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(From "Above and Beyond" - Season 3)

FanFic Forum

Second Chances

Author: Chris West

Rating: PG

Classification SAR (AJ/Other

Summary: What would you do if you got a second chance with your first love?

Second Chances is one of those stories that most people can relate to. It is of young love and missed opportunities due to the military. Most people will always remember their first love, as I do. Many times, as in my mom's case, they find them again. Chris did a great job of pulling our favorite Admiral out of his shell and letting him find his first love again. The entire series is one great story after the other. It will make you cry if you are a romantic. It will make you think of your first love and wonder. This is definitely two thumbs up.

You can find this series on the FanFic Archives on the JMJAS site.

About the Author

What is your name? Christine West

Where are you from? South New Jersey

What are your hobbies? Sewing, needlework, reading, traveling.

When did you start watching JAG? Sporadically from the beginning. I saw parts of season one twice and missed the second and part of the third because I was living overseas.

Who is your favorite character? AJ Chegwidden

What is your favorite episode? Any one with lots of AJ in it.

When did you start writing Fan Fiction? Mid-July this year.

Do you write other types of Fan Fiction? I used to write test reports and Airman Performance Reports when I was on active duty. Does that count?

Which story that you have written is your favorite? Full Circle

Which story that you have read is your favorite? Maureen S. O’Brien's 'Office Pool'

FYI, I don't consider myself an AJ/Mac shipper or any kind of shipper for that matter. I guess my military background flavors my perception of their relationship. I'd like to see all the characters in good, strong relationships. More realistic that way.

Trivia Corner

Here are the answers to last month's trivia questions: The tradition of writing a letter to a loved one before each mission in case you didn't return was started by Ensign Chegwidden.

That wraps up our trivia game for 1998. We had 9 people play with us this year, although no one participated in all four sets of questions. It was a very close contest, but Janna F. beat out Sue V. by 1 point to be our winner (14-13). We'll be sending her a SEAL patch for her efforts.

So, now we're in a new year and a new game. So here's the first question of 1999: What country did AJ visit in 1994? (Worth 3 points.) You can also earn 1 point for each country you can name that we know AJ has been in. (Be forewarned, if we don't recognize the country, we'll ask you to back it up!)

To play our trivia game, e-mail your answers to admiralslady@oocities.com by Jan. 31. Answers will be in the next issue of The Journal.

Way back in August, some of the Chegwidden list members got to talking about sending JMJ a Christmas present as our way of saying "thank you" for all the enjoyment we get from his work. After several ideas and much debate, the group decided to have a wine bottle designed and etched specially for him. One of our member’s family owns a vineyard, so Sue V. donated the wine bottle and the wine (an award-winning Petite Sirrah from Foppiano Vineyards). The design agreed on by the group would be as follows: the front of the bottle would be etched with the SEAL Trident with a star on either side of it representing the Admiral’s stars. JAG would be etched above the trident, and JMJ’s initials would be etched below the trident. On the back of the bottle would be the JAG logo. The artist who created the bottle is Sarah Walker. She has been carving glass for 25 years and has over 6,000 pieces located all over the world. She has created glass carvings for many famous people, including Julia Child, Barbara Mandrel, Michael Jordan, Julio Iglesias, Dustin Hoffman, Ernest Gallo, and former President Ronald Reagan. She creates wine bottles for charity auctions where bidding frequently starts at $2,000-$6,000. In 1994, Sarah Walker’s work was picked from thousands of entries from all over the world to win "The Ornamental Bottle Contest" held in Pomona, California. The bottle created for Mr. Jackson was crafted by a sandblasting technique. The bottle is first covered with a resist thick tape. The design is drawn on the tape, and each line is precisely cut using a very sharp knife. The bottle is then put into the "Chamber," which is air-tight to contain the sand for re-use. The sandblasting is done in the "Chamber." Garnet, at powder-fine grit, is the sand used in the process. It is chosen for its high cutting ability. It also leaves a smooth finish to the surface of the glass. Working back to front, the resist tape is pealed away to expose the glass one layer at a time. This allows the artist to capture the 3-dimensional effect. Great care must be taken to not blow a hole in the bottle. This can happen in a second. Great care must also be taken to ensure that a previous line or shadow is not blown away. There are no erasers! It took Ms. Walker 25 hours to create the JMJ bottle, and 40 pounds of sand were used in the project. For more information about her work, you can contact Sarah J. Walker at The Sarah Walker Collection, 2620 Iroquois Street, Santa Rosa, CA 95403, 707-579-3605. Another very talented fan, Janet D., created an original Christmas card and envelope to accompany the bottle. Messages from the participating fans were transferred to the inside of the card. The bottle and card were delivered to JMJ the Friday before Christmas. He sent a message to his fan club through Harriet at JAG Productions: "Dear Friends, I'm quite overwhelmed by your many kind comments and response to my performance as the Admiral. I'm especially pleased that you enjoy watching JAG each week, and I'd like to thank you for your continuing support. Everyone connected with the show, in fact, is most appreciative. Thank you also for that magnificent gift, and please accept my best wishes to each of you and yours for a Happy and Healthy New Year. Warmest regards, John M. Jackson"

