The Real (Boondocks episode)
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| The Boondocks episode | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| "The Real" | |||
 Granddad's pimped out car revealed. Xzibit, as himself, in the foreground. |
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| Episode no.: | 8 | ||
| Prod. code: | 105 | ||
| Airdate: | January 8, 2006 | ||
| Writer(s): | Aaron McGruder | ||
| Director: | Anthony Bell | ||
| Guest star(s): | John C. McGinley Xzibit |
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"The Real" is the eighth episode of the Adult Swim animated television series The Boondocks. It originally aired on January 8, 2006.
[edit] Plot
The episode opens with the Freeman family being interviewed individually on camera, during which Huey claims to have founded 23 radical leftist organizations, including the "Africans Fighting Racism and Oppression" (AFRO), the "Black Revolutionary Organization" (BRO), etc. During his face time, Granddad talks about how his sunglasses make him look like his hero Bill Cosby. Riley talks about how he is "gangsta" and has several aliases such as "H.R. Paperstacks", "Pillsbury Doughboy", "Lewis Rich", etc. The purpose of these filmed interviews is never revealed or explained.
During his interview, Riley goes on to explain exactly how he came up with his plan to get Xzibit to come and pimp his grandfather's car. Basically, he taped his grandfather wearing his sunglasses and tried to garner sympathy by saying that he was a blind and lonely old man with a desire for love. Riley also videotaped Granddad's crummy car (named "Dorothy") and said that it was the only thing he had left in the world. He ends his tape with a two-faced, teary-eyed plea, saying, "Please Xzibit! Pimp my ride! For my grandfather! For 9/11! For America!"
Even Riley is surprised when Xzibit and his film crew show up some time later. Granddad, not in on the ruse, is initially skeptical when Riley tells him that he must act blind so they can get a new car. Riley ultimately successfully convinces him to play along, saying that once Xzibit and his crew are done upgrading the car, Granddad will not only have a nicer ride, but also a whole lot of "bitches" (read: women).
Huey, meanwhile, not at all pleased by his family's dishonesty, sends Jazmine running away crying after revealing to her that the tooth fairy is fake and that everyone she knows will one day die. No sooner is she gone than a man steps from the shadows and approaches Huey in a mysteriously mild manner, dropping hints that he has been spying on Huey and the Freemans. "You don't know me," Huey says defiantly, to which the agent replies, "I know you better than you think, Huey Freeman." Surprised that the man knows his name, Huey turns only to discover that the man has disappeared. He tries to talk to his family about this "secret agent", but they deny and ignore him.
Soon after, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition shows up intending to build another wing onto their house. Riley, behind this as well, had to claim than not only was his grandfather blind, but also that despite this disability, he was running a homeless shelter out of the house. Granddad continues to play along, hoping that he'll get a grotto like Hugh Hefner has at the Playboy Mansion.
In the midst of the construction, Huey is again visited by the agent, who is dressed as a worker. After a brief discourse, the man again disappears. Huey tries to see if anyone else noticed him talking to a man dressed as a construction worker, but no one did. He begins to question his sanity.
While the house is in a virtually destroyed state, Xzibit returns with Dorothy. Granddad, unable to contain himself, blows the gimmick by running up and hugging Xzibit and commenting on how the car is his "color". By this point, he had caught the attention of both the "Pimp My Ride" crew and the "Extreme Makeover" workers, all of whom are staring at him disapprovingly. The men leave — house still demolished — and Xzibit drives off in Granddad's car.
It's autumn, and Granddad and Riley are sitting in the living room, huddled in coats and blankets as the wind blows through a gaping hole in the wall. Xzibit returns, telling them that he couldn't legally keep the car and would instead bill them for all the work done on it. The invoice is enormous, and as he is handing them the bill he says, "Take your time with that. Looks like money gonna be tight around here for a minute," and chuckles as he walks away.
Confronted for a third time by the agent, Huey tells him that he believes him to be a figment of his own overactive imagination. "Now who's hiding from reality?" the agent asks. The agent never definitively reveals whether or not he is real, but does say "If you ever want to talk, remember: I'm always listening."
The Freemans, their house destroyed, settle down to sleep in their newly revamped car.
[edit] Trivia
- From this episode on, whenever Granddad's car is shown, it is the "pimped out" version, not the beat up version from the first episodes. This is the most obvious example of episode-to-episode continuity.
- The house, though left mostly destroyed by the end of this episode, is once again whole at the beginning of the next episode. This is perhaps the most obvious example of episode-to-episode discontinuity, as the damage done to the house was so great, it would have taken some time and a considerable amount of money to rebuild it to resemble what it was previously.
- The boys' bedroom, one of the few completed rooms during the reconstruction, was influenced heavily by Riley. The entire room had a basketball theme, complete with hoop, basketball rack, and basketball bed sheets. It also had graffiti on the walls and hydraulic beds. Other things revealed about the makeover include the "Free Man's Watermelon Patch" and a fried chicken dispenser.
- Granddad's new car included at least the following: three televisions, new rims, and fire-themed paint job with non-contrasting shades of deep red, a virtual fireplace, a refrigerator, and an espresso machine.
- One of the aliases Riley claims to posess is "Riley Escobar", which is an alias he uses in the early strips of The Boondocks comic. It is also the alias he chooses to use when signing a piece of graffiti in the episode Riley Wuz Here.
