Original air date: March 20, 2022
Louise, Rudy and Millie keep missing out on clay coins given as prize tokens at their Ancient Greek History class, so concoct a scheme to counterfeit a whole mass of them. Meanwhile, Bob finds that sleeping on the living room couch instead of in his bed is vastly better for getting a good night’s rest.
* * *
♪ ♪
(Bob groans)
You’re a little groan-ier than usual this morning, Dad.
(yawns) I didn’t sleep great last night.
Yeah, look at your eyes.
The airlines would charge you extra for those bags.
Why couldn’t you sleep?
Were you thinking about all the regrets you have?
So many, I’m guessing.
Yeah, but also, sometimes
your mom can get a little kicky.
Oh, no, was I kicking?
A little. A lot. Very hard.
Well, I was dreaming that I was a flapper.
And you kicked Dad in his flaps?
Sorry, hon.
I mean,
I’m tired, but it’s fine.
I’ll just drink coffee pretty much all day.
That’s healthy, right?
Yup, totally. Hey, guys,
does anyone have a bunch of extra shelves
they want to give me?
LINDA: Why?
‘Cause I am going to be winning a ton of prizes at school and I’m gonna need a place to put them all.
We’re starting a special unit on ancient Greece today, and I hear Ms. Padaro is pretty generous with the “prizolas.”
She really is. Who do you think I got my mood ring from?
It was from her.
Yeah, that unit was the highlight of my fourth grade. Well, that and winning the long-distance pee-pee contest in the boys’ room, but I didn’t win for accuracy, I won for artistry.
Also, I was alone.
Louise, I think you’re gonna like Ms. Padaro.
You learn all about the Greek gods and goddesses and how annoyed they always were with everyone.
Yeah, just learning the steps to becoming a god would be great.
You can be whatever you set your mind to be, sweetie.
Right, but maybe not a Greek god?
Maybe not, maybe yes. Who knows, Bob?
Don’t squash her dreams, you puny human man.
I’m gonna strike him down first.
BOB: Mm.
So Greece-y in here.
I’m sitting next to Louise. I’m sitting next to Louise.
And I’m sitting next to you.
Okay, so, for the next two weeks, you are ancient Greeks, and you will sit in the round, as the Greeks did.
Doesn’t it feel more equal, more democratic?
Well, guess who invented democracy.
Miss America?
David Democracy?
Santa Claus?
Uh, no, but good guesses.
Um, the ancient Greeks invented it.
Did you hear Ms. Padaro has a bunch of prizes you can win?
Oh, I’ve heard.
When is she gonna talk about the coins?
I know, right?
I have a question about the coins and prizes.
That’s my question.
(overlapping chatter)
Okay, okay.
I will be quizzing you throughout the unit, and if you give the right answer, you get one of these.
Nice.
I made these clay replicas of ancient Greek coins, and you can trade them in for prizes at this… market.
STUDENTS: Whoa!
Prizes.
They look like they’re from the dollar store, so you know they’re expensive.
It might finally be time for me to take a whack at this class participation thing.
Also, at the end of the unit, we’ll have a huge symposium, aka party.
The god Dionysus will keep the grape juice flowing.
(all exclaiming)
Oh, man!
All right, who can tell me what that building is? Chloe.
The Parthenon?
Correct.
Whoa.
And the Parthenon is part of a larger group of historic buildings called the…
(students straining)
Tommy.
The Acropolis?
Correct.
In the round? (scoffs)
More like she should turn around, am I right? Sheesh.
She’s being a real circle jerk.
Next question, I’m just gonna jump on her like a backpack.
LINDA: All right, I’m calling it.
Good night, sweetie.
Good night, Lin.
(sighs, snoring)
(grunting)
Ow.
Oh, my God, that was quick.
Is she Charleston-ing?
Ow. Ow. (sighs) All right.
Oh, hey, Gene. What-what are you doing up?
Hello, Father. I think I might need some nachos.
No, Gene. No nachos. Go back to sleep.
Also, I don’t think we have stuff for nachos.