(Front of bottle) (Back of bottle) (Front of card) (Envelope)

JMJAS Shirts!

We are pleased to offer to you the first official "unofficial fan club" merchandise - got that? We have JMJAS shirts that you can purchase for yourself or as a gift for a friend. The shirt is a Navy blue, medium-weight, polo shirt - very nice and very sturdy. Our source will purchase the shirt and then embroider the SEAL trident with "JMJAS" above it on the left chest area. Your name will go on the left sleeve.

The cost is $35/shirt, which includes shipping. Please send a money order only - no checks, please. You may send cash at your own risk! Each shirt is made to order, so please allow 6-8 weeks to receive your shirt. As with the SEAL merchandise, the JMJAS makes no money from the sale of this shirt - we have simply found a supplier. If you would like to order a shirt or would like more information about this shirt, please e-mail chris45@jaguarsystems.com Or print out this newsletter and drop it in front of your "significant other" as a helpful hint for birthday/anniversary/Valentine's Day shopping!

Favorite Quotes

We have been going through the episodes in order to bring you our favorite quotes. We are now at the beginning of Season 2. From "We The People," the premiere episode, some favorite quotes:

AJ to Bud at White House ceremony: "Lt. jgs do not joke with admirals, son. It could get them transferred to a supply ship in the Aleutians. Joking is strictly an admiral's privilege."

AJ to Webb: "Now this may be your investigation, but it’s my Navy. He goes."

Webb to AJ: "I guess being adversarial comes from being a lawyer, Admiral."

AJ to Webb: "Nah, from being a SEAL." (as he points to the Trident on his chest)

AJ to Harm, Mac, and Bud: "Let’s don’t judge Mr. Webb too harshly. No doubt transporting the Declaration of Independence was his responsibility, and if it’s not recovered, he’ll be spending his mornings reading the classifieds. (Harm, Mac, and Bud grin) . . . And so will the three of you."

In this feature, you - the viewer - get to be the critic. We invite you to review the JAG episodes and give them two ratings - one for the overall episode and one for the episode as a showcase for JMJ. Please rank them based on a system of 1-10 where 10 is the best. You can review every episode or just your favorites. You can write two sentences or two paragraphs or two pages. You can write about the plot (although you do not need to summarize the plot as we will have seen the episodes ourselves), the special effects, the acting, "bloopers," whatever aspect appeals to you. But do write! This is truly a case of "the more the merrier." This column is being compiled by HughesFan so send your reviews to HughesFan@aol.com. The subject line should read "JAG/JMJ Review." Please do not put anything else in the reference line. Send your reviews in as early as possible, but the deadline is the 20th of each month. So for February, you may review the Jan. 12 and Jan. 13 episodes. (Jan. 19 is scheduled to be a rerun.)

