A formal New Year's Eve party with the DIKs, Alphas, Nerds, Hots, and Preps. Well, with the Preps, it might even work. Just try sitting Tommy at a table with Dawe, and you'll see how long it stays a formal New Year's Eve party.
Such a weird stretch to be putting them together as if that's a "gotcha", something that is by no means any sort of proof in your favor either because it's such a stretch. So it doesn't do anything to negate the idea that this is a NYE ball and could very well involve a dinner beforehand which really isn't all that uncommon. And even if it doesn't, this room being decked out with chairs and tables is so the guests can sit down, chat, drink, socialise, etc, which is not uncommon for a NYE ball/party held in a function hall, which this clearly is, even one for a bunch of college students since things like that are and can be organised by them, especially when it comes to an occasion like NYE.
No, the big freeroam event will be a party, and probably with the DIKs, Alphas, Nerds, Hots, and Preps. Only, this party will be before New Year's Eve, before December 29th, and even before December 24th. Of course, you don't know what I mean. Suffice it to say, all students will be interested in this party. There's one event that unites all the students.
A ball is a party which is what this will be and it will be NYE and the students will be there. This is not going to be a Christmas party because they already had it and it certainly won't just be some generic "student party". It's crystal clear what the pattern is: Halloween -> Thanksgiving -> Christmas -> NYE. It's even evidenced by how DPC has shown them in the party planner as "Party #1", "Party #2", and "Party #3".
So logically, Party #4 will be New Year's Eve, it's not even a quesion at this point.
They have exams before Christmas, and then it's off to the Christmas break. The semester ends. This event would be much more fitting for a big student party.
Yes, the exams will be at the start of the episode since Derek literally said this was finals week in his toast and then there will be the Christmas break. We also know the MC won't be away for long anyway because of the recital/fight tournament on the 29th that will be bringing him back, and given what Thanksgiving was like with everybody still around the day before it and then back to the college like 2 days later, probably going to be the same case here that people will not go far and all will be back on campus before NYE even if there will be no classes on.
Fight it all you want, but this is the NYE ball/party that Maya is at in her preview and it's what the big freeroam will be.
