Managers & Meatballs

"I have Team Austin. Ally writes the songs, Dez directs the videos, and Trish manages us."

- Austin

"Managers & Meatballs" is the 7th episode in Season 1 of Austin & Ally. It first aired on January 29th, 2012 in the USA to 3.5 million viewers.

Overview
Everyone's loyalty is put to the test when Austin is approached by hot-shot manager Demonica Dixon, who wants to sign him, promising to take him to the top of his music career. Austin is backed into the position of having to choose between his friends and the promise of fame. When he learns that Demonica has been purposely sabotaging his friendships with Ally, Dez and Trish, he sticks with his friends and gives Demonica a taste of her own medicine. This episode is mainly about testing the four friends' relationship.

Episode Summary
At a Team Austin meeting in Sonic Boom, the gang is introduced to Demonica, who wants to represent Austin Moon in his career. While the foursome are happy with the way things are in their team, Austin is convinced by Demonica to fire off his friends in order to benefit his career, one by one, so that she can work alone with him.

Prior to this, Austin and Ally are shown to be working on the song, Better Together, Austin becomes unsure of how well the gang are helping with his music career. In order to step up the game, Trish books him at the Miami Jam-A-Thon. Though for some reason, the times get mixed up, making Austin miss his performance. That is what causes Trish to get fired as his manager.

Later on, Demonica starts to take over Ally's place in being the leader of the Team Austin meeting and even gets Spike Stevens to direct Austin's next music video for him. That meaning it essentially replaces Dez as Austin's video director.

As for Ally, she gives the demo for the new song to Better Together, but while she and Austin are having lunch, Demonica tells her that she did not like the song and instead hired professional songwriters, which is to Austin's dismay. Though this is somewhat made up for him by Demonica booking him a gig to play Times Square on New Year's Eve. Ally joins Trish and Dez at another table, all three of them now having been replaced.

Due to a bad dream later on, Austin realizes that he misses his friends. In addition, Ally and Trish and Dez find out Demonica's treachery. She threw away Ally's song without even listening to it, and sabotaged Austin's Jam-A-Thon gig to make Trish look bad by having one of her assistants pose as Trish over the phone, impersonating her voice. After Austin apologizes for letting his friends go, the gang plots to get revenge on Demonica for what she's done to them.

At a meeting presented by Demonica about becoming Austin's new manager, she mentions that they will rule in the music business. But when Austin is brought up on stage to speak, he says that he'd rather have his friends by his side in his career the whole way than having a professional team get him there quicker. He proves that he does not at all need Demonica Dixon by showing her and the people in the audience the music video they put for Better Together and fires her afterwards. As for the last part of their plan, they then fire meatballs at her with the tennis ball machine from Trish's previous jobs.

Throughout the episode, Trish has been managing her new client - Statue Guy - along with Dez in place of Austin, but by the end, she is fired as his manager and heads off with his statue kids.

Songs Featured

 * Better Together (premiere)
 * Can't Do It Without You (Theme song)

Main Cast

 * Ross Lynch as Austin Moon
 * Laura Marano as Ally Dawson
 * Raini Rodriguez as Trish
 * Calum Worthy as Dez

Guest Cast

 * Lisa Arch as Demonica Dixon
 * Jeff Blum as Statue Guy
 * Gregory Marcel as Stage Manager

Trivia

 * DirectTV had mistaken this for an hour-long episode.Balls.jpg
 * Despite being Statue Guy's first appearance, it is the only time his movement is seen on-screen and his only speaking role.
 * Pop singer, Rihanna, was mentioned in this episode.
 * Trish is fired from her job as Austin's Manager, but re-hired later in the episode.
 * Trish was hired and fired from It's a Racket, Meatballs, and Statue Guy's Manager.
 * The episode title refers to Demonica Dixon taking Trish's role as Austin's manager, and Team Austin getting revenge on her with a tennis ball firing machine firing meatballs at Demonica.
 * This is the first job Trish had twice - managing.
 * Trish is seen wearing the same purse and shoes that she did in Kangaroos &amp; Chaos.

Goofs

 * When the meatball machine is firing meatballs at Demonica, when the first lot of meatballs are being fired, no sauce is visible on her shirt. But when more meatballs are being fired, and she is closer to the camera, sauce is visible on her shirt.
 * The empty peanut package is actually a shortbread cookie package.
 * Ally didn't drastically freak out when on stage.