Origin of the Name: Not from C.E. Forman's "Driven Wild" fanfic, at least not directly. When I started writing, he nicknamed me Kara "Driven" Wild (for obvious reasons). I was searching for a name for my fast-growing continuum, and Driven Wild Universe just felt right.
Number of Intended "Episodes": 22, for a "full" season of Daria
Timeline: Between 1 and 1.5 years, from the time Daria is a junior and Quinn a sophomore to the time Daria is a senior and Quinn a junior. Actual months aren't given in the DWU (at least rarely), though the year break occurs between "In Her Own Words" and "All But Forgotten," and "All But Forgotten"/"Memory Road" take place around Labor Day. Since in the DWU timeline, Daria's sophomore year was 1997-98, the DWU opens in the fall or winter of 1998 and concludes in 1999.
Of course, since the series was written over such a long span of time, there can't help but be anachronisms. For instance, the Columbine High School killings happened in late spring of 1999, yet are referred to as early as "Andrea Speaks!" In order for the tragedy to fit into the DWU timeline, AS! plus the fics that follow until "All But Forgotten" would have had to take place over a month or two, which is... impossible. So to explain that discrepancy and others... a wizard did it!
Point of Divergence from the Series: After Episode 307 "Daria!". Episode 308 is "Lane Miserables," where Daria getting over Trent was already covered in "'Shipped Out." Otherwise, everything from Episodes 101 through 307 (if "Daria!" can even be considered canon) happened in the Driven Wild Universe as well. Everything on Beavis and Butt-head happened. Some select incidents after 307 also happen, such as the fieldtrip in "Antisocial Climbers," Andrea working for Pay Day, and Jane dating Tom. However, since they happen in a different storyline, they wouldn't have unfolded in the same way. For instance, Quinn would be Fashion Club president by the time "Antisocial Climbers" came about, and there is no Love Triangle in the DWU... at least not between Daria, Jane, and Tom.
No Love Triangle? Do You Hate Tom That Much?: During the Love Triangle trilogy, I really did hate him that much, but that's beside the point. By the time Daria started dating Tom in the actual series, I hadn't laid any groundwork for them to become a couple, and thought that having them date out of the blue would throw the series continuity out of whack. I therefore had Tom stay with Jane, which helped me respect him more as a character.
Themes/Events in the Series that the DWU "Predicted":
1) Quinn finds her inner brain ("Of Absolute Value"/"Charge of the Math Brigade"; "Is It Fall Yet?"/"Lucky Strike")
2) Daria gets over Trent ("'Shipped Out"; "Lane Miserables")
3) Jane flirts with conformity ("Outvoted"; "The 'F' Word")
4) The Fashion Club breaks up ("Andrea Speaks!"/"Cheered Down"; "Fat Like Me"/"Is It College Yet?")
Quinn's zealous math teacher, who believes in pushing Quinn to her personal limits, but may have more than just her well-being in mind. As much a stereotype as any other teacher at Lawndale, he is a proper, priggish Englishman, who nonetheless evades two-dimensionality with his dry wit and occasional soft side.
First Appearance: "Andrea Speaks!"
Notable Appearance(s): "Of Absolute Value," "Charge of the Math Brigade," "Into the Fire," "Tomorrow Never Knows"
Memorable Quote: "You know something, Ms. Morgendorffer, you were right: we are two of a kind. We both are willing to do what we can to go that extra mile, whatever it takes to win. Just as long as we first put our eye on that finish line." ("Charge of the Math Brigade")
Quinn's teammate on the Lawndale High mathletics squad and uber-nerd. He first appeared as a potential boyfriend for Daria in "'Shipped Out," before Jane and Daria became too weirded out by his love of taxidermy and L. Ron Hubbard. He is also a huge Star Trek fan. Though a little strange, his heart is in the right place.
First Appearance: "'Shipped Out"
Notable Appearance(s): "'Shipped Out," "Charge of the Math Brigade"
Memorable Quote: "I greet you with the traditional Kling'on welcome. My Kling'on name is Smartok, but you may call me by my Earth name -- Barry Bukowski." ("Charge of the Math Brigade")
Helen's conservative father, who passed his workaholic tendencies on to his daughter. Helen idolized him in childhood, but as an adult, has a more measured view of his strengths and weaknesses. A World War II veteran, he served in the army for several years before taking over the family business the year Amy was born. His chief characteristics are a gruff, grouchy persona and a strong physical resemblance to his youngest daughter.
First Appearance: "The Age of Cynicism"
Notable Appearance(s): "The Age of Cynicism"
Memorable Quote: "Maybe not, but at least I've got the family business to fall back on. What do you have? A lot of "peace" and "love" and froo-loo-loo that won't get you anywhere by the end of the day." ("The Age of Cynicism")
The unofficial leader of Lawndale's underground student newspaper and a former student at Lawndale High. He struggles to balance his pride in the newspaper's integrity with a hunger for more recognition.
First Appearance(s): "In Her Own Words"
Notable Appearance(s): "In Her Own Words"
Memorable Quote: "Our paper reflects our status, which, of course, is that of pathetic misfits. So of course it's gonna to cover things that are nowhere near the usual school rags, or even in the local paper. And, of course, it's gonna be a lot better than the other papers." ("In Her Own Words")
Helen's crusty mother, with whom she has a chilly relationship. She loves her daughters more than she would ever let on, but dotes on Rita the most because she seems to need her the most.
(Note that the name "Evelyn" is original to the Driven Wild Universe. Originally, to preserve continuity between my fics and those of other authors, I combed through C.E. Forman's "Alienation Legacy" in search of Helen's mother's name. I thought I saw "Evelyn" and thus made it her name, crediting C.E. in the forward for "None in the Family, Part One." Later, C.E. told me that I was mistaken; he hadn't given Helen's mother a name.)
First Appearance: "None in the Family"
Notable Appearance(s): "None in the Family," "The Age of Cynicism"
Memorable Quote: "Sometimes I found his perfectionism very hard to take. But he wasn't evil and he didn't make you three what you are. Honestly -- sometimes I can't believe how spoiled you've become." ("None in the Family, Part Two")
Helen's sculpting instructor, whom she first met as a fellow student in Amanda Lane's art class. Perceptive and interested in others' lives, he soon becomes Helen's confidante.
First Appearance: "'Breaking the Mold"
Notable Appearance(s): "Breaking the Mold," "An Uneasy Marriage"
Memorable Quote: "You seem to have made something that captures people's interest. Maybe you're not the poor sculptor you thought you were." ("Breaking the Mold")
Amy's boyfriend, with whom she has had a fractious but loving relationship. They break up briefly during "None in the Family," but by "Erin the Head" are reunited. Joel is an engineer who tends to be more exacting than Amy, but is also more of a risk taker. His passions include computers and playing jazz on the clarinet... and, of course, Amy.
First Appearance: "The Tie That Chokes"
Notable Appearance(s): "That Thing You Say," "All But Forgotten," "Memory Road"
Memorable Quote: "I don't share my feelings when asked, but I make others share theirs when they don't want to. If that's not asshole behavior, I don't know what is. " ("Memory Road")
An administrator at Fielding Preparatory Academy who provides Daria with disturbing information about Phelps's past, fueling her desire to put a stop to his activities in the present.
First Appearance: "Into the Fire"
Notable Appearance(s): "Into the Fire," "Tomorrow Never Knows"
Memorable Quote: "It's already too late. I've already lost too much of myself over the past fifteen years -- there's nothing left for you to take." ("Tomorrow Never Knows")
A student at Lawndale High and a writer for the underground newspaper. Scruffy in appearance, he is also laconic and stand-offish, inviting few friends. He does, however, see enough potential in Daria to invite her to join the underground paper.
First Appearance: "In Her Own Words"
Notable Appearance(s): "In Her Own Words"
Memorable Quote: "I know how to write. Just not for O'Neill's class: where a ten year old could turn in an assignment and get an A." ("In Her Own Words")
Clarence: Quinn's fellow mathlete and friend of Barry in "Charge of the Math Brigade." Defining characteristic: a bad stutter.
Danny: An angry staffer in "In Her Own Words," who wants the underground paper to get more publicity.
Denise: Trent's Gothic girlfriend in "'Shipped Out," whose romance with him is short-lived.
Editor: The editor of the Lawndale Lowdown, who is vapid and egotistical, caring little about producing a paper with meaningful content. First seen in "Breaking the Mold."
Investigator: The person who interviews the Morgendorffers about their relationship with Phelps in order to make a case in "Tomorrow Never Knows."
Jimmy: Rita's apathetic, scornful performance artist boyfriend, who made in appearance in "None in the Family" and "Erin the Head."
Jon: A former student of Phelps who, in "Tomorrow Never Knows," gives Quinn some details about their recent past, then thanks Quinn for helping him make a big decision.
Officer(s): Lawndale police officers who, alternately, deliver Quinn home safely to her parents, process her at the police station for a "clean case," then question Phelps in "Tomorrow Never Knows."
