Sunday, August 30, 2020

Part 2 of The Roommate Years: Ranking #Shea’s Smaller Moments (#14-8)




Previously on my ranking of scenes from The Roommate Years of Shaun and Lea…

 

Shaun was too downhearted about work to accept Lea’s gift of weekday pancakes.

 

Lea attempted to school Shaun on the importance of text reciprocation when in a romantic relationship.

 

Morgan’s food-stealing/leg peeing analogy found its way into Shaun and Lea’s cafeteria conversation.

 

And much, much MORE, as you can go see right now if you’d like.

 

What are #Shea’s Smaller Moments? They come from 15 different episodes of TGD that aired between the settling-in-as-roomies stage and the “Superbass” karaoke night that effectively snuffed out Shaun and Carly’s relationship.

 

To recap how I’m doing these “rankings”…

 

1)  In true countdown form, I started at the bottom of the list (21st) and am now up to scene rankings 14 through 8. Those ranked 7 through 1 will be called out in a later post.


2) These are just MY rankings; your mileage may vary, as they say. Comments, as always, are very welcome! (But don’t take the “rankings” too seriously… we all know any #Shea scene is a scene of value!)


3) I’m only counting scenes that involved Shaun and Lea exclusively… I might make a very minor exception to this here and there, but scenes involving, say, Glassman or Jake (Lea’s boyfriend in the back half of S2) are excluded from contention.

 

4) I realize Shaun and Lea were no longer roommates as of the “Mutations” episode, and that they may very well become roommates-of-another-kind, again, in the future. I’m calling this The Roommate Years anyway. Just go with it.


5) With, again, limited exceptions, most of these scenes are stand-alones (meaning, not part of an extended plot development).

 

AAAAND THE COUNTDOWN ROLLS ON…

 

 

14) “The walls were shaking… I’m surprised the cops didn’t show up.” (From 3.2 “Debts”)

 

IN SHORT: After his so-called “disaster” first date, Shaun is


ready to call a DNR on his pursuit of Carly. Lea, however, has other ideas. “You like Carly… you need to get back in the saddle,” she advises Shaun in the opening moments of the “Debts” episode. “And luckily, you have a totally awesome roomie who’s here to help you.” 
But alas, at that point Shaun was less than receptive to Lea’s efforts.


By the way… the “shaking walls” were in reference to Lea playing Talking Heads music loudly and Shaun not emerging from his room to ask her to turn it down, which furthered her concern that something was amiss. (Unfortunately she referred to the band as THE Talking Heads… oof… it is simply “Talking Heads” and I’m left to wonder if it was written in the script incorrectly, or if Paige Spara threw it in unwittingly and no one caught it/sought to correct it.)

 

BEST REMEMBERED FOR: This was the scene from which the following lines of dialogue made it into the Official ABC trailer for Season 3:

 



SHAUN: (responding with frustration to Lea’s line Everyone needs a special friend): I’m not like everyone!

 

LEA (waits a loong beat, then, calmly): No one is like everyone. We’re all unique. But… we’re also the same.

 

 

13) “Still talking!” (Also from 3.2 “Debts”)

 



IN SHORT: Later that same day (Shaun’s wearing the same shirt as he was in #14), the Case of The Week is how Shaun tries to lose himself as his frustration and anxiety for the situation with Carly continues to mount. Carly will, in fact, come directly to the apartment door in a few minutes and summon Shaun to take a walk with her… but first, before retiring to her room for the night, Lea pads into their kitchen to retrieve something from the fridge. And to stir Shaun's pressure-cooker of emotions, just a little. Because… Lea!

 


BEST REMEMBERED FOR: I liked the way Shaun was pacing around the breakfast bar, books open, ShaunVision® flying, and Lea bops into the shot from the other side of the room and dismantled it all—first by advising rest (“your neurons will be sparkier in the morning”), and then countering all his talk about needing to find “the right permutation” for his medical case with the fact that he was refusing to try any additional “permutations” where he and Carly were concerned.


 

Also, it was right after the tail end of this scene—where she agreed to shut up, yet continued to talk all the way to her bedroom door (prompting Shaun’s aggravated “You’re still talking!” retorts)—when a fellow TGD fan tweeted about how it was scenes like this one that confirmed the continuing chemistry between Shaun and Lea, and how it gave him hope for them for the future. Given that this was when all the focus was on Shaun and Carly getting off the ground, I appreciated that greatly.

