After attending a teacher’s convention of some sort, Mr. O’Neill uses his warped sense of logic to come up with what he truly thinks is a good assignment: the students are to attempt to do something they know they will fail at.

Kevin decides to try to be a bad quarterback, but succeeds with flying colors and gets kicked off the team. Brittany attempts to become unpopular, this gets herself kicked off the squad. Daria’s chosen task was to get her parents to ground Quinn for attending a fashion extravaganva and nearly succeeds. Jodie tried, and failed miserably, to convince her parents to let her ease up on her schedule. Mack chose a slightly nobler, and just as impossible, course of action that guaranteed him an A. He attempted to tutor Kevin on the three branches of the government.

But, most disturbing of all was Jane’s project, and the result upon accomplishing the goal. She attempted to become more conventional. And turned into something truly awful because of it. Daria, Tom, and Trent were all very worried, as well they should have been, when she traded in her red lipstick for kiwi lip gloss (if I’m not mistaken, Larissa and Bridget got me some of that for Christmas…) and her art supplies for butterfly clips and a bunny backpack. But it gets worse. She tries out for the cheerleading squad and nearly makes it.

Luckily, she comes to her senses just in time to help Daria console Mr. O’Neill when he goes ballistic because he nearly ruined his students’ lives. Jodie/Mack gets Brittany/Kevin back on the squad/team, and Mr. O’Neill winds up watching Quinn at some fashion thing at the mall.

They could have used to spend a little more time with Jane’s dilemma and fleshed it out a bit, but there was lots of Jodie and Mack, so what can I say? It got the half star for M & J’s dialogue plus Jane’s cheer. But I still wonder if Mr. O’Neill was planning to fail anyone who succeeded, and if that would constitute failing, and I’m confusing myself again now, so I’ll go.

~Robin

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