The Big House: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
Charles RB (talk | contribs) mNo edit summary |
||
| Line 7: | Line 7: | ||
|directedby=[[Karen Disher]] |
|directedby=[[Karen Disher]] |
||
}} |
}} |
||
'''“The Big House”''' was the tenth episode of the first season of <i>Daria</i>. |
'''“The Big House”''' was the tenth episode of the first season of <i>Daria</i>. It first aired on MTV on June 30, 1997. |
||
"The Big House" was written by [[Sam Johnson]] and [[Chris Marcil]]. |
|||
==Plot== |
|||
When Daria and Quinn come home late, Helen comes up with a set of ground rules, which includes a strict curfew. Incensed by what she sees as a cruel restriction of her social life, Quinn schemes to break the "no dating on a school night" rule by convincing Helen and Jake that she'll be attending a study group. Her story falls apart the next morning, however, but rather than just mete out a punishment, Helen takes a cue from her profession and holds Family Court to decide the girls' punishments. Despite her claims of wanting to hold a fair hearing, Helen and Jake essentially railroad the girls into month-long groundings. As payback for what she considers an unjust punishment, Daria takes her revenge by beating Helen and Jake at board games and driving them crazy with loud and obnoxious harmonica playing. Quinn, however, is really in hell, as she's prevented from talking on the phone or essentially doing anything. Finally, Daria is unable to stand it, and plans to "bust out" so she and Jane can go to the high school's "DJs Versus Faculty" roller hocky game (most of the students have bets on how soon Mr. DeMartino -- who plans to get his revenge on one of the DJs for humiliating him in a previous game -- will collapse from a heart attack). Her elaborate plan to sneak out is rendered moot by the fact that both Helen and Jake have to work late, so she simply walks out the front door. The game itself is pretty much a bust until "Rock & Roll" Randy takes out Mr. DeMartino with a cheap shot to the knee, which earns him a butt-kicking by the man-hating Ms. Barch. When Daria comes home, she's confronted by a monumentally angry Helen, but before she can be punished further, she works out a plea bargain with Helen by reminding her of board games and harmonica playing. Upon learning that Daria got off on "parole," Quinn convinces Helen and Jake to do the same with her, essentially making the whole Family Court experiment a failure. |
|||
==Plot Summary== |
|||
Both [[Daria Morgendorffer|Daria]] and [[Quinn Morgendorffer|Quinn]] are caught sneaking into their house late at night, so [[Helen Morgendorffer|Helen]] and [[Jake Morgendorffer|Jake]] introduce a set of rules regarding late nights, dates and curfew. Quinn, while apparently accepting the rules, goes on a date that same night (in direct violation of the rules), calling it as a late-night study session, but is caught lying the next morning. Instead of just punishing for the offense, Helen and Jake set up an elaborate procedure called Family Court, with Jake presiding and Helen prosecuting. After some theatrical performances by both parents, Quinn and Daria just plead guilty and are grounded for a month (even though Daria hadn't broken any rules). |
|||
At [[Lawndale High]], the main topic of discussion is a hockey game between classic rock DJ's and the teachers. When she inquires why, Daria is told that [[Anthony DeMartino|Mr. DeMartino]] had had a heart attack right during last year's game, so every student is hoping to see it happen again, to the point that there is even a betting pool on when it will happen. Daria, disgustedly, states she can't go because she is grounded, to the great amusement of her fellow students. |
|||
The grounding is trying for all Morgendorffers: Quinn ties up the phone for hours, to the annoyance of her parents. Daria starts to read compulsively in the living room, teasing a bored Quinn to the point where she even asks advice for a book. Daria beats Helen and Jake in Monopoly and Scrabble, spelling "Incarcerate" during the latter. She also plays the harmonica at night, poetically justifying it when her father asks her to stop. |
|||
Daria, however, is so fed up with the situation that she decides to skip her grounding to go to the hockey game. She tells Jane and Jodie, who had visited to make sure she was all right (as a rumor had that she was being experimented on). Daria creates a careful plan of escape, involving a recording of her harmonica, leaving through the window and avoiding the neighborhood watch. However, when both parents leave phone messages stating they have to work late she just leaves the house by the front door. |
|||
The hockey game is going well when Daria arrives to watch, until [[Randy|Rock 'n' Roll Randy]] hits Mr. DeMartino in the leg, leaving him lying. [[Andrea]] celebrates (apparently having that spot in the pool), only to curse as Mr. DeMartino gets back up. Eventually a brawl erupts between both teams on the court, including [[Janet Barch|Ms. Barch]] beating up on Randy. |
