact that Liz let Alex in on the secret. Everyone just took it in stride. I know that Isabel had already come to the conclusion that he could be trusted, but Liz didn't know that when she told him. If it really wasn't that momentous, then why all the fuss about telling him in 'Blood Brothers'?
• I didn't completely buy into the foundation of Liz's fear. She's been such a strong character up to this point, taking things in stride that would unhinge a lot of people. It would have made more sense to me if there had been a more immediate threat to Max. I didn't really have a problem with her reaction to Michael's illness before they discovered the cause of it. Up to that point, it was perfectly natural for her to be afraid for Max. But what didn't work for me was how much more afraid she got after discovering that Michael's illness had been induced by River Dog. The possibility of a direct threat to Max had been removed and it seemed completely out of character to me that she would then let fear so overcome her that she would let Michael and more importantly, Max, down because of it. Of course, River Dog did make a small comment about there being some danger in the Balance ceremony that could have explained some of her fear. But she was afraid and hesitant even before that. The Liz we've come to know up to this point would have been trying to show support for Max and wanting to do whatever she could to help Michael, especially once River Dog was able to give them something concrete they could do.
• I was incredibly disappointed that we got such a little taste of Max and Liz together as a couple. I understand that the whole premise is that they are a Romeo and Juliet couple who must be kept apart, but couldn't we at least have had a whole episode to enjoy their couplehood?
• I wish that Isabel and Maria had given some explanation for how the cocoon started forming on Michael. Where did the cocoon material come from? Did it just appear out of thin air? It made a spooky visual, but I found myself needing more detail.
• Max really needs to stand up for himself a little more and stop letting Michael and Isabel ride roughshod over him. Michael guilt-trips him and Isabel bosses him around. I was hoping his "I don't know why I'm explaining myself to you" comment to Michael about the cave drawing was a positive sign of things to come.
• Small set inconsistency - the door and the closet in Max's bedroom miraculously switched walls.
• One last minor character nit-pick - Liz has an annoying habit of denying what she's really trying to say when she thinks that's not what the other person wants to hear. Which I guess we all do to a certain extent, but it's just really obvious when she does it. She either needs to stop doing it or get better about lying about it. She did it in this episode when Max asked her if she was worried the same thing would happen to him. She did it in 'Heat Wave' when she brought up the whole Michael and Maria situation and Max asked her if she was saying there was something going on between the two of them. I wish she would just say what's on her mind.

Likes:

• This was a great ensemble episode for all six of the main characters. Everyone had their own moment of brilliance and this was, for me, the best episode for the group as a whole.
• Director of Photography John Bartlett deserves high praise for the dream-like sequences in Michael's altered reality. The camera angles, the melding of the child and teenage aliens and the images of Michael wandering alone in the desert among oversized symbols and huge rocks were stunning.
• Maria sticking toothpicks in the alien voodoo doll was very funny and so very Maria.
• Despite his skepticism, and an unfortunate slip of the tongue in the UFO center, Alex came through like a trooper for them. He was the first one to step up to the circle to help Michael and took over the Crashdown so Liz and Maria could focus on the problems at hand. And I like the closer relationship that is developing between Alex and Isabel too.
• I was glad to see River Dog again. After his final warning to Liz at the end of 'River Dog', I wasn't sure if he would prove to be a friend or foe. Although, I do think there were probably safer ways to test Michael than a ceremony that could kill him if he did prove to be a 'visitor'. How did Max get so lucky with his test? All he had to do was make light with his hands.
• I loved the pool lesson. Liz and Max looked a lot more comfortable and relaxed with each other than we've seen up until now. Our Liz is quite the little pool shark. I especially loved that the only shot Max was able to make was with his eyes squeezed shut.
• I was glad to see Michael finally able to show the people he cares about what he's feeling. It was good to see something positive come out of the experience. Although, I would have liked to have seen more interaction between him and Liz in the Balance ceremony. We saw how much it meant to Max that she was finally able to participate, but I would have liked to see what it meant to Michael as well. I hope we get to see more development in that relationship in the future.
• The tug of war between Isabel and Maria over the care of Michael was both touching and at times, humorous. I always like to see Isabel's ice princess facade drop, allowing us to see the real person behind the perfection. She becomes a much more diverse and three dimensional character at those times. And Maria, for all her claims of being Teflon, is much more tied to Michael than she's willing to examine too closely.
• I love to see Max lose his temper. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, it makes an impression. He normally has such unhealthy control of his anger. It's refreshing to see that even he can lose it on occasion.
• The final scene was heartbreaking. Max's fear, confusion and defeat were vividly apparent, as were the raw edges of Liz's emotions. Jason and Shiri continue to amaze me. The haunting Jewel ballad provided a perfect background to the events as they unfolded. I was torn between empathy for the fear and guilt driving Max and deep sadness that stepping back from Liz was the only answer that made sense to him.

Favorite Quotes:

• Maria: "If it isn't Prince Charming and Quasimodo."

• Liz: "Max likes cherry cola. What does Michael like?"
• Maria: "Cherry cola with arsenic?"

• Max: "You broke up? Why didn't you tell me?"
• Michael: "I don't know if we did or we didn't. It's kind of confusing."
• Liz: "Cherry cola on the house"
• Maria: "Yours is $1.25"
• Michael: "I guess it's not so confusing anymore."

• Max: "What is it? Is something wrong?"
• Michael: "Compared to nuclear winter? No."

• Alex: "I've got two theories. One is that you and Liz have been brainwashed by a drug cult. The other is that I'm trapped inside some extremely weird, extremely long nightmare."

• Maria: "I guess when Liz got shot and Max dissolved the bullet to nothingness and repaired the damage inside her that would have otherwise resulted in her death, that kind of changed my thinking."

• Eddie: "She's not deaf. She's just not answering you.."

• Alex: "Why on earth, excuse the phrase, why would you be sent here to begin
• with? What purpose could you possibly serve?"
• Isabel: "To wipe out the world one annoying teenager at a time?"

• Isabel: "We're just as human as you are, Alex. Only we can manipulate the molecular structure of things."
• Alex: "What?"

• Isabel: "Look, the whole staring thing is making me uncomfortable."
• Alex: "What staring thing?"
• Isabel: "You haven't taken your eyes off me all night. Like you're waiting for me to turn into something else."

• Liz: "My parents are away for the weekend. They were going up to Phoenix and camping out. Something about Venus in the morning sky."
• Max: "Funny, I thought she was standing right in front of me."

• Isabel: "Alex, do you need a ride?"
• Alex: "What I really need is a sedative."

• Maria: "Oh, the non-human factor. What if they've, like, ruined it for us with anyone else? Leave it to Michael to just wreak havoc on the rest of my life even though he doesn't want any part of it."

• Maria: "Hey, I'm Teflon, babe."

• Max: "I don't want forgiveness. I want answers before my friend dies."

• Max: "When he first revealed himself to us, he was standing on this rock, just like you'd expect from Michael…'Here I am, deal with me.'"

Liz: "How is it possible I could be the happiest I've ever been in my entire life and now the saddest, all at one time?

• Max: "I think that's what being in love is."

I give this episode 4.5 UFOs out of 5.