There is a lot of emotional stuff going on right now.
William Winger: So, er, how about we make a couple of ground rules.
Jeff: Okay, that sounds good. No hugs.
William: Wouldn't want one. No apologies.
Jeff: Wouldn't accept one. No calling you dad.
William: No expectations.
No one in the study group is looking forward to Thanksgiving much. Jeff has finally gotten in contact with his father William (James Brolin) and has consequently agreed to spend that day with William and his half-brother, William Jr (Adam DeVine). What is an emotionally complex and difficult situation by itself is not made easier by Britta taking it upon herself to crash the get-together in order to provide psychological support for Jeff.
Meanwhile, the rest of the study group — otherwise facing a series of miserable, tense and lonely holidays either by themselves or with disapproving family — eagerly accept Shirley's invitation to spend the holiday with her extended family, only to discover that Shirley's in-laws are completely insufferable people. As they attempt to find a way of extracting themselves from the party without hurting Shirley's feelings, Abed decides that the best way to do this would be through an extended homage to The Shawshank Redemption.
Has a YMMV page
The Community episode "Cooperative Escapism in Familial Relations" provides examples of:
- All Psychology Is Freudian: Britta is apparently under the belief that Jeff wishes to sleep with his dad. Which is not even correct in Freudian theory. In actuality, the phallic stage of psychosexual development is believed to deal with a sexual fixation for the parent of the opposite sex (i.e. the Oedipus/Electra Complex).
- Britta may be referring to Genetic Sexual Attraction, an anecdotally reported phenomenon in relatives who have not met until later in life, after the Westermarck Effect (which causes one to not be attracted to those with whom one was raised) would normally have set in.
- Always Someone Better: Jeff's half-brother spends a large part of the day comparing himself to Jeff, and another large part beating himself up over said comparisons.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: This exchange, although it's more like "arson, jaywalking, and murder".Britta: Psychology tells us there are no accidents.
Jeff: Oh, yeah? What about car accidents, Tara Reid, and The Hindenburg? - Attention Whore: Played for Drama. Jeff reveals how in seventh grade he faked appendicitis so that someone will worry about him. He even faked a scar with scissors and
he still keeps the cards he received under his bed to prove that someone, at some point, cared about him. - Big Brother Instinct: Despite his half-brother being insecure and jealous, Jeff finds himself angry at his father on realizing that they've both been abused. He tells off William Winger for thinking that abandoning his children is a good idea. Willy begs to run away and live with Jeff, who instead says that they should both stand up to William Sr.
- Blackface: Pierce does is this as part of his entertainment.
- Book Safe: Abed passes Annie a stick of gum in one.
- Brick Joke: Shirley discovers Abed's tunnel behind the poster.
- Broken Ace: How Jeff describes himself.
- Call-Back:
- Britta has an Occupy Greendale sticker on her boombox.
- Shirley dons the "He Is Risen" apron she wore to Troy and Abed's housewarming party.
- Britta's attraction towards damaged guys comes back this episode.
- The Siete Layer Dip is branded from Señor Kevin's restaurant.
- Britta asks Jeff if their conversation about his father on Halloween caused him to make contact.
- Jeff reveals whom he is constantly texting: nobody.
- Shirley hums "Daybreak" in The Tag.
- The Dean is wearing Jeff's cowboy outfit from Season 1's Halloween episode and Season 2's paintball episode. Jeff notices.Dean: How-Dean, pilgrims!Jeff: (pointing at the outfit) Is that—Dean: John Wayne? Why, yes!
- And...Britta: When I say 'Thera-' you say '-pist' Thera!Troy and Abed: -Pist!Britta: Thera!Jeff turns off the boombox.
- Calling the Old Man Out: After years without closure, Jeff finally gets to do this to his father at the end of the episode.
- Captivity Harmonica: Pierce plays one.
- Cerebus Callback: Jeff's texting throughout the show? There's been no-one else on the other end the whole time. He's just pretenting there is so that he feels less alone and won't have to look real people in the eye, revealing to them just how broken he is.
- Chekhov's Gag: The Dean reading Jeff's email comes into play. Britta asks him for William Winger's address, so that she can help Jeff find closure.
- Cloudcuckoolander's Minder: Jeff explains to Troy that a Thanksgiving marshmallow casserole has yams underneath it so he's not missing out on much.
- Cordon Bleugh Chef: Troy's mistaken idea of a marshmallow casserole. Compare to his casserole in "Curriculum Unavailable".
- Crazy-Prepared: When Jeff reveals that he'll be spending Thanksgiving with his father, Britta takes this as a win and pulls out a boombox prepared to rap about her psychology skills.Jeff: You had that teed up?
- Drama Queen: Ironically played for drama; Willy Winger Jr. is a Large Ham about the idea that his father may be replacing him with Jeff. Then his father casually reveals he'd sleep better if Willy Jr. ran away and has been emotionally abusing him. Ouch.
- Dumbass Has a Point: Jeff is forced to acknowledge that Britta made the right call in ensuring he met his father. While it wasn't a happy reunion, it gave him the opportunity for closure and to realize that he was pining after a man who wasn't worth it.
- Everyone Has Standards: Jeff and Britta are horrified when his father insults Willy Jr. and saying he'd sleep better if his other son ran away that night. Britta goes to comfort Willy Jr. and help him "role-play" with his feelings.
- Fake Texting: Jeff admits he pretends to be texting, presumably to look busy, popular and aloof. Mentioned in his epic rant to his father.Jeff: So let me tell you how I turned out just so you're crystal clear on your impact. I am not well-adjusted. More often than not, I am barely keeping it together. I'm constantly texting, and there's no one at the other end. I'm just a grown man who can't even look his own friends in the eye for too long because I'm afraid that they'll see that I am broken.
