Dre: Growing up, we didn't have many choices.
If you were bored, you went outside and played
with water guns or balls.
If you were hungry, it was Mickey D's
or, in my case, McRuby.
And it wasn't just food and toys.
It was our choices of what we could actually be in life.
See, limited choices
limited what we could imagine for ourselves
and, thusly, what we would become.
But nowadays, things are different.
Children have tons of choices about everything...
Water guns,
burgers,
even role models.
And each choice they make is an opportunity
to help them form their identity...
Tell the world who they are.
But what happens when the world makes a choice for them
that goes directly against that identity?
Diane: Thank you, Janine.
Rainbow: Yes, thank you, Janine!
This white doll is beautiful!
Do you still have the receipt?
Synced and corrected by johnyd13 ~ www.addic7ed.com ~
The receipt?
Why? Why? Is there... Is there something wrong?
This is a GirlStory doll.
- Yeah. - It's celebrating women throughout history.
- Yeah. - This one is Winnie the Wartime Doctor.
Oh, yeah. She's like you, Bow, except a real doctor.
Okay, um, Janine, I'm a real doctor.
Dre: Mm-hmm. And that is a doll.
You're a doll!
It's... It's... It's a lovely doll.
But, you know, we're just dealing
- with numbers here, Janine. - Uh-huh.
We have enough white dolls.
You know, the black/white ratio is just...
- Just a little off. - Yeah.
You have a black/white ratio for dolls?
With everything, Janine.
- Literally with everything. - Yeah.
You know, I'm constantly aware
of how many black people are in a restaurant,
how many black characters are in a movie...
Yeah... and it also affects the way that we buy cereal.
Nobody really eats the Count Chocula, but...
Yeah, but I still buy it.
Yeah.
I-Is Count Chocula even black?
Janine, his last name is Chocula.
♪♪
I gathered you kids here to announce that, sadly,
my Spades partner, Earnest Woodbine,
- passed on today. Oh. - Diane: Aw.
And now I need a new partner.
Didn't you say he died today?
Don't you judge the way I mourn, little boy.
Winning was very important to Earnest and me.
Why don't you just partner with somebody
that's already in your Spades group?
For some reason, they're put off by me.
This is my house [bleep]
Haters, all of 'em.
But that just means that now there's an opportunity
for one of you to become my new partner.
"Opportunity" feels strong.
Diane, you're out.
You're smart and mean,
but your mole-like vision concerns me.
- Well, okay. - Yeah.
Jack, you're out.
You know why.
Yeah, I do.
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
- Zoey... - I don't care.
Sure, you don't. Mm-hmm.
And... Junior!
I know. My ears are too big, and I tend to ramble,
and people think my mustache is dirt.
♪♪
Unh-unh-unh. See, it is that laser beam of self-reflection
that makes you the perfect partner.
You are the key to me beating Doris.
Who's Doris?
She's the Cobra Kai to my Daniel-san.
And I swear on Earnest's clogged-up dead heart
that that witch will not take our title!
Hey, hey! Where y'all going?
Unh-unh. You losers are our new practice partners.
Get in here!
♪♪
Good news, guys!
The Boxable people loved your pitch.
Yes. I knew they would, 'cause it's so simple.
"Boxable... Come on."
Not yours, Josh.
They hated it, and they hated you.
They said you reeked of desperation.
Aw. Boxable? Come on.
But, Dre, yours was a slam dunk.
The artwork was beautiful, casting was perfect,
but it was your tag line that gave us the chills.
"Boxable... The gold standard in shipping."
Good call on the gold, Dre.
Pewter was not the way to go.
Every day I learn from you.
Man, no time for modesty, all right?
- I killed it. - So good.
You're off probation, Dre.
I've been on probation?
Only since I hired you.
♪♪
If we have to return Winnie, why don't we get something
that I actually want, like a sword or a bear trap?
Or a doll that you can relate to.
- Hello. - Hi.
We'd like to make an exchange.
Oh. Ooh, Winnie.
Well, that's a surprise!
She's our best-selling GirlStory doll.
She invented the tourniquet.
- Oh, wow! - But you know what? No worries.
We have tons of other dolls for you to choose from.
Like right here, we have Cassandra.
She's a pioneer woman.
Uh, we're actually looking for a doll
that's, um, you know, err, like...
- Has hands? - N... Oh.
Oh, all our dolls have hands.
Well, mm, except for a few
of our differently abled dolls.
Uh-huh. Oh, look at that.
Oh, and this is Polio Patty... love her.
Got to be careful when you move her, but...
Okay, well, we could dance around this forever,
uh... Patrice.
