Having conquered Gravity Falls, Bill decides to take Weirdmageddon to the next level and sends his Henchmaniacs out to conquer the world. But an invisible barrier stops them- Weirdmageddon has always been restricted to the town's borders. Bill doesn't know how to get past it, but maybe Stanford Pines might…
Inside the bubble, Dipper, Soos, and Wendy find that it's an excessively bright and colorful paradise, full of over-the-top cute creatures, stuffed animals, rainbows and eighties music. Welcome to Mabeland! Mabel doesn't think she's a prisoner, she loves her new domain! The fantastic land gives her and its inhabitants everything they wanted before they even want it. While Soos and Wendy quickly get pulled into the adorable madness, Dipper is still rather adamant that they need to leave the bubble. Mabel decides that there's only one way to settle this: in Mabeland's court!
In the trial of Reality vs Fantasy, the prosecution, made up of Mabel's dream boys Xyler and Craz, state that "Reality is totally bogus, full of hardship, heartache, and disappointment." As examples, they bring up two points from the Twins' lives. During their 2nd grade school photo session, a mean girl stuck gum in Mabel's hair, causing the other kids to laugh at her. During their 4th grade Valentine's Day, Dipper didn't get any cards, leading him to be mocked by all the others.
When asked to cross-examine the evidence, Dipper then puts Mabel on the stand and points out the real reason she doesn't want to leave Mabeland: she's scared of growing up. He admits that reality has its bad points, but that locking yourself in a fantasy world isn't the way to deal with them; you get through it with help from all your loved ones. Dipper then reveals that after the 2nd grade gum incident, Dipper cheered Mabel up by shaving part of his head so they would have matching haircuts. And during that 4th grade Valentine's Day, Mabel had made a special card for Dipper from the cards she received. Dipper assures Mabel that she won't have to deal with reality alone, because he plans on going back home with her; he's turning down Ford's apprenticeship, comparing staying in Gravity Falls and surrounding himself in magic and mystery to be a similar form of escapism. Dipper's maturity and sincerity allows Mabel to immediately break free of Mabeland's influence.
But Mabeland is still a world crafted by Bill Cipher, and its no-longer-cute inhabitants have no intention of letting the Mystery Shack gang go. The gang flees, and Mabel is forced to burst her own bubble to escape. Now back in the dark reality, Mabel tells Dipper that he doesn't have to give up his apprenticeship just for her, but Dipper has made up his mind. The gang return to the Mystery Shack, and discover a welcome surprise: a group of survivors, led by Grunkle Stan!
Meanwhile, Xyler and Craz, having survived Mabeland's destruction, take stock of reality. Their decision? Reality's Totally Radical!
TO BE CONTINUED
Tropes in this episode:
- Above the Influence: When a fantasy version of Wendy appears and suggests that Mabel could make Dipper old enough to date Wendy, he's briefly enraptured, but quickly rejects her when he sees her wink at him—the very same sign that signified which Wendy was the Shapeshifter in "Into the Bunker".
- Acid-Trip Dimension: Mabel's bubble contains a sickeningly adorable version of this.
- Action Survivor: All the survivors in the Mystery Shack, most notably Grunkle Stan.
- Aesop Amnesia: Soos may have suffered this when Mabel constructed a fake dad for him. Forgetting in the previous episode "Blendin's Game" which has him learned that he doesn't really need his father to show up in his life.
- A Form You Are Comfortable With: Since Soos doesn't remember what his father looks like, he's imagined as a combination of a Hispanic luchador and the mascot from a hot sauce bottle.
- All of the Other Reindeer: Dipper and Mabel, to a lesser extent, have always been depicted as this. However, this episode gives us a bit more insight into the Pines twins' childhood. We see a mean girl stick some gum in Mabel's hair on picture day when she was in second grade, making Mabel cry profusely, and Dipper not receiving a single Valentine at a fourth-grade class party, causing the entire class to laugh at him and him to run out of the classroom in tears.
