Season 1, Episode 15: "Deja Who?"

As a food fight breaks out in the Lucky Junior High cafeteria, Ginger, Dodie, and Macie just sit there like it's no big deal. I always figured that food fights are the result of the school's food being shit. By that logic, and through my many years as a public school student, these things should happen as often as the Pledge of Allegiance.

Some turdball swipes Ginger's bowl of pudding as she's questioning the expiration date on it. If you ask me, she's better off.



The principal comes in and nonchalantly gets everyone's attention so that he can make an announcement. The senator is coming to the school for a campaign stop on Friday. Ginger makes an excellent point: why is he going there, anyway? Trying to infect the minds of impressionable preteens as early as possible, I guess? Anyway, he's also transferring his son, Michael, and Courtney creams her panties over his hawt-ness. I can totally see this as a political campaign to get the senator re-elected. Son of senator transfers into a public school, instantly becomes popular, kids tell their parents to reelect the senator with the hawt, popular son because politics, that's why.

Courtney volunteers to be Michael's "peer guide," and by that she means be his puppy and follow his every move while simultaneously humping his highlights that happen to match hers. She also can't wait to be with him during the luncheon on Friday, so she gets so giddy that she fails to realize the "mystery meat" is lobster.

While swinging upside down, Hoodsey complains about Higsby bringing his brother's monkey to school all the time, only because he doesn't have a monkey to show off himself. And just like that, the monkey pops out from behind Higsby's smirk and crossed arms, ready to attack Hoodsey.

Why does the principal even let Higsby bring that monkey to school in the first place?

Hoodsey gets so scared that he falls off the swing and right onto his head (ow), causing Carl to rush to his aid. Higsby laughs like the demented soul that he is and claims that Hoodsey is faking his injury. Right, because falling directly onto your head is something you can just walk off. I'd be surprised if Hoodsey doesn't end up with a concussion at the least.

The next morning, Courtney wakes up with a severe allergic reaction to yesterday's lobster.


She can't hump--I mean follow--Michael around the school when her face looks all gaunt and puffy, so she asks Miranda if she would... hand her the phone so she can have Ginger replace her as Michael's puppy. Miranda should be used to this by now, but instead, she throws her hands in the air and says, "Ginger? That wannabe?" Well, if it ain't the pot calling the kettle black!

At the hospital, Carl waits on the fate of his hooded friend. Lois comes by and tells Carl that he has a mild concussion and should be able to return home in a couple of hours.


Lois also warns Carl that Hoodsey "may not be himself yet" which we can all assume is amnesia, but naïve Carl believes he has some kind of oozing scab or something. Lois's beeper goes off, which means it's time to return to cleaning out the bed pans and fighting rowdy patients who refuse to keep their IVs in. She leaves, so Carl comes in and instantly greets Hoodsey with an anecdote about how the EMT gave him some dead guy's finger bone from a deadly train wreck after they accidentally cut it off. He shows Hoodsey the bone, but Hoodsey sits up in his bed and wonders why Carl called him that. He also mentions that he doesn't remember anything. Amnesia, everybody! I called it first. I win.


In Courtney's room, Ginger wonders why Courtney is asking her to be Courtney's replacement up until the luncheon. Courtney and Miranda basically have to spell it out for her. Ginger makes a few valid points, like how Michael will realize that Ginger isn't really Courtney when the real Courtney comes back to school, but Courtney dismisses her concerns by throwing out a stereotype about how guys are oblivious to major details like that. Once Ginger bashfully agrees, she goes through an off-screen makeover to look less like a giant firebush.

Carl wheels Hoodsey around the hospital telling him how he's going to jog his memory back by introducing him to familiar things. Hoodsey decides he hates this nickname Carl has given him and prefers to be called "Rob" as it "suits [him]." For those of you who don't know, Hoodsey's real name is Robert. And then Carl's like, "The fuck? That doesn't suit you at all."

Carl tries to restore the Hoodsey back into him by reenacting last year's wheelchair race that he won, except instead of instilling a sense of excitement, Carl instills fear into the concussion child by accidentally wheeling him right into a laundry bin.


Ginger shows off her new, straight hair. It's quite love-leh.

This suits her so well.
Back at home, Ginger calls Dodie and worries about how well she will act as Courtney, but instead of offering any sort of advice or cohesive thought, Dodie gushes about how Ginger is now the popular girl, which means she and Macie are now part of the popular crowd.

I really need to form a collection of ugly Dodie faces.

I can only imagine how Dodie would react if Courtney allowed her to take her place. *Shudders*

Carl, desperate in his attempt to bring back Hoodsey, tries various nonsense techniques to jog his memory. It fails, obviously. Lois comes in with Ginger behind her and questions Ginger on her new look. Ginger lies and says it's part of some social studies project. Of course she lied--if she told Lois what she was really doing, she'd think she's nuts. Then, she asks who wants to ride shotgun, but "Rob" says that he can't because his mother said it's the worst place to sit in case there's an accident. Wait, he remembers something his mother said to him once, probably twice, but doesn't remember a lifelong friendship with Carl? I don't think that's how amnesia works.