 

 

12) “Hey Morgan… love your boots.” (From 3.15 “Unsaid”)

 

IN SHORT: In Lea’s first week of working for Glassman at St. Bonaventure, she seeks Shaun out at least twice for venting purposes—or as she says endearingly at the start of this scene, “I need a double dose of Shaunie, stat.” Of course, her thoughts on Glassman’s resistance to technology are soon eclipsed by Shaun’s questions about women saying one thing and meaning the opposite, as Morgan had suggested earlier in


the day. Lea tries to be helpful, but that’s tough to do when someone uses the word “think” a half-dozen times in the space of 15 seconds (as Shaun does) and then asks Lea what she thinks. Lea fares better when she simply assures Shaun that Carly is not likely to be hiding anything from him.

 


BEST REMEMBERED FOR:
… what happens next. Lea picks French fries off Shaun’s plate for most of the scene; it’s a nonchalant action that Shaun barely acknowledges… but… enter Morgan, coming

to tell him a surgery awaits and he needs to wrap up lunch. (And, apparently, taking notes on Lea’s territory-staking skills all the while.)

 

The “love you boots-thanks-love your sweater-thanks” exchange between Morgan and Lea seems to quietly upend some of Shaun’s confidence in Carly’s forthrightness—probably because even a man who has great difficulty reading social cues could tell that Lea and Morgan had ZERO love for each other’s apparel in that moment! And if those two could snap into the insincerities THAT quickly… “hmmm,” as Shaun would (and probably did) say.

 

By the way… the main reason I put this scene a little higher on my list than its follow-up (“You never used to do that,” a.k.a. #15 on the list) is because it’s also a series of “firsts.” First time Lea’s crashing Shaun at work in person (I’m not forgetting when she FaceTimed him to announce that Hubert The Fish was bored). First time she has work-related Glassy complaints. And, most important, first time we actually witnessed a Lea/Morgan exchange. And I’m most definitely rooting for more of that!

 

 

11) “How do I get an ice cream headache?” (From 3.14 “Influence”)

 

IN SHORT: Shaun’s excited about the case surrounding the


influencer
(the basis of the episodic title)—so excited that he declines “lunch” (not sure if it was actual lunch or sex lunch, don’t care at this point) with Carly because he wants to get going on his research. Or does he…? Yes, in that he used his lunch hour to discover the agony of an ice

cream headache (something the influencer described as the feeling behind one of her symptoms). But it just so happened that he also made lunch plans with Lea. As Morgan rationalizes later, it’s not really a lie he tells Carly (“he’s incapable of lying”)… but definitely enough information he didn’t feel was necessary to share upfront to send his favorite pathologist into a tailspin.

 

So we get a new taste of the love triangle, AND some big news from Lea when she announces that she’s quitting her job. “You kicking me out was just what I needed,” she says… and as for me, my heart sank a little with the thought that she might be moving away again… this time, for good (see below). But half an hour later, she managed to crush a job interview with Glassman (Shaun’s suggestion, naturally) and make it impossible to be anything less than St.B’s newest employee.

 

BEST REMEMBERED FOR: OMG she’s back onscreen!! Yay!!!!

That was the feeling a lot of us #Shea fans had upon seeing Lea meeting up for lunch with Shaun in this episode. We hadn’t seen her since the opening minute of 3.12 “Mutations,” and a few of us were beginning to wonder if they’d decided to write her off in favor of Shaun and Carly. Now, we saw them meeting for lunch just moments after watching him decline a lunch offer from Carly. It’s about as clandestine as Shaun is capable of, and we were There. For. IT.

 

 

10) “… That’s his fault. His. Not yours.” (From 3.10 “Friends and Family”)


IN SHORT: Shaun, Lea, and Glassman are in Casper, where they’d pulled up into the Murphy family driveway only for Shaun to panic and beg Glassman to drive away (which he did) as soon as his mother came out to the front yard. Now, at the motel, Lea comes to check on her re-traumatized best friend… and offer a little advice of her own while Glassman is not around to contradict her (a.k.a. pressuring Shaun to talk to and/or forgive his father while he’s still among the living). This is the scene that prompts Shaun to pay a visit to the cemetery where Steve is buried… and, eventually, to make his way back to see his father.

