An unfortunate set of circumstances forces Chris to repeat the 10th grade. This is the last straw, and Chris decides to drop out of school and forge his own path in life.
This episode contains examples of:
- Didn't Think This Through: Rochelle agrees with Miss Morello's plea to not have Chris appeal an entirely justified promotion to 11th grade. It never occurs to her that Chris would decide that having to relive his 10th grade experience and risk having to repeat 10th grade a second time if he's late 25 times isn't worth it.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Chris passes the GED and as we know, he goes on to have a long, fulfilling career.
- F--: Chris somehow managed to get a "Q" on a test. No one even bothers to tell him what that means.
- Jerkass: The teacher who declares Chris late even though he was clearly on time and was just being polite by holding the door open for him right as the bell rings.
- Murphy's Law: Chris is one late away from repeating 10th grade. It turns out he had been misunderstanding the bus schedule all wrong, and the bus is actually supposed to come earlier but always runs late, except for today. He then takes the wrong train, then a robbery occurs and he's mistaken for the perpetrator just long enough to be late.
- Nepotism: The superintendent's daughter was promoted despite missing all of 10th grade due to getting pregnant, but Miss Morello encourages Rochelle not to have Chris appeal to the school board despite having a valid reason.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Julius doesn't want Chris to repeat the 10th grade, but tries to make Chris feel better. When Chris announces his intention to quit school, he concedes he can't force him, but demands he get a job. He's also fully supportive of Chris taking the GED since it betters his career opportunities than no education at all.
- Small Role, Big Impact: Had the teacher not declared Chris late despite being on time, Chris' final absence wouldn't have mattered, and he wouldn't have dropped out.
