Raising Hope (2010–2014): Season 2, Episode 1 - Prodigy - full transcript

Welcome back.

Did everybody had a great summer?

Well, I feel I should mention

we lost one
of our favorite seniors.

Sherwood. He used
to start each day

with a song that perfectly
recapped what was going on.

So, in his honor,

I'd like to sing a song
about each one of you.

Let's start with, um...

with Hope.

Hope's father didn't have
much going on



Living with his parents,
mowing some lawns

His life was going
nowhere fast

One night he met a lady
and they had a good time

Till he learned she was a
killer, the serial kind

And the cops,
they fried her ass

But before they did,
she birthed him a kid

And Jimmy found
a purpose in the world

Though he doesn't have a clue,
he somehow manages to

Raise a perfect little girl

Some kids have all the love

A great dad
and if that wasn't enough

Hope's got a gang
who loves her greatly

Grandma Virginia,
sarcastic and funny

Grandpa Burt skims
pools for money



And Maw Maw,
she's just crazy

Hope's life wouldn't
be complete-a

Without Jimmy's friend
Sabrina

Who Jimmy loves
but hasn't told her so

Although, come on,
she's got to know

You might think
I am a dreamer

But you'll understand
just when you meet her

Why everyone loves
our little Hope

And since we last saw her

She's gotten bigger,
stronger, smarter

She feeds herself and walks
and can say "No"

These few months,
we sure have missed her

But we welcome back
our daycare sister

Welcome back to Hope

Welcome back
to Hope.

Whoo!

That's Daddy when
he was 13.

I just drew a superhero.

I'm going to put it on a T-shirt
and then...

- Bird in the house!
- Bird in the house!

Get ready. Here it comes.

Yes!

I don't remember
this exactly, but...

Seems like a pretty average
day from my childhood.

It kind of tickles.

Wait, no, it doesn't.

It's pecking!
It's pecking!

It's pecking!

2011, and still no jet packs.

I feel like I should
write a letter to somebody.

What you watching?

I'm just showing Hope
some home movies

of me as a kid.

Whoa, hey.
Wh-What's that?

Hey, I'm
playing the piano.

I used to be able
to play the piano?

No, you're
not really...

That is so funny.

You really don't remember?

Before it broke, that piano was
the kind that could play itself.

So you're just faking it.

That's wild.

Look at Daddy, Hope.

Daddy's funny.

Baby, here I am

I'm the man on the scene

I can give you
what you want

But you got to come home
with me

I have got some
good ol lovin'

And I got some more
in store

When I get through
throwin' it on you

You gotta come back for more

Boys are things that come
by the dozen

But that ain't nothin'
but drugstore lovin'

Hey, little thing,
let me light your candle

'Cause mama, I'm sure hard
to handle now, gets around...

Okay, fine.

At one point
in your life

you might have been a little...
amazingly talented.

When you were 13, Maw Maw
decided to teach you piano.

A music career

may be his only ticket

to get us out
of this hell hole.

Unless you think he's smart
enough to go to college.

Maw Maw hated
yelling at you,

so she started teaching
with a partner.

I'm sorry, Maw Maw...

Oh, no, don't apologize
to me.

- It's Mr. Jingles who gets angry.
A-Flat minor!

I wanted you to play an A.
If I wanted A-Flat minor,

I'd have you go play
with your girlfriend's chest.

Her methods were unorthodox,
but she got results.

Before we knew it,

you were playing right along
with your father.

I couldn't believe it.

After 13 years of watching you
underachieve

at almost everything,
I was finally realizing

that I gave birth
to a genius...

a musical genius.

I was so proud to show you off,

I got you a spot in the
Natesville Music Academy's

annual recital.

Actions speak louder
than words

And I'm a man of great
experience

I know you got you
another man

But I can love you
better than him

Take my hand...

That night, all the teenage
girls in the audience

got a bad case of Jimmy fever.

I'm advertising
love for free

So you can place
your ad with me

Boys are things that
come by the dozen

But that ain't nothing
but drugstore lovin'

'Cause hey, little thing,
let me light your candle

'Cause mama, I'm sure hard to
handle now now, gets around...

And I admit it...
being the mother

of a genius was addicting.

Wherever we went,
I just loved to show you off.

The sun's really
shining today, isn't it?

You want to see a son shining?

You should see
my son shine.

Jimmy, come here.

Sing that song
from the radio.

You know, Mama's favorite.

She doesn't own a dress

Her hair is always a mess

If you catch her stealing,
she won't confess

She's beautiful

Smokes a pack a day

Wait, that's me,
but anyway

Meet Virginia.

That's me... Virginia.
Mom of a genius.

Shh!

Stop that.
Shut up.

Go ahead, keep singing, honey.
They're just jealous.

Well, she wants
to be the queen

And she thinks...

You greasy-haired little turds!

When you came to, you
didn't know where you were

or how to play piano
or sing or anything

from the last eight months.

You had ambrosia.

Anemia.
Anemia.

But singing and playing
music is a talent.

I'm sure it has to be
in here somewhere.

This is killing me.

He had so much talent,
and I squandered it.

He could have been an
international superstar.