Skip: The sleazy mastermind behind "Real World" knock-off, "Class Land" (in "Surreal World").
Larry: A smug, lazy, vapid staffer on the Lawndale Lowdown, first seen in "Breaking the Mold," then again briefly in "In Her Own Words."
Minister: The 40-something leader of a Unitarian Universalist group that Sandi attends in "Tomorrow Never Knows."
Mr. Nelson: Quinn and Daria's new history teacher, following their transfer out of DeMartino's class in "Into the Fire." Expresses concern about Quinn's incomplete assignments in "Tomorrow Never Knows."
Mr. Norbert: A jolly, tactless neighbor of the Barksdales who likes to tell stories and reminds Helen of a painful childhood experience in "None in the Family, Part One."
Mr. Petersen: An annoying neighbor of the Barksdales who treats Amy like a five year old in "None in the Family, Part One."
Skip: The sleazy mastermind behind "Real World" knock-off, "Class Land" (in "Surreal World").
Professor Jameson: A math professor at Bromwell who gives Quinn a midterm exam to test her ability in "Tomorrow Never Knows."
Skip: The sleazy mastermind behind "Real World" knock-off, "Class Land" (in "Surreal World").
Squiggley: Quinn's fellow mathlete and friend of Barry in "Charge of the Math Brigade." Defining characteristic: extremely wishy-washy.
Therapist: The unfortunate person who, in "Into the Fire," tried to get Helen and Jake to talk to each other rationally during a family therapy session. At least her walls are still standing...
Rose-Colored Lenses (April 1999)
Quinn gets her first eye exam in six years and learns that her vision has gone into steep decline. As a result, she will need to wear glasses for the rest of her life (contacts for her astigmatism don't yet exist). Naturally this throws Quinn's life into turmoil, as she is convinced that being a glasses-wearing geek will destroy her popularity, and the Fashion Club proves her right by dropping her. Meanwhile, Helen tries to get Daria to show that it's okay to change your appearance by having her wear her contact lenses to school, and Daria is overwhelmed by new attention from her teachers and peers.
Quinn finally decides to throw away her glasses and lies to the Fashion Club that the eye doctor messed up her exam. Daria, however, soon discovers Quinn's lie when she sees Andrea wearing Quinn's glasses (which she recovered from the garbage). She corners Quinn and gets her to admit that she doesn't completely hate her glasses, because they make her aware of the wider world around her. Nonetheless, by the story's end, Quinn continues to avoid wearing them, and Daria has returned to wearing glasses. Everything is back to normal... or is it?
The Tie That Chokes (May 1999)
Amy's absence at Erin's housewarming party prompts Helen to invite her to Lawndale for a weekend visit. Once Amy arrives, however, Helen has second thoughts when she sees how quickly and easily Amy bonds with Daria, getting her to open up about feelings (like her crush on Trent) that Helen could never coax out of her. As the visit progresses, Helen grows more and more resentful. Meanwhile, during a tour of Lawndale with Daria and Quinn, Amy has to pretend to be Daria's mother to fool the Fashion Club after an unexpected run-in. This appears to have no consequences, until Helen agrees to go out with Amy for a night of sisterly bonding. The evening starts out well, with Helen and Amy bonding over desert, Amy gently putting Helen's fears to rest about Daria, and both women dodging an encounter with a lusty Upchuck. Once Helen decides to humiliate her rival, Linda Griffin, however, things start to unravel. Amy pretends to be a super-successful businesswoman to make Linda jealous, only to have her prank turn almost violent, forcing Helen to intervene. When Linda learns Amy's true identity, she welcomes her as Daria's mother (thanks to Sandi). On the way home, Helen and Amy get into a huge fight, with an angry and hurt Helen accusing Amy of being a terrible role model for Daria, and Amy accusing her of being neurotic and tightly-wound, the reason she hasn't introduced her to her boyfriend, Joel. Although Helen finally admits that Amy isn't the cause of her sub-par relationship with Daria, she refuses to reconcile with her sister, and Amy leaves the Morgendorffer house with a heavy heart.
Still upset and regretful about her blow-up with Amy, Helen has been on the warpath. The other Morgendorffers wisely stay out of her way, until Helen discovers one of Daria's discarded poems comparing her to a violent beast. Clearly hurt, she tells Daria that sometimes she wonders if Daria even loves her. Daria is stunned by her mother's raw feelings, and decides that she needs to act quickly. She summons Quinn, and they practice saying "I love you" in front of the mirror, only for Daria to discover that she is completely unable to say the words. The next morning, Quinn manages to choke them out and is rewarded by Helen's grateful affection. However, when Daria tries to say them, rather than speak "I love you," she uses sign language. Helen considers this to be a cop-out, which just makes her angrier. Meanwhile Quinn, having scored with Helen, decides to see how Jake would respond to the three words. Jake's reaction goes beyond her wildest dreams when he gives her his platinum credit card for the day.
At school, Quinn shows the Fashion Club her newfound wealth and they decide to cut class to go to the Mall of the Millennium, where Sandi, Stacy, and Tiffany mooch off of Quinn until the card is maxed out. Daria and Helen, meanwhile, still nurse hurt feelings over their morning encounter, with Daria feeling that Helen hasn't been selfless enough to deserve her open affection, and Helen feeling that Daria has been blind to her many sacrifices. Over dinner, the two finally come to blows, with Daria accusing Helen of putting herself before anyone else, leaving them in violent moods the next day. Meanwhile Quinn, in trouble over the credit card, tries to get her friends to return their clothes, only to be shot down. Daria finally realizes that Helen does mean a lot to her and decides that she needs to tell her in her own way. She goes to visit Trent, who helps her write a song about how she feels. Helen, in turn, realizes that not all affection needs to be spoken when she gets an unexpected phone call from Amy's boyfriend Joel, who is worried about Amy and calling Helen behind her back. Helen goes home in a forgiving mood, and she and Daria apologize to one another. Then Trent plays Daria's song, and all is right between them again. Later, Helen calls Amy and they reconcile.
Daria is having sexual dreams about Trent, and Jane urges her to tell Trent her true feelings before he finds a girlfriend. As Daria fantasizes about her and Trent eloping and starting happy new life, she and Jane walk to the Lane house to meet him. There, they learn that the unthinkable has happened, and Trent does have a new girlfriend. Daria is devastated, and Jane tries to get her to rebound by inviting a nerdish guy, Barry, over to their lunch table. However, Barry's love of taxidermy and L. Ron Hubbard prove to be too much for them, and the meeting goes down in flames. Meanwhile, Daria's fantasies about her future life with Trent are growing less and less flattering. Trent is a lazy bum with whom she has nothing in common, prompting Marcello, Daria's fantasy husband from "Write Where It Hurts," to make an appearance and beg her to leave him. In reality, Daria decides to take Quinn's advice about making Trent jealous, and goes out on a day trip with him, Jane, and his new girlfriend, Denise.
On the trip, Daria pretends that Barry is her devoted boyfriend, with whom she wants to break up in order to date someone more mature, but a clueless Trent is regretful that she would leave such a great guy. Meanwhile, though Denise first appears to be shallow and vapid, she turns out to be genuinely nice, with plans for the future. Daria discovers that she can't hate her, and decides it's time to finally give up her crush on Trent. Unbeknownst to her, Denise is realizing that she and Trent don't have a future either, and they soon break up. Jane tells Daria the news, but rather than use it as an excuse to make another play at him, Daria decides that she would prefer to just be friends.
Daria becomes intrigued by mysterious Goth Girl Andrea, especially after Andrea compares her to Quinn in an unflattering way. With almost uncharacteristic urgency, Daria tries to get to know her better. She finally goes over to Andrea's house to share poetry, where she learns that behind her forbidding, artistic facade lies an intense fear of rejection and mistrust of mainstream society. Daria relates, remembering all of the times she herself has been rejected.
Meanwhile, Quinn, Stacy, and Tiffany learn that the Fashion Club charter dictates that they are supposed to hold regular elections. Quinn therefore decides to run against Sandi for Fashion Club president. She pulls out all the stops, but can't quite shake her fear that she will be labeled a nerd because of her glasses (which she refuses to wear) and her recent improvement in school. After seeing one of the cheerleaders in glasses, Quinn decides to sneak hers on during a movie in class, only to be found out later and humiliated during one of the election "debates." Quinn is devastated and forced to resign from the club. Daria tries to lift her spirits by arranging for popular people like Jodie, Mack, Kevin, and Brittany to tell her that she looks fine in glasses and that there is life after the Fashion Club. Daria catches Andrea observing her, and decides to tell her that she's not as cynical as Andrea, that she does have faith in other people, and she's okay with that. Andrea warns her to be wary of any "redemption" from Quinn.
Brittany decides to cheer Quinn up by inviting her to join the cheerleading squad. Quinn accepts, and uses the opportunity to get the other cheerleaders to make her their leader, prompting an outraged Brittany to quit.
