Future Tense

Future Tense
Season	4
Episode	4
INFO
Aired	25 October 2000
Written by	Gina Fattore
Directed by	Michael Lange
EPISODES
Previous	Two Gentlemen of Capeside
Next	A Family Way

❝

Some people like salad dressing on the salad and some people like it on the side

—Drunk Joey

Future Tense is the 4th episode of Season 4 of Dawson's Creek.

Synopsis

College concerns weigh heavily on Joey's (Katie Holmes) mind as she gets good and bad news about her prospects, then realizes Pacey (Joshua Jackson) doesn't have the grades to attend college. Meanwhile, Andie (Meredith Monroe) drives Jack (Kerr Smith) crazy over filling out his college applications; Gretchen (guest star Sasha Alexander) gets vague about college plans when Gale (Mary-Margaret Humes) interviews her for a bartending job; and Drue (guest star Mark Matkevich) throws a fake birthday party for Jen (Michelle Williams).

Starring

James Van Der Beek as Dawson Leery Katie Holmes as Joey Potter Michelle Williams as Jen Lindley Joshua Jackson as Pacey Witter Kerr Smith as Jack McPhee Meredith Monroe as Andie McPhee Mary-Margaret Humes as Gale Leery John Wesley Shipp as Mitch Leery Nina Repeta as Bessie Potter Special Guest Stars Sasha Alexander as Gretchen Witter Mark Matkevich as Drue Valentine

Co-Starring Alex Wharff as Jason Nicole Arviso as Stacy Heather Avery Clyde as Ms. Watson Ethan Wilcox as Random Student #1 Sean Sullivan as Random Student #2 Casey Kelvington as Random Student #3

Quotes

❝

You think something is making your life a living hell and when it is gone, you really miss it

—Jack to Dawson as he watches Joey

❝

I want to be with you Pacey. I want to stay and be with you

—Joey

❝

I mean, you know maybe I'll just go to one of those fictional colleges. You know, like on those lame high school TV shows that go on for way too long, and then just in time to save the franchise, all of sudden it turns out that there's this amazing world-class college just right around the corner where all the principal characters are accepted. Just to be safe, we should probably start the application process

—Joey

❝

Dawson – I've seen how much she loves him. I've seen it in her face. I've seen them hold hands; I've seen them kiss. And tonight, I saw them fight, which is something I've basically seen every day of my life since the 1st grade

Gretchen – But not like this?

Dawson – I think it was actually worse than the kissing

Locations

• Potter B&B
• Leery's Fresh Fish
• Capeside High School

Trivia

• Andie, Jen and Joey predict where they will be in 5 years:
  • Andie — working in PR and painting a happy face on disaster
  • Jen — starting her masters thesis on if men are necessary
  • Joey — in New York working at a small art gallery in SoHo after graduating from an Ivy League college, as predicted by Jen
• Joey is ranked 4th in the class
• Jack dislocates his shoulder

ALLUSIONS

• The shot of Jen and Drue on the table is an homage to the famous final scene from the 1984 film Sixteen Candles.

BROADCAST

• The episode was watched by 5.04 million people upon its original airing on the WB.

ERRORS

• The sling Jack is wearing on his arm switches sides during the episode.
• When Pacey throws Joey over his shoulder, it's initially his right shoulder. The scene cuts to Dawson's view, Joey is now hanging over Pacey's left shoulder.

PRODUCTION NOTES

• In the post-party scene when Joey convinces Pacey to carry her into the house, Pacey's line, "my back's killing me here" was ad-libbed by Joshua Jackson, as they had filmed this scene numerous times.

Films

WATCHED

—

REFERENCED

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Sixteen Candles (1984)

Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

Pleasantville (1998)

Coyote Ugly (2000)

Music

sorry | MOXIE

discussions with the guidance counselor

something to say | MIKE PLUME BAND

jack injured in the school hallway

backstreets | FILIBUSTER

jen + dawson and pacey + joey arrive at the party

never the same | SUPREME BEINGS OF LEISURE

drue + jen and joey + dawson at the party

sugar star | CRUSHING VELVET

pacey and drue play poker

five alive | MEDIUM

joey and jen take a walk

please, please (stacy's song) | JULIE PLUG

jack and andie discuss college

you won't fall | LORI CARSON

joey + jen + andie

respect | TRAIN

pacey + joey play strip poker

day ditty (feat. angela mcclusky) | SHUDDER TO THINK

pacey drops joey off at home

what you don't know | KATIE REIDER

dawson + gretchen

Photos

Videos

Dawson's Creek - Pacey Says "I Love You!"