Prince (''New Girl'')

"Prince" is the fourteenth episode of the third season of the American sitcom New Girl, and the sixty-third overall. It was written by David Feeney and Rob Rosell, and directed by Fred Goss. It was broadcast on February 2, 2014 on the Fox network in the United States. In the episode, best friends Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and Cece (Hannah Simone) are invited to a party held at Prince's house. When Jess's boyfriend Nick (Jake Johnson) tells her he loves her, she gives him an unexpected response, which results in Nick and his roommates crashing Prince's party, so Nick can talk to Jess. At the party, Prince gives Jess a makeover and helps her to tell Nick she loves him back.

New Girl originally aired immediately following the broadcast of Super Bowl XLVIII. Writers and producers sought to attract newcomers to the show, as well as creating a special episode for regular viewers. Around the same time, Prince enquired about making a guest appearance on the show and it was decided that the post-Super Bowl episode would be written around him. During production, Prince made contributions to the script and debuted a new song, featuring vocals from Deschanel, during the episode. "Prince" was filmed in December 2013 and became one of the most expensive episodes of New Girl to be shot. It also featured guest appearances from baseball player Clayton Kershaw and models Alessandra Ambrosio, Ana Beatriz Barros and Lais Ribeiro.

"Prince" was seen by 26.30 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research, making it the most watched episode of New Girl so far. It became the highest rated scripted entertainment telecast on television in three years, since the post-Super Bowl episode of Glee. "Prince" received a mixed response from critics, many of whom enjoyed Prince's performance, but most thought the plot was not as strong as previous episodes, with one calling it "a little tedious". Following Prince's death on April 21, 2016, Fox reran the episode on April 26 in tribute.

Plot

Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and her best friend Cece (Hannah Simone) are invited to a party held at Prince's house. Just as they are leaving, Jess's boyfriend Nick (Jake Johnson) spontaneously tells Jess he loves her for the first time, and she replies with a finger gun hand gesture. At a bar, Nick admits that he meant what he said, but wanted to tell Jess in a more romantic setting. His roommate Schmidt (Max Greenfield) suggests he crashes Prince's party and takes his "I love you" back. Outside the house, Nick and Schmidt watch on as their roommates Winston (Lamorne Morris) and Coach (Damon Wayans, Jr.) use an improv story to gain entry to the party. After their own effort fails, Nick gets in by hiding behind a group of models, while Schmidt is forced to climb through a hedge. As Nick and Jess catch up to each other, Jess tries to tell Nick that she loves him, but suffers a panic attack and faints. In the garden, Nick tries to take back his declaration of love.

As their friends give them a moment, Prince appears and asks what the problem is. Nick and Jess explain their situation and Prince asks to spend some time alone with Jess. Nick gets drunk and interrupts Winston and Coach, who are talking to two supermodels. Over pancakes, Jess tells Prince that she is scared to admit her feelings and is worried that if something goes wrong, it will be too painful. Prince gives Jess a makeover and advice about telling Nick she loves him back. He also tells her to stop being afraid. Jess returns to the party, where she tells Nick she loves him and he reciprocates. Prince takes to the stage to perform "Fallinlove2nite" and invites Jess to sing with him. The others join them on stage. At the apartment, everyone is reminiscing about dancing with Prince, when Jess realises Cece is missing. The scene cuts to Cece, who is still at the house, playing table tennis with Prince.

Production

Conception and writing

"Prince" marked the first time the musician had ever appeared in a television sitcom.

On May 13, 2013, Fox announced that an episode of New Girl would be the lead-out program following Super Bowl XLVIII on February 2, 2014.^[1] The production team began preparing for the episode the moment they found out the news.^[2] The show's creator Elizabeth Meriwether told Michael O'Connell of The Hollywood Reporter that they had an opportunity to introduce the show to a new audience, as well as creating a special episode for regular viewers. The team's main aim was to make it funny and romantic.^[2] The last sitcom to follow the Super Bowl was The Office in 2009, while the Friends episode "The One After the Superbowl" is the highest-rated Super Bowl lead-out program ever.^[3]

On December 12, 2013, it was announced that Prince would be guest starring in the episode as himself, marking the first time he had ever appeared in a television sitcom.^[4] Meriwether told O'Connell that near to the time Fox gave New Girl the post-Super Bowl spot, Prince's team also enquired about him making a guest appearance during the third season, and they decided to write the episode around him.^[2] Meriwether had heard that Prince was a fan of New Girl and that it was one of the few shows he watched.^[5] She also revealed that Prince had previously been offered a guest appearance in the season two episode "Virgins". However, he could not accept at the time, but still wanted to appear in the show.^[2]

At least two scripts were rejected, as they did not feel in keeping with the show. Meriwether recalled that one storyline had Prince playing the lead singer of a Prince cover band.^[2] She also said that Prince's appearance with the characters needed to be believable.^[6] Eventually the writers, Rob Rosell and Dave Feeney, scripted an episode that would see the characters attending a party at Prince's house, where he would help Jess and Nick say "I love you" for the first time.^[5] In a piece for Vulture, Meriwether recalled that Prince was pleased that he got to be the person who would help get Jess and Nick to admit how they truly felt about each other.^[5]

