School's Out (film)
Encyclopedia
School's Out is a 1992 Canadian television movie
featuring the characters of the popular Degrassi Junior High
and Degrassi High
series. The show's longtime team of writers scripted this feature-length movie and shot it during the summer of 1991 to be shown on CBC Television
during the new year. Initially, the movie was intended to wrap up the entire Degrassi saga, but in 2001, the franchise was revived
with a new series, Degrassi: The Next Generation
.
, during the summer following the high school graduation of many of the Degrassi High characters, before they part ways for university and adult life. The story opens on graduation day, approximately two years after the series finalé, "One Last Dance" (DH ep. 213), and one day shy of 4 years after the first date between Joey Jeremiah
(Pat Mastroianni
) and Caitlin Ryan
(Stacie Mistysyn
) to the school dance in the third season finalé, "Bye-Bye Junior High" (DJH ep. 316).
The crux of the feature focused on long-time recurrent couple Joey and Caitlin. Caitlin is approximately one year younger than Joey, yet the two had been classmates since Joey's dysgraphia
necessitated his repeat of grade 8 ("Pass Tense", DJH ep. 216; "Testing 1, 2, 3", DH ep. 113). Despite having been held back four years earlier, he remained closer to his friends in his former class than to his contemporary classmates, aside from Caitlin. As Joey approaches his nineteenth birthday, his friends are preparing for university and far-off travel, while he faces another year of high school. Exacerbating the situation, Caitlin has taken a number of extra classes to complete high school in three years, and has just graduated with Joey's former peers.
Eager to hold on to her before she leaves to study journalism at Carleton University
in Ottawa
, Joey proposes to Caitlin at the graduation party hosted by Caitlin's soon-to-be roommate, Lucy Fernandez
(Anais Granofsky
). Caitlin demurs, explaining that she is not ready for that kind of commitment. Joey storms out, only to run into classmate Tessa Campanelli
(Kirsten Bourne) fresh from an argument with her boyfriend Todd (Christian Campbell), and he agrees to give her a ride home.
Arriving at the Campanelli house, Tessa pulls Joey toward her for a kiss. The next day, on her break from the photo processing store, Tessa visits Joey next door at Shoppers Drug Mart
and asks him on a date. Joey, though initially hesitant, accepts Tessa's offer, has a great time, and, as he tells Wheels
(Neil Hope) the next day, gets to "third base." Joey sees little of Caitlin who is working as a waitress to make money for university; instead, he spends most of the summer with Tessa who, unlike Caitlin, "goes all the way." Tessa confides in her co-worker, Christine "Spike" Nelson (Amanda Stepto
), the details of the relationship. Spike reminds her that Joey and Caitlin have a pattern of breaking up and reuniting. Tessa rejects Spike's argument, noting that Caitlin will be leaving for university in a matter of weeks anyway.
Tessa realises that Joey is still dating Caitlin with no intention of leaving her. Tessa dumps Joey without telling him that she's pregnant and having an abortion
. Joey and Caitlin finally make love on his nineteenth birthday, approximately a week before Caitlin, Lucy, and Snake are all scheduled to depart. It's Caitlin's first time, though she is unaware that it is not Joey's. Unbeknownst to Joey, Caitlin has decided to attend a local university in order to remain close to him.
The next day, at a lake house party, hosted by Lucy's boyfriend Bronco Davis (L. Dean Ifill
), Caitlin accepts Joey's earlier marriage proposal. An overly confident Joey teases Snake
(Stefan Brogren
) one too many times and the latter lashes back, loudly criticising Joey for his infidelity. Caitlin's now infamous line, "Tessa Campanelli? You were fucking Tessa Campanelli?" was edited to "You were sleeping with Tessa Campanelli?" for airing in the United States. She storms out after breaking off their engagement and telling Joey of her would-be plans to study locally in order to be with him.
