02x02 - Ping

[bunniefuu]

Get it together. Get it together, Five.

Boom! Nice!

-[Abuela] Steak and egg!

-[Papi] Steak and egg!

[grunts]

Hey, bed head!

Quit button mashing up there

and grab some breakfast, yeah?

Okay. Coming, Abuela!

-Kimchi and avocado!

-[Papi] Kimchi and avocado!

-[Abuela] Extra peppers!

-Extra peppers!

-[Five laughs] Boom!

-[laughs] Hey!

-There he is!

-Morning!

Saved you chorizo.

Gracias, Papi.

Have a good day at work!

And don't forget

to call your dad later, okay?

I know, I know. Bye. Love you guys!

-[kid 1] Five!

-[kid 2] Yo. Five!

-Hey, Five!

-Did you hear?

You gotta come by the game store.

Whoa, whoa, one at a time, guys

Hector "High Five" Nieves!

How you been doing, kiddo?

Oh, uh, hey, Geri.

Here you go, savages.

Meet you back at the store.

[kid] Gracias.

Ooh. You of all people are going to flip

when you see what's being delivered

to my showroom this morning.

[Five] Whoa!

A vintage Ping arcade machine?

I've never played one of these before.

Well, swing on by the store today

and check it out.

Wow, really?

Hey, you're one of my best customers.

Haven't seen you around

for a while, though.

Last time was

probably just before your father--

Yeah, um, actually,

I don't think I can come by, um

You know, I have this new tech support job

at the Hinobi store.

[Geri] I heard.

-Well, if not today, maybe--

-Maybe later.

Yeah, totally.

Um, it's good seeing you, Geri. Adiós!

[Geri] Chow mein, chavallo.

[kid] Need some help in there?

Nah, babies, you all play

and mind the counter.

Okay, gorgeous, let's take a look at you.

Pfft, free shipping. [chuckles]

Well, beauty's only skin deep.

[cabinet beeping]

[laughing] Oh, my What?

It lives!

[electricity crackling]

Huh?

[giggling]

[Miko groaning]

Man.

Slow days are so slow.

Yeah. [chuckles]

Ugh.

What game are you guys playing?

Board game based on a video game,

based on a movie, based on a cartoon.

All right, random number generator, go!

Ugh, landed in tar pits again.

Boosh!

Alert! Alert!

I am receiving an urgent request for

High Five on the customer service line.

[Five] Me?

-Who'd wanna to call me on a customer--

-Five?

-Geri?

-Miko!

Isn't that the lady who runs

the vintage game store on Zeddemore?

I hate those old-school games.

They're so beeping-booping boring. Ugh.

Why are you calling me at work?

That Ping machine I ordered?

It must've gotten

pretty banged up in shipping,

because it's got a lot more quirk

than I bargained for.

Now, you said you work tech support--

I do, but I specialize in a very special

kind of tech support, Geri.

Have you tried just turning your machine

off and on again?

This thing doesn't wanna be turned off.

Whoa! Easy, big fella.

Uh I'd say that calls

for our special kind of tech support.

Let's go, partner.

[exhales]

OM-MORPG, this place is amazing!

Uh, yeah. I came here a lot as a kid.

Your friend owns this place?

Why haven't you told me about it?

[sighs] Because I kinda promised

I wasn't going to come back here

for a while.

-Promised who?

-Look, this needs to be a work visit.

We get in there, we get the glitch,

and we get out of there. Okay?

[nervously] Okay.

[kid 1] Hey, it's Five.

[kid 2] Wanna play some co-op?

[chuckles] Whoa. You have minions?

Consoles, coin-ops, controllers, oh, my!

It's a gamer paradise.

Okay, can we just keep ourselves low-pro?

Low-pro. Totes.

Scanning for coolness!

[cabinets beeping]

Ping, Beebuzz, Unicorp

Wow, talk about old school.

Oh, good, you're here.

Hey, Geri. Uh this is my partner, Miko.

