Airdate: Monday, March 22, 2004
In the dead of night, two shady figures sneak around to the back-door of Bubs' Concession Stand. It seems Strong Bad and The Cheat are plotting to raid Bubs' stash of fundraiser candy bars ("Go straight for the crispy crackly ones. Don't waste your time on them plain ol' chocolates, those things are fools' gold!"), but after a botched attempt to blow open the door with a bundle of "Fthoom-Bang" bottle rockets ("I told you to remove the 'fthoom'! All we needed was the 'bang'!") the two are carted off to jail.
The Cheat: (angrily squeaks along with Strong Bad)
Strong Bad: You set me up!
While Strong Sad enjoys his brother's absence (and the chance to do tai chi in the old computer room), Strong Bad begs Strong Mad to get him and The Cheat (who has already gone stir-crazy) out of "the joint". Given that the jail is just a cardboard box with holes cut in it sitting in the middle of the Field, Strong Mad simply lifts the box off, and Strong Bad and The Cheat run off to make out with "Sweet Lady Freedom".
As Homestar debates whether or not he should start hyphenating his name, Strong Bad and The Cheat are quick to continue their reign of terror, including mugging the King of Town for his crown so they can hock it and "retire to the moon". Afterwards, the King attempts to describe the perpetrator to the law (Bubs and Coach Z):
Bubs: Okay...
King of Town: Red ol'...
Bubs: Uh-huh...
King of Town: nasty ol' egg.
Bubs: I see...
King of Town: And hands looks like biscuit dough!
Bubs: Uh-huh. Is this the man? (shows off a crude drawing of a guy with biscuits for hands who looks nothing like Strong Bad)
Coach Z: It was Biscuitdoughhandsman! I knew it!
Back in their lair behind Strong Badia's fence, Strong Bad convinces The Cheat they need to "come out of retirement" for one last job.
The Cheat: (ponders, then agrees)
Strong Bad: Yes! Another victim claimed by Strong Bad's Powers of Persuasion. No living The Cheat can resist the P.O.P.
That night, the King of Town comes home craving biscuit dough, only to make a startling discovery... the Poopsmith has been abducted! Out in the Field, Homestar and Pom Pom are hot on the trail of the insidious Smith-nappers... though Homestar is distracted by interrogating his own partner.
Back at the fence, Strong Bad is ready to record a ransom video addressed to "Whatever weirdos are concerned about the Poopsmith" when Homestar and Pom Pom barge in.
Homestar: We followed this mysterious trail the Poopsmith left...
Strong Bad: Euw!
Homestar: That, and we got an anonymous tip from Strong Sad.
Strong Sad: (poppping up from the other side of the fence) I told them you were behind the fence.
Strong Bad: You sold me out. You sold me out! The Cheat, tell him that he... Oh, never mind.
Though Coach Z is disappointed that "Biscuitdoughhandsman" has slipped through his fingers again, Strong Bad and The Cheat are taken back to the big house, and Homestar announces the moral of the story: "Strong Sad doing tai chi is really, really funny."
Homestar: What? It was! You were all like... (starts randomly posing) Pah-ku-lah! Honh! Pwing!
Marzipan: (comes in with a tray of baklava) Who wants some bak-a-lava? (fade to "THE END") Baka-mah-lava, anybody?
Tropes:
- Behind the Black: Strong Bad fails to notice Homestar and Pom Pom sneaking up on him until they walk in from just off-camera.
- Brick Joke: Near the beginning of the cartoon, Strong Sad says that he and Marzipan have a "baklava" in the oven. Near the end of the cartoon, Marzipan offers everyone some home-made baklava.
- Cardboard Prison: A rather literal example; Strong Bad and The Cheat are kept in a cardboard box turned upside-down.
- Cold Open: The titles don't come in until after the opening sequence with Strong Bad and The Cheat being arrested.
- Comically Missing the Point: Coach Z catches Strong Bad, but is upset because "Once again, Biscuitdoughhandsman slips through our fingers."
- Continuity Nod: After stealing the King of Town's crown, Strong Bad boasts "now we can retire to the Mooooooon!"
- Doomy Dooms of Doom: In The Stinger, Strong Bad (as "Professor Tor Coolguy") calls Marzipan to ask her if she's "interested in PREPARING FOR YOUR DOOM!!"
- Exactly What It Says on the Tin: Zig-zagged; "Strong Bad Is In Jail Cartoon" is a cartoon that features Strong Bad going to jail (twice, in fact), but he spends much of the cartoon out of jail and on the lam.
- Facial Composite Failure: The King of Town's attempts to describe Strong Bad lead to Bubs drawing a guy who looks nothing like Strong Bad, but who Coach Z identifies as "Biscuitdoughhandsman".
- Jail Bake: Strong Mad has a cake with a jackhammer (badly) hidden in it, even though all he had to do was pick up Strong Bad's literal cardboard prison."I BROUGHT YOU A CAKE!"
- Jar Potty: Strong Bad and The Cheat's cell has three cans labeled "Food", "Water", and "Eww".
- Mixed Metaphor: When boasting about finding the Poopsmith, Homestar says "Only you can prevent scouting! Boy, do we need forest fires!"
- Move Along, Nothing to See Here: In the final stinger, Homestar tells the Poopsmith to "move it along"—not noticing that the Poopsmith is still bound and gagged.
- Mugshot Montage: A series of mugshots from Strong Bad accompany the title sequence of the cartoon.
- One Last Job: The Poopsmith kidnapping is described as this by Strong Bad.
- Overly Long Gag: Homestar spends about sixteen seconds imitating a car alarm when he catches Strong Bad and The Cheat breaking into Bubs' concession stand.
- Paper-Thin Disguise: Strong Bad puts on an ill-fitting ski mask to disguise his identity when making a video ransom note. Even the usually dim-witted Homestar sees right through it.
- Something We Forgot: At the very end of the cartoon, there's a scene showing the Poopsmith is still tied up behind Strong Badia's fence.
- Spoof Aesop: At the end, Homestar tells the audience "Well, kids and people, it just goes to show, Strong Sad doing tai chi is really, really funny."
- The Stinger: After the "THE END" card appears, there's a scene with Marzipan getting a prank call from Strong Bad (as "Professor Tor Coolguy"). This is followed by a scene with Homestar encountering the still-bound-and-gagged Poopsmith and hounding him to "move it along".
