American Born Chinese (2023) s01e01 Episode Script

1
Perhaps you should focus on your skills
instead of showing off.
Perhaps you should catch your
breath before trying to talk.
Give it back.
You don't even know how to use it.
That's enough!
Stop!
You don't have to do this.
Yes, I do.
Customer needs
assistance in frozen food.
Jin, how about this one?
Uh, I don't think so, Mom.
This one?
Yeah. No.
You need clothes for tomorrow, Jin.
Mom, I'm starting tenth grade,
not directing airport traffic.
Why so picky? This is a hip store.
Is it, Mom? 'Cause they also sell milk.
This one?
Yeah, I don't think I'm that guy.
Okay, then. What guy are you, huh?
Uh, skateboard guy,
camping guy, handsome guy?
Yeah, you think that
mannequin's handsome?
Yeah. He's good-looking.
What about your friend
New-jee? Where does he shop?
His name's Anuj. Wait, have
you been calling him "New-jee"?
You know who I was talking about.
Also, we don't really hang anymore.
Why not?
You know, I had club
soccer over the summer
and he was busy with cosplay.
Who Who's that?
Cosplay, Mom. It's where you dress up
as, like, a warrior or a sexy demon.
- What?
- Yeah, it's too hard to explain.
So, who are you gonna
read your comic books with?
I was thinking this year
I'd try to switch it up.
And, like, you know,
get on another level.
So, what level are you now?
In a lobby.
Parking.
- Hey, Mom?
- Mmm?
Uh, what do you think about this one?
How much?
It is
Uh, here.
Try this on. Good price.
Less is more!
Yeah.
I guess it's all right.
Mom?
Mom?
Sorry, I thought you were my mom.
I didn't think I didn't
think you were my mom.
My mom was standing there a second
ago, so that's why I said that.
Hot stuff.
- Oh, my God.
- Oh, you like it?
Chili's cute, huh?
I don't. No, I N-no.
Okay, I give up. Let's go home.
Wait. I need to get some milk
first. Bring the cart, huh?
What could go Wong?
You said you would ask about the raise.
I'm not talking about money right now.
Jin,
did you wear clean underwear?
- What?
- Did you wear clean underwear?
Yeah, I did, Mom. What
kind of a question is that?
Sometimes I see your underwear
in the hamper and they're dirty.
Yeah. Right. Yes, that's
why they're in the hamper.
- Oh.
- Right?
- Okay, I'm just gonna hop out here.
- Huh?
- I'll see you at 3:00, okay?
- Wait, wait.
- Okay. Have a good day.
- Yeah.
- Don't fight. Don't talk back to teacher.
- Thanks. See you at 3:00, Mom.
Anuj! Hey!
Awful! This guy!
- You can't!
- That's so funny.
- Hey. What's up, guys?
- What's up, man?
- Yo.
- What, uh What are we laughing about?
Travis was telling us
about his mom's boyfriend.
- Tell him. Tell him.
- Okay. So
So, his name is Spencer, right? And
we went to the pool the other day,
so this is the first time I'd
seen him without his shirt.
And he's got a back tattoo.
You know what it says?
- What?
- "Spencer."
Who does that?
He does have a sick-ass boat
though, which we should all go on.
- You have been waterskiing, right?
- Yeah.
- Right? Cool.
- Yeah, of course.
What are you guys talking
about? Puberty? That's cute.
What's up, Greg?
Yo. So, Coach Garrett
wants me to round up
some more guys for JV tryouts tomorrow.
It's not really my problem anymore,
so you dudes need to
hand out these flyers.
Yeah. Sure.
What's your name, bro?
Ah, uh, Jin Wang.
- Greg. Varsity cap.
- Hi.
You play soccer?
Yeah. Or Sort of. I don't know.
Love the confidence.
He plays. He was on our team
this summer. Solid midfielder.
Nice. Yeah, that's my position.
You should come to tryouts tomorrow.
- Should be a decent squad this year.
- Yeah. Uh, sure. Thanks.
Hey, don't worry, man. You just
gotta be better than this little turd.
Yeah.
Hey, Andy says you're a solid
player, so you should come.
Yeah, thanks. I appreciate that.
Here, here. Sometimes you have to
Yeah.
All right. Welcome to Bio 2.
I'm Mr. Larkins, and we're gonna
start the year off with evolution.
Now, contrary to popular belief,
it's not all smooth and easy.
It's actually a brutal
battle for survival.
Which is why my ex-wife is on the chart.
She's the second monkey from the left.
Not cool, Mr. Larkins. You shouldn't
comment on a woman's appearance.
You're absolutely right, Ruby.
Uh, that was not funny and I apologize.
Speaking of natural selection, our
first unit is a partner project.
So, everybody, find a primate and
let's pair up. All right? Get to it.
Oh, hey, Mr. "Hot Stuff."