|||
However, this fun outing ends for Daria when she comes home, finding Helen and Jake had arrived earlier and found Daria gone. There is another Family Court session the next day, but this time Daria is ready, negotiating a 'plea bargain' with her mother (in which she would manage her own times), using the cost of further grounding (including Monopoly, Scrabble and late-night harmonica playing) as leverage. Reluctantly, Helen and Jake accept. |
|||
So everything is back to normal, except that [[Kevin Thompson|Kevin]] still believes Daria had been subjected to a strange experience while "grounded". Only Daria's witty putdown makes him realise how foolish the idea is, to the bemusement of Jane and Daria. |
|||
==Replacement music== |
|||
On ''[[Daria: The Complete Animated Series]]'', replacement tracks by [[Extreme Music]] were used, including: |
|||
* U Look Fly Today (Kevin and Brittany eating pizza) |
|||
==Trivia== |
|||
During the scrabble game, ''someone'' spelt the word "brat". Were Daria's tactics getting to one of her parents? |
|||
"[[The Daria Diaries]]" reveals that the family court was used again - this time on Jake, over carpet wear in the living room. Helen used "pacing photos" as evidence, and Daria was bringing Jane to practice being a courtroom sketch artist. |
|||
===Rules=== |
|||
The rules presented by Helen and Jake are displayed in a ten-commandment-style card boards. As far as it could be read, some of the rules are: |
|||
Rule I: "Persistence questioning on parental judgment is punishable. Occasional questioning of parental judgment indicates healthy skepticism and shall be permitted at the pleasure of mother and father (herein after referred to as the "ruling council")" |
|||
Rule II: "The ruling council shall determine when occasional questioning becomes persistent questioning and shall not be required to provide advance notice of said determination." |
|||
Rule 2/9(*): "No pimple pads in the toilet" |
|||
Rule 3. "Wear your own damn sleepers when you walk (...)" |
|||
Rule 18. "The ruling council does not allow dates on school nights." |
|||
Rule 19. "Interdependent behavior shall be considered preferable to Independent behavior." |
|||
Rule 20. "Curfew shall be considered to be 10 p.m. on school nights." |
|||
Rule 21. "Telephone usage shall occur on an "as need (only?)" basis." |
|||
Rules 22 to 26 are not explicitly stated, but have to do with the procedure to sign in when coming from a late night. |
|||
(*) appears with different numbers in different scenes |
|||
===Episode Title=== |
|||
The 'Big House' is a nickname given to prison, which is reflected in the aspects of grounding experienced by the two Morgendorffer sisters during the episode. |
|||
===Daria's Reading Material=== |
|||
While grounded, Daria is shown reading Herman Melville's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick''] in the living room. This may be commentary on Helen's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moby-Dick#Ahab Ahab-like mania] for legal procedure. |
|||
Later, when Quinn breaks down and asks her sister for a book, Daria is reading Fyodor Dostoyevsky's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Brothers_Karamazov ''The Brothers Karamazov'']. |
|||
Daria offers Quinn her copy of Homer's ''Iliad'': |
|||
<blockquote style="font-family: Courier, sans;"> |
|||
<p> |
|||
Daria: Try this. I think you'll get into it. |
|||
</p> |
|||
<p> |
|||
Quinn: Ha, ha, very funny. Now give me something that I can read. |
|||
</p> |
|||
<p> |
|||
Daria: No, I think you'll like it. It's about this girl who's so popular that everybody fights over her. |
|||
</p> |
|||
<p> |
|||
Quinn: Any horses in it? |
|||
</p> |
|||
<p> |
|||
Daria: As a matter of a fact, there's a great big one. |
|||
</p> |
|||
<p> |
|||
Quinn: This is a trick, isn't it. |
|||
</p> |
|||
<p> |
|||
Daria: Yes. |
|||
</p> |
|||
</blockquote> |
|||
It should be noted that ''The Iliad'' does not include the story about the Trojan Horse; this story appears in ''The Aeneid''. Since Daria's supposed to have read ''The Iliad'', she's probably having fun at Quinn's expense (and that the writers forgot which play it was). |
|||
===Where was Daria?=== |
|||
[[Image:BigHouse_carscomparison.jpg|right|thumb|300px|The car in [[Malled]] and the car in The Big House.]] |
|||
The episode begins with Daria being dropped off late in the evening from a car. Where she was and who she was with is never fully explained,. This is one of the comparatively few times we see Daria doing "normal" teenage things like coming home late. The event isn't specifically part of the episode's storyline, but rather just a part of the background. |
|||
The car that drops her off is the exact same car driven by "Guy" in [[Malled]], who gave Daria a ride back in that episode (as part of [[Fashion Club]] detail). Is it him? If so, what were they both doing in the same place together? |
