History WesternAnimation / InsideJob2021

* VomitIndiscretionShot: In "How Reagan Got Her Grove Back" Reagan has turned into a raving alcoholic mess, like Rand at the start of the show, after [[spoiler: the latter takes over Cognito Inc.]] and vomits in front of the White House gates.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler: The Shadow Board presents itself as this to Reagan in the part 2 finale. They claim everything they have done is for the betterment of humanity, tracing it back to the dawn of man where people protected the populace from dangers they didn't understand. That being said, at the very end they hint at something far more sinister, a project with Reagan as the key piece.]]

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: At the end of "Sex Machina," Reagan mentions to ROBOTUS that the extraction team she called to pick up Bryan [[spoiler: found no trace of the robot Reagan.]]

* AnAesop:
** One in the first episode, spelled out by Reagan; You can't just wall yourself off from the world (though she was talking about countries, not people).
** "The Brettfast Club": Having happy memories is great and all, but a NostalgiaFilter is harmful, especially when you try and retreat to an idealized version of your past. It's best to just accept the past with WartsAndAll and start living in the present.
** "Project Reboot": [[spoiler:You can't just press the ResetButton on a broken relationship if you're unwilling to change; sometimes, the best thing you can do is accept how the relationship has failed and learn to move on and try to be better in the future. Additionally, you never really know what you have until it's gone, and the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence]].

* ConspiracyKitchenSink: A major part of the series' premise is that (almost) all conspiracy theories and UrbanLegends are true, albeit with a few comedic twists here and there. In the first episode alone, we learn that a ReptilianConspiracy exists, the weather is actually controlled by someone, and that there is a shadowy organization running the world. One of the few conspiracies that ''isn't'' true is that [[FlatEarth the Earth is flat]], with climate change denial and school shooting denials being indirectly confirmed to be false. This is lampshaded when Brett is genuinely confused by the details of the MoonLandingHoax, as Cognito has so many conspiracies running simultaneously that he can't keep them all straight.

** The Shadow Council, a cabal of powerful elites for centuries, has secretly been running the world. However, the world isn't as easy to manipulate as it used to be. So they formed Cognito Inc to make the job easier.
** TheIlluminati (run by Creator/OprahWinfrey) are mentioned as a rival organization for Cognito (apparently with a bit more glamor associated with working for them), but both work ''under'' the Shadow Council and take their orders from them.

** Jeff Bezos is eaten by a Kraken, but nobody cares.

* BookEnds: Reagan and Rand's first conversation ends up with him yelling "Motherfucker!" as Reagan has someone tase him and drag him away. The first season's first half ends with [[spoiler:her "[[CurseCutShort Motherfuck-]]" when she realises that Rand became CEO in place of her.]]

* NGOSuperpower: Cognito, Inc is one of six such entities, the others being {{Atlantis}}, {{Illuminati}}, Reptoids, Catholic Church and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Juggalos]] "For some reason." All of which are overseen by an OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness, sometimes called "The Robes."

* CloningBlues: The clones of [=JFK=], which cause havoc throughout the company. They're also shown to be capable of mutating into a horrific creature when exposed to fire.

** On a more grander note, earlier, the series followed the traditional "Kubrick faked the moon landing" conspiracy theory. In ''Buzzkill'', the show adds further context. Namely, that NASA did reach the moon in 1969, but the astronauts went rogue and formed their own colony on the moon, refusing to come home. Meaning NASA was forced to hire Stanley Kubrick to recreate the moon landing.

* ShadowGovernment: The premise of the show is that the world is run by TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness known as the Shadow Board. Running the world on their behalf include six organizations that make up the Shadow Government that control the world; TheIlluminati, [[ReptilianConspiracy The Reptoids]], [[{{Atlantis}} The Atlanteans]], {{Juggalo}}s, [[CorruptChurch The Catholic Church]] and [[EvilInc Cognito Inc]]. All six organizations are made up of unrepentedly evil and hedonistic elites who are as selfish and incompetent as the regular government, the show's protagonist Reagan trying to use her intelligence to help run it properly but [[SurroundedByIdiots is forced to clean up her coworker's messes]].

** In Part 2, it's revealed that the six groups who control the world are Cognito Inc., the Illuminati, the Reptoids, the Atlanteans, the Catholic Church, and... [[{{Juggalo}} the Juggalos]].

* ObituaryMontage: This shows up in the third episode, with a look back at the [[LizardFolk Reptoids]] which were lost over the last year.

* AllMythsAreTrue: Zig-zagged. Most of them such as Bigfoot, reptilians and the Hollow Earth are, but the last two episodes of season 1 show that some cryptids such as the Loch Ness Monster and the Chupacabra are elaborate animatronics. The Flat Earth conspiracy is also one of the few explicitly stated to ''not'' be true, and climate change denial conspiracies are implicitly bullshit, since Cognito is feeding global warming for the Reptoids.

* ConspiracyKitchenSink: A major part of the series' premise is that (almost) all conspiracy theories and UrbanLegends are true, albeit with a few comedic twists here and there. In the first episode alone, we learn that a ReptilianConspiracy exists, the weather is actually controlled by someone, and that there is a shadowy organization running the world. One of the few conspiracies that ''isn't'' true is that [[FlatEarth the Earth is flat]]. This is lampshaded when Brett is genuinely confused by the details of the MoonLandingHoax, as Cognito has so many conspiracies running simultaneously that he can't keep them all straight.

* AllMythsAreTrue: Zig-zagged. Most of them such as Bigfoot, reptilians and the Hollow Earth are, but the last two episodes of season 1 show that some cryptids such as the Loch Ness Monster and the Chupacabra are elaborate animatronics.

* NGOSuperpower: Cognito, Inc is one of six such entities, the others being {{Atlantis}}, {{Illuminati}}, Reptoids, Catholic Church and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Juggalos]] "For some reason." All of which are overseen by an OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness, sometimes called "The Cloaks."

** Rand Ridley is a corruption of [[WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty Rick Sanchez]], which is no easy feat to achieve considering that Rick himself is a Corrupted Character Copy of [[Film/BackToTheFuture Doc Brown]]. Like Rick, Rand is a deadbeat alcoholic father that manipulates his family, and the world ForTheLulz or ForTheEvulz. The difference, however, is that there were some lines that Rick wouldn't cross, he has an intense self-loathing of the person he has become and how he's corrupting his family but won't stop, and karma occasionally hits him in the face. He also truly loves Beth, his daughter, and wants her to be happy. Any love that Rand has for Reagan went into him being an EducationMama to become a MadScientist that would run Cognito, Inc. and restore his legacy. [[spoiler:It was actually to use her as a pawn to eventually become head of the company again.]] Further straying from Rick’s characterization, Rand is shown to be rather clingy to his daughter and wants to spend time with her [[spoiler:despite seeing Reagan as a tool first and loving her second]]. On the other hand, Rick largely avoids spending time with Beth despite being lonely and loving her dearly. Rand is also more grounded and goal oriented while Rick tries to distract himself from a purposeless existence. [[spoiler:Both Reagan and Beth eventually learn to establish stronger boundaries against Rand and Rick after having enough of such toxicity while also, at points, vowing to take down their fathers. Of the two men, it’s Rand who ends up embracing newfound enemyhood with his child.]]

*** The entire A-plot is one gigantic middle finger towards Catholicism, ranging from their extreme self-righteousness]], their hypocrisy, their obsession with making people feel guilt, and their prudishness.

* CutShort: The show ends on a cliffhanger due to it's cancellation by Netflix after a single, two-part season.

* AllMythsAreTrue: Zig-zagged. Most of them such as Bigfoot, reptilians and the Hollow Earth are, but the last two episodes pf season 1 show that some cryptids such as the Loch Ness Monster and the Chupacabra are elaborate animatronics.

** [[MoonLandingHoax The Apollo 11 moon landing as we know it is actually a cover story for]] UsefulNotes/BuzzAldrin and UsefulNotes/NeilArmstrong [[SpaceColony successfully building an entire city on the Moon]]; the men claiming to be Aldrin and Armstrong are actually actors hired to play out the rest of their lives, while the real men never returned to Earth.