Like David Hasselhoff,
or Hello Kitty.

Meet Virginia

Ugh!
I can't wait to...

Jimmy, for the love
of God, stop it!

You're killing your mother!

I don't know what's harder to
believe... that that's you,

or that you haven't changed
your hair in ten years.

You stick with what works.

It's too bad you can't play
like this anymore, because...

Baby, here I am,
I'm the man on the scene

I can give you what you want
Whoa.

But you got to come
home with me

I have got some
good ol' lovin'

And I got some more
in store...

For God's sake, Jimmy,

please just give up!

You should have seen
Sabrina today.

She's never looked
at the real me

the way she looked
at the me on the tape.

Of course not, honey.

The you on that tape

had talent and charisma,
but that's gone.

I feel terrible,

but we tried everything.

And there was just
no bringing it back.

Maybe we should
try again.

Uh, what kind of stuff
did you do?

What did the
doctor suggest?

Don't tell me you didn't
take me to a doctor.

I got nailed in the head
with a golf club.

It was a putter.

We didn't have insurance.

But we gave you bed rest
and we prayed.

And then we gave you
every single thing

in the medicine cabinet.

Of course, then you got severe
dizziness and stomach cramps.

You were kind
of a delicate flower.

And I haven't been able
to remember anything

and I haven't been able to play
the piano or sing ever since.

That's fascinating,

because when you guys
walked in here

I thought for sure you were
looking for oxycontin.

Hey, settle this
argument for us.

If he got hit on the head and
lost eight months of memory,

doesn't it make sense that if he
got hit on the head again

he'd get it back?

Oh, you mean like
when Gilligan got amnesia

when the Skipper hit him
with the board,

and then later in the episode
he got his memory back when he

got hit in the head
with a coconut?

Yes. See, doctor's
with me on this.

No, I wasn't agreeing with you,
I was just...

No. Hitting him with a coconut
won't work. Don't do that.

In other words, we shouldn't take
medical advice from Gilligan?

It wasn't Gilligan's idea.

There was a professor
on that island.

Professor.

It's dangerous to get medical
advice from a TV comedy.

They tend to make up whatever
medical stuff they want as long

as it makes the story work.
The truth is,

the therapy that seems to
trigger the most recall

is recreating the events
that were forgotten.

Recreating?
Muscle memory.

Sights, or even smells
can unlock the lost memories.

And once they're unlocked,
it's like they were never gone.

Ow.

That sounds like crap.

You're clumsier with these keys
than a janitor with Parkinson's.

Ow!

Mr. Jingles
never liked him.

Everyone was excited about the ideea to
me playing piano again.

Mow Mow was looking forward
to teaching me.

I was anctious to play for Sabrina.

And mom was looking forward
to showing of to her

the talented son, to the Nice
Film Musichal Academy, again.

So, everything will be just
like it was when I was 13

and I sold the legs of piano bench,
and dag up my old T-shirt.

That's horrible.

That's the worst "Chopsticks"
I ever heard.

That could make three billion
Chinese switch to forks.

The only problem was
, nothing worked.

Desperate, we taped my fingers
to Maw Maw's,

hoping that muscle memory
would kick in

and unlock what
that golf club took away.

Not only did that not work,

but I discovered Maw Maw's
boobs itch.

And her undies creep up a lot.
Oh!

Hey, why aren't
you practicing?

Yeah, get in there!
Brought a surprise home.

To recreate what happened when
that bird got in the house.

Guess what it is.

Death.

You've come for me.

It's no use.

The recital is tomorrow, and I
still haven't unlocked it,

and I am sick of
Hope watching me suck.

I just have to accept
that what I had is gone.

And I'm never getting it back.

You can't give up!

Jimmy, you're not just
doing this recital for you!

Think about how guilty your mom feels
about what happened. No, Burt.

Me pushing him to be a star is
what caused this whole mess.

If he wants to stop,
he should stop.

I'm not going to push anymore.

Then I will!

Let's go. Let's go.
Let's go. Let's go.

Let's go. Let's go. Let's go.
Let's go. Burt...

It works! You think Michael
Jackson would've been a star

if it wasn't for
Joe Jackson's abuse?

Stop it.

He may not be a Michael,

but he could be a Tito,
or a Reggie. Get up!

What the hell is
the matter with you?

This is all my fault.

First I thought it was cool.

Like we were going to
turn into a family band.

Maybe even do a commercial
about how much we love cotton.

But then it started to be less
about us and more about you.

Shh.

Hey, little thing,
let me light your candle...

I was jealous. First of
how much attention you were

getting from all those
girls in the audience,

but then from all the attention
you were getting from my girl.

So I decided to
challenge you at something

I knew you couldn't beat me at.

Who wants to go
putt-putt golfing?

But the way I played that day,

you'd never know that
I owned the course record.

Burt, just pick up the ball
and put it on the course.

Nobody cares what
your score is.

You know what, you guys go
ahead. I'm going to go warn

the manager about some
early-onset algae I saw.

It's fine.

Hey, you can't
take that putter.

And she thi...

I know it was a
horrible thing to do.

You gotta believe how bad
I felt all those years.

I'll never forget that day.

