Original subtitles

Step practice will move from 3:00 to 3:30 this Thursday.

This Thursday only. After that, normal time practice.

Hey, when exactly was the last time Ava did announcements?

Never. Said it was boring. Can't say I disagree.

Well, they still need to be shared.

Yeah, like December 2021 to June 2022.

Oh. Show your report card at Hoagie Hole and get a free button.

That place got shut down.

Hoagie Hole has been shut down. I repeat, Hoagie Hole has been shut down.

Do not go there.

After removing Ava from her position,

the district asked me to fill in as interim principal.

It's only temporary. Not trying to take over.

But while here, I will be doing things a bit differently.

That wraps up the morning announcements.

And hey, the most important thing to remember,

learn something today and have fun doing it.

She's here. She's here.

Hello, current employees.

Gorgeous former employee stopping by to pick up some stuff I left.

Ava, what a surprise to see you

since Dia definitely didn't tell us you were coming.

You need a badge.

Okay, Dia. Clocked.

Well, you look great.

- Refreshed. Glowing even. - Mm-hmm.

Like a... Like a painting come to life.

Uh, real quick. You may have noticed that I am interim principal,

but it is only temporary.

I'm not trying to swoop in and take over or anything.

Don't believe him, Ava. It's a coup.

Well, it's only been two days, but...

...yes, I do look amazing.

Well, what have you been up to? And how are you?

And honestly... ...I never use this word,

but it is so stupid that they fired you.

Girl, I'm good.

Abbott was never my primary source of income.

Now I have time for my far more lucrative side hustles.

I even put some feelers out into the public speaking circuit

since my ED Talk did so well.

- That's awesome. Good for you. - Yeah, that's very smart. Very smart.

Well, I am still planning to fix this.

I'm going down to the district later today.

Okay, girl.

Dia, I'm expecting a box of blank T-shirts,

designer labels, and a sewing kit to be delivered here.

It was already en route when I got fired. Resend it to that address.

- Who's paying for this? - All right, y'all.

It was a pleasure to see me, but I'm out.

She took the damn badge.

I just want to thank you all for bearing with me these last two classes

while I develop the lesson plan.

- You're welcome. - You're welcome.

Barbara and I work the same hours, so I never get to watch her cook.

So when I heard she was teaching music after school,

I immediately asked her if I could sit in, you know, when I'm free.

No, I don't remember that conversation.

I'm so happy that you are all here to learn about the gift that is music.

And let's begin with the fundamentals.

Wow, of course.

So, everybody please just put down your kazoos,

pick up your paper, your pencils.

- Can I borrow a pencil? - Yeah.

And let's get to work.

- Wait, I don't get to drum? - Yeah, I thought we were singing.

No, no, no. You are gonna be drumming, and we will be singing

after we learn the fundamentals.

So let's begin with scales.

Mrs. Howard, are we gonna learn how to make a song go viral?

- Yeah. - Oh.

Do you know the first person to ever go viral?

- Yes. - Jesus.

Yes. But... ...what about the second?

James Brown!

- I knew it. - Mm-hmm.

And do you know how he did it?

By learning the fundamentals.

The fun-da-mentals.

Hey, dingbat, how's it feel to get off the bench?

- Uh, I'm-- - Yeah, I don't care.

Listen, I got a kid who just developed an allergy to garlic, poor thing,

so I gotta put it in her file.

Oh, okay. Um, it may take me a second. Ava rearranged her files recently.

- What's the student's name? - Okay. Lateria Newton.

- Newton. Newton. Newton. - N.

- "Natalie Anderson, Blood vs. Water, one." - Newton.

Um, let's see.

"Michele Fitzgerald, Brain vs. Brawn vs. Beauty, six."

What?

Dia, do you know if Ava changed the filing system when she rearranged?

I thought she organized everything based on the hot dad scale.

Yeah, apparently, the dad scale was too easy to decode.

Perfect. Um...

I'll let you know when I find it.

Okey-dokey. Sure hope today's lunch ain't Italian.

Yesterday, I went to the district to speak to HR on Ava's behalf,

but Warren wasn't available, which is great 'cause he hates me.

So I left a message for Manny, got some info from a stranger.

Called Ava, didn't answer, not abnormal.

Got her address from Dia,

and now I'm on the way to her house.

Kind of excited. I haven't been there before.

Janine, what are you doing here?

Oh, um, well, it was important and I wanted to talk to you face-to-face,

so I came to this address you gave.

Is this your house?

This is my premium PO box.

