In a World… where adventures are endless, rules are vigorous, and wizards turn into kitty cats... this is Mages & Mazes.
Mages & MazesRemy invites Cricket, Tilly and Kiki over to play his fantasy role playing game, Mages & Mazes, but when Remy starts coming up with his own rules, it leads to a disagreement.
Mages & Mazes provides examples of:
- Acting Out a Daydream: When Cricket and the gang are apologizing to Remy, they appear as illusions of their characters as they convince their Maze Master to come back to the game.
- Animorphism: Tilly's character Shmalfo has the ability to transform into a cat, but that's the only power he chooses to use.
- Agony of the Feet: In the game, as Cricket-as-Bufflegs attempts to kick a door lock down, it bites his foot.
- Art Shift: The RPG scenes are drawn in a more realistic comic book-esque style, though all the characters are still noseless.
- Ascended Extra: This marks Kiki's first big role in the series.
- Big "NO!": Let out by Remy-as-Remulox as Cricket-as-Bufflegs kicks him in the shin, defeating him.
- Bookcase Passage: How Cricket, Tilly and Kiki enter Remy's gaming room.
- Bottle Episode: Most of the episode takes place inside the Remington mansion, particularly the room where the game is played.
- Breaking Old Trends: This is the first episode with a title that's longer than the usual one or two words.
- Chair Reveal: Attempted by Remy, but the chair is too heavy, so Vasquez has to turn the chair for him.
- Crippling Overspecialization: Cricket's character only has one attack: kicking people in the shins; and Tilly chooses to be a wizard who knows all spells and incantations, but only chooses to use the one that turns her into a kitty cat. Naturally, they are only occasionally useful during gameplay.
- Cross-Cast Role: While Cricket and Kiki play characters that match their gender, Tilly portrays the male wizard Shmalfo.
- Glowing Eyes: Kiki's character, Diamondbow, has glowing orange eyes.
- RPG Episode: Remy invites Kiki and the Greens to play Mages & Mazes, a Bland-Name Product version of Dungeons & Dragons.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: When the others get tired of all his rules, Remy decides to quit the game and leave.Vasquez: Where to, Master Remy?
Remy: My Fortress of Despair!
Vasquez: Your bedroom it is. - Stylistic Suck: Done subtly in the Deep-Immersion Gaming scenes. The characters have drop shadows behind them as if they were cels so they look like from an '80s cartoon. When a scene transition occurs, the backgrounds pan and you can briefly see that they are taped together.
It feels so good to sing my song!
Okay KaraokeWhen the Greens and Remy go out for a night of karaoke, Tilly struggles to decide what type of music would best fit her true self.
Okay Karaoke contains examples of:
- A Cappella: The first part of Tilly's song is entirely music free.
- Animated Music Video: Basically the Greens' songs shift to a music video fantasy world with its nature reflecting the genre they've chosen.
- Anime Hair: Nancy's hairstyle during the "Back Off!" sequence is swept up and spiky, something Yu-Gi-Oh! would approve of.
- Art Evolution: The inside of the karaoke lounge looks vastly different since it last appeared in "Bear Trapped". It is now perpetually dark, has realistic stage lighting, and has the addition of booths near the walls.
- Audience Participation Song: The last verse of Tilly's song has her family, Kara, the ska guy and everyone in the bar joining in with her.
- Boastful Rap: Portions of "Thinking is Hard" are this.
- Bottle Episode: The episode is set entirely in the karaoke bar.
- Breather Episode: This episode generally has the Greens and Remy go out for a karaoke night without any major adventure whatsoever.
- Broken Record: Tilly going "my-my-my" nonstop at the programmer. Nancy lampshades it.
- The Cameo: Vasquez is seen during Cricket and Remy’s rap video, wearing a Daft Punk-style LED mask.
- Car Song: Bill's song is a country song about his love for...his pickup truck.
- Cover Innocent Eyes and Ears: As Nancy plays a punk rock song, Bill covers Cricket's ears.
- Disney Acid Sequence: Each of the song numbers are these:
- Bill's is a sappy country music video.
- Nancy's is a wicked heavy metal/punk video.
- Gramma's is a video in the style of 30s cartoons.
- Cricket and Remy get a modern day pop-rap video.
- Tilly has visuals attaining to how she expresses herself, such as her as a mermaid, with a rainbow colored dress, standing against funhouse mirrors, and spreading sparkles and fireworks of light.
- "Eureka!" Moment: Tilly has one, which snaps her out of her Heroic BSoD, as she takes Cricket's advice to heart that her perfect song doesn't exist, giving her the inspiration to make up her own song true to herself.
- Heroic BSoD: Tilly undergoes one when she feels she can't even find her perfect song.
- Musical Episode: The second after "Green Christmas".
- Musical World Hypotheses: The Diegetic type, as all the songs are performed as acts by the Greens.
- Orbital Shot: Tilly gets one as she begins the final verse of "Sing My Song".
- Retraux: Gramma's song is illustrated in the style of an old black-and-white cartoon, complete with her having Pie Eyes.
- Sudden Eye Color: Nancy's "Back Off!" video depicts her with red eyes.
