IMeet Fred

iMeet Fred is the 13th episode of the second season of iCarly, the episode originally aired on February 16, 2009. It guest stars Lucas Cruikshank as himself and Fred.

Plot
When Freddie offends international internet sensation, Fred, by stating on an iCarly webisode that he does not think that the Fred videos are funny, Fred is crushed and tells all of his fans that he will not make any more Fred videos. Carly, Sam and Freddie soon start losing friends and acquaintances who are fans of Fred. It looks like as if everybody at Ridgeway turns on the iCarly group. Freddie even gets banned from all of his clubs.

They travel to meet Lucas, Fred's creator and portrayer, at his home in Idaho, so Freddie can apologize for his comments about the Fred videos. Lucas later apologizes, saying he wasn't really mad. He reveals that the so-called "feud" between Fred and iCarly was a plot he came up with to get both the iCarly webshow, and his Fred videos, bigger ratings. At the end of next iCarly webcast, they all make up on camera. They present a new Fred video where Carly, Sam, Freddie and Spencer guest star as themselves with squeaky, high-pitched voices (except for Carly) like Fred.

Subplot
Meanwhile, Spencer puts a Magic Meatball (a parody of a magic eight-ball) in control of his life (like he did in 7th grade), with disastrous results. It first predicts his phone won't ring for the next five seconds, which is true. He is told to drink ketchup when he was thirsty, to go surfing when he was tired, not to accept an offer to display his sculptures and to buy an ostrich named Marvin. We see the meatball tell Spencer all of these things apart from the surfing and the ostrich.

Trivia

 * Lucas Cruikshank is a real-life Internet star, and his character, Fred, can be considered an inspiration for iCarly.
 * Jennette McCurdy, (Sam Puckett) and guest star, Lucas Cruikshank, later co-starred in the 2010 cable film, Fred: The Movie, a film based on the web series that aired on Nickelodeon.
 * Freddie and Sam watch a video titled, "Fred is Dead." This may be a reference to a viral YouTube video of the same name put out in 2008, in response to the immense popularity of the Fred videos, by rival YouTuber, Shane Dawson.
 * Spencer finds his "Magic Meatball," which is a spoof of a "Magic Eightball." The differences are:
 * The magic meatball is brown and lumpy, while a magic eightball is black and white and smooth.
 * The magic meatball talks in a Mexican accent while a magic eightball doesn't talk, but displays a random message.
 * The similarities are:
 * They both give advice about yes or no questions.
 * They both answer after being shaken.
 * The cabbage video that ends the episode includes Sam uttering the phrase, "I buried Paul." One of the more obscure references in iCarly, (for its target audience anyway), this is a reference to the infamous "Paul is dead" conspiracy/urban legend which began in 1969. According to the legend, Paul McCartney of the Beatles supposedly died in a car crash in 1966 and was replaced by a Canadian musician who looked and sounded just like McCartney. Proponents of the theory point to apparent clues on record album covers and within various Beatles recordings themselves. The actual phrase "I buried Paul" is said to be uttered by John Lennon if you listen closely to the end of the Beatles recording of "Strawberry Fields Forever", though Lennon claimed what he said was "cranberry sauce". McCartney has often commented "For the record, Paul is not dead."
 * Also, during the cabbage video, Fred asks "What's wrong with David Schwimmer?". Schwimmer is an actor best known for his role in the long-running sitcom, Friends. Exactly what Fred/Lucas means by the question, if anything, is unclear. This is David's second mention on the show.
 * The website mentioned in this episode, neverwatchicarly.com, redirects to iCarly.com.
 * For some odd reason, Carly's voice isn't turned squeaky like the other characters.
 * In a blooper seen in iBloop, Jerry Trainor attempts to say the line without the squeaky voice "This ostrich thinks I'm a lady!", but the ostrich makes a strange noise and ducks, ruining the take.
 * The Fred video, Fred Goes Swimming, had much of its content cut out, either for censorship issues or time limit problems before the opening sequence.
 * The "drinking ketchup" scene is a reference to the Zoey 101 episode "Lola Likes Chase," where Dustin's date claims that she'd drink 5 bottles of ketchup instead of shaving her head.
 * Sam apparently beat Freddie with a tennis racquet hard enough to cause it to break. In real life, striking a person that severely would have caused intense pain, definite physical trauma, and possibly broken bones, (if struck on any part of the body), and a concussion, loss of consciousness, and severe bleeding, (if the target was the head). Freddie, however, seemed more disgruntled by the beating than anything else. His hair was mussed, and his clothes disheveled, but he appeared no worse for the wear.
 * The shot of Spencer and the ostrich screaming was added to the opening credits, and currently remains one of only 2 shots from earlier opening credits for Season 4, the other being the hat scene from iPilot.

Gallery
View Gallery for this episode here

Quotes
Carly: Until next time, stay in school,

Sam: Recycle,

Carly: Pour milk on your parents,

Sam: Hug a duck,

Carly: Eat a stick of butter,

Sam: And shampoo a squirrel, goodbye!

Freddie: Why are you drinking ketchup?

Spencer: My magic meatball told me to.

Freddie: Who threw this low-fat Fat Cake at my head!?... Well I'm keepin' it!

Freddie: But I'm the team's best long divider!

Freddie: I've been kicked out of every club but the Junior Bow & Arrow Club!

[a flaming arrow with a note is suddenly shot into the wall next to him]

Freddie: [reads the note] I'm out!

Spencer: There's something huge down there trying to kill me! It's either a large dog or a small bear! Lucas: That's my dog Tibbals.

Spencer: Tibbals has my foot! [falls down trap door]

Fred: Why can't it speak Spanish? MUCHACHO!

Reporter: Sam, is it true that you have been arrested four times?

Sam: Three, get your facts straight!