- Ambiguous Situation: Mabel recounts how she was in "Sweater Town," fell asleep, and woke up in this world; it's not clear if she's invoking From a Certain Point of View with Blendin' and the rift, or if Bill had performed Laser-Guided Amnesia on her.
- Ambiguously Jewish: Judge Kitty Kitty Meow Meow Face-Shwartstein. Doubles as an Actor Allusion.
- And I Must Scream: Bill says not to feel too bad for the petrified people that make up the throne because they aren't conscious—probably.
- Anti-Escapism Aesop: Mabel learns she must leave behind her fantasy world and face reality.
- Apocalypse Not: The vast wasteland once known as Gravity Falls is as nightmarish as it seems, but it turns out the chaos hasn't spread any further and can't until Bill finds a way to break down the forcefield.
- Art Shift: The floor of Mabel's bubble is a realistic texture of colourful wool threads.
- Atop a Mountain of Corpses: Bill creates a chair of all the petrified citizens of the town. Lazy Susan briefly revives and Bill pushes her back into place. They're not dead, just barely conscious.
- Back for the Finale: Almost every recently or long-absent character — Old Man McGucket, Pacifica, "that creepy dude who married a woodpecker", Candy, Grenda, Sheriff Blubs, Chutzpar, the Multi-Bear and even Celestabellebethabelle — have banded together with Stan in the Shack.
- Bad Boss: After they crash in the Magnetism Law, Bill's behavior with his Henchmaniacs changes:
- When Paci-Fire says that he thinks he broke something, Bill tells him to: "WALK IT OFF!"
- Scenes later, while the Henchmaniacs are still in cast and bandages, Bill attacks them with thunderbolts, demanding to know why they can't escape the borders of Gravity Falls, despite their infinite power.
- Bait-and-Switch: Dipper previously mentioned his and Mabel's allergies act up at the same time, so (more subtly) it seemed like Mabel would end up sneezing in the flashback to the twins' picture day, thereby ruining her picture. Instead she got gum in her hair. Then, at first it seems Dipper's going to lend Mabel his hat when she asks if he has a wig. Then he produces a razor and shaves a portion of his head.
- Bear Hug: Soos gives one to Wendy and Dipper as they are falling, hoping to shield them from the impact of crashing.Soos: Guys, if I die, I want to die hugging!
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Averted for Mabel in that the world she's placed in is paradise with everything she's ever wanted—making it all the more painful for her to reject it.
- Big "WHAT?!": Bill bellows out a furious "WHAT?!" when his Henchmaniacs hit the shield around the town.
- Biting-the-Hand Humor:
- According to the credits code, Xyler and Craz "went on to run the legal department at a major children's television network".
- While not explicitly spelled out in the episode, Dippy Fresh, the annoying Totally Radical clone of Dipper, has a voice based off the announcer for Disney XD according to Alex Hirsch.
- Breather Episode: The wacky setting provides a lot more time to breathe and laugh before the Grand Finale.
- Call-Back:
- The bubble plays on Soos's desire to see his dad, as mentioned in "Blendin's Game", and Wendy's hatred of high school and love of hanging out with her group of friends.
- Dipper realizes that Wendy's doppelganger is fake when she winks at him exactly like the Shapeshifter.
- It's also helps that she assures him everything will get better, he just has to take her hand.
- Bill considers unfreezing Ford to force him to dismantle the force-field trapping the demons in Gravity Falls.
- To convince Mabel to leave the bubble, Dipper tells her that he's going to turn down Ford's apprenticeship and they'll face the future together.
- Mabel and Dipper share an "Awkward Sibling Hug" to break the spell on her mind.
- Character Development: This episode features the completion of Dipper and Mabel's character arcs.
- Mabel, who's often stuck in fantasy and doesn't want things to change, agrees to grow up and enter reality.
- Dipper, who wants to mature too fast, learns to enjoy his childhood while it lasts.
- For both, the twins accept to leave Gravity Falls behind. For Dipper, this means not spending the rest of his life studying there with Ford, and for Mabel, it means accepting her adventurous summer of fun is over and to move on. Whatever they face in their teenage years, they'll face together.
