Degrassi: The Next Generation

- Season 5

(2005)

Manny pursues her dream of being a Hollywood actress but is faced with the cruel realities of show business. Manny, desperate for stardom, contemplates plastic surgery after harsh criticism from a caustic casting agent. Craig receives a disappointing birthday gift from Ashley.

Manny's still foggy on what exactly it was that happened at Peter's party the night before. She knows she made a pretty racy video but Peter will erase everything... or so he says.

Paige proceeds to make a bad choice -- one which could ruin her life.

J.T. and Liberty's relationship issues come to a head when Liberty gives J.T. some alarming news. Liberty takes a very practical approach to the problem because she doesn't think J.T. is mature enough to handle it. Once the shock wears off, J.T. realizes it's time for him to grow up. Spinner pursues a relationship with Darcy and finds her lifestyle more appealing than he originally thought.

Craig's decision to focus on school instead of girls goes out the window when Ellie and Manny start competing for his heart. Joey feels flattered when a younger woman asks him out but is embarrassed when he hears her friends making fun of him.

Jimmy develops a passion for drawing and art after putting his basketball career behind him. Ellie helps him with his new talent until she discovers Jimmy is sabotaging his chance at stardom and his relationship with Hazel. Danny agrees not to tell anyone about Liberty's pregnancy if J.T. finishes a school project for him.

J.T. is under a lot of stress and starts to fold under the pressure. Liberty is six months pregnant and J.T. discovers he can't afford to take care of himself, Liberty, and a baby. Desperate for money, J.T. starts stealing drugs from the pharmacy and selling them to a drug dealer. Emma goes on a date with Derek but ends up being far more attracted to Peter.

J.T. wants out of selling drugs but the dealer refuses to let him quit. A path of self-destruction and lies causes J.T. to lose the people he cares about most. Snake faces similar obstacles when he recounts all the regrets in his life.

Marco takes a big step in deciding to tell his father about his sexuality. Emma's relationship with Peter puts a strain on her friendship with Manny.

The one-year anniversary of the school shooting opens old wounds for many Degrassi students. Spinner is rejected by Jimmy yet again so Darcy invites him to a weekend retreat to cheer him up. Jay lies to Darcy by telling her Spinner is a guy only interested in sex; if she wants to keep him, she must have sex with him. What means more to Darcy: her personal beliefs or her boyfriend? Hazel becomes increasingly jealous when Ellie and Jimmy start spending time together.

Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes return to Degrassi and Toronto for the premiere of their Degrassi-filmed movie, "Jay and Silent Bob Go Canadian, Eh!". The premiere gets everyone at Degrassi into a frenzy and vying for the hard to come by premiere tickets. Upstaging the spectacle of the premiere are Alex and Paige, who are each other's dates for the evening. From the heat they create at the premiere and the after premiere party, which they manage to crash, they move their evening to more serious matters as Paige witnesses the turbulence of Alex's home life first hand, to a quieter and more ...

Paige and Alex are confused and uneasy after their encounter; Paige turns to an unlikely source for help with her sexuality. Emma tries but she can't keep the secret about what she saw Snake doing at the movie theater.

Craig and his band finally get their big break when a company in Vancouver offers them a record deal. Liberty takes on far more projects than she can handle in her condition and ends up going into labor.

Emma, with help from Manny, tries to cheer up Spike on her separation from Snake, especially as it is Spike and Snake's third wedding anniversary. They call in Caitlin from Los Angeles for some female bonding. Just after Caitlin arrives, Snake returns home, just to give Spike an anniversary gift he had purchased months earlier. After Snake leaves, Spike opens the package to find a sapphire necklace - her birthstone - and although she looks touched by the gift, throws it into the garbage. They also plan a female only anniversary party, complete with stripper waiters. ...

Emma, Manny, Spike and Jack are still trying to live without Snake. Manny is desperate to lose weight for an interview with an agent and Emma is happy enough to control one more thing like what they eat. They go on a major diet, barely eating, binging and throwing up and running too much. Snake is tired of staying at Joey's and really wants to come home. Emma tries to help, but to no avail. She's also trying to keep her relationship with Peter on the down low. Manny loses the pounds she wants too, and Snake manages to re-woo Spike and come home but Emma still feels ...

Emma, still on her dangerous diet, tries to make up excuses to friends and family about why she's not eating and is having problems. She alienates Manny and tells her she's dating Peter. Peter finds out about Emma's eating disorder and goes to Manny, the two of them talk to Snake and Spike and all of them try to intervene and save Emma. She ends up having a panic attack and passing out, sending her to the hospital. Meanwhile, Paige wants Alex and Hazel to get along, which is like getting water and oil to mix without the egg. They eventually manage to get along because...

Facing the pressure of year-end exams, the furthest thing from Marco's mind is what happened a year ago - when Dylan stomped all over his heart. Marco takes this as a sign that he's over Dylan for good.

What's old becomes new again for Alex, Paige and Spinner. Alex and Paige are facing their future post-Degrassi, Paige on a calculated, planned path to university at Banting, and Alex on a more spontaneous "in the moment" path. Paige expects Alex to follow her to Kingston, whereas Alex doesn't want to follow someone as she needs to find her own life. Spinner and Darcy are living in the moment, enjoying their relationship. Spinner tells little white lies to Darcy specifically regarding his past relationship with Manny and their, or supposed lack of sexual history. Darcy...

It's approaching graduation, a time for moving on for some. Both Ashley and Craig return to Degrassi from London and Vancouver respectively to visit with old friends and perhaps return to school the following year. Jimmy is not one who will be moving on from Degrassi just yet as his time away from school, despite his hard work, has left him a few credits short from graduating with his class. He is still feeling sorry for himself being in a wheelchair, but encouragement from friend Ashley may help. Her first words of encouragement fall flat however. Jimmy likes Ellie ...