Ep 12. You're Under Foot

In the twelfth episode of The Goldbergs’ first season titled “You’re Under Foot”, the family celebrates the annual school dance, and Beverly goes overboard with her plans for her son, Adam, and his girlfriend. Adam’s girlfriend, Dana, informs him that she is going to move to Seattle with her family, which upsets him greatly. In the meantime, Barry attempts to take advantage of the girls who took the stage for the dance auditions.

As the episode begins, Beverly is excited about Adam and Dana attending the school dance and insists that it is an important event. She starts planning everything for the dance, including making Brittany, Adam’s sister, her babysitter, so she can handle the decorations and the catering. However, things start to fall apart when Beverly goes to the principal's office to inform him that the music played at the dance must be “squeaky clean” if they want to continue to receive funding from the school board. The principal agrees to her demands, but Beverly takes it upon herself to approve each and every song that is played. This causes the DJ to quit, leaving Beverly to use her boombox for the dance.

Meanwhile, Dana finds out her family is moving to Seattle, and Adam is devastated. Even though Beverly tries to make the situation better by stating that they will be together forever, Adam knows deep down that the relationship will not work. He fears that he will never find anyone like Dana. In his distress, he starts to listen to emo music and wear all black, trying to be like Dana's brother, who is a college student.

Elsewhere, Barry tries to take advantage of the girls who audition for the dance. After auditioning for the role of the MC at the dance, Barry decides to have his own talent show where he can evaluate the girls. He brings Erica and her friends, Lainey and Frieda, in to help him with his decision-making. The girls perform a rendition of Cyndi Lauper's “Girls Just Want To Have Fun,” which impresses Barry but annoys Erica. However, when the three girls confront Barry, he promises to feature all of them in the Talent Show.

As the school dance starts, Beverly begins to criticize the outfits of all the other girls at the dance and tries to improve their hairdos whenever possible. Meanwhile, Adam does his best to get back together with Dana by telling her how much he loves her, but she explains to him that long-distance relationships never work out.

As the dance goes on, Beverly cannot help but notice all of the flaws of the dance. The music is not as good as she would like it to be and there is no one to help her with the decorations. Things take a turn when the DJ finally arrives, but that only leads to more chaos. Eventually, Adam realizes that he will always have Dana, even if they are not together.

In conclusion, The Goldbergs Season 1 Episode 12 “You’re Under Foot” is all about the school dance and relationships. The episode's primary focus is on Adam and Dana’s relationship and Beverly’s over-involvement with the school dance. The appearance of Barry's Talent Show and Erica’s criticism of it adds a bit of comic relief to the otherwise somewhat emotional episode. The episode’s climax is emotional, with Adam and Dana deciding to end their relationship, but it is resolved in the end, with Adam realizing that he will always have Dana in his heart. The episode ends with Erica, Frieda, and Lainey performing a dance routine to Murray’s delight.