Teacher of the Year is the twelfth episode in the TV series Danny Phantom.
Plot[]
As Nicolai Technus invades the contents of an online game, Mr. Lancer makes sure Danny works hard to pass his grade, after Danny didn't get much sleep and failed his test.
Synopsis[]
Danny and Tucker play an online video game called Doomed, only to be bested easily by someone named Chaos. Frustrated, Danny flings the Fenton Helmet (which he substituted for a game controller to give him an edge), which coincidentally hits the button of the Fenton Portal, unleashing Technus.
Seeing the Doomed video game, Technus views it as a much better place to inhabit than Earth, but Danny refuses him any access and a battle begins.
Technus overcomes the ghost boy by wrapping him with an electric shield, accidentally destroying Danny's computer in the process. At a loss, Technus quickly picks himself up and escapes, vowing to return. Danny states he will hunt him tomorrow, but realizes it is indeed tomorrow, having stayed up all night playing the game (8:00 pm to 5:00 am).
Danny sleeps his way through a test in school, much to Lancer's dismay. Later that night, Danny (wearing the Fenton Phones) and his friends search for Technus while he and Tucker discuss the game in thorough detail, including the glitch in Doomed--that of Level 0 which has no access way out.
Sam does not seem as obsessed over the game as her male comrades and is rather annoyed with their constant references to it. She eventually spots moving appliances, which Technus uses to mold a suit reminiscent of Chaos' for himself. Danny asks for Tucker's help in battle using moves from the game while he tells Sam to stay put, annoying her further.
Danny manages to defeat Technus by sending a ghost ray his way, immobilizing his suit. Seeing he lacks the skills of the online video game, Technus self-destructs his suit and hides inside Danny's Fenton Phones.
To celebrate his defeat, Danny and Tucker plays Doomed, using the same strategy they used on Technus, only to be defeated by Chaos once again. After pulling another all-nighter, Danny leaves the lab, letting Technus (who comes out of the Fenton Phones) to easily enter the computer screen and into the game itself.
At school, Danny has failed his test, but seeing as it counts for one-quarter of his grade, Lancer decides to give Danny another chance by letting him have the opportunity to retake it. With only three days to study, Danny instead continues to goof off on Doomed in an internet café, where Lancer eventually catches him and escorts him out of the café.
Meanwhile, Technus gets help from Tucker (who is unaware of who he is due to a different body form the ghost has taken) to master the game. There, Tucker explains the purpose of the game is to find the Seven Keys of the Apocalypse, defeat all 13 levels, and gain access to the World Wide Web. Technus also discovers he still possess his ghost powers, something other players do not have.
Danny is driven home by Lancer who gives him a talk about school success. He drops Danny home to his upset parents where Lancer suggests Danny has to stay after school to study with him for his make-up test until he is ready to take the test again which it was for his own good.
Danny (as well as Jazz) tries to make up an excuse to get out of it (due to his superhero duties), but none of the adults wishes to hear any further from him. Maddie informs Danny that he is a Fenton and the Fenton family always get A's (sometimes B's by Jack) on their test, because of studying hard.
As a result, Jack and Maddie forbade any electronic access, including the online video game system until Danny passes his test with flying colors. Jack going as far as crushing and destroying his son's cell phone with his hand really hard by saying "He's Busy!", which is bad timing when his friends try to call him upon Tucker discovering Technus was in Doomed.
Tucker, constantly being beaten by Technus, now discovers that Chaos is actually Sam. By school next day, Danny also expresses shock on Chaos' identity, while Sam proves she's just as "game" as her male companions. While Danny is stuck studying with Lancer, Tucker and Sam vow to take Technus down.
Lancer tries every method to get Danny to study--including attempts to garner sympathy regarding his sister whom he cannot afford plane tickets to visit as he eyes a photo of her on his desk (when in reality it is just a ploy he uses to get students to study harder and the picture is really of Lancer himself in a dress)--but nothing seems to be getting through to him.
When Lancer leaves briefly, Danny takes over his computer to check up on the others, both of whom are having no luck with Technus and are still losing. Lancer eventually catches Danny and storms off. Guilty, Danny turns off the computer and focuses solely on studying and taking the test again to which he passes, much to the pleasure of both Danny and Lancer.
Now that Danny has finally passed his test and got a 91% by Lancer for realizing that he is not really an idiot, he heads home, quickly shows his parents the grade he got on his test and tells them that he is not an idiot, to which Jack decides to tell Maddie that he should give him his cell phone back (despite being destroyed earlier), finally returns to the game and tries to make his way to the last level, and using his ghost powers as support by phasing into his own computer as he is finally able to catch up with his friends.
Danny and Sam continuously attack Technus to lower his powers while Sam uses a cheat code to make herself a giant Tiki-like monster, smashing Technus and letting Danny send him to Level 0, a glitch program with one way in and no way out.
With all the keys now in their possession, the three ready themselves to win the entire game, but are easily defeated by Lancer, of all people.
Much to Sam and Tucker's surprise, as well as Danny being zapped out of his own computer at home turned back into human form, he wonders what might have happened. Mr. Lancer relishes in victory over his wins while the trio wondered who managed to defeat them by having his own online video game system while Danny failed his test the other day.
Home Media[]
DVD[]
iTunes[]
- Danny Phantom: Season 1
Casting[]
- David Kaufman as Danny Fenton/Phantom
- Rob Paulsen as Jack Fenton; Technus
- Kath Soucie as Maddie Fenton
- Rickey D'Shon Collins as Tucker Foley
- Grey DeLisle as Sam Manson
- Colleen O'Shaughnessey as Jazz Fenton
- Ron Perlman as Mr. Lancer
Series continuity[]
- When Danny enters the computer game in ghost mode, his altered outfit foreshadows the new supersuit he will get in Reign Storm.
- Technus remains trapped in Level 0 of Doomed until Danny mistakenly deletes the game in Identity Crisis.
Trivia[]
- Allusions: See List of allusions
- Goofs: See List of goofs
- This is one of the only four episodes that features Danny in his human form on the title card, and is the only one to feature Mr. Lancer.
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