If you’ve been on the Internet this week, you know what this Sunday is.
Well, yes, it’s part of Memorial Day Weekend. But for Northwestern students, that holiday is just a reminder that all of your sane, non-quarter-system friends are lying on a beach somewhere. More importantly, this Sunday is when Arrested Development comes back.
After seven years off the air, Arrested Development has returned to Netflix for a fourth season of 15 episodes, with the promise of a movie to come. Whether you’re already parked in front of your computer screen in full Blue Man paint, or you’re new to Arrested Development and wondering why everybody is doing a chicken dance, this guide will prepare you to deal with a very funny seven hours of TV.
"It's like a dream come true. What other television show would do this?" Weinberg freshman Cory Goldman asked. "The entire cast coming back is super cool. Netflix, the best thing ever, is making a new season of the best show ever. I still have a hard time believing it's happening."
How to get ready
Delving into the best-loved Arrested Development moments is a must. Judging by Season 4's trailer, the new episodes will probably have nonstop references to its own greatest hits. Which episodes should every fan re-watch?
"I would watch the episode with the living pageant because it's the first time the audience finds out Tobias is a never-nude, and who doesn't love that?" said Medill freshman Caroline Picard.
"It's an easy show to rewatch because the episodes are so short," added Weinberg sophomore Rebekah Larson.
Because every Arrested Development episode is so golden, everybody has an opinion about which episodes are exactly essential. Weinberg freshman Kyle Allen Neisen voted for "Afternoon Delight," while Weinberg freshman Brendan Morales-Doyle liked "the one where they burn down the banana stand!"
Re-watching episodes aren't the only way to appreciate the old series. "I'm reading all these BuzzFeed articles, like countdowns and the best moments," said Picard.
And, thanks to people whose jobs you wish you had, you can now refresh your memory of every single recurring joke.
How to watch
The fourth season of Arrested Development is a community event. It happened because fans came together and fought for what they loved - like the right to shout “I just blue myself!” at each other. Watching the fourth season should also be done with friends. Plus, with more people watching, you’ll have more people to help spot all the Easter eggs from the first three seasons.
Many Northwestern students agree with this philosophy. A&O will be marathoning the series at Norris starting at 3 p.m., and Goldman says he'll attend.
"I'm probably gonna watch it in my room first, just to have the private experience of watching it," said Goldman. "And then I'll watch it with my friends. I think it's gonna be a real cool opportunity to watch the show. My friends at other colleges, they aren't doing something like this."
For students who are too lazy to leave the comfort of their residence hall or apartment, home TV-watching parties need one essential ingredient: Food. The Bluth food of choice is obviously frozen bananas, but for any cash- or culinarily-challenged Arrested Development fans, ice cream bars make an easy substitute. The Bluths also like “candy beans,” or as non-dysfunctional families call them, jelly beans. Drinks are easy; Just stock up on juice boxes.
And, as students fire up their Netflix, prepare for the Internet to be even slower than usual. But that's not the only possibility haunting campus.
How to deal
"Is Arrested Development gonna be good after so long?" Larson said. "They don't have their groove anymore - the actors, the writers."
What do you do if Arrested Development Season 4 is just not that good? The jokes are stale, the characters are caricatures and whenever you see Will Arnett, you’re sad he and Amy Poehler broke up (and that he’s starring in this atrocity).
How do you deal with your crushing disappointment? You could turn to one of the tried-and-true resources for college student disappointment: A Facebook rant. But since the Internet will be broken thanks to everybody else doing the exact same thing, turn to the other cure for college disappointment. That’s right — turn Season 4 of Arrested Development into a drinking game.
Take a shot whenever you don’t laugh at a recurring joke, when the celebrity cameos are just awkward and whenever you remember how effortlessly perfect seasons 1-3 were. Alcoholic Lucille would be proud.
But, in the end, remember: Watching Arrested Development Season 4 isn’t the hugest mistake of your life. After all, it’s just a TV show. You have real-life worries, like that paper you should be writing instead of watching this show. In the end, Season 4 is just a huge, tiny mistake.