Do you think I would give any of you my home address?

Well, I just talked to some people at the district

and there's a chance at getting you an appeal.

Ugh. Beg for my job back and give them a chance to fire me twice.

Well, it's not ideal, but we don't have a ton of options.

Okay. Well, maybe. Right now though, I gotta rehearse.

I just found out someone dropped out of a TEB Talk that's happening on Thursday,

so they called me in to do it.

Wow, that's so cool, Ava.

Did she say TEB Talk?

Hey, did you say TEB Talk?

TEB. Tobias Talks. Only suckers still listen to TED.

And that's a real thing?

It's at the Airport Luxury Inn, Conference Room L.

So yeah, it's real.

Okay, listen, I really think we should pursue this appeal.

Okay, sure, whatever. File your little appeal. I gotta go.

Hey, Lexus. Play Ava Flavs, "Ooh, she's serious about that paper" playlist.

♪ She works hard for the money ♪

So you might ask,

"How do I know if it's a minor or major scale?"

- By looking at the... - Third notes.

Yes.

Fundamentals. Fundamentals.

- Fun-Fun-Fundamentals-men-men-mentals. - Exactly.

What is that?

Fundamentals. Fundamentals. Fun-Fun--

I think if I catch the algo just right, this song might take off.

Song? Honey, that is not a song. That is a collection of noises.

Aren't all songs just collections of noises?

No, Shamar. No, they are not.

And is this what you've been doing

when you're supposed to be taking notes in class?

We were just trying to make a cool song.

Hmm. No, you weren't. You were mocking me with my own beautiful voice.

Jacob, if you cannot hum on pitch, please do not hum at all.

This feels not about me.

Uh...

Everything okay, girl? How's... How's class going?

Terribly. They've taken a recording of my voice,

chopped it, skewed it, and Lucy Liu'd it into oblivion.

Oh, yeah. I teach kids that age all day, and it can be rough.

They're just not interested in learning the funda... the building blocks.

You are a great teacher and they are lucky to have you.

Maybe just meet them where they are.

You know, try teaching them the funda... Building blocks on their terms.

You're right, Jacob. I am a great teacher.

Mm-hmm. Yeah, and what about the other stuff I said?

Baby, I didn't hear a word. I'ma have to figure this out on my own.

Yeah.

What the hell are you doing?

I don't have your file, okay? Ava's system makes zero sense.

She's got third graders, next to first graders,

next to fifth graders, next to seventh graders. It's nuts.

Did you try talking to Ava?

I called, I sent messages, nothing. She's not responding to anything.

Hey, does the name Boston Rob mean anything to you?

I am a warm blooded, mostly straight woman

who was alive in 2003.

Of course the name Boston Rob means something to me.

Well, he is on multiple kids' files.

"Boston Rob, Redemption Island, six."

Okay, so her system is clearly based off the show Survivor,

but you probably already figured that out.

Yeah.

Okay, Dante is in second grade, not sixth.

Do you watch Survivor?

Yeah, no. My husband got it in the divorce.

That's how I got the house.

"Sandra Diaz-Twine, Pearl Islands, two."

All of Ava's files are labeled like that.

Hey, hey. Maybe the number is not the grade.

Maybe it's the episode.

- O-o-okay, then what are you doing? - Okay.

I think we gotta watch all of Survivor to crack her code.

Okay.

Well, it shouldn't be too hard. How many episodes can there be?

Oh. Uh. Okay. Um, I gotta take this,

so just keep being well-behaved little angels.

Okay, be right back.

Hey, Manny, thanks for getting back to me.

For sure. So I pulled some strings

and got you and Ava a time to plead your case to the powers that be.

That is amazing. Thank you so much.

Of course. But listen, I'd advise you to not get your hopes up.

I-I-I've never seen cases like this overturned.

Well, that's because you never had Janine Teagues on the case.

Um... Still very much an uphill endeavor.

Mountains are only as steep as the angle from which you look at them.

For sure.

I'm gonna call Ava.

You've reached Ava.

If you're a former member of the Golden State Warriors,

you need to move on.

Everyone else, just text me.

I'm just gonna text her.

All right, everybody. Now eyes up here.

Don't mind me. I am not here, okay?

I'm just a bug on the wall

witnessing the expert tutelage of this century's greatest educator.

- Chill, bro. - All right now.

While I might not love the way it's being shown,

I love that you're all so excited about music.

And so, today, we are going to harness that excitement.

Are we gonna play instruments?

No. Better.