Prince also came up with the idea of helping Jess by giving her a makeover,^[6] and asked that the house party on the show to be close as possible to his real-life house parties.^[5] Four days before filming was due to start, Prince decided to pull out as he was unhappy with changes to the script.^[5] Meriwether explained that Fox had asked that the episode was ended at the apartment, so she had Nick and Jess declare their love for one another in the bathroom. She realised that Prince needed to be the one to get through to Jess and the script was revised that same day.^[5] Meriwether said the episode was "a big milestone" for Nick and Jess romantically, and that the events would continue to play out during the rest of the season.^[2]

Filming and music

The episode was directed by Fred Goss.^[7] Filming took place in December 2013. It was one of the most expensive episodes of New Girl to be shot, as a house for the party need to be rented out and new sets were built.^[5] Prince was on set for three days.^[8] Meriwether recalled that he was "fantastic at ping-pong" and told Simone to practice before their scene together. He was surprised when she scored a point off him during the first take.^[2] Prince also changed a scripted moment in which he shines a flashlight under his chin to a lighter, as he believed it was funnier.^[5] The episode featured cameo appearances from baseball player Clayton Kershaw,^[9] and models Alessandra Ambrosio, Ana Beatriz Barros and Lais Ribeiro.^[10][11] In May 2016, Deschanel told Conan O'Brien that Khloé Kardashian and Kris Jenner had also shot cameos. However, their scenes were cut after a member of Prince's team asked about the celebrity appearances and commented "I hope it's not the Kardashians". Prince felt that they would never be at one of his parties.^[12]

Prince also used his appearance in the episode to premiere his new song "Fallinlove2nite", which features vocals from Deschanel.^[13] The show had not featured Deschanel singing before, except with the opening theme song.^[14] The actress told Sandy Coen of the Associated Press that the producers wanted her character to go up on stage and sing with Prince, so they asked her to lay down a vocal for the sound department, who sent it to Prince. The following day, her vocal was mixed into the song.^[15] Shortly before the scene was filmed, Prince asked producer Erin O'Malley for a megaphone. As the song began to play, Prince used the megaphone to call out "Does anyone want to fall in love tonight?". The crowd of actors and extras gave an unscripted cheer.^[5] Meriwether admitted that she teared up following the take.^[6] The episode also featured Prince's "When You Were Mine" during the scenes where Prince gives Jess a makeover.^[16]

Reception

Ratings

In its original American broadcast on February 2, 2014, "Prince" was viewed by 26.30 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research, making it the most watched episode of New Girl and the only episode to reach over 20 million viewers so far. The episode drew a 11.4 rating in adults between the ages of 18 and 49.^[17] It posted a 42 percent increase in adults 18–49 and a 23 percent increase in viewers over the previous year's post-Super Bowl episode of Elementary. New Girl became the highest rated scripted entertainment telecast on television in three years, since Fox's post-Super Bowl episode of Glee, "The Sue Sylvester Shuffle".^[18] As expected, New Girl benefited from following the broadcast of Super Bowl XLVIII, which was seen by 112.19 million average viewers, making it the most watched Super Bowl in history at the time.^[17]

Following Prince's death on April 21, 2016, Fox decided to replay the episode on April 26 as a tribute to him.^[19] The broadcast earned 1.78 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. It drew a 0.7/2 rating/share in adults between the ages of 18 and 49.^[20]

Critical response

The episode received mixed reviews from television critics. Marc Hogan of Spin commented, "A couple too many of the show's jokes involved characters inexplicably fainting or otherwise being a bit too FOX sitcom-y – couldn't Prince have been a fan of The Mindy Project instead? – but the Purple One's presence was pure gold."^[16] Chris Morgan of Paste wrote "it certainly wasn't the greatest episode of New Girl, but it felt momentous. This was the power of Prince's presence, and his aura. Who wouldn't want to see Prince on a sitcom? And who, but Prince, would randomly show up on a sitcom like New Girl? It will surely go down as a strange, fabulous moment in the history of the series, and also a testament to the kind of life Prince chose to live."^[21] TVLine's Kimberly Roots admitted that she did not laugh once during the episode, commenting "the installment is not New Girl's sharpest".^[22]

IGN UK's Max Nicholson thought some elements of the episode were "a stretch", such as Prince taking an interest in Nick and Jess's relationship problems, and called the plot "a little tedious".^[23] He added, "but with the help of Prince – and a few asides with Winston, Coach, Schmidt and Cece – this week's "I love you" storyline was made much more enjoyable."^[23] Lanford Beard from Entertainment Weekly praised Prince's performance during the makeover scenes, calling it "deliciously understated" and "a nice counterpart to New Girl's frequently over-the-top comedy".^[24] Beard said his favourite moment was Prince appearing in the closet with Jess and the lighter.^[24] Alan Sepinwall from HitFix praised the episode, saying "it was funny and joyful (especially when the whole group got on stage with Prince) and strange and poignant, all in perfect proportion."^[25]

Erik Adams of The A.V. Club gave the episode a B+ score.^[26] He felt Prince improved the plot "that would feel like rote rom-com filler without him."^[26] Adams also thought Prince helped give a different angle on Nick and Jess's romance, and "a new spin on a storyline that countless other TV shows and movies have tried out."^[26] Adams praised the show's editorial team for the montage and summed up the episode as "very, very funny".^[26] Vulture's Josh Gondelman awarded "Prince" three out of five stars.^[27] He did not think the conflict between Nick and Jess was believable enough, saying "I was just frustrated because the stakes in this episode were staggeringly low. Nothing seemed to really matter to anyone."^[27]

References

External links

• "Prince" on IMDb