George Sr. suggests a last-ditch effort to save the family by holding a fund raiser to raise money to pay their legal expenses. Michael suggests to Lindsay that she take over the house work, and he sends George-Michael to an expensive boarding school. Meanwhile, Maeby has trouble with a snowboarding film and Tobias tries to be a "discipline daddy".
Tight 53-joke structure delivers consistent character comedy through nested callbacks and ironic reversals.
Directed by Robert Berlinger · Written by Richard Day, Jim Vallely
WAR
144.9
Wins Above Replacement
“S.O.B.S” ranks #14 of 84 Arrested Development episodes on the Humor Index, scoring 97.8 — Elite. The episode packs 85 scored jokes at 3.0 per minute, averaging 7.8 on craft and 7.6 on impact, with Michael landing the most laughs. Every joke is ranked below with its individual craft and impact scores.
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Top Jokes
Narrator · Buster: Oh, and then that old racist woman choked on Buster's thumb. My thumb!
Narrator: Please tell your friends about this show.
Narrator Meta/Self-Referential Deadpan/Understatement ★ Rewatch George Michael · Michael · George Sr.: Muffins? / Oh, my God, Dad. / You're the Muffin Man? / You poisoned 25 teachers during the '70s? / Just the first two. The others were copycats.
Michael · George Sr.: Muffins? Oh my God, Dad. You're the Muffin Man? You poisoned 25 teachers during the '70s? / Just the first two. The others were copycats.
Narrator: Okay, we'll just tell you now. She's the one who dies.
Narrator Meta/Self-Referential Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch All Jokes — 85 analyzed
Show all ↓ Hide ↑ Michael · Lucille: Mr. Loblaw no longer works for us, because someone wanted a boyfriend.
Michael: I was talking to Lindsay, actually, but he was clearly turned off to the both of you.
Michael Deadpan/Understatement Character Comedy Narrator · Buster: Children were neither to be seen nor heard at the school Buster had attended — the Milford Academy.
Lucille: It's the exact opposite. It's called 'Openings.'
Lucille Setup/Punchline Irony/Sarcasm Lucille · Narrator · Buster: He's like the steel man from The Wizard From Oz. / Tin man? / Is that what he's called? / He knows.
Michael · Lucille: The only time you ever cooked for us was the morning Rosa's mom died. You gave us cereal in an ashtray.
Gob · Lucille: As what, a waiter? Can I get you something, madam? / [immediately orders a vodka]
Michael · Narrator: 'Save Our Bluths' — S.O.B.s
Narrator: Please tell your friends about this show.
Narrator Meta/Self-Referential Deadpan/Understatement ★ Rewatch Lindsay · Narrator: Hot ham water.
Lindsay: You know, I'm actually a really good mom. I think it's 'cause Maeby's never around.
Lindsay Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm George Sr. · Lucille · Michael · Lindsay: Yes, he's a regular Freddy Wilson, that one. / I don't know that reference. / I don't either. / I don't know either.
Tobias: if I may take off my acting pants for a moment and pull my analrapist stocking over my head
Tobias Character Comedy Wordplay/Pun ★ Rewatch Callback Tobias · Michael: I think he may have developed what we in the soft sciences refer to as obsessive-compulsive disorder. Or the O.C. disorder. / Don't call it that.
Narrator: Actually, it was because he was afraid his Aunt Lindsay was going to burn the house down.
Narrator Deadpan/Understatement Character Comedy George Michael: George Michael silently delivers a cream soda while the adults read Maeby's expulsion letter.
Michael: It says 'over.' Probably have to crack this open to be sure, but this sounds like an expulsion letter.
Michael Deadpan/Understatement Character Comedy Michael · Lucille: What kind of boarding school would lose track of its students? / Openings is not a boarding school.
Tobias: Non-traditional mother. Yes, you're right. After all, I am her father.
Tobias Character Comedy Deadpan/Understatement Lucille: I mean, we have plenty of money, don't get me wrong. But we can't use our personal assets to defend the company.
Lucille Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm Gob · Lucille: Gob's waiter prank — he keeps serving despite the joke being over because the lunch rush begins.
Gob Lucille Escalation Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Callback George Sr.: Yeah, the HBO's not going to want us. What do we do now?
George Sr. Meta/Self-Referential Wordplay/Pun ★ Rewatch Michael: I don't want to just round up a bunch of famous people that have nothing to do with our family as some sort of cheap stunt.
