Throwback Thursday, a weekly article in which we look back at our favorite TV episodes from over the years.
For this week's edition of Throwback Thursday I wanted to choose an episode of television that really meant something to me. There are millions of amazing television shows, but One Tree Hill is one of my absolute favorites. I know a few of my fellow SpoilerTV staff members have written about One Tree Hill before, but not about my favorite episode, "Some You Give Away." This episode combined basketball, fabulous writing, amazing acting, and, of course, some drama, all into one.
Before the episode begins, we're reminded of what recently happened on One Tree Hill. The Tree Hill Ravens are headed to the state championship, Nathan has made some terrible decisions involving point shaving, and Peyton told Lucas she loves him. "Some You Give Away" begins with Whitey standing in the street with a voice over telling us the Ravens have lost the state championship. "Whitey Durham is the picture of a broken man."
Then we see Nathan sitting on the floor with tears streaming down his face. "What got into Scott?"
"No doubt about it. Hearts are breaking in Tree Hill tonight."
After that intense opening I was hooked. I had to know what happened to cause Whitey and Nathan so much pain. After that introduction the show moves to the River Court where Lucas is too excited about the championship to sleep. Nathan tells him that he doesn't think they'll win- they can't win. Lucas is absolutely furious, and he said he thought the point shaving was just for one game, but Nathan needed the money. Lucas states that they battled each other the night before he joined the Ravens, and they'll be doing the same thing at the championship.
Before the championship Lucas talks to Skills about Peyton. Lucas told Peyton, "Oh" after she said she loved him. How romantic. Lucas thinks that he and Peyton are just friends and that she's confused. He just happened to rescue her a few times. Skills thinks this is ridiculous.
"You didn't just happen to run back into school that day or save her from Psycho Derek. Peyton happened to be there, but you chose to be there. So maybe you ought to think about that."
Thank you, Skills!
The ride to the game is a disaster. On the team bus, Skills tells Lucas that he's getting scholarship offers. If he wins this game he will have his pick of colleges. This makes Lucas even angrier at Nathan. Nathan says it's just one game. Does it really matter? The cheerleaders are just as miserable, and Brooke is in a terrible mood. She's mad because Haley's pregnant and has to stop to use the bathroom, and she's just mad at Peyton for existing. Before the game starts Lucas pulls Skills aside and tells him about Nathan wanting to lose the game. Skills and Lucas make a pact to freeze Nathan out so they can win the championship. Lucas, who has a heart condition, decides to not take his pills so he can play faster and better. Now I love that Skills and Lucas teamed up because they've been friends since the beginning, but was Lucas not taking his meds really such a great idea?
In the cheerleaders' locker room, Haley is not feeling well at all. Brooke opens up the door and Haley is withering in pain clutching her stomach. At the hospital the nurse has a major attitude problem, but a doctor finally sees Haley, and luckily the baby is fine. I loved that everyone was able to put aside their differences to help Haley and her baby. While Haley is in with the doctor, Peyton talks to Brooke about Lucas not returning her feelings. She also says she shouldn't have been surprised since Brooke is the one Lucas said he wanted next to him when all his dreams come true.
The game finally begins, and Skills and Lucas play keep away from Nathan. But every time Nathan gets the ball he turns it over and plays awful on defense. Skills and Nathan even get into a fight on the court. Halftime score is 36-21 not in favor of the Ravens, and Whitey has had enough.
At halftime we hear that voice over again which sounds like a radio announcer. The guy on the radio says it's very sad how the Ravens have fallen apart at the seams. Will this opportunity ever come around again for the Ravens? Then we see a radio and Whitey turning it off. The radio voice was from 18 years ago- the last time the Ravens lost in the state championship. I have to say that I loved this twist in the episode. It was amazing writing!
"The rest of your life is a long time," Whitey informs the team. "If you lose, you lose. Don't lose this way. Playing selfish. Bickering with each other on the court. I promise it will stay with you."
Whitey's speech gets to Nathan and when he sees Haley, he asks her a very important question. "If I don't go to Duke, if I don't play college basketball, if today is the best it ever gets for me, will that be enough?" Haley tells him the most important thing is being a good husband and father to their boy. Yes, Haley and Nathan are having a baby boy!
"Although I have to tell you someday he's going to tease his father for playing like crap in the state championship. Might wannna change that."
Nathan listens to Haley and plays great in the second half. He plays like the Nathan everyone knows. "What do you think you're doing?" Lucas asks. "Trying to win this game. You gonna help me?"
"No, but you can help me," Lucas replies as he drains a three pointer. I loved the banter between the two, and how well they played together in the second half. Between the Scott brothers and Skills the Ravens are able to cut into the lead. Everyone is excited even Peyton and Brooke as they high five each other. Dan is even inspired to turn around and go back to the game since Nathan is playing so well.