Not with that attitude. Hold on.
If you’re sleeping on the couch, that means…
I could have a sleepover at Mom’s.
Am I dreaming or did I hear sleepover at Mom’s?
Yup. It’s on.
Yes!
You guys, seriously, be careful. She’s really kicky tonight.
Oh, she wouldn’t kick her kids.
She loves us.
Is it a sleepover at Mom’s?
Yup.
(yawns) May as well.
LINDA: Aw, sleepover at Mom’s? All right!
GENE: But with lingering Dad smell.
Mm.
LOUISE: Okay,
Chloe and Kaylee got called on a bunch yesterday.
Maybe we try to sit where they sat?
Yeah, I want to sit in the splash zone,
but for answering questions.
Hey!
Oh, sorry.
Um, this is my seat.
It was your seat yesterday.
Now you can go sit in no-coins-ville.
But they’re all good seats.
That’s the beauty of sitting in the round.
Well, it’s just that, yesterday,
this seat got a lot of action, and not so much over there.
Let’s just stay in the same seats. Keeps things simple,
but don’t worry, Louise, I see all,
like the many-eyed giant, Argos.
Thankfully, I don’t have that many eyes,
or I’d spend a fortune on contacts.
Anyway, who knows what monster Argos slayed? Louise.
Oh… Well, I don’t know the answer to that one.
Kind of skimmed the Argos stuff. I’m gonna say Godzilla?
Oh, no. Tommy.
Echidna?
Correct.
(groans)
Correct.
Correct. Correct.
Dang it.
The lady just doesn’t see us. It’s not fair.
She’s like a shopping cart with a wobbly wheel,
she just pulls to the right.
I hate those shopping carts.
Okay, the marketplace is open for business.
Time to cash in those coins.
Yes!
I’m gonna get that eraser that looks like a foot.
I’m gonna get a temporary tattoo. Take that, Mom.
And I’m just gonna watch everyone else
get cool things, I guess.
This is some B.S.
Some serious B.S.
Some super serious B.S.
If I don’t get that windup dolphin
that actually swims in a bathtub…
I don’t even want to think about it. (grunts)
Hey, does punching a locker hurt your hand?
Probably. Eh, forget it.
We got to do something.
We could offer her American cash money.
I have $10 in my dad’s wallet.
Or… we could… make clay coins ourselves.
To… make ourselves feel better?
No, to use in class.
We make our own replica coins of Ms. Padaro’s replica coins.
You mean like counterfeiting?
I saw that in a movie that I wasn’t supposed to watch
that I watched five times.
Yeah, technically, it’s counterfeiting,
but look, we tried playing by the rules, and it didn’t work.
What are we gonna do? Not get coins and cool prizes?
You make a good point.
I do.
So, who’s in for making our own coins and our own justice?
We’re only in fourth grade once, baby.
Plus, I’ll do anything you do.
Rudy?
Count-erfeit me in. Man,
this is the coolest I’ve ever felt,
and saying that out loud made it less cool. Sorry. Sorry.
Louise, don’t you usually sit with Gene and Tina at lunch?
Rudy, this is a top secret
counterfeiting brainstorming session.
I can’t trust those blabber butts.
I told them you were going through a crisis,
and you needed special lunch counseling.
Why am I the one who needs special lunch counseling?
I’m fine.
Poor Rudy. He looks terrible.
Mm-hmm.
Okay, first thing’s first,
we got to make a mold of a clay coin.
How the H are we gonna do that?
Millie, can I have a piece of gum?
From my mouth or fresh?
How about fresh.
Weird, but okay.
Rudy, you got a quarter or a nickel or something?
If I had a nickel for every time you asked me for a quarter…
Uh, sorry. Here you go.
(spits)
RUDY: I hope you’re gonna wipe that off.
Now, you see the impression this makes? If this gum
was a hard mold, we could press clay in there,
and it would be the exact shape of a quarter.
So, all we need is some gold-colored clay,
a hard mold, and one of Ms. Padaro’s coins.
And the blood of a virgin.
