Airdate: Monday, November 21, 2005
It's time for the 4Tst Annual Fall Float Parade, though there's a brief spike in tensions between announcers Coach Z and Marzipan after some "innaprapriate comments" made during the commercial break. Up next is a float made by Coach Z's "favorite type o' guy who I'm just all the time hangin' around and doin' stuff with" Bubs... whose float is dedicated to calling Coach Z a jerk.
Marzipan: Oh...
Bubs: Coach Z, you jerk!
Coach Z: Oh, I see then...
Bubs: Coach Z—
Coach Z: That's very...
Bubs: You jerk!
Coach Z: ...Overt.
Next up is the "Pam Pam b'loon" ("That's Pom Pom Balloon, for those of you who don't speak Coach Z"), followed by a pair of Homsars dressed like Shriners. ("Let's sing a song of Pennzoil!") Right behind them is Homestar Runner's sweatshirt (or "swee-at shirt") float, but it seems he's not there voluntarily...
Marzipan: Oh, that's great, sweetie. Say hi to that bee for me.
Homestar: (annoyed) Hi, bee...
The next float is actually "Strong Mad absconding with Bubs' Concession Stand" ("Serves 'im right, then!"), which is followed by the K.O.T.H.S. Junior Varsity Marching Band, who indulge in a little breakin'-it down for Coach Z. ("No more free-styling, it's really annoying.") Following up that is Strong Bad's "not-even-remotely-fall-related float" dedicated to four glorious seconds (and counting) of nunchucking snowmen (one of whom is actually Strong Sad, who was hoping for something involving more covered bridges and less him getting pummeled).
Strong Sad: Well, how on Earth did I misunderstand all that?
Strong Bad: I dunno, man. You hear the words "covered bridges" and you just go into a trance.
Strong Sad: Oh, covered bridges...
Finally, bringing up the rear is the imposing bulk of the Marshie balloon ("That thing has got to frighten some children"). But with the Cheat as the only major character left to direct it, it ends up going out of control and crashing into our unfortunate announcers!
Tropes:
- Blatant Lies: In one of the Easter eggs Strong Bad tells Strong Mad to return Bubs' Concession Stand, who insists that that stand followed him home.
- Call-Back: The King of Town High School Marching Band is introduced playing the music from the DVD menu of The King of Town.
- Death Glare: In the opening, Marzipan is seen giving Coach Z over the "inappropriate comments made during the commercial".
- Description Cut: Coach Z expresses his friendship with Bubs when his float is announced. Then, it cuts to Bubs standing on an anti-Coach Z float and calling the coach a jerk.
- In Medias Res: The cartoon opens with the coverage of the parade returning from a commercial break.
- Insane Troll Logic: Going by the DVD commentary, Bubs' float was made because he just did some market research and he's like, right now, people like to hate Coach Z, all to promote something at his stand.
- I Regret Nothing: Inverted; Coach Z yells "I regret everything!" when the Marshie balloon crashes into the podium.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Coach Z invokes this on Bubs when Strong Mad rips his concession stand from its foundation and uses it as a parade float.
- Noodle Incident: The "inapprapriate comments" Coach Z made to Marzipan over the commercial break. According to the DVD commentary, Coach Z made a comment about Marzipan's marshmallows (in her hot cocoa) that came out wrong.Marzipan: That's two strikes, Coach Z!
Coach Z: Yes, yes, what fun! - Oh, Crap!: Marzipan and Coach Z when they see the Marshie balloon is only being controlled by the Cheat.Marzipan: Run for your lives!
(the balloon crashes into the platform; Coach Z and Marzipan fall off)
Coach Z: I regret everything! - Overly Long Name: The theme of Strong Bad and Strong Sad's float is not "celebrating our nation's covered bridges", it is "sticking-[Strong Sad]-in-a-fake-snowman-and-beating-[him]-senseless-with-nunchucks ...covered bridges."
- Paper-Thin Disguise: After Strong Mad steals Bubs' Concession Stand, an Easter egg at the end shows Homestar tried to pass off a cardboard box labelled "Blue Face Man's Store" as the stand.Homestar: Homestar Runner, you have truly outdone yourself! Old Mista' Bubs will never know the difference!
- Piss-Take Rap: Coach Z launches into a half-hearted freestyle rap when the KOT and his band decides to "break it down".Coach Z: One two, one two, keep it "flond"!
Listen to me cause Coach Z's, he's got it goin' on!
I'm a pretty nice guy with fairly good teeth!
C'mon, watch me—
Marzipan: No more free-styling. It's really annoying. - Strange Minds Think Alike: Upon seeing a Sweatshirts float that's misspelled "Swe atshirts", Marzipan and Homestar both pronounce it as "swee-atshirts" instead.
- Thanksgiving Episode: This cartoon is a parody of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
- Trigger Phrase: "Covered bridges" for Strong Sad. Whenever he hears those words, he falls into a trance.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Marzipan seems only briefly baffled by the appearance of two Homsars dressed like Shriners.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: Coach Z describes Bubs as "my favorite type o' guy who I'm just all the time hangin' around and doin' stuff with", which is followed by Bubs going by in a float calling Coach Z a jerk. Later in the cartoon, Strong Mad is seen "absconding with Bubs' Concession Stand," and Coach Z says, "Serves him right, then!"
- We Are Experiencing Technical Difficulties: A "Pardon Our Problems" card, with a turkey staring in bafflement at a plug and socket, appears at the end of the cartoon after the Marshie balloon crashes.
- You Say Tomato:
- This exchange, when a balloon of Pom Pom goes by:Coach Z: It's the Pam Pam b'loon!
Marzipan: That's "Pom Pom balloon", for those of you who don't speak Coach Z. - When Marzipan points out Homestar's "SWEATSHIRT" float is spelled "SWE ATSHIRT", Coach Z replies "You say tomater, I zader madermorts."
- This exchange, when a balloon of Pom Pom goes by:
