The Class (TV series)
The Class is a short-lived sitcom lasting only one season (nineteen episodes) in which a third-grade class reunites for the surprise twenty-eighth birthday party of one of the classmates, as it marks the twentieth anniversary of her meeting her fiance. However, she dumps him at the party while the rest of the class watches in amusement. Following that party, several of the classmates become friends, and hilarity ensues.
Tropes used in The Class (TV series) include:
- Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: Duncan's mom attends Thanksgiving at Yonk and Nicole's, and as she leaves to look at Yonk's trophies, Duncan has to tell Yonk that "I know she's my mom and all, but, uh, she steals."
- She also eavesdrops on phone calls and voices her opinion.
- Bed Trick: Kat and Ethan pretend to be other people's blind dates at a bar. Kat does this successfully, but Ethan does not understand the concept and attempts to pursue a relationship with the woman, all the while pretending to be Dan Slutsky.
- Big Fancy House: Yonk and Nicole
- Brain Bleach: Kat shows them pictures taken of body parts from a cadaver.
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Ethan: Dear God, what is this?! |
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- Brutal Honesty: Kat. Always. Her first line ever in the show was "I gotta say, while parties normally bum me out, this one sounds particularly creepy." She continues to say, "I have no recollection of either you or Joanne, but you really sound like people I would hate."
- Camp Straight: Holly's husband Perry, as well as her father.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Holly Ellenbogen is last seen in the twelfth episode receiving a threat from Richie's wife Fern, who is also never seen again. There is no explanation given for her disappearance, leading to the unfortunate possibility that she may have been hurt in some way by Fern.
- Comically Missing the Point: Yonk Allen does this frequently. For example, on their first anniversary, Nicole gets him a newspaper from the day of the '75 Sugar Bowl, at which point he exclaims, as though to inform Nicole, "Why, I played in that!"
- Cool Old Guy: Yonk Allen.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Nicole and Yonk go on a diet with no red meats. Duncan brings steak sandwiches to Nicole while Yonk is out for dinner, but Yonk comes home early while they're eating them together, at which point Duncan hurries out while they make excuses to Yonk. Particularly funny because Nicole and Duncan have actually cheated together before.
- Embarrassing Middle Name: Richard Brittany Velch.
- Ensemble Cast
- Held Gaze: Nicole and Duncan. All the time.
- Idiosyncratic Episode Naming
- I Know You Know I Know: Richie must determine how Duncan's date went for Nicole, but since he's a Bad Liar, he ends up revealing Nicole's secret, then Duncan's secret, then both.
- It's a Small World After All: Several ties between characters that develop in later episodes are due to chance encounters. For example, when Ethan is pretending to be Dan Slutsky, he attends the birthday party of a friend of Sue's son; this friend happens to be Oprah, the daughter of Holly Ellenbogen, and Kyle Lendo is also in attendance. This results in a friendship between Kyle and Ethan.
- Longing Look: Nicole to Duncan and vice versa. All the time.
- Monochrome Casting
- Short Runner
- Stalking Is Funny If It Is Female After Male: Kat stalks Benjamin, taking disturbingly specific pictures of him and developing them herself, then stacking them in large piles and knowing exactly where to find a particular picture. Initially funny, until she starts dating Benjamin and he finds the pictures. But then he forgives her.
- Stereo Fibbing: Yonk finds out that Nicole and Duncan dated in high school.
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Yonk: So, how long did you guys go out? |
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- The "The" Title: Every episode starts with "The Class..."
- Token Minority: Kyle's boyfriend Aaron is introduced as a secondary character to counteract the Monochrome Casting.
- Will They or Won't They?: Duncan and Nicole.