With one swift croquet mallet to the head, Weeds found another way to shock. Nancy had a baby, Andy grew a beard, Shane got shot, Celia sold pot, Doug and Silas opened a dispensary, and Esteben was played by Pilar, who ended up in the pool. CelebStoner takes a nostalgic look back at Season 5.

It all started with the baby Nancy Botwin (Mary- Louise Parker) conceived with Mexican drug baron/politician Esteban Reyes (Demian Bichir). What would turn out to be a boy - Nancy's third - may have saved her life. But trouble accompanied her at every step, followed closely by Esteban's henchmen.

After Nancy asked brother-in-law Andy (Justin Kirk) to help with baby duties while she argued with Esteban over issues such as circumcision, Andy hatched his own plan: impersonate his brother Judah (he died at the beginning of the series) in order to recover a long-lost bank account. When Nancy shut the door on their relationship, Andy moved out, bought a house, added some facial hair and took onthe look and demeanor of a out-to-lunch rabbi.

Following an affair with Nancy's sister Jill (Jennifer Jason Leigh) in the second and third episodes (Jill didn't stick around long), Andy set his sights on Nancy's obstetrician Audra (Alannis Morissette). Before long Audra moved in with Andy and he popped the question (she never really answered).

Meanwhile, death closed in on Nancy, who married Esteban in a simple ceremony. One of Esteban's bodyguards was found dead in her garage and Shane was accidentally shot in the arm by an assassin's bullet intended for her. With that, Nancy moved with and the boys - Silas (Hunter Parrish) and Shane (Alexander Gould) - into Esteban's palatial home while plotting to kill Pilar, Esteban's biggest backer and possible mistress.

Shane really grew up this season, turning into a little gangster. First, he took revenge on a teacher who ripped him off for an ounce of weed. Then he took one in the arm. Finally, he bailed out his mother with that wicked croquet mallet shot to Pilar's head.

In the season's pot plot, Doug (Kevin Nealon), who puffed pretty much all the time, and Silas opened a medipot shop in Ren Mar. Extorted by a local cop, the store ran into immediate problems and soon went out of business. Too bad. This could have provided a focus on the changes in California's medical-marijuana scene. But Weeds' writers played it for laughs instead, wasting a good storyline.

Ironically, Celia (Elizabeth Perkins) consolidated the pot business after ripping off Doug and Silas's medical stash. But Celia - a mean-spirited shrew - brought the show down whenever she was given screen time. The less Celia, her ex-husband Dean (Andy Mulder) and even Doug, who was slightly more likable this season than last, the better for Weeds.

Where does Weeds go from here? Will Nancy and Esteban continue on together or will she pull up stakes one more time? Will Pilar's peeps take revenge? Can Celia really run a drug enterprise? And Shane - is he the new bad dude in town? We'll have to wait until Season 6 to find out.

Also see:
Weeds Season 4 Recap
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