As Lawndale High's new head cheerleader, Quinn enjoys even greater popularity than before, and has the other cheerleaders wrapped around her little finger. However, she has a big problem: She doesn't know how to do any of the routines, something (Daria points out) that will bite her in the ass before too long. Quinn hopes that she can get by on flattery and makeovers, while a cynical Daria laments that her sister will never choose depth when she could choose popularity.
Brittany, meanwhile, sees her chance to get even with Quinn when Sandi and the Fashion Club hold open her spot to a new member. Brittany competes with also-ran Brooke for the open position, showing as little aptitude for fashion as Quinn does for cheerleading. One afternoon, Brittany makes a surprise visit to the cheerleading squad and does a routine that blows everyone away, forcing Quinn to realize how in over her head she is. Yet rather than give up her position as head cheerleader, Quinn becomes more determined to succeed than ever, telling Daria that she doesn't know what she would be if she couldn't be popular. Working overtime, Quinn at last masters the routines and impresses everyone at a rally for the Big Game with Cumberland. However, after a jealous sparring with Brittany, Quinn is forced to prove that she is a full-fledged cheerleader by doing the splits. She succeeds, but pulls several muscles as a result and is in terrible pain. Helen, worried about her falling grades as well as her physical health, forbids her from cheering at the Big Game. Quinn ignores her and sneaks out anyway, but barely keeps herself together as the game progresses. Meanwhile, Brittany regrets her nastiness and tells Jodie that she'll let Quinn remain as head cheerleader, while Stacy and Tiffany get more and more fed up with Sandi's domineering attitude. Quinn finally decides to participate in one cheer -- the pyramid -- and pays the price by falling off and fracturing her arm.
Later, Quinn tells Daria that she knows Daria wants her to be a brain because of the glasses, but she chooses not to because she doesn't know how to be one and is scared that she doesn't have any inner depth. Daria is disappointed, but grateful that Quinn is at least deep enough to know that she should be deeper. Back at school, Quinn tells Brittany that she's giving up the position of head cheerleader, while Sandi (under heavy goading by Stacy and Tiffany) decides to let Quinn back into the Fashion Club. But when she offers Quinn a position below Stacy, Stacy and Tiffany decide to finally hold the Fashion Club election and vote for Quinn as president, leaving Sandi out in the cold.
None in the Family, Part One: The Old Man (August 1999)
The Morgendorffers take a weekend trip to Helen's childhood home for Grandma Barksdale's fiftieth wedding anniversary party. Once there, Helen gets embarrassed by old neighbors who remember when she was young; Amy grudgingly reveals to her mother and sisters that she had a longtime boyfriend, but that she and Joel broke up over deep disagreements; and Jake keeps making one mistake after another. Tensions mount between Helen and Jake, until a story that reminds Helen of bad moments with her beloved father causes her to lash out at him. Stunned and humiliated, Jake retreats to the den, where photographs of the dynamic, successful Grandpa Barksdale prompt him to adapt his more authoritarian approach. Meanwhile, Amy, who is there to witness Jake's worship of her father, tells Daria that she remembers a different man -- a cold, distant one who never got over his disappointment that his youngest daughter wasn't the son he had always wanted.
Amy further realizes how much she misses her boyfriend, remembering all of the considerate things he did for her. Hearing this, Daria is upset with her aunt for not telling her she had a boyfriend, feeling that it underscores an imbalance in their relationship, since Daria told Amy everything about her feelings for Trent.
After his "pep-talk" with Grandpa Barksdale, Jake finds Helen and blows up at her in front of a room full of people for being a controlling "tyrant." Helen, in turn, accuses Jake of being lazy and incompetent, botching nearly every chance he's been given to prove his worth as a husband and father. They finally conclude that they could use some time apart, and Jake winds up driving Daria and Quinn home in a rage, leaving Helen with her mother and sisters.
None in the Family, Part Two: Unmasked (August 1999)
Alone with Jake, Daria and Quinn contend with his new authoritarian approach to parenting. Meanwhile, Helen nurses her anger over their encounter, unwilling to make up with Jake even after Grandma Barksdale and Rita urge her to forgive him. Helen does, however, get Amy to detail her break-up with Joel, which she says was due to the fact that he was too controlling. While he had many loving qualities, his exacting nature reminded her too much of her father, and she didn't want the same sort of conditional relationship with Joel that she had with him. Amy's portrayal of the late Grandpa Barksdale make Helen and Rita uncomfortable, but they soon confess that they found him distant and controlling as well. Helen adds that one main reason she married Jake was because he was much gentler than her father. She is starting to miss him.
Meanwhile, Jake starts to miss Helen as well, but is afraid of standing up for himself in front of her. To ease his fears, Daria calls upon the Couples Therapy leaders of the month, the Guptys, to come over and give him a pep talk. When the Guptys arrive, they have Erin and Brian with them, who came to Lawndale to check on Jake and used the Guptys' therapy to cure their own marriage problems. Through their touchy-feely magic, the Guptys get Jake to realize that he was as attracted to Helen's authoritarian facade when they first met as he is repelled, but that Helen is more than just the facade.
Finally, Jake calls Helen and they reconcile, with Jake asking for more responsibility around the house and Helen agreeing. Jake returns to the Barksdale residence to bring Helen home, and Amy hints to Daria that she may give her relationship with Joel another try.
Thanks to a misunderstanding involving Kevin and Brittany, Jane finds herself running for student body president against Sandi Griffin. She is willing to treat the whole thing as a joke, believing that she wouldn't stand a chance against a popular person like Sandi, until Jodie convinces her to give politics a try. Sandi, meanwhile, is just as unwilling to run for president until her mother Linda accuses her of being weak for letting Quinn take over the Fashion Club presidency, which prompted Sandi to quit. Sandi decides to prove her mother wrong, and launches a campaign that relies on shallowness and sex appeal.
Jane uses Jodie as her campaign manager and starts behaving differently toward students, "listening" to them and making big promises, much to Daria's annoyance. She finally accuses Jane of not having a real plan for the presidency, just parroting whatever Jodie wants, and that she wouldn't be able to resist Ms. Li if she became president. Meanwhile, Sandi learns that Jane has tied her in the student polls and, after overhearing a conversation between her mother and Ms. Li in which they agree to stuff the ballot box with Sandi's name, vows to win the election on her own. She steps up the dirt on Jane, spreading rumors around school that Jane killed someone and implying that she has the same mentality as the Columbine murderers. After Sandi and Jane finally have a confrontation, Jane vows to go just as dirty on her, before realizing that she would be sinking to Sandi's level and that Daria was right -- she isn't running for president for the benefit of the school. When she and Daria ask Jodie why she isn't running for the office, Jodie says that she was the target of racism during her vice-presidential run and isn't in the mood to go through it again.
During a school-wide assembly, Jane gives a speech announcing that she will drop out of the race and urges everyone to vote for Jodie instead. Jodie wins the election easily, but before everyone can celebrate, they learn that Sandi has been made vice president. Much to Sandi's mortification, it turns out that Linda bought the office for her.
Of Absolute Value (October 1999)
As Fashion Club president, Quinn secures an agreement to hold the coveted Fashion Expo at Lawndale High. Before she can celebrate her triumph, she gets summoned by her parents to discuss the poor state of her grades. Quinn is dismissive, feeling that her duties as F.C. president outweigh her academic pressures, but Helen and Jake insist that she needs to get serious about school and think about her future. It turns out that Quinn's math teacher, Mr. Phelps, was responsible for sounding the alarm; he wants to hold a parent-teacher conference to discuss Quinn's grade in math. Jake volunteers to go, and after hesitating, Helen finally allows him.
At the parent-teacher conference, a cool Mr. Phelps quickly persuades Jake that Quinn is gifted in math and that with some encouragement, she could become a tremendous success. Jake goes away jazzed up to help her and decides to oversee her math studies. During their sessions, Quinn attempts to manipulate him into letting her go to her room so she can attend to the Fashion Club, but eventually she reveals the focus and gift that Phelps had talked about. In turn, she realizes that Jake is there to help her, not punish her, and her attitude toward him grows less hostile.
However, her Fashion Club duties grow more urgent, as Tiffany fails to follow through on any of the responsibilities she's been given, and Fashion Expo clientele pay her a direct visit. Quinn winds up cutting math and missing a quiz to attend to them, and returns home to face an angry Helen and morose Jake. In a flare of temper, Quinn tells them that they're dreaming if they think that by being a math star, she can overcome her other bad grades and attend a good university. Later, Jake tells Helen that he really wanted Quinn to like math and feels like a failure, but Helen says that his being there to support her was what mattered.
At school the next day, Quinn runs into Mr. Phelps, who tells her he is sorry she wasn't feeling well yesterday and offers her a make-up test to take the following Monday. Phelps's altruism confuses Quinn and sparks Daria's suspicion; when she states her concerns openly, Helen counters that Phelps is just a caring teacher and every student should be so lucky. Grounded from attending the Fashion Expo, Quinn enlists the help of Jake for her make-up test preparation and tells him that he is an important part of her life. Meanwhile, under the guidance of Tiffany, the Fashion Expo turns into a disaster.
