The Goldbergs Review: The Spencer’s Gift (Season 4 Episode 14)

Never underestimate a dreamer.

The kids get jobs at the mall on this very funny episode of The Goldbergs.

On Season 4 Episode 14 we see dreams realized, dreams nurtured, and the beginning of dreams forming.

Murray’s dream is realized when he finds that all three of his morons, er, kids have gotten jobs.

Murray: All my kids have jobs. This is my dream.
Adam: That’s a sad dream, but you have a sad life, so I get it.

We’ve known from the beginning of the series that Adam’s dream is to become a film director. It’s no surprise that Beverly supports him and believes in his dream.

But even her smother power isn’t enough to keep away some self-doubt.

Murray’s practicality, and his guidance counselor’s story of Hollywood failure, steer Adam toward a menial job at the mall arcade.

With his mother’s rabid encouragement, and his father’s sobering sensibleness, Adam has a balanced support system behind him. He figures out how to use his strengths to his advantage and maintains a good work ethic.

The show always does a good job showing that balance. While both parents are crazy on their own, together they make a pretty invaluable team.

Their craziness supplies the laughs, and their love gives you the heartwarming feels, which is what you want in a family sitcom.

At the end, the real Adam Goldberg dedicates the episode to his parents for letting him dream.

The amount of his real life that he puts into the show is amazing and infuses the whole series with a sincerity that can be hard to achieve, artificially.

The bit between Beverly and Adam where they argue hypothetically about whether or not she will go to future awards shows with him is hilarious and very in character.

Beverly: You know what else is real, you walking me down the red carpet at the Academy Awards.
Adam: To be clear, if I ever get a job in show business I am not taking you as my date to anything.
Beverly: Who else are you going to take?
Adam: My wife?
Beverly: Oh, it’s cool. She’ll understand.
Adam: No, she won’t.
Beverly: I’ll talk to her.
Adam: You stay away from her. Seriously, she didn’t sign up for this.
Beverly: So what, I am the only one who believes in you, but I have to read about your successes in People Magazine like some poor slob at a dentist’s office?
Adam: I’ll tell you before the article comes out, okay?

I could listen to these two do this all day.

Staying true to the characters is another strong attribute of The Goldbergs.

The Barry/Erica storyline illustrates this, as well.

Working at Spencer’s Gifts is a natural fit for Barry. Also, Erica’s confidence that she will out-shine him as a model employee is expected. I expect it myself. Erica is more capable than Barry so her doubt in his abilities is the same as the viewer’s doubt.

Never underestimate a dreamer.

It sounds ridiculous that this job at Spencer’s Gifts is just a pit stop on Barry’s way to becoming a brain doctor. How can one take him seriously when he says things like, “It’s summer sausage. It’s delicious because it’s made by the sun.”

You never know, though, Barry’s enthusiasm for selling bottled farts and fake vomit just might translate to an ambition to pursue medical school.

Inexplicable as it may seem, Barry’s dream is to be a doctor. Erica has lofty dreams of her own, and even though she doesn’t understand Barry’s, she learns that squashing his dreams is not worth the petty sibling victory.

I, too, am skeptical about his grandiose goal, but Erica’s heartfelt apology and offer of support is genuine. And then I learn that the real life Barry really did become a doctor!

Note to self: don’t judge another person’s dream.

As a child of the eighties, I learned many lessons from television shows. It is surreal to glean some wisdom in the same way as an adult watching a show set in that time period.

Stray Observations:

• Patton Oswalt hyped this episode on Twitter saying it has “one of the funniest scenes they’ve EVER done.” I am fairly certain he’s referring to the “bottled farts” scene. It is quite funny, but I don’t know about the funniest ever. However, I am not partial to bathroom humor.
• “Do you understand that each bottled fart was ass-crafted by a third generation fartisan from Pueblo, Colorado?”
• I love that Lainey works at the Hot Dog on a Stick. That is so fitting. Oddly enough, I think it is fitting that Dave Kim works there, too.
• “Son, you’ve got it. The gift. The Spencer’s gift.”
• Mr. Glascott has a poster mock-up for his rejected teleplay, Sole Brothers. That is sad, but kind of endearing that he is still holding on to his dream. Tim Meadows as Mr. Glascott is great, as always.
• “This isn’t the army. We sell butt mugs.”
• “Hey! My ‘special boy’ money!”
• The use of Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors” is perfect for this episode, and we get to see real home video footage of Adam singing to it.

What did you think of this episode of The Goldbergs? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The Goldbergs airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on ABC.

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