Immediately after unintentionally breaking up Joey and Caitlin, Snake realises that former classmate Allison Hunter (Sarah Holmes) is drowning and rushes in to the lake to rescue her. Everyone congratulates him for saving the her life, but he breaks down in a flood of emotion and anxiety.
Meanwhile, Wheels leaves the party drunk with Lucy to get more chips but ends up crashing into another car. The crash kills a two-year-old boy in the other car, and seriously injures Lucy. Joey visits Wheels in jail, where Wheels asserts that it is not his fault that the child was not wearing a seatbelt or that Lucy needed more chips. Snake is disgusted by Wheels, particularly in light of Wheels having lost his own parents to a drunk driver three years earlier ("Can't Live With 'Em", DJH ep. 301).
In the epilogue, most of the gang meet up again two months later for the Alexa Pappadopoulos (Irene Courakos) and Simon Dexter (Michael Carry) wedding. Absent are Wheels, Erica Farrell
(Angela Deiseach), and Lucy. Still incarcerated, Wheels is set to plead guilty for his crimes, while Erica is teaching abroad in the Dominican Republic
and has met a new boyfriend in the process. Meanwhile, Lucy has since regained vision in one of her eyes but is still not well enough to attend the wedding. Snake is accompanied by his girlfriend Pam (Tara Burt) whom he met at university, and he appears considerably more self-assured; he is still vocally disgusted by Wheels. Both Snake and Caitlin are receptive to Joey's apologies for the way he had behaved toward them, and the former fiancés share a dance as friends. He predicts that she will be famous. This scene is the only time pre-Next Generation that any hint of a friendship between Spike and Caitlin is depicted; the two traveled in entirely separate circles throughout Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High, and Spike expressed her resentment of Caitlin's meddling in the Junior High episode "Censored", when the local PTA (parent-teacher association) threw Spike out of school for being pregnant.
-based rock group Harem Scarem
. Songs by popular Canadian 80s singer (now Styx
lead singer) Lawrence Gowan
are also featured in the film.
in the 2001 Degrassi: The Next Generation
pilot episode, "Mother and Child Reunion, Part 1" provides update to the Lucy and Wheels plot. Snake, no longer dating Pam, is still furious at Wheels and mentions that he was released from prison. Lucy's eyesight is restored (whether in one or both eyes is unclear) and, having completed extensive physical therapy, she is able to walk well with the use of a cane; at the same time, she has completed an honours bachelor's degree, a master's degree
and most of the work for a Ph.D. Joey and Caitlin have gone their separate ways and not seen each other in many years (though it is unclear if Alexa and Simon's wedding was the last time). Joey is now a used car dealer and a widowed father of a young daughter. His prediction for Caitlin, however, has come true: she is famous as the host of an environmental-political television series. At the reunion, Caitlin breaks up with her new fiancé Keith (Don McKellar); as she takes off her ring while sitting alone with Joey, she asks him, "Bring back any memories?" Alexa and Simon are still married, as evidenced by the characters sitting together and Irene Courakos being credited as "Alexa Dexter" vice "Alexa Pappadopoulos." Alison is shown to be none the worse for wear when flirting with both Joey and Keith.
In the Degrassi: The Next Generation Season 1
DVD extras, a deleted scene from "Mother and Child Reunion" depicts a video interviewing people at the reunion. Alison Hunter says she is a waitress and wants to become a star in Hollywood. Dwayne Myers says that he is still HIV
positive, but he is AIDS
free. Kathleen Mead is shown being jealous of Caitlin's success after high school. She says she is pitching an idea for a new television show called "Mead in Canada." Diana Economopoulos is now Diana Platt; she and her husband are accountants. She has two children and brags about her website. Yick Yu says that he and Arthur Kobalewsky are co-owners of a web design company. Alexa and Simon Dexter have two children and Alexa is pregnant with their third. Ricky is a lawyer and is helping write copyright laws for the internet. Rainbow is a documentary film maker. Liz O'Rourke says she is now working with the mentally disabled (although she is later revealed to be a midwife in the episode "Father Figure"). Trish Skye says she had problems but has been clean and sober for two years; she works at a funeral home and is a freelance writer. In the same video Spike mentions that she bought out her mother's hair salon and comments on the "weird deja vu" of Emma now attending Degrassi; Snake also appears and notes that he is a teacher at the titular school, and still single.