What’s a virgin?
I think it’s someone who gives a lot of blood.
Oh. My grandfather’s a virgin.
I love TV, and if you’re about to say,
“Well, then why don’t you marry it?”
you should know that we’re engaged.
All right, my family. It’s getting late.
Time for bed.
You know, I actually
slept really well last night here on the couch.
Um, I think I’m gonna do that again.
Aw, okay, Mr. Couching Tiger, Sleeping Dragon.
You kids want to have another sleepover at Mom’s?
Yeah!
Hmm, let me check my schedule.
Just kidding. I’m available.
You guys didn’t get kicked last night?
Of course I’m not gonna kick them, Bob. They’re my kids.
Well, actually you did, a little, but it felt nice.
It was like shiatsu.
I’m gonna take a rain check.
Got to rest up for ancient Greece class tomorrow
because I’m a good student.
Wow. Our great parenting just started to work,
with one of you. The rest of you little delinquents come with me.
Yay!
Hey, we can play “Never Have I Ever.”
I’ll start. Never have I ever played “Never Have I Ever.”
(humming) ♪ Making my cozy bed. ♪
Oh, right, books. People like to read those before bed.
Pepper: A Spicy History.
Okay. All right.
Oh, this is nice.
This is very, very nice.
“Forget everything you know about pepper.”
(yawns) Okay.
That might be enough reading for tonight.
LOUISE: All right,
let’s get that coin. Ms. Padaro,
may I be excused to visit the restroom?
Of course.
Thank you.
So, today, I’d like to get into the gods
and Mount Olympus.
Um, I don’t want to alarm anyone,
but there’s a mouse over there!
(gasps) I see it, too.
I don’t see it. Do you know what a mouse looks like?
RUDY: Oh, my gosh, it was right there.
Keep looking.
Yeah, yeah.
Keep looking in that direction
and no-no other direction.
Huh.
Weird, yeah. He must’ve scurried away.
Sorry. And… take us back to Greece.
(grunts)
A moldy but a goodie.
MS. PADARO: And Zeus was pretty mad…
(screams)
The mouse is back! Everyone look
with your eyes.
And… he’s gone again.
Weirdest thing.
(sighs) Classic mouse.
Coming and going whenever it wants.
I can’t believe I slept through the night last night.
I mean, that’s what nights are for.
No, y-you don’t understand.
This might be the first time
I’ve slept all the way through the night in possibly 15 years.
Is-is this how regular people feel?
I don’t know, but you do look radiant.
I feel radiant.
(door bells jingle)
Hi, kids.
Hey, Mom.
Hey-o.
Uh, hey. I have a little group project
to do with Rudy and Millie.
Is it okay if we go upstairs? We really need to focus.
Uh, sure.
I don’t remember
doing a group project for the ancient Greek unit.
Do you?
The younger generation
just lives in another world, don’t they?
Okay, we have our mold.
We have our gold clay. The oven is preheating.
Let’s make some money, people.
I’m in her room.
We can hear you.
No, you can’t.
(grunts)
LOUISE: Come to mama.
Oh…
She’s beautiful.
Bake, you little fakies.
LINDA: ♪ Slumber party dance party, lying down in bed ♪
♪ Pew, pew, pew, pew ♪
(vocalizing)
LINDA: ♪ Slumber party dance party, lying down in bed… ♪
Mm. Where else can I go that’s quiet? Oh.
This could work.
MS. PADARO: So, the Socratic method
is about asking questions and challenging assumptions.
There’s no right answer.
Well, that kind of takes the pressure off.
Ooh, we better get to the marketplace.
Yeah, o-okay, sure. Yeah. All right.
Oh, the marketplace you say?
Suppose I could check it out.
(chuckles nervously)
What if she figures out our coins are fake?
She won’t if we just play it cool.
(inhales deeply) Take it in.
Don’t you just love the danger?
What? No! I don’t!
Guys, pull it together. This is just a test-drive.
We don’t want to set off any alarms.
One small thing each.
Okay, who’s next? Louise?
Yes. Hello.
