High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: The Recap: “The Storm”
“Sometimes, dream schools are overrated.”
Season two, episode four of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, “The Storm,” was directed by Paul Hoen and written by Ritza Bloom.
In the series finale of Community, when the remaining characters envision what a seventh season of the show would look like, Jeff cobbles together an idealized, slightly-contrived premise for the future of the show. It involves Annie, filled with ambition and intellect, sticking around Greendale, rather than pursuing her career goals. She asks, “Being with you guys is great, but why is this a good choice for me? Why doesn’t the audience feel sorry for me?” Yes, it’s fun to have the characters together, but it eventually becomes a bit pitiable to think that Cliff Clavin is still sitting on that barstool.
That’s what kept popping into my mind throughout “The Storm.” With most of Ricky and Nini’s interactions limited to FaceTime in this installment (Nini does swing by for a surprise visit that ends up seeing her spend more time with Ms. Jenn than Ricky), the Community scene began to make me feel a bit uncomfortable. Last week’s duet was great and Ashlyn is a perfect choice for Belle and Seb can be so funny, but I really just wasn’t clicking with the show’s choice to remove Nini from the ensemble altogether. Especially when she’s the main character (it’s not quite like Pam Beesly departing for art school, but it’s similar). Yet, I also knew that following her ambitions at a dramatic academy was a great choice for her. It was her dream and she should be allowed to follow her dream. I just wasn’t sure how to reconcile that with a split setting focus across the early goings of season two, especially when it seemed like Nini was primed to be away from East High for a third of the season already.
There is something of a precedent for it. Gabriella takes a step away from her friends in High School Musical 3: Senior Year, but we knew the story was wrapping up by then and it’s also easier to achieve that distance in one act of a movie as opposed to an entire sub-plot of a season. Ultimately, though, this episode dropped plenty of hints that Nini’s time at the academy was dwindling. We already knew it was not allowing her to be her normal, creative self, but the meaningful glances and hanging conversations and honesty from Ricky on long distance was enough to indicate that Nini would be returning.
I just didn’t know she’d return literally by the end of this episode, lol. It seemed like bread crumbs for a later climax in the storyline, but perhaps the behind-the-scenes talent recognized that the show was feeling a bit stiffer without Nini in the mix and was quick to put her in an emotional state that would propel her back to East High.
At first, I was a bit inclined to feel iffy about this. Selfishly, I love it. Nini at East High just makes for a stronger show, I feel. But I also know that people are supposed to be able to want new things. And even though Nini’s fictional, I was rooting for her to follow her dreams at that academy. Fortunately, the show seems to recognize this balancing act, too.
What makes “The Storm” such a strong episode and the (perhaps inevitable) return of Nini so easy to root for is why she returns. The entire conceit of “The Storm” is that a powerful blizzard has blocked the roads and knocked the power out during drama rehearsal. (It’s sort of a pseudo-bottle episode, but still mainly focused on a few select heart-to-hearts.) Normally, the drama club would have been dismissed to prevent their getting stuck on the school, but Ms. Jenn stepped out for a moment to give Nini a lift to the bus station so she wouldn’t miss her ride back to Denver.
When Ms. Jenn’s car stalls in the storm, though, it leads to an emotional conversation between her and Nini. It’s one that was needed to understand that Nini wasn’t solely coming back because she missed her boyfriend. She describes her academy hellishly and with the only bright spot being her ability to fall asleep listening to Fiona Apple. Ms. Jenn immediately recognizes that Nini is at a crossroads and she relays a truly profound story about when she learned to give up on her own Broadway dreams. (Frozen’s “Let It Go” title comes in handy across the Plooos-verse.)
The hug they share in the car eventually leads to another showcase of intimacy from Nini and Ricky (he used Big Red’s car to surprise her at the bus station. You’d think they would’ve learned after last week’s fiasco over trying to do romantic gestures for one another). Ultimately, her parting from Ricky is an excuse to lead us into this week’s musical setpiece, a slow-motion, poppy/modern ballad from Olivia Rodrigo, “Granted.”
Nini’s already had plenty of “I Want” songs and this is more of a “Should I Stay or Should I Go?” number, but done in a way that fits the Gen Z sensibility of the show, as well as Rodrigo’s increasingly varied musical influences. It’s not quite at “Just for a Moment” or “All I Want” or “Wondering” levels for Rodrigo’s past performances, but it’s a superb showcase for her talent and a welcome return to the musical elements of expressing one’s feelings on this show, when most of the episode was rooted in conversations, albeit vital ones.