When Lois drops Ginger off at school, Dodie and Macie fawn over Ginger's resemblance to Courtney. To be honest, Ginger does look better with straight hair. Of course, Dodie and Macie have to moan and coo to reinforce the fact that they have big ole lesbian crushes on Courtney.


Miranda takes "Courtney" into the school and introduces her to the "shark tank," AKA the popular students. She tells Ginger that every morning from 8:00 to 8:15, Courtney meets with a bunch of insecure popular wannabes in the school bathroom to talk about boys and how to give them proper handjobs. Mipsi approaches "Courtney," well-aware of the situation like every one else in the crowd, and asks her for advice on how to sink her teeth into some hottie's ass. Ginger stammers un-confidently, and tells Mipsi just to tell him she likes him. Here comes that all-too-famous trope: Mipsi retorts that Ginger's advice is "so obvious" as if it's the worst advice she's ever received, and then smiles big saying, "Why didn't I think of that?" Miranda seems quite impressed with Ginger's ability to think on the fly, which makes me sad that this is one of the extremely rare times we will ever see Miranda not being a jealous bitch.

A rare moment of kindness. 
At the elementary school during recess, Carl sits with "Rob" and points out all the kids and all the pranks they pulled on them over the years. Higsby comes by with his fake-ass smile and asks "Rob" if he's feeling better, walking off in the most pompous fashion possible. You know, I wouldn't mind Higsby so much if he was at least apologetic towards Hoodsey, but he's a remorseless little ass--no consideration towards anyone but himself. And yet he claims he's a "good boy." Remember Ludlow Krantz, the famous glockenspiel man who picked Higsby for the solo in The "A" Ticket? Remember how he fell unconscious after yelling at him? Higsby just ran off like a little baby. Here, he has no remorse, no regret, and no fucks to give. I swear, you guys, I think I hate this kind more than Miranda. More than Dodie, even.


Blake's theme music comes on as Blake approaches (as always), offering Carl his services for a new best friend. How sweet, yet rude. I mean, "Rob" is sitting right there, you know. But Carl's like, "Fuck that, Hoodsey and I are best friends and I'm gonna do whatever it takes to get him to remember!" Good on you, Carl. It's nice to know you care about Hoodsey so much, despite how often he hates everything you try to do with him that involves any kind of physical exertion. So, Blake's like, "Whatever. Catch you later," and walks off as his theme music closes out and lingers just a little longer than usual.

Ginger can't sit with Dodie and Macie at lunch anymore because she's popular now. At least she apologizes for it. But that still doesn't make up for the fact that she's ignoring her friends.

Carl hands "Rob" a bucket of spit and before he can explain what it's for, "Rob" runs off in complete and total disgust.

Dodie and Macie plan on surprising Ginger in the bathroom at 8:13 when she's finishing up giving advice to all the wannabes, and they (well, mostly Dodie) believe that since they're Ginger's best friends, they're automatically included in Ginger's inner-circle (which is comprised of Courtney's friends). It's so cute how they assume they're popular now! They push past people to get to Ginger, but before they can even reach her, Miranda stops them and tells them to get to the back of the line since they're part of Ginger's inner-circle, not Courtney's. They get confused, hurt, but confused, and walk away.


Carl dumpster dives in the dump for some souvenirs from the local retirement home while "Rob" just stands there wondering why "Hoodsey" thought this was fun. If it was anyone else, I can understand. But this is Carl Foutley we're talking about.

Man, the show seems to be skipping scenes in this episode the way someone flips through TV channels.

We cut to Ms. Zorski's class where Ginger doesn't raise her hand when Ms. Zorski calls out her name in attendance. Wow, Ginger really is taking this Courtney persona to heart. She even bad-mouths herself to Miranda (as Courtney, of course).


Dodie and Macie become rightfully concerned for Ginger's identity crisis. I don't think Ginger prefers the limelight as much as she is just happy to be talking to someone other than Dodie and Macie for a change. Ginger is supposedly popular in school--why don't we ever see her with other friends? It seems like Dodie and Macie are the only friends Ginger has in the whole show. That doesn't make someone popular, now does it? It's like that with nearly every kids' show--the main character only being friends with their two best friends and no one else.

At "Rob's" house, Carl digs through a cardboard box with memorabilia to try to get Hoodsey's memory back, but to no avail. The doorbell rings; Joanne answers it. It's Higsby, "Rob's" new best friend. Joanne brings him into the living room and is fooled by Higsby's false compliments and gentlemanliness. The poor woman.


And then she kicks Carl out of her house so "Rob" and Higsby can play. Bitch.


