I find it interesting how Angela is so hard on herself in her scrutiny but often lets other people off the hook. When she seeks out Jordan underneath the bleachers, she says, "Is this where you come to smoke?" and then voiceovers, "I'm always doing that - I'm always asking questions I already know the answers to," but then Jordan asks, "So are you crying or something?" when he can clearly see that she IS crying.
Shane doesn't have the pleasure of nagging Jordan in this episode, but his presence is enough to prompt Jordan to let go of Angela and mutter, "I better go." Shane doesn't say anything, but he visibly pushes Jordan as they walk away from Angela. Jerkface!
I love the contrast between the first day that Sharon spends at the Chases when everyone but Angela isn't hungry and the second day when everyone is "starved" or "famished" (only to later revert to "I'm not hungry").
I really feel for Patty when she tries to talk to Graham while he is lying down. True, she assumes the worst, but Graham initiated and exacerbated the problem by refusing to discuss what happened at the Rosenfeld meeting or what is bothering him.
When Graham leaves, Danielle glares accusingly at Patty, once again proving that despite her age, she knows what's going on.
In Dancing in the Dark, Angela mentions that it's been a long time since she has been to Brian's house, but the opposite isn't true. We have seen Brian coming over to the Chase house for various reasons (mostly to retrieve stuff that Angela borrowed and never gave back), but he is still comfortable being there (as evidenced by the fact that he entered the house and "the door was open" in Why Jordan Can't Read) - he is the one to call for the pizza and answers the phone when Kyle calls for Sharon. Although Angela is mostly referring to her repaired relationship with Sharon at the end of the episode when she talks about "friends who you've known forever, who know you in this way that other people can't, because they've seen you change...they've let you change," her statement also applies to Brian. There is an obvious familiarity between them and a comfort level that allows them to be honest with each other (well, about stuff besides Brian's inability to communicate how he feels about her).
As for Sharon and Brian, there is a familiarity and comfort level between them as well. Angela has been friends with both of them since she was a child, so the assumption is that while she may have been the point in the triangle, Sharon and Brian had a childhood friendship as well. What is disappointing, though, is that Sharon goes to Brian for comfort only when Kyle isn't around, putting Brian in the backburner position. Poor Brian is so starved for attention that he can barely contain himself when Sharon says, "See you on the bus."
This episode shows the next step in Sharon and Rayanne's relationship. Previously, Rayanne's interaction with Sharon was limited to baiting Sharon, making disparaging remarks, and being nosy ("Comparing instruments?" or "So have you and Kyle gone all the way yet?"), but in this episode, Rayanne shows Sharon another side of her personality. Even though the conversation starts off with Rayanne being nosy yet again (she just wanted to know who was crying and what happened) and advising Sharon to take advantage of the situation (similar to when Rayanne tried to get a few days off from school in Guns and Gossip), she sees how upset Sharon is, and I think that she genuinely wants to help her rather than using it as an excuse to ditch class. This new not quite friendship is revealed to Angela when she learns that Rayanne and Sharon have been talking about her - or at least that Rayanne has told Sharon that Brian is in love with Angela, a discussion that makes Angela very uncomfortable due to the people who had the conversation as well as the subject matter. Despite Angela's obvious unease at this development, it definitely relieves some of the jealousy that Rayanne has regarding Angela's relationship with Sharon.
Why did Graham feel the need to be at the hospital? Was he simply trying to escape Patty and the house, or was this similar to ripping off a scab in the sense that he was confused by Andy's heart attack and thought that being closer to it would somehow help him feel better?
What did Graham mean when he told Patty, "I can fix my responsibilities"? It's just a weird statement. I know he was referring to work, but...I don't know, it was an ambiguous and nonspecific thing to say.
Patty fires Graham because she knows it will be good for their relationship, but ultimately I think she fires him because it will be good for him. He needs to figure out what he is doing with his life, and he would not have had the courage to quit on his own. He needed a push, so she gave it to him.
I love that Rickie begins to find his voice in this episode. Previously, he is in the background in the sense that Angela and especially Rayanne both interrupt him, and they don't consider his feelings much (like Rayanne saying, "Rickie don't mind" in the pilot or telling him that they are leaving Frozen Embryo rehearsal without consulting him). Similar to Rayanne and Sharon's budding relationship, Rickie and Brian's relationship is budding as well
I still crack up at Rickie telling Brian he wishes he was someone's phase. Near the end of the episode, Rickie is forced into being the Mediating Voice of Reason for Angela and Sharon. For the first time, he is very assertive and is rewarded by Angela and Sharon chasing him
When Sharon tells Angela that she's listening to "a group [Angela] probably hates," it reminded me of Angela telling Patty, "You might as well turn it off" in Guns and Gossip. Again, I think that the two scenes are parallel to illustrate the similar roadblocks in the two relationships. Both scenes end with a very frank, honest conversation.
Going back to Brian - I think that part of the reason he prides himself so much on his academics is because he believes it's the one area where he excels. He knows he has problems with his social life. Despite the fact that he and Sharon are old friends, he still doesn't truly believe that she needed him and says that he and Sharon aren't really friends. He tells Angela "your friend Rickie" told him that Sharon's dad is okay. Brian could have just as easily made Angela's earlier statement, "Because I'm lonely. Because I have no friends. Because I'm a terrible, terrible person."
Notice that Patty gets her good-bye kiss from Graham at the end of the episode!