But this number, while spurred by Ricky, is largely absent from him. When Nini returns to the school, eschewing her bus outright, she tells Ms. Jenn that it’s not Ricky she came back for. “It’s you,” she says earnestly and Kate Reinders’ face comes aglow. She concedes that, yes, it’s also Ricky and Kourtney and E.J. and the whole crew, but it’s mostly recognizing that her dream has morphed into one of friendship and love and camaraderie, rather than pushing herself to do more and be more — perhaps before she’s ready. Ms. Jenn was a bit older when she realized her destiny was teaching, not performing. Nini still has the time to become a star if she wants to. For now, she seems like she’d prefer to do the things any normal teenager would do. “Today, I was really sorry I wasn’t [trapped here],” she tells Ms. Jenn and the two embrace again. I honestly felt more of Ms. Jenn’s importance as a teacher and role model for these kids than in season one’s episode that focused solely on saving her job. Reinders and Rodrigo shone in this episode.
I also know I’m probably reading into things, but I couldn’t help but think of the real world parallels between Nini and Rodrigo. Right now, Olivia Rodrigo is hurtling towards the Grammys with the most popular album of the year. She is one of the most famous musicians in existence at this moment. I couldn’t tell you when this episode was filmed, but I would expect not before Rodrigo’s stardom blew the world away. Still, the season has been tinged with the potential notion from jaded New York Times music critics who can’t fathom something not being targeted at their demographic (totally not thinking of anyone in particular, of course) that Rodrigo has outgrown the Disney pedigree and should be moving on.
First of all, it’s as foolish and stupid and sort of misogynistic to consider that Rodrigo couldn’t do both as it is to think she’s an industry plant. Secondly, there might just be some parallels here. Rodrigo is on the fast track to whatever she wants to do with her career, but sometimes that path can become insane. Maybe she just wants to hang out with her friends a little longer. I’m wrong to presume anything about what Rodrigo wants to do and she is so talented that she should be allowed to do whatever that is. But I do think there’s something to be said for just taking a breath and realizing that it doesn’t all have to happen at once. It’s something I had to learn and it’s the crux of what Nini learns in this episode. It’s valuable. With or without reading into real-world parallels.
Elsewhere, “The Storm” tracks many other characters trying to figure out who they are. We get a sparse reprieve from Gina’s story arc being welded to Ricky’s when she jockeys with Carlos for power as co-choreographers. (She wants a cancan performance of “Be Our Guest” and Carlos wants Lumiere to guide the audience through a noir rendition. Both seem to have given up on Busby Berkeley.)
Additionally, E.J. broodingly reveals to Nini (the first time I can think of these two sharing an intimate conversation with one another since their break-up) that he didn’t get into Duke. As always, Nini is there to provide advice that also relates to her own life when she tells E.J. to “trust the outcome.” In a series that continually reminds me of the age gap between me and the audience for the show (I had my time with Troy Bolton), I found E.J.’s emotional arc here to be the most relatable and thereby the most satisfying. I don’t know; I’m just all in on his character and I’m intrigued to watch him push deeper into the reconciliation that what he thought he was meant for is not nearly as beautiful as the path he’s on. While Nini received guidance from Ms. Jenn, it was Mr. Mazzara who told E.J. about his own college applications (four and a half times to Cal Tech for robotics. Somehow). When you’re at that confusing of a crossroads in your life, you sometimes need to know that you’re not the first person to be there. I’m so heartened to see the progression of E.J. in season two.
As the for the rest of the episode, cute and funny as HSM: TM: TS always is! Ricky and Nini are just too sweet together. Ms. Jenn made passing reference to a “ghost girl” that haunts her office (Reinders’ comedic timing remains a high point of the show). Mr. Mazzara entered the rehearsal space with a musical cue out of a terrifying Alfred Hitchcock scene. And Seb uses something on his phone called the “Farmer’s Alman-app.” Delightful all around.
Read previous recaps:
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: The Recap: “New Year’s Eve”
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: The Recap: “Typecasting”
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: The Recap: “Valentine’s Day”