Michael Meta/Self-Referential Irony/Sarcasm ★ Rewatch George Sr. · Lindsay: All of a sudden I was the bad guy to her. / And you don't respect Mom and you don't respect women. / Are you married? / Damn school.
Narrator: He sent the man a basket of poisoned muffins. Do you know the Muffin Man? There's a reward in it if you do.
Narrator Dark/Subversive Absurdist ★ Rewatch Gob: Then would you like some foam in your coffee? It's called a cuppakeno and wait till you see what it costs.
Gob Character Comedy Running Gag Callback Narrator · Buster: You can say what you want about the Milford Academy — the kids that came out of there were prepared for life. / Does anyone know how to eat one of these?
Donny Richter · Narrator: Identical quintuplets, actually. There was Andy the showoff, Donny the sensitive one, Jerrifth the flirt, Rocky the risk-taker and Andy's stunt double, and Emmett who asked that we not show his picture.
Narrator: Emmett who asked that we not show his picture. Although, composite photography tells us he'd look something like this.
Narrator Visual Gag Meta/Self-Referential ★ Rewatch Callback Donny Richter · George Michael: A student either learns and gets an 'L,' or they fluctuate in their learning. What do we get for that? An 'F.' Mr. F.
Tobias: Well, well, I understand you've been having trouble with that expensive boarding school. That's right, I can read.
Tobias Character Comedy Deadpan/Understatement Maeby: Okay, first of all, Variety got it wrong, all right? We didn't even want this project. It was a co-finance with Miramax then, poof, Miramax is gone and we're still on the hook, and it turns out Jamie Kennedy can't even snowboard.
Maeby Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm Tobias: It's a parenting tape. / There's a new daddy in town. A discipline daddy.
Tobias Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm Tobias: We are going to stuff each one of these gift bags with a head shot, some glitter, and a decorative hand soap. And don't forget the funny notes. 'I know where you live. Ha-ha.' Casting directors hate this. They really do.
Tobias Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Narrator: The glitter queen struck again. Never hire Tobias Funke.
Gob: Oh, I don't have any drugs for sale. Unless... did you expect me to follow you to your car?
Gob Character Comedy Misdirection ★ Rewatch Narrator · Gob: And Gob realized he'd accidentally worked a day in his life.
Buster: I walked. I tried hitchhiking, but it's hard to do without a thumb.
Buster Character Comedy Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch Callback Buster · Lindsay: It's so watery. And yet there's a smack of ham to it. / It's hot ham water.
Narrator · George Michael · Maeby: And that's when he decided it was time to cheat off of her. / It also gave him an opportunity to smell her neck.
George Michael: He pretends he's the great father all of a sudden and acts like he's all worried about me, but it turns out he just does it so I can help him with his joke of a career. No wonder Mom wanted out so bad.
Gob: If you didn't have adult onset diabetes, I wouldn't mind giving you a little suger.
Gob Character Comedy Cringe/Discomfort Narrator: Okay, we'll just tell you now. She's the one who dies.
Narrator Meta/Self-Referential Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch Gob · Lucille: And maybe later you can save a little piece of tail for me. / Come on!
Gob Lucille Character Comedy Cringe/Discomfort Callback Lucille Reaction Beat Character Comedy Lucille: I hope that isn't the sort of humor Andy McMahon will be doing.
Lucille Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm Callback Andy Richter · Michael: Oh, I'm Andy. / Oh. / Sorry. / Oh, hey.
Michael · Andy Richter: How'd you feel about coming to a fundraiser at our house? / How much does it pay? / It's just a free dinner... / I'll be there.
Andy Richter · Donny Richter · Michael: Ugh, he's such a pig. / You should know about bad-mouthing family members.
Lucille · Michael · George Sr.: Is he following people to their cars again? / He's a waiter! / He is? Well, that's great. / No, it's not great.
Michael: Am I the only one that thinks this family is finally becoming sympathetic and relatable? I mean, that's what people want to see.
Michael Meta/Self-Referential Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Buster · Lucille: Sister's my new mother, Mother. And is it just me, or is she looking hotter, too? / Well, why don't you marry her? / Maybe I will!
Buster · Lucille · Buster: Sister's my new mother, Mother. And is it just me, or is she looking hotter, too? Well, why don't you marry her? Maybe I will!
Narrator: We're veering away from relatability again.
