“Faking It” 2.04: “Dramaaaa!

by John | October 15, 2014Previously on Faking It, Shane got a Brazilian:

 Karma craves the spotlight she lost after breaking up with Amy so she decides to audition for the Drama Club. Amy’s all for it but Karma’s in the midst of psyching herself out of it when Shane approaches, which Amy uses as an opportunity to lock Karma into the audition. Shane will also be auditioning and there’s only one open spot. I…don’t remember drama club being so coveted when I was in high school.

Shane shoos Karma away so he can spill to Amy that Liam spilled to him that they slept together and that the guilt is eating at Liam so badly that he’s about to tell Karma.



Amy Jedi mind tricks Liam’s address out of Shane and goes to confront him. They argue over whether the secret is Liam’s to tell or Amy’s to keep but are interrupted by Robin (Courtney Henggeler), Liam’s sister whom we met last season when the Booker family’s fake Google company tried to donate tech to the school. Amy tells her she’s Liam’s girlfriend and this prompts Robin to administer an impromptu makeover to ready Amy for the event planned for the day.

That event turns out to be the announcement of Robin’s engagement to a Congressman she met while testifying about Fauxgle’s position on net neutrality. Amy realizes Robin was at school when Liam staged his anti-Fauxgle rebellion. Robin has concealed that information from her father; Liam is on the outs with the family business at the moment but they’re hoping he’ll come around.

Amy finds Liam at the party and tries to extort a promise of silence in exchange for making a drama-free exit. Liam’s parents join them and Amy introduces herself as Liam’s girlfriend, who is pregnant. Kidding! She tells them they met at a school protest, prompting Liam to hustle her off.



She again demands his promise but instead he shoves her in a store room and locks the door.

Amy is rescued some time later by a cute cater-waiter retrieving party supplies. So, future love interest? Signs point to yes. Amy excuses herself to rejoin the party and gives Liam one last chance to promise before she causes a scene. He refuses so she slaps him. With all eyes on them Amy spills about the protest and spins it as Liam using it to get to her before sleeping with his best friend. Then the drinks start flying.

Liam’s dad (Kyle XY‘s Bruce Thomas) takes Liam aside and upbraids him for embarrassing them on a day that’s so important to his sister. Liam: “Don’t call her that.” Dad orders Liam to make it right and stalks out, oblivious to the presence of eavesdropping Amy.

Back at the party Amy offers Liam a “peace doughnut”. He accepts her doughnut but not her apology, saying it’s not necessary. He admires he for stirring things up and decides to stir some things himself. Calling for everyone’s attention, Liam apologizes for disrupting the party. He apologizes for being an artist instead of being obsessed with money and power. And he apologizes for being born. To Robin, who was 16 and pregnant. Grandma and Grandpa shipped her off to boarding school and raised him as their son. Amidst the stunned silence, Liam departs.

Amy follows him out, explaining she understands now why he’s so hung up on being honest. Liam says he wishes he could un-know the truth about his parentage but he can’t. He realizes he doesn’t want to tell Karma something she can’t un-know. They agree to keep their secret.

Everyone else is trying out for Drama Club, including Oliver (August Roads), Amy’s attempted secret boyfriend from season one. He’s only there on the advice of his therapist. Troy is on tech crew and his and Lauren’s flirtation proceeds apace. Suddenly, she appears. Producer, director and curator of the Hester High School Drama Club, Margo.


The “Channing” is implied

Special guest star Laverne Cox is serving Debbie Allen from Fame realness and the children are eating it with spoons. First up is the vocal audition. She orders them all to tear up their sheet music for they will all be performing the quintessential audition song, “Tomorrow” from Annie. Each auditioner gets a phrase or two to belt and I have a PTSD flashback to the time I helped select acts for my 6th grade talent show. Every single girl sang “Tomorrow” and every single boy sang “The Rainbow Connection”.

The horror

Margo pronounces Karma the girl to beat. Next up is the dance audition and the sight of Shane shimmying around the stage in a tight white wife beater is making me very happy. The final stage of the audition is Interview. Shane tanks it, telling some weak story about watching TV with his dad that sends Margo to sleep. His punt to “I’m a quarter Filipino; I struggle with it” avails him nothing and Margo orders him from the stage.

Next up is Lauren. Margo tags her as another pretty white girl with no real problems and Lauren pushes back. She seems about ready to come out as intersex but when she spots Troy in the wings she retreats to “perfectionist”. Margo questions her about her pills and Lauren claims they’re vitamins.

Karma starts in with a story of how her parents don’t make a lot of money selling juice off a truck but Margo cuts her off and asks her instead to discuss the pain of her recent breakup. Karma tries to breeze through but Margo is not having it. Karma breaks down and confesses that she isn’t a lesbian, that she only said she was out of insecurity and the need for friendship and attention.

After the audition Shane approaches Karma, saying he admires her honesty. He wouldn’t go so far as to call them friends but he does feel a lot more empathetic toward her. He does question whether someone with her pathological need to be liked and popular should be an actress.

Then we check in with Lauren and Troy’s romance. Yup, still brewin’.

Or should I say smokin’

Margo posts the cast list. Shocker, the new drama club member is the only non-principal cast member who auditioned, Oliver.

So close. We came so close to getting through an entire episode without rehashing Amy and Karma’s relationship. But at least it was in service of Karma’s audition so I’ll allow it. I called the Chinatown-style sister/mama drama with Liam early but it’s still an interesting twist that explains why he’s been so insistent on honesty. I haven’t watched beyond the first episode of Orange Is the New Black (sorry Jenji Cohen, Weeds still hurts) so haven’t seen much of Laverne Cox’s chops before now. Girl’s got skills. I wouldn’t mind seeing her return in some sort of mentoring role for the kids.

Looks like next week we meet Shane’s new squeeze. Who’s excited?

Tags: Faking It, Faking It recap, Faking It recaps, Gregg Sulkin, IMDb, Laverne Cox, Michael J. Willett, TV Recaps

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