RUDY and MILLIE: Hi.
Holy crap, it worked. It worked.
What a rush.
Okay, so it’s game on.
Now, I love school.
I kind of want to steal a truck.
I could put this sticker in my locker. I could put this
sticker on my skateboard if I had a skateboard.
Smell this. I love eraser smell.
I can’t believe we can make our own coins
and get whatever we want.
Guys, I love this stuff, too,
but we got to keep a low profile
and try to get called on every now and then, okay?
So, what are we gonna do?
(inhales deeply)
Never stop buying stuff?
No.
We’re gonna keep a low profile.
No big-ticket items and no spending sprees.
-Right. Yup. Got it. Yup. -Okay, great. Great. Yeah. Got it.
♪ Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, whoo-ooh ♪
♪ Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah ♪
♪ Whoo-ooh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah ♪
♪ Whoo-ooh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah ♪
♪ Whoo-ooh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah ♪
♪ Whoo-ooh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah ♪
♪ Whoo-ooh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. ♪
And Daedalus tells Icarus,
“Hey, buddy, don’t fly
“too high or the sun will melt the wax
on your wings, and you’ll fall.” But Icarus gets pretty cocky,
and he flies way up in the sky, and sure enough,
wax melts, and Icarus comes tumbling down.
I can’t relate to this story at all.
Icarus? More like “Dumb as a stick-arus.”
Let’s open that marketplace.
I know that the windup dolphin costs a lot,
but I have the coins,
and it sure would look badass in my tub.
Bup, bup, bup. Lower shelf only.
Hello, you.
Rudy.
Ooh, I hadn’t even noticed that laser pointer.
Millie.
MS. PADARO: What can I get
for you, Rudy?
Uh…
Three bouncy balls. That’s all we’re getting.
One for each of us. Thank you.
(Millie and Rudy groan)
This is a magical basement wonderland.
♪ I haven’t had a space of my own ♪
♪ Since I was a kid ♪
♪ Who knew I could decorate ♪
♪ Like I just did? ♪
♪ Down here, it could be Christmas ♪
♪ Or summer ♪
♪ Donna Summer ♪
♪ ‘Cause bedtime is me time ♪
♪ I love Mom, but I need a break ♪
♪ It’s a school night, for frick’s sake ♪
TINA and GENE: ♪ Bedtime is me time ♪
ALL: ♪ Bedtime is me time ♪
♪ Not one bedside table, but two ♪
♪ A book I’m almost a quarter way through ♪
♪ And that’s not even the best part ♪
♪ A bathroom of my own ♪
♪ I poop like a king ♪
♪ A candle, lemon water ♪
♪ I heard that’s a thing ♪
(sustains note)
♪ ‘Cause bedtime is me time ♪
ALL: ♪ Bedtime is me time. ♪
(lamp clicks)
Hey, uh, how you doing today, buddy?
I was a little worried about you yesterday.
Oh, what, with the dolphin? Pfft.
I didn’t cry about it in the bathtub at all.
Hey, friends. Look who was feeling
a little crafty last night.
RUDY: Whoa.
LOUISE: What are you doing?
We have a system. We have quality control.
You can’t just make more coins on your own.
Oh, but I did.
Wow. No offense,
but some of these are really bad.
Oh, no! Some coins aren’t the exact right perfect shape.
Sue me.
Millie, that one’s basically square.
And I’m pretty sure that’s a penny.
Okay, God!
I won’t use the really bad ones.
That’s all of them. Okay, new rule, Millie,
no using any of those coins.
I didn’t realize today was bring your mother to school day.
You guys coming in?
Yup. Get me to the Greek, right?
Whoa!
(phone chimes)
“Did you know peppercorns are actually dried berries?”
Aw. He loves that pepper book.
“You’re cute when you read a book.”
Hey, if you want to chat with Dad,
I could rest my eyes for a few hours.
Yeah, I think I left the Dutch oven on in my bed.
I should go check it.
No, no, no. Sorry, I’m off. We’re moisturizing.
Okay, sure.
