I assumed Cam fixed it. He was working on it. “What’s the plan, MacGayver?”
Around here there are only graduations for kindergarten, high school, and college, so the whole ep just started on a strange note for me with the whole “Alex is valedictorian” thing and I just couldn’t quite get into it.
Still some funny moments and jokes, but also a lot of plot holes. No one goes into the house to push 9? The gate can’t be opened manually in an emergency? They didn’t pass Claire and Phil on the way to the school once Luke “opened” the gate? I should repeat to myself it’s just a show?
When Jay got in the first time nobody had ever pressed 9. He said it just took 10 minutes before the gate finally unstuck itself and opened.
I assumed that just happened again: eventually the gate figured it out on its own.
But yeah, they must have a pedestrian way off the property other than climbing fences.
The very end, when Hailey “comes back” and Claire and Phil latch onto her to her total bemusement was the best part of the episode to me. I chuckled a few times during the rest of the episode but her saying “I’m not hungry! I’m not hungry!” while trying to extricate herself from the group hug was the only laugh out loud moment to me.
Except that the actress who plays her has been getting progressively skinnier and it kind of seemed freaky to me. A few episodes ago, she was wearing tight jeans and her legs looked liked toothpicks.
I did like Jay’s statement that the Botox was the biggest waste of money since the balance bracelet, and then they cut to him challenging Claire to push down his arm, then Phil comes flying through the door and knocks him over.
I also did think Phil’s early parts about wanting to go to Vegas with his cheerleading friends was funny. I can’t remember how he phrased it, but the part about being mocked in rhythmic chants or something was funny to me.
Meh. Pretty weak episode. The only funny line was “Muchas gracias, muchachos.” and the hapless look on the man’s face as he said, “You’re very welcome.”
I attended a k-8 parochial school and we had a ceremony, but no graduation gowns or valedictorians. It would be very odd for a public school system to do so because they obviously don’t end at grade 8.
am i the only one who automatically assumed the kids are going to private school? after all, they’re upper middle class in the SoCal PLUS they’re going to the same school that grandpa moneybags is sending his stepson.
i like the show, but sometimes it gets a little unrelatable when the minor flashes of wealth flashes through and i can’t help but think “rich people problems…”
As for the gate issue … we have a similar gate where I work (which also never works right and is currently locked open). Pressing 9 to open the gate only works if you’re calling from the phone at the keypad … it doesn’t work if you just call a number and press 9. So someone would have had to have been outside the gate at the keypad to call in, so someone could press 9.
Of course, once Phil boosted Claire over the gate, she could have done that. If anyone was thinking clearly. 
Not to be too nitpicky, but I think the real joke was Cam’s line “It’s clear there’s some kind of Pritchett evil gene …” Which makes Jay’s line about running into it a howler because Cam just, you know, ran into a clear glass door.
Okay, I’ve ruined that joke by overexplaining. I’ll just leave now.
As weak as it may seem, they didn’t have time to walk there. They needed the cars. That meant that they needed to get the gate open. The cab situation was discussed as being impractical because a cab would have taken a while to get there, and by then they would have missed the speech.
So, there was some logic, even if it was weak.
-Joe
Actually, he said “You’re quite welcome.”, just a step away from inquiring about an upscale mustard.
I agree this one was pretty weak, but that still leaves it light years ahead of the competition.
My one laugh out loud moment; at the ceremony when Jay turned to Cam and said “You look like an iceberg.”
But regardless of what they’d do once on the other side of the gate it means it is silly that they’d have to throw someone over the gate.
Oddly, there’s a similar issue at beginning of the movie Bridesmaids. So maybe a lot of rich people do gate their property with no way in or out other than through the large car gate.
“It doesn’t work if you BOTH press 9…”
They didn’t have time to walk to the gate intercom? Or to the school?
Like when Gloria rides the tandem bike and her knees hit her boobs…
I think the school. I think Phil even suggested running to the school, but Claire pointed out that it was five miles away.
“Champagne problems, eh?”
The highlight in our household was “No one wants to think at Graduation, Graduation is a celebration of the end of thinking.” My daughter, who is salutatorian of her High School, is thinking of incorporating that into her speech next week.
“It’s happening people. Our hubris will be our undoing.”
That was the absolute highlight for me. Phil would be one of the funniest people I know.
“Do you think he got his butt done too? It looks fantastic.”
Actually no, and thank you. I didn’t get the joke until you added the word clear.