Lizzie McGuire

Gordo has his camera and is filming Lizzie and Miranda in the school cafeteria. He forgets the camera when they leave, and when he goes back for it, he finds it was running the whole time. When the friends view the footage, they see Kate telling Claire a big secret--she's fourteen, a year older than the other seventh graders, because she was held back in kindergarten! This gives Gordo an idea. He sets up several hidden cameras around the school which catch lots of embarrassing moments on tape. Gordo plans to make a movie and enter it in a local competition, hoping to prove with it that even the popular kids have things to be embarrassed about.

Gordo and Miranda visit Lizzie after she was out sick and bring her some scary news--in social studies class she has to pair up on a project with---KATE!! Lizzie reacts hysterically. She tries to get out of going to class the next day but her parents make her go. Kate is mad about working with Lizzie also, but she comes by the McGuire house to work on their project, cooking a Latvian dish called an Alexander Tort (a raspberry pastry ). At first the two are hostile to each other, but eventually they have a laugh or two and begin to recall the days when they were friends. Jo McGuire sees them enjoying themselves and tells the girls it seems like old times. Suddenly the girls stop being so friendly, then Kate excuses herself and leaves. At school Miranda and Gordo ask Lizzie how it went with Kate, expecting the worst. Lizzie says it wasn't so bad. In fact, the two are going to the Digital Bean to do work on a high-speed computer. When they get there, Kate and Lizzie are working fine, but

Lizzie finds out in square-dancing class that a guy has a crush on her--but it's Larry Tudgeman! She asks her mom's advice about how to get rid of him, but Mom suggests she find out what he's all about first, intimating that her dad was kind of a geek when she first met him. This isn't what Lizzie wants to hear, but she doesn't want to be mean and consents to go out with Larry. To her surprise, he shows up for the date looking very nice, and--bigger surprise--she actually has fun on their trip to the science museum.

The middle school is putting on a big Fright Night celebration for Halloween. Lizzie wants to appear as Vampira, the dungeon mistress, but Kate is in charge and she keeps the job for herself, making Lizzie clean out the janitor's closet and then giving her the role of a clown handing out balloons. Miranda brings her parents, who are helping her celebrate a Mexican holiday, the Day of the Dead. They bring by several items including skulls and skeletons which are meant to represent ancestors who are being honored. Kate is all smiles when Miranda's parents are around (""Toon Lizzie"" calls Kate ""phonier than cafeteria cheese""), but once they leave she yells at Miranda to get rid of that junk they brought. Miranda warns Kate that by disrespecting the dead, she is risking their wrath.

Director Stan Jansen is filming a documentary at the junior high and everyone is trying to get on camera--except Gordo, who wants to be a director himself. But Stan singles out Gordo as his star and tells him his appearance in the film could lead to a career in directing. Gordo is eager to go along, so when the director tells him he wants conflict, Gordo trashes Kate on camera. Lizzie and Miranda think that's great, but it's not so great when Tudgeman gets upset after the same treatment. Then when Gordo manipulates Lizzie and Miranda into revealing long-held secrets about each other, the trio's friendship is on the rocks. The girls can't stay mad at each other, though, and they convince Gordo that their friendship should be the most important thing to all of them. The kids find a way to get back at Stan Jansen.

Gordo wants to raise money for a new stereo, so Miranda and Lizzie suggest he tutor students who need help in math. His first student is Ethan Craft, much to the girls' delight. When Gordo is working with Ethan at the Digital Bean, Lizzie and Miranda keep trying to horn in on the action and end up spilling drinks all over the guys' papers. Gordo gets mad at them and suggests that they aren't smart enough to help him tutor anyway. The girls get angry right back at him and leave. Meanwhile, Matt and his friend Oscar are looking for something exciting to do. They decide to become ""super heroes"" Matt Man and the Incredible Oscar. They go around the neighborhood in costume trying to do good deeds, but all they do is annoy the neighbors.

Lizzie's fantasy almost comes true when she is paired up with Ethan Craft in a CPR class at school, but he's so dense that the teacher chooses Tudgeman instead to give Lizzie mouth-to-mouth! Lizzie, Gordo and Miranda realize they are about the only three in school who haven't seen the latest blockbuster movie Vesuvius: The Eruption, which is rated R, and they're determined to get in to see it. When their parents all say ""no"" to their arguments, Gordo decides they should say they are going to play miniature golf, then go see the film. Lizzie is very nervous about lying to her parents, but she pulls it off with ease. The trio can't get past the ticket-taker, though, and can't slip in the back, so they mingle with the crowd as it is departing a showing and sneak in that way. While at the concession stand, they notice a man choking.

The various obsessions of Lizzie, Matt and Gordo are driving friends, family, teachers and themselves to distraction. Gordo is intent on winning the Science Olympics at all costs against defending champion Larry Tudgeman. Matt becomes hall monitor at his school and gets carried away with his own power, giving out citations to schoolmates by the dozen and even trying to do the same to teachers and family members. Meanwhile, after she and Miranda work on a successful volunteer project at school, Lizzie becomes an environmental warrior, a fanatic for collecting clothing and food for the homeless, and even a vegetarian! All three learn that they must put limits on their fanaticism or else their original causes will suffer as a result.

