"Forging Ahead" is the 3rd episode of the fifth season of Pepper Ann. It aired on September 16, 2000.
Synopsis
Sick of her mom doing what she thinks is best for her, Pepper Ann decides to get her ears pierced, but the piercing kiosk clerk doesn't pierce anyone under 18 without parental permission, so Pepper Ann decides to forge her mom's signature.
Plot
As usual, Lydia continues to look out for Pepper Ann's well being with her mom like instincts. Pepper Ann is annoyed and wishes that she could make her own decisions. At the mall, Pepper Ann vents her frustrations onto her friends. When she wins a pair of earrings at a crane game, she takes this as a sign that she needs to get her ears pierced to prove to her mom that she can make her own decisions. They go to the piercings store and Pepper Ann and Milo ask to get their ears pierced, but the vendor tells them that they need to get parental permission first.
Pepper Ann sets up an entire presentation about ear piercing, only to be given a hard no by Lydia. She explains that she is uncomfortable with the procedure and does not want her to get an ear infection. Pepper Ann is further mortified that Milo got permission from his dad (he wanted to be cool). Pepper Ann tries to get her father's signature, but Lydia beats her to it. She tells her that she is her mother and wants her to be safe. As she leaves, Pepper Ann recognizes Lydia's signature and decides to forge it, despite her better judgment.
Pepper Ann, Milo and Nicky arrive for the piercing, but upon hearing the noise of the machine, suddenly begin to have second thoughts. Pepper Ann goes into a fantasy where Lydia has moved away, she has dropped out of school, run the water out, has a job scraping gum and lost her ear. In reality, Pepper Ann admits to the forgery and backs down with the vendor letting them go. Pepper Ann returns home with Lydia happy that she listened to her. However, Nicky reveals that she got her ears pierced after being in the store and is exuberant.
Cast
- Kathleen Wilhoite as Pepper Ann Pearson
- Danny Cooksey as Milo Kamalani
- Clea Lewis as Nicky Little
- April Winchell as Lydia Pearson
- Pamela Adlon as Moose Pearson
- Karen Duffy as Sketch
- Paddi Edwards as Vera Groober-Schwartz
- Maurice LaMarche as Chuck Pearson, Clarence the Piercer
- Sue Rose as Fuzzy Alarm Clock
Desk Gag
"Scuff marks! ... Uh, I can't show 'em to you 'cause I can't pick 'em up."
Trivia
- On Disney+, the episode segment is second next to "Searching for Pepper Ann Pearson".
- This episode contains a rather dated reference to Tiger Woods with Pepper Ann commenting on how dreamy he is. It was unknown at the time the scandal of his massive infidelity.
- The clerk is wrong about forging a signature. The penalty is jailtime with the length varying depending on the state.