Breaking the Mold (November 1999)
Longing for the same bond with Daria that Jake has with Quinn over math, Helen goes into nosey-parent mode. Daria finally tells her that maybe the emptiness she feels isn't due to their relationship, but the state of her own life, and maybe she could use a hobby. Helen decides to follow through with her suggestion, but on one condition: Daria needs to find a hobby, too, and if she quits her hobby before Helen, she has to be more willing to let Helen into her life. In turn, if Helen quits before Daria, Daria has every right to shut her out.
Daria joins the Lawndale Lowdown, but quickly finds the newspaper editors to be vapid and out-of-touch. Helen, meanwhile, struggles to find a hobby that she can fit into her work schedule, until she stumbles upon an art class taught by Amanda Lane. Daria is confident that Helen won't last long in this class, and indeed, Helen quickly grows frustrated because she is not naturally good at art. However, with the help of Amanda and a fellow student, Greg, she learns how to use sculpture as a way to channel her emotions. After an evening that results in Helen getting coated in fast-drying plaster, she finally breaks down and confesses that she feels as though she has to be perfect, and she can't be perfect in this class. The Lanes help her understand that expressing yourself through art can be beneficial in other ways, and after a heart-to-heart with Daria, Helen decides to stick with it. Heartened by her mother's attitude, Daria decides to give the newspaper another chance.
For the final class, Amanda Lane announces that they will be holding a public display, which throws Helen into a panic because now her work will actually be seen outside the confines of art class. However, the guests and her family react warmly to her sculpture, with the notable exception of Jake. Having shown little interest in Helen's art class up to this point, he pretends to like her sculpture and shoots off a several compliments that don't sound sincere. Helen's disappointment in him marks a growing rift between them. Meanwhile, Daria writes a serious article about student issues at Lawndale High that gets flatly rejected by the vapid newspaper editors. They kick her off the paper, but whatever irritation Daria feels is overcome by pleasure that her mother has continued with her sculpting.
Ms. Li's fundraising obsession hits a new low, when she arranges for several Lawndale students to participate in a "Real World" style show in exchange for a cut of the profits. Daria, Jodie, Sandi, Tiffany, Kevin, Upchuck, and Jamie are sent to live in a mansion for three weeks, where their every move is recorded. This quickly grates on Daria's nerves, as she questions how one can truly be real with other people when there are cameras present. Meanwhile, the other students whore for the cameras and get on each other's nerves. Sandi, in particular, faults Daria for her constant cynicism and thinking that she is better than everyone else. After Daria eats her special skin-enhancing peanut butter, Sandi calls a house meeting to get her kicked out.
Little does she realize that the meeting will quickly turn to chaos. Quinn shows up unexpectedly, fearing that closeness between them will make Tiffany support Sandi's return to the Fashion Club presidency, and immediately gets into a fight with Sandi. Jodie joins in, exploding with pent-up resentment over the way Sandi got the student body vice presidency. Finally Jamie blows up, blaming Sandi and Quinn for using him and treating him like he's invisible.
Afterward, the remorseful students start getting "real" with each other for the first time. Before they can get very far, Skip, the TV show executive, arrives to show them their first episode. What they see is very different from what really happened, and to make matters worse, Skip strongly hints that they ought to get rid of the more "boring" members of the cast (Jodie and Tiffany), in favor of Quinn. The students decide to rebel, and do so by watching an endless "Real World" marathon, depriving Skip and the television crew of noteworthy footage for the show. Production shuts down, and Sandi apologizes to Jamie for her behavior towards him.
[Phonetically, it's pronounced "Air-in the head."]
Erin and Brian appear on the Guptys' public-access marriage therapy show to serve as examples of a Gupty success story... only to break down in a nasty fight that has Erin fleeing to "Aunt Helen" for support. After telling Helen that she wants to learn her secrets to a long, successful marriage, Erin moves in with the Morgendorffers for an indefinite stay, much to Daria and Quinn's resentment. Daria soon learns the true reason for her visit: During Erin's previous visit in "None in the Family," she had a chance meeting with a guy and developed a crush on him. Now she's trying to find out his identity.
It turns out that the mystery man is Trent, and Erin begs Daria to help her get closer to him. While Daria is skeptical of Erin's fantasies about Trent, she agrees out of self-interest, wanting to observe people in love without having to go through the embarrassment and rejection herself. Daria writes song lyrics that she lets Erin pass off as her own, which impress Trent so much that he invites Erin to join Mystik Spiral.
Erin is on Cloud Nine, until she has her long-awaited talk with Helen, who says that no man will respect her unless he respects her mind, which means getting her college degree. Erin takes her advice to heart and worries that Trent won't like her if he knows she didn't write the song lyrics. Eventually, Jane reveals Daria's identity as the true songwriter, and a mortified Erin flees a Mystik Spiral practice session. Daria decides to call Amy, whose rebounded relationship first fueled her questions about the effects of being in love. Through some mix-up, Amy winds up talking to Erin instead, and assures her that you can still find the right guy even if you don't go to college, because depth and experience can come from other places. She also advises Erin to let go of finding someone to replace Brian and learn to rely on herself, because then she'll be more patient about finding a guy who is really good for her. Once her phone call with Erin has ended, Amy assures Daria that love hasn't changed her as a person -- just made her open to more experiences, and that Daria herself shouldn't be afraid of risk, because the rewards can be great.
Erin and Mystik Spiral prepare to give a concert at a rock club, when Brian shows up unexpectedly. Thinking that Trent is trying to steal Erin away, Brian picks a fight with him and the band, which leads to Trent accidentally punching him out. Erin decides to go back to Brian, instantly forgetting all of the advice she has been given.
Primarily Color (February 2000)
Jodie receives an anonymous racist letter in her locker, prompting the Landons to file a class action lawsuit against the school. Ms. Li decides to remedy the situation by imposing a draconian Zero Tolerance policy against racism or cultural insensitivity, while Mr. O'Neill sees this as an opportunity to promote multiculturalism. Meanwhile, Sandi's recent history of mud-slinging and animosity toward Jodie makes her a prime suspect, and she gets suspended from school.
Not wanting to be left out of the "minority" group, Quinn embraces the Jewishness on her father's side of the family. Daria, on the other hand, is troubled by the school's new policies, feeling they promote stereotypes and victimization rather than understanding between people of different races and cultures. She is particularly bothered by the fact that Jodie shows no remorse for fingering Sandi as the writer of the racist note, even though she had no definitive proof. Jodie, in turn, accuses Daria of not understanding what it's like to be discriminated against, because as a white person, she can choose to be an outcast, whereas Jodie has no choice about people hating her skin color.
Daria and Jodie eventually admit that the other has a point. At a largely successful multicultural school fair, Jodie has a run-in with overt racists who blame her for the Zero Tolerance policy. Jodie is shaken by the experience, and when Sandi appears, urging her to clear her name, Jodie blows up at her for being an intolerant bigot. Sandi indignantly counters that her prejudices are based on wardrobe, not skin color, and that there's no way she wrote that note, because smearing Jane in "Outvoted" left her feeling too dirty to attempt something similar. She even quit the vice presidency because she hates the fact that she didn't win it on merit. Jodie decides to go to Ms. Li to clear Sandi's name, only to learn that Quinn has already tried... and got suspended.
Jodie, Daria, and Jane go to Ms. Li's office, where Jodie convinces her that the Zero Tolerance policy is a roadblock to true multicultural awareness that emboldens racists because they think they have nothing to lose. Ms. Li agrees to drop the policy when Daria promises to get Helen's firm to drop the class action lawsuit. In the end, Daria and Jane both admit that they learned a little more racial and cultural awareness, and Sandi finally screws up the courage to apologize to Jane for her behavior in "Outvoted."
The Age of Cynicism (begun in May 2000; finished in August 2007)
Upon hearing that Erin is pregnant with twins, Helen and Jake reminisce about the months before Daria's birth and the dawning of the Reagan Era. Back in late 1980, they start off vowing to raise their child with the ideals that they've held since the 60's, before succumbing to the pressure of a changing world and their own changing values. Ronald Reagan's unexpected victory causes Helen to become less certain of not just her goals, but of her own capacity to love her child. She finds that her former hippie friends are too caught up in social concerns to be of much help, so she winds up looking for guidance from her parents. Yet even Howard and Evelyn Barksdale struggle with parenting; Howard erupts at Amy's news that she joined a rock band (while attending college) and Evelyn is helpless to bridge the gap between them.