|||
When asked about it in a [http://www.the-wildone.com/dvdaria/glennfollowup4.html January 2006 interview on DVDaria], Glenn Eichler said he believed that he'd intended for "The Big House" to pick up where "[[The New Kid]]" left off, with Daria going on another date with either [[Ted DeWitt-Clinton]] or (to our amazement) [[Robert]]. As "The New Kid" was a season 2 episode and wouldn't have been written when "The Big House" was (and Eichler didn't remember the name of the former episode), he was likely getting things mixed up. |
|||
==“The Big House” and Fanfic== |
|||
Events from this episode were included in "[[Morgendorffer Prison Blues]]," by [[Richard Lobinske]]. An [[Iron Chef]] on PPMB concerning the mysterious car that dropped Daria at her home at the episode's start spawned several fanfics, such as [[TAG]]'s "[[Special Delivery]]" and "[[True Lies]]." |
|||
==External Links== |
==External Links== |
||
* [https://sites.google.com/site/dariatranscripts/110-the-big-house Episode Transcript] at Daria Transcripts |
|||
* [https://sites.google.com/site/dariatranscripts/110-the-big-house Episode Transcript] |
|||
{{succession box | title="The Big House," Season 1, Episode 10 | before=[[Too Cute]] (109) | after=[[Road Worrier]] | year=(110)}} |
|||
* [http://dariablog2.blogspot.com/2008/06/big-house-turns-eleven.html "'The Big House' Turns Eleven,"] on the [[Daria Fandom Blog II]] |
|||
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20110519134615/http://outpost-daria.com/fanfic/jl06_morgendorffer_prison_blues.html "Morgendorffer Prison Blues,"] by [[Richard Lobinske]] |
|||
* [http://www.theangstguy.com/fanfics/specialdelivery.htm "Special Delivery,"] by [[TAG]] |
|||
* [http://www.theangstguy.com/fanfics/truelies.htm "True Lies,"] by [[TAG]] |
|||
{{succession box | title=[[List of Daria episodes|Daria Episodes]]<br/>"The Big House," Season 1, Episode 10 | before=[[Too Cute]] (109) | after=[[Road Worrier]] | year=(110)}} |
|||
[[Category:Episodes|Big House, The]] |
[[Category:Episodes|Big House, The]] |
||
Revision as of 18:13, 22 February 2018
| The Big House | |
| |
| Production Number | 110 |
| Original Airdate | June 30, 1997 |
| Special Guest Voices | |
| Written By | Sam Johnson Chris Marcil |
| Directed By | Karen Disher |
“The Big House” was the tenth episode of the first season of Daria. It first aired on MTV on June 30, 1997.
"The Big House" was written by Sam Johnson and Chris Marcil.
Plot Summary
Both Daria and Quinn are caught sneaking into their house late at night, so Helen and Jake introduce a set of rules regarding late nights, dates and curfew. Quinn, while apparently accepting the rules, goes on a date that same night (in direct violation of the rules), calling it as a late-night study session, but is caught lying the next morning. Instead of just punishing for the offense, Helen and Jake set up an elaborate procedure called Family Court, with Jake presiding and Helen prosecuting. After some theatrical performances by both parents, Quinn and Daria just plead guilty and are grounded for a month (even though Daria hadn't broken any rules).
At Lawndale High, the main topic of discussion is a hockey game between classic rock DJ's and the teachers. When she inquires why, Daria is told that Mr. DeMartino had had a heart attack right during last year's game, so every student is hoping to see it happen again, to the point that there is even a betting pool on when it will happen. Daria, disgustedly, states she can't go because she is grounded, to the great amusement of her fellow students.
The grounding is trying for all Morgendorffers: Quinn ties up the phone for hours, to the annoyance of her parents. Daria starts to read compulsively in the living room, teasing a bored Quinn to the point where she even asks advice for a book. Daria beats Helen and Jake in Monopoly and Scrabble, spelling "Incarcerate" during the latter. She also plays the harmonica at night, poetically justifying it when her father asks her to stop.
Daria, however, is so fed up with the situation that she decides to skip her grounding to go to the hockey game. She tells Jane and Jodie, who had visited to make sure she was all right (as a rumor had that she was being experimented on). Daria creates a careful plan of escape, involving a recording of her harmonica, leaving through the window and avoiding the neighborhood watch. However, when both parents leave phone messages stating they have to work late she just leaves the house by the front door.
The hockey game is going well when Daria arrives to watch, until Rock 'n' Roll Randy hits Mr. DeMartino in the leg, leaving him lying. Andrea celebrates (apparently having that spot in the pool), only to curse as Mr. DeMartino gets back up. Eventually a brawl erupts between both teams on the court, including Ms. Barch beating up on Randy.
