Joshua (Jake's biological parent and Finn's foster father) set out his literally sparkling spirit to guide his sons to a pre-recorded holographic message. There, he tells them that he crafted a dungeon with all sorts of tests for them to go through and claim a
Cool Sword (which is also a family heirloom) as a reward.
Tropes
- Action Dad: Joshua is heavily hinted to have been, if not an adventurer, at least a very capable fighter in life. Knowledgeable of their world's RPG Mechanics 'Verse status and capable of easily defeating a demon (from whom he took his blood to forge a sword) with a chant.
- Anthropomorphic Food: The first room in the dungeon has a hot dog monster and a hamburger monster. Played for Laughs when Jake tries twice to eat them but it's stopped by Finn.
- Break the Cutie: His dad calling him a wimpy baby who needed to toughen up and cried for everything really got Finn. Especially when Jake, trying to honor his father's will, repeats the same to Finn, causing him to go through a brief Heroic BSoD. While fighting the final boss of the dungeon, he gets easily discouraged — contrasted by his usual eagerness and unwavering determination to defeat monsters.
- Colossus Climb: Finn attacks the giant final monster in this way, then he stabs its eye and throws it down to a hole.
- Cool Sword: The Demon Blood Sword, a family heirloom that is found at the end of the dungeon as a reward for beating it. It was forged with demon blood ( with said demon demanding its blood back for a comedy effect) and its design is very imposing — entirely red, with a Celtic cross on the guard, and leather wraps in its large hilt.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Kee-Oth, the owner of the blood that was forged into the Demon Blood Sword, tries to attack Finn and Jake for keeping his blood from him, but Jake slots the tape of Joshua introducing the sword and banishing Kee-Oth, the holo-recording's reciting of "Kee Oth Rama Pancake" banishing the real Kee-Oth.
- Cute Witch / Hot Witch: The Fruit Witches look like attractive humanoid females, floating around a fruit feast and laughing. Until Jake forces one of them to eat one of the cursed apples the witches were offering, and she gets turned into a giant apple with humanoid bones inside of it. Furthermore, her sisters are revealed to have grey skin and empty eyes when the illusion breaks.
- Dead Man Writing: The series of holo-recordings Finn and Jake's dad left to his sons for when he passed away. The first is revealed via Joshua's spirit (in the form of sparkles). The second they find in an alley after getting through the first room of the dungeon. The third is located near a hole in the wall in a lower flow after the Fruit Witches test. And the fourth is picked by Jake while in the dark in the final monster's room.
- Devoured by the Horde: The fate of the Fruit Witch whom Jake force-feeds the cursed apple to causing her to turn into a giant apple. The remaining witches quickly rush in and start peeling it apart until humanoid bones are exposed within the apple's flesh.
- Eldritch Abomination: The last monster in the dungeon is a gigantic, one-eyed, mult-legged monstrosity with no visible mouth opening, but a toothy maw nevertheless, that lets out constant evil laughter.
- Floating Advice Reminder: Jake sees his father's holographic body floating in a shoulder angel position while insisting that he continues to mock Finn. Finally subverted when he says "You're not real" and the head turns into a flirtatious Lady Rainicorn. Justified, seeing Jake's imagination is very powerful and can even alter reality.
- The Fourth Wall Will Not Protect You: Jake's dad's introduction to the final room abruptly ends with the monster dragging him off the screen and into its lair.
- Heroic BSoD: Finn has one when Jake tries to follow his father's wishes and calls him names. Nearly winds up getting him killed when they reach the Fruit Witches lair.
- Heroic Second Wind: Once Finn gets his confidence back, he breaks the chains holding the demon blood sword and defeats the massive final monster by lifting it over his head and into the pit.
- Laughing Mad: The final monster laughs almost constantly for no apparent reason, which makes it even spookier and highlights the fact he has crooked teeth but no mouth.
- Parental Favoritism: Finn thinks Joshua favors Jake over him as he calls Finn a whiny baby and looks disappointed when baby Finn cries after squeezing him — for context, baby Jake was laughing. In reality, he wants him to toughen up. Near the end of the episode, Joshua's last holo-recording shows he loves his foster son and is proud of him for successfully sorting out the dungeon he prepared for him. Also, the disappointed stare in the first record might be re-interpreted as a concerned look because Ooo for all of its bright colors, it's a world where monsters roam freely. And some of them are quite the jerks, to boot.
- Posthumous Character: While it was implied before, this episode confirms that Fin and Jake's dad is indeed dead.
- Puppeteer Parasite: The Fruit Witches look very human, if not for the green shade of their skin, but then are revealed to be creepy puppets controlled by little beings in their heads.
- Quote Mine: Jake remixes his dad's recordings while adding some beatboxing to create an improvised rapped song. He does it as a form of encouragement towards Finn (who is fighting the final boss of the dungeon) and for chuckles.
Joshua: Yo, Finn!
I'm proud!
I love you, you, you, son!
- Schmuck Banquet: Finn and Jake finds a banquet of fruits with three Fruit Witches tempting them to eat the fruit. Finn was about to eat it but Jake put the fruit away and put one of the fruit in a Witch's mouth which turned her into an apple.
- Sequence Breaking: There is a key on the final monster's wrist, suggesting that Finn was meant to kill it and then unlock the chains around the sword with the key. Instead Finn breaks the chains by brute strength and uses the sword to kill the monster.
- The Tape Knew You Would Say That: Happens to Jake a few times when he ends up conversing with the recording of his dad.
Jake: But—
Joshua: Butts are for pooping!
- Training from Hell: What Joshua intends for Finn but doesn't state outright, so he can figure out the dungeon's tests on his own and come out mentally and emotionally stronger. Subverted because Finn was confident at the start but after finding out about his father's apparent lack of confidence in him, he gets depressed. Moreover, Finn was already very capable of disposing of monsters and working his way out of threatening situations.
- The Unfavorite: Finn thinks this is what his foster-father feels about him, though it's not entirely the case. Joshua's goal was to harden Finn so he could be prepared to fare against a dangerous world when he was no longer around to take care of and protect him.
- With Friends Like These...: Finn lampshades this when he's about to partake in the fruit, and Jake tries to stop him.
Finn: Why not?! All the people I care about in this world are being wads!
