The pilot episode of Duncanville first aired on February 16, 2020. Directed by Anne Walker Farrell. Teleplay by Mike Scully and Julie Thacker Scully, based on a story by Amy Poehler, Mike Scully and Julie Thacker-Scully.
The pilot includes opening credits that have stayed constant for the show's first three seasons. The opening credits summarize Duncan's relationships to other main characters: he's embarrassed by his parents, dislikes his slightly younger sister, loves his youngest sister, enjoys the company of three of his classmates and one cool teacher, and has a crush on one of his classmates.
A pan around a 15-year-old boy's messy room shows that Duncan Harris (Amy Poehler) has no achievements, academic, athletic or otherwise, to his credit. Duncan's mother, Annie (also Amy Poehler), wants Duncan to learn how to drive, and his father, Jack (Ty Burrell), will teach him.
Duncan is reluctant to get his driver's license, since delivery and self-driving cars are making actual driving obsolete. However, if he does have a driver's license, he can drive his friends and his crush to a music festival.
Tropes
- Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: The mother, Annie, always worries about Duncan's well-being, and the father, Jack, still acts like a 1980s teenager.
- Answer Cut: Duncan wonders why he needs to be a designated driver for Annie's book club. Cut to him driving a bunch of unruly drunken ladies singing "I Touch Myself" offkey.
- Chekhov's Gun: Ol’ Oakie, a massive oak tree planted downtown is said to be the pride and joy of Oakdale. It later has a bigger part to play when Duncan sneaks out with the car.
- Danger Takes A Back Seat: Parodied. One of the things Annie teaches Duncan to do when getting on the car is to check the back seat for murderers. Sure enough, there is a murderer hiding there... who then politely leaves and wishes Duncan well.
- Daydream Surprise: In the ending, Duncan is visited by Captain Sullenberger, who then flies him to Mars. On the way, he explains to Duncan that he's having a flashback from an edible he took at the EDM festival.
- Drives Like Crazy: Duncan when he first drives with his dad. He almost hits the Pope, who is there for some reason.
- Exact Words: Because he only has a learner's permit, Duncan can't drive without an adult present. So Bex brings along her grandmother, who is doped up with medication and is in the early stages of senility, to be that adult in their trip to the EDM festival.
- Father, I Want to Marry My Brother: Jing expresses her desire to marry Duncan. He tries to explain why it's not possible, but relents when she gives him Puppy Eyes.
- I Was Having Such a Nice Dream: Duncan is dreaming that Wonder Woman is about to "make him a man" when his parents wake him up for a driving lesson. He tries to go back to his dream, but by then Wonder Woman is kissing Batman instead.
- Loud Gulp: Duncan gulps when the family hears news of Ol' Oakie falling. Everyone hears it and instantly deduce Duncan had something to do with it.
- Nothing Exciting Ever Happens Here: Duncan bemoans that his town has no fun places to drive to. Camera then zooms out the window to an amusement park named Fun Place.
- Overly Long Gag: Jing doing a cartwheel. Veeery slooowly. While her mother is in a hurry.
- Raging Stiffie: Duncan gets one whenever he thinks of Mia. It even talks to him!
- Scully Box: In-Universe. Annie has a "yelling stool" she uses to stand up and be at Duncan's eye level when yelling at him.
- Shatterpoint Tap: Duncan very nearly crashes the car into Ol' Oakie. When he opens the car door to check for damage, he lightly dings the tree with it and it just topples over.
- Shout-Out:
- Annie tells Duncan that he might end up in a human centipede.
- Annie suggests watching The Boss Baby later.
- Kimberly and Jing watch The Masked Singer.
- The DJ at the EDM festival is S'More, a parody of Marshmello.
- When a noise wakes him up in the night, Jack worries it might be The Babadook.
- Soapbox Sadie: Played with. Mia seems to be this, saying that she’s against her workplace being anti-LGBTQ. Because she works in a pizza parlor, her only shown plan of attack of destroying them from the inside out is by poking her fingers in the pizzas.
- Sweetie Graffiti: Annie and Jack carved their initials on Ol' Oakie. After it falls, Duncan and his friends sneak the part with the initials into the house.
- Termite Trouble: Duncan accidentally infests the house with cicadas, prompting pest control to intervene.
