We've Got Spirit (24 Jan. 2000)

Sam tries out to be the school mascot hoping to impress Cindy. Meanwhile, Daniel, Ken, and Kim suddenly become the basketball team's most rabid fans following a series of run-ins with jocks... See full summary »

Director:

Danny Leiner

Writers:

Paul Feig (creator), Mike White

Stars:

Linda Cardellini, John Francis Daley, James Franco

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Linda Cardellini	...	Lindsay Weir
John Francis Daley	...	Sam Weir
James Franco	...	Daniel Desario
Samm Levine	...	Neal Schweiber
Seth Rogen	...	Ken Miller
Jason Segel	...	Nick Andopolis
Martin Starr	...	Bill Haverchuck
Becky Ann Baker	...	Jean Weir
Joe Flaherty	...	Harold Weir
Busy Philipps	...	Kim Kelly
Thomas F. Wilson	...	Coach Ben Fredricks (as Tom Wilson)
Natasha Melnick	...	Cindy Sanders
Jarrett Lennon	...	Colin
Riley Smith	...	Todd Schellinger
JoAnna Garcia Swisher	...	Vicki Appleby (as Joanna Garcia)

Storyline

Sam tries out to be the school mascot hoping to impress Cindy. Meanwhile, Daniel, Ken, and Kim suddenly become the basketball team's most rabid fans following a series of run-ins with jocks from the rival school, Lincoln High. Lindsay tries to figure out the best way to break up with Nick.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 January 2000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Apatow Productions, DreamWorks SKG

Technical Specs

Runtime:

43 min 44 min (17 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the cast reunited at PaleyFest 2011, Busy Philipps revealed that James Franco was told, unbeknown to her and the episode's director Danny Leiner, that his character, Daniel, had been abused by his father and therefore had intimacy issues. When it came to shooting a scene where the characters get hit by water balloons, run after a car and Philipps' character gives Daniel a smack on the arm and says 'Dammit, Daniel, do something', Franco, much to everyone's surprise, reacted much harder than anyone expected him to and responded back by saying 'Don't you fucking ever touch me' and then grabbed Philipps arms and threw her to the ground.

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Goofs

At the end of the basketball game, Todd Schellinger is fouled with no time on the clock. Since there is no time on the clock, the other team cannot get possession of the ball off of a missed shot. Therefore the foul shots should be shot without any players under the hoop, similar to a technical or flagrant foul shot. When Schellinger is shooting there are rebounders under the basket.

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Quotes

Jean Weir: [to Lindsay, about Nick] What are you going to tell him?
Lindsay Weir: I don't know, Mom!
Harold Weir: I know what to tell him - tell him he's a grease bucket and you deserve better.

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Connections

References Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

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Soundtracks

"Hello Susie"
(uncredited)
Written by: Roy Wood
Performed by: The Move

User Reviews

Probably my least favorite episode of the series

Yet another good episode. Probably my least favorite episode of the series, but it is still much better than the 'good' episodes of other shows.

The whole 'school-mascot' thing simply did not appeal to me. It was a lot of fun to watch, but I didn't care for it as much. Neither did I care for the Sam/Cindy/Todd triangle or the basketball game.

The Freaks storyline in this episode was pretty minor compared to the Geeks. Ken and Kim are always hilarious, though. Which makes me sad that they didn't have more screen time.

But what really worked for me was the Lindsay/Nick break up. It may not be an entertaining storyline, but it feels very real and I can relate to it. One of the reasons why I love this show so much is not only because of the humor but mostly because of the realistic character behaviors. I felt bad for Nick, he was a loser but his heart was in the right place. Same as for Lindsay.

THREE stars.