Narrator Meta/Self-Referential Deadpan/Understatement ★ Rewatch Callback Tobias · Maeby: Now what we do is we paint our lips Joan Crawford red, pop on a little blue eyeliner... / Why the blue eyeliner? / Well, she felt that her eyes were too close together.
George Michael: Is this because I cheated off Maeby? Because I've never done that before, Dad, I swear. I just couldn't think of anything to write about you, so I asked her to write it about her dad.
Michael: Sometimes you say you hate your dad to get a good grade or you like him to make some money.
Michael Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm Michael · Rocky Richter: It's Andy again, isn't it? / Rocky. / Andy's the pig. / Well, you're not exactly... / I'm his stunt double. You think I like this? I disgust myself.
Michael · Rocky Richter · Andy Richter: It's Andy again, isn't it? / Rocky. / Andy's the pig.
George Michael · Rocky Richter: Let go of my dad, you're going to hurt him. / Oh, no, I'm only making it look like that. He's totally in charge of the situation.
Rocky Richter · Michael: Somebody sent my brother Donny a basket of poison muffins. / It could've been the Muffin Man. They never caught him. / How do you know about that? / I saw it on Why We Were Scared of the '70s.
Rocky Richter: I always pictured a giant six-foot muffin trying to eat me while I was eating him. It's kind of a fantasy I go to a lot now.
Michael · Lindsay: What is going on? They're getting restless. / I can't offer to [bleep] him in front of their husbands.
Michael · Lindsay: Poached salmonella? / It'll be fine, I'll just put the sauce on them. / What kind of sauce is that? / Wait, this is the water I thawed the chicken in. / Oh. Well, that should go with chicken.
George Sr. · Powerful guest surrogate: Sort of. / Hope you don't mind, I sent one of those stupid surrogates. / You got busted, too. / No, I had a prior engagement. I'm at the Fire & Ice Ball.
Emmitt Richter · Michael: I'm not Andy. I'm Emmitt. Andy sent me over to let you know that he's not going to be able to make it tonight.
Narrator: I mean, think about it -- we can't show Emmitt without blurring him.
Narrator Meta/Self-Referential Visual Gag ★ Rewatch Callback Michael: Andy Richter is singing at the Fire & Ice Ball? I should send Andy a little basket of poison muffins, too.
Michael Callback Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch Callback Michael: I should send Andy a little basket of poison muffins, too.
Michael Callback Dark/Subversive Callback Michael · George Sr.: Muffins? Oh my God, Dad. You're the Muffin Man? You poisoned 25 teachers during the '70s? / Just the first two. The others were copycats.
George Michael · Michael · George Sr.: Muffins? / Oh, my God, Dad. / You're the Muffin Man? / You poisoned 25 teachers during the '70s? / Just the first two. The others were copycats.
George Michael: Um, I was going to say that you don't know who my father really is... But that's not the truth. We've been given plenty of chances. And maybe the Bluths just aren't worth saving, maybe we're not that likable, you know. We're very self-centered.
Michael · George Michael: Me, too. You know, I seem to... I threaten people who I don't feel support me. / He poisons them.
George Michael: Go ahead and take yourself a goody bag and get out of here while you can.
Narrator: The speech was disturbing, the food inedible and the gift bags... pretty frightening.
Narrator Deadpan/Understatement Callback Callback Gob: Wait, no, no! Where's everyone going? No one's leaving until I get my money! I'll follow you to your cars!
Gob Character Comedy Callback ★ Rewatch Callback Narrator · Buster: Oh, and then that old racist woman choked on Buster's thumb. My thumb!
Narrator: All in all, it was one of the Bluth's better dinner parties.
Narrator Deadpan/Understatement Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch George Michael · Michael: OCD? No, I'm just cleaning up after Aunt Lindsay. She never turns things off.
Michael: Well... guess that explains why I saw the hedge trimmer zipping around the driveway.
Michael: I did it again, didn't I? I'm so self-centered.
Michael Character Comedy Callback ★ Rewatch Callback George Michael · Michael: I love my cousin. / Love you, too, pal.
George Sr. · Narrator: They're all sending in donations. And you know what key was? Your speech. It didn't sound desperate.
Michael · Narrator · Director: They're all sending in donations. And you know what the key was? Your speech. It didn't sound desperate. / Well, I guess it really doesn't pay to be desperate. / It sure doesn't. And... cut!
Director/Crew Voice: And... cut! Let's not celebrate yet. We still got the west coast feed, guys.
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