 


BEST REMEMBERED FOR:
The crucial counterpoint that Lea provides throughout this pivotal episode. Shaun isn’t confused about his feelings for his father, but thanks in part to Glassy projecting an unfair share of his own lingering parental guilt, that word forgiveness hangs in the Casper air like a lead balloon. It’s funny… normally to think of that word in symbolic terminology I think of something more like shackles. To forgive someone is to cut yourself free from something that’s heavy and binding to them, right? But in the case of Shaun, I end up saying “lead balloon” because that last, post-forgiveness 30 seconds with his Dad just sent shrapnel crashing right down on the forgiver… ugh.

 

But anyway, back to Lea. Over and over again in “Friends and


Family,” she’s the one encouraging Shaun to take his time. It’s in the car as they sat in the driveway. It’s here, in this scene (where she says if his dad dies before Shaun’s ready to walk into that house and see him, the fault lies with his dad, not him). It’s at the cemetery, right after Glassy re-states his case for getting back to the house ASAP. It’s at the lake, when she suggests to Shaun that sometimes the kind of closure Glassy hopes for is simply unattainable.

 

And, arguably, it’s there once more when Shaun declines Glassman’s offer to stay and talk, go for a walk, etc. right after delivering the news that Ethan Murphy had passed away… and instead wordlessly accepts Lea’s comforting arms, taking all the time he needed to feel better*.

 

*Around 8 hours’ worth, we suspect

 

 

9) “You’re a good dancer.” (From 2.12 “Aftermath”)




IN SHORT: All the residents, having just been knee-deep in the “Quarantine” 2-parter, are trying to rest and recoup in their own ways: yoga and meditation (Morgan), running (Claire), martial arts (Park). And Shaun…? Shaun lays still but awake in his bed. Lea, however, dons the earphones/cranks up Florence + The Machine/dances up a frenzy in and around the kitchen. Shaun eventually emerges from his bedroom, watching her silently but with intense fascination. After Lea discovers Shaun’s presence (and is sufficiently embarrassed), she makes suggestions on how to spend his day off (“no boring textbooks!”) and sends him back to his room, advising further that nothing he does should happen before 9AM.

 


BEST REMEMBERED FOR:
I just loved the way Lea was included in this montage featuring other series regulars. She really got to be the yin to Shaun’s yang (or is it vice versa?) here, and it was a joy to witness. No wonder Shaun couldn’t take his eyes off her once he was in the room. And her freak-out when she found him watching her—“Holy crap, Shaun! You’ve gotta give a girl some warning

before she makes a total fool of herself!”—might seem a little harsh, but she was smiling the entire time she said it. Nothing but charm in that scene!

 

 

8) “Do I look nice?” (From 2:18 “Trampoline”)




 

IN SHORT: Shaun’s just been released from the hospital (where he lay injured for part of the episode), and he’s got his surgeon job back. So—apparently trying to make it 3-for-3—he’s got flowers, chocolates, and a suit on when Lea comes home. But the question he has for Lea is not the question we think he has for Lea. (Is it, Carly?) Shaun then takes his chocolates and his flowers and his “very nice”-looking self and breezes right past Lea as he exits the apartment.

 

BEST REMEMBERED FOR: It was another super-succinct slice in the life and times of #Shea, but it was also incredibly effective in the final minutes of Season 2. Lea’s true feelings for Shaun remained at-large… questioned, frequently, but still at-large… all the way up to her earlier scene in “Trampoline,” (where Glassy says “when he gets rejected, I’m glad it’s coming from somebody who cares about him”). By doing as they did, The Powers That Be kept the suspense going—what would Lea have said if those flowers were for her? And what was that expression on her face as he passed her by? Relief? Dismay? Both?—all while still giving Shaun a surprise victory and a course for the season to come.

 

Personally, I remember being somewhat let down by that S2 ending. But at the same time, I felt strangely good about it. The timing’s not right yet, I decided… but I think it will be. Soon.


Don't you love it when a plan comes together?




Saturday, August 22, 2020

#SHEA Ultimate S.O.S. Playlist, Volume 8 (Tracks 36-40)

 

Who’s ready for more #Shea song suggestions?

 

Wow, the summer’s almost over you guys. And while shooting on TGD hasn’t yet begun, they SEEM to have the details of said shooting (and corresponding COVID testing) squared away now, and APPEAR to be headed to an early September resumption of production. I know it gets frustrating to weather all the stops and starts, but this year in particular I suppose it’s crucial to embrace every small step of progress.

 

So, back to the Playlist. Volume 8 doesn’t have much of a theme, but its contributions are as relevant as any other “volume” (as will the final volume, in which I’m including a few of the more fun suggestions!). Dig in… take a listen… and remember, you can suggest a new offering for the playlist ANYTIME. Even if you don’t have anything to say about your suggested song…I get plenty of that, and include ‘em anyway!