The game is very close, and Lucas blocks the other team's shot that could have won the game. Whitey wants to put Skills in for Lucas, but Lucas begs to stay in. Whitey doesn't hear of it. Skills nails a three pointer to bring the Ravens within two, and we see Karen arrive without Deb, who is now in a rehab facility. Nathan rejects the other team's shot, and the Ravens have a chance to win. Whitey gives the team one more talk.
"You have made a hell of a comeback. You played as a team. Even if we lose this thing it's still a damn fine moral victory. Now maybe that's okay with you. Maybe you won't look back and tell your grandkids about the state championship you almost won."
Nathan tells the team that they are winning this game. Whitey asks Lucas if he has another 23 seconds left in him to finish the game. Of course he does. Then Haley informs everyone that she's having a boy. I loved this part of the episode. The excitement and anticipation of the end of the game was written so well. It absolutely captured all my feelings about basketball.
"There is still something so unifying about sport in it's purest form. When athletes rise above themselves and touch greatness and in doing so remind us all that we also have greatness inside of us."
Right before the team gets back on the court Lucas tells Nathan that it doesn't mean anything if you can't hit the shot. That takes us all the way back to the beginning of the show.
Lucas inbounds the ball to Nathan, who then kicks it out to Skills, and then it goes back to Nathan. The clock is winding down so Nathan passes the ball to Lucas for the shot that could win the game. It's all on the line. This scene was one of my favorites- the shock, nervousness, and fear on everyone's faces as they waited to see if the shot went in. Game winning shots only take a second, but it feels like a lifetime- just like this scene. The shot goes in. The Ravens win! Everyone- the team, cheerleaders, Whitey, Mouth- run on to the court to celebrate.
Nathan finds Haley and they kiss as the streamers fall from the ceiling. Brooke runs over to Luke and says that this is a dream come true. So she asks him, "Who do you want standing next to you?" They look at Peyton, and Brooke tells him it's okay.
Lucas approaches Peyton, and she tells him she'll be seeing him just like in the first episode. I loved that they did that, and they flashed back to that scene on the River Court. But then he goes after her and tells her that it's her. Peyton is the one that Lucas wants standing next to him when all his dreams come true. Finally! It felt like forever for Lucas and Peyton to become a couple, and this was one of my favorite moments of television ever. The two kiss, and they are happy. This moment was perfect. I also loved the song they used here.
After the team wins Dan pleas for Dante to go easy on Nathan. Dante says he picked Nathan because he was Dan Scott's kid. Who would have bet that Nathan would have a soul? I think this shows how much Nathan changed since the beginning of the show.
The episode cuts to Whitey taking everything in, and then moves to Karen's cafe. Lucas looks at the trophy, and then back to Peyton. Nathan walks over and thanks Lucas for making that shot. Whatever Dante does to him he can take it. If this was the last game he ever played at least it was a good one. The two hug, and I'm reminded about how much I love these Scott brothers.
Lucas and Peyton have another sweet moment, and he tells Haley that Peyton's his girlfriend now. He asks to talk to Peyton, but really he just wants to kiss her. She invites him to come over to her place later, and everyone is happy. For now. Even Dan is happy and tells Nathan he should be proud of the victory. He'll deal with Dante.
In this show it seemed that happiness never lasted very long. So of course after everything seems perfect, Dante tries to run over Nathan, but Haley pushes him out of the way. As Nathan tries to revive Haley, Lucas runs out to see what's wrong. Nathan goes after Dante and beats him until Dan stops him. Dante is dead. Dan covers for him, and tells Nathan to go be with Haley. The ambulance gets there, and Lucas collapses. He's having a heart attack. You know those pills he didn't take at the beginning of the episode? He should have taken those.
Now we're back at where we started with Nathan on the floor at the hospital crying. Haley was the reason he was crying.
"You gotta feel for Nathan Scott. I mean, sure, he has made some mistakes, but you get the sense that if this is how it ends he's never gonna forgive himself."
Then we see Lucas being brought in on a stretcher with doctors and nurses running to help him.
"Lucas Scott is being swarmed. I wouldn't doubt it if they didn't carry the kid out of here tonight and never bring him back."
The episode ends with Whitey looking out into the street- the very same scene we saw at the beginning.
"There in the center of it all is Whitey Durham standing alone taking it all in. Ladies and gentlemen: the Tree Hill Ravens are champions at last. And there's not a dry eye in the house."
I got chills watching this again. Everything was perfect. Lucas and Peyton were finally together, Nathan was able to redeem himself, and Whitey got his championship. And again, I loved how they used the radio from the last championship to describe what was happening now. Then they used the radio segment of this championship to describe Nathan and Lucas after the accident. And we all know that Haley and Lucas were fine. Even when I watched this episode the first time I knew that nothing was going to happen to Haley or Lucas.
One Tree Hill meant so much to me when it first aired. There were real characters with real problems. I started re-watching it last summer, and the issues are still relevant today. I still love the show just as much as I did then.
What did you think of "Some You Give Away"? Was it one of your favorite episodes? If not, what episodes did you love? Do you think One Tree Hill is still relevant today? Discuss in the comments section!
