February 10, 2006 will forever be known as a sad day in television history. You see, this was the day that the last four episodes of Arrested Development aired. There has never been a show quite like Arrested Development, and I think it’s safe to say that there will never be another one. This brilliant show was created by Mitchell Hurwitz and stars Ron Howard (Narrator), Jason Bateman (Michael), Will Arnett (Gob), Portia De Rossi (Lindsay), Tony Hale (Buster), David Cross (Tobias), Jeffrey Tambor (George Sr.and Oscar), Jessica Walter (Lucille), Michael Cera (George Michael), and Alia Shawkat (Maeby). I have never loved a show as much I love Arrested Development, and I would recommend this wonderfully hilarious show to anyone who has never been lucky enough to see it. Here is a guide to the show’s final season; it was only thirteen episodes, but it deserved many, many more.
“The Cabin Show”: Lucille, bothered by Buster’s snoring, wants him to live with Michael. Lucille reveals that she has just stopped taking her postpartum medication, which she should’ve stopped taking a long time ago since her youngest child is now thirty-two years old. Michael promises to take George Michael camping, but when he discovers that Oscar, not George Sr., is in prison, Michael must go to Reno to track down his father. Gob bonds with Steve Holt (Justin Grant Wade)…until he realizes that he is Steve’s biological father. Memorable quote: “Not gonna lick your eye…”-Michael
“For British Eyes Only”: Michael arranges for George Sr. to be placed under house arrest. Feeling ignored by his family, Buster decides to get a pet turtle to keep him company. George Sr. claims that he was set up by the Brits, and when Michael goes to investigate, he meets Rita (Charlize Theron), a beautiful British woman, and asks her out. Tobias gets hair plugs, so he can pose as Gob’s look-alike in an illusion.
Memorable quote: “That’s an awful lot of money for the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard.”-Michael
Forget Me Now”: The Bluths replace Barry Zuckerkorn (Henry Winkler) with Bob Loblaw (Scott Baio), who Lindsay tries to date. Maeby tells George Michael that she’s getting serious with Steve Holt, but isn’t quite telling the truth. Rita wants to meet Michael’s family, so he tells her that he doesn’t have one. Tobias tries to teach Buster to stand up to Lucille. Buster accepts a medal from army, not realizing that by accepting it, he’s agreeing to reenlist.
Memorable quote: “Hey, that’s the name of the show!”-Narrator
“Notapussy”: Bob Loblaw’s hires Lindsay as a nanny. Ann (Mae Whitman), Hope Loblaw (Nathalia Ramos), and Maeby (disguised as Surely Wolfbeak) enter an “Inner Beauty Pageant;” Gob is one of the judges. Gob feels betrayed when Michael and Steve Holt train for a triathlon. Michael tries to prove his masculinity to Rita.
Memorable quote: “I heard the jury’s still out on science.”-Gob
“Mr. F”: Rita convinces Michael to buy George Michael a train set. Tobias mistakes a C.I.A. agent at his gym for an agent from the Creative Artists Agency. When the family learns that their Japanese investors are coming to look at the buildings that should’ve been started already, Gob tries to trick them by building a tiny replica of the buildings. George Sr. orders a jet pack. Michael suspects that Rita might be a mole.
Memorable quote: “They destroyed our town, but they can’t take away our memories.”-Gob
“The Ocean Walker”: Michael tells the family that he’s going to marry Rita. Tobias’ hair transplants take a toll on his health. Michael forbids Gob from doing magic at his wedding because of a disaster at Michael’s first wedding. Rita’s uncle, Trevor (Dave Thomas), “locks” her in their home to prevent her from going to a hotel with Michael. George Michael finds out a secret about Rita and has to tell Michael about it.
Memorable quote: “In some states, it’s legal to marry your own cousin. California’s blocked it twice, but that’s only because they tacked it onto an estate law thing that wasn’t gonna pass. We had the signatures…”-George Michael
“Prison Break-In”: George Sr. makes papier-mâché models of his head. The Bluths hold a fundraiser at the prison for Graft Versus Host disease, which is slowly killing Tobias. Buster’s turtle dies after eating some of Oscar’s marijuana. Michael thinks that Warden Gentles (James Lipton) is trying to take advantage of Lucille. Maeby asks George Michael to read Warden Gentles’ screenplay, so she won’t have to. Michael asks Gob to help him break into the prison, so they can prevent Lucille from sleeping with the warden.