 

** 

SONG: “Enchanted” by Taylor Swift

Songwriter: Taylor Swift

Submitted by: Cosmic Lightning

Comments from Me: The “tribute video” mentioned below is one of Sheree-Lynn’s creations; I featured her work earlier in the summer and will feature an interview with her next month.

Comments from Cosmic: “That tribute video I linked before made me realize how well this song applies to Shaun and Lea's first meeting too; a lot of very similar feelings between them I'd imagine. Two people living monotonous boring lives until running into each other by pure chance, where they feel an instant connection to one another which only got stronger and more passionate the more they ran into each other, climaxing with the road trip in 1.11 'Islands Part 1'. It's a great song that sums up Shaun and Lea's Season 1
relationship in my opinion-- the magical early romantic period without all the baggage that came from Hershey or their attempts at trying to be platonic, just two soulmates embracing each other's company together."

 

SAMPLE LYRICS

 

This is me praying that
This was the very first page
Not where the storyline ends
My thoughts will echo your name
Until I see you again
These are the words I held back
As I was leaving too soon
I was enchanted to meet you…

  

 

HEAR IT HERE 

 

-- 

SONG: “She’s Always a Woman” by Billy Joel

Songwriter: Billy Joel

Submitted by: Sonya

 

Comments from Me: Fun fact!... When I first heard the name Billy Joel as a kid, I initially thought he was connected somehow to the title character in the 1968 song “Ode to Billie Joe”. It was about midway through the successful run of singles released from Joel’s The Stranger before I realized there was no connection whatsoever; that he was real and the one in the song was fictitious, that he was a boy and the fictional one was a girl, that he was alive and well and the fictional one had jumped to her (fictional) death. Hey, I was only nine years old when that album came out… cut a girl some slack!

 

Anyway, “She’s Always a Woman” happens to be single #3 from The Stranger. As much as I’ve always been fond of the song, I’ve wavered at times on how I felt about the woman described in the song. Is she worth his time? He seems to think so. But why? She lacks transparency, faith in her partner, the ability to give. She can kill with her smile! She can wound with her eyes! And yet…

 

Wikipedia describes it as “a love song about a modern woman whom the singer has fallen totally in love with to the extent of falling for her endearing quirks as well as her flaws.”

Hmm. Sounds like a certain San Jose doctor and a certain San Jose auto engineer we know, doesn’t it?


SAMPLE LYRICS

 

And she only reveals what she wants you to see
She hides like a child
But she's always a woman to me

She can lead you to love


She can take you or leave you
She can ask for the truth
But she'll never believe
And she'll take what you give her as long as it's free

Yeah, she steals like a thief  
But she's always a woman to me

 

HEAR IT HERE

 

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SONG: “Can’t Help Falling in Love” (Kina Grannis version) 

Songwriters: Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, George David Weiss

Submitted by: Rose Amelie

Comments from Me: Remember when the song “More” appeared in the first edition of the Playlist and I mentioned its roots dated back to a 1962 Italian documentary? Well, “Can’t Help” has interesting roots as well: According to Wikipedia…

 

“The melody is based on ‘Plaisir d'amour’, a popular French love song composed in 1784 by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini. The song was initially written for a woman as ‘Can't Help Falling in Love with Him’, which explains the first and third line ending on ‘in’ and ‘sin’ rather than words rhyming with ‘you’. (A-HA! Always wondered about that.)

 

Elvis Presley had the definitive U.S.version of “Can’t Help” in 1962, with covers bringing the song back into focus every now and again… including a dreamy/gauzy version by Corey Hart (yeah, that same “Sunglasses at Night” guy I mentioned in the last Playlist post) and a reggae-ish version by UB40 that topped the Billboard charts in the 90s.

Comments from Rose:
“I know there’s a lot of versions, but this one in particular is so nice! It played in a wedding scene in the film Crazy Rich Asians (I’m not suggesting a Shaun and Lea’s wedding immediately, although that would be very nice in the future).
This version, sung by a woman (Kina Gannis’ voice is so delicate), symbolizes Lea’s feelings after the "I Love You" episode (her final confessions in S3):

 

SAMPLE LYRICS

Shall I stay?

