Don't Kill My Vibe

**Don't Kill My Vibe** is the fourth episode of the second season of Peacock's modern-day reinterpretation, *Bel-Air*. It aired on March 16, 2023.

## Synopsis

Fresh off his suspension from Bel-Air basketball, Will seeks Phil's permission to join an AAU team.

## Plot

Will faces suspension for his actions at the black-out. He encourages Carlton to tell Uncle Phil and Aunt Viv that he had a panic attack, but he refuses and reminds Will that he promised him he wouldn't tell either. Moreover, he blames Will for his panic attack to begin with, as Will pushed him even though he didn't want to do the walk out. Will was so focused on messing with authority that he lost focus on the one thing he was supposed to do, which was look after Carlton. Uncle Phil and Aunt Viv return with unfortunate news, as they couldn't appeal the suspension. Not only is Will out for a week, but Coach Johnson pulled him from the team indefinitely. Will decides to accept his punishment and keep Carlton's secret, though he's feeling as if no one understands him. However, as they turn the corner, the hall is filled with students who salute Will on his walk out, whereas Yazmin actively avoids eye contact with Carlton.

Viv is becoming more stressed by the day as her art show nears its date. Day one of Will's suspension, she comforts him as he deals with being pulled from the team and suggests he look into AAU with Doc, but every time Will brings it up, Uncle Phil shuts him down. Speaking of whom, Uncle Phil enters the room with a list of chores for Will to do around the house since he's off from school.

Ms. Bassin reveals that Carlton has been nominated for the Founder's Award and that his actions at the protest didn't go unnoticed. Unfortunately for Carlton, Yazmin overhears this exchange.

Hilary works from Jazz's place on closing her Simply Spiked deal and says that Ivy is on a need to know basis. Hilary hopes they could do dinner, but his parents are coming, who she is eager to meet, but Jazz seems unsure, as if he doesn't want her to meet them. However, Hilary insists that she's ready, and so Jazz invites her to meet his parents.

Will begins his chore filled day with cleaning out the fridge before getting a call from Doc, whose learned that Will was suspended and kicked off the team. Nevertheless, he's still interested in Will and tells him to swing by later with his uncle. Unbeknownst to Will, Doc reached out to him at Aunt Viv's behest.

Phil catches Geoffrey as he's headed out to attend to personal errands and tells him to enjoy the day, but he seems suspicious.

Yazmin confronts Carlton for not following through with the protest in order to get nominated for the Founder's Award. Carlton tries to explain that it's more complicated than it seems, but Yazmin isn't convinced, suspecting that Carlton played her and the BSU.

Hilary works from her family's mansion, as the influencer house is often too noisy. While she doesn't get to do her cooking videos as much, she does enjoy the business side, whereas Viv simply wants to shut everything out and paint all day, but with the art show coming, there's a million things to do. She then asks how it's going between Hilary and Jazz, to which Hilary reveals she's meeting his parents. While Viv likes Jazz, he's not the type of guy Hilary has traditionally dated, but that's precisely why Hilary likes him.

Will has completed his list of chores and asks Uncle Phil if they can meet with Doc at his Zenith Hype facility. There, Doc shows them around and explains exactly how Will will benefit from his program. Although, the price for new players is $10,000 with a monthly fee of $500, which Uncle Phil finds suspicious.

Lisa, like many others, is sympathetic to Will's suspension, revealing to Carlton that half the school is practically willing to march for him. She asks if he wants to talk about the protest and knows he didn't tank the speech on purpose as she knows what his panic attacks look like. They pass by Drew and Yazmin, who asks if Lisa is coming to hang with the BSU tonight, which she is, however, Yazmin say so much as a word to Carlton, simply glaring at him. Lisa urges Carlton to let Yazmin in and let her know what he's dealing with and show people who he really is. Otherwise, they'll only think the worst of him.

As Will is getting his hair cut, he is joined by Jackie, who works at Zenith Hype part-time. She too has heard about his suspension and doesn't believe he should be punished for rocking out for the culture. While Jackie has learned he's from Philly, he's hoping for a closer look into her world, but she doesn't let people in too fast.

Uncle Phil reviews Doc's contract and asks what's in it fo him, to which he replies he receives satisfaction from helping young athletes meet their full potential. He has kids making upwards of $80,000 before they even graduate high school. He doesn't make a penny off anyone who isn't making a lot more. Phil is willing to support Will, but he also wants to make sure he's being exposed to the right environment to change him for the better, but Doc disagrees. The world is always telling young black boys to change who they are to be great, but Doc argues it's what they've been through that makes them great. He doesn't want to quiet what's inside of Will, he wants to bring it out. However, Uncle Phil is also concerned with the percentage Doc is requesting, to which he responds that most people understand his value, Viv included, considering that she sought him out, leading Uncle Phil to leave abruptly with Will, who makes his stance and frustration with his uncle known.

Will finds Ashley throwing away everything she believes in after losing her faith following Mrs. Hughes firing and Will's suspension. She also blames herself for him being pulled from the team, but Will insists it's not her fault. Still, she can't help but wonder what's the point of trying to change things if it only makes matters worse.

Phil confronts Viv for going down to see Doc at Zenith Hype behind his back. She retorts that it's not always about what he wants or needing to lay down the law. Will is hurting, but Phil worries that he's too impulsive. Even so, Viv argues they should listen to what he needs and questions Phil's issues with Doc, who Phil fears already has too strong of an influence over Will. Viv exclaims that they can't control who should or shouldn't be in Will's life. They learned this with Lou, and the last thing Will needs is for him to feel like they're playing puppet master with his life again. Phil believes they should be on the same page when it comes to Will, and what she did undermined everything he was trying to do.

Will and Carlton both had a rough a day, though Carlton thanks Will for not throwing him under the bus with his parents. Done feeling sorry for himself, Will invites Carlton to join him at the BSU bowling alley party, where Carlton is so excited that he brings his own custom ball and shoes.

Phil apologizes to Viv for exploding on her earlier. Screaming at each other has never been their way, and Phil admits that it wasn't all about her. His head is all messed up given that he's uncertain about what's happening with James at the firm in addition to Geoffrey, who seems a bit distant and secretive. Things were finally good and Phil doesn't want to question his every move, but something isn't right. Viv assures Phil that not everyone is against him and gives him a kiss.

Jazz tells his parents that Hilary is amazing and not to go too hard on her, as Hilary is different from what they're used to. However, to Jazz's surprise, Hilary arrives in a hijab and greets his parents accustom to their Muslim religion.

Carlton tries to coach Will on his first bowl, but he insists that he's fine, only to roll consistent gutter balls whilst Carlton gets strike after strike. Will Join Lisa after noticing her watching, at which point, he notices Drew watching them from afar. Will then gets a message from Jackie, who asks if he's ready for a glimpse of her world. Before leaving, he checks in with Carlton, who assures Will he will be fine on his own.

Geoffrey reports to Phil that his partner James has been having after hour meetings at the firm.

Carlton asks Yazmin if they can talk alone, but she blows him off, saying that he's just trying to vibe tonight. Drew instructs him to take the L and move on. He then confronts Carlton for blowing the speech at the protest. Lisa comes to Carlton's defense, but Drew persist and even pushes Carlton, claiming that he only came to the BSU to help himself, as now he's the faculty's nomination for the Founder's Award. When Drew accuses Carlton of playing kiss up to Ms. Bassin, Carlton attacks Drew in a blind rage and punches him multiple times before revealing that he froze at the protest because he had a panic attack, adding that he has anxiety for which he takes medication in order to fit into their Bel-Air bubble. As Carlton makes his exit, Lisa confronts Drew for instigating the fight. They're supposed to be the BSU, and yet they're treating each other like enemies.