Yea Yes. Ye-Yeah.
"Hot Stuff." That's me.
- Amelia.
- Uh, Jin. It's nice to meet you, sort of.
Sort of?
I meant we sort of know each other
'cause we went to
elementary school together.
Then you went to Crest
Road Intermediate,
I went to Dorothy Nichols Middle.
And now I'm kind of creeping myself
out. I should I should stop.
You know, I think I do remember you.
Well, you kind of stand out, obviously.
- I do?
- Hey, you're trying out for soccer?
Yeah. Or, you know, I don't know. Maybe.
No, that's cool.
I was actually gonna try out too,
but, um, my mom wants me to do drama
because she did drama in high school,
and apparently we have to
have all the same interests.
Are your parents ever like that?
Uh, I'm
I'm not actually sure if my
parents have any interests.
So, did you, uh, end
up getting that hoodie?
- Yeah, I got like eight of 'em.
- Eight?
One for every day of the week,
and then one more for
laundry day, in case I forget.
Do you think I could get one?
No, it's a collection.
Got it.
So, do you, um Do you
have a lab partner yet?
Ah, Principal Kinney, to
what do we owe this honor?
- What?
- I just I don't know.
Hey, everyone. Um, is
there a Jim Wang here?
Jim Wang?
Wang.
Can I borrow you for a second?
Ooh!
- Okay. Please.
- I know. I know.
So, uh, what's going on?
Oh. Uh, so sorry, b-but my
Chinese isn't super good.
- Oh.
- Uh, well, this is Wayne Chung.
- Wei-Chen.
- He's a new student
and he's Chinese, like you.
Uh, okay.
I thought that you could show him around
since you two have so much in common.
Uh, we do?
So, for the rest of the day,
he's gonna be your shadow.
Sorry, my what?
Well, he's gonna tag along
with you to all of your classes,
except English, because
he's ESL, and math.
He's way ahead of you in math.
You excited? Have fun.
Hi. My name is Sun Wei-Chen.
Nice to meet you.
- So, do you want to get started?
- Yeah. Yeah, sure.
- Yo.
- Hey.
- We're, uh, over on the bricks.
- Oh, awesome. Cool. I'll, uh
Jin! Jin! I found seats for us!
Come on! Here. Right here.
Oh, you're, uh, sitting with someone.
- It's all good. Don't worry about it.
- No.
Come on. Can you see me?
Jin, would you like some luóbo gao?
Uh, no, thanks.
Okay.
Um, Jin, do you like barbecue sauce?
Not really, dude.
Okay.
Oh, Jin, do you like humorous films?
You don't have to say my name
every time, okay? You can just talk.
Oh, okay.
Oh, Jin! Oh, yeah.
Sorry.
Who's that?
This? Oh. This is from a popular
manga called Kugo Ren Saga.
- Uh, yeah, no. I know Kugo Ren.
- Oh, you do?
Yeah, I just I didn't recognize
the character. Who is that?
This is Kugo Ren from book four.
No, that's not Kugo Ren.
Also, there's only three books.
No, there's seven.
Yeah. Maybe some have
not come to America yet.
Ah, here. Let me show you.
- Ah, w wait, uh, hold on.
- What?
- What up, Jin?
- Hey, 'sup, Trav?
Uh, Andy said you couldn't
have lunch with us today
because you made a new friend.
What's up, man? I'm Travis.
This is Josh. What's your name?
Um, Wei-Chen. Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you. I like that
shirt, man. Where'd you get it?
Oh. Oh, this? Um
This is from a-a Chinese company.
Uh, you can buy this on their website.
Oh. No way, I love websites.
I gotta check that out.
You know, I've been meaning
to wear more robot shirts.
Um
Yeah. Uh, nice to meet you. And
I'll, uh, check you later, Jin.
- Yeah. Later, Trav.
- Cool.
Who is he?
That's Travis. He's a
friend of mine from soccer.
That guy is your friend?
He kind of likes to mess
with people, as you can see.
He got into this whole thing with
my buddy Anuj over the summer.
Anuj is still kind of
messed up about it, honestly.
Hey! What are you laughing at?
Uh, well, hey, uh. Please Please
don't don't don't do that.
- Why? He's being disrespectful.
- Yeah. Yes, but everybody's staring at us.
- Yeah. Good. Let them.
- No, no. Yeah. Please chill.
Yeah.
Thanks.
You're kind of, like,
a confident dude, huh?
"Confident dude"?
Yeah, like, you don't
ever really doubt yourself.
Why would I doubt myself?
Okay. You can show me
the book now, if you want.
Oh, yeah. Oh, but it's not a book.
It's
It's this.
Come with me.
- Cool, right?
- Yeah.
Just, it doesn't look like Kugo Ren.
In book four, he learns
the 72 transformations.
So, wai Where'd you get this?
