Plot[]
 Greendale Community College is represented by two separate yet equally important types of people: the goofballs who run around stirring up trouble, and the eggheads that make a big deal out of it. These are their stories.
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| Jerry and another janitor are cleaning up the biology lab when the former makes a horrible discovery. A few hours later, Jeff, Annie, and Professor Kane arrive at what has now become a crime scene. It turns out the study group's biology project, a yam, has been squashed. Although upset at having been summoned to the lab for a minor incident, Kane decides to give the study group a passing grade. Annie refuses as she believes that the project would have received an "A" if it hadn't been sabotaged. Kane says that until proof is found, his decision stands. When Shirley, Abed, and Troy arrive at the scene, Annie enlists their help to find the culprit.
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| Troy and Abed start their investigation with Pierce as it was his turn to water the yam that night. They find him in the cafeteria taking bets on an arm wrestling contest between Leonard and Harry. After dispersing the elderly spectators, they corner Pierce. He admits he was unable to do his part for the project because the lab was locked when he got there. He suggests they go after Todd since has a motive. They find Todd working his job at the library and notice he has a suspicious hand injury. Todd claims he burned his hand in home economics class and that he too was unable to enter the locked lab. As proof, he presents a photo he took from outside the lab which shows their yam still intact.
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| Troy and Abed take the picture and have it analyzed by Britta who is unable to provide any useful information. Shirley takes a closer look at the clock in the photo and notices the photo was taken ten minutes after 8:00 P.M., confirming part of Todd's and Pierce's alibis. Abed figures that whoever did it must have had a key. Shirley suggests they check with the front office and look over the sign out log for the lab keys. When they get to the administration office, they find Neil in charge of the keys. After checking the records, he finds that Magnitude was the last one to sign for it. Troy and Abed track him down at the student lounge where Magnitude tells them it was inside his backpack which ended up being stolen.
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| They decide to set up a sting to see if they can find the thief. Their trap ends up catching Star-Burns in the act of taking the bait they laid out. In a makeshift interrogation room, Troy and Abed try to good cop/bad cop a confession out of him. Star-Burns realizes they have no authority over him and refuses to cooperate. Shirley steps in and tells them to check with the lab and see what the test results are since they aren't making any progress here. At the biology lab, the school's botanist tells them that the damage to the yam is consistent with someone having stepped on it. She reveals that had the yam survived, it would have gotten them an "A" as it was about to bloom.
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| The next day, Troy and Abed confer with Jeff and Annie about what their investigation has turned up so far. Jeff tells the duo to search Star-Burns' locker; if they can find leverage to use against him, they can force him to tell them what he knows. Annie objects, pointing out how unethical it is. Jeff counters that they don't have time to waste if they want to see justice done. Later, Troy and Abed convince a janitor to open the locker under the pretence that they heard a cat inside. After it's opened, biology lab equipment spills out. Star-Burns arrives, takes in the scene, and runs. Troy and Abed quickly follow in pursuit. They corner him in the hallway where he is pestering Quendra to help him evade capture.
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 Jeff and Annie prosecute the offenders. |
| Star-Burns agrees to name the real suspect as long as his pilfering of the biology lab is kept secret. He makes Troy and Abed pinky swear on it and then tells them it was Todd. Troy and Abed apprehend the suspect at his basket weaving class. He is brought to the biology classroom before Professor Kane where Jeff and Annie present their case against him. Before Todd can respond to the charges, they are interrupted by the dramatic appearance of his former CO Lieutenant Colonel Archwood. He states his credentials as an attorney and demands to know why his client is being harassed. To resolve the situation, the entire matter is brought before Dean Pelton in his office.
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| Archwood argues that all they have against Todd is the testimony of Star-Burns who has no alibi himself for the crime. Jeff replies that they cannot reveal what he was doing there because of a pinky swear. Pelton gives Jeff an ultimatum: reveal what Star-Burns was up to, or he'll fail the study group. Professor Kane steps in and asserts that he's the one who makes the decisions in his class. He upholds the pinky swear and states that both sides can argue their case to the class and let them decide their grades. Later, Jeff and Annie are working on the case in the study room when an angry Troy and Abed interrupt.
