New Girl S3 E22 – Dance

Last updated on March 16, 2023

This podcast covers New Girl Season 3, Episode 22, Dance, which originally aired on April 29, 2014 and was directed by Trent O’Donnell and written by Rebecca Addelman and Ryan Koh.

Episode Recap

Jess is throwing a school dance where the theme is Love is Forever and Ever and Ever (with 12 total Evers) so when the dance is sabotaged, the loft comes together to fill in the gaps and support Jess.

Episode Notes

On this episode’s Pop Culture section we reviewed:

• Flo-Jo – When Schmidt went outside to race the bully, he said, “I’m like a Hebrew cheetah, on the count of three. One, two… Flo Jo!” 
• Gosford Park – When the dance was being sabotaged, Jess shared that all the doors should be locked to keep everyone in like it was Gosford Park.

Additional Pop Culture References such as:

• Good Will Hunting –  When making jokes about Buster’s age, Schmidt said Buster would have been 7 when Good Will Hunting came out. Good Will Hunting is a 1997 American psychological drama film directed by Gus Van Sant, and written by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. The film received nominations in nine categories at the Academy Awards and won in two: Best Supporting Actor for Robin Williams and Best Original Screenplay for Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. The film was met with highly positive reviews and in 2014, it was ranked at number 53 in The Hollywood Reporter’s “100 Favorite Films” list.
• “Call Me Maybe” – Carly Rae Jepsen – This song played when Winston was having trouble turning down the “heat” on the dance floor. “Call Me Maybe” is a song recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Carly Rae Jepsen for her EP Curiosity and later appeared on her second studio album and first international album Kiss. “Call Me Maybe” was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2012 – Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance. The song was the best-selling single worldwide, selling over 12 million copies in that year alone.
• Ray Charles – Coach said the three guys were the worst chaperones, noting that Ray Charles’ ghost would be better. Ray Charles Robinson Sr. was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and alto saxophonist who is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history. Charles was blinded during childhood, possibly due to glaucoma and when Coach is saying Ray Charles’ ghost would be a better chaperone, even though he was blind.
• 8 Mile – When having a rap battle at the end of the episode, Schmidt says it’s like 8 Mile. 8 Mile is a 2002 American musical drama film that contains autobiographical elements from Eminem’s life. The story follows white rapper Jimmy Smith Jr. aka B-Rabbit and his attempt to launch a career in hip hop, a music genre dominated by African-Americans. The title is derived from 8 Mile Road, the highway between the predominantly African-American city of Detroit and the largely white suburban communities to the north that Eminem originally lived in. 

On this episode’s Most Likely To we discuss who is more likely to challenge a little kid to a foot race, sabotage an event, accidentally hurt their friend while trying to bond or hug, and race in a shopping cart. We also cover what Schmidt thinks “makes a man” in our “Schmidtism”. For “Not in the 2020s” we mention Nick calling Cece a “stupid girl” and the kid calling Schmidt a “flamer”. In our “Yes in the 2020s” we highlight Jess and Cece’s conversation with Wendy where they talk to her but don’t punish her. We also give a brief look into Mary-Charles Jones (Wendy) and Mason Cook (Tommy), the guest stars of this episode.

Also in this episode were the following guest stars who we do not discuss in the podcast: Angela Kinsey (Rose – Previously Discussed in S3E2), Brian Posehn (Biology Teacher – Previously Discussed in S3E11), Samuel Gilbert (Young Schmidt – Previously Discussed in S3E6), Clint Culp (Gary the Janitor), Isaac White (Felipe), Josie Totah (Todd), Cody Benjamin Lee (Oscar), Zoé Hendrix (Winston’s Girl), Seaonna Chanadet (Winston’s Girl), and Jacqueline Jones (Student).

In this episode we also discuss some of the callbacks from earlier seasons like how Jess couldn’t say penis in Season 1 and how the men chant “Men!” like they did in this season’s Thanksgiving episode. Neither of us found the bear this episode.

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

• City of big shoulders and dreams – When Nick is trying to entertain the kids he asks “who is from Chicago, the city of big shoulders and dreams.” The reference is from a 1916 poem by Carl Sandburg where he mentions the hard-working tradesmen and physical laborers who made the city the industrial center of the region.
• Munchausen syndrome – In this episode, one of the teachers mentions that she has never volunteered to chaperone a school dance because of her Munchausen syndrome. Munchausen’s syndrome is a rare condition where a person fabricates or induces symptoms of illness in themselves. This is different from hypochondria as people with Munchausen syndrome actually manipulate results rather than just believe they are ill.

This episode got a 7/10 rating from both Kritika and Kelly; Kritika’s favorite character was Coach and Kelly’s favorite was Cece.

Thanks for listening and stay tuned for Episode 23!

Music: “Hotshot” by scottholmesmusic.com