Great.
(phone chimes)
Wait, hold on.
“I think I might need reading glasses.”
“Get them. You’ll look good.
Like a sexy senior citizen.”
Yup. I-I need glasses.
The Hippocratic Oath is named after…
Oops. Did anyone drop a coin? Huh.
This one looks a little different.
Millie.
What the hell?
Uh, different how?
The shape’s a little funny.
Like “ha-ha” funny?
I mean, it’s… not like it’s counterfeit. (chuckles)
Yeah. No one would do that.
And if it was, I did put in
a little secret security feature.
Security feature? That sounds, uh, neat. What is that?
When I made my coins, I baked in a little strip
of aluminum foil, so I’d know they were mine. See?
Oh. There’s no foil.
That’s weird. Huh…
Foil.
No foil. Foil.
Foil. No foil.
Wait, someone’s making fake coins?
Looks like it.
Isn’t that, like, bad?
Yes. It’s really bad.
Should we call the FBI?
Maybe. No, probably not.
But I want whoever did this to step forward.
All right.
I’ll let the guilty party sleep on it,
and if no one comes forward tomorrow, then no symposium.
No what?
No party.
(all exclaiming)
My heart!
But what about the bottomless grape juice?
Gone.
What about the baklava for days?
Bakla-not gonna happen.
Aw, man.
(others groaning)
Oh, crap.
I got to say, I miss the cushions.
Yeah, is it okay to sit on the couch’s skeleton like this?
If you saw my setup in the basement,
you’d agree it’s worth it, but also, let me know
if you have any blankets you’re not using.
(phone rings)
Hello? Oh, hi, Rudy. Louise,
it’s for you.
Um, I’ll take it in the kitchen.
Got it. Hello?
Hey, Louise. It’s Rudy. Quick question.
Do you think they’ll let me take my stuffed animal to jail
because I can’t sleep without Pancake!
No one’s going to jail, okay, buddy?
Hold on, that’s the other line.
I don’t think I would like the food there.
Hello?
I think we got to get rid of Rudy. I think he’s gonna talk.
Millie, he’s not gonna talk, okay?
He’s on the other line, and he’s cool as a cucumber. Hold on.
Rudy, how we doing?
I’m freaking out!
Hold on. Hi, Millie.
How’s Rudy? He’s cracking, right?
He’s slightly worried.
He, you know, doesn’t want to ruin the party for everyone.
People can get grape juice
other places in their life, Louise, it’s fine.
Hey, I’m not worried about it,
or feeling guilty about it, at all.
You’re not gonna make a peep. Rudy’s not gonna make a peep.
Anyone who makes a peep gets hit in the head
with a lead peep.
Okay, okay, geez.
You still back there, sweetie?
Oh, sorry. I might’ve fallen asleep
from all the fun we’re having.
You should do what I do,
use your face as a hand.
(phone rings)
Hi, hon.
Hey, Lin. What-what are you up to?
Little back rub train before bed. What about you?
I was just about to go to sleep, but I thought,
you know, I’d say good night.
Mm. Boy, I just realized I-I haven’t had
my toothbrush in a long time.
Oh, I noticed. Hey, I could bring it down for you.
You-you want to come here? Now?
Yeah, I want to see what you’ve done down there.
Okay. Uh, great. I’ll-I’ll see you in a few minutes.
Oh, my God, Linda’s coming over.
This place is not ready for company.
Too sad. Too Dixieland-y. Here we go.
(soft music playing)
LINDA: Knock, knock.
Ooh, it’s nice down here.
Look at you with the lights and the stuff.
I feel like I’m in a dirty basement in Paris.
(grunts) Ooh, it’s cold, though.
Yeah, it can get a little chilly.
I’ve been sleeping with all the blankets I could find
and three towels.
Here’s your toothbrush.
Thank you.
I’ll put that… here. Would you like a drink?
I’m making myself a beer in a glass.
Fancy. I’ll take a wine in a glass, if you have one,
and I don’t want to be forward, but I might
get in your bed real quick ’cause it’s freezing.