Meanwhile, Jake struggles to find paying work (spending much time trying to prop up an "acquired taste" spinach drink business) and to learn how to be a father. Deeply admiring of Howard Barksdale's success and stoic persona, Jake asks if he would be willing to teach him some things about being a father. Howard obliges, more out of a sense of duty to Helen than because he respects Jake. Indeed, he becomes increasingly alarmed by Jake's ranting and quick temper. Finally, Howard offers Jake a job with his company as a traveling salesman, with the intention of keeping him away from Helen and the baby enough to limit his damage, or even until Helen met someone else. When Helen catches wind of his scheme, she goes to Howard's office and defends Jake vigorously. Soon after walking out, her water breaks and Howard's secretary takes her to the hospital. There, she assuages Helen's fears about being a mother, and Helen is so grateful that in the end, she gives the baby her name -- Daria. As the episode concludes, Helen and Jake in the present realize how distant they've been with each other lately and vow to make things better.
Charge of the Math Brigade (July 2000)
After spending several weeks doing extra math homework to bring up her grade, Quinn learns that she is finally above passing. Overjoyed that she doesn't have to hit the books so hard, Quinn makes plans to resume her usual shopping and dating, until Mr. Phelps announces that he has signed her up for the mathletics squad so she can earn extra credit. At the practice, a horrified Quinn finds herself in close proximity to three of the nerdiest people in the school -- Barry (from "'Shipped Out"), Clarence, and Squiggley. To make matters worse, Mr. Phelps has assigned her to first chair, which usually goes to the strongest mathlete. She refuses to have any part of mathletics, until Daria pretends to act as though she doesn't think Quinn is smart enough to succeed. A defiant, fired-up Quinn therefore vows to continue.
During her first competition, Quinn does surprisingly well, until overconfidence convinces her to take over a group math problem, and she winds up blowing it for the team and making them lose. Humiliated and angry, Quinn again vows to quit. Mr. Phelps, however, corners her in the school hallway and persuades her to keep going. Quinn admits that she is just as competitive as he is, and wants to prove herself to the other mathletes. Phelps says that he'll help her, and mentions that he'll put his "tricks" to use, just like all those other times. Daria overhears and grows even more suspicious of him.
Quinn attacks math with a newfound zeal, studying every spare moment of the day, to the detriment of her other activities. She comes to realize that what was once a chore has grown into a passion equal to shopping. Meanwhile, worried that Phelps's "tricks" could be underhanded, Daria gets Jane to pretend that she wants to be a mathlete to raise her math grade. Phelps politely refuses, even though Jane's story is very similar to Quinn's. Jane and Daria conclude that Phelps is a hypocrite, if nothing else. Daria finally decides to probe Quinn for information during a math drill, but Quinn mistakes Daria's concern for jealousy (which Daria cannot completely deny) and in a fit of emotion, tells her not to attend the next mathletics event.
Ms. Li, meanwhile, gets a mocking anonymous letter supposedly from Grove Hills, the next mathletics competitors, and vows to have the whole school in the auditorium cheering on Lawndale's mathletes. When Quinn learns that all of her friends and dates will soon learn that she is a math nerd, she is tempted to flee. Loyalty to the mathletics squad wins out, however, and the battle is set for a tight competition with Grove Hills. The score remains very close, and now and then Daria catches Phelps mouthing the answers to the mathletics problems along with Quinn, which just fuels her suspicions further. At last, Lawndale prevails, and Ms. Li credits Phelps with the victory. Quinn celebrates, but her joy is tempered by concern about what being a mathlete will do to her popularity.
An Uneasy Marriage (September 2000)
Jake finds himself growing jealous of Helen's sculpting instructor, Greg (from "Breaking the Mold"), and decides to join Helen's class to keep an eye on him. Helen is pleased, thinking that they can finally spend some quality couples time together. However, their attempt to do a joint art project quickly runs into trouble, as Jake and Helen have very different ideas about what would make it work. Helen finds herself confiding in Greg more and more about her deepest fears and anxieties.
Meanwhile, Jake bonds with Mr. DeMartino, who is eaten up with jealousy over rising star, Mr. Phelps. He accuses Phelps of winning special privileges from Ms. Li, while Phelps counters that he has worked hard for everything he has, and that at least he cares if the students succeed, while DeMartino just goes through the motions. DeMartino realizes that he is right, but when he catches Phelps laying out his agreement with Ms. Li to increase funding for math while the humanities get cut, he threatens to go public with this information unless Phelps refuses some of the extra funding, which Phelps does.
Jake feels that he needs to confront his problem head-on, and goes to Greg demanding to know how he got Helen to open up to him. Greg tells him that he just took an interest in who she was beyond work and family, and that made her open up more about subjects that made her uncomfortable, such as failure. Jake goes away mystified and feeling as though he doesn't know his own wife. When he finally discusses this with Helen, she tells him that she wants to confide in Jake, but feels he's too intimidated by her or not very interested. Jake recalls the advice he gave DeMartino during one of their male bonding outings, and tells Helen that if he can listen to DeMartino, he can listen to her. Helen pretends to be happy, but it opens up doubts in her mind. As she prepares to quit the sculpture class and take her work home, Helen confesses to Greg that she always thought of Jake as a scared boy who needed someone to raise him to be a man. Only now, maybe he is a man, mature enough to relate to other people in a meaningful way -- just not Helen. Devastated, she finds herself hugging Greg for support, then kissing him on the lips. When Helen realizes what she's done, she pulls away and flees the art room in horror.
During the month or two that follows "An Uneasy Marriage," Daria observes the changes in her family with growing concern. Helen's kiss with Greg has left her confused and fearful about the state of her marriage, which has caused her to sink into a mild depression. Jake has started staying out several evenings during the week, for reasons unknown. Quinn has grown more and more obsessed with math, to the point where she is neglecting her other classes and the Fashion Club. Helpless to make everything right, Daria instead looks for a diversion, and winds up volunteering to tutor for Mr. O'Neill's class. Her first student is Vince Rogers, a scruffy outcast who frequently cuts class. During the course of their session, Daria learns that Vince has been spending most of his time writing for the underground newspaper. He eventually invites Daria to their secret hideaway, the basement of one of the leaders, Damien Crawley.
There, Daria finds a collection of students who were rejected at Lawndale High for some reason or other -- including Andrea. Damien gives Daria a trial assignment, to report on hygiene issues in the Pizza King kitchen. Daria does so, and watches proudly as the Lawndale High students react with horror and disgust. However, her pride is tempered by the fact that she wrote under a false name, as did all of the other underground writers, so no one knows that the expose is hers. To make matters worse, Jodie mentions that Ms. Li's suspicions of the underground staffers have been rising, and if they aren't careful, they could soon find themselves in a lot of trouble.
As the weeks progress, Daria spends more and more time with the underground staffers, finding a welcome environment in their basement lair and purpose in writing hard-hitting, truth-seeking articles. She spends less time with Jane, who worries about her friend's increasingly cynical and bitter attitude. She also spends less time with her family, and is openly hostile toward Quinn, who has been chilly toward her since "Charge of the Math Brigade," but has lately made some timid attempts to patch things up.
At the same time, a power struggle is brewing amongst the underground staffers. While Vince prefers the usual anonymous, truth-seeking approach, Damien and other staffers are growing more ambitious. Damien even creates a database of teachers at Lawndale that the staffers can use as a reference point, but Daria wonders uneasily whether it could be abused for smear campaigns. Damien tries to quell her opposition by showing her background information on Mr. Phelps, about whom he knows she has suspicions. Daria finds herself tempted to use it, but questions the ethics of such an action.
Meanwhile, Jane tells her that Tom (a former pupil of Phelps's at Fielding) has uncovered some information. Daria goes to his house, where she sees that the articles he has collected are few, but could still be useful. Tom, in turn, tells her she should follow her gut instincts if she is uneasy about the underground staffers, and reminds Daria of how much she misses Jane.
Daria talks to Vince, who has quit the underground newspaper, and learns that he is being home-schooled from now on because he got in trouble with Ms. Li, after an article critical of the school was falsely linked to him and proven to be false. Vince thinks that Damien was behind it, attempting to exert his control, but Damien denies it half-heartedly. Daria tells him that his increasingly reckless approach to the managing the underground will get them all in trouble, and unless her permits her to put her real name on the articles, she will quit. Damien refuses, and Daria follows through. She rekindles her bond with Jane, realizing that she is no longer the anti-social cynic she was when her family first moved to Lawndale. Finally, she and Quinn make up, and come together over their mutual concern for their parents.
All But Forgotten (September 2001)
As her marriage and her professional life slowly crumble, Helen suffers a nervous breakdown, and flees to her sister Amy's apartment on the Friday evening of a three-day weekend. Amy and her boyfriend Joel welcome her, but are mystified by the reasons for her distress. The next morning, Helen lies to Daria that she has gone to Amy's to help her, not be helped, but Daria's skeptic meter goes off and she soon uncovers the true reason from Amy.