- Chekhov's Boomerang:
- Subverted with Soos's Infinity Pizza slice. He mentions that since Weirdmageddon has started he's been eating bits of his own hat.
- The Mystery Shack's force field. It's been Bill-proofed enough to keep Stan and a group of survivors alive for four days.
- Cliffhanger: So Wendy, Dipper, Mabel and Soos have escaped the bubble! And they manage to get to the Mystery Shack without attracting the Eye Bats' attention. Only they find that several people have occupied the Shack: Grunkle Stan, Pacifica, McGucket and other survivors.
- Closest Thing We Got: Since Dipper's main desire is rescuing Mabel, the bubble has no choice but to offer him his second-most desire: Wendy, who he's gotten over (for the most part at least).
- Continuity Cavalcade: Much of the population of Mabel's bubble world are references to her earlier flights of fancy:
- Her tower is guarded by two waffles WITH BIG ARMS.
- Aoshima and a Smile Dip Flavor Pup are seen.
- Judge Kitty Kitty Meow Meow Face-Shwartstein resembles her "kitten fists" and "MEOW WOW!" sweater.
- Xyler and Craz return as tour guides of Mabeland and Mabel's attorneys.
- Even her middle-school crush, only briefly seen in "Tourist Trapped", returns, carrying the "Do You Like Me?" quiz she gave him. Dipper quotes its options - "Yes, definitely, absolutely" - when Mabel asks whether he really intends to turn down Ford's apprenticeship.
- Sev'ral Timez are back.
- When Dipper, Soos and Wendy reach Mabel's room, they block the door with an industrial size barrel of sprinkles.
- The citizens of Mabel Land sitting in on Dipper's trial include Ducktective, Shimmery Twinkleheart, and Zac.
- Crapsaccharine World: Mabel Land is a colorful and cheerful. It's also a Lotus-Eater Machine built to imprison Mabel, and when she decides to escape, it turns on her fast.
- Despair Event Horizon: Sprott and Manly Dan have crossed it; Sprott has become an "End is Nigh" prophet while Manly Dan sadly cuts a triangle out of a stop sign before getting captured.
- Dominance Through Furniture: Bill caps off his reign by building a gigantic throne from the bodies of everyone he's petrified since Weirdmageddon began. During his speech to the Henchmaniacs, the body of Lazy Susan slips out of place and returns to normal just long enough to wonder where she is - before Bill pushes her back into place and re-petrifies her.
- Enemy Mine: Among the survivors in the Mystery Shack with Stan are Celestabellebethabelle, a Manotaur, and the Gnomes, creatures who aren't on the best terms with the Twins.
- The Multi-Bear, who the Manotaurs consider their mortal enemy, is also there.
- Everyone Has Standards: It seems Bill had to use a bit of mind control on Mabel to make her accept Mabel Land, because as soon as she makes up with Dipper she starts commenting that everything's too bright and is annoyed at having listened to the same song on repeat for days.
- Everything's Better with Rainbows: Mabel's prison runs on this. It includes colors only bees and art students can see.
- Evil Is Petty: Bill taps petrified Ford the same way one would bang a glass for a toast.
- Failed Attempt at Drama: Bill sends his Henchmaniacs out to conquer and remake the world and they promptly crash into the barrier around Gravity Falls.Bill: Alright boys, to the corners of the Earth! Set the world aflame with your weirdness! This dimension is OURS! Ah, global domination. I could get used to— [CLANG!] WHAT?!
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: This is to both highlight and contrast Dipper and Mabel's family ties during Mabeland.
- Friend-or-Idol Decision: Dipper goes back on his decision to accept Ford's apprenticeship because he wants to return to Gravity Falls with Mabel. Mabel, however, leaves open the option for Dipper to reconsider.
- Girls Love Stuffed Animals: Mabel's world is mainly populated by walking, talking stuffed animals, and there's even a stuffed animal tree.
