"What Comes After The Blues" is the eighteenth episode and Season Finale of Season 5 of One Tree Hill and originally aired May 19th, 2008. The episode was written and directed by Mark Schwahn.
As he sobers up, Lucas is forced to deal with the aftermath of his game night brawl - and finally address the emotional scars left over from four years ago in Los Angeles. Brooke has to say goodbye to baby Angie, and Haley has a musical breakthrough. Meanwhile, Nathan helps Jamie face his fears.
Contains examples of the following tropes:
- Book Ends: Lucas walks past the same "Welcome to Tree Hill" sign that Peyton walked past at the start of the season, albeit in the opposite direction.
- But Now I Must Go: Angie has to return home now that her surgery has been completed, instead of staying in Tree Hill with Brooke any longer.
- Call-Back:
- When Lucas wakes up after his drunken bender, he and Jamie briefly recall a conversation between Nathan and Jamie at the start of the season.
- Haley breaks out the tin of predictions she and Lucas used to write, first seen in "First Day on a Brand New Planet" in Season 3.
- Cliffhanger: Lucas calls Peyton, Lindsey or Brooke from the airport, and asks if they want to get married tonight.
- Delinquent Hair: Lucas wakes up from his bender with a mohawk; Haley shaves it off after Jamie starts asking if he can have his hair cut like Uncle Lucas.
- Dramatic Irony: Dan’s beeper telling him that they’ve found a donor heart goes off seconds after he’s been hit by a car in the hospital car park.
- Failed Future Forecast: Haley shows Peyton the tin of predictions she and Lucas used to write, and how many of them related to Peyton.Haley: Anyway, I'm gonna violate my friendship rule here because you're at, like, code red. [Beat] "Peyton Sawyer will become Peyton Scott." - that was, like, eighth grade.
Peyton: Haley—
Haley: He got a little cocky sophomore year - "Make out with Peyton Sawyer... or more." [Beat] "This year, I'll talk to Peyton Sawyer." [Beat] "Try again with Brooke... Brooke Davis."
[Peyton and Haley both laugh at the abrupt change]
Haley: Well, that... But, you know, this is how much he doesn't hate you. It's a whole lifetime's worth. - Generation Xerox: Jamie styles his hair into a faux hawk because he wants a haircut like Uncle Lucas’ mohawk.
- Internal Reveal: Haley shows Peyton the predictions that she and Lucas used to write, and how so many of Lucas’ were about Peyton.
- It's All About Me: Brooke makes plans to take Angie to the beach, not realising that now her surgery is complete, Angie has to return home. When she hands Angie over at the airport, Brooke breaks down in tears - having become far too attached to the infant.
- Reading the Stage Directions Out Loud: After the teleprompter goes down in the middle of a live broadcast, Mouth starts directly feeding the sports anchor his lines and relevant college basketball trivia to pad out the segment. To close, Mouth states "This has been sports, and I'm say your name" which is repeated verbatim.
- Rearrange the Song: After going without a theme song for the entire season, an acoustic arrangement of "I Don’t Want To Be" is performed by Gavin DeGraw and Jackson Brundage at the beginning of the episode.
- The Reveal: Lindsey comes clean and admits that she was lying when she claimed she was dating someone new.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
- Mouth quits the news station after having to feed the new sports anchor lines and college basketball trivia after the teleprompter went down in the middle of a broadcast.
- In light of recent events, Lucas decides to take some time away from Tree Hill.
- Shout-Out: Peyton paints the lyrics to "Love Song" by The Cure on the River Court.
- Third-Option Love Interest: Brooke is officially reduced to this for Lucas, with Brooke being included in the season ending cliffhanger despite the season largely treating their relationship as platonic following the Time Skip.
- Time-Passes Montage: The episode opens with a montage of Lucas drinking heavily night after night at TRIC.
- Titled After the Song: The episode title is taken from the song "What Comes After The Blues?" by Magnolia Electric Co.
- Trauma Button: The pool in his backyard has become this for Jamie, following his near death experience of nearly drowning in the pool.
- Wham Line: The final line of the season.Lucas: Hey, it’s me. Look, I’m at the airport and I’ve got two tickets to Las Vegas. Do you want to get married tonight?
- Wham Shot: Dan being hit by a car outside of Tree Hill Hospital.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Haley gives Lucas a pointed one over his telling Peyton that he hates her, pointing out that regardless of him being drunk at the time, Lucas saying that to Peyton would have broken her heart.