Would it be a sin
If I can't help falling in love with you

Like a river flows
Surely to the sea
Darling, so it goes
Some things were meant to be

Take my hand


Take my whole life too
For I can't help falling in love with you


HEAR IT (the Kina Gannis version) HERE 

 

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SONG: “You Are the Reason” by Calum Scott

Songwriters: Calum Scott, Corey Sanders, Jon Maguire

Submitted by: Vale (this is her first contribution to the Playlist and she’s got a lot to say, so I’m just gonna let her talk here…)

Comments from Vale: “I am always looking for new songs in YouTube—especially when I'm working—and this song came as part of a playlist. At first I thought it was beautiful, but then I started to pay attention to the lyrics and couldn't help but to think of Shea at some point of the series.

“It has always bothered me that we never got the chance to see Lea's POV after the whole post-Shaun's declaration tantrum. For me it was so important because I'm sure that for her this wasn't rainbows and flowers, it must have been hard. She knew she hurt a friend, deeply, but most importantly she hurt herself, she admitted to love him and we all know how hard is to be in love and not actually be with the significant other, the anguish this can produce. To not expand on her feelings, it is just simply wrong IMO… and the cause of why many people out there hate her. It also makes the whole last two episodes kind of hollow. Don't get me wrong, I love them, but I really hope that they have a deeper conversation about what happened when TGD continues next season.

“I like to think that she kissed him because she couldn't hold back any longer and she was eager to do so for so long that just couldn't help it. I would like to set this song between the Heartbreak (S3:18) and the Hurt (S3:19) episode and I will hang onto the only piece of information we got from Lea at the beginning of 3-19 when she says to Dr. Melendez ‘These have been two difficult weeks’ for me this song describes how she might have felt during those two weeks, and how she reacted in S3:20 (I Love You) kind of confirms it.

 

 

SAMPLE LYRICS

 

There goes my heart beating


Cause you are the reason
I'm losing my sleep
Please come back now

There goes my mind racing
And you are the reason
That I'm still breathing
I'm hopeless now


There goes my hands shaking
And you are the reason
My heart keeps bleeding
I need you now

If I could turn back the clock


I'd make sure the light defeated the dark
I'd spend every hour, of every day
Keeping you safe

 

 

HEAR IT HERE  


I also came across a very similar arrangement in duet form... Calum Scott singing with Leona Lewis. Lovely!


HEAR THE DUET VERSION HERE


 

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SONG: “The Luckiest” by Ben Folds 

Songwriter: Ben Folds

Submitted by: Kelli

 

Comments from Me: This one treads a little bit of the same path as “Bless the Broken Road” does (see previous Playlist) when you hear it sung by a woman, but I hear a lot of Shaun in this song as well. I don’t know if “lucky” is part of Shaun’s vocabulary—it seems the concept of “luck” is one he wouldn’t understand/support—but the last two lines I’ve included here resonate for both he AND Lea, don’t you think? (This is why I’m including links to not only Folds’ version, but a jazz cover by Sara Gizarek and a duet featuring Kina Gannis—yes, the same Kina Gannis mentioned above!)

 

Oh, and as an aside… I see that “The Luckiest” has been used in countless weddings since its 2001 release, both as a processional ("down-the-aisle" song) and as a couple’s first dance. Ben Folds, the one who penned the song, is in his mid-50s and recently married wife number FIVE! So I guess that makes me appreciate even more, in a weird way, the way he was able to crystallize the feelings/sentiment behind “The Luckiest” so well.

 

 

SAMPLE LYRICS

I don't get many things right the first time
In fact, I am told that a lot
Now I know all the wrong turns
The stumbles and falls brought me here

And where was I before the day
That I first saw your lovely face?
Now I see it every day
And I know that I am
I am, I am the luckiest…

I love you more than I have
Ever found a way to say to you


 

HEAR IT (the original lyric video) HERE


HEAR THE DUET (Kina Grannis/Imaginary Future) HERE 


HEAR THE JAZZ VERSION (Sara Gizarek) HERE 


Saturday, August 15, 2020

#Shea Music Videos that AREN’T Sheree Lynn’s

 Whenever you want a reminder that you’re HARDLY alone in your #Shea-shipping, the confirmation options are pretty easy…

 

                * Come catch up on my blog! (Oh, cool, you’re already doing that. See? Easy-peasy)

2               * Take in an eyeful of the creations on the new Instagram account dedicated to all things #Shea, courtesy of Twitter/blog followers Rose Amelie and Valerae!

3                * Check out some fan-created #Shea music videos!