Oh, it's pronounced "Pat-riss."
- "Pat-riss." - "Rhymes with mattress?
- Oh. - G... Oh, that's... Okay.
Um...
where are your black dolls?
Okay, why didn't you just say so?
Well, kind of thought I'd just see 'em.
I got you, girl!
Okay. Come on, ladies. Follow me.
We're taking a hike.
Oh. Oh, so they're, like...
separate area.
Ladies, allow me to introduce you to Sassy Sadie
and equally Sassy Selma.
Uh-huh, okay.
So, let's see here.
Sassy Sadie... "Little Sadie Crawford"
left home with nothing but the clothes on her back
"and a desire to be free."
- So, she's a slave? - Not anymore.
She escaped and eventually learned to read... sort of.
So, she's a runaway slave.
Who can read.
Okay, so
you have dozens of disabled...
Ooh, differently abled.
Fine, differently-abled, and hundreds
of amazingly successful white dolls,
but only two black dolls.
- African-American. - Uh-huh.
Let's see what the other one is, shall we?
Mm. Selma... the Civil Rights leader
who marched on Selma.
And that doesn't feel lazy to you?
Well, she's also a mother of 11.
11, seriously?
So, you think we just keep having kids,
just kids on kids on kids?
Easy, Mom. You're on your fifth.
Okay, well, these are basically the same doll,
just wearing different clothes!
Oh, that's not true.
Yet they both have lanterns!
But for different reasons.
Oh, come on.
This is unbelievable!
You know what sounds unbelievable right now?
A nice cold Orange Julius.
Okay, no, I'm not done. I'm not done, sweetheart.
I am just a little girl,
and it would be embarrassing for both of us
if I had to drag you out.
Well, let me tell you I have not even begun to be embarrassing.
In the words of the great Maya Ang...
Hey! Oh, you are strong! I will be back! Ow!
Hey. How was your day?
I, um...
went a little bit crazy at GirlStory.
She recited Maya Angelou's "Phenomenal Woman"
all the way out to Sunglass Hut.
- In her Maya Angelou voice? - You know it.
That store only has two black dolls... two.
And they're not doctors.
One's a slave, and one's a Selma.
Selma! I'm outraged!
You know, you look so cute when you're outraged.
Oh, come on.
That is the one thing that reminds me
that you're black...
This, and when you send your food back.
I'm sorry to complain, but I wasn't expecting garbage.
That's how we made this baby.
Seriously, this is not funny.
Well... This is a big deal.
The images that we see affect who we are...
- Mm-hmm. - And who we aspire to become.
I mean, it's bad enough we didn't have role models
growing up, but we made it past that.
We made it through.
- But we have role models now, Dre... - Mm-hmm.
Doctors, lawyers, movie stars.
Our kids seeing themselves reflected
in our culture is important.
Yes, I know this, Bow.
Do you think I need to see Viola Davis snot-cry
every episode of "How To Get Away With Murder"?
I don't, but the kids do,
to see that they can be whatever it is they want to be.
- Right. - Except now, Jack wants to be an actor.
You're innocent! I know it!
Whatever, Dre. Images matter.
That's why your job is so important,
and I do not say that enough.
No, you don't.
You normally say the opposite,
and it's normally followed up with,
"You know, I save lives.
And you, Dre, you promote empty consumerism."
Well, not today. Dre, I'm proud of you.
You effect change in a real and tangible way.
Yes. I do do that, don't I?
- Don't get ahead of yourself. - I...
I save lives.
You make ads.
I'm a doctor.
Unbelievable.
Hey, Dre, good news. Hmm?
Boxable wants to fast-track your campaign for this summer!
Great. We're not doing it.
- It's garbage. - What?
I can't do the spot with an all-white family.
- Oh, my God. - Buckle up, everyone.
Time to board the S.S. GuiltTrip.
I feel like this is gonna be about Katrina.
No, but that is a story that needs to be told.
No, uh, well, maybe.
Boxable is looking for the gold standard.
Who's to say that black people
can't be the gold standard?
Dre's right.
What make you think we don't wanna open up a box of presents
and laugh about how good life is?
Oh, life.
This is my snifter, 'cause I like to drink cognac
when I open boxes and make valid points.
Okay, Dre, the gold standard...
It suggests success, dependability,
shirts tucked into pants.
Dre, it's just one commercial.
It's not just one commercial.
In the beginning, it was almost every commercial.
A-And things... They got better,
but we can't assume that progress is permanent.
White is the default,
unless someone chooses to move the ball forward.
Please don't let him say that he is the one to move the ball forward.
