"I've betted all on blue."
Tari and Evelyn continue smashing their way through hoards of enemies in a 2 v 50 match when things take a terrible turn.
The tournament continues as Tari and Evelyn continue to fight the minions that apprehend them in Hidden Heroes. While Theo is well on his way out of the corrupted Ultra Jump Mania thanks to Belle's help, Tari and MD-5 find themselves in a perilous position when Evelyn and Lucks get onto them.Episode 17 provides examples of:
- Cliffhanger: Masa ends up getting eliminated by Evelyn, leaving Tari and Lamar two of the only players besides her left. Also, the episode ends with Masa leaving his and Lamar’s pod, to get ready “for when this is all over”.
- Continuity Cavalcade: Among the events covered in Sofia’s TAS Corp conspiracy theory montage are the plot-triggering “early retirements” of Lucinia and Masa, people claiming to have seen Lucks entering Gamma Tech Stadium during the climatic scene of “Shutdown”, and someone taking a picture of the body of the masked rifle-welding TAS Corp goon that accidentally got tossed out of Lucks’ van in “Sequence Break”.
- Crazy-Prepared: Unlike the Tempest tournament, MD-5 are prepared for when Lucks finds out they’re in the stadium, and Sofia prevents Lucks shutting them and the game down by essentially blackmailing him, pointing out that unlike last time, when Lucks managed to defeat them after the game had ended and the stadium was evacuated, trying to do the same thing in the middle of the game in a stadium full of spectators and members of the press would make people suspicious of him, which would add to a long list of conspiracy theories stemming from his actions during and mentioned in Season 1.
- Evolving Credits: Masa now has his new Meta Runner arm in the last shot of the intro.
- Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: Lucks quickly manages to put two and two together thanks to Evelyn:Lucks: Are you sure about this?
Evelyn: Yes! I saw that blue-haired betrayer speaking to someone on the enemy team! It explains everything! The power outage, her weird tactics, all the friendly fire... I told you, sir, she’s not to be trusted!
(Lucks quickly looks up at the screen and the balcony holding the players behind it)
Lucks: It’s them. - Ironic Episode Title: Tari and Evelyn's duel does not equate to "Friendly Fire" (aside from how they are nominally on the same Hidden Heroes team).
- Magical Guide: A mysterious trail of purple light helps guide Theo through a segment of the corrupted Ultra Jump Mania that Belle is having trouble with.
- Mêlée à Trois: What the Hidden Heroes match ultimately devolves into as a result of Evelyn catching Tari talking to MD-5. It's Tari, Masa and Lamar (who are trying to expose TAS Corp's corruption and save Tari from their grasp) versus Evelyn (who is on TAS Corp's side and mainly wants to stop Tari just to stop her from stealing the spotlight) versus the other players (who are oblivious to what's going on and just want to win the game).
- Miming the Cues: As Sofia forces Lucks to smile for the audience, he makes a fist behind his back and in view of Evelyn, essentially giving her the order to eliminate Tari, Masa and Lamar.
- Ominous Visual Glitch: When MD-5’s countdown timer hits the 6 minute mark, the screen of Sofia’s phone briefly flickers and turns purple, with some kind of mass appearing in the middle.
- The Stool Pigeon: Evelyn tips Lucks off of Tari's plan. Thankfully, MD-5 anticipated that.
- Unfriendly Fire: Goes even further than the previous episode, once Evelyn discovers Tari's plan. Tari and Evelyn engage in a full-on duel, and Masa and Lamar go from "accidentally" killing their teammates to fighting them openly.
- You Called Me "X"; It Must Be Serious: When Theo thanks Belle for helping him, he doesn't call her "Angry Shouty Lady" or even just "Shouty Lady", instead using her proper name.