- False Cause: Jeff is quick to accuse Britta of making a "post hoc, ergo propter hoc" error when she credits their Halloween conversation with inspiring him to contact his father. Of course, he is almost certainly lying.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus:
- "Thanks again for watching" is written on the whiteboard behind Annie and Shirley.
- The back of the Dean's Thanks-living potluck dinner shirt reads, "Add to the spread, not the dead!"
- Funny Background Event: Watch when Abed comes back from interacting with Shirley's family and Troy is lifting a one-pound weight. When Troy is pulled away Abed takes his place at the bench, but can't lift up the weight. So he sits with it between his knees.
- Glorified Sperm Donor: A twist. Jeff's dad puts himself on this pedestal and credits Jeff's success and self-reliance to himself for leaving. Jeff tells him to go to hell.
- Hard Truth Aesop: For the past few episodes, Jeff keeps saying he doesn't need his father, but finally looks him up. it turns out that getting closure with someone who hurt you doesn't mean having to forgive them; Jeff gets closure by telling William Winger all the things he's wanted to save for several years, including that he missed him and he was miserable. William Winger can go to hell, and Jeff is fine with that.
- Hidden Depths: Jeff has always mixed a need to seem cool and aloof with a desire for attention and applause. In this episode, he admits that both tendencies come from a desperation to have someone care about him, mixed with a fear of being rejected and abandoned again. To the extent that, in the seventh grade, he cut up his own stomach with scissors to fake an appendectomy just so people would worry about him, and still keeps the "get well" cards under his bed 20 years later.
- Informed Flaw: We are told that Shirley's in-laws are a bunch of opinionated, obnoxious jerks but all we are shown is her father-in-law farting when introduced to the study group, and some offscreen accusations of Batman and Robin being gay.
- Ironic Echo: Jeff feeds Britta's line about feeling a strong urge, and it being normal, back to her.
- Kick the Dog: When Willy Jr. threatens to run away, his father says that he'll sleep better at night if it happens. Willy Jr. runs upstairs in tears.
- Münchausen Syndrome: Played for Drama. As a kid, Jeff once lied that he had appendicitis to get attention from his classmates. When a girl was suspicious, Jeff cut himself with scissors to create a scar. He still keeps the get-well cards because it's the only time someone cared about him.
- My Friends... and Zoidberg: "Happy Thanksgiving, everyone, including you, Dean."
- No Periods, Period: Averted when Annie tries to fake hers as an excuse to leave. Unfortunately for her, Andre's sister is a gynecologist.
- Obnoxious In-Laws: Shirley's in-laws are this to her and her friends. She has a plastered smile on her face as they engage in their shenanigans while looking on the verge of breaking while guilting the study group about hiding in the garage.
- Offscreen Crash: Acts as a Offscreen Moment of Awesome for Pierce, since his physical comedy goes over well with Shirley's in-laws.
- Person as Verb: "Brittaing" is referenced when Jeff says to Britta, "You really you-ed this one up."
- Physical Scars, Psychological Scars: Jeff's dad abandoning his family really did a number on him. He cut himself with scissors to fake an appendectomy. And he still keeps the get-well cards.
- Playing Sick: Annie's and Pierce's escape attempts (menstrual cramps and breaking a hip, respectively). Both failed (One of Shirley's in-laws is a gynecologist who can examine Annie, and everyone just finds Pierce's stumbling funny).
- Prematurely Bald: Jeff is reassured by his father's full head of hair.
- Prison Episode
- Prisons Are Gymnasiums: Troy worries that jail will make him get into pushups.
- Racist Grandma: Pierce, of course. Black Friday versus "Jew Friday", "Let's carve that jive turkey!", and asking a woman if she is Tyler Perry in drag.
- Rage Breaking Point: Jeff is determined that his reunion with his father remain light and emotionless, until his father implies that abandoning him was actually a good thing. Jeff immediately tell him to go to hell. Then he leaves, then comes back to angrily explain how badly being abandoned messed him up.
- Rake Take: Pierce is looking to do one.
- Rebuilt Pedestal: Subverted. Jeff's interactions with his father seem to be heading this way until William says that maybe him abandoning Jeff has made Jeff into the man he is today. Then Jeff tells his father to go to Hell.
- Running Gag: Shirley's in-laws' ideas about Batman and Robin.
- Self-Harm: Jeff, as mentioned.
- Shout-Out:
- Pierce falling all over the place and it being funny is a reference to part of Chevy Chase's act on Saturday Night Live.
- John Wayne: "How-Dean, pilgrims!"
- Tyler Perry in drag.
- Twins (1988): William Jr. calls Jeff "Schwarzenegger" and himself "DeVito".
- The Shawshank Redemption, including Captivity Harmonica and Book Safe.
- Showtime at the Apollo
- Prison Break
- "Cats in the Cradle" (a song about a boy who turned out like his distant father).
- In The Stinger, Abed hopes they do Die Hard for Christmas.
- Take Our Word for It: Troy narrates Pierce's attempt at faking a broken hip.
- Springtime for Hitler: Pierce tries to fake a fall so they will have an excuse to leave. He ends up entertaining Andre's family instead, so he decides to play up the comedy act.
- Take That!:
- "...car accidents, Tara Reid, or the Hindenburg"
- Jock Jams
- Thanksgiving Episode
- Vanity License Plate: William Winger has a "WINGINIT" plate on his classic Mercedes.
- "With All Due Respect: which is none, go to hell." — Jeff to his father.
- Wrong Genre Savvy: Abed is so focused on making the experience fit the framework of a Prison Movie that he fails to realize that it's just a basic Thanksgiving Episode.