- Yo, we're singing? - No, even better than that.

I want you to pick your favorite song.

Easy. "Fade into You", Mazzy Star.

I'm gonna cry just thinking about it.

- Dude. - What?

- What's your favorite song? - "Whatchu Kno About Me."

Fantastic. I want you all to go home and pick your "What you know about me's."

Then I want you to write down how does this song make you feel?

Then I want you to research the song's chord progressions

to present to class tomorrow.

Mrs. Howard, what are chord progressions?

Why I'm so glad you asked.

Chord progressions.

Loved ones, you might wanna keep an ear in on...

How has Jeff Probst not aged?

Melissa, we have 47 seasons to get through.

You cannot keep pausing it.

Hey, have either of you guys heard from Ava?

If I had,

would I still be watching a bunch of starving men

run around in saggy boxers?

I don't know what you're into. Jacob's got some weird stories.

No, we haven't heard anything.

On this, the winning pair will board a plane

and be flown to a neighboring island where you will experience the blowhole.

Wait. I'm brilliant.

- This is a spectacular... - Plane. Airport. Hotel.

Mel, baby. Grab your things.

- We're going to the airport. - Use more words.

I can tell you about it in the car. We just... We need to go.

Okay, you're not the only one on a time-crunch here, Janine.

We're not just sitting here watching TV for the fun of it.

You must then pass it to your loved ones. They must then pass it...

- Guys, turn the show off! - Mmm?

- Turn the show off. Come on. Let's go. - Yeah. Um, yeah. Come on, Mel.

- Okay. All right. All right. I'm coming. - Hurry up, hurry up. Yeah. Come on.

- You want some more of that love? - Gregory!

Class. I am so excited to hear the songs you have picked.

So who wants to go first?

Well, to challenge myself, I actually went with my second favorite song,

which is, of course, a 21-way tie

between every song in The Nightmare before Christmas soundtrack.

Jacob. It's not just your time you're wasting.

Shamar, why don't you go first?

Oh, I didn't do it.

Excuse me?

You gave us homework in an extracurricular class.

I barely do my actual homework.

But you did sign up to learn music or am I mistaken?

I mean, I kinda just wanted to hang out and have fun.

Yeah, I thought we'd at least get to play music,

but we've just been taking notes.

Okay, Sylvie, so I guess you didn't do the assignment either.

- Mm-mmm. - Mm-mmm.

You know what? Jacob, you are in charge of class today

because I will not be expending any more energy

where it is not appreciated.

Thank you.

Ava, hey.

What are y'all doing here? This is a ticketed event.

- Well, you didn't text me back. - I never text you back.

- You didn't text any of us back. - Statement still applies.

Cool. So about your filing system--

I talked to Manny

and secured some time for you to plead your case to the district,

so we should get started preparing immediately.

I can't do that right now.

If we're gonna get your job back, we need an airtight argument.

And to nail that, we really need to get started.

Hey, bobblehead, give me a second. I literally have a job to do right now.

Excuse me.

What? Ava... What?

What am I missing? I mean, she...

- she should be excited about this. - Maybe she's still in shock.

I mean, she is in a two-and-a-half-star hotel right now.

Yeah, there was no valet. She parked her own car.

- This woman is clearly in crisis. - Mmm.

You know what? Maybe we should go in. Maybe we should show her some support.

Um. And be the only people in the audience.

- Yeah, hard pass. - Nah, I'm with Janine on this.

- It's the right thing to do, man. Come on. - Mm-hmm.

Fine.

Ladies and gentlemen, our next speaker is a former principal...

...who chose to step down in order to spend more time helping her community!

Someone who took a school from the bottom 1%

and brought it to the double digits!

Put your hands together

for entrepreneur, philanthropist, and life coach, Ava Coleman!

Are you ready?

Success. Money. Your wildest dreams.

Whoo! Good afternoon, lost people. Your compass is here.

Do you feel that?

And as a principal... Nay, an educator,

I've always told the children they can achieve whatever they want in life.

And the same goes for you.

Where's my hype man? Y'all deserve some T-shirts!

Who's cold?

Oh, my God. Mr. Johnson?

- Why do all audiences love T-shirts? - I don't know.

Give that to me. Give it. Give it!

You. What's your name?

Leah Smalls.

And what do you want this year, Leah?

Well, I... I'd really like to find my soulmate,

- but no one's ever loved me. - Aw!

Well, Leah, I used to work with a little annoying woman

who thought she'd end up alone.

- Hey. - She found someone.