Oh, my dad gave it to me.
He wants me to stay at
home and work for him,
but I want something different.
So, like, your dad wasn't
cool with you coming here?
No, my dad's never cool.
He's like a burning fire.
Okay.
Uh, yeah. My dad's kind
of the opposite of that.
He's just sort of stressed
and tired all the time.
Last night he got into a fight
with my mom about "fried squid,"
which was pretty pathetic.
Hey, Jin, I think you should
go ask that girl out for a date.
I should w Sorry, what?
The American girl you were looking at.
Okay, yeah. Uh, that's
what I thought you said.
No, that's not a good
idea. That's That's
Why not?
Be a "confident dude" like me.
Huh? Come on.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
Here.
What could go Wong?
This is so good.
Stop. Stop.
What?
I think it's, like, problematic.
No! It's ironic.
It's It's ironic, right?
Yeah. Uh, yeah, it's
Yeah, I Yeah.
Yeah.
- Hey, Mom?
- Hmm?
Do you think we could
go waterskiing someday?
You don't want to do that.
I I think I do, right?
'Cause I just asked you.
We went skiing once. You hated it.
You fell in the snow and cried.
No. Mom, waterskiing, like,
you do it on a lake with a boat.
Aiya, we are not water ski people, Jin.
What's that mean, Mom?
Ask Daddy tonight if he's home.
He may be late, though. He's
supposed to talk to his boss.
What's he talking to him about?
Daddy has worked at the
company for a long time,
but he's been in the same
level now for many years.
I want him to speak up,
but it's not so easy.
Why not?
Because we are not
water ski people, Jin.
Bull Demon is planning
to attack during the Autumn Equinox.
His uprising is building strength.
This isn't political. It's personal.
We all know he wants
revenge against Wukong.
Whatever his reason,
we won't stand a chance
against him without the staff.
Why would Wei-Chen steal
from his own family?
He is my son.
I'll find him.
You know, in Taiwan, people
love this. It's good for you.
Right.
Can you explain to me
how it's good for you?
'Cause, it's literally
It's skin and toenails.
Sometimes the things you
hate are the things you need.
Eat it. It's good for you.
Right. But this one looks like
it's giving me the thumbs-up.
Want me to put it in the hot dog bun?
- A little ketchup? Some ice cream?
- Y Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Yummy.
So
Jin, how was school?
Uh, it was good. School was-was fine.
Um, I've got American Lit, Bio 2, Trig,
uh, World History, which I
think is way too broad. Art.
And I-I-I also have PE this
year which I can sub for a sport,
so, I was thinking,
maybe I could do soccer.
Not too many activities,
hmm? Just stay focused.
Study, work hard. That is enough.
Sometimes
What?
Sometimes that's enough.
Sometimes you gotta speak
up so that people notice you.
Sometimes the best way to
get people to notice you
is to work hard, hmm?
And sometimes people
treat you like an animal.
Like a little monkey.
Did you know that there's
a kind of monkey that
It knows if it's gonna rain?
It's called a Burmese sneezing monkey.
- We learned about it in school today.
- Jin. Jin.
It's got a big nose, so
the condensation collects
and irritates its, uh, follicles.
In entertainment news, people
are protesting a 1990s sitcom
that is making a comeback
on streaming services
He's a bachelor in the city ♪
Looking for love ♪
Then his landlord died ♪
And left him all the above ♪
Now he's gotta handle rent ♪
And every maintenance call ♪
When all he really wants ♪
Is the girl down the hall ♪
Beyond repair ♪
Beyond repair ♪
Ugh.
Well, Freddy, looks like this
fridge has gone to meet its maker.
Maytag?
It's just an expression.
It means that it's dead.
I'll order you a new fridge tomorrow.
Gosh, I never knew taking over
this building would be so much work
when I inherited it
from old Mr. Henderson.
Ah, yes.
Old Mr. Henderson, rest in peace.
He have gone to meet his Maytag.
You'll get the hang of it eventually.
Hey, by the way,
do you think that your neighbor
Lindsay might need repairs too?
Ooh, Danny. Danny, are
you in love with Lindsay?
What? No.
Okay, fine. Maybe I'm interested.
But I have no chance.
Just go for it. As my wise
ancestor say, "What could go Wong?"
You know what? Maybe I'll fix
that ceiling fan while I'm here.
- Hey, Amelia.
- Oh, hey.
Um, I was wondering,
would you be interested
in, like, maybe hanging out sometime?
- Uh
- Jin! Jin!
Look, we are twins.
Oh, s sorry. I
didn't mean to interrupt.
- Yeah. Yeah. Go.
- Uh, you're not. It's fine.
Listen, uh, forget I said anything
No, it was It was
really sweet of you to ask.
Uh, maybe we could hang out.
Just, like, as buds, you know?
Yeah. Yeah, for sure.