Ratings: JAG: 7 AJ: 7

I feel like I repeat myself every week in these reviews: "Not enough AJ, but John M. Jackson did a great job in the scenes he was in." Sigh. But as long as it continues to be true, I'll probably continue to repeat myself.

After everything that happened in "People v. Mac," I was paying close attention to AJ's interactions with Mac, and was somewhat surprised that their working relationship didn't seem strained at all. I had expected it would be. Of course, this episode wasn't originally supposed to air after PVM, but since other scenes in the episode led me to believe the events weren't that far in the past, I expected to see some fallout. But I won't complain just yet; I'll wait until we see "Vision Quest" and a couple of other episodes before I leap to the conclusion that the writers have just "hit the reset button" in terms of Mac's relationships with her coworkers and CO.

My favorite scene of this episode was the one where AJ assigned the case to Mac and Brumby:

AJ: Major, you'll be lead counsel with Commander Brumby working under you. Any problem with that?

Brumby: Can't imagine anything I'd like better, sir.

After Brumby accused AJ and the rest of them of being "a little in love with Mac" in PVM, a part of me expected AJ to explode at this obvious double entendre aimed at Mac, but I loved the fact that he didn't have to. All he had to do was give Brumby one of those "the Admiral is not amused" expressions, and Mic knew he'd crossed the line. Heh heh heh.

However. . . .Is it just me or is AJ losing control of his staff? Yes, they respect him and obey his orders most of the time, but throughout this season (and even during Season 3), I've been witnessing a trend which, in my opinion, seems like it could impact the good order and discipline of his command if it continues: AJ makes a decision, tells his people what it is, someone (Harm, Mac, or Brumby) doesn't like the decision, argues the point, and instead of getting chewed out for insubordination, gets his or her own way. It's as if they think all they need to do is preface their remarks with "With all due respect, sir. . . ." and the Admiral will see things their way. What's troubling is how often this strategy works for them. In this case, AJ's reasons for sending Mac and Brumby rather than Harm were sound. Yet, he allows Harm and Brumby to change his mind and let Harm go. I think AJ needs to assert his authority a bit more and just say "No" and mean it. His staff seems to be forgetting that the Navy isn't a democracy.

I LOVED that Bud stood up to Webb in this episode. While I love to hate Webb, I know there are a number of fans out there who simply love the character, period. I've had a hard time articulating exactly what it is about Webb that prevents me from liking him without being flamed by the Webbies. Let's just say that Bud and AJ represented my feelings about Webb perfectly here, especially in the scene which started out as a phone conversation between AJ and Webb (AJ: "I've just about had it with you using my people to clean up your messes") and then moved into Bud's confrontation with Webb:

Bud: You knew the Admiral wouldn't go for a ground extraction through Turkey. You set him up to fight your fight with the SECNAV.

Webb: A good operative never takes a fight that someone else is willing to take for him.

Bud: How do you sleep at night?

Webb: On the right side.

I don't know how he sleeps at night, either. I can't respect a spy who doesn't put his own life on the line for his country, but instead, manipulates other people (without their knowledge or consent) into risking their lives to do his dirty work for him, as if they were nothing more than pawns on a chess board. Every time we see a flash of conscience from him (concern for one of the lives he has placed in danger), I think there may be hope for him yet--but then it doesn't change his behavior. So while the "tin man" may have a heart, until it leads to more ethical behavior, I'm going to continue to "love to hate" Webb. That said, I think Steven Culp does a great job making the character believable, and I'll bet he has a hell of a lot of fun doing it (actors generally consider the morally ambiguous characters more fun to portray). Besides, a show like JAG with so many near-perfect "heroes" needs a good foil like Webb.

Favorite quotes:

AJ: Rabb, don't let your friendship with Commander Keeter affect your judgment.

Harm: No, sir, I won't.

AJ: The hell you won't.

* * * * *

AJ: You know, Webb, it would be nice if for once you'd spit on your own fire.