- Glass Smack and Slide: Bill's forces fly out into the sky to spread their chaos to the world, only to unexpectedly run splat into an invisible wall, then sliding down with the usual sliding noise.
- A Glitch in the Matrix: When Dipper rejects the Wendy doppelganger's offers to get together with him, the fake Wendy then turns into a bunch of dark, wriggling worms, the world briefly turns dark and red, and the cheery stuffed animal tree becomes more threatening and tells Dipper he shouldn't have done that. A few seconds later, it all goes back to normal, hinting that underneath all the saccharine colours, Mabel's world is much darker than it seems...
- Gum In Hair: In a flashback, Mable was getting ready for school picture day. A boy passing by sticks his chewed gum in her hair. Mable begins to cry, thinking that this is going to be the worst picture day ever.
- Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: While breaching the Mystery Shack in the end of the episode, Dipper's wielding a golf club, Mabel's using her Grappling-Hook Pistol, Wendy has a crossbow, and Soos relies on Good Old Fisticuffs.
- Happiness Is Mandatory: This is the only rule in Mabeland; rejecting the fantasy and mentioning reality causes the world to display its true colors.
- Hat Damage: Soos references surviving during Weirdmageddon by eating his own hat.
- Hate at First Sight: Dipper develops an instant dislike of "Dippy Fresh," even telling Soos he's "dead to [him]" after Soos accepts a high five from the double.
- High-Five Left Hanging: Discussed when Mabel's mental version of her brother Dipper, aka Dippy Fresh, offers the real Dipper and Soos a high five. Dipper tries to stop Soos from accepting it, but Soos can't "leave him hanging" and does it anyway. Dipper then declares Soos "dead to me".
- Heroic Willpower: Bill Cipher himself states that having this is the only way to get out of Mabel's bubble world. It would mean rejecting one's ultimate fantasies. Sure enough, Dipper is able to resist long enough to convince Mabel to reject her fantasies as well.
- Hidden Depths: Turns out Xyler and Craz have doctorates in both criminal and international law on top of being familiar with Jean-Paul Sartre
. Mabel has surprisingly high standards for her dream boys. - Horrible Judge of Character: Mabel with Dipper, though not with Wendy and Soos. She doesn't whet his appetite for the supernatural or for Ford's approval, and instead, her bubble comes up with a version of Wendy interested in him. And she made a "cooler" Replacement Goldfish of him, which he loathes. Dipper has to hammer it in during his trial that reuniting with Mabel is his greatest desire.
- Hypnotize the Captive: Mabel has a minor bit of hypnotism, in that she seems oblivious to the fact that Dipper is worried about her, and she doesn't mention Bill knocking her out. The minute she and Dipper hug, the spell seems to break...
- I Always Wanted to Say That: When (illusions of) Wendy's friends invite her to break into the high school and glue a plunger to the principal's face, Wendy agrees in a heartbeat and apologises to Dipper, explaining, "I've always wanted to do this".
- Implausible Deniability:
- Mabel's in denial about Gravity Falls ending up in flames, even though the bubble opened a shot of the town in flames. This could partly be the result of brainwashing and/or Laser-Guided Amnesia. Even after she snaps out of it and escapes with them, she still asks "How bad could it be?", only to lay eyes on the town and realise it for herself.
- After taking out a bite of a Waffle Guard, Soos points to a stuffed rhino and says "it was him" while still holding the bite.
- I Reject Your Reality: It takes quite a bit to convince Mabel that this isn't the way to go.
- The Jailbait Wait: A non-sexual example, and heavily played with. Wendy admits that if Dipper were older, he'd be her "dream guy", but rather than wait for the age gap to become less
Squicky, she instead offers to have Mabel magically age him up to 15. Then she winks at him... - Jerkass Ball: Mabel within the bubble, having succumbed to its happy effects. Even though Bill has given her what she wanted, a world where summer and fun never end, she's in denial of the fact that Dipper, Wendy and Soos have sustained multiple injuries to get to her and that the world she's in is too good to be true. Probably the biggest thing is that she made a "cool" Replacement Goldfish version of Dipper whom even Soos can't resist. Dipper doesn't hold it against her, though, since he's more concerned about helping her escape and saving the world.