Lizzie, who is writing for the school newspaper, asks for the assignment of covering the school's production of Mr. Escobar's play ""Greasier."" Miranda is overjoyed when she unexpectedly gets the lead in the play. When Lizzie and Gordo go to rehearsal, however, they are dismayed to find that Miranda is a terrible actress, and clumsy to boot. Miranda is confident before the opening of the play, but her performance is no better and she destroys most of the props and scenery. Lizzie can't bring herself to write the bad review Miranda deserves, but Gordo thinks she'll be able to take it. Lizzie writes a review that is honest, but goes easy on Miranda. Her friend doesn't see it that way, though, and thinks Lizzie has betrayed her. At lunch they get into a big fight.

Lizzie and Miranda note that when a girl gets her first bra, her personality somehow seems to change. They decide they are ready for their first, and hatch a plan to get Lizzie's mom to take them to the mall where they will shop for ""school supplies."" Lizzie is a terrible liar, though, and blurts out the real reason for the trip. Mom is overjoyed to help the girls out, but she embarrasses them as they are shopping. Lizzie is very harsh with her mother, telling her that she and Miranda are old enough to do their own shopping and to leave them alone. The girls face further embarrassment when they run into Kate, Claire, and their English teacher Mr. Coppersmith. They also find that they don't know what to look for.

Mrs. Stebel pairs up the students in her social studies class for a mock marriage assignment. Each set of partners must draw a job from a jar at random, work up a fictional lifestyle and report back at a pretend 20-year reunion. Always-snobby Kate is horrified to find herself matched up with Larry Tudgeman, but at least she likes her job, a television anchorwoman. Lizzie wants to be partnered with Ethan Craft, who's not so smart but is cute. But she gets familiar old Gordo, whose job is sanitation engineer (garbageman). Lizzie figures it's not so bad, though, since Gordo will probably ensure she gets a good grade. Her mind begins to change when Miranda gets picked to be Ethan's partner, and he's a surgeon to boot. Lizzie can't help but be jealous.

When a babysitter cancels on the McGuires, Lizzie suggests that she's old enough to do the job for her brother Matt, but mom and dad say no. After much persuasion from Lizzie they relent, and Miranda and Gordo also come over to help. After Mr. and Mrs. McGuire leave, Matt generally causes havoc, spilling grape juice on the rug, acting bratty and taking advantage of Lizzie, who badly wants to impress her parents with her responsibility. Miranda and Gordo aren't much help as they won't follow Lizzie's orders either. At the restaurant Sam McGuire wants to sneak home and check on his daughter and son; Jo doesn't like the idea, but says just don't let them see you. Meanwhile at the house, Matt has knocked out the power. Mr. McGuire tries to peer in the window and goes tumbling over. The kids think he's a burglar and call the police. Mr. McGuire tries to get in the locked house and the kids wage a battle against him reminiscent of the movie Home Alone. The police come to arrest Sam. After al

Gordo is sure that Mr. Pettus is giving him ""B""s instead of ""A""s because Pettus doesn't like him. His state of mind isn't helped any when the teacher gives the class an aptitude test which shows that Gordo is best suited to be a blackjack dealer. To prove that Mr. Pettus has it in for him, Gordo convinces Lizzie to turn in his science project with her name on it and vice versa, which ends up having disasterous results. Also, Matt adopts a hip-hop attitude and insists that everyone call him ""M-Dogg.""

Lizzie and Miranda are ecstatic about being invited to a pool party given by their heartthrob, Danny Kessler. Mrs. McGuire is excited for Lizzie too until she finds out it's on the same day as grandma's 80th birthday party. She tells Lizzie she has to go to her grandma's instead and Lizzie is furious. The next day at school Miranda temporarily gets on the good side of Kate, the girls' former best friend who has literally and figuratively outgrown them. Kate invites Miranda to hang out with her crowd, causing a conflict between Miranda and Lizzie. At home Lizzie catches her mom on the phone making up a lie to get out of a commitment and accuses her of being a hypocrite. Gordo helps Lizzie to smooth over her differences with Miranda. Mom tells Lizzie she can go to the party after all, but she decides not to and spends the day with Gordo.

Lizzie, Miranda and Gordo all have big problems on the day their pictures are to be taken for the junior high yearbook. Lizzie searches and searches for the right thing to wear, but her mother insists she put on a ""hideous"" sweater that her grandmother gave her. Miranda runs afoul of Kate when they both show up wearing the same outfit. And Gordo feels the pressure to assume a tough-guy pose when his picture is snapped. Meanwhile Matt hasn't studied for a quiz at school, so he fakes being sick to get out of it. But he finds out that his mom's cure can be worse than the disease.