-Hi.

-Miko, this is--

Geraldine Lawson.

Any friend of Five's

is a friend of me own,

Miss Lady Ma'am!

Oh, she is too adorable.

Uh, Geri, I'm not here to visit.

I'm here about your glitch.

Gamey, glowy

generally makes you go "Ahh!"

Oh! Here, let me show you.

[device beeping]

[automated voice] Unidentified

signature detected.

You actually caught a glitch?

Well, it took some nudging,

but seems right at home

in the brown box here.

Kiddos, check this out.

Whoa.

Come on, now. Come on. Don't be shy.

See?

It just takes some nudging.

Whoa!

-Uh, Five, be this friend or foe?

-[beeping]

[Five] I have absolutely no idea.

[man] Who knows what really happens

when a video game starts to glitch?

Here come the Glitch Techs

They know what to do ♪

They got the tech

They got the moves ♪

Glitch Techs

They're the wrecking crew ♪

They'll solve the problem ♪

Glitch Techs

When a Glitch is loose ♪

They'll wipe them out

Old school or new ♪

Glitch Techs

Always coming through ♪

To solve the problem ♪

Glitch Techs

Whoa-oh! ♪

Glitch Techs! ♪

Yeah! ♪

Uh, I can't find any history

of a glitch like this.

It must be rare.

-Or ultra-rare.

-Or legendary!

Whatever it is, I don't know

the how of this little miracle,

but I do know the what.

[both] The "what"?

The meaning.

I believe this little treasure

represents the very first pixel!

The single picture element

upon which all video game graphics

were created.

The code behind this single building block

led to endless graphical combinations.

The foundations of every mob,

spawn, or sprite you've ever seen!

So, this first pixel was to video games

what, like, a first brush stroke

was to paintings.

Or a first music note was to songs.

[Geri] Siblings of their generation.

Now, first, was Ping,

coded for players

to paddle pixel objects back and forth.

Next came Beebuzz,

coded for players

to steer pixel objects around.

Then came Unicorp,

which Five knows all about,

coded for players

to destroy pixel objects for fun.

Why do you know all about it?

Are you, like, Unicorp regional champ?

Because my dad helped code it.

[screams]

Are you being serious right now?

Is he are you

Why the Gorf am I just hearing about this?

-It's no big deal.

-[Geri] No big deal?

Emilio Nieves could write code

to play chess, balance a checkbook,

and hack a firewall faster than you or me

could chew a stick of gum.

Hack a firewall? Isn't hacking ill*gal?

-That's why he's still in prison.

-Oh.

Oh!

I mean, uh oh?

[chuckles lightly] It's okay, really.

It is, really?

Even white-hat hackers get arrested.

We all make choices.

Not all of Emilio's were perfect, but his

best choice was raising this little guy.

Is that High Five?

Aww, he's so little!

You were just a Low Five.

Yeah, Emilio used to bring Five here

every day after school

to hang out and play games.

-Five, you remember--

-Sorry, Geri.

You should call that shipping company

and tell them your Ping machine

showed up broken.

You know I've got

to call that shipping company.

Hey, that was a little rude.

You agreed to get in and get out.

Game over.

What? Ugh!

[powering up]

Nerds!

Dude, what's wrong?

My emitter isn't having any effect.

Not with that, with you.

First, you were all weird

about coming in this nice lady's store

I'm just trying to get this over with.

Okay, but this lady is a family friend

of yours, isn't she?

Yes, but that's not the point.

Ugh, I didn't wanna come here.

Hey!

Uh, Five?

It's gonna tear this place apart!

We gotta get it out of here.

Uh I'll ask BITT to send backup.

I'm not sticking around for backup.

[grunts]

Ow! [grunting]

-Five?

-Check it out.

Can I go next?

[laughing] Oh!

Don't try that at home, kids.

Oh, and also, we were never here.