Beginning in the second season, Spike and Caitlin are shown to have somehow become close friends, despite Caitlin having gone away to Carleton University in Ottawa, followed by pursuit of a broadcasting career in Los Angeles, while Spike stayed in Toronto to follow in her mother's footsteps as a hairstylist and single mother.
In the third season episode "Father Figure" Spike is pregnant with Snake's baby and has a baby shower. Among the people attending are Erica and Heather Farrell. Spike's daughter, Emma, also reconnects with her birth father, Shane McKay, and learns that he is mentally unstable. At the end of the episode, Spike gives birth and Liz O'Rourke acts as the midwife.
The third season episode, "Should I Stay or Should I Go?", brought closure to one School's Out plot line, and re-cycled another. At a bowling alley, Joey reunites Wheels with Snake who initially wants nothing to do with him. While Joey leaves them to fetch refreshments, however, the two bond over having both wanted to die (Wheels after killing the child and injuring Lucy, and Snake now that he is battling leukemia
and undergoing chemotherapy); the three, now balder and wiser, loudly sing the Zits' only song, Everybody Wants Something, as Joey drives them back to their respective homes.
In the same episode, Joey's stepson, Craig Manning (Jake Epstein
) finds himself in a nearly identical love triangle to that of Joey's from twelve years earlier. After a disagreement with his reasonably responsible and mature (but chaste) girlfriend Ashley Kerwin
(Melissa McIntyre), Craig is seduced by the younger but sexually aggressive Manny Santos
(Cassie Steele
). Craig continues cheating on Ashley with Manny until exposed and rejected by both of them in the two-part episode "Holiday." Joey consoles him, and relates how he was engaged to Caitlin but lost her by cheating with Tessa Campanelli; the conversation, however, leads to Craig making Joey realise that he still loves Caitlin and should leave Sydney (Elisa Moolecherry). Joey explains to Caitlin, "I moved on, but I never left." Their romance is rekindled until the end of the fourth season when they part on friendly terms. Like Tessa, Manny also has an abortion a few episodes later in "Accidents Will Happen" Part 2.
In the fifth season episode "The Lexicon Of Love" Part Two, it is Joey who takes in Snake when Spike (now Snake's wife) learns that Snake kissed another woman and orders him out of their house. Since Spike is depressed about Snake, Caitlin comes to cheer her up. She throws a girls party and among those that come are Lucy and Liz.
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
featuring the characters of the popular Degrassi Junior High
Degrassi Junior High
Degrassi Junior High is a Canadian CBC Television teen drama series that was produced from 1987-1989 as part of the Degrassi series. The show followed the lives of a group of students attending the titular fictional school...
and Degrassi High
Degrassi High
Degrassi High is the third television show in the Degrassi series of teen dramas about the lives of a group of kids living on or near De Grassi Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It first aired from 1989 to 1991 and followed the kids from Kids of Degrassi Street and Degrassi Junior High through...
series. The show's longtime team of writers scripted this feature-length movie and shot it during the summer of 1991 to be shown on CBC Television
CBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
during the new year. Initially, the movie was intended to wrap up the entire Degrassi saga, but in 2001, the franchise was revived
Revival (television)
A television revival is an attempt to revive a defunct series by producing new episodes created for broadcast. Network executives may decide to attempt to revive a television program when they feel that a market once again exists for it....
with a new series, Degrassi: The Next Generation
Degrassi: The Next Generation
Degrassi: The Next Generation is a Canadian teen drama television series set in the Degrassi universe, which was created by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood in 1979. Degrassi is the fourth fictional series in the Degrassi franchise, and follows The Kids of Degrassi Street, Degrassi Junior High, and...
.