 

When I featured #3 previously, it was to shine a spotlight on the considerable efforts of Sheree-Lynn Blizzard, who has produced no less than TEN high-quality #Shea videos to date (and hundreds of thousands of views!). I mentioned that I’d also feature an interview with her later in the summer, and in fact she and I are working on that this month… I hope to post it in September.

 

But I also mentioned, in the comments to that SLB post I believe, that there are dozens of #Shea videos out there created by other TGD fans. Some are quite good; some aren’t (which is mostly to say that they aren’t all that distinguishable from each other). The commonality, though, is that a fan of the show took time and their best effort to construct their own #Shea statement.

 

I’ve taken note of close to 30 such videos, and am featuring a handful of them today. Some have earned a small following already, but most of them have “view” numbers to indicate they haven’t yet made it past many fans’ collective eyeballs. I may not be able to help them much; my writing doesn’t make it past a lot of collective eyeballs either (LOL), but… if some of you find a clip that’s new (to you, anyway) that you really enjoy… I encourage you to go post about it on your social media of choice. Let’s signal-boost #Shea fans as much as we can!

 

Oh, and if you “know” any of these video creators… point them this way (to the blog), if they aren’t reading already! And if YOU YOURSELF happens to be behind any of these… say so in the comments and take a bow!

 

NOTE: You may notice that some of these videos are better than others in terms of editing, sound mixing, etc. I did too, but I’m not taking technical quality into account very much.

 

On the other hand, I admittedly AM more likely to include a clip running, say, longer than two or so minutes because I know those generally take more effort to create, and to hold the interest of the viewer. I have made some exceptions; you’ll see those included as “Honorable Mention” videos.

 

ANOTHER NOTE: If you’ve got your own personal fave #Shea music video and it is NOT featured here yet, please contact me privately rather than leave a clip of it in the comments. Chances are good that I’ve already seen it and plan to mention it down the road, but… ya never know. Email is KLawrence997 at gmail-dot-com. Thanks in advance!

--

SONG: “Light” by Sleeping at Last

PRODUCER: Samantha Lima

RELEASE DATE: 3/29/20 (one day before S3 Finale)

LENGTH: 4:23

VIEWS TO DATE: 4,500

 

 

This one stands out for the way it underscores both the song lyrics and the words spoken by Shaun and Lea with on-screen graphics… not continually, but in very effective places. It also makes use of a few snippets of footage that are less commonly seen in these kinds of videos. And while part of me is very curious why this was released just before the S3 finale—scenes from “Hurt” are included; scenes from “I Love You” are not—I think it works well for grabbing that bittersweet-but-still-hopeful-vibe just before the Hollywood North RomCom patrol took #Shea to new heights.

--

SONG: “Rather Be” by Jasmine Thompson (original version by Clean Bandit)

PRODUCER: Universi Fanvids

RELEASE DATE: 10/2/18

LENGTH: 4:06

VIEWS TO DATE: 1,700


This one only contains highlights of S1, but the song’s a nice fit and the edits are well-paced. Includes a little of the Shaun/Claire exchange where she explains “flirting” (with Lea’s asshat and Shaun’s ridiculous sweater comments ahead and behind it, respectively)

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SONG: “The Scientist” by Coldplay

PRODUCER: NatalieProductions

RELEASE DATE: 6/29/20

LENGTH: 4:25

VIEWS TO DATE: 78

 

 

That’s not a typo… this perfectly enjoyable #Shea video, which is essentially a direct narrative of their story—thoughtfully punctuated with dialogue here and there—has LESS THAN 100 VIEWS to its name as I write this. Let’s see if we can bump that up!

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SONG: “Dimelo” by Enrique Iglesias

PRODUCER: Valentina Soler

RELEASE DATE: 4/9/20

LENGTH: 3:48

VIEWS TO DATE: 224



“Dimelo” (which translates to “Tell Me” according to Google Translate) relies almost entirely on the visuals and the music to tell Shaun and Lea’s story. But when dialogue is featured, there’s a twist—sometimes it’s in English, other times it’s in Spanish. Welcome to the only bi-lingual music video in this week’s listings! (If you ever wondered what TGD sounds like when dubbed in Spanish, this clip is for you!)

 

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SONG: “Islands in the Stream” by…????

PRODUCER: emriswizard

RELEASE DATE: 4/30/20

LENGTH: 3:29

VIEWS TO DATE: 467

 

1) 


I ADORE this up-tempo cover of Shaun and Lea’s “song”… but who sings it? If you happen to know, please share your knowledge in the comments! (I know there are apps for that kind of thing, but I don't have them!)

