“Well I’m going with you. To bail you out of jail when you get arrested for trespassing!”
- Jess
So on first watch of “Pepperwood” I thought it was pretty funny. Just all the ridiculousness with the guys just cracked me up. The insanity begins when Jess comes into the kitchen all bouncy and announces she made a breakthrough with a student. She starts singing and dancing and Schmidt tells her to put money in the annoyance bowl. Not as satisfying as the douche jar. CeCe is over because the plumbing in her apartment is blocked and before Jess gets to explain her breakthrough, CeCe and Winston accidentally bump. Either Winston is well endowed or aroused because CeCe felt it. After he leaves in embarrassment, Jess explains she’d been having trouble connecting to her students when she gave them a descriptive imagery assignment. Then, one of the students, Edgar, made a breakthrough. Nick is going on about how writing can’t be taught (which he’s wrong by the way). Jess tells Nick to read it and he says writers don’t read (another huge honking falsehood Miller!). Well, Nick does read it and he’s highly disturbed by the fact Edgar’s narrative is about him stalking and violently killing a deer. He thinks Jess isn’t safe with this guy and goes undercover in her class as ex-cop/ex-marine Julius Pepperwood from Chicago.
Back at the loft, Winston asks Schmidt if he should apologize to CeCe for what happened earlier. Schmidt tells Winston it’s happened before and that it’s his “pogo” (the thing the rest of the roommates talk about behind his back). Winston calls Schmidt the “pogo” king and sends Schmidt on a rampage of sorts, trying to figure out what his “pogo” is. First he thinks it is because he dances like a seas snake and then that he interrupts people in the shower. Maybe it’s his eyebrows so he shaves most of them off and looks absolutely ridiculous. Finally, CeCe tells him they talk about his disgusting toenails. CeCe tries to lighten the mood by getting them to tell her what her “pogo” is but they declare it a “loft thing”.
Back in Jess’ class, Nick manages to steal Edgar’s notebook. He saw him drawing a dead deer with lots of blood. Jess tries to get the notebook back while Edgar is checking his schedule to go see Jess in office hours. It wasn’t quite as funny on second watch. Jess and Nick end up in some awkward positions but Edgar doesn’t really get it. Back at home, Nick has dismantled Edgar’s notebook and says he’s going to find proof that Edgar is psychotic. Jess says she’s going with him In the middle of their argument they agree to drive together to be more environmentally friendly. That part was still funny. Sitting in the car outside Edgar’s house, Nick says they need a safe word if things get bad and suggests apricots. Jess nixes that idea as she uses that word too often in her daily life so she recommends dragon slippers. Nick isn’t interested as he climbs out of the car and does what I can only assume is his impression of someone being sneaky. Hate to tell him but he fails. They continue to squabble as they sneak up around the side of the house and see a woman Nick thinks is Edgar’s mom throwing something away. He insists Jess still call him Julius Pepperwood but there’s really no point. Then they have to run and hide behind some trash cans as Edgar pulls up in his van. Jess starts to freak out that he is the plumber from his story and Nick seems pretty pleased with himself, telling Jess not to forget she was saying that he was right. They watch as Edgar pulls out a heavy looking duffle bag from the back of his van and drag it into a shed. That is pretty sketchy. Nick and Jess creep up to the boarded over window and Nick is trying to see inside when Jess’ phone rings. Edgar is calling her. We get a funny bit where Nick and Jess are trying to turn off the phone and then take off as Edgar walks outside, looking confused. In their attempt to escape, Jess crawls under Edgar’s van and Nick tells her she’s being ridiculous. There’s a lot of that going on this episode.
Nick and Jess get back to the loft after their escape from Edgar’s house to find Winston trying to cut Schmidt’s toenails. After they gross out a bit, they end up finding out their own “pogo”. Jess is a know-it-all and they’re just generally worried about Nick because he doesn’t take care of himself. CeCe still wants to know her “pogo” and she starts talking like a baby but all Schmidt will say is she’s hot. Jess also reiterates that it’s a loft thing. Nick feels that the loft dynamic is ruined. The next day, Nick goes back to Edgar’s house and breaks into his shed. We do get some Jake Johnson physical comedy hilarity as he tries to climb into a window by climbing on a tire and having it roll away. He sees lots of drawings of Jess with bloody weapons and he calls her in a panic. She’s in office hours and Edgar shows up and she starts yelling apricot. This of course being Jess she makes up a lie that her grocer is deaf. As Edgar explains he’s found an ending to his story in which Jess must die (he based a character on her), Jess suggests that maybe he should let her character live and just have the book going on. In shed, Nick has fallen in (after he drops his phone) and calls Jess back. Just as he’s relieved to hear she’s alive, the woman they saw the day before smacks him over the head with a pan. Edgar recognizes the ringtone on Jess’ phone and takes off, too.
Of course, there’s a big misunderstanding. Edgar isn’t a killer (not of people). He was writing a graphic novel. And apparently the woman isn’t his mom. Which is a little gross. We never do find out what was in the duffle bag. The next morning, Nick is up making bacon and putting salt and lots of butter on it. He doesn’t want it to stick to the pan. Jess is about to say something but decides not to be a know-it-all. Nick has started a new novel called Julius Pepperwood Zombie Detective. It sounds actually kind of funny if it were like a comedic mystery or something. Of course, he’s got a character based on Jess. In short order, Winston and Schmidt join the party and Schmidt reveals he’s cut his toenails. Nick’s disgusting mess of bacon and butter catches fire and he tries to put it out with water but obviously that’s not going to work. So Jess embraces her “pogo” and explains you have to smother a grease fire. Winston leaved the kitchen after anther awkward encounter (this time when Nick hugs him) and they come up with a new “pogo” for Winston. They really should find something more productive to do with their time.
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