Something's Up There

"Something's Up There" is the seventh episode of the first season of the situation comedy Back to You. It aired on November 14, 2007. This episode is also known for its controversial content.

"Something's Up There"
Back to You episode
The WURG team try to capture the raccoon.
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 7
Directed byJames Burrows
Written bySteven Levitan
Production codeBTY-107
Original air dateNovember 14, 2007 (2007-11-14)
Guest appearance
David Jahn as Jenna's Dad

Plot

It's Gracie's birthday and everything goes wrong.

Chuck insists on buying Gracie's birthday cake, and Montana offers to give Gracie and her friends makeovers. Meanwhile, it's Gary's anniversary, but the seemingly simple task of getting home is made nearly impossible by the WURG team.

Also, the WURG team all end up in Kelly's house cornering a fierce raccoon in Kelly's living room.

As a result of this, the raccoon inadvertently sets Kelly's sofa alight.

Reception

Controversies

After the airing of the episode, a scene involving Marsh trying to convince the show's lone Polish character, Gary, to go bowling after work by saying: "Come on, it's in your blood, like Kielbasa and collaborating with the Nazis." caused controversy among some Poles and Polish-Americans. The characterisation of all Poles as having collaborated with the invading German Nazis offended many Poles, who felt that such mockery was unacceptable in light of the Polish casualties during WW2. Many felt that it also ignored the millions of Poles who fought against the Nazis for six years during World War II, compared to the thousands who collaborated with them.[1][2]

Fox later delivered a public apology on November 20, 2007. They vowed never to air the line of dialog again in repeats and/or syndicated broadcasts. Fox stated that, "The line was delivered by a character known for being ignorant, clueless and for saying outlandish things. Allowing the line to remain in the show, however, demonstrated poor judgment, and we apologize to anyone who was offended."[3]

Furthermore, some critics[4] and many viewers noticed that a large part of the plot was taken from a popular story from the radio program This American Life.

References
  1. Huff, Richard (2007-11-20). "Polish group complains to Fox about 'Back to You'". NY Daily News. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
  2. "Czego powinnismy domagac sie od telewizji Fox?" (in Polish). JVL Radio "Open Mike". 2007-11-16. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
  3. Huff, Richard (2007-11-21). "Shamed Fox apologizes for Polish slur on 'Back to You'". NY Daily News. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
  4. "Tuned In Journal: 'Back to You' borrows from radio's 'This American Life'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 2007-11-14.


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