How about wine that’s a beer? And we share the glass.
And it’s not cold.
Everything else here is cold, but the beer is warm.
Let’s see if I can… (groans)
Oh. Okay.
All right.
Squeeze in here. I’m in.
Oh! It’s tight.
We’re both, we’re both in.
I’m off! Now I’m off.
We’re both in. Oh!
Now I’m off.
Let me, let me pull you back up.
I can be off, uh, over here a little bit. It’s fine.
This is nice.
I should come back upstairs, right?
Yeah, you should. I miss your night farts.
It’s always three in a row. It’s comforting.
Yeah, and I miss hearing your sleep muttering.
Whatever it is you’re saying, you’re very emphatic.
I’m not kicking anymore, by the way. The kids are.
They’re kicking me like crazy.
I guess they started fighting back.
Should I, uh, bring the Christmas lights?
Yeah, and the beer, and brush your teeth.
Right, right.
MS. PADARO: Okay, everyone.
You had a night to think about it.
Who wants to come forward?
Well, then, unfortunately,
I have to call off the symposium.
(students groan)
Come on!
Just say you did it,
whoever you are. I deserve a party.
I haven’t been to one since Saturday.
Yeah, and I’m not allowed to have grape juice at home,
so fess up!
You know, I’m just… I’m really disappointed,
and the ancient Greeks would be, too.
They believed in ethics, fairness, justice.
I mean, to be honest,
I don’t know if I want to do this unit again.
What do you mean?
It’s a lot of work. I mean,
I buy all this stuff with my own money.
It’s too much if something like this is gonna happen.
Oh, uh, well, philosophically,
maybe we should talk this through.
That-That’s Greek, right? Philosophically?
Yeah.
Well, speaking of fairness,
whoever made the coins, I’m just guessing,
maybe they did it because it wasn’t quite fair
the way the coins were being handed out.
I’m just using the Socratic method.
That’s not the Socratic method.
Uh, is it not the Socratic method?
That’s the Socratic method.
Oh, really? I’m just saying,
I don’t know, but I’m imagining that, whoever did this,
they might have had their hand up a lot
and didn’t get called on because sitting in a circle
is not a great idea because it’s a bad idea.
I mean, is it not a bad idea?
So, hypothetically, this person felt
it was okay for them to make fake coins?
You know, Socrates said suffering an injustice
does not make it okay to commit an injustice.
Good to know, good to know.
Um, maybe the people who committed the injustice
also feel bad about getting the party canceled
and also kind of really liked the class
and maybe wouldn’t want you to stop teaching it.
And maybe those people didn’t sleep at all last night,
even though they have Pancake.
I don’t know, maybe those people don’t feel
any regret at all, just adrenaline, and that’s fine.
Hmm. I guess the rewards thing can be problematic.
Also, at any given moment, I can’t see
half the class, and I’m nearsighted,
and my hearing’s not that great.
Maybe this is more ethically complicated than I thought.
I’m not sure what’s happening,
but does that mean we can have the party?
Uh, yeah. Okay.
(students cheer)
I guess we should accept
that we may never get to the bottom of this.
Louise, Rudy, Millie, will you see me after class? No reason.
Yup. Yup. Yup.
Oh, God.
Not a peep.
(music playing)
(overlapping chatter)
I got it, I got it.
Third time you bumped the table. (chuckles) Just saying, but, uh, have fun.
Totally fair punishment, Ms. Padaro.
Yup.
I know.
Hey, so my dad has a laser printer.
I think we can make $30 bills.
Bad influence!
Bad influence!
Pancake, my number one snuggle pal, this is for you.
♪ Your eyes are on the same side of your head ♪
♪ You live in the ocean that is my bed ♪
♪ Uh-huh, Pancake, you found me ♪
♪ And I found you ♪
(grunting rhythmically)
♪ I want to thank you ♪
♪ How do I thank you? ♪
♪ I guess by thanking you ♪
♪ Pancake, I thank you. ♪
I know you’d squeeze me back if you could, buddy. I love you.