[Five grunting indistinctly]

-Uh

-[glitch bouncing]

[grunting]

Okay, on three, I'll bring the box down

on top of it.

One

I don't think

this is how Geri did it, Five.

Two

Three!

I got it! I got it! I

-[Glitch beeping]

-[objects smashing faintly]

[Miko] Hmm?

-[beeping intensifies]

-Yeah, I don't think you got it.

[Five] Oh, nerds.

[yelps]

[screaming]

Hang on, buddy!

[automated voice] Patch disk enabled.

-[Miko] Ally, let's fly!

-[Ally caws]

[cawing]

[grunting]

Uh, okay, send me down on a trajectory

that'll put me into the forest.

[Miko] How am I gonna do that?

[Five] With math.

[Miko] I may need a calculator.

Okay, just set me down nice and steady.

-[birds squawking]

-Oh beans.

[Miko grunts] Clear the way, sky goblins.

Ready, set

[Ally caws]

[Five screaming]

-[crashing loudly]

-[Five] Sorry! Sorry!

-[person screaming]

-[Five] That was Oops!

-[Miko gasps]

-[Five screaming] I'm sorry! Sorry!

Yeah, definitely calling for backup.

[Ally groans]

[LuC++] And then just to mess with them,

I said, "The cake is a pie."

-Ha, ha, ha, ha.

-Sorry, I still do not get the joke.

BITT? It's Miko.

Hi! Five is pinging around the city

with an unidentified glitch

that his friend said was the first

brushstroke in the song of video games,

so what I'm saying is

we need help out here!

Right away, tech!

Now searching for participating staff

in your area.

Oh, great! Is Haneesh near us?

Zahra? Bergy? Anyone will do.

You know, anyone but--

[BITT] Mitch Williams is on the way!

[Miko groans]

Oh, uh

Ugh, that's gonna make a bad day worse.

-Hang on, if this thing can track Mitch

-[Ally caws]

maybe it can find

Here I come, buddy!

[tires squealing]

[Five screaming faintly]

[Five screaming loudly]

I hate this Ping.

[Five screaming]

[screaming and exclaiming]

[screaming continues]

[tires screeching]

[screaming continues]

[rat chittering]

[yelps]

[screaming]

[tires screeching]

Mik-yo drift!

[Five yelps]

[grunting]

-[Miko grunts]

-[clatters]

-[spitting] This day cannot get any--

-Don't finish that sentence.

Well, look which newbie techs

have gotten in over their heads again.

What is he doing here?

And you let it hack your ride?

Oh! No wonder you had to beg for help.

I did not beg.

It was a very dignified rant.

Well, let's see what it is you scrubbies

can't handle this time.

Don't open that!

It's the pixel from Ping!

[scoffs] That boring old game

where you knock the little dot around?

[automated voice] Wireless door control

unlocked.

[Mitch grunts]

Not as boring as you remember.

Don't bother sh**ting at it, Mitch.

Our emitters don't have any effect.

Shields!

[Miko] Ping is an old game.

Why aren't our gauntlets configured

to fight it?

Maybe because it's so old-school

it's not even worth caring about?

[grunts] What's that supposed to mean?

Retro, classic, vintage.

Three fancy words that all mean

[grunts] old junk.

That "junk" paved the way for

every game you ever played, punk.

No time for PvP duels!

[Mitch] Old school games are repetitive,

boring, and easy.

[Five grunting] You think this is easy?

At least the later games allowed you

to blow stuff up once in a while. [grunts]

That's it.

Later games let you

blow stuff up. [grunts]

Keep it in play until I get back.

[both] What?

Wait, wait, wait.

Where are you going? [grunts]

Where is he going with my van?

[tires screeching]

Hey, it's Five.

Wanna play some co-op?

Uh, can't stop to play right now, guys.

[laughs nervously]

Ping, coded for players

to paddle pixel objects back and forth.

Beebuzz, coded for players

to steer pixel objects around.

and Unicorp, coded for players

to destroy pixels for fun.

