Jules and Verne decide to use the time machine to fix their father's fear of fishing in time for the "Father/Son Bass-Off", but create a new problem when they turn Doc's younger self into a stuntman.
This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
- 15 Minutes of Fame: Thanks to the time trip, the young Emmett Brown briefly becomes a daredevil famous for impressive stunts. Much to Emmett's relief, this brief interlude ends when Uncle Oliver realizes his nephew's showbiz promoter has no scruples about putting him in danger.
- Affectionate Nickname: Doc's eccentric uncle Oliver calls him "Emmy" and "liebchen."
- Catchphrase: D.W. Tannen uses the words "You're fired!" quite a lot — even if the person doesn't work for him.
- Conspicuously Light Patch: The section of a cliff that collapses under Young Emmett (or, in the changed timeline, under Marty) has a rather obvious black outline while the rest of the cliff is a painting.
- Don't Eat and Swim: Realizing that Tannen didn't switch Emmett out for the dummy as promised, Uncle Oliver leaps into the water to save his nephew. Marty, who knows that Jules and Verne got Emmett out of the barrel, tries to dissuade Uncle Oliver, yelling a reminder that he just ate. Uncle Oliver suffers no cramps from eating and swimming, though Marty does have to grab him before he goes down the falls himself.
- Fishing Episode: Played With. The boys and Doc only go fishing at the end of the episode, but the entire episode happens as a preliminary to it, and Doc's younger self does appear on a fishing trip.
- Inadvertent Entrance Cue: While Marty and the boys are critically examining the materials for the final stunt, Verne asks what kind of blockhead would come up with this idea. Cue the arrival of D.W. Tannen.
- Malaproper: Director D.W. Tannen keeps up the family tradition of mangling phrases, saying Emmett's last stunt has to look like "the real McDonald" rather than "the real McCoy."
- Offscreen Crash: While the boys and Marty are plotting a scheme to get Emmett out of trouble, Marty accidentally lets go of the branch he's hanging onto, and a few seconds later, the local Tannen yells "You're fired!"
- Rod And Reel Repurposed: An accidental example. Emmett casts his fishing line and it catches on a low-flying plane. It acts as a rope and starts his career as "Daredevil Brown" when someone sees it.
- Series Continuity Error: The story begins with Doc's phobia of fish and fishing destroying his sons' hopes of attending a fishing contest. However, a large marlin appears on Doc's wall during the movies.
- Tear Up the Contract: After the final stunt, D.W. Tannen presents Uncle Oliver with an unsigned contract to make his nephew famous. Given that Tannen had just admitted that he didn't care if Emmett died during one of the stunts, Uncle Oliver shreds the contract and pushes Tannen into a puddle.
- Tightrope Walking: While they're planning a way to stop Emmett from being forced into one final, very dangerous, stunt, Jules asks Marty if he can walk a straight line, which Marty confirms. Jules' plan involves Marty creating a distraction with a tightrope act while he and Verne get Emmett out of the way.
- Took a Level in Kindness: Oddball Uncle Oliver is never exactly mean, but he has an obsession with gaining fame and fortune that causes him to ignore his nephew at the beginning and exploit his fame, despite Marty and Verne telling him that Emmett has had enough of stunt work. In the end, he realizes he's put Emmett through too much, retires him as a stunt performer, and takes him fishing as he promised.
- Trauma Button: Doc reacts poorly to Verne showing him the poster for the Father/Son Big-Mouth-Bass-Off, and when Jules shows him an The Andy Griffith Show episode portraying fishing, he runs into a wall. This turns out to result from Doc falling into a stream and spending minutes underwater as a four-year-old.