However, this fun outing ends for Daria when she comes home, finding Helen and Jake had arrived earlier and found Daria gone. There is another Family Court session the next day, but this time Daria is ready, negotiating a 'plea bargain' with her mother (in which she would manage her own times), using the cost of further grounding (including Monopoly, Scrabble and late-night harmonica playing) as leverage. Reluctantly, Helen and Jake accept.
So everything is back to normal, except that Kevin still believes Daria had been subjected to a strange experience while "grounded". Only Daria's witty putdown makes him realise how foolish the idea is, to the bemusement of Jane and Daria.
Replacement music
On Daria: The Complete Animated Series, replacement tracks by Extreme Music were used, including:
- U Look Fly Today (Kevin and Brittany eating pizza)
Trivia
During the scrabble game, someone spelt the word "brat". Were Daria's tactics getting to one of her parents?
"The Daria Diaries" reveals that the family court was used again - this time on Jake, over carpet wear in the living room. Helen used "pacing photos" as evidence, and Daria was bringing Jane to practice being a courtroom sketch artist.
Rules
The rules presented by Helen and Jake are displayed in a ten-commandment-style card boards. As far as it could be read, some of the rules are:
Rule I: "Persistence questioning on parental judgment is punishable. Occasional questioning of parental judgment indicates healthy skepticism and shall be permitted at the pleasure of mother and father (herein after referred to as the "ruling council")"
Rule II: "The ruling council shall determine when occasional questioning becomes persistent questioning and shall not be required to provide advance notice of said determination."
Rule 2/9(*): "No pimple pads in the toilet"
Rule 3. "Wear your own damn sleepers when you walk (...)"
Rule 18. "The ruling council does not allow dates on school nights."
Rule 19. "Interdependent behavior shall be considered preferable to Independent behavior."
Rule 20. "Curfew shall be considered to be 10 p.m. on school nights."
Rule 21. "Telephone usage shall occur on an "as need (only?)" basis."
Rules 22 to 26 are not explicitly stated, but have to do with the procedure to sign in when coming from a late night.
(*) appears with different numbers in different scenes
Episode Title
The 'Big House' is a nickname given to prison, which is reflected in the aspects of grounding experienced by the two Morgendorffer sisters during the episode.
Daria's Reading Material
While grounded, Daria is shown reading Herman Melville's Moby-Dick in the living room. This may be commentary on Helen's Ahab-like mania for legal procedure.
Later, when Quinn breaks down and asks her sister for a book, Daria is reading Fyodor Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov.
Daria offers Quinn her copy of Homer's Iliad:
Daria: Try this. I think you'll get into it.
Quinn: Ha, ha, very funny. Now give me something that I can read.
Daria: No, I think you'll like it. It's about this girl who's so popular that everybody fights over her.
Quinn: Any horses in it?
Daria: As a matter of a fact, there's a great big one.
Quinn: This is a trick, isn't it.
Daria: Yes.
It should be noted that The Iliad does not include the story about the Trojan Horse; this story appears in The Aeneid. Since Daria's supposed to have read The Iliad, she's probably having fun at Quinn's expense (and that the writers forgot which play it was).
Where was Daria?
The episode begins with Daria being dropped off late in the evening from a car. Where she was and who she was with is never fully explained,. This is one of the comparatively few times we see Daria doing "normal" teenage things like coming home late. The event isn't specifically part of the episode's storyline, but rather just a part of the background.
The car that drops her off is the exact same car driven by "Guy" in Malled, who gave Daria a ride back in that episode (as part of Fashion Club detail). Is it him? If so, what were they both doing in the same place together?
When asked about it in a January 2006 interview on DVDaria, Glenn Eichler said he believed that he'd intended for "The Big House" to pick up where "The New Kid" left off, with Daria going on another date with either Ted DeWitt-Clinton or (to our amazement) Robert. As "The New Kid" was a season 2 episode and wouldn't have been written when "The Big House" was (and Eichler didn't remember the name of the former episode), he was likely getting things mixed up.
“The Big House” and Fanfic
Events from this episode were included in "Morgendorffer Prison Blues," by Richard Lobinske. An Iron Chef on PPMB concerning the mysterious car that dropped Daria at her home at the episode's start spawned several fanfics, such as TAG's "Special Delivery" and "True Lies."
External Links
- Episode Transcript
- "'The Big House' Turns Eleven," on the Daria Fandom Blog II
- "Morgendorffer Prison Blues," by Richard Lobinske
- "Special Delivery," by TAG
- "True Lies," by TAG
| Preceded by Too Cute (109) |
Daria Episodes "The Big House," Season 1, Episode 10 (110) |
Succeeded by Road Worrier |
|---|