Plot synopsis
The setting is TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, during the summer following the high school graduation of many of the Degrassi High characters, before they part ways for university and adult life. The story opens on graduation day, approximately two years after the series finalé, "One Last Dance" (DH ep. 213), and one day shy of 4 years after the first date between Joey Jeremiah
Joey Jeremiah
Joseph "Joey" Jeremiah is a fictional character from the Degrassi series portrayed by Pat Mastroianni. His first appearance in the series was as a grade 8 student on Degrassi Junior High. Since his first appearance up to Degrassi High, he has been the main focus character and arguably the most...
(Pat Mastroianni
Pat Mastroianni
Pasquale "Pat" Mastroianni is a Canadian actor best known for his role as Joey Jeremiah on the Degrassi series of television shows.- Biography :...
) and Caitlin Ryan
Caitlin Ryan
Caitlin Ryan is a fictional character from the Degrassi series portrayed by Stacie Mistysyn. Caitlin is a main character on both Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High, which chronicle her maturation from a seventh grader to a high school graduate...
(Stacie Mistysyn
Stacie Mistysyn
Stacie Mo'ana Mistysyn is an American-born Canadian actress best known for her work as Caitlin Ryan on Degrassi Junior High/Degrassi High, which ran from 1987 to 1991, and for reprising her role as Caitlin on Degrassi: The Next Generation, which has been on the air since 2001 and which she joined...
) to the school dance in the third season finalé, "Bye-Bye Junior High" (DJH ep. 316).
The crux of the feature focused on long-time recurrent couple Joey and Caitlin. Caitlin is approximately one year younger than Joey, yet the two had been classmates since Joey's dysgraphia
Dysgraphia
Dysgraphia is a deficiency in the ability to write primarily in terms of handwriting, but also in terms of coherence. It occurs regardless of the ability to read and is not due to intellectual impairment...
necessitated his repeat of grade 8 ("Pass Tense", DJH ep. 216; "Testing 1, 2, 3", DH ep. 113). Despite having been held back four years earlier, he remained closer to his friends in his former class than to his contemporary classmates, aside from Caitlin. As Joey approaches his nineteenth birthday, his friends are preparing for university and far-off travel, while he faces another year of high school. Exacerbating the situation, Caitlin has taken a number of extra classes to complete high school in three years, and has just graduated with Joey's former peers.
Eager to hold on to her before she leaves to study journalism at Carleton University
Carleton University
Carleton University is a comprehensive university located in the capital of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The enabling legislation is The Carleton University Act, 1952, S.O. 1952. Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton now offers over 65 programs in a diverse range of disciplines. Carleton has...
in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Joey proposes to Caitlin at the graduation party hosted by Caitlin's soon-to-be roommate, Lucy Fernandez
Lucy Fernandez
Lucy Fernandez is a fictional character in "Degrassi Junior High;" "Degrassi High;" the Degrassi High follow-up movie, "School's Out;" and "Degrassi: The Next Generation." She is portrayed by the actress, Anais Granofsky in all of the Degrassi series....
(Anais Granofsky
Anais Granofsky
Anais Granofsky is a Canadian actress, screenwriter, producer and director. She is best known for portraying Lucy Fernandez in the Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High series.-Early life and career:...
). Caitlin demurs, explaining that she is not ready for that kind of commitment. Joey storms out, only to run into classmate Tessa Campanelli
Tessa Campanelli
Tessa Campanelli is a character from the Canadian television series Degrassi Junior High / Degrassi High, portrayed by Kirsten Bourne....
(Kirsten Bourne) fresh from an argument with her boyfriend Todd (Christian Campbell), and he agrees to give her a ride home.
