Something Cliqued Between Us

Liz is sure her old best friend Cassidy has gone popular and left her behind, so she and Julie declare war on the clique - fishing a nasty note out of the trash and slipping it into a boy's locker to embarrass her. Meanwhile lonely Mandy, invisible to everyone, pours her heart out to a mysterious advice column called Miss Friendship... never guessing that Jared is behind it, inventing answers for fun while half the school trusts him with their secrets. When Mandy catches him, the whole scheme unravels, and a bigger truth comes with it: while Liz and Julie fume about being shut out, they have been shutting Mandy out the very same way. Accusations fly at Whit's End until the pieces fall into place - the insulting note is actually about a wrinkled dog named Red, and Cassidy never meant to drop Liz at all. Both girls admit they simply stopped talking and assumed the worst. Apologies all around, ice cream for everyone, and one lesson learned the hard way: check your own friendliness before judging everyone else's.

Found on Virtual Realities Album 33 · 15 episodes

The run See every episode

2 of 2 0421 Telemachus Two monks arriving in Rome for a grand imperial celebration discover that the city's most spectacular entertainment will demand more from them than they ever imagined.

1 of 2 0422 Passages A visit from his late son's camp friend leads a grieving father to hear the incredible story of two children who stumbled out of the woods and into another world.

2 of 2 0423 Passages When a small band of believers faces an overwhelming army, two children from another world must trust that the Unseen One can make the weak stronger than the weapons raised against them.

1 of 2 0424 Blackgaard's Revenge A curious girl's trip into the Imagination Station takes a dark turn when a supposedly dead enemy resurfaces inside the machine - with an agenda of his own.

2 of 2 0425 Blackgaard's Revenge When the villainous Blackgaard traps young Aubrey inside the Imagination Station, Whit must risk everything in a battle of wits against a foe who will stop at nothing to live again.

0426 The Buck Starts Here Whit hands three kids twenty-five dollars each and two weeks to do something constructive with it - but keeping the money proves harder than any of them expects.

0427 Something Cliqued Between Us When an anonymous advice columnist starts stirring the pot at school, a group of girls nursing grudges over cliques and lost friendships may discover the real problem is closer than they think.

0428a The Eternal Birthday When her birthday turns out perfectly, Liz Horton wishes every day could be just like it - and gets far more than she bargained for.

0428b Bethany's Imaginary Friend When her little sister's invisible new friend starts turning up everywhere, a girl seeking a quiet afternoon with her book discovers her whole family is playing along.

0429 The YAK Problem When a strict former principal is scheduled to speak at a mysterious school assembly, Nathaniel's wild speculation about a program called YAK sends the kids of Odyssey into a fun-hoarding frenzy.

0430 Blind Girl's Bluff A lonely new girl in town teams up with a quick-witted blind friend on a "mind-reading" act that becomes more popular - and more complicated - than either of them expected.

0431a Where There's Smoke A boy's new hero at Whit's End discovers that being admired means every habit - good or bad - gets copied.

0431b The Virtual Kid A boy becomes so obsessed with running the website he built for Whit's End that he risks missing out on the real place - and the real life - right in front of him.

Featured characters

Minor characters & crew 2 more roles

2 supporting roles

Julie Zeeke Tracy Bassett Cassidy Danielle Judovits

Made by

Chris Anthony Host Marshal Younger Writer Phil Lollar Director · Producer Rob Jorgensen Sound Designer · Producer Al Janssen Executive Producer

The story

Read the full synopsis 3 min

At Whit's End, Liz and Julie make fun of Cassidy, Beth, and the other popular girls they call the Calvin clones. Liz and Cassidy had been close friends, but Cassidy's appearance and social circle changed over the summer, and Liz now feels invisible to her. Whit explains that spending time with a comfortable group is not wrong by itself; the harm begins when the group excludes people for the wrong reasons. Liz is certain Cassidy's group is guilty.

As Liz and Julie leave together, Mandy invites them to visit her house, but they barely acknowledge her. She sadly tells Whit that she is on everyone's list of people who do not exist. Whit recognizes an old problem taking a new form: while Liz and Julie complain about being rejected, they do not notice the friend they are rejecting.

At school, Mandy finds an advertisement for an anonymous advice service called Miss Friendship. She sends a private message explaining that girls she likes keep ignoring her. The mysterious counselor answers, and Mandy continues the correspondence, hoping for a way to win their attention.

Liz and Julie, meanwhile, recover pages from a note Cassidy and Beth have thrown away. The girls assume a joke about a whining redhead with an ugly face refers to Liz. Another line reveals that Cassidy thinks Bobby Lawson is cute, so Liz slips the note into Bobby's locker to embarrass her. The plan backfires when Bobby and Cassidy begin happily spending time together. Liz turns to Miss Friendship for advice about how to defeat the popular clique.

The advice Mandy receives becomes increasingly wild, warning that the girls ignoring her might not even be human and suggesting that she look for removable faceplates. Mandy recognizes Jared's imagination behind the messages and confronts him. Jared admits that he created Miss Friendship for amusement, never expecting anyone to take it seriously. About thirty students are now trusting him with private problems, and he enjoys feeling needed.

Mandy is furious that Jared has unknowingly read her confidences. She also discovers that Liz and Julie have written to him about Cassidy and Beth. Although Jared insists that his correspondents need him, Mandy tells his parents. They punish him and require him to reveal his identity and apologize to everyone he has misled.

Jared complains to Whit that some of his advice has worked, regardless of who wrote it. Whit points out that Jared claims to teach people how to get along while often failing to get along with others himself. He reminds Jared of Jesus' warning about noticing a speck in another person's eye while ignoring the log in one's own. If Jared truly wants to improve the world, he must begin with himself.

Back at Whit's End, Mandy deliberately describes her own rejection loudly enough for Liz and Julie to hear. The two girls realize someone has been treating Mandy the same way they believe Cassidy has treated them. Unfortunately, they assume Cassidy is also the person ignoring Mandy. When Cassidy arrives, Liz and Julie accuse her of running an insensitive clique and causing pain throughout the school.

Whit stops the argument and introduces Miss Friendship in person. The girls are shocked and embarrassed to discover Jared behind the advice column, but his final answer to Liz and Julie contains a truth he has finally begun to understand. Before condemning other people for being unkind or exclusive, they should ask whether they have been friendly to those around them.

Whit and Jared reveal that Mandy has not been angry with Cassidy at all; she has been hurt by Liz and Julie. The girls have been so busy watching Cassidy's group that they never see Mandy reaching out to them. Liz is stunned to realize that she and Julie have formed the very kind of clique they despise.

Cassidy then explains that she never knowingly shut Liz out. Each girl believed the other no longer wanted the friendship, and neither one spoke honestly about it. Even the insulting note was a misunderstanding: Red is Beth's wrinkled dog at obedience school, not Liz. Liz apologizes for assuming the worst and for giving the note to Bobby, while Cassidy apologizes for seeming to ignore her.

Whit reminds the reunited girls that Mandy is still waiting. Liz and Julie admit that they treated her exactly as they feared others were treating them, and Mandy forgives them. They invite both Mandy and Jared to share ice cream, forming a wider circle of friends after learning to examine their own behavior before judging someone else's.