- Kangaroo Court: Mabel creates a jury of herself, all of which seem much more eager to punish Dipper than Mabel herself!
- Killer Rabbit: The waffle guards. Although at first Soos is able to take bites out of them, they immediately subdue Dipper when he mentions wanting to leave.
- La Résistance: Over the course of Bill's reign of terror, Stan managed to rally up as many survivors as he could.
- Laugh of Love: The fake Wendy laughs briefly while talking to Dipper about how they could actually be together in Mabeland.
- Lighter and Softer: Mabeland seems to be this, especially compared to the Crapsack World that Gravity Falls has become, but it's all just an illusion.
- Literal Metaphor: "Burst one's bubble," "to live in a bubble," and similar phrases all relate to the concept of someone ignoring reality and living in fantasy. Mabel is literally in a bubble where she is doing just that.
- Lotus-Eater Machine: Mabel's bubble is essentially her own idea of a perfect world, and it can also create Dipper's, Wendy's, and Soos's deepest desires. Unlike most examples, not only is Mabel aware she's in a Lotus-Eater Machine, she's also able to consciously manipulate it to an extent. Dipper, however is too well-grounded to know everything is too good to be true, though he almost falls for it.
- Mascot with Attitude: Dippy Fresh is a total parody.
- Mic Drop: Invoked. After finishing his opening statement, Kraz asks Xyler to give him a microphone just so he can do this.
- Mind Screw: Mabel's bubble seems to invoke this. Dipper reacts as well as he can, which is not well at all.
- Mood Whiplash: At the end, Xyler and Craz discuss Jean-Paul Sartre's philosophy on reality, and how he believed that life has no inherent meaning. They come to the conclusion that this is still Totally Radical.
- More than Mind Control: Subverted. At first it seems like Mabel is unwilling to leave the bubble prison because "Mabeland" is her own version of paradise, where it's eternal summer, the party never ends, and everyone is happy. Then it turns out Bill put a tiny dose of hypnosis on her.
- My Instincts Are Showing: Judge Kitty Kitty Meow Meow-Shwartstein is briefly distracted by a strand of yarn, allows Dipper to call Mabel as a witness because "cats are famously curious", and meows constantly throughout his sentences.
- Never Trust a Trailer: The commercials for the episode made it look like the inside of Mabel's bubble is a dark, depressing place where Mabel has undergone a Despair Event Horizon. Instead, it's a cheerful land made from Mabel's subconscious and Mabel is so happy there that she doesn't even want to leave! However, there is a dark purpose and secret behind its creation.
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain:
- Mabeland offering Dipper a version of Wendy interested in him makes him more determined to rescue Mabel and leave the bubble.
- Judge Meow Meow-Shwartstein letting Dipper call Mabel as a witness during his trial allows him to reason with her and break the hypnosis that makes her want to stay. Likewise, the evidence that her lawyers bring up of reality being awful— one bad picture day and Dipper not getting Valentines— end up being used to prove his case that she and Dipper can handle real life together.
- No-Sell: Dipper is grounded enough to realize all the illusions in Mabel's bubble are literally too good to be true.
- Not What It Looks Like: No, guys, Mabel isn't being held captive in the tower. It's her tower, since she's the mayor of "Mabeland" and all... though this is eventually subverted when she agrees to come home with Dipper, and none of the inhabitants want her to leave.
- Offscreen Moment of Awesome:
- Stan survived Weirdmageddon for four days, and saved about half a dozen survivors!
- We don't see what happened with the fight between Gideon and his gang against Bill's forces, but from what Keyhole tells Bill, Gideon has apparently been captured.
- Offscreen Teleportation: Apparently, Bill had Waddles transported into Mabel's bubble, where he became a giant bus service pig.