Lisa retrieves Carlton's bowling ball and returns it to him in the parking lot. She's sorry he had to do that, but at least Carlton beat Drew up, sparking laughter in the two of them, with Carlton offering her a ride home.

Will finds Jackie at a dance studio, where he applauds her technique. Jackie has aspirations for Julliard, which is still a ways away. She works at Zenith part-time and dances at night, getting in at least 15 hours of dance per week while maintaining a 3.8 GPA. Her uncle always says "No grind, no grit, no greatness." Will always says "work hard, play hard," and proceeds to challenge Jackie to a dance battle, which results in them dancing closer and kissing.

During their meal, Hilary takes her research of the Muslim culture too far and begins reciting her knowledge of their religion until Jazz stops her and suggests they change the subject.

Phil instructs Geoffrey to bring James by the house, where Phil confronts him for having confidential strategy meetings. James reveals that he intends to sell the company, but Phil refuses, exclaiming that they didn't build the firm together all those years ago only to be consumed by a big firm who doesn't care about them or their people. James compares Phil to the Rainmaker. He brought in all the million dollar clients, and he's the one everybody wanted to see, while James was the day-to-day guy who made sure the lights stayed on. "I'm the finder, you're the grinder," Phil remarks. And when Phil left, they took a hit, losing clients and their best attorneys. James is simply doing what he needs to do, and their partners have already agreed, unless Phil can pull off a miracle of some kind.

The following day, Will makes breakfast for Uncle Phil and Aunt Viv, but before they come down, he talks to Carlton about his fight with Drew. The BSU chat is on fire saying that Carlton beat him up, but more importantly, he started a conversation about black kids and mental health. They're even talking about starting mental health workshops. Carlton exits as Uncle Phil and Aunt Viv enter the dinning room, at which point, Will promises to do the work should they allow him to join Doc at Zenith. He even offers to get a job to cover the costs. Uncle Phil relents and agrees to allow Phil to attend.

Jazz and Hilary lay in bed and discuss how she came to dinner in a hijab. Hilary simply wanted his parents to like her and in the process she acted a little crazy, which she regrets. Jazz only regrets that they didn't get to meet the real Hilary. However, she recalls him acting nervous when she first asked to meet his parents, which he admits is true, but that's only because of how different they are. Hilary wonders if they're too different, but Jazz insists they aren't and says they will always ride for each other.

Will refuses to allow Ashley to give up, as she's the one in the house to give them hope. In fact, he encourages her to take an emotional lap and get her head back in the game because they need her. He then gifts Ashley several new black empowerment posters. Elsewhere, Carlton goes through his texts and deletes his old messages with Yazmin.

Will and Uncle Phil arrive at Zenith Hype. While Uncle Phil doesn't fully trust Doc, Will has decided to trust him. That said, Uncle Phil has revised the contract a bit, but Doc still receives what he believes is a considerable cut. Will deserves a shot at his dreams, so Uncle Phil will allow him to play for Doc, but he doesn't get to own him. Doc accepts Uncle Phil's terms. After they exit, Jackie enters and Doc congratulates her on a job well done. While she doesn't believe she contributed much, Doc says otherwise. Will needed to show his uncle that he's willing to work hard for what he wants, and thanks to Jackie, he got there.

## Cast

* Cassandra Freeman as Vivian Banks
* Jimmy Akingbola as Geoffrey Thompson
* Olly Sholotan as Carlton Banks
* Coco Jones as Hilary Banks
* Akira Akbar as Ashley Banks
* Simone Joy Jones as Lisa Wilkes
* Jordan L. Jones as Jazz
* Adrian Holmes as Philip Banks
* Brooklyn McLinn as Doc Hightower
* Jazlyn Lopez Martin as Jackie
* Nicholas Duvernay as Drew
* Riele Downs as Yazmin Staats
* Shelley Robertson as Ms. Bassin
* Ptosha Storey as Mrs. Ahmad

Co-starring* Reggie Gaskins as Bilal