New Girl S3 E3 – Double Date

Last updated on April 3, 2022

This podcast covers New Girl Season 3, Episode 3, Double Date, which originally aired on October 1, 2013 and was written by Luvh Rakhe and directed by Max Winkler.

Episode Recap

Nick, Jess, Cece, and Schmidt decide to go on a double date! However, Cece’s concerned by Schmidt’s weird behavior and it’s not long until Schmidt’s truth comes out. Winston doesn’t want to feel left out and tries to secure a reservation for the Double Date +1.

Episode Notes

On this episode’s Pop Culture section we reviewed:

• Lance Armstrong / Livestrong Bracelet – Jess was telling Cece she didn’t think Schmidt was on drugs because Schmidt took it really hard when “Lance got busted. He just stared at that yellow bracelet and cried.”  
• Spaceballs – Jess shared Spaceballs quotes, which Nick was impressed with. Here’s a clip of the “jammed” radar scene.

Additional Pop Culture References such as:

• Dexter – When Schmidt was coordinating with Elizabeth what they were doing that night, she said “Dexter and pie.”  ​​Dexter is an American crime drama television series that aired from 2006 to 2013 and focused on Dexter Morgan, a forensic technician specializing in bloodstain pattern analysis, but was also a vigilante serial killer, hunting down murderers who have not been adequately punished by the justice system. Dexter returned in 2021 with a 10-episode limited series titled Dexter: New Blood.
• “Weird Al” Yankovic – When Jess and Nick were in bed together, Jess shared her elbow cracks because she “[pumped her] fist too hard at a Weird Al show.” Alfred Matthew “Weird Al” Yankovic is an American singer, musician, record producer, and actor who is known for humorous songs that make light of pop culture and often parodies specific songs by contemporary musical acts. He also performs original songs, most of which feature his trademark accordion.
• Toni Morisson – When Winston called the restaurant Picca, he pretended to be Toni Morrison to get a reservation. Chloe Anthony Wofford Morrison, known as Toni Morrison, was an American novelist. Morrison was the first black female editor in fiction at Random House and later developed her own reputation as an author. Morrison’s works are praised for addressing the harsh consequences of racism in the United States and she has won many prestigious awards for her writing.
• What to Expect When You’re Expecting – When Schmidt is threatening to break Nick and Jess up, he says it might happen as they watch the movie What to Expect When You’re Expecting, which is a 2012 American rom-com movie based on Heidi Murkoff’s 1984 pregnancy guide of the same name. The movie follows the lives of five couples as their lives are turned upside down by the difficulties and surprises of parenthood.
• Craig Kilborn / Daily Show – When Jess and Nick were reviewing things that might break them up, Nick shared that he prefers the “Kilborn Daily Show”. Craig Lawrence Kilborn is an American comedian, sports and political commentator, actor, and television host. Beginning his career in sports broadcasting with an anchoring position at ESPN’s SportsCenter (1993 – 1996), he was later the first host of The Daily Show, which he hosted from 1996 to 1998. After that, he succeeded Tom Snyder on CBS’ The Late Late Show from 1999 to 2004.

This episode we discuss who would be more likely to go early and claim a table for friends, barter badly for a reservation, smush a pie in someone’s face, and dance during a tense conversation. We also cover the honorary “Schmidtism” of Schmidt thinking Nick cracked his email password and when he was flustered about going on a double date with Cece, Jess, and Nick. For “Not in the 2020s” we talk about everything Schmidt did in this episode and for our “Yes in the 2020s” we discuss Cece calling Elizabeth. We also give a brief look into Alice Wetterlund (Hostess), our guest star of the episode.

Also in this episode were the following guest stars who we do not discuss in the podcast: Merritt Wever (Elizabeth – Previously discussed in S2E22), Barney Cheng (Valet), Tyler Langdon (Tourist), Cheyenne Nugent (Angry Girl #1), Andrew Pish (Restaurant Boyfriend), and Whitney Shumaker (Bar Patron).

We did a deep dive into the different cars that Nick has driven so far and shared an article of how someone felt Winston’s scenes were shot separately (the article does contain spoilers). In addition, we also talk about this article that compared Schmidt’s evil-ness to Walter White from Breaking Bad. Neither of us found the bear in this episode.

While not discussed in the podcast, we noted other references in this episode including:

• Moon Landing – When Nick and Jess are sharing what might break them up with each other, Nick states that the moon landing was obviously fake. The United States of America was the first country to have a crewed mission to land on the Moon, on July 20, 1969. There are many conspiracy theories that this was faked and that the 12 Apollo astronauts did not actually walk on the moon but rather that the evidence was faked to mislead the public.

This episode got a 6.5/10 rating from both Kritika and Kelly and both had the same favorite character: Nick!

Thanks for listening and stay tuned for Episode 4!

Music: “Hotshot” by scottholmesmusic.com