I knew a slight man, edamame arms. He found someone.

Now why would she say that about Jacob?

I knew a redhead with a banging body and a stank attitude.

- There you go. - She's as happy as a clam.

She ain't lying.

So I promise you,

whatever you wanna achieve in life, it's possible!

Who wants another T-shirt?

Ava. Ava. Ava. Ava.

Fundamental. Fundamental.

I mean, it is a pretty catchy tune.

All my students have been singing it in class

instead of paying attention to me.

- I guess it is kind of an earworm. - Mm-hmm.

I just wish it had more build.

Well, then maybe you could help them with that.

I mean, you love music. They love music.

I really think there's a way for this to work.

You're an amazing teacher, Barbara.

Thank you, baby. What was that you were saying?

Have you considered showing them

what the song needs in order to make it better?

Seriously?

I heard you. I'm considering.

They say the only way out is through.

I say the only way forward is to let go of what was.

Even if it's hard. Embrace the unknown.

Go forward. And you just might surprise yourself.

So gather up your jackets. Move it to the exits.

I hope you find a friend.

Closing time.

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.

Thank you, good night!

Oh. You're welcome.

- Hey. - Ah, hey.

That was incredible. I mean, who knew this was such a big deal?

- Yeah. - Yeah, doy.

Conference Room L.

L standing for the largest conference room they have.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. - Okay. Yeah.

You know what? Maybe we shouldn't beg for your job back.

You got a good thing going here.

And I think I was the one who was having trouble processing you leaving.

Maybe I just need to move forward.

I think I'm just really gonna miss you.

Well, who wouldn't, kids' meal?

What do you two want?

So about your filing system, I feel like I almost have it figured out.

Does the immunity idol have anything to do with the kids' vaccinations?

Oh, no, it's simple.

Each file has one highlighted letter under the player and season.

So, last name first letter is highlighted under Survivor player,

first name first letter in the season.

- Okay, what about the episode number? - Those are the bus routes.

70% of the time when you pull a kid's file

it's to alert the parents to some bus issues.

So, just cross-reference that with the bus chart,

and boom, there's your file.

- Uh-huh. Wow. - Huh. That's, um...

- Yeah. Okay. - Mm-hmm.

- Thank you. - You're welcome.

- Goodbye. - Bye. Thank you.

Oh, um... Okay. Well, I guess this is adiós.

- Mm-hmm. - But I really hope it's hasta luego.

I'll tell you one thing I won't miss is you speaking Spanish.

Can I have your autograph, please?

Fun-da... Fun... Fun... Fun...

I think it needs more bass.

I think it needs more of a vibe.

Am I right in guessing

that your song did not catapult you to superstardom overnight?

Not yet. We know you think it's bad, but we--

It's not bad. It's actually quite catchy.

Have you tried giving it a stronger build,

you know, like, here's an example.

It's called a diatonic chord progression. Here you go.

Oh, that's hard.

You said that like a compliment,

so I will take it as such.

I'm so used to teaching the younger ones the basics...

that I forgot that the older ones,

they need to know why they're learning.

Hit it, baby.

♪ Fundamentals. Fundamentals ♪

♪ Fun-Fun-Fun-Fundamentals ♪

- Hear the chord progression? - Hear it? I-I-I love it.

Ooh! Wonderful, that's wonderful!

All right, all right, great job, and I will see you all tomorrow.

Hey, Mrs. Howard?

That was fun, but I still want to keep learning music your way.

- If that's cool? - Of course it is, August. Thank you.

- Bye. - Bye.

N, N, L, N, L... Okay, system reads:

"Tiffany Fields, capital N, and Tiffany, big L in island..."

- Yes? - N, L...

Lateria Newton! Lateria Newton!

So Ava's filing system is genius.

Um, I pride myself on my organizational prowess,

but, uh... ...I'm about to go reorganize my desktop.

Oh, my God!

I hate to interrupt whatever this is, but I need Nate Wilson's file.

- Nate Wilson. Nate Wilson. - Nate Wilson. Nate Wilson.

- Okay. Nate Wilson, Nate Wilson! - Nate Wilson. Come on. Come on.

- Number nine. It's nine. Nine, nine! - Okay. Nine.

- There it is. You got it. - Here's nine. Here's nine.

Okay. "Nate Wilson. W, big W.

Yul Kwon, Cook Island, nine. Big W. Big M." Nate Wilson.

Nate Wilson.

- Damn, we're having a blast! - Whoo!

- What a rush. - Give me another one, Dia!