Summary
While the pilot has its highs and lows, it is a promising start for Players as they are building something special here.
This recap of Paramount+ series Players season 1, episode 1, “Creamcheese,” contains spoilers.
Access the archive of recaps, reviews, and news for Players.
We have a brand new series hitting Paramount+ this week, and I am excited to cover it weekly. Players is a series that is based on the world phenomenon, Esports. As a (mediocre) gamer myself, I am intrigued by how this story will play out. Let’s dive into the pilot.
Players season 1, episode 1 recap
The series begins with this mockuseries-style feel talking up “Creamcheese”. Everyone is talking about how he is the biggest star in the world and how he revitalized how everyone looked at esports. Then, Creamcheese gives a Lebron-like speech by saying they could win not one, not two, but seven championships. However, we are present-day and Creamcheese/Fugitive had yet to win their first championship.
We meet Creamcheese present-day, who doesn’t regret the guarantee and lives his life without regrets. However, he reminisces about 2016, when he dropped the ball, and if they won, it would’ve changed his life. Next, we move to a podcast, and news shows talk about how Fugitive needs a new face of the franchise and how this new kid in town needs to take over.
We meet the new kid in town, Organizm, who is signing a long-term deal with Fugitive. The owner of Fugitive is sitting with Ogranizm and his family, and while Organizm is quiet, he doesn’t lack confidence in himself. Finally, he arrives at the house where everyone is, and Creamcheese welcomes him with open arms. Creamcheese gives him a tour of the place and introduces him to all of his new teammates. Organizm is humbled and excited because he has watched them for many years.
It is Fugitive’s official welcome to asset day, where they introduce the team and its new team members. Next, we hear Indiana Black, an esports analyst, talking about how they will have to rebrand in the future because of how different a personality Organizm is. We then meet Emma, Nathan’s daughter (the owner), and she wants to interview Organizm for her Youtube show.
Black also details how Creamcheese has a reputation for being annoying. We move to Creamcheese, saying he knows how to work the camera, and some of these other guys don’t know. As they take a team photo, they announce that they want to take one more but with Organizm, much to the dismay of Creamcheese, who attempts to bail on the picture. Six people are in the shot, and Creamcheese is confused about why an academy player is photographed with the team. Nathan (the owner) steps up and says he wants Frugger out of the shot and Organizm, in which Creamcheese fights back, saying he is a starter. Despite the blowback, the photo gets taken, but Nathan says he wants Organizm in the front, and Creamcheese freaks out.
We move to Head Coach Kyle’s office, where he and Nathan have words because Nathan says they are trying to make money and that Ogranizm needs to start. In walks Creamcheese who overheard this and is freaking out. Creamcheese is begging Nathan and letting him know that Frugger is making moves and they need him to win games. Nathan brings up the sponsors, to which Kyle retorts what if they see the new kid and he loses because he wasn’t ready. It has hit the fan.
Frugger and Creamcheese are going back and forth about how it is Creamcheese’s team. He has built this team and rants about how he (Nathan) can’t walk in his house and just change his team around.
We rewound to 2015 when the magic all started for Creamcheese. We find out that his first name was Nutmilk (I LOL’d) and how he rose to the ranks, but he also mentioned that he started to become family with these guys online. I love they touched on that because, as odd as it might sound for people outside of the gaming bubble, you can easily find friends in this space that might become family. Creamcheese moved in with April and Kyle because his family didn’t accept his pursuit of becoming a full-time gamer.
They dig deep into the backstory. We learn how Fugitive was built and how they were ahead of their time with building within this space. From pranks to funny videos to destroying everyone at video games when the time was right. Creamcheese was struggling right after leaving home, and he wanted to get his keyboard from his parent’s house, and they wouldn’t allow him to get it. So, he took matters into his own hands and went to the house to take it, and his parents ended up calling the cops on him. And someone commented on the message board calling him a “Fugitive,” which is where the team’s name was born.
It’s the challenger qualifying tournament, and the team is getting a pep talk from Creamcheese. They are together and ready to take on the world together in the same room. Creamcheese talks about how this was one of the crowning achievements in his career. You can see the joy in the guy’s faces when they won the big qualifier.
The ending
We move back to the present day, which is the opening day for team Fugitive. We hear the announcers talking about how Organizm is starting over Frugger, and they are shocked. April (VP of Operations) mentions season openers don’t really count. She also mentioned that there were more eyes on Ogranizm than anyone before.
The gameplay is happening, and Organizm was IN THE GAME and kickass and taking names. However, Creamcheese is trying to give Organizm some guidance, but he ignored it. In an attempt to show off, Organizm ends up costing Fugitive the game. All the commentators mention that this is a team game and that they weren’t playing as a team.
Creamcheese storms off the floor and starts kicking things and saying he will never play with him again. Kyle tells him to calm down and take it outside. Next, we go to Kyle, telling Organizm that he must apologize to the team. We then see that with Organizm starting, Frugger has been demoted to the Academy team. Creamcheese attempts to comfort Frugger over the demotion.
As the episode closes, Organizm is staying with Nathan tonight because of how high the tensions are with his teammates. Kyle says Creamcheese needs to understand that this isn’t all on Organizm. Next, Creamcheese says to the camera that if he apologizes to him and shows he is ready to learn, he will try to be civil. Organizm calls and leaves a voicemail that is a mix between an apology and an understanding that his goal is to be the best player of all time.
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