September 11, 2001.

The day I threw
that damn putter.

I'm so, so sorry.

It's okay, Dad.

It was a freak accident.

Just like me playing the piano
was probably a freak accident.

Look at us, we're
not great at things.

We're normal
at things.

I'm fine with that.

Well, don't beat yourself
up too bad about it.

It's not like we're
not great at anything.

We're great at drinking beer.

Amen.

You're not taking me

before you take Betty White!

And not for nothing,
but I am very, very proud

of the fact that I-I am a very,
very, very fast grocery bagger.

You know a talent
I have that I have

great proudishness
for is my ability

to roll a Frisbee on
its side very, very far.

Hey, 90% of the time

I can guess exactly
what time it is.

I mean, you know, um...
within 20 minutes either way.

You know something
we're all great at?

Running fast down
a flight of stairs.

Yes.
Gravity does most of the work,

but you got to know where
to put your feet. Uh-huh.

I will tell you...
I'll tell you right now

one of the best... best
things that we're great at...

Oh, what's that?

I forgot.

Oh, it was good, too.

I got it, I got it.
Damn it.

We're really great at
loving each other.

Aw.

Jimmy, as my father,
I want you to know

no matter how much you do
or do not suck at things,

I am never gonna let you go.

I'm never gonna let you go

Gonna hold you
in my arms forever

Gonna try and make up
for the times

I hurt you so

Gonna...

Gonna hold your
body close to mine

From this day on,
we're gonna be together

Oh, I swear this time

I'm never gonna
let you go...

Oh, my God...

Jimmy...

How old were you when you
started sneaking beers?

Uh, I think I was 13.

Get to the piano!

I'm never gonna let you go

I'm gonna hold you
in my arms forever

Gonna try to make up
for all the times

I hurt you so

Gonna...

We unlocked it.

We unlocked it!

...we're gonna be together

Oh, I swear this time

I'm never gonna let you go.

Ow. You hit a tangle. Easy.

You don't think Bieber has
people fussing over him?

Now be still.

Sabrina was so excited
when I told her

I was going to play today.

I'm thinking of doing this
Springsteen-Courtney Cox thing

where I bring her on stage.

Tie's done.

Go run through your
song a few times.

And open up the windows
so the neighbors can hear.

I want that family
with the mailbox that

looks like the space shuttle
to know we've got

good stuff going on
over here, too.

Go on.

He'll warm up.

Baby, here I am

I'm the man on the scene...

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no,
no, no ...

What's happening?
I don't know!

It's gone.

Everything
I could do is gone.

Wait a minute.

What's different about
right now from last night?

About eight beers?

That's right.
You were drunk.

Okay, this makes perfect sense.
I saw an episode of Family Guy

where their dad could only play
piano when he was drunk.

Yes!

And I saw a sitcom on ABC

where a lady couldn't speak
Italian unless she was drunk.

All right!

You know what else
we're great at?

Remembering important
things we see on TV

that help us navigate
the rough waters of our lives.

Ah.
Burt...

stop drinking
Jimmy's beers.

All his talent is in those cans.

And let him drink alone?
Like some alcoholic?

I may not have
been the best father,

but if you think I'm gonna...

Okay, okay.
Forget I mentioned it.

Is Jimmy drunk?

He and his father
just had a couple drinks

on the way over, you know, just
to calm the nerves. Right.

Play "The Devil
Went Down to Georgia!"

Our next performer is quite
a bit older than the rest,

but I allowed it
because his parents

have promised
to both cut my lawn

and clean my house
for the next month.

James Chance.

I made that
boy with my wang!

Baby, I am,
I'm the man on the scene

I can give you what you want

But you gotta
come home with me

I have got
some good ol' lovin'

I got some more in store

I'm gonna go.

I don't think Jimmy will
remember seeing me here,

and I'd rather
not remember, either.

What is going on?

Did we not get him
drunk enough?

He sounds terrible.

What are you talking about?
He sounds fantastic.

Pretty little
thing, let me light your candle

'Cause, mama, I'm sure hard to
handle, now, gets around

Oh, my God.

He wasn't good last night.

We just thought he was
because we were all drunk!

Oh.

Did you hear that?

I did.

That wasn't bad.

I mean, I'm not saying it's
a song or anything, but...

It sounded like something,
right? Am I crazy?

You're not crazy.

That sounded like a
couple notes from...

Oh, who's that dude
with Barbara Walters' hair

and named after the movie dog?

Beethoven.
Yes!

I think she may have your gift.

I got it!

Sometimes as adults

we have to give up the dreams
we had as children.

And that stings.

But when you have kids,
it stings a little less.

Because the emptiness you
feel from your lost dreams

is more than filled up with
the dreams you have for them.

If I can stay lucid
for an hour after school

Tuesdays and Thursdays,
you've got a bright future.

I think she's gonna be great.

And I'm not giving
up on you yet, either.

I put that video of you
playing on the Internet.

It's got seven hits already.

You might just be famous yet.

Hey, little thing,
let me light your candle

'Cause, mama, I'm sure...

Hard...

To handle...

Whoa-oa-oa...

Yeah

Hey...

Eight hits!