"Arrested Development"
Queen for a Day (2005)

Director:

Andrew Fleming

Writers:

Mitchell Hurwitz (creator)
Brad Copeland (written by)

TV Series:

"Arrested Development" (2003)

Original Air Date:

23 January 2005 (Season 2, Episode 8)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Michael finds out that some company funds have been unfrozen, which the family quickly spends on some elaborate stuff...

Plot Keywords:

Orange County California | Father Son Relationship | Cult Favorite | Identical Twins | Narrator

Cast

Jason Bateman	...	Michael Bluth
Portia de Rossi	...	Lindsay Bluth Fünke
Will Arnett	...	George "Gob" Bluth II
Michael Cera	...	George-Michael Bluth
Alia Shawkat	...	Mae "Maeby" Fünke
Tony Hale	...	Byron "Buster" Bluth
David Cross	...	Tobias Fünke
Jeffrey Tambor	...	George Bluth Sr. / Oscar Bluth
Jessica Walter	...	Lucille Bluth
Liza Minnelli	...	Lucille Austero
Ed Begley Jr.	...	Stan Sitwell
Mo Collins	...	Starla
Jeff Garlin	...	Mort Meyers
Henry Winkler	...	Barry Zuckerkorn
R.F. Daley	...	Country Club Manager

Goofs:

Continuity: When Michael is in Tobia's club with Lucille Austero, the collar on his windbreaker keeps going between popped up and folded down.

Quotes:

Tobias Fünke: My schedule however, is as open as my relationship with my wife. So why don't we pair up? And hit the town together! I'll be your wingman. Even if it means me taking a chubby, I will suck it up!
Michael: OK, that's enough family stuff for today.

Movie Connections:

References Soapdish (1991)

Soundtrack:

Theme from New York, New York

Underrated episode fit for a queen

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

This episode, along with the rest of the middle of season 2 (Switch Hitter, Burning Love, and Ready, Aim, Marry Me) has a reputation for being one of the weaker episodes of Arrested Development, which none of these episodes really deserve. Indeed, I imagine most people who call them weak still think they're funny, and better than just about anything else on TV. But what's important is that Queen for a Day is a funny, solid episode.

In it, Michael learns his son isn't fond of the stair car the family has been using since their bankruptcy; when the family's stock is unfrozen, Michael chooses to indulge himself in a new and better car. In an amusing scene, he picks the least practical car he could find. Meanwhile, George Michael finds love letters he had written to his cousin Maeby, and mistakenly thinks Maeby has seen them. This joke, especially George Michael's remark about "the drawings," was priceless, and it was nice to revisit the George Michael-Maeby thing which gets less attention in season 2. Also in this episode, Tobias buys a club called the Queen Mary and Lindsay tries to scare him away from it by hiring the Hot Cop strippers to pose as gangsters. The Hot Cops from the episode Pier Pressure are nice to see again, and it's funny when they dance and one instinctively tears off his shirt. There's plenty of good stuff in this episode.