[Announcer] Previously on "Arctic Air."
You and Tommy have been hanging out a lot lately.
I'll send another plane with supplies.
Just make sure you're out of sight when they make the drop.
Okay, thanks, Mel.
Are you okay?
You can't just talk to people, it's not safe.
You're really not gonna tell me who called before?
A cousin from back home.
[Bobby] I'm not going anywhere.
Good.
Sezha deijie, kind of means my brave son.
She hated the whole world for a couple of years there.
Of course, she had pretty good reason.
Her mom took off, left her feeling
like there was something wrong with her.
(crowd cheers)
Yeah, happy birthday!
Happy birthday.
(crowd swoons)
So, how did Mel react to you mom coming to town?
Yeah, surprisingly well.
You didn't tell him. - Nope.
He's on a hunting trip with Cece.
By the time he gets back, Irene will be gone.
Trust me, it is better this way.
It's gonna be okay.
Yeah, I know.
It's just, it's so stressful.
I mean, what are we gonna talk about?
I think you're gonna have a lot to talk about.
Thank God you're gonna be here.
And I'm sorry to make you play buffer.
I'll buff anyone for you.
Look, I swear, Lester said it was this weekend.
Yeah well, next weekend you can drive.
(brakes squeal) (horn blares)
Judas Priest, I almost ran over my ex-wife.
It's too bad you missed.
(dramatic music)
Irene. - Nice try, Mel.
I always knew you wanted to kill me.
What are you doing here?
I'm here to see my daughter.
I got this little ditty running through my head,
the bitch is back (spits).
Irene!
Mel.
Krista, my darling girl!
Okay, we need to get you inside, it's freezing.
Krista's mom, what do we know about her?
Almost nothing, Mel never talks about her.
Well, I could see why Mel fell for her, she is hot.
What, look at her.
Yeah well, don't let her looks fool ya.
She is a devil in disguise.
I can hear you, Cecil.
That was my intent, Irene.
No doubt.
She got in touch a couple weeks ago
and said she wanted to come for a visit, reconnect.
And you suggested this weekend...
Because I thought you'd be away.
When were you gonna tell me?
Monday. - [Mel] Hm.
Look, I know things ended badly between you,
but you shouldn't have stopped me from seeing my mother.
Yeah, yeah, gotta go.
Hey, guys, what's up?
Alice Troy has mono.
Alice Troy.
Winner of the ONI spelling bee.
Right, I'm, I'm sorry to hear about that.
The territorial championships are
in Fort Simpson this weekend, and since she's sick
and Connor's first runner up,
they've asked him to take her place.
That's great, congratulations!
But all the flights to Fort Simpson are booked,
so he was wondering if...
Maybe you could fly us.
(sighs) Look, I'm sorry, buddy, I'd love to,
but I kind of made plans this weekend.
Oh, okay.
But tell you what, I'll make some calls
and I'll find you a charter.
Whatever, it's not a big deal.
Oh, you're joking.
If you saw the look on Connor's face-
Well, look at my face, Bobby.
You can't leave me alone with Irene.
I know, I'm sorry, really.
This is a big thing for Connor.
Yeah, I know, you're right.
Look, you'll be fine, okay?
You got this.
I'll be back in a couple of days.
There you are.
So, why don't you show me what you've been up to?
For the past 20 years?
Pick the highlights.
I had one more failed marriage
before I realized I wasn't the marrying kind.
Many wonderful flings.
A booming business in sex toys.
Wait, what, sex toys?
I think I left out the word sex in my letters to you.
This whole time I pictured you selling dolls
and games and costumes.
Oh, I sold plenty of those.
I did house parties, kind of like Tupperware, only...
The plastic vibrated? - Yeah.
Last month a big company bought me out,
and now I'm going to see the world.
Take art classes in Italy, explore Machu Picchu,
and climb Mount Kilimanjaro.
Sounds great.
I'm starting in Bali.
Already signed up for a scuba diving lesson.
Come with me.
I'm serious, we'll go together.
I can't just leave. - Why not?
