Kenny falls in love for the first time; resulting in his attempts to impress this new girl named Cynthia (guest star Jennifer Bizik; who had appeared on a 1987 episode of Star Search as a teen vocalist candidate and later played Joule, a dynamite train car in a Las Vegas performance of Starlight Express during the mid-1990s) annoying his bandmates in the process.
Things start off innocently enough with a performance of “The Book of Love” (with the girls using a book with a heart on the cover as a prop) when a girl in a red dress walks in. Kenny spots her and is clearly smitten - to the point where Haylie has to pull him away to work on some dance moves. Cynthia then introduces herself - Kenny’s too enraptured to say anything (Eric: “He’s the strong, silent type. Very silent.”) at first before introducing himself - using his full first name of Kenneth, and - as Cynthia appears quite well off - impresses her with its sophistication. Kenny then pretends to be wealthy himself (leading to Ana and Robin wanting to gag). As if to prove her wealth, Cynthia requests a mineral water and Kenny begins treating Flip like a waiter (much to Flip’s annoyance), then acts like his hands are tied when Cynthia asks if he’d prefer somewhere more “sophisticated” to perform followed by claiming his dad was working for a big company as well (leaving Haylie as annoyed as the other girls) before returning to the stage (“Another Day in Paradise”).
Kenny and Haylie finally get around to working on the dance steps…briefly, as Kenny stops immediately after Cynthia enters backstage, not helping his case by dismissing the dance steps as “childish” and inferring Haylie “got in the way” before leaving with Cynthia. The other then try the steps on stage only for Robin to slip, making it evident how sorely Kenny’s presence is missing. Flip then tries to encourage them by suggesting they give Cynthia a chance, which Eric concurs with (“Don’t Wanna Lose You”). Kenny then returns dressed up for his date and spots Flip working on his “green machine” - but the cultural clash is becoming more evident (no video game tournament or baseball, but lots of tea and the “finer things of life”); leading to Flip wondering if Kenny’s outgrown the band (“Something Happened on the Way to Heaven”).
During this time, Kenny has second thoughts and confesses the truth to Cynthia (his dad’s merely a salesman, not a world traveler)…only for Cynthia to be surprised that Kenny was dazzled by her as they seemingly break up. Kenny then apologizes to the band (who shows some tough love before giving him their decision): The good news is that the band wants things they were. The “bad” news: They’re still struggling to get the dance moves down for that night’s concert. Even better news: Cynthia apologizes to the others as the band meets Cynthia - who insists they just call her Cindy (with it being hinted that things might not be over between her and Kenny) as we go to closing song “High Enough”.
Songs performed in this episode:
- “The Book of Love” (The Monotones covernote ; lead vocals by Eric and Kenny)
- “Another Day in Paradise” (Phil Collins cover; lead vocals by Eric, Kenny and Robin)note
- “Don’t Wanna Lose You” (Gloria Estefan cover; lead vocals by Haylie, Eric, Ana and Robin)note
- “Something Happened on the Way to Heaven” (Phil Collins cover; lead vocals by Kenny)
- “High Enough” (Damn Yankees cover; lead vocals by Kenny, Eric, Robin, Haylie and Ana)
Tropes associated with this episode:
- "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot: Had Kenny been honest with Cynthia, he wouldn’t have gotten the rest of the band irritated with him as a result of his infatuation with Cynthia.
- Honesty Is the Best Policy: Kenny learns this the hard way, as his pretending to be too mature for Kids Inc. gets the rest of the band upset with him.
- Imagine Spot: Used for “Something Happened on the Way to Heaven”
- Lady in Red: Save for the “Something Happened on the Way to Heaven” Imagine Spot; Cynthia is wearing a red dress for all the times she’s seen on camera.