Meanwhile, Daria and Quinn finally decide to expose their father's mystery life. After Quinn successfully pries open his briefcase, they learn from a flyer that he is going to a chili cook-off and T-ball tournament in another town. They then notice a phone number on the back of the flyer, and when they test it out, discover that it belongs to Mr. DeMartino. Hurt and confused as to why Jake would spend more time with him than with his family, Daria and Quinn go with Jane to the festivities. There, they find mostly male guests, which fuels Daria's paranoia that her father is attending some gay soiree. Soon, though, she learns that the male attendees are part of a class, which makes her angry, because she doesn't understand why her father would feel the need to hide it from them.
It turns out that Jake teaches one of the classes at a community center. He started out filling in for DeMartino when he suffered a nervous breakdown, then decided to keep on doing it, remembering how much he had enjoyed helping Quinn with math. He didn't tell Daria and Quinn out of fear that they would laugh at him, but both are relieved that their dad's secret life isn't so sordid after all, at least to their knowledge.
Helen finally opens up to her sister about why she came to see her on such short notice, claiming that Amy was the one who set her on the path to ruin -- first by convincing her that work wasn't everything and that her family life wasn't what it could be in "The Tie That Chokes," then by showing her that their father wasn't a sterling role model in "None in the Family." A resentful Amy points out that it was more likely she made Helen aware of doubts that were already present. Helen then tells her about kissing Greg; she fears that it means she is falling out of love with Jake, and that telling him would cause their marriage to fall apart, which is why she has kept it a secret for the past several months. She finally vows to go home and tell Jake the truth, but after Helen describes the sense of higher purpose she got from working with Greg in his sculpture class, a purpose that Amy has found missing from her own life, Amy is suddenly not so anxious to see her leave.
Continuing the story begun in "All But Forgotten," Amy convinces Helen to stay longer at her apartment, much to Joel's irritation. Eager to learn her secrets to a more fulfilling life, Amy takes Helen to a pawnshop that she's visited on and off since college, which has always given her a sense of clarity. There, Helen is reminded of Jake's junk sculpture in "An Uneasy Marriage," and breaks down, feeling as though Jake has grown up so fast that he is leaving her. She then realizes that that is what has spurred her depression over the past several months, not fears that she is falling in love with Greg, finding fulfillment with him that she can't with Jake. Relieved, Helen now looks forward to going home and repairing her marriage, but Amy is shocked and disappointed that Helen would treat last night's discussion about finding a higher purpose as if it were nothing.
Meanwhile, Daria comes to realize that Jake is not as enthusiastic about Helen coming home as she would have expected. She consults Quinn, but finds her resentful that Daria never shared with her the true reason Helen went to visit Amy. Quinn thinks it is a sign that Daria doesn't value her intelligence or judgment. Eventually they confront Jake, who admits that he and Helen have grown apart; after "An Uneasy Marriage," Helen became less communicative and he thought she was shutting him out, so he started to shut her out. He wants her back, but is afraid that their marriage is too badly deteriorated. Quinn vows to help him learn how to communicate with Helen, an approach that leaves Daria skeptical because she believes their problems are much deeper than choice of words. She also thinks that Jake is hiding something.
On the way back to Amy's apartment, Helen reminisces about her childhood, mentioning that she used to experience crippling periods of anxiety that she hadn't felt as an adult until now. Amy is sympathetic... until Helen mentions that one of her anxious periods was caused by fears that Amy would be born a boy, thus displacing Helen as their father's most beloved child at a time when he seemed to be the only person who loved her. Remembering her own childhood spent under the shadow of their father's disappointment, Amy accuses Helen of knowing ahead of time that she would suffer, but not caring as long as Helen herself was all right. She bitterly claims that Helen is not the person she had hoped she was, whom she had admired as a young girl for her courage and energy. When Helen had mentioned "spirituality" and a higher purpose, Amy had thought she was seeing that Helen again. In turn, Helen accuses Amy of wanting her to leave Jake for Greg just so Amy could learn how to be more spiritual without having to actually go to the effort on her own. Amy denies wanting Helen to leave Jake, and says that all she really wants is for Helen to face her emotions, rather than try to whitewash them and pretend that everything is all right. Helen heads back to Lawndale and Amy to her apartment, angry.
At the Morgendorffer house, Quinn becomes convinced that Jake doesn't want to speak to Helen, and she and Daria overcome their mutual animosities to confront him. Jake finally admits, to their disbelief, that he has met someone -- a woman who is not a girlfriend, yet is more than a friend. She took his class, and they just connected. He apologizes to Daria (after Quinn has run off in a rage), saying that he still loves Helen and will tell her the truth when she comes home.
Meanwhile, as Amy tries to shake off the argument with her sister, she finds Joel acting unusually quiet and resentful. When she investigates, he tells her that Amy's talk -- about wanting to help Helen find something more than what she has -- has made him think that Amy is really talking about herself, and that she is so dissatisfied with her life, she is planning to break up with him again. Amy insists that isn't true, then accuses Joel of projecting his feelings on to her -- that Joel wants to break up with Amy because she isn't as dynamic and self-made as he is. Later on, when they discuss it further, Amy admits that she has been feeling empty because she has so much going for her right now, yet feels that she's done nothing to earn it. Unlike Helen, she has difficulty putting herself out there, and thinks that she has had everything in life handed to her. Joel assures her that this isn't true, and that he doesn't see her as beneath him, and they vow to be more honest and open with one another. Amy regrets parting with Helen so angrily and wants to mend the situation.
On the way home, Helen receives a voice mail message from Greg, asking him to call her. She drives to his house, but doesn't go in. Meanwhile, Daria and Quinn sit in Quinn's room, trying to adjust to Jake's news. Quinn thinks the whole thing is her fault, because if he hadn't tutored her and if she hadn't started spending more time with Mr. Phelps, Jake never would have considered teaching at the community center. Daria assures her gently that it is neither of their faults, and credits Quinn for taking the first steps toward confronting the problem with their parents. She then pays Quinn a long-awaited compliment -- that she is smart. Quinn, in turn, admires Daria's ability to be forthright. Their sisterly bonding is then interrupted by the sound of Helen's return.
A grateful Helen hugs her daughters, then braces for alone time with Jake. Their discussion, during which both are completely truthful about what they have done, turns out to be more painful than either could have anticipated. Jake assumes that Helen loves Greg, but Helen tells him that she barely knows Greg, and she can't build a life with someone who is her "ideal." She asks Jake if he loves this other woman, and Jake says that Helen is the only woman he loves; however, he likes the other woman "a lot." Nonetheless, he is serious about giving her up and starting anew with his wife, repairing all of the damage they have incurred. Helen is thrilled, until she realizes that by doing this, Jake is repressing some of his desires, and that keeping him tied to her would not help him or their family in the long run.
Monday morning, Amy and Joel drive to Lawndale so that Amy can make up with Helen in person, having not been able to get a hold of her over the phone. She learns that Helen and Jake decided to separate, and that they broke the news to their daughters just a few hours ago. Shaken by this turn of events, Helen is grateful to have her sister there for support, and they apologize for their angry words the previous day. Helen tells Amy that she never wanted her to suffer during her childhood, and that when Amy was a baby, her daily presence got Helen through some difficult times. Amy finally agrees to stay overnight to help Helen and her nieces get through the first shock of separation.
Later, Daria tells Jane over the phone that while she hates her parents at that moment, she can't truly hate them, because she knows they feel very badly about the separation. Quinn, on the other hand, refuses to be as forgiving. Nonetheless, she has a closer bond with her sister now, forged by their mutual suffering. Quinn tells Daria that there are certain issues she wants to discuss with her, causing Daria to sense that a big revelation is imminent.
Following the announcement of their parents' separation, Daria and Quinn struggle to cope with the changes in their lives. For Quinn, that means putting up a wall to keep her parents out. For Daria, it means trying to keep some shred of the compassion she felt for her parents at the end of "Memory Road," even though they seem far more concerned with their own needs than the needs of their daughters. The one bright spot of the situation is her deepening bond with Quinn, the only other person who knows just how she feels. However, even that is threatened, as Daria comes closer to finding damaging information about Quinn's beloved math teacher, Mr. Phelps.
Already suspicious of his attentiveness toward Quinn, Daria becomes truly wary after Quinn confesses that he gave her problems for each mathletics competition ahead of time, so she would know the answers. (This is the "big revelation" Daria was anticipating at the end of "Memory Road," although it takes place off screen, between "Memory Road" and "Into the Fire.") Quinn hastens to add that she didn't need to study the problems, because she had already done so much prep work, she knew how to solve similar problems, and that Phelps wasn't really helping her cheat; he just wanted her to have confidence going into the matches. Daria suspects that she won't get any full confession from Quinn that she cheated with Phelps's help, and so turns her attention toward finding the "smoking gun" against him that will convince Quinn that he isn't on her side. Her luck takes a turn for the better when she receives an e-mail from Marshall Winsett, an administrator at Fielding Preparatory Academy, who was well acquainted with Phelps during the years he taught there.