I have a full flying schedule.
I'm co-owner of the company.
They'll survive without you.
And I have mortgage payments.
Screw the mortgage, come see the world.
Why didn't you take me with you?
When you left, why didn't you take me?
Honey, we have plenty of time to talk.
Let's just enjoy the day, okay?
Can I take the controls?
Come on.
(woman laughs)
I have a birthday present for you.
So, where is it?
I'm saving it for tomorrow.
My birthday is today.
One present at a time.
(man clears his throat)
Cece, what are you doing here?
Working, and you?
We were just...
Looking for snakes on a plane?
Cece, you're not gonna tell Loreen, right?
(Cece chuckles)
He won't say anything.
Are you kidding?
He'll tell everyone.
You sure you don't have two rooms?
No, we're full up for the spelling bee, go figure.
But I do have you in a room with two double beds.
One for junior here, one for mom and dad.
He's not my dad, he's a sperm donor.
Connor! - Uh...
Can you send up a cot, please?
Yes.
(snowmobiles drone past)
He's cute, I saw him at the office.
He's one of our pilots.
Are you and he...?
Actually, I'm with Bobby.
Bobby Martin?
Wow.
Okay, I'm trying to interpret the "wow."
Oh, nothing, nothing.
It's just, uh, you've known him since you were in diapers,
which could be a good thing or a bad thing.
It's a good thing. - Well, where is he?
I would love to see him.
He, uh, he had to go away at the last minute with his son.
And the boy's mother.
He's got a lot on his plate.
Well, just as long as you're not the brussels sprouts.
The thing on his plate that gets pushed aside.
Um, so, about what I asked you earlier...
Well, well, Irene Ivarson.
Marie, what a pleasant surprise.
I always said if I ever saw you again, I'd slug you.
(chuckles) Goodness, you're still holding a grudge
after all these years? (gasps of shock)
(upbeat rock music)
(women grunting)
That is my daughter!
It's okay, it's okay, you are-
(crowd gasps)
That's enough!
So help me!
Come on!
I'm fine, honestly, honey.
You got the worst of it.
I beg to differ.
What the hell did you do to piss off Marie?
Uh, we were in business together, years ago.
With Nellie Sanderson.
Let me guess, boxing promoters.
Things didn't go as well as we'd hoped.
The business venture-
Darling, I'm wiped, time to hit the hay.
What's on for tomorrow?
Uh, ice-fishing.
Oh, fun.
Goodnight. - Goodnight.
I always thought your ferocity came from Mel,
but now I am not so sure.
Well, she was married to Mel for 12 years.
What does that tell you?
Mel is a courageous fellow.
(cell phone chimes)
Where's Connor?
He left for orientation.
Oh, well, what do you want to do?
I think I'm gonna go check out the town.
Are you sure you don't want to stay inside?
It's supposed to drop to minus 40.
I've got my toque.
I'll see you guys later.
[Dev] You seem to have had an amazing life.
Hey, are you ready to go?
I'm sorry, sweetie, I'm gonna have to meet you there.
I have a few things to do first.
Like what?
I promised to have a quick cup of coffee
with an old friend.
Well, I'll just wait.
Oh, no, no, no, no, you go ahead.
We only have the weekend.
I'll be there by 10:00, promise.
Okay, uh, it's the, um,
eighth hut from the dock with the red roof.
Okay.
All right, so talk.
Why are you here?
To see my daughter and have some fun.
If you hurt her again-
What, you're gonna sic your faithful mutt, Cece,
and his rabid wife on me?
I'm serious, Irene, you have no idea-
Don't lay it all on me, Mel.
It takes two to tango.
I'm not the one who left.
You knew I wanted to travel the world.
You could have been a pilot anywhere.
Our life was here. - Your life was here.
I begged you to move so that I could have a chance
at happiness, so that we could be happy together.
We were never gonna be happy together.
At least I can say I tried.
It's none of Cece's business.
No, but it is mine. - I'm 18!
Then act like it.
What the hell were you thinking, having sex at work?
