Recap / Freelancers S1 E1 "Video Production Company"

Video Production Company (VPC) infiltrates Tesla and unsuccessfully tries to pitch their services. Joan from Krispy Kreme approaches Zona about returning to the donut franchise to twirl signs, but Zona turns it down to pursue her dream of making videos with her friends. The VPC crew film an office safety demonstration video for Office Solutions, and accidentally injure the main star of the commercial Mr. Frank Butts. Since they don't have insurance, they have to dig up $4,000 to cover for medical costs.

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Tropes in this episode include:

• Accidental Bargaining Skills: Joan approaches Zona and Devin (who are Dumpster Diving for anything they can sell) with a $50,000 per year gig working for Krispy Kreme. Zona replies "What?" and Joan keeps raising the deal by $10,000. Devin encourages her to "keep saying what."
• Air Quotes: Mr. Butts uses these when he says that Owen is the "director", which Owen is not happy about.
• The Bore: Frank Butts
• Conspicuous Consumption: Joan eats a donut filled with cash.
• Department of Redundancy Department
  • Zona in VPC's promotional video:
    Zona: If you're watching this, then you must need a video for your business company...
  • Ryan, later in the same episode:
    Ryan: How're we gonna find $4,000 in six hours? We're broke poor.
    Zona: You don't have to say both. They mean the same thing.
• Dumpster Dive: Zona and Devin search a dumpster for stuff they can sell.
• Kitschy Local Commercial: Video Production Company's has a low-budget pitch video with a futuristic theme.
• Rousing Speech: Played with in Ryan's "pep talk". Ryan says he still has hope, but admits that he never actually has hope because things are bad, but it's okay because we all die one day.
  Zona: Was that a pep talk?
• Scare Quotes:
• Shout-Out:
  • Zona holds picture of Steven Spielberg in VPC's pitch video when she mentions "a video made by some old so-and-so".
  • Zona says Devin looks like fat Scott Calvin from The Santa Clause, which De
• Stuff Blowing Up: The pitch video ends with an explosion.
• Unfortunate Names: Frank Butts insists on being called Mr. Butts, and gets mad at anybody for laughing at his name.
• Voice of the Legion: Zona, briefly, while suffering the repercussions of donating plasma eight times in one day.