Arrested Development: Season 1, Episode 2 "Top Banana"

Arrested Development: Season 1, Episode 2 "Top Banana"

November 09, 2003
When new sitcoms come on air, it usually takes several episodes to get going. Arrested Development does not suffer this same problem as witnessed in this episode, “Top Banana.” The episode continues the manic energy and the fast pace of the pilot. This episode is the first episode that features the famous title sequence and “on the next” segment which are scenes that tell us viewers what happens next to our characters after the main events happened in this episode. Keep in mind that there is a lot that happens in this episode, so make sure you pay attention so you don’t miss anything.



Michael believes that his father is running the business from inside prison and that is confirmed after his father’s associate T-Bone (Patrice O’Neal) burns down the company’s warehouse and Michael visits his father in prison for confirmation. Michael makes George-Michael a manager of the frozen banana stand and orders him to hire Maeby as an employee, which may not be the best decision ever. Lucille orders Michael to make GOB part of the company somehow and has him send mail, but GOB ends up bickering with a pet store over a dead bird.



Based on the plot description, that is a lot to take in. But everything happens so fast and before you know it, the episode is finished. That is why I think the writers and directors do a fantastic job with this series. In this episode, characters are developed a little more. We see the father-son relationship get expanded between Michael and George-Michael. Michael clearly loves his son, but he does not express his love easily. Just take this interaction:

Michael: “Welcome aboard, Mr. Manager.”
George-Michael: “Wow! I’m Mr. Manager!”
Michael: “Well, manager. We just say manager. And you can hire an employee if you need one.”
George-Michael: “Do you think I need one?”
Michael: “Don’t look at me, Mr. Manager.”
George-Michael: “Right. It’s up to me now. Mr. Manager.”
Michael: “Manager. We just say…”
George-Michael: “I know, but you just…”
Michael: “Doesn’t matter who.”



Obviously, Michael needs a parenting lesson. The pilot made Michael seem like the good guy of the family, but this episode paints a somewhat different view of Michael. Another relationship developed more here is between Michael and GOB. GOB is jealous that Michael is more involved than he is with the company. This relationship can draw parallels between Michael and Fredo in The Godfather Part 2 although the ending is just a tad different. Finally, we have to talk about the relationship between George-Michael and his cousin, Maeby. Maeby is the prototypical rebellious teenager trying to get at her parents, and she kissed George Michael at the retirement party. However, her parents ignore her. The problem is that now George Michael developed sexual feelings for his cousin and that will remain a consistently funny gag over the course of this series.



As for some of the other characters, Lindsay is hired as an actress and she boasts about how much money she will earn, but she may need to get a better alarm clock and Lindsay is convinced that Tobias is gay, although Tobias quotes, “how many times do I have to tell you I’m not gay.” Mmhmm, Tobias….Unfortunately, Buster is nowhere to be seen in this episode which was a shame because Buster was very entertaining in the pilot.



Overall, this is a fantastic episode and it might rank as one of the best second episodes of any sitcom. The jokes are wonderful, there is rapid character development, and the show successfully hints at what is to come in the later episodes. This series also works well because it uses masterful editing and cross-cutting techniques. Also, we get to see Michael and his son work together to burn down the banana stand. I can’t wait to see what is next.



My Grade: A

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