You won't let him come over, and Tommy has five roommates.
Where are we supposed to go?
Um, maybe nowhere
until you know each other a little better.
We're in a serious relationship.
(Loreen scoffs)
All I'm saying is maybe just slow it down a little.
My shift's over.
(approaching footsteps)
Hey.
What the hell are you doing here?
Well, I own half of this fishing shack.
Well, you can't stay
because Irene's gonna be here any minute.
Good, I got a few things I want to say to that woman.
Marie threw the first punch.
She's got a good right hook.
Are you this pissed about a business deal
that didn't work out?
She tell you why it didn't work out?
Well, apparently, it was supposed to be some kind
of fancy-arse clothing store, and Irene convinced Marie
and Nellie to sink five grand each into it.
Then Irene skipped town with her cash.
Her cash, so she took her money?
Yeah, after they'd signed a lease
and completely gutted the place.
Marie and Nellie lost all their money.
The wife fed us on mac and cheese
for about a year after that.
Every once in a while, we got a hot dog chopped up into it.
It was 20 years ago.
That woman's like a leopard.
She's never gonna change her spots.
The only decent thing she ever did was
bring you into this world.
But you be careful, Krista.
The woman is a thief and a liar.
(cell phone rings)
Irene, where the hell are you?
It's Blake, weren't you and your mom supposed
to go ice fishing today?
[Krista] I'm at the hut right now.
Yeah, something tells me she's not gonna show.
(Irene squealing) (upbeat rock music)
Drop safely!
Go! (upbeat rock music)
(Irene screaming)
(people chatting quietly)
Let me see what my schedule is.
Krista, hi, this is Even.
We met in Pilates this morning.
He is a skydiving instructor. - Hi.
You were supposed to be ice fishing with me.
I hate ice fishing.
Why didn't you just tell me that last night?
I didn't want to hurt your feelings.
Making me wait for over two hours was better?
Two hours, has it been that long?
Oh, my gosh, I'm so sorry, really.
I'm just terrible with time.
Okay, uh, I was just really hoping
that we could get a chance to talk.
Well, we can talk, and have fun, right?
How about dog sledding?
Perfect, do you want to come?
I should probably be getting back.
Oh, too bad.
Let me walk you to your truck.
I will be right back.
Thank you.
Blake, you knew my mom was supposed
to be ice fishing with me. - Yeah.
So why did you take her skydiving?
I just took the call, I didn't even know it was your mom.
Yeah, but when you saw her-
Why are you yelling at me?
I'm not yelling. - Okay, I get it.
It's not easy seeing your mom after all these years,
but I'm just doing my job.
You know what else I get?
Why you never really let me in.
Am I interrupting?
Uh, no.
Let's go dog sledding. - [Krista] Mm-hmm.
[Petra] How'd it go? - Really good.
We did a bunch of practice words,
and I got every single one right.
I think I actually have a chance.
That's awesome, buddy!
Excuse me, hello, I am Parvana's father.
You are Connor's mother and father?
She's my mom, he's just a-
Special friend.
Uh, this is, uh, fun for Connor and Parvana.
Spelling championships?
Fun for Connor, perhaps.
Parvana is here to win.
We study word lists every night.
It is all Parvana does outside of school.
Well, we like to leave room for other things.
You know, sports, video games, friends.
We think it's important for Connor to have fun growing up.
If you'll excuse me.
Bobby, did you just say "we"?
Yeah.
Okay, I'm really glad you're back in Connor's life now,
but you haven't earned the right to say "we."
I'm sorry it came out that way.
Okay, but I'm the one who raised him.
I'm the one who's been there for the past 12 years.
You wanted me to come on this trip.
Well, yeah, we needed a ride.
Hey, can we eat? - Yeah, sure.
(upbeat music)
(laughs) That was excellent!
Well, who knows when I'm gonna get a chance
to do that again.
I mean, why leave anything in the tank?
Okay, before we get distracted, or interrupted again,
why didn't you take me with you?
(sighs) I was 18 when I had you, 18.
