Daria (TV Series) Life in the Past Lane (2001) User Reviews

Jane goes retro

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 23 January 2013]

While out shopping Jane meets Nathan, a guy who dresses as though the '50s never ended and clearly wishes they hadn't. It isn't long before Jane is dressing the same way too. Daria and Tom don't like the sound of Nathan and when they meet him they like him even less; Jane however enjoys his company and finds the retro scene rather fun... until she realises that it isn't just fun for Nathan it is an obsession... how could she go out wearing forties shoes with a fifties dress?! Meanwhile Upchuck has started doing magic tricks to fleece the unwary out of their money. Having scene one of his tricks Stacy ends up joining him on stage as he performs a trick in front of the school; much to the horror of the other fashion club members.

This episode had two stories both of which provided a decent number of laughs. It was of little surprise that Nathan turned out to be a bit of a jerk; he was changing Jane far too much for it to be permanent. The regular digs about Daria stealing him from Jane, like she took Tom, were pretty funny and it was great when Jane dumped Nathan. Upchuck's story's best laughs were provided by Mr. DeMartino and Mr. O'Neill as they bet on one of his tricks... and one of them is in on it! It was a surprise to see one of the Fashion club acting as Upchuck's assistant; and a bigger surprise that she still seemed to get on with him at the end of the episode... I can't help wondering if that will still be the case in the next episode. Overall this was a fun episode with a good mix of comedy and drama.

Jane meets a cool guy who turns out to be a jerk-face.at

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 12 March 2011]

Jane meets a guy who seems real cool in a retro sort of way. He's totally into dressing from the 40s and 50s and lives this way all the time. Jane quickly adapts and begins dressing the same--and having a nice time with this guy. This did look pretty fun--as long as you don't take it to excess. Oddly, however fun this seems, Daria never likes the guy--which might cause people looking for gay subtext to blink! In the end, however, it turns out that Daria is right--though this was just chance, as she hated him even before he showed his true colors.

The best thing about this show are the zingers that Jane, Daria and Tom all make concerning this new boyfriend and Daria's need to one day take him away from Jane as well. This is a reference to Daria dating Tom--who had first been Jane's boyfriend. Not a great episode--but clever and worth seeing.

Daria, Jane and Tom too and also Nathan (from the past)

[safenoe · 10/10 · 2 November 2016]

Daria's a bit cynical about Jane's romance with Nathan, who has a retro style in his fashion and outlook. Jane immediately takes to this, and Daria comes up with wisecracks galore. I think Daria crossed the line, especially with the lingering tension about Tom dumping Jane for Daria at the end of season 4.

Charles "Upchuck" Ruttheimer III has his most prominent role in Daria, with his "astonishing magic skills". In fact, he's in league with Mr DeMartino to hustle unwitting folk into parting with $10 from the pea in a pod trick. We also see the gradual fragmentation of the Fashion Club, with Stacy demonstrating independence by being Upchuck's assistant in a disappearing magic act. Stacy also was the one who secretly kept the caricature of the Fashion Club earlier in season 5 (Art Burn). Stacy causes a stir amongst the Fashion Club by walking with Upchuck in the school corridor, as she wanted to know the secrets of magic disappearing acts, and much to the horror of the Fashion Club, she is his assistant during Upchuck's daring disappearing act.