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They inform them that Archwood threatened Star-Burns, and now their only witness has disappeared. A determined Annie still plans on trying the case despite Jeff's objections. The next day, Archwood is doing his best to portray Todd as a national hero at the trial. When it's Annie's turn to cross examine him, she uses the very virtues Archwood was extolling about Todd against him. She manipulates him by calling on his sense of duty and honor to come clean. He begins to crack under the pressure of her pleas and lets it slip that what happened was an accident. He dropped the yam because it was hot and burned his hand. The class is stunned by his admission as Annie performs a victory dance. |
| Jeff suddenly asks for a sidebar with Professor Kane. Inside Kane's office, Jeff offers a plea bargain and requests that the group and Todd be given a "C." He convinces Annie that Todd's confession wasn't actually a clear admission of guilt and that he doesn't want to see a possibly innocent man fail. Kane accepts his plea bargain, and they return to class. Before the professor is able to pass sentence, Jeff asks to deliver closing arguments. He theorizes that all the yams were victims and that someone had been boiling them, hence Todd's injury. He's proven correct when the other yams splatter easily after being dropped on the floor. Vicki's yam remains intact, however, which forces a confession from Neil. He sabotaged the other projects to lower the grade curve, so that his girlfriend Vicki could pass.
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| Later in Dean Pelton's office, Jeff and Annie along with Kane and Pelton are discussing the aftermath of the trial. As a result of his deception, Neil has lost his administrative duties as key master and is now being forced to retake biology in summer school. Annie is surprised that after all the procedures and politics, the case came down to basic biology. The celebration is cut short when Kane answers Dean Pelton's phone. After hanging up, a shocked Kane informs the others that Star-Burns was involved in a car accident. The incident caused the meth lab in the back of his trunk to explode, and he is now dead.
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End tag[]
| Troy and Abed are in their bunk bed talking. It is revealed that their bunk bed is in Group Study Room F when Shirley interrupts their conversation and asks why they aren't back in their apartment yet. Dean Pelton arrives with warm milk for the two guys and sings them to sleep with a creepy lullaby.
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Recurring themes[]
Continuity[]
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Running gags[]
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Recurring or debuting running gags in this episode:
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Pop culture references[]
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References to popular culture in this episode:
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Meta references[]
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Meta references in this episode:
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Trivia[]
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- Chevy Chase had a guest role in Law & Order episode "In Vino Veritas" as Mitch Carroll.
- Gillian Jacobs had a small role in Law and Order: Criminal Intent episode "Rock Star." She played the character Sue Smith.
- Michael K. Williams had guest starred in several episodes of Law & Order and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
- This is one of Britta and Chang's smallest role in any episode. She only appears in one scene, Chang appears in two, but has no dialogue in one of them.
- The plant in the episode is actually a sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas); Americans refer to sweet potatoes as "yams" while in the rest of the world "yam" is used for the Dioscorea tubers.
Quotes[]
- “A 'passing grade'? Like a 'C'? Why don't I just get pregnant at a bus station?”— Annie
- “Sorry. My friend- he's a bad cop. I'm a good cop. You can trust me.”— Abed
- “Yeah... oh, good... okay, well-- Hey! I'm not falling for that! And you've got nothing on me! And I don't have to stay here because you're not cops!”— Star-Burns
- “Todd Jacobson, you have the right to do whatever you want. Nothing you say or do can be used against you by anyone, but we'd really like it if you came with us. Please and thank you.”— Troy recites Shirley's version of the Miranda warning.
- “And for your valor, you were awarded a Bronze Star. In fact, you have an absolutely glowing service record, don't you, Private?.”— Lieutenant Colonel Archwood
- “I do my best.”— Todd
- “You do more than that soldier. Certainly more than this witness who supposedly saw you kill the yam, a man who for all we know is a Holocaust-denying 9-11 pedophile.”— Lieutenant Colonel Archwood
| Season Three Episodes | ||
|---|---|---|
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1. "Biology 101" |
12. "Contemporary Impressionists" |
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| Season One • Season Two • Season Three • Season Four • Season Five • Season Six | ||
