'New Girl' Season 3, Episode 6: 'Keaton' Recap

Jess calls Winston and Nick into an abandoned apartment in their building to have a secret meeting about Schmidt. He just lays on the couch eating and yelling at the news. She's worried about him, but also she's having a Halloween party and doesn't want him depressing everyone. By being there.

Winston tells Nick it's time to give Schmidt a letter from an old friend. Michael Keaton. Winston explains that when Schmidt was seven, his parents divorced. Mrs. Schmidt wrote Schmidt a letter of support from Michael Keaton, and the two became pen pals. When Schmidt went to college, Mrs. Schmidt explained to Nick the problem, and Nick took on the persona.

Nick, however, stopped catfishing Schmidt. He refuses to do it again. He shows Jess some of the old e-mails he sent as Keaton, but insists he will never write another.

Jess goes to CeCe's to find out if she's going to the party, and finds a hungover CeCe a disaster on the couch. CeCe admits she has been drinking a lot lately. Jess pleads with her to go to the party, and promises Schmidt won't be there.

And he will not, because he's gotten a surprise e-mail from Keaton, telling him to give CeCe space. Schmidt seems much happier, but Winston and Nick yell at Jess for taking on the persona. It's a delicate balance - if it gets messed up, no one can predict how Schmidt will react. Jess writes again as Keaton and says he's going on vacation. Schmidt is depressed.

Nick decides he has to solve the problem by stepping back into Keaton. He dons a Batman helmet and channels Keaton, writing an inspirational mesage to Schmidt, who cheers up instantly.

Schmidt writes back, but hears an electronic noise from down the hall. He tracks them to the empty apartment and finds them composing another e-mail.

The party is underway. Schmidt appears, crashing it. He claims he re-read some of the e-mails, and felt that Keaton would have wanted him to go to the party. Jess sends Winston to go stall CeCe. Jess runs to e-mail Schmidt, but since she's been drinking, her tactics are terrible. Schmidt spies on them as Jess writes that Keaton will meet Schmidt outside the building.

Jess steals a Batman costume from a kid, and tries to pretend to be Keaton while Schmidt goes along with it. Finally he tells them he knew what was going on, and they should be ashamed. He accuses them of hacking into Keaton's e-mail. Nick confesses that he has been playing Michael Keaton since his mom passed the torch.

As Schmidt is wrestling with the news, CeCe comes up behind them. Schmidt runs, and gets beat up by children who think he is a bully.

Jess takes CeCe aside to apologize, but CeCe thinks that maybe seeing Schmidt has brought her some closure.

Schmidt talks to Nick on the curb, realizing that Nick has been the one to help him through so many issues in his life.

The next morning they clean up from the party, and Schmidt feels he wants to move onto the next chapter of his life. He is moving out. He packs his things, and walks across the hall... to the empty apartment.