On Oct. 4, 2011, the third episode of New Girl premiered on Fox television. For anyone that isn't quite up-to-date on the new television buzz, New Girl is a quirky comedy starring Zooey Deschanel. Zooey plays an extremely awkward girl, named Jess, who came home one day to find her boyfriend with another woman. Jess then searched ads on Craigslist and moved into a four-bedroom apartment with three bachelors, who have personality flaws of their own. In this episode, Jess and the boys head to a wedding. One of the roommates, Nick, knows that his ex, Caroline, will be at the wedding so he makes a pact with Jess to pretend to date so Caroline will be jealous and want him back. Of course, no plan will go off unhitched with Jess around. Jess begins embarrassing herself before she even leaves the apartment by demonstrating her own version of the "chicken dance," and the night only gets better from there, or worse, depending on your sense of humor. The boys want to appear hip and suave to attract single ladies at the ceremony, but it's hard to appear cool when you're practically babysitting a 20-something woman who makes a beeline for the table full of bubbles while shouting how tight her Spanx are.
Once everyone is settled in at their selected tables, Jess decides it's time to put on her game face and start making Nick's ex jealous. Caroline eventually makes her way over to see Nick, so Jess slaps on the sex appeal. Jess pulls out the oldest trick in the book, insulting Caroline by purposefully not getting her name correct, calling her Carol, Coraline, and even Coralou. Halfway through the reception, Nick gets a bit embarrassed of Jess' actions and asks her to give him some time alone with Caroline, but not before she puts in her plastic Hillbilly teeth, because Jess is ready for some fun. The boys find Jess and scold her for not protecting Nick from Caroline, because they can already tell that he's falling back under her spell. When Jess tries to butt in and rip Nick away from Caroline, Caroline blurts out that she is seeing someone, so Jess shouldn't be mad about how much time she and Nick are spending together. In Nick's anger, he blames Jess for him and Caroline not working out, and even the other boys gang up on her, telling her she needs to quit acting so silly in public. Eventually, Winston, one of the roommates, comes to find Jess and tells her he loves bubbles too, and it's okay to be who you are, and not to care if you look silly and goofy.
After the pep talk, Jess' spirits are restored, and she goes to find Nick crying alone in a photo booth. Nick introduces Jess to his new home, the photo booth, and gives her to grand tour, while Jess slowly gives him advice and lets him know he has to move on, and that Caroline won't be the last girl that he loves. Nick and Jess share a moment of closeness that makes you wonder if they may date in the future. The episode ends with Jess and the boys incorporating Jess' version of the chicken dance into a slow song at the reception, letting you know that the boys have learned yet another lesson from Jess: that being "cool" isn't always the most important thing, but being fun and being yourself is. The moral of this episode may be somewhat cheesy, but the wit and humor are too great to turn you off. New Girl is so fresh and down to earth; these people could be your friends in real life, which will definitely resonate with viewers. Everyone make sure to turn in next Tuesday at 9 p.m. to Fox Network to see what new mess Jess will find herself in, and work her way out of while laughing all the way.
