time clause: The before-clause sets the deadline: greet her ahead of her arrival.
And you've got to greet her before she gets in here, you fuckin' ass-kiss?Clerks II · 2006 — Chapter 4 of 17 · 3'04" · B2
Can't Be Friends With Your Boss, Explained: sow your wild oats
A worker waves at the boss and gets mocked for not greeting her at the door. What starts as a fight about workplace friendship turns into accusations about an affair, then a long, gleefully crude debate about what counts as acceptable. One line cuts to the chase: "You can't be friends with your boss."
What happens
At a fast-food restaurant, one worker waves at the boss as she arrives. Another worker turns the friendly gesture into a rule about workplace boundaries: "You can't be friends with your boss." The talk slides from an affair accusation into an extended, crude debate about a sexual practice, ending with one worker sent to restock napkin holders.
Listen for
ass-kissunrequitedsow your wild oatsbuck-wild
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Now
Phrase of the scene
sow your wild oats
to have casual affairs while young
The phrase dresses up a crude suggestion as old-fashioned male experience.
The old advice was simple: sow your wild oats first, then settle down.
Also in this scene
- ass-kiss
a shameless flatterer
- unrequited
not returned or reciprocated
- buck-wild
wild and unrestrained
- that's why
so; that is why
- pink and brown eyes
a crude colour pun for genitals
Everything marked in this scene
30 notes across 75 lines
Let got to blur together and stress greet.
And you've got to greet her before she gets in here, you fuckin' ass-kiss?to have a friendship with someone
You can't be friends with your boss.there is some romantic or secret involvement here: an affair or romantic tension
I think there's something going on between you two.a very large amount of
You spend an awful lot of time talking to her.an unreturned same-sex crush
And I've always maintained you're harboring an unrequited homosexual crush on me.object clause: The clause after maintained states the accusation as a formal claim.
And I've always maintained you're harboring an unrequited homosexual crush on me.Keep you're light and let harboring carry the beat.
And I've always maintained you're harboring an unrequited homosexual crush on me.to say the same thing repeatedly
That's what I keep telling you.sleeping with someone secretly — Vulgar and accusatory; avoid it at work or with strangers.
You're fucking around with the boss.the same age as you
Why would you want to fuck around with a chick your own age, man?a young woman, often dismissive — Casual and often objectifying; do not use it for colleagues.
Why would you want to fuck around with a chick your own age, man?to visit briefly on the way
If you've got to sow some of your wild oats, there's all these fine young chicks that stop in here after school.to be unfaithful to a partner
Secondly, if I was cheating on my fiancée, it wouldn't be with a teenager.the most enjoyable aspect of something
The best part of this job is all the barely-legal pussy that comes in here.just old enough to be legal — Sexualised and edgy; keep it out of formal writing.
The best part of this job is all the barely-legal pussy that comes in here.to admire or respect someone
And they all look up to me, 'cause I've got a driver's license.relative clause: The relative clause narrows chick, while as ... as forces the age comparison.
You show me one 33-year-old chick who's as buck-wild in bed as her 17-year-old counterpart.willing to try anything
They're up for anything.when the topic or issue is
I don't fuck around when it comes to ass to mouth.sexually aroused — Vulgar and explicitly sexual; avoid it in public settings.
These young girls today get all horned up, and they tell you to go ass to mouth.to eat eagerly; here used crudely for oral contact here: crude reference to oral contact
Well, when you're done chowing down on the no-no parts of your lover, you kiss him, right?Link down on the, then slow down for no-no parts.
Well, when you're done chowing down on the no-no parts of your lover, you kiss him, right?private parts — Childish and teasing; not for formal contexts.
Well, when you're done chowing down on the no-no parts of your lover, you kiss him, right?object complement: The structure makes the chore belong to Randal; it points back to the crude comparison.
That comparison of pink and brown eyes just made it a Randal job.a mocking punchline hit — A playful jab among friends; avoid it in serious settings.
Zing!convictions someone refuses to give up
The speaker turns a crude personal rule into a grand principle while protesting a chore.