Arriving at the Campanelli house, Tessa pulls Joey toward her for a kiss. The next day, on her break from the photo processing store, Tessa visits Joey next door at Shoppers Drug Mart
Shoppers Drug Mart
Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation is Canada's largest pharmacy chain with more than 1,241 stores operating under the names Shoppers Drug Mart in nine provinces and two territories and Pharmaprix in Quebec as well as in Hawkesbury, Ontario....
and asks him on a date. Joey, though initially hesitant, accepts Tessa's offer, has a great time, and, as he tells Wheels
Derek Wheeler
Derek Wheeler, aka Wheels, is a fictional character on the Degrassi series, portrayed by Neil Hope. His first appearance in the series is as a grade 8 student at Degrassi Junior High School where he is best friends with Joey Jeremiah and Archie "Snake" Simpson...
(Neil Hope) the next day, gets to "third base." Joey sees little of Caitlin who is working as a waitress to make money for university; instead, he spends most of the summer with Tessa who, unlike Caitlin, "goes all the way." Tessa confides in her co-worker, Christine "Spike" Nelson (Amanda Stepto
Amanda Stepto
Amanda Stepto is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role as Christine "Spike" Nelson in the Degrassi series.-Personal life:...
), the details of the relationship. Spike reminds her that Joey and Caitlin have a pattern of breaking up and reuniting. Tessa rejects Spike's argument, noting that Caitlin will be leaving for university in a matter of weeks anyway.
Tessa realises that Joey is still dating Caitlin with no intention of leaving her. Tessa dumps Joey without telling him that she's pregnant and having an abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
. Joey and Caitlin finally make love on his nineteenth birthday, approximately a week before Caitlin, Lucy, and Snake are all scheduled to depart. It's Caitlin's first time, though she is unaware that it is not Joey's. Unbeknownst to Joey, Caitlin has decided to attend a local university in order to remain close to him.
The next day, at a lake house party, hosted by Lucy's boyfriend Bronco Davis (L. Dean Ifill
L. Dean Ifill
L. Dean Ifill is a Canadian actor, director, producer and voiceover artist. He played Basil "Bronco" Davis in the original Degrassi High television series and the made-for-television broadcast School's Out...
), Caitlin accepts Joey's earlier marriage proposal. An overly confident Joey teases Snake
Archie Simpson
Archibald Rupert "Snake” Simpson is a fictional character on the Degrassi series portrayed by Stefan Brogren. His first appearance in the series was as an eighth grade student on Degrassi Junior High ...
(Stefan Brogren
Stefan Brogren
Stefan Brogren is a Canadian actor and director. He is best known as Archibald "Archie"/"Snake” Simpson in the Degrassi franchise of television shows.-Career:...
) one too many times and the latter lashes back, loudly criticising Joey for his infidelity. Caitlin's now infamous line, "Tessa Campanelli? You were fucking Tessa Campanelli?" was edited to "You were sleeping with Tessa Campanelli?" for airing in the United States. She storms out after breaking off their engagement and telling Joey of her would-be plans to study locally in order to be with him.
Immediately after unintentionally breaking up Joey and Caitlin, Snake realises that former classmate Allison Hunter (Sarah Holmes) is drowning and rushes in to the lake to rescue her. Everyone congratulates him for saving the her life, but he breaks down in a flood of emotion and anxiety.
Meanwhile, Wheels leaves the party drunk with Lucy to get more chips but ends up crashing into another car. The crash kills a two-year-old boy in the other car, and seriously injures Lucy. Joey visits Wheels in jail, where Wheels asserts that it is not his fault that the child was not wearing a seatbelt or that Lucy needed more chips. Snake is disgusted by Wheels, particularly in light of Wheels having lost his own parents to a drunk driver three years earlier ("Can't Live With 'Em", DJH ep. 301).
In the epilogue, most of the gang meet up again two months later for the Alexa Pappadopoulos (Irene Courakos) and Simon Dexter (Michael Carry) wedding. Absent are Wheels, Erica Farrell
Erica Farrell
Erica Farrell is a fictional character from Degrassi Junior High. She was portrayed by Angela Deiseach. Erica's twin sister, Heather, was portrayed by Angela's twin, Maureen Deiseach.-Finding herself:...
