Pilot/Episode #1
"The Phantom Episode"
Written by Ryan Murphy
Original Air Date: 9/29/99
The curtain rises on the yearly drama that we all
know as high school, and like the Montagues and
the Capulets, there are two clans at Kennedy High
-- Popular and Not Popular.
Meet Sam McPherson. She considers herself
"Alternative," a subdivision of Not Popular. She
hates everything the Popular kids stand for. It's
just her luck that Brooke McQueen is assigned to
be her lab partner in biology. Brooke is the
prettiest girl in school and co-captain of the
cheerleading squad, so of course she is totally
Popular and obsessed with staying that way. But
it's great news to Sam's plus-sized friend Carmen
Ferrara. She's positive that Brooke can get her on
the cheerleading squad, a one-way ticket to
popularity, if only Sam will put in a good word for
her.
Of course Sam would do that, if she wasn't
distracted by the major crush she has on her
intellectual rebel journalism teacher, Mr. Grant. He
wants her to do a cover story for the school paper
on popularity. So instead of helping Carmen, Sam
focuses on getting invited to Brooke's party, the
premier social event of the season. The party is
co-hosted by Nicole Julian, Brooke's best friend, co-
captain of the squad, and the judgmental bitch
you love to hate. The party's invite list will
determine who's hot and who's not for the year to
come at Kennedy High.
Meet Josh Ford. He's the star quarterback and
Brooke's boyfriend (which obviously means mondo
popularity), and he's got a freaky secret - he
wants to be in the school musical! Dating a drama
geek is not high on Brooke's list of things to do,
and it strains their relationship. But Josh goes out
for the musical anyway and lands the leading role.
This does not make anyone happy, including
Josh's hard-core father and his gargantuan
teammate, Sugar Daddy.
Carmen isn't so lucky. She doesn't make the
squad even though she rocked the tryout. Nicole
simply cannot allow a fat person in the group
because it goes against the social standard.
It's week one at Kennedy High, and the stage is set for war.
Going up?
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