Five, you came!

Geri.

Unfortunately, that Ping machine

showed up broken.

-I called the shipping company, but--

-Geri, I did not want to come here today.

You and everything in this store

make me think about my dad,

and thinking about him is a reminder

that he's not with us,

and still won't be for a very long time.

Oh, Hector.

I promised myself

that the next time I came here,

it would be because he was home

from prison and we were a family again.

[chuckles lightly] Okay, then,

what are you doing here?

Because my dad isn't here

but you've made sure his legacy is.

And right now that legacy is the key

to fixing a very dangerous problem.

So if I asked you to keep the kids busy

and not ask me any more questions,

what would you say?

I'd say you and I may not be related,

but your daddy and I watched you

grow up in this store,

so whenever you're here you are home.

Come on, kids.

Let’s go get a frosty-freezie freeze.

-Your treat. [chuckles]

-[kids squealing]

[Miko and Mitch grunting]

[groans] This is my nightmare,

trapped in the infinite loop

of a bad retro arcade game.

Did you say "infinite loop"?

[Mitch sighs] That shut

the blippy thing up. Phew.

[humming rapidly]

[humming stops]

Uh, why do I get the feeling

that more silent means more deadly?

Something's wrong.

-The portals aren't able to sustain--

-[booming]

It is hard to find

dependable portals nowadays.

Oh, boosh!

That's okay. Maybe the trees will keep

the pixel in play for us.

Or maybe it’ll bash its way toward

the nearest major power plant.

Okay, yeah, we can deal with this.

At least the trees

are slowing its momentum.

We'll have to cut it off.

My boosts don't go that fast.

You wanna increase performance?

Overclock your tech.

-That's a thing?

-Not a thing the company tells you about.

Mostly 'cause it can seriously damage

their hardware.

[squeals] I wanna be wind.

Wait.

Once we overclock,

we’ve got about 30 seconds max

before our gauntlets overheat.

Got it?

I was born "got it."

Okay, Dad.

I hope you were as good

a teacher as you were a hacker.

[automated voice] Download complete.

-[rumbling]

-[deer yelping]

[man] Marshmallow? [yelps]

Mmm, toasty! [chomps]

[squeals]

[yelping]

[screaming]

[laughing]

Whoa!

I'm flying. [grunts]

[Mitch] Ugh.

Oi! Meet next gen, you retro!

[Mitch screams]

[gasps]

[yelling] Miko, your gauntlet!

[chirping]

[squawks]

[panting]

-[gauntlet beeping]

-Huh?

[siren blaring]

[grunts]

[panting]

[grunting]

Come on.

Come on!

Come on!

[grunting]

[yelling]

-[siren blaring]

-Huh?

[groaning]

[yelling] No!

[unicorn whinnying]

Fun's over, old timer.

Unicorn, rainbow blast!

[booming]

[wind howling]

Oh, yeah!

Yeah! Whoo-hoo!

Go, Five-- [gagging]

I swallowed a bug.

-[fanfare playing]

-[hooves clopping]

Oh, man, those graphics are terrible.

[automated voice] Glitch contained.

-[kid] Ooh, I'm next.

-And there you go, Geri.

Courtesy of Hinobi Tech Support.

Thanks, kiddo.

Okay, g*ng, let's Ping out.

[phone ringing]

[chuckles lightly] Hey, there he is.

[chuckles] Hey, Dad.

Cómo estás, mi vida?

Thought you might miss our call this week.

Never. Just kinda had a big day

over at Geri’s store.

[speaking Spanish]

[in English] You finally went there?

How is the old place?

Cool as ever.

Geri just got this vintage Ping cabinet.

Whoa, does it still work?

[chuckling] Oh, yeah, it works all right.

But Unicorp's still my game.

[Emilio] Ha! You beat my high score yet?

[Five] No, not yet.

But I'm gaining on you. [laughs]

[chiptune music playing]