This is just so sad. I honestly feel really bad for Carl. Hopefully now, he'll realize that there are better friends suited for him. Nah, I'm just kidding. You don't desert your friends like that. But seriously, Higsby being anyone's best friend--or even friend at all--is such an alien concept to me that I can't even believe it happened. I think the writers of this show believe it's just as absurd since they included it at all.

After dinner, "Courtney" clears off the dinner table. Lois's concerns for her daughter's well-being rise once again when she asks for how much longer Ginger is going to be putting on this persona for her "class." But "Courtney" skillfully thwarts any kind of intervention from both Lois and Dodie (who then calls Ginger to tell her she misses her) by pushing them away through typical Courtney-isms. Dear lord, this child really believes she's Courtney Gripling.


Dodie decides that it's time for her and Macie to return Ginger back down to Earth.

The next day at school is the day Michael and his senator father are coming to Lucky Junior High. Camera crews are already setting up outside, raring to harass them at every corner. As "Courtney" gets ready by her locker mirror, Dodie and Macie approach with a rhetorical question about how to tell "a friend" that they think she's turned into someone else. Don't beat around the bush! Tell her straight out you want her back! If you keep treating her like she's Courtney, she's going to continue to be Courtney! Don't you two have any brains?

Macie knows what's up.
Once "Courtney" answers in a typical airheaded Courtney fashion, Dodie and Macie totally blow her off and walk away, and Ginger slowly starts to realize, "Wait, they're talking about me. I've changed!" Though I wouldn't necessarily say she's changed for the worse. She just took the Courtney persona too far. It's not like she was a raging bitch. If anything, becoming Courtney was probably better for Ginger. She started dressing better, fixing her hair, and getting to know more people. And by getting to know Michael, she'll have contacts that she can use to her advantage in the future. Sure, she wasn't actually being herself, but I wouldn't say that she was doing anything wrong--except convincing the teachers that she's Courtney and in turn, making them think Ginger just vanished off the face of the Earth.


So, she runs after her friends and tells them that she wants to return to being herself again. Dodie and Macie forgive her, but not without mentioning that because Ginger was so good at being Courtney, the real Courtney wants Ginger to fill in for her whenever she's out from now on. Now, Ginger has to figure out how to convince Courtney that she's bad at being like her. Or, Ginger, or... hey... call me crazy here, but how about you, oh, I don't know... go out on a limb here and just FUCKING TELL COURTNEY NO THANK YOU?!?!?!?! God, why does everything have to be so damn complicated with this girl?

Lois gets a call from the school saying that Ginger has been absent from school for the past three days, but she angrily explains that she's been dropping her off. Dumbass teachers for not noticing the difference. Dumbass Ginger for risking her studies just to fill in for Courtney. I'm pretty sure she can get into serious trouble for doing that.

In the cafeteria, Michael stands with Ginger on the stage, and with other members of the school, while hundreds of photographers snap photos of them to run on the front page of the newspaper, because it's probably the highlight of the week for Sheltered Shrubs. What else would be going on? In order to make Michael feel uncomfortable, Ginger dresses in an even grungier version of herself, slurps her soup, and slanders Carl. Why that would make the senator's son uncomfortable is beyond me, but it fails, because Michael is even more impressed with the fact that "Courtney" is able to remain interesting, despite being settled in a public school system for so many years.

Isn't that Dodie's shirt?

So, we find out that Michael is a little turd, because he looks over at Dodie and Macie and tells "Courtney" how he can't wait to make fun of them, as it'll remind him of all the bullying he did at his old school. But then "Courtney" is like, "Uh, listen, you little yuppie: you don't even know them. They're actually really nice." HA! Okay, sorry, Ginger. It's great that you're standing up for them, but Dodie is certainly not nice (remember Of Lice and Friends in particular?). Michael retorts that they're not good enough to be in their high society circle, so "Courtney" stands up and screams that she is not a snob. Meanwhile, the real Courtney is watching this live at home, horrified at how good Ginger is making her look. The opposite desired effect.

"But I am a snob! I am!" - Courtney
Lois comes running onto the stage and screams at the principal for not running the school better, as Ginger is clearly in attendance. The senator overhears Lois's yelling and shakes her hand for being a "concerned parent." Then, they pose for pictures. Typical political manipulation.


So, it turns out Courtney isn't mad, as she realized that only she can be Courtney Gripling. Although I will say I'll miss Ginger's better fashion and hair.

"Rob" comes back to the doghouse and decides that he wants to be Hoodsey. I'm guessing it's because he's been exposed to the Higsby virus for much too long. And then Hoodsey begins to remember important details about his friendship with Carl, much to Carl's delight. Yay, he's getting his memory back. Now we can properly end this episode.





Lessons Learned From This Episode: just be yourself; if your friend has amnesia, give it time because they'll eventually come back to you

Comments

  1. Here's a goofy entry for your collection of ugly Dodie faces: https://i1.ytimg.com/vi/BNNcRVgrnmw/hqdefault.jpg
    Be sure to use it in your review of "The Easter Ham"!

    ReplyDelete

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