Sorry, that was That was really lame.
Uh, it's good. It's all
good. Buds is cool. Buds is
So, I guess I'll, uh
I'll see you later then?
Yeah. See you.
Jin, are you okay?
- I gotta get to class.
- Yeah, we should go.
- No, don't follow me.
- But I'm your shadow.
No, you're not. You're not
my shadow. You're not my twin.
You're not my friend, okay?
So, please just leave me alone.
Jin, wait.
- Whoa!
- Somebody help him.
Jin! Jin! Jin, are you okay?
Hey, Anuj.
Hey.
How's it going?
Fine.
Cool. Uh
That's, uh, cool Rebel Hatsuko makeup.
Just, um, exploratory stuff
that'll It'll get better.
For sure.
Hey, uh, did you know
there's actually seven Kugo
Ren Saga books instead of three?
Good to know. Thanks for the update.
So, what's the plan, dude? You're
just gonna never talk to me again?
Because Travis made fun of
you, like, two months ago?
Okay.
Listen, you can't just show up to
my club soccer game dressed as Naruto
and do a bunch of jutsus and
expect everyone to be like,
"Oh, that's normal."
Well, I'm sorry if I embarrassed you
in front of your new, cool soccer bros.
Why are you even mad at me?
Right? 'Cause I didn't do anything.
That's right, you didn't.
You just stood there and let it happen.
Maybe you should've done something.
Okay, and maybe you should
learn to take a joke.
Have you seen that meme
that's been going around?
The one with the guy
from the old TV show?
Yeah. Why?
Well, there's a new one.
What could go Wong?
Who made that?
Hey, who made that?
Welcome to JV soccer tryouts.
My name is Coach Garrett.
We're starting with the speed drills,
so make sure you're warmed up and ready.
Glad you made it.
Thanks. Yeah, we'll see.
You got this, dude.
Hey, Jin.
Hey, what's up?
Hey, where's your new buddy?
That was just something
I had to do yesterday.
That was pretty cool of you
to have lunch with him though.
Just glad I don't have
to deal with it anymore.
Why? What could go Wong?
Okay.
"Win the ball."
Here's how this works.
Two guys on each side of the
pitch, ball is in the center.
On my signal, you sprint and try
to you guessed it win the ball.
Who's first?
I'll go.
Very good, Travis.
Who else?
- I'll go.
- Great, what's your name?
Jin.
Okay. Travis versus Jim. Line it up!
Here we go. Ready. Set.
It's good for you.
Be a confident dude.
You okay, man? That was pretty gnarly.
Point of the drill is to win the
ball, not take the guy's head off.
Yeah, man. What the hell was that about?
You know exactly what that was about.
You're not laughing now, right?
At least do it to my face!
- Easy there, Jim.
- Jin! My name is Jin!
Listen, this is not how
we roll on this team, Son.
Now, I think you may wanna
consider another activity.
Just cool off. Take a walk.
Whoa! Whoa!
Wow.
Coach.
Right. Right. Sorry. Come on.
Let's get you to the nurse's office.
Hey, Jin.
Hey.
Hey, um
I'm really sorry about earlier.
And all that crap I said.
It's stupid.
I swear I'm not that guy, you know.
Or, at least, I don't wanna be,
and honestly, maybe that's the problem,
is that I don't know what guy I am.
What were you watching?
Oh, uh S
Someone took a video
of me and you earlier
and they posted it on this dumb app.
Can I see?
Yeah, sure.
Pretty sure it was Travis.
What could go Wong?
Not Travis.
Greg?
Oh, uh. That's my mom. So,
I guess I'll see you later.
Fried squid.
- Sorry, what?
- Fried squid.
In Chinese, it means
"getting fired from your job."
You'll need a better disguise
than that to hide from me.
What are you doing here?
I'm searching for the Fourth Scroll.
Are you serious?
The Fourth Scroll is a myth.
No.
It's real.
I brought back the sutras. There
were three scrolls, not four.
You're wrong.
How do you know?
I had a dream.
A dream!
Why can't you listen to me for once?
I don't have time for this.
Have you forgotten about
the uprising back home?
You're a child living in a fantasy.
And you're too weak to carry my staff.
Give it back.
I'm taking you home now.
No.
- You think you know everything?
- I didn't say that!
Why don't you get a job then?
Why don't you speak
up like this at work?
Then they wouldn't walk all over you.
Don't you remember who you used to be?
We came here with nothing,
with no connections.
Where did that brave man go?
We were young.
It's different now.
One of us needs to live in reality.
And I don't live in reality?
I fight for this family
just as much as you do!
Calm down!
Stop!
Wukong.
I haven't seen you act
like this in a long time.
Leave the boy alone.
He has his own journey.
With respect, Guanyin.
He is my son.
Clearly.
Don't let anyone find it.
They will come for him.