So, what, I ruined your life?
No, no, no, no, you were amazing.
I loved you to pieces.
Uh-huh, that's why you left?
Do you remember when you were baton twirling
in that, um, in that school talent show?
It was just before you turned 12.
I remember, I was so scared I was gonna drop it.
Right?
But the day of the show, you were great.
I watched you, confident, poised, perfect,
and I realized that you didn't need me anymore.
That's bullshit.
I missed you every day.
I had no idea that it was going to be so long
before we saw each other again.
I know, I'm sorry, it shouldn't have been,
I was really excited when you invited me
to spend the summer with you in Toronto.
And then Yves invited me to his vineyard
in the South of France.
You were the one who canceled that trip?
I didn't want to, but...
And what about my 16th birthday?
Well, I was really looking forward to that.
But?
I had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
to go white-water rafting in New Zealand.
You, you didn't want to take me with you.
Honey, you were settled here.
You had your school, your friends.
And you didn't see me for the next 20 years
because something better always came along.
Honey, I sacrificed my 20s for you.
I knew that you wouldn't want me to resent you.
It was my turn.
(Krista chuckles in disbelief)
(door shuts firmly)
Let me guess, Cece talked.
It's not funny.
Loreen knows?
What did she say?
She's pissed. - That sucks.
She'll get over it.
So, you said something about a birthday present?
Oh, I almost forgot.
Happy birthday.
Thank you, they're beautiful.
You're beautiful.
So, you think Cece is working late again?
I don't know, but Loreen is.
Do you want to come over?
Yes, I've just gotta give Wes a ride home.
I'll walk, meet me there.
No, no, no, it's cold.
It's two blocks.
Besides, I think I need to cool off a little.
Wes, let's go.
Loreen? (suspenseful music)
Happy Birthday. (dramatic music)
What are you doing here?
Can't a guy wish his sister happy birthday?
Not if he's supposed to be dead!
Well, the last supply drop was missing my barbecue chips.
Right, you know this is insane.
What if someone sees you?
I've been careful, I waited to make sure you were alone.
It's really sweet you came.
But you have to go, someone's coming over.
Who? - Tommy.
Right, the boyfriend.
I don't like what I hear about this guy.
Oh, my God, you sound like Loreen.
He hung out with a couple of wannabe gangsters
in grade nine. (knock on door)
You have to hide, now!
Hey. - [Caitlin] Hey.
Is Loreen here? - No.
I heard noises. - TV, I just turned it off.
Ah, so it's just us.
Hey, where is Loreen?
She went home.
What are you doing here, where's Irene?
Don't know, don't care.
Every time I was supposed to see her,
you made me think it was you who pulled the plug.
You had your bag packed for two weeks the first time.
She canceled the night before you were supposed to leave.
Why'd you tell me it was your decision?
I got a tough hide.
I thought it'd be better if I was the bad guy.
I hated you for it.
Anger I can deal with, but tears?
How could she do that?
She probably meant for those visits to happen.
If you'd told me the truth,
I wouldn't have been so hard on you.
Yes, you would.
Thanks. - For what?
Oh, for being a better dad
than I ever gave you credit for.
[Tommy] What's wrong?
It's way nicer here than on the plane.
I'm just too nervous here.
(door opens)
Tommy, what a surprise.
I just came to give Caitlin her birthday present.
Hmm, does she have it?
Good, then you can go. - Loreen-
It's okay, goodnight.
No, not tonight, I'm going to bed.
Wait, okay, so what happened on the plane?
Nothing, we have to get you out of here.
[Nelson] Look, I trust Loreen,
if she doesn't like the guy- - She likes him,
she's just taking this guardian thing too far.
Yeah, I'm glad.
I worry about you, okay?
You didn't come down here for my birthday.
You came here to check up on me and Tommy.
I had to see for myself if you were okay.
I'm fine.
Connor's refusing to go on stage.
Why?
He says he can't remember how to spell anything.
He wants to go back to the hotel.
Could I go talk to him?
