Just Getting Started Arc

***Spoiler warning:** Plot details follow.*

Zack's band, performing in "Battle of the Bands".

The **Just Getting Started Arc** is a secondary story arc that spans over the first two seasons of *Milo Murphy's Law*. This story arc centers around Zack Underwood making a new band with Milo and Melissa, after he told them about his previous band. The arc is preluded with "Secrets and Pies", properly begins with "Battle of the Bands", and continues throughout Season 2.

## Timeline of Events

* "Secrets and Pies": Milo and Melissa discover that Zack used to be the lead in a boyband known as the Lumberzacks. While Zack is ashamed of it, they think it's cool, and suggest to start a band of their own.
* "School Dance": Milo, Melissa, Zack, and Mort have their debut concert at Amanda's school dance, substituting for the missing band she initially hired.
* "Battle of the Bands": Zack signs their band up at the Battle of the Bands contest for practice, as the MC misinterprets them saying just getting started as their band name, Just Getting Started. Zacks encounters his old band there, the Lumbermaxes, and they agitate him to the point Zack loses focus and wants his band to be as perfect as possible. He eventually realizes he went too far, and apologizes to Milo, Melissa, and Mort, as they regroup and perform exceedingly well for the audience.
* "Disaster of My Dreams": Milo has gotten permission from Principal Milder to use the school's music room for rehearsal sessions of their band, as long as he doesn't pass her office.
* "Managing Murphy's Law": Amanda appoints herself as the band's manager and got them a gig for a charity concert. This concerns Zack, as their band hasn't gotten an official name yet (noting "Just Getting Started" was a mistake), even thinking of new ones minutes before the concert starts. Amanda uses her phone to organize everything needed, and orders the band to rehearse. After an arousing speech from Amanda to Milo and the rest right before the concert, Zack decides to keep the name "Just Getting Started", as the band performs just as well as last time with a new song Zack wrote on the spot using the list of potential band names he thought up.

## Preluding Episode

In "Secrets and Pies", Milo, Zack and Melissa are home alone at Milo's, and after failing to prepare dinner (dirtying Zack and Melissa's clothes when Milo was preparing macaroni and cheese), Zack and Melissa wear spare clothes similar to Milo's. Noting the resemblance of the clothes, Melissa comments that they look like a boy band, which Zack immediately shushes her for. They decide to order pizza at Ye Olde Pizza's website, as Milo recognizes the pizza squire they're in contact with, Veronica. While it was strange that Milo and Veronica recognize each other (which was because Veronica used to be Milo's babysitter, as revealed upon Veronica's arrival), Veronica also recognized Zack, who seems to know why and appears to be embarrassed about it. As they wait for the pizza Milo and Melissa are then inspired to share secrets within their friendship circle: Milo reveals that his backpack "isn't his" (revealing later on that it used to be Veronica's), and Melissa reveals that her two front teeth are fake, due to a pop fly hitting her in the face. Zack, however, still refuses to say anything.

Upon Veronica's arrival, Veronica reveals that she "was a huge Lumberzacks fan" to Zack. As she leaves,Milo and Melissa are confused until she decides to look up "Lumberzacks" on the internet, and comes across a music video called "Chop Away at my Heart", revealing that Zack used to be part of the lumberjack-themed boy band. Zack appears to still be embarrassed about the ordeal, but Milo and Melissa think it's cool that Zack was part of a band, and then suggest that they could start a band of their own, with Melissa playing bass and Milo on the accordion.

## Major Episodes

### "Battle of the Bands"

The first major episode in this arc is "Battle of the Bands", in which Zack, Milo, Melissa and Mort enter the eponymous competition with the intent to gain experience as a band. When they register their band, Zack tells the host that they are just getting started, which she misinterprets as their band name. At their practice area, Zack's band members express their fears, but Zack reassures them as everything will be fine. However, as Zack gets his friends some snacks, he runs into his old band by coincidence, renamed the Lumbermaxes and led by Max. This encounter leads into Zack being struck a nerve, as Max continuously misinterprets his words, believing that Zack has a rough time with his band and that they're in for a rivalry. Irritated at the Lumbermaxes' overly narcissistic views, Zack returns to his band and presses them to be so good that they'll be able to upstage his old band, fearing that they'll think he's lost without them. This leads into a rather stuttered rehearsal period, as Zack constantly interrupts his band when he believes he or his band isn't performing perfect enough.

When the band is called to appear backstage and the Lumbermaxes perform their song, Zack notes irritably that the song they're performing is almost identical to "Chop Away at my Heart", but with "chop" being replaced by "saw". Zack uses his time backstage to check the instruments of his bandmates, gradually assuming them and becoming a one-man band. Fortunately, however, a band covered in mirrors passes by, allowing Zack to reflect upon himself. He then apologizes to Milo, Melissa and Mort for his behavior, which they forgive him for. After the Lumbermaxes finish their performance, Zack's band shows up on stage and perform "A Bumpy Ride Tonight", which turns out to a success among the audience and judges in spite of the accidents that show up during the concert. The Lumbermaxes then approach Zack and allow him back to their band, which Zack denies, which is still being misinterpreted by them.