(Angela Deiseach), and Lucy. Still incarcerated, Wheels is set to plead guilty for his crimes, while Erica is teaching abroad in the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
and has met a new boyfriend in the process. Meanwhile, Lucy has since regained vision in one of her eyes but is still not well enough to attend the wedding. Snake is accompanied by his girlfriend Pam (Tara Burt) whom he met at university, and he appears considerably more self-assured; he is still vocally disgusted by Wheels. Both Snake and Caitlin are receptive to Joey's apologies for the way he had behaved toward them, and the former fiancés share a dance as friends. He predicts that she will be famous. This scene is the only time pre-Next Generation that any hint of a friendship between Spike and Caitlin is depicted; the two traveled in entirely separate circles throughout Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High, and Spike expressed her resentment of Caitlin's meddling in the Junior High episode "Censored", when the local PTA (parent-teacher association) threw Spike out of school for being pregnant.
Reception
The film proved a success and drew in around 2.325 million Canadian viewers on its initial showing, doubling the average audience that Degrassi High received.Soundtrack
The film featured eight songs from TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
-based rock group Harem Scarem
Harem Scarem
Harem Scarem were a Canadian melodic rock band from Toronto, ON. Harem Scarem achieved popularity in Japan and their native Canada in the early 1990s. Harem Scarem were active from 1987 to 2008...
. Songs by popular Canadian 80s singer (now Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
lead singer) Lawrence Gowan
Lawrence Gowan
Lawrence Gowan is a Scottish-born Canadian musician. Gowan has been both a solo artist and the current keyboardist and vocalist of the band Styx. His musical style is usually classified in the category of progressive rock.-Career:...
are also featured in the film.
Follow-up and references in The Next Generation
ExpositionExposition (literary technique)
At the beginning of a narrative, the exposition is the author's providing of some background information to the audience about the plot, characters' histories, setting, and theme. Exposition is considered one of four rhetorical modes of discourse, along with argumentation, description, and narration...
in the 2001 Degrassi: The Next Generation
Degrassi: The Next Generation
Degrassi: The Next Generation is a Canadian teen drama television series set in the Degrassi universe, which was created by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood in 1979. Degrassi is the fourth fictional series in the Degrassi franchise, and follows The Kids of Degrassi Street, Degrassi Junior High, and...
pilot episode, "Mother and Child Reunion, Part 1" provides update to the Lucy and Wheels plot. Snake, no longer dating Pam, is still furious at Wheels and mentions that he was released from prison. Lucy's eyesight is restored (whether in one or both eyes is unclear) and, having completed extensive physical therapy, she is able to walk well with the use of a cane; at the same time, she has completed an honours bachelor's degree, a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
and most of the work for a Ph.D. Joey and Caitlin have gone their separate ways and not seen each other in many years (though it is unclear if Alexa and Simon's wedding was the last time). Joey is now a used car dealer and a widowed father of a young daughter. His prediction for Caitlin, however, has come true: she is famous as the host of an environmental-political television series. At the reunion, Caitlin breaks up with her new fiancé Keith (Don McKellar); as she takes off her ring while sitting alone with Joey, she asks him, "Bring back any memories?" Alexa and Simon are still married, as evidenced by the characters sitting together and Irene Courakos being credited as "Alexa Dexter" vice "Alexa Pappadopoulos." Alison is shown to be none the worse for wear when flirting with both Joey and Keith.
In the Degrassi: The Next Generation Season 1
Degrassi: The Next Generation (season 1)
The first season of Degrassi: The Next Generation commenced airing in Canada on 14 October 2001, concluded on 3 March 2002, and contains fifteen episodes. Degrassi: The Next Generation is a Canadian serial teen drama television series...