Anyway… this is a somewhat more playful take on Shaun and Lea’s relationship through the years.

 

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SONG: “Arctic”… instrumental by..???

PRODUCER: Natalie Elaina

RELEASE DATE: 4/4/20

LENGTH: 4:35

VIEWS TO DATE: 50,700



I’m not sure if “Arctic” is the name of the instrumental used in this popular clip, or if that’s a theme the creator assigned to it. But the absence of lyrics definitely allows for a little more focus on the steady stream of #Shea dialogue.

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SONG: “I Can’t Make You Love Me” cover by Dave Thomas, Jr. (original by Bonnie Raitt)

PRODUCER: M O O D.

RELEASE DATE: 3/30/20

LENGTH: 5:45 (includes a lengthy clip from the “Hurt” episode)

VIEWS TO DATE: 130,000


1) 



This clip—which is by far the most-seen of the ones in this post—is similar to the first clip on this list in that it was released just before the season finale. The big difference comes in the tone, which is, as you might guess by the song choice, decidedly downcast. Interesting that a video that essentially jumped the gun on this couple’s prognosis is so popular with #Shea fans. (And yes, as far as I could tell, the supportive stream of comments was left by fans rather than Lea-haters.)

 

Speaking of LEA…! She is the star of both my Honorable Mentions this time around.

 

TITLE: Best of Lea Dilallo

PRODUCER: Shaun The Good Doctor

RELEASE DATE: 5/29/20

LENGTH: 2:13

VIEWS TO DATE: 918

 

 

TITLE: Lea being understanding of Shaun for 4 minutes straight

PRODUCER: Shaun The Good Doctor

RELEASE DATE: 6/30/20

LENGTH: 4:00

VIEWS TO DATE: 2,700

 

 

Same producer on these two clips, but two different sides of our girl Lea… “best of” showcases her sass, while “being understanding” flies in the face of those who maintain regular character assassination attempts on her. What’s not to love??



Saturday, August 8, 2020

#SHEA Ultimate S.O.S. Playlist, Volume 7 (Tracks 31-35)

 

I hope you’re still finding the bi-weekly additions to the Playlist interesting!

My intent is to put out two more “volumes” after this one… at that point, everyone who has submitted at least one song to me should be included. Beyond that, I plan to build the numerous other song suggestions into blog posts in ways TBD later. And yes, I’m contemplating a shareable spreadsheet of the entire Playlist, hopefully with an actual Spotify playlist to follow! But be patient; I move S L O W L Y 😒

I will still GLADLY make room for more suggestions, so please remember (and/or tell others) that THIS is the original “call for submissions” link!

It’s getting more difficult to group these into single categories, but I think today’s submissions are mostly reflective of #Shea happenings of 2020 thus far…

 --

SONG: “Someone to Call My Own” by Mos Isley 

Songwriters: Mos Isley (This is a guess; could not find a definitive answer) 

Submitted by: Allan Verissimo; endorsed by Rose Amelie 

Comments from Me: “As heard in the promo for 3.16(Autopsy)…” 

(this one resonates with MANY TGD fans; the video links for the song are chock full of comments like “The Good Doctor brought me here”)


Also—I thought Mos Isley was a person’s name until I Googled it and kept seeing references to Star Wars… that confusion eventually led to the discovery that “Mos” is actually the name of a Swedish Indie rock/pop band (aka SEVERAL people). The more you know…!

Anyway, many thanks to Allan for suggesting “Someone” in the blog comments a few weeks back… I’m sure others thank you too! Rose Amelie mentioned it as well…

Comments from Rose: “I just love it! It sounds when

Shaun walks to talk to Lea in the clinic (well.. he said nothing because he was scared). This theme fits perfect for Shaun´s POV. He knows that deserves to be with someone, and realized that Carly isn`t the person he really loves. That truth hit him like a locomotive, and Shaun finally accepts his feelings for Lea, and the desires to share his life with her.”