Memorable quote: “It’s a jet pack, Michael. What could possibly go wrong?”-Gob
“Making a Stand”: Lindsay hires a new lawyer, so she can date Bob Loblaw, but is shocked when she learns that Loblaw is now representing Tobias in their divorce. Lucille gets a facelift. Michael arranges for Gob to start a frozen banana stand and have Steve Holt work at it; however, Michael is angry when Gob opens his stand right across from the original banana stand. Michael gets tired of George Sr. trying to pit Gob and him against each other, so the two decide to teach their father a lesson, with the help of J. Walter Weatherman (Steve Ryan).
Memorable quote: “You don’t want a hungry dove down your pants. That’s how Tony Wonder lost a nut.”-Gob
“S.O.B.s”: In order to raise money to hire a new lawyer after Lindsay and Tobias scare Bob Loblaw away, Michael tells the family they all need to help out and prepare for an upcoming fundraiser. Michael puts Lindsay in charge of the household, with disastrous results (“hot ham water”), and Gob accidentally becomes a waiter. Michael tries to get Andy Richter to appear at the Bluth fundraiser. Maeby gets kicked out of Openings, an expensive private school, and George Michael begins to attend school there; Michael thinks that George Michael’s teacher, Donny Richter (one of Andy’s four identical brothers) is trying to turn George Michael against him. Tobias recruits Maeby to help him send gift bags to casting directors.
Memorable quote: “Sister’s my new mother, Mother. And is it just me, or is she looking hotter too?”-Buster
“Fakin’ It”: Michael gets the witness list for George Sr.’s trial and wonders who “N. Bluth” could be. Jan Eagleman from Justice TV conducts a mock trial for the Bluths on the set of Judge Reinhold, a court show presided over by actor Judge Reinhold. Buster fakes a coma to get out of testifying in his father’s trial. Lindsay tries to date a man with a comatose mother. George Michael and Maeby participate in a mock wedding that turns out to be not quite as “mock” as they had believed. Wayne Jarvis (John Michael Higgins) attempts to get Michael to turn on George Sr.
Memorable quote: “Why do there have to be puppets like Frank?”-Wayne Jarvis
“Family Ties”: Michael discovers a childhood picture of himself with someone named Nellie and suspects that she is “N. Bluth” and may be a child George Sr. and Lucille gave up for adoption. Lindsay and Tobias are attracted to the same manly woman/womanly man (Olanrewaju Idewu). Michael meets the woman he thinks is Nellie (Justine Bateman), but she is not who he thinks she is. Franklin the puppet works as a pimp.
Memorable quote: “I bought you a wedding ring…tone.”-George Michael
Exit Strategy”: George Michael plans a surprise birthday party for Maeby. Gob goes to Iraq to do magic. The prosecution tries to get Tobias to turn against the family. Adelaide (Bronwyn Masters), a nurse, takes a liking to Buster, but only when he’s “comatose.” Lucille and Lindsay tell Michael they’re going to rehab, but go to a spa instead. Buster accompanies Michael on his trip to get Gob out of an Iraqi prison in an attempt to prove to Adelaide that he is not a coward.
Memorable quote: “Cool your Japanese jets.”-Wayne Jarvis
“Development Arrested”: George Michael and Maeby try to avoid each other after an inappropriate encounter. Stan Sitwell (Ed Begley Jr.) reveals some information that makes Lindsay very happy, along with some news that makes her not so happy. Mort Meyers (Jeff Garlin), who works with Maeby at Tantamount Studios and now knows Maeby’s real age, wants Maeby to get the family to sign release forms, so the studio can make a TV show about her. The identity of Gob’s religious girlfriend is revealed. The Bluths throw a party to name Michael the new CEO of the company and are confronted by a familiar face.
Memorable quote: “I don’t see it as a series…maybe a movie.”-Ron Howard
