It is no surprise that Nick Andopolis’ lovey-dovey side gets the best of him and claims the Cringe-Worthy Moment section. In an attempt to woo Lindsay Weir, Nick plans a romantic evening in his basement for just the two of them. Expecting that Nick will try to have sex with her, Lindsay is hesitant to take a seat in his “love nest” arrangement of pillows. However, the event that follows may make her even more uncomfortable than Nick trying to take her pants off.
Have you ever experienced second-hand embarrassment so painful that you want to crawl in a ball and watch it while at the same time shielding your eyes from it? That is exactly how you can expect to take in Nick’s rendition of the Styx song, “Lady” that he performs as a testament to the way he feels about her. As uncomfortable as the scene may be, it shows the extent to which Nick throws himself into a relationship and the vast difference between what he believes to be romantic, versus reality.
Jason Segel decided not to go to college to act on Freaks and Geeks. |
This scene also reveals Nick’s past as a basketball star before drugs came into his life. Lindsay, already set on ending their relationship realizes the extent to which his life is affected by marijuana. Combine that with his upcoming performance and desire to simply lie down together, the contrast from Lindsay’s expression and Nick’s reveals her struggle; make Nick happy and live unhappy or break it off and send him into an emotional downward spiral? You can watch the entire scene below.
The most emotional moment arrives early in the season, but in the original timeline of the show, did not air on NBC. Episode 4, “Kim Kelly is My Friend,” was in 1999, an extremely controversial episode that shows the less than ideal home life of Kim Kelly. In the episode, Kim invites Lindsay over for dinner and audiences, as well as Lindsay, gets a glimpse into the mold that formed the bully.
Over a dinner of take out fried chicken, audiences see Kim trying to defend herself in front of her parents who only grasp onto one D grade instead of her other numerous successes. The setting adds to the overall feeling of a broken home; skeleton frames of walls, construction draping, and a passed out sibling on a couch lies in the adjacent “room.” Finally, when Kim’s mom threatens to take away her car, Kim tries to flee the scene and demands Lindsay get to the car while she physically struggles against her mom.
A choice that the creators made, was to score the section with a funky bass line more fitting for a comic and playful scene. If the actions played out in complete silence, the situation may have been worthy of an HBO drama, not a primetime NBC “dramady.” The rest of the episode follows the aftermath of Lindsay’s leaving, including an emotional confrontation with Daniel. Best of luck trying to place your emotions for this one, folks.
“You guys have such a nice house. Do you think it’d be cool if I hung out here for a bit? My house is such a nightmare right now.” |
Freaks and Geeks‘ TV run came to a close on March 20, 2000 after episode 13 aired in its original Saturday night time-slot. There were still six unseen episodes of the show remaining, including episode 4, “Kim Kelly is My Friend.” The show opted for the unglamorous side of storytelling, the story of the underdogs that never desired to overcome their situation, but it was not fitting for a major network primetime slot.
Judd Apatow claims that his entire career serves as revenge for the show’s cancellation. |
Perhaps if the show started out on HBO or even as an FX original series, the cult classic would have a fighting chance. When the President of NBC, Garth Ancier took over after the pilot went into production, red flags started flying. When the network no longer sees your vision and Cops brings in double the ratings in its tenth season, making the weird work became a much harder job. Honest story telling about the halls of a Michigan high school did not appeal to the viewers looking to bet on the cheerleader and quarterback going to prom together.
Ultimately, the last episode was filmed around episode 13, just in case. Series creator, Paul Feig, took Judd Apatow’s advice to write a conclusion to ensure that he at least had something to finish. There were no victories for Freaks and Geeks during its initial run. However, the cult classic and the successes of those involved post-mortem gives significance to the beauty the eighteen episodes achieved that most shows today could not. The vision was never lost with Freaks and Geeks and is perhaps the most admirable quality about the series.
Freaks and Geeks is available in its entirety on Netflix. FXX has also been known to throw the show on for a mini marathon every now and then! Be sure to check your local listings in case there is a Sunday morning binge session airing.
We want to hear your thoughts on this topic!
Write a comment below or submit an article to Hypable.