This episode is George Michael-centric. It opens with him as the most popular person at a pool party he’s throwing for his girlfriend Rebel. Backtracking to his days in college, we learn that GM has put his perfect internal clock to use and plays the rhythm block in a band. We see a flashback video of a young George Sr. trying to cash in on these skills with a product called BabyTock. I think this is the first time we’ve ever seen Michael’s deceased wife Tracey.
Puzzle piece: We see the family meeting scene from GM’s point of view, which also happens to be his graduation part. Just as George Sr. gives him a check to get a new car as a present, Michael storms in after giving Lucille 2 his shares. The “What’s this?” we heard off camera in the first episode was Michael referring to GM’s check. He makes his son rip it up and gives him the stair car to drive instead.
We get GM’s back story by the year. In his freshman year, GM lived daringly by doing things like drinking Pepsi in the morning and charming people with his humor. During sophomore year, everything gets turned up a notch: He makes new friends and tells them some of his crazy family stories and gets and loses a girlfriend. During junior year, GM signs up for scientific experiments to compensate for his lack of income. He gets “an education in life” during his summer trip abroad to Spain, when he grows a mustache and hooks up with a hot older woman that teaches him how to kiss and make love (and is later shown to be pregnant!). GM’s development is stalled two months into his senior year when Michael shows up and stays with him for six months. We see the start of FakeBlock: it began as an app designed to help simulate a woodblock. The anti-piracy aspect of it was just a lie he told his dad and build up further to impress his cousin. Suddenly, we’re seeing GM tap into “a long inbreed instinct for lying.” The 41-second pause before GM explains it to them is priceless. We also find out that GM is the one who came up with the plan for voting Michael out of the room.
Cut to the night of the gala. We learn that 3 different events were going on at once. The first is the unveiling of Mort’s new Internet company, Schnoodle. This is the event Tony Wonder is performing at. The second is the Opie Awards. The third is the Herbert Love rally. At the Opies, GM is shaken up to learn that Maeby has a boyfriend. Suddenly, Marky’s bomb goes off and causes the power to surge. The surge renders Schnoodle inoperable and suddenly “George Maharis” is blamed for knocking out his competition.
While waiting for Michael to show up at the Ealing club, GM meets Rebel at the bar. Rebel is surprised that GM knows who she is, but he informs her, “You were in the remake of Dangerous Cousin. I signed up to Netflix because of that movie!” It’s a delightful reference to seasons past. We’re then treated to the entire game of phone tag between Michael and George Michael. GM blew his dad off for a girl!
Things to Note:
- Cornballer alert!
- Segway alert!
- George Michael is called “OS” or “overtly sexual.” I didn’t catch it the first time, but on my second watch, I noticed that Tobias’s business card says “M.D., OS.”
- George Michael almost gives us his own version of the chicken dance!
- The woman who assigns Maeby to GM echos Michael’s previous advice to “Stay on top of her. You need to ride her pretty hard.”
- GM tells the front desk clerk at the hotel that he only needs one bed: “Why give her the option?” In the pilot of Seinfeld, Kramer says the same thing to Jerry in the same context.
- GM’s Star Wars video is back!
- When passing Lindsay in the hotel lobby, GM says, “Gentlemen start your engines.” Michael said the same thing when he unknowingly passed Lindsay getting into the elevator.
- GM is eating eggs in the computer lab.
- P-Hound and GM accuse each other of being a “hop on.”
- Donnie Ritcher yells “Come on!”