Meanwhile, Quinn's suffering from her parents' separation has drawn her closer to Phelps, who becomes a surrogate father, someone to whom she can vent her deepest fears and resentments. Phelps, in turn, gives her more and more advanced mathematics problem sets, claiming that they will help her pass the Advanced Placement for college-level math with flying colors. When Quinn tries to explain that she wants to focus on her non-math classes, Phelps calls her a prodigy, urges her not to let her gifts fall to waste, and says that he will let her focus on her other classes only after she completes a major math project for him. Quinn agrees.
Daria's problems start to mount when she hears that Ms. Li has discovered the identity of many of the underground newspaper staffers. Through Andrea, she learns that the principal has been punishing many of the staffers harshly for false articles written about the school, the result of the increasingly reckless attitude toward journalism displayed in "In Her Own Words." Though Daria left shortly after the recklessness began, and has not had any contact with any of the staffers but Andrea for several months, she fears what could happen to her if Ms. Li finds out she was on staff.
At last she meets with Marshall Winsett, who at first tells Daria about Phelps's exemplary reputation and "up by the bootstraps" childhood, before confessing that he has heard "rumors" that Phelps stole money from Fielding parents through a sequencing computer program set up by his most devoted students. Daria is alarmed by this news and fears that he could be doing the same thing with Quinn.
Later that evening, she tells Quinn what she heard. To her disappointment, Quinn scoffs at her concern and continues on as if she never heard, prompting Daria to finally take matters into her own hands. One afternoon, when Quinn is safely away at an eye appointment, Daria goes to talk to Phelps herself, hoping to convince him that it would be in Quinn's best interest to transfer to a college-level class -- one not taught by him. Phelps tensely, but reasonably, counters every one of Daria's claims, and Daria is frustrated to find herself back at Square One. Desperate to pick up some momentum, and unexpectedly unnerved by Phelps's cold stare and dominating presence, Daria spills that she knows about his past. Phelps counters by threatening to make her life "difficult" if she tells anyone else, and makes a comment to suggest that he knows that Daria was a staffer on the underground newspaper. Daria tells him that she doesn't care about what he did; she just cares about keeping her sister out of trouble. Phelps tells Daria that he, too, cares about Quinn, before tearing up the transfer form she's given him.
Tomorrow Never Knows (November 2005)
Continuing where "Into the Fire" left off, Daria rushes to Jane's house straight from her encounter with Mr. Phelps. Noticeably shaken, she tells Jane that she couldn't get anywhere with the domineering teacher; he refused to let Quinn transfer out of his class. Jane urges Daria to get help from her parents, so Daria grudgingly tells the whole story to her mother. Helen is alarmed, but after grilling Daria extensively about who said what, concludes that Phelps's wrong doing would be difficult to prove. Still, trusting Daria's judgment, she vows to support her in her efforts to find the truth about Phelps.
Soon after, Helen confronts Quinn, who fiercely denies any wrong doing on her part, until Helen asks about Phelps giving her problems for the mathletics tournaments in advance. Realizing that Daria has told everything to their mother, Quinn erupts in panic, anger, and guilt. Helen believes her protests of innocence, but suspicions of Phelps lead her to call him at his home office and demand an explanation. Phelps manages to convince her that his actions were completely sound, but afterward, in a rage, he calls for his partner. Marshall Winsett appears.
Phelps has put two and two together and realized that Marshall was the one who tipped Daria off about his past. Marshall tells him meekly that he just wanted to see what Daria knew -- very little, as it turned out. In an injured tone, Phelps accuses Marshall of betrayal and claims that the stealing he did was in the past and that he has moved on, but apparently Marshall hasn't. His partner rushes to assure him of his faith and tells Phelps that if anyone follows up on his conversation with Daria, he will deny that he said anything. This, however, is not good enough for Phelps. After Marshall has left, he tries to think of a way that he can call Daria's credibility into question.
The next day, Ms. Li summons Daria to her office, having learned that she was one of the writers for the underground newspaper. In spite of Daria's protests that she never contributed to the libelous articles about the school, she gets handed a one-week suspension. She uses her off time to pay a visit to Fielding Prep, where Marshall Winsett works as an administrator. True to his word, Marshall pretends to misunderstand Daria when she asks him to elaborate on his information from their previous meeting. Even Daria's genuine show of concern for her sister cannot loosen his tongue. She finally leaves, frustrated and concerned that maybe she saw something in their conversation that was never there. Her concern deepens when Helen reveals that she checked out the problem sets Quinn was doing for Phelps and was told on good authority that it was just college statistics, not an exotic numbers-cracking scheme. Daria wonders if she has been wrong about Phelps... and Quinn.
Just when her life couldn't get worse, Daria learns that the school paper, the Lowdown, has written a scathing article about the underground newspaper staff, full of lies and innuendo. She returns to school to find even more people than usual avoiding her. Even though only the writers' pen names were mentioned, many have linked Daria's absence to the suspensions of other underground writers and concluded that she was one of the degenerates mentioned in the article. Daria tries to defend her innocence, and even Quinn speaks up in her defense. However, once Phelps suggests that Daria hasn't always been truthful, some doubt creeps into Quinn's mind.
Daria gets called back into Ms. Li's office and learns that the proprietor of Lowman's Sporting Goods has read the article and linked it to a previous article written by "Erasmus" (Daria's pen name) that was critical of his store. He has focused on a libelous charge -- that Lowman's goods came from sweatshop labor -- and is convinced that the article has hurt his business. Daria counters that she wrote a correction that appeared in the next issue... only to learn that Damien Crawley forgot (or purposely neglected) to print it. Shaken, she submits Ms. Li's punishment, which is more severe than her first one because Lowman's has lashed out at Lawndale High by association, yanking the school's discount on sports wear.
Daria not only has unlimited detention after school, but she must undergo a psychological evaluation. During one of her detention periods, she is unnerved to find out that her supervisor is Phelps, who uses their alone time to reveal that he was an avid reader of the underground paper and always knew that Daria was Erasmus. He then drops heavy hints that he told Mr. Estrada about Erasmus's libelous article and encouraged him to complain to the school. Enraged by the lengths to which Phelps has gone to to harm her, Daria questions what Quinn could possibly see in him. Phelps counters that unlike Daria, he genuinely cares about her.
That night, Helen tries, without success, to get the Lowman's proprietor to drop a threatened lawsuit against Daria. Disappointed and angry, she demands to know why Daria would associate with the students on the underground, who had problems that not even the Lowdown could fully make up. Daria retorts that her home life was so unhappy that she needed escape. She then accuses Helen of being insincere and "useless" in her efforts to stand behind her, before stomping off to her room. Quinn, having witnessed the entire exchange, goes after Daria to offer her support, but finds her sister in an unusually violent mood. Daria tells her that it was Phelps who told the Lowman's proprietor that she wrote the article about his store. Quinn refuses to believe it, thinking that Daria is just lashing out, jealous of Phelps's attention toward her. Daria demands to know when she will rate as high on Quinn's scale of importance as Phelps. As Quinn's allegiance to her mentor becomes crystal clear, Daria concludes that her sister doesn't appreciate the sacrifices Daria has made for her because Quinn would never go to such lengths for Daria. Quinn is hurt (and a little guilty), and their conversation ends stormily.
While her relationship with Daria slides downhill, Quinn faces other troubles in the form of falling grades. Even though she recognizes that she needs to put extra effort into her other classes, Quinn continues to devote most of her time to Phelps, excited by his assurance that the "final project" he gave her in "Into the Fire" might get her into Cambridge.
Meanwhile, Daria undergoes the biased psychological exam, which declares her mentally unstable and in need of "special" classes. After school, she and Jane run into Andrea, who describes these classes in chilling detail, before announcing that she has dropped out of school. As sorry as Daria is to lose an almost-friend, she is more fearful about what this means for her own future. Daria comes home to find that Helen has already learned the news. Expecting her to side with the school, Daria is relieved when Helen vows to challenge the exam's results. Daria realizes that she has been unduly hard on her mother and apologizes for her earlier explosion.
Daria and Helen then note that it is Friday -- a night Daria and Quinn spend at Jake's -- and Quinn is nowhere to be found. When Quinn finally arrives home at 9 p.m., she encounters not only an angry Helen, but Jake. After much arm-twisting on their part, Quinn admits that she went out with Phelps to a lecture and dinner. Helen is furious that Phelps is hogging Quinn's spare time when she had specifically told him not to in their phone conversation. Yet when she and Jake attempt to place limits on Quinn's time with him, Quinn accuses them of being less caring toward her than Phelps. She reminds them of their recent poor behavior (such as Helen running to Amy in "All But Forgotten"), claiming that she isn't fooled by their united front, and that they should just get a divorce.
Worried about Quinn's attachment to Phelps, Helen and Jake are even more worried after speaking to him on the phone. Phelps is smug and dismissive of their feelings, implying as he did with Daria that he cares the most about Quinn. He reminds them that Quinn's grades declined due to her misery over the separation, not because of his extra attention. Helen and Jake are left dumbfounded. When Daria reveals that Phelps implied that he was behind the Lowman's trouble, her parents fear that he could be truly dangerous. All three decide to investigate Phelps further, which includes hiring a private detective.