Review by Lyn:

JAG: 8 AJ: 5

As usual for one who finds AJ the most compelling character on the show, there was not enough of him in in this episode. Also, as usual, JMJ was very good with what he had to do. The low AJ rating simply reflects the lack of air time for our favorite admiral.

I enjoyed this episode, although it will not rank up there as one of my "favorites." I thought it was amusing to have people keep pointing out that Mac had only a "slight" American accent. Loved her facial expressions in response. I still like the character of Brumby, but I keep waiting for them to flesh him out a bit more. Loved Bud asking Webb, "How do you sleep at night?" and Webb’s reponse: "On my right side."

But once again Harm managed to annoy me with his "holier than thou" attitude because once again, Harm doesn’t quite get it right. AJ’s initial decision not to send Harm after Keeter was the correct one. Yes, AJ did not let personal involvement stop him from going after Francesca, but it was not the same situation. Francesca’s kidnapping had nothing to do with the Navy or diplomacy or anything else. Although the Navy was peripherally involved, it was in reality a personal matter between two crime families. AJ could either go after her himself or let the Italian police handle it. His actions would not necessarily have reflected on the Navy or affected diplomatic relations between Italy and the U.S. Not a hard decision. But Keeter’s being held captive in Iran was definitely a political as well as a Navy matter and needed to be handled with the utmost care. There was great potential for Harm to do substantial damage to U.S. - Iran relations as well as reflect badly on the Navy in general. Given Harm’s predisposition to "pulling stunts," shall we say, it was a wise decision to keep him at home. AJ had faith in Mac’s ability to handle the situation, and Harm should have as well. Although I love what the writers are doing in terms of making AJ more "human" by showing his softer side, I hate that TPTB are showing signs of weakening the AJ character by having him second-guess his decisions. Let them keep showing his softer side in his interactions with Harriet, Francesca, and the children who show up on JAG from time to time, but keep him the tough-as-nails, growling old salt who is such an excellent commanding officer. Since the plot obviously called for Harm to be there to be able to fly the plane out, I would rather have seen a different plot device to get him there - such as Webb’s or Mac’s requesting his presence later on after they’d evaluated the situation or something.

Ratings: JAG: 10 AJ: 10

This was an outstanding episode, and a far cry from the usual holiday fare on episodic television. Most shows get lazy and do a riff on "It's a Wonderful Life" or "A Christmas Carol." Not JAG. This was an original plot infused with a healthy balance of serious storyline, humor and character development, with warm fuzzies for the holidays. I admit, I have not been a fan of R. Scott Gemmill's past scripts, Imposter and Embassy, but his writing has definitely improved. This episode was perfect.

Was anyone else's heart breaking when AJ told Francesca's answering machine that this was the first time he'd been looking forward to Christmas in a long time? I thought I was going to cry. And that look on his face at the end, when the others got into the elevator and he thought they'd forgotten about him, and then Bud came back and told him he got him a flight out? Sweet.

Not that this will come as a surprise to anyone who is familiar with my point of view about the show, but I loved the Mac/AJ interactions in this episode. First, they always act well together. You just can't go wrong if you put John M. Jackson and Catherine Bell in a scene together. Second, it's cute that she knows the right buttons to push with him to get what she wants, as evidenced by her comparison of AJ's situation with Francesca to Chloe and her real father. I laughed my butt off during the scene when Chloe revealed Mac's real feelings about AJ to him. It's nice to know Mac does know a good thing when she sees it (even if she can't do anything about it). I thought the follow-up scene, when AJ gave Mac his speech about duty, was fabulous. Both actors were in top form during that scene, which couldn't have been all that easy, since the tone went from humor to a very poignant moment back to humor again at the end.

The minute I saw that robot, I knew it would cross the Admiral's path. It was inevitable. It was also inevitable that he'd give Bud a hard time about it and that he would end up playing with the robot himself before the end of the episode. (I'll never understand the fixation men have with remote control gadgets.) But even though it was predictable, it was still fun to watch.