 

SAMPLE LYRICS

 

This universe I understand

A brand-new world is in our hands

I want someone to call my own

Someone to share my rhythm and to fallow home

Somewhere I belong…. Someone to call my own


A long gone light has reappeared

A piece of mind is what you hear

We can make it right somehow

We can break the barrier now

 

 

HEAR IT HERE 

 

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SONG: “Everything in My Heart” by Corey Hart 

Songwriter: Corey Hart

Submitted by: Kelli 

Comments: This track from Mr.“Sunglasses at Night” was a minor (Top 30) hit in the U.S., but went #1 in his native Canada, and stuck with me throughout the final arc of S3. It’s a throwaway 80s ballad for some… but it’s also the kind of piece for which, if I was producing a #Shea music video, the visuals would come easily in tandem with the lyrics…

 

Through the longest nights
Oh we know them so well
I keep forgetting my place
And I stumbled til I fell
So easy it's so easy

To never see the truth…


And sometimes when my heart is so cold

And you cut me out and you're so hard to hold…


I keep searching

I want to get through to you





I keep on searching

About to break through to you

Again and again…






HEAR IT HERE 

And though I wanted to find a decent, updated cover of “Everything…” to share here, I can only provide the original, cliché-ridden “concert” video clip from 1985. Sorry!

 

-- 

SONG: “Shut Up and Dance” by Walk the Moon 

Songwriters: Ben Berger, Eli Maiman, Ryan McMahon, Nicholas Petricca, Kevin Ray 

Submitted by: Rose Amelie (I’m counting THIS as her contribution, not the previous one)

Comments from Rose: “This was one of my first songs in my personal the #Shea playlist. The difference with the previous two songs is that this theme is pure joy and strength. Obviously, it´s Shaun´s POV based on Lea´s personality and soul...

For me, the phrase ‘dance with’ represents the new life of both. Shaun loves and accepts Lea for just ‘being her,’ and he knows his destiny is with her.”

 

SAMPLE LYRICS

 

We were victims of the night
The chemical, physical, kryptonite
Helpless to the bass and the fading light
Oh, we were bound to get together
Bound to get together

She took my arm
I don't know how it happened
We took the floor and she said

"Oh, don't you dare look back

Just keep your eyes on me"
I said, "You're holding back"
She said, "Shut up and dance with me!"
This woman is my destiny
She said, "Ooh-ooh-hoo
Shut up and dance with me"

 

HEAR IT HERE 


-- 

SONG: “Bless the Broken Road” (best known by Rascal Flatts) 

Songwriters: Marcus Hummon, Bobby Boyd, Jeff Hanna

Submitted by: Tony

Comments from Tony: “I spent a lot of my young adult years enjoying a mix of lighter Pop and Country, and this one happened to be a crossover hit that came out about a year before I graduated college. There are other versions out there, but this was by far the biggest.

“Call this one a song from Lea's perspective - even though it's sung by a male group. In it, the singer recounts years of broken dreams, heartbreak and relationship fails; which ultimately proved to pave the way to their true love.”

 

Comments from Me: My limited knowledge of country music had me thinking the Rascal Flatts 2004 version of “Broken Road” was the original… far from it! The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band had the original in the ‘90s, and several covers have been made through the years, both in the country and contemporary Christian genres (with the Rascal Flatts version being by far the best-known, as Tony indicates).

 

Since it’s devoted to Lea’s perspective on things, the lyric video I’m including contains one of the female versions of the song (by CCM artist Selah).


 

SAMPLE LYRICS

 

I set out on a narrow way many years ago
Hoping I would find true love along the broken road
But I got lost a time or two
Wiped my brow and kept pushing through
I couldn't see how every sign pointed straight to you

Every long lost dream led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart they were like Northern stars
Pointing me on my way into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road


That led me straight to you

  

HEAR IT HERE 


--

SONG: “We’re Going Home” by Vance Joy

Songwriters: James Keogh (A.K.A. Vance Joy), Dan Wilson 

Submitted by: Faghost

Comments from Me: Faghost, like a few others, has submitted many, MANY songs for #Shea playlist consideration. 😁 No commentary was provided for this submission, but the song itself was flagged with multiple asterisks to indicate it was a top pick among the many, MANY Faghost suggested!😊 I’ll just add that Vance Joy is an Aussie artist best known in the U.S. for his songs “Riptide” and “Saturday Sun”.

 

“We’re Going Home” is another one of those songs with lyrics and warmth to stir up all the positive vibes emanating from the back half of the S3 finale.

 

SAMPLE LYRICS

 


Some things are simple and hard to ignore
They say, hmm, the truth is like that
We're getting colder, so far from the shore
I say, hmm, the world is like that


I can't see you
But I hear your call
Baby, hold on now




We're going home
If we make it or we don't, we won't be alone
When I see your light shine, I know I'm home
If you're waiting all your life, you won't ever go

 

HEAR IT HERE