Jake seeks the help of Anthony DeMartino, who has had a long-standing grudge against Phelps. Daria meets him in Jake's apartment and searches through the boxes of random items that he brought. She unearths a tape recorder with a tape inside, which DeMartino says was of his "gotcha" moment with Phelps (Act 3, Scene 5 of "An Uneasy Marriage"). Daria listens, but instead of Phelps, she is drawn to another voice... that of Marshall Winsett! DeMartino reveals that Marshall is Mr. Phelps's boyfriend.
Daria, with help from Jane's boyfriend Tom, goes to confront Marshall. After feigning ignorance, Marshall at last confesses to having a relationship with Phelps. He gives them Phelps's back story: He lost his successful career as an investor and fell into teaching at Fielding Prep, becoming a role model for many students. However, Phelps's setbacks had hardened his natural cynicism and fueled his resentment, leading him to use his position of power to get students to steal money, using a computer program with exotic number codes. When Marshall discovered this, Phelps begged him not to turn him in and promised to return the money to its rightful place. Marshall chose to believe him, but troubling signs suggest that in spite of transferring schools, he is back to his old habits. His fixation on Quinn fits in with previously held patterns. Daria presses him to investigate whether Phelps is in fact stealing money at this moment. Marshall says he will, but he wants Daria to remain quiet about their conversation until he reports what he has found.
The next day at school, Daria attempts to get Quinn alone so they can talk. However, she is thrown off guard when Quinn sees Phelps and urges him over. Phelps acts as though Daria is troubled and in need of his counseling, which Daria resists. Daria challenges him to reveal what happened to his past students; if he is such a good teacher, why doesn't he show Quinn the fruits of his success? Phelps deflects her question, and Quinn becomes frustrated and worried by what she sees as Daria's irrational anger. When Daria refuses to apologize to Phelps for her hostility, she sees a distinct barrier fall between them and knows that she has lost any hope of persuading her sister.
Several days later, Quinn and Phelps meet at one of their special retreats, The Grove, where Phelps is satisfied to see that Quinn has finally distanced herself from Daria emotionally. He gives her the gift of a bank account overseas, filled with money that she has already earned. All Quinn has to do is sign her name to the form he has presented her. Quinn is confused when Phelps explains that she earned the money by doing his big project; she thought that that project was for entrance into Cambridge. Unruffled, Phelps tells her that it was for both; he used the project to "access" financial markets that would provide them both with financial security. As he elaborates, Quinn gets a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach that Daria was right -- Phelps is using her to steal other people's money. When Phelps notices a change in her demeanor, he accuses her of trusting her "lying" sister over him, which Quinn protests without much success. After they part, a saddened Phelps realizes that Quinn has turned on him... so he will have to turn on her.
The next day, Quinn gets called into Ms. Li's office, where she is accused by Phelps of having cheated repeatedly in his class. Quinn protests, but Phelps has evidence in the form of answer keys with Quinn's writing on them. Ms. Li finds it too easy to believe that a lightweight like Quinn could have never aced her math classes on her own, and Quinn faces the prospect of failing junior year math, which could ruin her chances for college.
At home, Daria finds Quinn crumpled up on her bed, absolutely devastated that the teacher she once loved has turned on her. Daria reveals that she did research on some of Phelps's past students and found that their present was less than stellar -- most of them had dropped out of college. Quinn confesses to Daria that she did cheat, technically on one quiz, for which Phelps himself gave her the answers. However, she cheated in a bigger way: She relied on Phelps to guide her through the rough mathematical waters. Quinn is sure that she never would have made it on her own, in spite of Daria's protests that her talent is genuine. Daria coaxes Quinn into her room to give her a change of scenery, but Quinn's misery turns to rage when she recalls that Daria was the one who started this whole mess. She begins throwing Daria's books around the room and then rips up old stories in her journals. Daria forcefully tries to stop her, her own pent-up rage at her sister coming to the surface. Their actions devolve into a violent hitting, shoving, hair-pulling, scratching, choking fight, which only stops after Helen pries them apart. Quinn comes to her senses and, realizing what she has done to her sister's cherished work, flees the room with her car keys in hand. She drives away, not to be seen or heard from for several hours.
While her parents frantically search for signs of her whereabouts, Quinn finds refuge on the upper deck of The Grove, where she stays for most of the night. The next morning, she is discovered by none other than Sandi, who, as it turns out, has been attending a Unitarian Universalist church in the same building. Having found redemption after her misdeeds in "Outvoted" and "Surreal World," Sandi assures Quinn that she will be all right, no matter what happens. Quinn returns home to her relieved and angry parents. Helen yells at her to never stay out all night without telling someone where she is. When Quinn reminds her that she did the same thing in "All But Forgotten," Helen breaks down in tears of guilt and apologizes for her actions. Hearing one of her parents express remorse for the events that led to the separation, Quinn finds herself forgiving them at long last.
After much discussion, Quinn agrees to turn herself in and act as a witness against Phelps. The police question him and he smoothly denies any wrong doing. Even so, he comes home to find that his office has been ransacked, the result of a search warrant. Phelps is devastated to realize that Marshall confessed everything and provided proof in the form of shredded bank documents he found in the backyard garbage cans. Angry that Phelps has lied to him repeatedly, Marshall announces that he is leaving. He asks Phelps to plead guilty for Quinn's sake so she won't have to testify against him. Soon after, Phelps is arrested... but much to the Morgendorffers' consternation, decides to plead not guilty.
For Quinn, the stress of knowing that Phelps will remain at Lawndale is compounded by the nasty rumors flying around school. Most students jumped to the correct conclusion that Quinn was the "anonymous student" who turned Phelps in, but surmise that she was getting revenge for being turned in for cheating. Some even believe that Quinn once performed sexual favors for Phelps. Although Sandi, Jane, and others lend their support, the stress is finally so great that both Quinn and Daria are taken out of school and educated at home.
To top it off, Daria is still furious at Quinn for what she did to her writing. Quinn feels horrible, finally understanding just how cruel her behavior was after everything Daria went through for her. She desperately wants to make it up to her, and manages to succeed somewhat when she finds a journal in Daria's room with entries dating back to when she wrote on the underground. In one of them, Daria laments having made a mistake in the Lowman's article and says that she wrote a correction. Daria uses this entry to thaw the Lowman's owner's heart and get him to back off any threats of a lawsuit. He even reinstates the school's contract. However, this is not enough for Ms. Li to drop the psych evaluation; she thinks that Daria is a "stealth danger" to the school -- seemingly mild on the surface, but lethal underneath. Daria decides to write an opinion piece about the injustices of unchecked power (in the form of Ms. Li and Phelps), which she distributes via the Internet, knowing that many students will read it.
Finally, as Helen and Jake confer with Ms. Li and the Superintendent to argue for their daughters' fates, Quinn drives to Mr. Phelps's house. The emptiness inside her refuses to go away, and she must know how he really feels about her. When Phelps answers the door, Quinn hopes that he will greet her with warmth; instead, he accuses her of being a "spy" and closes the door in her face when she asks him if he ever really cared about her. In tears, Quinn rushes back to her car. Phelps watches her through the window and realizes that she hadn't stopped caring about him, as he thought. She had cared about him all along until this moment.
Daria tries to think of a way to lift Quinn's spirits. After Jane and Tom return from a college tour, she gets the idea of having a Bromwell math professor give her an exam to test her math ability. Quinn takes the test, which is much harder than she expected, and winds up getting a C. She is deeply disappointed... until the professor tells her that she is one of the few people to actually pass the test. He praises Quinn for her talent and training and agrees to recommend that she take her math courses at her local community college. Quinn is thrilled and pours all of her love for her sister into a big embrace. Daria feels some more of the anger toward her slipping away.
Soon after, they learn that Phelps has changed his plea to "guilty" and resigned from his position at Lawndale High. Quinn wonders if her visit had something to do with it and realizes that she will never know. With knowledge of a brighter future and the support of her friends, she decides to return to Lawndale High. Meanwhile, Jodie tells Daria that her parents' meeting prompted the Superintendent to make a surprise visit to the "special" classes and he didn't like what he saw. She says that the classes are going to be shut down and that Ms. Li is in a huge amount of trouble, which means that Daria is no longer in danger. The knowledge that she is safe at long last causes Daria to show a little emotion.
In the final scene, Daria considers whether to wear contact lenses. Jane and Tom have recently broken up, and Jane has been pushing Tom to date Daria, but Daria has reservations. Quinn tells her not to be afraid of how contacts would change her looks; they might change her life, but in many ways it would be for the better. In spite of the difficulties Quinn has gone through, she doesn't regret getting glasses. Seeing Quinn's sincere desire to help her, Daria agrees to try them on.