Arrested Development

Another setback for the once-prominent Bluth family. Their historic Banana Stand has burned to the ground. Whodunit? The answer to this mystery started one week earlier as Michael worked hard to keep the company afloat. Michael's newest plan is make sure the corporate jet was only used for business, then it can become a tax write off. Lindsay's newest plan is to encourage Michael and Gob to lay around.

Michael drops by the prison and explains his plan to George Sr. George explains "that there's always money in the Banana Stand" and introduces his cellmate, T-Bone, who is a flamer. T-Bone's getting out today, how about giving him a job? Michael doesn't think that's such a good idea.

George Michael is still having trouble with his crush Maeby living in the same room, so he asks for more hours at the Banana Stand. Michael responds by promoting George Michael to manager and gives him the green light to hire an employee. Seeing Tobias, Lindsay and Gob still lazing on the couch, Michael asks what they're doing to find work. Lindsay says her job is supporting her husband, so Michael, wanting to set an example, has his son hire Maeby as his Banana Stand employee, instructing him, "don't be afraid to ride her. Hard."

Maeby spends her first day taking money from the register and throwing out bananas. Meanwhile, Michael drops in on his mother in on his mother in his quest to locate the flight records. She knows they're in a storage unit, but doesn't know where that is. Something with a "Dale?" It's hot there. Also, could he give Gob some work so he can feel special?

The next day, Tobias, motivated by Michael's call to action, looked for work. Michael sees him sitting at a newsstand, despondent that he can't find work, and points out a flyer advertising Open Auditions. Tobias snatches it and Michael spots another flyer that gives him an idea for how to get his mother to lead him to the storage unit. He calls her and says the IRS wants to drop by and check if she recently bought any big ticket items. He then follows Lupe, the maid, as she tries to hide the evidence.

Meanwhile, Tobias had arranged an audition for a local commercial and Lindsay went along for support. But when Roger Danish, the casting director, spotted Lindsay, whom he knows from high school, Lindsay got the role. At the same time, Michael arrives at the storage unit only to find it in flames. A firefighter informs him that it was definitely the work of a flamer.

At home, Lindsay giddily informs Michael of her new acting role and Tobias tries to put on a brave face, then excuses himself to cry in the shower. Michael confides to Lindsay that he thinks George Sr. is trying to run the company from prison, so he's heading off to confront the old man. On the way out, he gives Gob a very important job. Mailing a letter. See, it's so important, Michael can't trust a mailman with it.

Michael confronts George Sr. and says you're not running the company and you can't give T-Bone a job. Again, dad advises that there's always money in the banana stand and when Michael informs him George Michael is running the banana stand, an idea strikes. George Michael, say hello to your new employee, T-Bone. Maeby uses that as an opening to ditch the stand for dinner.

Lucille then pressures Michael to give Gob some real work. Of course, unbeknownst to Michael, rather than mail the letter, Gob defiantly hurled it into the sea. Eventually. Interestingly, Lindsay then takes her mother to dinner at the same restaurant where her daughter is also celebrating work she hasn't done with money she doesn't have. At dinner, George Michael begins to add up the numbers and panics when he realizes his dad will obviously know they've been stealing money. Maeby tells him to relax and just figure out what pop-pop would do in this situation.

Michael drops by the Banana Stand and sees T-Bone at the helm. His dad is running the banana stand now too. Frustrated, Michael heads to the beach to think when Gob confronts him about being treated like a goofball. Michael says don't worry, dad still treats him like an employee. At that moment, Maeby calls Michael to inform him George Michael is about to do something irresponsible.

Michael arrives at the Banana Stand to find his son crumpling up newspaper around the stand to use as kindling. George Michael admits that he screwed up the Banana Stand and he's sorry, but Michael tells him to light it up anyway. That'll show dad! Watching the blaze, Michael asks Gob if he mailed that insurance check. Later, in jail, Michael gloats that he torched the Banana Stand and he should remember who's in charge now. Irate, George Sr. tells his son that "there's always money in the Banana Stand" means the walls of the stand were lined with $250,000 in cash.

On the next Arrested Development...

G.O.B. protests the pet stores frozen-dove exchange policy, and Michael, realizing the banana stand is the only profitable part of the Bluth Empire, decides to rebuild.