S2 E15 - Cooler

Explicit content warning

08/30/21 • 66 min

This podcast covers New Girl Season 2, Episode 15, Cooler, which originally aired on January 29, 2013 and was written by Rebecca Addelman and directed by Max Winkler.

Here’s a quick recap of the episode:

The guys determine they’re all ready to have sex again and have a night out togther. However, Jess gets paranoid while she’s home alone, and makes the guys come home early. She tries to show them she’s not a “cooler” so they play their second on-screen game of True American, which leads to an exciting predicament for Jess and Nick shippers...

We discuss Pop Culture References such as:

Abu Nazir (Homeland) - During the game of True American, Schmidt calls out “Abu Nazir” who is a fictional character from the TV Show Homeland.
Inspector Gadget - When trying to get Nick to kiss Jess, they encourage him to inspect her tonsils like Inspector Gadget.

Additional Pop Culture References such as:

Band of Brothers - When they guys see Holly at the bar, they confirm they’re like the group from Band of Brothers. Band of Brothers is a dramatized account of "Easy Company", assigned to the United States Army's 101st Airborne Division during World War II.
Gang related / Crips - Jess heard the sounds at the door and was worried it was gang related. She was also concerned about her blue curtains and whispered “Crips” when on the phone with Nick. The Crips are a gang based in the coastal regions of southern California whose members traditionally wear blue clothing.
“I am not a crook” - During the True American game the loft calls out “I am not a crook”. Amid charges for the Watergate scandal, President Richard Nixon infamously said, "I am not a crook" during a press conference in Orlando, Florida.

We also cover Schmidt’s dismissal of Shivrang’s “English” accent as our “Schmidtism” this episode as well as give Schmidt’s dancing an honorary Schmidtism. In our “not in the 2020s” section we talk about how Schmidt makes light of Nick being sad. We also discuss how Cece “lying” for Schmidt so he can move on is a “yes in the 2020s” moment as well as how comfortable Sam was in his relationship with Jess. We also explore the careers of Brooklyn Decker (Holly), Sal Stowers (Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Girl), and Andree Vermeulen (Beth), the guest stars of this episode.

Also in this episode were the following guest stars who we do not discuss in the podcast: David Walton (Sam - discussed on S2E3), M. Hasna M. (a movie-goer), Jocelyn Osorio (Andrea), Katie Wee (Palm Reading Girl), Brenda Song (Daisy), and Satya Bhabha (Shivrang).

Additionally in the podcast we discuss how the beer that the loft is drinking is Heisler beer and mention a few other shows that also use this fake beer brand. We had also previously included links to find “instructions” on how to play True American on S1E20’s show notes which can be found here.

While not discussed in the podcast, we noted other references in this episode including:

London Fog - Schmidt refers to Nick as London Fog, telling him he’s “hot to trot”. London Fog is an American coat manufacture...

This podcast covers New Girl Season 2, Episode 15, Cooler, which originally aired on January 29, 2013 and was written by Rebecca Addelman and directed by Max Winkler.

Here’s a quick recap of the episode:

We discuss Pop Culture References such as:

Abu Nazir (Homeland) - During the game of True American, Schmidt calls out “Abu Nazir” who is a fictional character from the TV Show Homeland.
Inspector Gadget - When trying to get Nick to kiss Jess, they encourage him to inspect her tonsils like Inspector Gadget.

Additional Pop Culture References such as:

Band of Brothers - When they guys see Holly at the bar, they confirm they’re like the group from Band of Brothers. Band of Brothers is a dramatized account of "Easy Company", assigned to the United States Army's 101st Airborne Division during World War II.
Gang related / Crips - Jess heard the sounds at the door and was worried it was gang related. She was also concerned about her blue curtains and whispered “Crips” when on the phone with Nick. The Crips are a gang based in the coastal regions of southern California whose members traditionally wear blue clothing.
“I am not a crook” - During the True American game the loft calls out “I am not a crook”. Amid charges for the Watergate scandal, President Richard Nixon infamously said, "I am not a crook" during a press conference in Orlando, Florida.

While not discussed in the podcast, we noted other references in this episode including:

London Fog - Schmidt refers to Nick as London Fog, telling him he’s “hot to trot”. London Fog is an American coat manufacture...

Previous Episode

S2 E14 - Pepperwood

This podcast covers New Girl Season 2, Episode 14, Pepperwood, which originally aired on January 22, 2013 and was written by Nick Adams and directed by Lynn Shelton.

Here’s a quick recap of the episode:

Nick is worried for Jess after he reads a student’s story while Winston finds out about his “Pogo” which prompts Schmidt and the rest of the loftmates to obsessively want to know what their pogo is as well.

We discuss Pop Culture References such as:

“I’m So Excited” - Jess’ cell phone ringtone throughout the episode is the song “I’m So Excited” by The Pointer Sisters.
Audrey Hepburn - Jess thinks Schmidt looks like Audrey Hepburn after he removed part of his eyebrows.

Additional Pop Culture References such as:

(Chicago) Bears - Once, Winston’s penis accidentally changed the channel while the loft was watching the Bears game. The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago in the National Football League (NFL). The Bears have won nine NFL Championships, including one Super Bowl, and have also recorded more victories than any other NFL franchise.
The Cranberries - When Jess was trying to convince Edgar she wasn’t scared, she imitated singing in the style of Dolores O’Riordan from the band The Cranberries. The Cranberries were an Irish rock band formed in Limerick, Ireland and ranked as one of the best-selling alternative acts of the 1990s. Dolores O'Riordan had one of the most recognizable voices in rock and was known for her signature yodel.