### "Managing Murphy's Law"

In "Managing Murphy's Law", Milo, Melissa, Zack and Mort are seen hanging out at the schoolyard. When Zack is about to invite Milo, Melissa and Mort over to his house for video games and snacks, they get approached by Amanda, who reveals she has a new gig for their band - a charity concert entitled "Forget the Llamas, Save the Alpacas", to be held at the Fire Engine Museum, having simultaneously appointed herself as their band manager. With this sudden news, Zack is concerned as they still haven't found a good band name, not satisfied with "Just Getting Started". In spite of that, Amanda asks them to rehearse right now and right here, as she texts Chad to get their instruments and Lydia to get the sound mixing.

As the band attempts a rehearsal, several mishaps take place that, unbeknownst to them, leads into an alien spaceship to take notice of Milo's negative probability ions, as it accidentally causes a fire hydrant to break loose and flood the schoolyard. With the schoolyard being unsuitable for rehearsal, Amanda asks the band to rehearse at Milo's house. When Mort suggests that the accidents taking place could be a message from above, Amanda flares up and demands the band to listen to her.

As the group, sans Chad, hangs out in Milo's garage to rehearse, Zack is still debating what their band should be called. Amanda reveals she likes the name "Just Getting Started", and Milo keeps support on Zack, noting that plenty of bands don't have a band name. All of a sudden, the garage starts to crumble, but Milo, Zack, Melissa, Mort, Amanda and Lydia flee outside before getting buried in the rubble, as Martin and Brigette arrive to ask if they're alright. Milo confirms so, but still have to get their instruments out of the rubble. As Milo tries getting them out, the spaceship from earlier arrives, accidentally shooting a laser beam that in turn causes a car with ponies to open up. Milo takes a boombox from his backpack and leads the ponies to the roof, right as Amanda texts Brigette to drop them off at the concert.

At the Fire Engine Museum, before the concert, Zack has listed many suggestions for band names, but neither Mort nor Melissa could agree on them. As Amanda notifies that Just Getting Started is on in five minutes, Milo comments he likes that name more when she said it.

Right before the concert starts, Milo tells Amanda about his concerns for the concert, but before he can suggest to call the concert off, Amanda denies the request and reveals she learned from him to never quit, and is determined to continue in spite of Murphy's Law. After her speech, Zack has decided to keep the name "Just Getting Started", and to use his previous suggestions as lyrics for their song. As the band performs their new song, Amanda watches them with glee, and later, it's revealed she also texted Dakota and Cavendish to bring fireworks to the concert, who show up after being affected by a memory-erasing alien device.

After the concert, Milo praises Amanda for her handiwork with her phone, and asks her what she thinks of her new job. She reveals that it was tougher than she imagined, but Milo was worth it in the end, kissing him on the cheek. Later, the band is picked up by Brigette, who drives them to a Slushy Dawg, where Milo also thanks Dakota and Cavendish for the fireworks, who have no longer memories of that.

## Minor Episodes

In between "Secrets and Pies" and "Battle of the Bands", Milo, Zack, Melissa and Mort also group together to play "Just Roll With It" in "School Dance", when the band Amanda hired for the Niagara Falls Fling has mysteriously disappeared. Milo still has his shoe missing after fixing the dance, but got it back from Amanda. She asks him for a dance, but while Milo would love to, he is still required to play with the rest of the band.

In "Disaster of My Dreams", Milo, Zack, Melissa and Mort are allowed to use the music room of their school for their band rehearsal, so long Milo never passes Principal Milder's office ever again, which was revealed while Elliot still keeps his watch on Milo. Interestingly enough, their song from "School Dance" also plays when Elliot tries to prevent a boulder from breaking anything within the school.

Zack's past as the leader of the Lumberzacks tends to be brought up from time to time as well. When pursuing C.I.D.D. in "A Clockwork Origin", Milo, Zack and Melissa find themselves at a Lumberjack Festival, which makes Zack nervous, as he states he doesn't want to be recognized as the former leader of the Lumberzacks. He decides to wear a red cap and blue aviator shades to hide his identity while he, Melissa and Milo search for C.I.D.D. at the festival. However, Zack eventually decides to randomly reveal himself as the former Lumberzacks leader, and seemed slightly disappointed that it garnered no reaction from the other attendees. Later, though, when C.I.D.D. reunites with Clyde Rickenbacker, and they and the gang gets chased by Victor Verliezer, the man at the security booth they gathered at recognized Zack from the Lumberzacks anyway.

Zack's past is also brought up by Baljeet Tjinder in "The Phineas and Ferb Effect", when he, Buford, Zack and Melissa are jailed in the Pistachions' human detention center (formerly Lard World). Baljeet claims to be a huge Lumberzacks fan, always carrying the "Chop Away at my Heart" single with him. When Buford notes that he heard one of the Pistachion guards singing said song, Melissa gets the idea to have Zack, Baljeet, Buford and Sara perform "Chop Away at my Heart" to distract the Pistachions, in hope to trigger Murphy's Law using Martin. It worked, but the Pistachions caught on, as Melissa, Zack, Buford and Baljeet were the only ones able to escape.