Episode Name: Pilot
Original Airdate: September 25, 1999
Characters introduced:
1) Lindsay Weir
2) Sam Weir, Lindsay's brother
3) Neil, Sam's friend
4) Bill, Sam's friend
5) Daniel, Lindsay's friend
6) Nick, Lindsay's friend
7) Ken, Lindsay's friend
8) Millie, Lindsay's friend, also a "mathlete"
9) Cindy, a cheerleader whom is kind to Sam, and incidentally, who Sam has a crush on
10) Kim, a friend of Daniel's group; dislikes Lindsay
11) Eli, a mentally challenged student who Lindsay stands up for
12) Jeff Russo, the guidance counselor
It's 1980, and in William McKinley High School, located in Michigan, changes are afoot. Lindsay's been going through emotional trouble since her grandmother died, and is veering away from her academically focused past to hang out with burnouts at her high school (the freaks), while her younger brother and his friends (the geeks) are being bullied by an individual named Alan.
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| Lindsay [Linda Cardellini] |
Lindsay helps fend off Alan, so afterward, Sam and his two friends, Neil and Nick, try to find a solution to the problem without involving his sister and looking weak.
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| Sam (Lindsay's brother) and Bill |
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| Neil (friend of Sam) |
At dinner that night, Sam and Lindsay's parent insist they both attend the high school homecoming dance, which neither have interest in doing. Lindsay, however, doesn't have much choice as her father forces her into it. The next day, Lindsay goes out of her way to hang out with Daniel and his friends Nick and Ken, all underachievers, and tries to bond with them. One of the friends, a girl named Kim, calls her a poser for wanting to hang out with them despite being a high achieving student, and despite the protests of Daniel and Nick, smack down her purse. Also in her day, she stands up for a mentally challenged student named Eli, who was being picked on, and invites him to the homecoming dance. The student, being picked on again by different bullies, ends up breaking his arm after trying to get away from Lindsay when she lets him know the bullies aren't being friendly to him, just making fun of him for being "retarded."
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| Daniel speaking to Lindsay |
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| Ken [Seth Rogan] and Nick |
Sam's day hasn't been easier. Alan picks on him some more, and a girl he has feelings for brings him his jacket which he left in chemistry class, leading Neil and Nick to insist he ask her to the homecoming dance.
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| Lindsay confronting bullies - Eli on far right |
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| Jeff Russo, guidance counselor |
Sam checks in on Lindsay, and Lindsay lets him know that she was the only person around when their grandmother died, and this has affected her deeply. She also lets her brother know that she thinks he and her friends can take Alan in a fight.
The next morning, Bill and Neil turn out to the place where the fight will take place, and wait for Sam. Sam, however, gets held up when Cindy approaches him, and they chat. Eventually, Sam asks her to the dance - Cindy says she's already going with someone, but will save a dance for him, which Sam seems to accept well. Not being present, Bill, Neil and another individual, Colin, take on Alan, ripping his shirt and causing him to flee, leaving the three boys pretty pleased with themselves, and making Sam happy also when he hears this.
At the homecoming dance, Sam dances with Cindy to "Come Sail Away" by Styx, while Lindsay decides to ask Eli, who is sporting a cast due to his broken arm, to dance, which he happily accepts.
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| Eli and Lindsay |
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| Cindy and Sam |
I could end the review there, and be perfectly correct, but I'll expand.
The relationship between Lindsay and her brother is beautifully done, and reflects reality pretty accurately. You can tell the two are close, especially when she stick up for him against Alan near the beginning and speaks with him about grandmother later in the episode. Each truly cares for the other, and they showed that well in this opening.
The freaks portion of the show, consisting of now Lindsay, Daniel, Nick, Ken and Kim seem a solid bunch. Daniel is a particularly nice guy, and Nick seems much the same way. I'm torn on Ken (who is played by Seth Rogan, by the way, being his first acting role), but I suspect his deadpan nature will grow on Lindsay, who seemed unsure of him in this episode. The important point is that the three of them are completely non-judgmental toward Lindsay, unlike her other friends such as Millie, her parents, and the guidance counselor. The only exception is Kim, who views Lindsay as a do-gooder "poser" hanging out with them only to rebel against her parents. When Kim saw Lindsay dance with Eli at the end of the episode though, I got the impression that she softened her opinion. I guess that time will tell.
Speaking of Eli, Lindsay standing up for him twice was another fantastic moment which really makes the audience feel for her character. Despite her not living up to the high standards of her parents, Lindsay has a good heart, and standing up for Eli, along with asking him to the homecoming dance, really shows the good values she possesses at her core.
Meanwhile, her brother Sam also has a good set of friends in Bill and Neil, representing the geeks. While we don't know much about them yet aside from Bill being the stereotypical geek, I am hoping that over the series, the three of them can strengthen their bond and become closer and more willing to stick their necks out for each other, something Neil seemed hesitant to do regarding Alan's bullying. Basically, I want to see the three of them mature as a group.
High school for many people was a good time, and for many others, it wasn't. It was a bit of both for me, so I certainly see where Lindsay and her new friends are coming from. What connected to me more, though, was the dodge ball scene. Personally, I hated that game, simply because I had no interest in throwing a ball at classmates. I didn't see the point (and as such, this is how I feel about most competitive sports). I wasn't a bad player, per se - I just had no interest in participating whatsoever. The scene really shows a good perspective of childhood's trials, which many of us forget after we've reached college. Of course, some people really liked dodge ball, but it's important to remember that some people didn't, and the scene shows exactly why there is reason for this.
The theme song and opening, being "Bad Reputation" by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, is a perfect choice. Generally, theme songs and openings don't make an impression on me, but I really liked the way they approached this one. Also, the use of "Renegade" during the fight scene between Alan and Neil/Bill we nice, and the ending dance using "Come Sail Away" was just beautifully done (both "Renegade" and "Come Sail Away" are Styx songs), in my opinion, between showing the dancing between Sam and Cindy along with Lindsay and Eli.
Lastly, on the actors and actresses, there made great choices here. Lindsay's actress, Linda Cardellini, has almost an Ellen Page aura about her, and as Ellen Page is a favorite of mine that's definitely a positive thing. Bill's actor, Martin Starr, did a wonderful job portraying a geeky guy, and you can definitely feel for him, especially when he says that he simply can't see himself going to the homecoming dance. Rogan, in his earliest role, does the typical deadpan act wonderfully, and it's nice to see he's been consistent throughout his career (I'm not a big Rogan fan, but I did rather like Zack and Miri Make a Porno). James Franco stood out also, and I'd like to see where he goes in this role. Lastly, Lindsay and Sam's father, played by Joe Flaherty, did an excellent job, and had some of the funniest lines of the episode (the whole "they died" conversation was deeply amusing). If the name doesn't sound familiar, he was in Happy Gilmore, the one who was paid to distract Gilmore by heckling him. Yep, it's that guy. And he did very well here.
This was simply a fantastic episode and great opening to this series. Based off this, I only expect well-done, above average episodes from here on out, and I hope I won't be disappointed.
Rating: Superb
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