It was great to see Karri Turner so much in this episode, and I thought Bud and Harriet were both put to good use here. It made sense that they would wrap presents for the Children's Hospital and dress up like Santa and an elf; it's perfectly in keeping with their charitable natures and warm hearts. Their respective reactions to Chloe were very interesting; I got the feeling they were thinking: "Oh my God, what have we gotten ourselves into with this pregnancy?" As usual, Bud proves himself to be the model of ingenuity and efficiency here, as he not only tracks down Chloe's father but finds a flight to Italy for AJ in the middle of a blizzard.

Finally, the multiple plot elements were juggled very expertly here: Harm's personal interactions with Parker as well as the discovery that it wasn't alcohol, but her cough medicine that skewed her breathalyzer test; Mac's interactions with Chloe, especially given Mac's own difficult childhood; Chloe's "Christmas present" from the JAG staff of a real father; AJ's desperation to get to Italy for Christmas; and the interactions between Mac and AJ regarding their feelings about each other. That's a lot to deal with, especially in a light-hearted holiday episode, but "Jaggle Bells" succeeded brilliantly. This episode really was a great Christmas present for viewers.

Favorite Quotes:

Chloe: Oh, so you're the sexy Admiral. I thought you'd have more hair.

AJ: Excuse me?

Mac: Okay, time to go. I can explain, sir.

Chloe: I've heard so much about you. Why don't you ever ask Mac out?

Mac (putting her hand over Chloe's mouth): Kids.

 

**********

AJ: You know, Major, there are two sides to duty. Occasionally, we have to do things we don't want to do. And sometimes, duty can be about resisting the temptation to do things that we would like to do.

Review by Lyn:

JAG: 10 AJ: 10

This episode will definitely go down as not only one of my favorite Christmas episodes for any series on television but as one of my favorite JAG episodes as well. I thought this episode was absolutely wonderful - as far as I’m concerned they didn’t put a foot wrong in this one.

There was something for everyone in this show - if you like humor in your JAG episodes, you have Bud and Harriet playing Santa and an elf (loved AJ’s comment to Harriet, "Nice shoes."), Bud and then the Admiral playing with the robot, AJ’s "Can anybody tell me why there’s a chocolate-covered elf in my office?", not to mention his wonderful "no singing vermin" speech, AJ’s New Year’s resolution to "Kill Rabb." If you like drama, it doesn’t get much better than Chloe and her search to belong somewhere. If you’re a Harm/Mac shipper, there’s Chloe’s revelations that Mac talks about Harm all the time. If you’re an AJ/Mac shipper, you get Chloe’s "So you’re the sexy Admiral" and "Why don’t you just ask her out?" If you hate the idea of AJ and Mac together, you got the absolutely marvelous scene in AJ’s office wherein he explains that duty means sometimes resisting the temptation to do something you would otherwise like to do. If you hate the idea of Harm and Mac together, then you got Lt. Cmdr. Parker, who is pretty, intelligent, funny, warm, and seems to be a good match for Harm in a lot of ways. If you’ve been screaming for insight into why Harm’s been acting the way he has lately, you get his revelations to Parker about being lost since he found out his father was dead. If you like heart-wrenching emotions, AJ’s phone message to Francesca should have you in tears. If you like heart-warming moments, there’s Chloe talking with her father on the videophone and AJ finally on his way to Italy to spend Christmas with his daughter. If I’ve left anyone out, there’s probably something for you in this episode too.

To those who complained that the character of Chloe was a brat, I say "get a clue!!" She was supposed to be! Yes, she was obnoxious, but then children who grow up emotionally neglected generally are. It’s their way of getting attention - even negative attention is better than nothing. So the lying, the mouthing off, etc. was very real, yet underneath you could see her very real pain and her genuine cry for help from Mac and the others. The little girl who played her did a wonderful job of handling that character.

All in all, only a real Grinch could not like this episode. What a wonderful Christmas present to all their fans from JAG Productions and the cast and crew of the show. Thanks.