Instead of a single “Schmidtism” we share our favorite one-liners like how obsessed Schmidt is with his pogo and give an honorary mention to him dancing like a sea snake. For our “not in the 2020s” we discuss how Cece’s personality is reduced to just her looks and for our “yes in the 2020s” we note how we like the loft’s pogo for Nick is their concern for him. We also explore how Nick protecting Jess is partially in the not and the yes in the 2020s. We also give a brief look into Nate Corddry (Edgar), the guest star we feature in this episode.

Also in this episode were the following guest stars who we do not discuss in the podcast: Marcelo Tubert (Martin), Matthew McCray (Benjamin), Yimmy Yim (Susie), and Marcia Ann Burrs (Old Woman / Edgars mom/partner).

Additionally in the podcast, we discuss how while there isn’t a book about a detective that solves zombie murders, there is a detective show and comic about a zombie solving murders: iZombie. We also mention how Julius Peppers is a defensive end for the Carolina Panthers of the NFL who played for the Chicago Bears from 2010 - 2013 which is likely the inspiration for Julius Pepperwood. Additionally, we mention how the student’s name Edgar is a reference to Edgar Allan Poe.

While not discussed in the podcast, we noted other references in this episode including:

Jalopy - The loft said that Winston farts a little as he runs and they say he sounds like a jalopy. A jalopy is also known as a decrepit car that is often old and damaged and is in a barely functional state. Other slang terms used to describe such cars are terms like beater, clunker, hooptie, and banger.
Palatino - When Nick is trying to avoid reading Edgar’s story, he mocks the font and says that [Edgar] should have at least used Palatino. This is an old-style serif font that was designed by Hermann Zapf and released in 1949. It was named after an Italian calligrapher and is based on the humanist types of the Italian Renaissance. While most Renaissance typefaces have delicate proportions, Palatino has larger proportions that increase legibility. It was a font intended for use for headings and advertisements to be able to be read at a distance or printed at small sizes.
Goo...

Next Episode

S2 E16 - Table 34

This podcast covers New Girl Season 2, Episode 16, Table 34, which originally aired on February 5, 2013 and was written by David Iserson and directed by Tristram Shapeero.

Here’s a quick recap of the episode:

After Jess and Nick kissed in the last episode, both of them are feeling awkward and we get to watch them deal with the aftermath. Meanwhile, Cece goes to an Indian singles event for those looking to get married and Schmidt goes as well to win her over.

We discuss Pop Culture References such as:

Gone With the Wind / Scarlet O’Hara - When Jess was describing the kiss with Nick to Cece she said it was as if she was like Scarlet O’Hara in one of her curtain dresses; Scarlet O’Hara was a character from Gone With the Wind.

Additional Pop Culture References such as:

Big - When Schmidt gets dressed up to go to the marriage convention, Winston says that he looks like the fortune teller from the movie Big. Big is a 1988 American movie starring Tom Hanks about a teenage boy who, after he wished he was older by a fortune teller arcade game, woke up the next day to be in the body of an adult.
The Love Guru - When Schmidt shows up at the marriage convention, Cece says that he looks like a character from the movie The Love Guru. This is a 2008 American comedy movie starring and written by Mike Meyers about an American who was raised by gurus and who tries to break into the self-help industry.
Lil Wayne - Cece justifies that she has more accomplishments by mentioning that she was in Lil Wayne’s last music video. Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, record executive, and entrepreneur who began his career at age 12.
During speed dating, Schmidt calls the man Cece is talking to M. Night Shyamalan and tells him that he has a twist ending: “to shut up”. The man then responds by calling him Ben Affleck and telling Schmidt that he’s not desperate.
- M. Night Shyamalan / Twist Ending - Manoj Nelliyattu "M. Night" Shyamalan is an Indian American filmmaker and actor. He is known for making original films with contemporary supernatural plots and twist endings.
- Ben Affleck - Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter.
Kal Penn - In his speech to highlight Cece, Schmidt mentions that Kal Penn is a genius. Kalpen Suresh Modi, known as Kal Penn, is an American actor and former White House Principal Associate Director in the Office of Public Engagement during the Barack Obama administration.
Taylor Swift - Jess wanted to listen to Taylor Swift alone after Sam broke up with her at the convention. Taylor Alison Swift is an American singer-songwriter, who is often inspired by her personal experiences, in her song writing. She is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with over 200 million records sold worldwide and she has won 11 Grammy Awards.
Magic Carpet - In the final scene, Schmidt says to Cece that they’re “taking a ride on the magic carpet”. A magic carpet, also called a flying carpet, is a legendary carpet typically used as a form of transportation in fantasy fiction and can quickly or instantaneously carry its users to their destination.
Moonwalk / Shamone - When Nick is moonwalking away from Jess, he says “Shamone”. The moonwalk is a dance move where one is gliding backwards while leaning forward which became popular during Michael Jacksons’ performance of “Billie Jean”. “Shamone” is a common phrase in Michael Jackson’s songs as a way of saying “come on” as a tribute to soul singer Mavis Staples.

We also cover how Schmidt learned some Hindi phrases as our “Schmidtism” this episode. For our “not in the 2020s” we discuss how Schmidt and the show reduce Cece to a se...