Bringing Up Buster
3rd episode of the 1st season of Arrested Development
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"Bringing Up Buster" is the third episode of the first season of the American television satirical sitcom Arrested Development. It was written by series creator Mitchell Hurwitz and consulting producer Richard Rosenstock, and directed by producer Joe Russo. It originally aired on the Fox Network on November 16, 2003.
Episode 3
Richard Rosenstock
| "Bringing Up Buster" | |
|---|---|
| Arrested Development episode | |
Michael burns himself on the Cornballer, which was created from a metajoke by series creator Mitchell Hurwitz. | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 3 |
| Directed by | Joe Russo |
| Written by | Mitchell Hurwitz Richard Rosenstock |
| Cinematography by | James Hawkinson |
| Editing by | Lee Haxall |
| Production code | 1AJD02 |
| Original air date | November 16, 2003 |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Guest appearances | |
| |
The series, narrated by Ron Howard, follows the Bluths, a formerly wealthy, dysfunctional family, who made their money from property development. In the episode, Michael (Jason Bateman) is forced by Lucille (Jessica Walter) to spend a day with Buster (Tony Hale). Meanwhile, George Michael (Michael Cera) auditions for a school play to get closer to Maeby (Alia Shawkat), who wants to get closer to jock Steve Holt (Justin Grant Wade).
Plot
In the mid-70s, George Sr. attempted to market a cornball maker called the "Cornballer", but was unsuccessful, as the machine was made illegal all over the world after multiple people burned themselves while using the device. The Cornballer, however, became popular in Mexico.
In the present, Maeby auditions for a play at her school, wanting to get closer to her crush, Steve Holt, who also auditioned. George Michael, wanting to get closer to his cousin Maeby, also auditioned, but only got the part titled "Stand-in for Steve Holt." Tobias, thinking Maeby auditioned so she could be an actress like him, talks to the school and becomes the new stage director, resulting in Maeby quitting the play. After a conversation with Michael, Tobias begins to suspect that George Michael has a crush on Steve, which later results in George Michael quitting the play, only to learn Maeby joined the play once again. At the end of the day, George Michael watches as Maeby kisses Steve Holt, unaware Maeby did not enjoy the kiss.
Because the family funds are frozen, Buster has to cancel his yearly summer studies and stays at home with his mother, Lucille. She becomes annoyed by his presence and begs Michael to spend time with him. Michael reluctantly agrees and spends the entire day with his brother, though he also finds his presence annoying. Buster returns with his mom, and Michael and George Michael spend the rest of the day making cornballs on the Cornballer.
Production
"Bringing Up Buster" was directed by producer Joe Russo, and written by series creator Mitchell Hurwitz and consulting producer Richard Rosenstock. It was Hurwitz's third writing credit for the series, and Rosenstock's first.[1] It was the second episode of the ordered season to be filmed after the pilot.[2]
During Buster's swearing rant, his speech is bleeped for a prolonged period of time. Tony Hale, who portrays Buster, claims that he "[screamed] out the alphabet" to make it look like he was actually swearing. He later joked that he only has "three solid words [in my] cuss vocabulary".[3] Hale noted the episode for introducing further background information on Buster, calling it "great" in that aspect.[4]
The Cornballer, an invention seen in the episode that was created by George Sr. in the 1970s, was a metajoke from series creator Mitchell Hurwitz. Hurwitz said he knew the episode would "end with a father-son rapprochement", and originally wanted to include the phrase "That's a little cornball". The phrase, which was inspired from slang used in "old Broadway", also came from Hurwitz's time on The John Larroquette Show, a period he described as "obnoxious".[5] The prop of the invention used in the episode was made out of parts of a deep fryer and an aquarium, according to Hurwitz.[6]
Analysis
Olivia Armstrong of Decider likened Steve Holt's repeated shouting of his own name to similar behavior often exhibited in a Pokémon character.[7] "Bringing Up Buster" has been cited as an example of George Sr.'s greed and sole interest in profitability, creating items as "worthless" as The Cornballer and shamelessly selling them to the consumer.[8]
Release and reception
In the United States, the episode was watched by 5.78 million viewers on its original broadcast. It received a 2.6 percent share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49, meaning that it was seen by 2.6% of all households in that demographic.[9]
The A.V. Club writer Noel Murray praised the episode's main message overall, stating that "A lot of 'Bringing Up Buster' is concerned with the characters’ opinions of each other’s parenting choices, which means a public family squabble suits the theme."[10] Olivia Armstrong from Decider praised the simplicity of the episode, stating that "As far as television writing goes, 'Bringing Up Buster' is as flawless as it gets. Though the subplots become a bit convoluted over the life of the series, this is an episode anyone unfamiliar with Arrested Development can grasp and get to know the dynamics within the Bluth family without having to backtrack."[7] In 2019, Brian Tallerico from Vulture ranked the episode as the twelfth best of the whole series.[11]
Aftermath
Hale later screened the episode in 2014 at the Ruby Diamond Concert Hall, to open his talk entitled "Hey Brother! An Evening with Buster Bluth featuring Tony Hale".[4] The Cornballer would become a reoccurring gag for the series, notably reappearing in "The One Where They Build a House" and "Good Grief".[8]