iCarly Saves TV (also known as iCarly Saves Television[2]) is the twenty-third episode of the first season of iCarly. This episode marks the second extended episode behind iPilot, being 27 minutes long instead of the usual 24 minutes.
Plot
A big-time TV producer from TVS Records notices that his daughter dislikes his new show, but would rather watch iCarly on the internet, so he decides to make iCarly into a hit TV show. Initially blinded by the extravagance of riding in a limo and of being part of a big TV production, Carly, Sam, and Freddie (with Spencer's permission) agree to the scheme. Freddie is made the "supervising producer" of the show.
Things go well at first with Sam and Carly performing a good show, helped by the addition of a studio band featuring Harper, a very talented teen musician. Things soon begin to turn negative as the producer proceeds to make more and more ill-conceived changes. He adds an obnoxious dinosaur character named Zeebo to the cast, and eliminates Harper's band, then forces Harper to take over the role of Zeebo after Sam beats up the original actor. Ultimately he fires Sam and replaces her with a child superstar named Amber Tate, who turns out to be a complete diva. Freddie, however, has that found his "supervising producer" title qualifies him to act as a "gofer" for the producer. He is forced to do demeaning jobs such as toasting bagels, cleaning out fish tanks, rubbing ice on a man's stomach and bathing Amber's dog, who later throws up on him several times.
Carly also threatens to quit and go back to the webcast, only to learn that the studio now owns the iCarly name and the concept. And after another rehearsal where it's clear that Carly and Amber are not getting along, Harper quits and Carly vents out at Amber for taking advantage of Freddie, who then finally quits after they cross the line when he's ordered to plunge a toilet, leaving Carly to take her anger out on the producer for changing the format completely. Fortunately, when Carly reminds him that the show isn't even iCarly anymore, the producer has another brainstorm.
Back at the apartment, Carly, Sam, Spencer, and Freddie watch the first episode of their new teen sitcom. It turns out the producer's idea is to drop the iCarly name and concept completely and go back to his original lame teen sitcom idea from the start of the episode, only now it includes Zeebo and Amber Tate, making the show much worse. With iCarly back on the web and back the way it's supposed to be, Carly and Sam welcome Harper as a musical guest, who sings a song he wrote for iCarly.
Meanwhile, at home, Mrs. Benson and Spencer try to fill the void by acting like family to each other. Mrs. Benson begins treating Spencer in the same manner as she treats Freddie. Spencer objects at first, until he learns about the sugar-free lollipops and the soothing boo-boo spray she keeps in her industrial-strength first aid kit.
Extended Scenes
- After the watermelon explodes the first time, they show it in slow motion.
- After Spencer says, "This is a guava", he says Guava one more time and then all the students say it.
- An additional scene is added where it shows the gang riding in the limo, but it just shows the limo on the road. Carly first says "This limo is huge!" Followed by Sam saying "I know, this thing would be perfect for the world's fattest priest." (from iWant a World Record). Followed by Freddie saying, "Why are you obsessed with that guy?" Then Sam says, "Whoops looks like my finger's in your nose!" At the end of the scene, Spencer says "Who wants a bite of my guava", with everyone saying no.
- After Mrs. Benson comes into the meeting, she starts brushing Freddie's hair.
- After Sam says, "We get our own band?" Freddie says "Seriously!" Then, Carly and Sam have a little conversation, and then fist bump at the end.
- Freddie says, "Yes, good times…" after Carly, Sam and Harper talk about the embarrassing iCarly bit when Sam tied Freddie up and shaved his eyebrow off.
- Brad says "Enough chittin' and chattin" before "You guys ready for your first rehearsal?"
- Right after Brad says, "Why don't you go produce me a toasted bagel with cream cheese", the end of the scene is extended slightly.
- Instead of the screen dissolving in the normal episode to the scene with Spencer, it shows Bushwell Plaza, then it shows the scene instead of just dissolving.
- Right after Mrs. Benson leaves to get her sewing machine, Spencer throws the cucumber cups to the ceiling.
- Sam is beating up Zeebo longer and Zeebo says "I--can't--believe--this is--still--going--on" when they come back from commercial.
- The sweaty guy asks Freddie "Do you like Italian food?"
- After Brad tells Carly she cannot go home and resume iCarly as a webshow, Freddie asks "What do you mean she can't?"
- When the first rehearsal with Amber Tate starts, Brad tells Harper to put his Zeebo head on, but he refuses, saying it smells like that dude's head.
- Amber Tate says "Did he make your tummy upset?" to her dog before thumping Freddie.
