The Eagle flies at Dawn

It was great to have Rosie O'Donnell back again, to revisit her popular turn as Dawn Budge from last season, and the opening sequence was pure Nip/Tuck perfection. The vocal anti-war protester has her mouth attacked by an eagle? Folks for and against her have plenty to giggle about there. The whole sequence was to the whistling of Peter Bjorn & John's "Young Folks," which makes N/T at least the sixth to use it this fall season (used in the premieres for Gossip Girl, Dirty Sexy Money and Big Shots, as well as an episode of Las Vegas). In previous uses, it gave an air of sophistication, but in this context, it was used humorously as 'air' itself, like the wind from PB&J's whistling was keeping Dawn aloft as the eagle tried to take her down.

It ended up making Dawn feel more alive, though, and that ties into the theme that creator Ryan Murphy and writer Jennifer Salt are asking: How far would you go to really feel something? Apparently pretty far in the case of the ice client Gwen, who's description of her hypothermia sex fantasy was incredibly disturbing, even more so due to the use of the moody Erik Satie piano piece "Gnossienne No. 4." Bits of that piece were used throughout the episode to tie the drama together to great effect. It's believed that Saties' 'Gnossienne' pieces were at least partly inspired by being a member of the Rosicrucian Order in 1891 -- which is when he wrote No. 4. I hardly expect N/T would use Satie's gnosticism to take a Da Vinci Code like turn, but it's interesting to point out nonetheless, especially given the presence of a catholic nun in the episode.

Speaking of the nun, does anyone buy that Christian is going to be, well, a christian? That might last as long as his turn at being a prostitute. The whole gigolo turn was a pretty subtle twist on the 'going to Hollywood to make it' cliche, where Christian gets off the bus (flies with Sean,) gets his chance and fails (on Hearts and Scalpels,) falls into prostitution, hits rock bottom (trick nearly dies,) and then finds salvation (nun with huge breasts). All that completed as side stories in just four episodes -- nicely done.

The other noteworthy musical choice was the Wayne's World-like use of Gary Wright's "Dreamweaver" for Dawn and Freddy's connection. I'm sure there will be more to the Dawn-Freddy romance later, but it's obvious she's just a beard, especially after Freddy Got Fingered. Remembering the theme is 'how far would you go to really feel something,' I suspect Freddy agreed to do ass-lift surgery in hopes that the ass bandit would digitally diddle him, as he looked like he was enjoying himself. Speaking of the 'ass bandit,' I've got to believe Murphy and co. are having a laugh at themselves and the ridiculousness of season 3's The Carver. If that's the case, then I heartily applaud.

Playlist: Nip/Tuck - Episode 5.04
1. "Young Folks" - Peter Bjorn and John - Dawn describes being attacked by an eagle while hang gliding
2. "Come Fly With Me" - Frank Sinatra - Sean and Christian perform surgery to repair Dawn's lip
3. "Gnossienne No. 4" - Erik Satie - Sean talks w/ Annie about liposuction, Christian hears Gwen's hypothermia fantasy
4. "Dream Weaver" - Gary Wright - Dawn awakes to see Freddy / Dawn and Freddy consult with Christian and Sean
5. "Shake That Ass Bitch" - Splack Pack - Christian performs a butt-lift surgery on Freddy
Compiled by Avalon at NipTuckforum.com

Previously: Just Passing Through (Episode 5.03)