DVD extras, a deleted scene from "Mother and Child Reunion" depicts a video interviewing people at the reunion. Alison Hunter says she is a waitress and wants to become a star in Hollywood. Dwayne Myers says that he is still HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
positive, but he is AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
free. Kathleen Mead is shown being jealous of Caitlin's success after high school. She says she is pitching an idea for a new television show called "Mead in Canada." Diana Economopoulos is now Diana Platt; she and her husband are accountants. She has two children and brags about her website. Yick Yu says that he and Arthur Kobalewsky are co-owners of a web design company. Alexa and Simon Dexter have two children and Alexa is pregnant with their third. Ricky is a lawyer and is helping write copyright laws for the internet. Rainbow is a documentary film maker. Liz O'Rourke says she is now working with the mentally disabled (although she is later revealed to be a midwife in the episode "Father Figure"). Trish Skye says she had problems but has been clean and sober for two years; she works at a funeral home and is a freelance writer. In the same video Spike mentions that she bought out her mother's hair salon and comments on the "weird deja vu" of Emma now attending Degrassi; Snake also appears and notes that he is a teacher at the titular school, and still single.
Beginning in the second season, Spike and Caitlin are shown to have somehow become close friends, despite Caitlin having gone away to Carleton University in Ottawa, followed by pursuit of a broadcasting career in Los Angeles, while Spike stayed in Toronto to follow in her mother's footsteps as a hairstylist and single mother.
In the third season episode "Father Figure" Spike is pregnant with Snake's baby and has a baby shower. Among the people attending are Erica and Heather Farrell. Spike's daughter, Emma, also reconnects with her birth father, Shane McKay, and learns that he is mentally unstable. At the end of the episode, Spike gives birth and Liz O'Rourke acts as the midwife.
The third season episode, "Should I Stay or Should I Go?", brought closure to one School's Out plot line, and re-cycled another. At a bowling alley, Joey reunites Wheels with Snake who initially wants nothing to do with him. While Joey leaves them to fetch refreshments, however, the two bond over having both wanted to die (Wheels after killing the child and injuring Lucy, and Snake now that he is battling leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
and undergoing chemotherapy); the three, now balder and wiser, loudly sing the Zits' only song, Everybody Wants Something, as Joey drives them back to their respective homes.
In the same episode, Joey's stepson, Craig Manning (Jake Epstein
Jake Epstein
Jacob Lee "Jake" Epstein is a Canadian actor and singer, perhaps best known for playing Craig Manning, a bipolar musician, on Degrassi: The Next Generation.-Personal life:...
) finds himself in a nearly identical love triangle to that of Joey's from twelve years earlier. After a disagreement with his reasonably responsible and mature (but chaste) girlfriend Ashley Kerwin
Ashley Kerwin
Ashley Kerwin is a fictional character at high school in the TV show Degrassi: The Next Generation and is portrayed by Melissa McIntyre.-Season 1:...
(Melissa McIntyre), Craig is seduced by the younger but sexually aggressive Manny Santos
Manny Santos
Manuella "Manny" Santos is a fictional character portrayed by Cassie Steele on the television show Degrassi: The Next Generation.-Season 1:...
(Cassie Steele
Cassie Steele
Cassandra Rae "Cassie" Steele is a Canadian actress and singer-songwriter best known for portraying Manny Santos on Degrassi: The Next Generation.-Life and career:...
). Craig continues cheating on Ashley with Manny until exposed and rejected by both of them in the two-part episode "Holiday." Joey consoles him, and relates how he was engaged to Caitlin but lost her by cheating with Tessa Campanelli; the conversation, however, leads to Craig making Joey realise that he still loves Caitlin and should leave Sydney (Elisa Moolecherry). Joey explains to Caitlin, "I moved on, but I never left." Their romance is rekindled until the end of the fourth season when they part on friendly terms. Like Tessa, Manny also has an abortion a few episodes later in "Accidents Will Happen" Part 2.
In the fifth season episode "The Lexicon Of Love" Part Two, it is Joey who takes in Snake when Spike (now Snake's wife) learns that Snake kissed another woman and orders him out of their house. Since Spike is depressed about Snake, Caitlin comes to cheer her up. She throws a girls party and among those that come are Lucy and Liz.