And I am the one to move the ball forward.
Damn it, Dre! Now you're back on probation!
You know what?
I am gonna recast this ad
and give the world a different "gold" standard.
No, no, no! The client loves what we have!
Yeah, white people love white people.
And vegetables.
Oh!
I was hoping you would be off today.
Oh, we don't get days off, or benefits.
- How can I help you today? - Okay, um, I love
that you're teaching young women about their history.
Guilty.
- What I don't love... - Uh-oh.
Is that with all the black history,
that you choose to focus on our oppression and struggle
when there are so many role models to choose from...
Josephine Baker,
Dorothy Dandridge, Shonda Rhimes,
Misty Copeland, Michelle Obama.
Ooh, I know her.
And you know what? These are amazing suggestions,
and at GirlStory, we take customer feedback
very seriously.
- Okay, so... - I would just love it
if you could just write those down here in this book,
and I will personally make sure that your concerns are heard.
- Great. I'm gonna write it down in the book. - Thank you.
Hey, wait a minute.
Are you telling me that my complaint
about a lack of diversity is actually gonna go below
"Not enough icing on the cinnamon rolls in the café"?
Well, ma'am, you know what?
We take the complaints in the order that they were received.
Give me this.
Oh, God, my book!
Yes. Boom, we have solved that problem.
My complaint is now number one.
Okay, so why don't you read that right now?
- Ma'am... - Uh-huh?
You know, if you just left the page in,
your complaint would've been heard eventually.
Well, I want you to hear me now.
And do you hear me loud and clear?
- Do you like wine? - Oh, my God.
I want you to know, GirlStory,
that you have made a powerful enemy!
I'm a doctor! I save lives!
♪♪
Bye!
Ace of clubs.
Ooh. Nice one, Zoey!
Ruby: Oh, Junior. Come on, now!
There are no compliments in Spades!
You're terrible at trash-talk!
No, please don't give up on me!
I can be bad.
Oh, my God. Can you?
Yeah.
Oh.
Oh, no. That's gonna bring ants.
Ooh, we're gonna have to practice more than I thought!
But we're hungry!
And we're supposed to be at school today.
Oh, you're at school.
Ugh!
Again!
But my tummy...
Again! Come on!
Dre: Bam! There you have it.
The new gold standard.
- Oh. - Right?
Stevens: Outstanding. Love it!
Oh, h-hold up.
Why are the DeBarges the new face of Boxable?
Charlie: Oh, I'll tell you why.
'Cause our boy Dre here's colorstruck.
He's got that Beige Rage.
I do not. What is that?
It means he has a clear preference
of light skin over dark skin.
I've always seen it
and it's always hurt.
That was candy.
And damn it, Charlie. You always forget to dribble!
This time, this time, this time!
Go!
Kobe! What are you... No!
Maybe those wasn't the best examples.
Stevens: Now that I think about it,
let's take a look at some of those past campaigns
that you've run for us.
Ooh. I wouldn't know they were black.
- Gluten-free. - Curtis: Yeah.
Ooh. That's milky right there.
You know what? Y'all sound ridiculous.
All right, I do not have a preference
for light-skinned people, as I am a dark-skinned man.
Wait, wait.
So you think you Team Dark Skin? What the hell would you call it?
- Well, I personally think you're... - No, no, no!
- No, you got that kinda like - Stop it, stop it, stop it.
I am not a colorist.
Well, why don't you walk us through your casting process?
Fine. I did the exact same thing I did with the first ad.
I auditioned a few black families,
and I chose who I felt was best to sell the image.
So in order for me to sell something,
I have to have a keen nose, green eyes...
Straight hair, paper lips, and no ass.
He's right, boss.
The reason you like this family
is because they look closest to white.
No way.
Lupita Nyong'o was on my free-pass list.
I don't have a preference for light over dark.
All right, so, we got four black coffees,
and one iced caramel macchiato with extra cream.
♪♪
- Oh. - Oh, there it is.
- Stevens: That's interesting. - That's just sad.
Extra cream.
It's the Michael Jackson of coffee.
What's going on over there?
Oh, Dre, in every great movement,
someone has to stand up
and be a voice for those that cannot speak for themselves.
These dolls can't speak, Dre.
I speak for the dolls.
- "Shonda not slaves"? - Yes.
"Black Toys Matter"?
Yeah.
"Welcome to Misty Nope-Land"?
Yeah.
It's hard being a one-woman revolution, Dre.
I'm spread a little bit thin.
Yeah, no, I hear you, Bow.
Change is hard. It's so hard.
You know, I thought I was gonna heal the world
with positive images of black people.