- Once More, with Clarity: Craz and Xyler's testimony during the trial includes two particularly painful memories from Dipper and Mabel's childhoods. When Dipper testifies, he shows Mabel that both incidents actually ended with the twins effortlessly cheering each other up. This helps Mabel realise that, even if Growing Up Sucks, she and Dipper will be able to get through it together as they always have done.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Stan, as shown in previous episodes, is usually extremely selfish except when his beloved family members are involved. The end of this episode reveals he's managed to save a Ragtag Bunch of Misfits, including Pacifica.
- Out-of-Character Alert: Dipper realizes something is off with Wendy when she punctuated her offer to have him aged up with a wink. It turns out that this particular Wendy is an illusion.
- Overly Narrow Superlative: For Valentine's Day, Mabel makes a big card "For My Favorite Brother". She has only one brother.
- Picture Day: One of the bad memories shown during the trial involves this.
- Pre-Mortem One-Liner: Soos delivers one when he first sees the waffle guards.Soos: Someone hand me some syrup.
- The Power of Love: How Dipper convinces Mabel to give up the dream world, by showing memories of how they've been there for each other.
- Riches to Rags: Pacifica is literally wearing rags in the Mystery Shack at the end of the episode.
- Shout-Out:
- Dipper's own trial is much like the one from Alice in Wonderland.
- Judge Meow-Meow-Face Shwartstein is much like the judge from Pluto's Judgement Day, up to and including running a kangaroo court.
- Soos begins Waxing Lyrical from "A Whole New World" when he sees the wonders of the bubble.
- One shot of Xyler in his car bears an uncanny resemblance to the famous shot from the He-Man parody "Fabulous Secret Powers".
- When the illusion breaks and all the color drains from Mabel's dream world, and the nightmare faces are shown, it is very reminiscent of Coraline.
- When Dipper realizes the Wendy he's talking to is fake, "she" turns into a human-shaped pile of roaches and crumbles to pieces.
- The luchador mask worn by Soos' fake dad bears some similarities to Strong Bad's face.
- The episode's title is an allusion to the opening lyrics of "Bohemian Rhapsody" (Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? / Caught in a landslide, no escape from reality).
- Simulated Fantasy, Post-Apocalyptic Reality: While Bill Cipher has been unleashing Weirdmageddon and transforming Gravity Falls into a postapocalyptic World of Chaos, Mabel has been imprisoned in a magical bubble containing "Mabeland," a dreamworld existing outside of reality where all her dreams can come true. Naturally, she's very happy there, so Dipper's biggest challenge in this episode is to get Mabel to come back to reality.
- Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism: During the trial, Mabel's "lawyers" place "fantasy" squarely on the idealistic end and "reality" squarely on the cynical end, pointing out that not only does reality tend to thwart expectations, but it's full of difficulties, heartache and disappointment. However, Dipper points out that reality may not be an ideal existence, but it's not so bad if loved ones can go through both good times and bad together.
- Some Kind of Force Field: The barrier around Gravity Falls. Said word-for-word by Bill.
- Spanner in the Works: Stan managed to avoid getting captured by Bill Cipher and rallied however many survivors he could find, keeping them safe within the Shack.
- Special Guest: Jon Stewart (who is a fan of the show) as a cat wearing a judge wig in Mabel's bubble.
- Spotting the Thread: Just as Dipper is beginning to succumb to the temptation of Mabeland, Wendy appears, having apparently grown bored of the place. Admitting that she'd return Dipper's feelings if he was older, she offers to have Mabel use Mabeland's magic to age him up so they can be together. Dipper is about to agree when Wendy winks at him, something he knows the real Wendy wouldn't do, cluing him in that it's just another of Mabeland's illusions.
- The Stinger: Xyler and Craz have entered the real world, and are a bit flustered by it.
- Sugar Apocalypse: Mabeland seems to be this, but it's anything but... When Mabel rejects her fantasies for reality, Mabeland starts to collapse inwards, everything starts turning completely red and black, and when she bursts the bubble, the fantasy world disappears (aside from Xyler and Kraz, somehow).