Oh, would you, please?
Hey, buddy, you nervous?
You know, you get a lot more people than this
at your hockey games.
[Connor] It's different.
How? - I don't notice them.
It's because when the ref drops the puck,
you're focused on the game.
It's the same as here.
But I'll be on stage, in front of everyone.
Then don't look at them.
Just find a spot in the back of the room above them.
Focus on that.
[Man] Could we have all contestants to the stage, please?
Hey, you can do this, buddy.
Thank you.
Hey, is Irene awake?
She left early, she said she was going snowmobiling.
Were you using my computer?
I would not do that. - Was Astrid?
I just noticed Astrid did not come home last night, so no.
Would you like some oatmeal?
Did she say where she'd be snowmobiling?
Long Lake.
I made enough for two.
A-p-h-a-r-e-t-i-c, apharetic.
(buzzer sounds)
[Moderator] Sorry, that is incorrect.
(crowd applauds lightly)
Connor.
Aphaeretic, a-p-h-a-e-r-e-t-i-c, aphaeretic.
Correct. - Yeah!
It's a spelling bee, not a hockey game.
[Irene] Krista!
[Krista] Why were you looking at my bank page
on my computer?
[Irene] I don't know what you're talking about?
[Krista] Are you broke, is that why you're here?
You're going to steal from me the same way you stole
from Nellie and Marie?
[Irene] I didn't steal anything from them.
I took back what was mine.
[Krista] And they went bankrupt.
Cece is right, you only care about yourself.
You're a thief and a shitty mother.
[Irene] I deserve that,
but forgive me if I don't stick around for more.
[Krista] No, you're gonna tell me why you're really here.
Loggorrhea, L-o-g-g-o-r-r-h-e-a, loggorrhea.
Yes! (buzzer sounds)
What? - What?
Sorry, that is incorrect.
(crowd applauds lightly)
Parvana.
Logorrhea, l-o-g-o-r-r-h-e-a, logorrhea.
Correct. - [Dad] Yes!
Parvana Gupta is the territorial champion!
(crowd cheers and applauds)
He came in second. - He did.
Yeah! - Way to go, Connor!
(upbeat rock music)
[Krista] Mom!
Hey, buddy, I'm so proud of you.
Why, I lost.
No, you didn't, you came in second.
I sort of lost.
Come on, you practically spelled the word for her.
I guess.
Um, they are handing out some cake, want to come?
Sure.
It's nice that both your parents could come.
Yeah.
Uh, excuse me, where's my mother?
She's been discharged.
She was really hurt.
We advised her to stay.
So she came here because she's dying?
Yeah, she left this.
You haven't opened it?
Open it.
It's a ticket to Bali.
And a deposit slip.
25,000? - Into my bank account.
And a bucket list.
Skydiving and Bali, just...
Number one, reconnect with my daughter.
She has her good side, I see it in you.
Don't tell me that.
She's selfish and self-centered.
I think she did the best she could.
Just be grateful you got her looks.
(cell phone rings)
Yeah.
Okay, thanks.
She's booked on the last flight out.
Irene.
Don't suppose you're coming to Bali with me?
You could've mentioned the cancer.
And make the weekend all maudlin and boo-hoo?
No way.
Thanks for the money.
I was gonna give it back, but then I thought,
nah, you owe me.
I know you don't think much of me.
But what kind of mother would I have been
if I had just kept on squashing my own dreams?
To a 12-year-old girl, a good one.
[Announcer] All passengers on Flight 832
to Edmonton should be through security.
I'm proud of you.
And I love you.
Mom?
It was just really good to see you.
Ticket's good for a year.
In case you change your mind.
A check for five grand, certified!
Just sitting there in the mailbox, from Irene.
Then Nellie calls and says that she got one, too.
I tell you, my eyeballs nearly fell out of my head.
We're eating steak tonight!
Okay, take your best shot, I deserve it.
You did the right thing, going to Connor's spelling bee.
Kids have to come first.
How was it, with your mom?
Where do I even start?
(upbeat music)