The O.C. is back after taking an Olympic hiatus and things are as crazy as ever in Newport Beach. Ryan embarks on a road trip with Johnny's new-to-town cousin, Sadie. He and Sadie are attempting to track down Johnny's deadbeat dad for unpaid child support. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this Sadie girl. Chili was a bizarro Seth, and it seems as if Sadie is a bizarro Theresa. She looks like Theresa and she acts like Theresa. She has that whole nice girl from the wrong side of town vibe. I'm just not buying it. How is she that overly polite, but still ready to kick some deadbeat dad ass at the drop of a hat?

The one thing that stinks about having an exciting episode where someone dies at the end is that it's typically followed up by a semi-depressing episode where everybody is in mourning. (Remember the Dawson's Creek episode after his dad died?) This episode of The O.C. just happened to fall right before Valentine's Day. As Seth so sarcastically put it, "Death and Valentine's Day -- what a combination."

If it wasn't for the last five minutes, this episode would have been a dud. I wouldn't even say the last five minutes, I'd say the last 30 seconds. So let's not waste any time, let's get right to it. (I'll save the big news for after the break.)

Every once in a while The O.C. likes to have episodes that are sort of a downer. I think of them as bummer episodes. Nothing goes right, and all the characters are really bummed out about their lives. There is usually a sad music/blank face montage at the end of the show to make us feel sad and bummed out about our own lives too. This was one of those episodes. It's Kaitlin's 15th birthday, but nobody cares. Nobody feels much like celebrating, including Kaitlin, who would rather spend her time seducing Johnny. Does she like Johnny or is she just trying to make Marissa jealous?

Tonight was the triumphant return of Kaitlan, Marissa's once invisible sister turned jailbait sister. Awww, the magic of TV speed-aging. When last we saw Kaitlan, she was wearing pink sweatsuits, and complaining about not getting to ride her hairless pony enough. All the while, her older sis was overdosing in Tijuana, and almost being raped by her boyfriend's brother. Yup, it's about time for Kaitlan's return.

When new episodes of The O.C. return this Thursday (now at 9 pm on FOX), the gang is going to launch a campaign to get Marissa Cooper back into Harbor High in time for graduation. Let's just say that public school hasn't been all that good to her. I'm not sure exactly how she's supposed to pay for private school, but has money ever been an issue in The O.C.? Anyway, FOX wants viewers to feel like they're helping with the caper to get Marissa back in school, so it has launched an online petition: Free Marissa. I kid you not.

Adam Brody, also known as Seth Cohen on The O.C., is going behind-the-scenes for his next project. He's developing a show for NBC about modern-day LAPD cops who hunt for vampires. Brody is executive producing the project, which already has a script commitment from NBC. There's no title yet for the program, which centers around a rookie cop who joins the vampire-hunting squad. There aren't a whole lot of details about the project and whether it's supposed to be funny, scary, or dramatic (or all three). It's probably a good idea for all the actors on The O.C. to start looking for other projects since the end of this season marks their graduation from high school, which is usually the beginning of the end for shows like these.

Adam is also producing a remake of Revenge of the Nerds for FOX Searchlight. Who do you think they will get to play Booger?

Perhaps it's a move that will open up the 8 o'clock hour for American Idol during late February and early March, since FOX is airing the results shows for the semi-finals on Thursday nights. FOX is moving The O.C. to the 9 o'clock hour, from the 8 o'clock slot its held since the first season. That time slot is now open, thanks to the cancellation of Reunion. The move happens on January 12, when new episodes of The O.C. return. FOX's announcement also gives a hint of what's to come in the second half of this season on The O.C. Ryan, Summer, and Seth launch a plan to get Marissa back into Harbor in time for graduation. One of the upcoming episodes, called "The Safe Harbor", is a tribute to an episode of Beverly Hills 90210 where the gang fought to get Donna to graduate. Plus, there's that whole college thing that still needs to be figured out. Where will they all go so we can continue to watch The O.C.?

Sliding into The O.C.'s old time slot are back-to-back episodes of That 70s Show. At least, until Idol takes over.