Turns out, I'm infected.
- What? - I got that Beige Rage.
Okay, I don't know what the hell you're talking about, Dre,
but instead of whining, you need to take action
against the injustices that you see.
You want a big change, make a big move!
Come on, Dre!
Is that the guy that is the captain now?
No, that's Akon.
This is a real miss, Dre.
You've jeopardized the whole campaign.
What the hell happened to the DeBarges?
Dre, this was supposed to be your "Do the Right Thing,"
- but it is your "Chi-Raq." - Uhh!
Well, clearly I'd blown my shot.
I hoped Bow was having better luck with her revolution.
Rainbow: Burn, dolls, burn!
Burn, dolls, burn!
Black toys matter!
Sweetheart, put the sign up.
- I really don't want to. - Up, up, up so they can see your face.
No, my babies! No! No!
No! No!
Yeah!
Ooh, ooh. Oh, no! Oh, God.
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh. Oh, no!
I-I don't have any benefits!
We're not gonna get cinnamon rolls, are we?
No rolls, no rolls!
Junior, I hope you brought your A-game,
because that grand prize has got my name written all over it!
What's the grand prize?
It's a $50 gift card to Forever 21.
Hello, Ruby.
- Doris. - Girl, look who she got
to take Dead Earnest's place.
You know she like young men.
Come on, girl. Let's go.
I'm gonna kill her.
Hello, grandmother.
Hey, what y'all doing here?
Both: Vengeance.
You think you can just insult us,
starve us, flick lit cigarettes at us,
and we just take that lying down?
Well... We must break you.
We've been practicing.
Let's do this, old maid.
Boom! Roasted!
We did it! In your face!
Oh.
We lost, didn't we?
Badly.
Next?
Aww, Myrtle. Only two books?
Good news is, you won't remember any of this tomorrow!
That's how you do it!
Gloria. Guess what.
Cheryl slept with your husband.
Hell, girl. I'm just lyin'.
- Rodney did. - Yeah, ain't that right, Rodney?
Well, well, Ruby.
We both bid at seven, but only one of us
is walking away with the means
to purchase a crop top denim vest.
You can't wear a crop top denim vest, Doris.
Who gonna stop me?
Oh.
Well, I guess I'm gonna see you
in that crop top denim vest
in... hell!
Thank you very much.
Well, just got off the phone with the lawyer.
Fortunately for you, they're not gonna press charges.
- Oh, thank God. - But there are some stipulations.
- You're not allowed near that mall... - What?
Or any GirlStory franchise,
or within 500 feet of someone named Patrice.
"Pat-riss."
I set her on fire.
- What? - She doesn't have benefits.
Well, I put the entire cast of "Captain Phillips"
in a shipping commercial.
Did not go over too well.
Hmm.
Bow, why did you encourage me
to make change in the world?
Why didn't you stop me from making change in the world, Dre?
You saw my signs.
You know what? We are no good when we're on the same page.
One of us needs to be clipping the other's wings.
Dre, when you walk into that store,
the messages are so clear.
There's something better.
- We're not as good. - Mm.
I just really didn't want Diane internalizing that message.
Yeah. I also did what I did for Diane.
Sometimes it just... it feels like
no matter how much progress we make,
it's one step forward and two steps back.
Why bother?
Hey, you show me one revolutionary
who gave up their fight because of one minor setback.
You're right.
Hey, come here.
Oh, man.
Until the world catches up,
we're just gonna have to keep reinforcing the messages
that we want our kids to hear at home.
- Yeah. - But not you.
You're not a good role model.
Oh, God.
You set a lady on fire, Bow.
I didn't mean to.
- Hey, sweetie. - Hi.
So, I wanted to talk to you about how I acted today.
Yeah. That was so cool.
I've never seen fire spread so fast.
- I used an accelerant. - Whoa!
No, that... that is not the point. That's not the point.
Here.
Come here, sweetie.
I just wanted to say I'm sorry.
I didn't set a very good example today,
and, you know, I want you to know
that just because that doll store
thinks that we're only one thing,
that doesn't mean that's all we are.
Mom, I don't need some doll to tell me that.
I have you. And you're a doctor.
And you're constantly reminding us of that.
I am constantly reminding you of that, Diane,
because I want you to know
that you can be anything you want to be.
So in that spirit... here.
Okay?
Go for it.
Okay.
Nunchucks! Thank you!
Oh, and don't worry, Mom.
It is my solemn promise
that I will never use these on you.
Or anyone in the house.
No... No, I'm serious.
Thank you very much.
Synced and corrected by johnyd13 ~ www.addic7ed.com ~