- Sugar Bowl: Mabel's bubble is so sickening bright and colorful that even Mabel herself wonders how she could stand it for almost a whole week. The answer, apparently, was hypnosis.
- Take Over the World: Bill announces the second phase of his plan, which is to spread his own chaos to the rest of the world. He then sends the other demons to begin their conquest. Until a mysterious force field around the town stops them from going any further. Bill is suspicious
- This Means Warpaint: Candy and Grenda are wearing it in the Shack.
- Totally Radical: Mabel's dream version of Dipper, "Dippy Fresh" (who's so 90s that it's sickening), and as always, Xyler and Kraz.
- Traumatic Haircut: Inverted; Mabel was upset when a bully put gum in her hair right before school pictures, but Dipper convinced her to shave off that part of her hair by shaving off his own part.
- Tulpa: Amusingly, when the bubble containing Mabeland explodes, Xyler and Craz are shown to have survived and became real humans. They would go on to become attorneys at "a major children's television network".
- Turned Against Their Masters: After Mabel agrees to leave Mabeland with Dipper, the inhabitants are pretty livid to say the least, and not even she is spared from their wrath. Justified in that they were never really in her command to begin with. A giant imaginary Waddles is the only thing that still obeys her, because when everything reverts back we find out Waddles was the only thing from Mabeland that was "real" to begin with.
- Undying Loyalty: Waddles, Xyler, and Craz are the only ones that don't go rogue and attack the group. Justified since Waddles is really himself.
- Unexplained Recovery:
- Subverted. At first, it seems that Wendy's friends (except for Robbie) survived in Mabel's bubble. They disappear from Mabel's world, however, when Mabel hugs Dipper and breaks the spell.
- Played straight with Hectorgon, who in the last episode was swallowed by Pyronica in a game of 'Spin the Person'. Justified however, as these guys are chaotic creatures!
- Unwanted Rescue: Mabel doesn't want to leave her bubble at first, because everything is so perfect that she doesn't want her summer to end. Apparently, this is exactly what Bill was counting on all along.
- Wham Shot:
- Illusion Wendy turning into a brown sludge of writhing millipedes, and Mabel's world becoming a colossal Nightmare Face for several seconds.
- Stan with other Weirdmageddon survivors in the Mystery Shack, armed to the teeth.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Like in the previous episode, you'll never see the ten Henchmaniacs together at the same time:
- Teeth doesn't appear dancing with his fellow Henchmaniacs at the beginning of the episode.
- 8 Ball, Teeth, Lava Lamp Guy and Amorphous Shape don't appear in the scene where the Henchmaniacs crash against the Magnetism Law, even though the former three are seen hearing Bill's speech.
- Lava Lamp Guy and Amorphous Shape don't appear when Bill attacks them with thunderbolts, after the crash. Funnily enough, Teeth and 8 Ball appear injured even though we never saw them crashing.
- The Worm That Walks: Both Illusion!Wendy and Judge Meow Meow Face-Shwartstein turn into a solid swarm of insects when Dipper defies their will.
- Xanatos Gambit: Bill placed one for anyone trying to rescue Mabel: If anyone attempted to do so, Gideon could apprehend them and personally deliver them to Bill. If Gideon failed to stop them, whoever enters Mabel's bubble would be trapped in a prison of their own deepest desires, never to return to reality. If the user ever comes to his or her senses, everything that Mabel's mind creates will turn against her and keep everyone in there forever. But there is one option Bill did not think was possible—destroying the bubble.
- Youth Is Wasted on the Dumb: Wendy's secret desire is playing a prank on the high school principal with her friends involving a plunger. Lampshaded when Dipper gives her a What the Hell, Hero? look shortly before she drives off.
- You Are Not Alone: This is how Dipper was able to convince Mabel to leave the dream world, by showing her that whatever happens, be it growing up or facing Bill, they'll face it together. Even to the point of giving up being Ford's apprentice, since it would be the same as what's Mabel doing: staying in a secluded place to avoid facing the world alone.