- Amber Tate also says "I'll thump who I wanna thump."
- Harper's song is extended a LOT compared to the regular version.
Guest Stars
- David Starzyk as Brad Brenner[3]
- Mary Scheer as Marissa Benson[3]
- Leon Thomas III as Harper[3]
- Rachel G. Fox as Amber Tate[3]
- Sammi Hanratty as Morgan Brenner[3]
- Jeannette Sousa as Nancy[3]
Co-Star
- Dan D'Amicol as Ethan[3]
Featuring Stars
- Bruce Dworkin as Sweaty Guy[3]
- Chris Flanders as TV Dad[3]
- Dakota Floeter as Guitarist[3]
- Jake Farrow, Arthur Gradstein & Dicky Murphy] as BTS comedy writers[3]
- Steve Hoefer as the BTS director[3]
- Chaz James as Band member[3]
- Scott Olynek as Boom operator[3]
- Julianna Rose as Michelle[3]
- Andrea "Dre" Swain as herself[3]
- Tramaine Wanzo as assistant[3]
- Lisa K. Wyatt as Mrs. Walker[3]
Trivia
- The "sweaty guy scene" was cut briefly from the UK iCarly episode.[citation needed]
- This episode is the 23rd episode of season 1, but is the 19th episode produced, meaning it was produced just before iHate Sam's Boyfriend (15th episode aired)
- This is the first time Carly's name was used in the title.
- This episode's original idea was sent in by an iCarly.com user named fox1014.[citation needed]
- Harper is the third person on the show to sing on iCarly, after Jake in iLike Jake and the Plain White Tees in the episode, iRue The Day.
- Both David Starzyk (Brad Brenner) and Leon Thomas III (Harper) would star in another Dan Schneider production, Victorious. Starzyk would play Principal Eikner and Thomas would play André Harris.
- In the scene where the iCarly team are given the proposal of having their webcast turned into a TV show, Jerry Trainor is seen drinking from a bottle of POM brand Blueberry Pomegranate juice.
- The extended version of this episode can be seen on DVD.
- Many of the extras on the set were actual crew members who work on the show.
- At the end of the episode when Amber Tate and Zeebo were in their house, that is the same house that is shown earlier in the show where Miss Briggs lives.
Allusions
- TVS is a possible parody of CBS, or maybe TBS in name.
- The term "Gofer" was first mentioned as a job on The Muppet Show, where the character Scooter was a gofer: the main idea was that The Muppet Show focused on animals and a gopher was an animal.
- Zeebo is a parody of Barney the Dinosaur, but he resembles Godzooky, Godzilla's nephew in the Godzilla TV series made by Hanna-Barbera productions.
- The real-life show, Full House, is mentioned by a fictional actor who claimed he appeared four times on it and is referenced again in iSam's Mom (by Gunsmoke).
Character Revelations
- It is revealed that Sam once tied up Freddie and shaved his eyebrow during an iCarly webcast.
Goofs
- In the opening sequence when the girls are supposed to be pumping the watermelon with compressed air, Carly actually turns the switch on the compressor to the OFF position.
- Mrs. Benson tells Spencer to be careful with the screwdriver because it is pointy. Then she tries to hand it to him, accidentally stabbing him in the hand. However, the proper and safe way to hand a tool to someone else is by holding the sharp end and handing them the handle. Mrs. Benson, with her obsession about safety, would know the proper way to do it.
Running Gags
- Freddie being assigned tasks that are completely unrelated to being a supervising producer, such as getting a toasted bagel with cream cheese, cleaning a fish tank, cooling down a sweaty man with a bag of ice and bathing a dog.
- Mrs. Benson treating Spencer as if he were a child, such as doing his laundry and giving him a lollipop.
Series Continuity
- In the beginning of the episode, Carly says "Pump Up The Fruit", which appears on Spencer's Penny Tee in iWin a Date.
- Leon Thomas III, the actor who plays Harper, returns again in iParty with Victorious, except playing a different role (André from Victorious).
- The events of this episode are mentioned in the revival episode IBuckled.
Quotes
Brad: Morgan ... |
Morgan: [to Brad about his TV show] It's lame, Daddy. |
Spencer: This is a guava. [turns to classroom] Guava. [nods his head] |
Freddie: Supervising producer. |
Sam: And would there be ribs? |
Brad: Don't worry about that. We're getting rid of the band completely. |
Brad: [to Sam] You're fired. |
Brad: Hey, kid, go unclog the toilet in my office. |
Gallery
See photos of iCarly Saves TV here.
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