You're just making me restock the napkin holders because of my firmly held beliefs on the subject of ass to mouth.about or concerning a topic
You're just making me restock the napkin holders because of my firmly held beliefs on the subject of ass to mouth.when feelings are running high
The speaker sounds forgiving but uses the phrase to keep provoking the others.
but sometimes, in the heat of the moment, it's forgivable to go ass to mouth.Let the t in heat tap into of; stress forgivable.
but sometimes, in the heat of the moment, it's forgivable to go ass to mouth.Can't Be Friends With Your Boss, explained
What's really going on
The surface fight is about a wave, but the real argument is who gets to define the relationship. One worker treats a boss like a friend and insists "It's called friendship"; the reply draws a hard line: "You can't be friends with your boss." The scene then does what this film likes doing: it takes a rule about hierarchy and drags it into bodily, deliberately inappropriate territory. The affair accusation matters less than the shift in power—once one worker names 'Becks,' the other seizes on the nickname as proof. From there, crude talk becomes a way to test who can stay unshaken, and the napkin-holder order turns the whole debate into a reminder that someone still has to do the shift work.
Theme
FriendshipThe argument asks whether workplace warmth is friendship or a hierarchy that must be performed, then turns crude jokes into a power test.
PowerA nickname and a napkin-holder order show who can define the relationship and who still has to obey.
Listen for
- got to greet — Let got to blur together and stress greet.
- you're harboring — Keep you're light and let harboring carry the beat.
- down on the — Link down on the, then slow down for no-no parts.
- heat of the — Let the t in heat tap into of; stress forgivable.
You can't be friends with your boss.The line states a hard rule: a boss can be liked, but the relationship is still hierarchical, so friendliness has limits.
I spend an awful lot of time talking to you, too.A defensive reply: if talking a lot to the boss looks suspicious, then talking a lot to this accuser would mean the same thing.
That comparison of pink and brown eyes just made it a Randal job.The crude comparison is turned into a reason the chore falls to Randal: because of it, the napkin-holder job becomes his.
I could probably sue this whole corporation right now for sexual harassment.A mock-legal complaint: the speaker frames the napkin-holder order as retaliation for a firmly held opinion about sex.
Questions about this scene
Why does one worker get mocked for waving?
The wave is aimed at the boss before she comes inside. A line says she will be in here in 20 seconds, and the complaint is that the greeter should have greeted her before she got in.
Is the affair accusation backed up in the scene?
It stays an accusation. One line says "I think there's something going on between you two," and another says "You're fucking around with the boss." The reply points to a fiancée and a move to Florida, but the scene does not settle the truth.
What does "sow your wild oats" mean here?
It means to have a wild, promiscuous phase while young. Here it is used to suggest that if someone needs that phase, there are young women who stop in after school.
Why is someone sent to restock napkin holders?
Because of the crude comparison about pink and brown eyes. A line says that comparison "just made it a Randal job," turning the napkin-holder chore into a punishment.
Clerks II · 17 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 5Say what you will aboutTrilogy Showdown at Mooby's
Chapter 1take issue withCoworkers Argue Over Wheelchair Blogger
Chapter 2hit the jackpotDante and Emma Argue Over a House
Chapter 3more than meets the eyeTransformers Argument at Mooby's
Watching · Chapter 4sow your wild oatsCan't Be Friends With Your Boss
Chapter 5Say what you will aboutTrilogy Showdown at Mooby's
Chapter 6give someone the time of dayDante and Becky Debate Marriage
Chapter 7at its finestPlanning a Donkey Show for a Send-Off
Chapter 8piece togetherRandal Grills Elias About Sex
Chapter 9bet dollars to donutsLance Dowds Visits Mooby's
Chapter 10blow off some steamA Slur at the Mooby's Counter
Chapter 11term of endearmentRandal Defends a Slur
Chapter 12tie your life to someoneWedding Jitters, But Only About Dancing
Chapter 13You and what army?A Man Confesses He's the Father
Chapter 14at its finestGoing-Away Party Turns Into a Stage Act
Chapter 15smooth things overDante and Randal's Jail Blowup
Chapter 16take a bullet for someoneFriends Fight Over Moving Away
Chapter 17pan outFriends Negotiate the Quick Stop LoanChapter 4 of 17 · about 41 min to go