The Pilot episode of One Tree Hill aired September 23rd, 2003 and was written by Mark Schwahn and directed by Bryan Gordon.
In a small North Carolina town, two estranged half-brothers carry on very different lives. Nathan Scott is Tree Hill High’s star player, whilst Lucas Scott, also a talented player, remains an outsider.
After most of the basketball team are suspended, Lucas is scouted for the team much to Nathan’s displeasure, who takes matters into his own hands when he challenges Lucas to one-on-one game, with Lucas walking away from the team if he loses - and in the middle of the feud stands Peyton Sawyer, Nathan's beautiful girlfriend.
Contains examples of the following tropes:
- And This Is for...: Just before taking the game winning shot, Lucas tells Nathan, "This is for my mom."
- The Cameo: Bryan Greenberg briefly appears as Jake Jagielski, as Principal Turner suspends half of the basketball for stealing the school bus.
- Celebrity Paradox: Haley makes a Dawson's Creek reference whilst talking to Lucas; Chad Michael Murray (Lucas) and Hilarie Burton (Peyton) both appeared on the show, Murray in a recurring capacity and Burton as herself.
- Creator Cameo: Series creator Mark Schwahn plays one of the Ravens sat on the bench. He’s also the person who says "1 2 3, Ravens!" after Whitey benches Nathan.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: Peyton noticeably softens towards Lucas over the course of their conversation as he prepares to tow her broken down car.
- Down to the Last Play: Lucas and Nathan’s one-on-one game comes down to the final shot. Somewhat subverted, in that Lucas has to score twice to tie things up at 14 points each before that.
- Drives Like Crazy:
- Nathan steals a school bus and nearly crashes into a train when he starts making out with one of the cheerleaders whilst driving.
- Peyton nearly hits Lucas with her car, after taking her eyes off the road to look for a CD.
- Everyone Can See It: As his friends speak about Peyton as she drives by, Lucas tries to downplay his attraction to her by claiming that "She's alright." to which the rest of his friends all scoff at.
- Everyone Has Standards: When Nathan elbows Lucas in the face during the one-on-one game, Tim is noticeably the only person still cheering for Nathan.
- Karma Houdini: Nathan and Tim escape any punishment for stealing the school bus. It’s implied that this is because of their parents influence.
- Like Brother and Sister: The dynamic between Lucas and Haley.
- Mythology Gag: After Haley is startled by a flock of pigeons, she claims that she was attacked by "a flock" of crows the previous week; Lucas proceeds to correct her that a group of crows is a murder, and proceeds to name a few other examples before finally being asked about a group of ravens, which Lucas described as "an unkindness" - the original working title for the series was "An Unkindness of Ravens."
- Parental Abandonment:
- Lucas tells Peyton about how he learnt about his connection to Nathan and Dan, and how he used to be made fun of for it.
- Karen pointedly calls Dan out about his neglect towards Lucas, telling him that he has no right to start sniffing around now he’s found out Lucas is good at basketball.
- Ship Tease: Lucas and Peyton are subject to this over the course of the episode, despite Peyton being in a relationship with Lucas’ estranged brother.
- Shout-Out:
- Haley makes a reference to Dawson's Creek.
- Karen gives Lucas a copy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare.
- Peyton wears a The Ramones t-shirt during her first conversation with Lucas.
- Lucas’ first words to Peyton are a quote from the song "Linoleum" by No FX.
- The Bet: When Nathan challenges Lucas to the one-on-one game, he adds the stipulation that if Lucas wins, he can join the team, but if he wins, Lucas doesn’t join the team. When Lucas accepts the challenge, he tells Nathan that he wants something else if he wins. The rest of the conversation isn’t shown, but Nathan tells Peyton that if Lucas wins, he gets Peyton; Lucas reveals to Peyton after the game that Nathan had to stay on the team if Lucas won.
- The Tease: Peyton has one significant moment in her first conversation with Lucas.Lucas: Have you ever had anything you were better at than anybody else?
[Beat as Peyton considers her answer.]
Peyton: Sex. [Beat. Lucas gives her a look before she smiles.] Joke. - Underdogs Never Lose: Lucas, who hasn’t played competitive basketball since he quit Junior leagues as a kid, ultimately beats Nathan, the star player of the school’s basketball team.
- What the Hell, Hero?: A mild example, with Skills calling Lucas out on his refusal to play for the Ravens and pointing out that he’s clearly better than the rest of his friends.
