Gotta hold on you, a new sensation, a new sensation, right now gonna take you over...
- Back for the Dead: Joanna is back for roughly ten minutes before she bites the bullet. As if to emphasize that she truly is dead, the scene cuts immediately from blood running down her face to her skull being sawed into as the coroner performs her autopsy.
- Batman Gambit: Realizing that Darlene bugged his computer, Elliot sends a fake e-mail to Tyrell that contains a malware-infected link. Norm, Dominique's partner, opens the link and downloads the files within, giving Elliot their location.
- Blood-Spattered Innocents: Joanna's infant son is spattered with the blood from his mother's fatal head wound.
- Call-Back:
- Elliot's phone call with Tyrell at the beginning of season two was recorded by the FBI and is later used to interrogate Darlene in this episode.
- Character Development By ridding E Corp of their "shitbags", Elliot no longer sees them as "Evil Corp".
- Cliffhanger: Stage two's activation is set to occur within a week, and Elliot finds the FBI safe house where Darlene is staying.
- Continuity Nod: Elliot's loneliness.
- Cutting the Knot: The first couple of execs Elliot presents his plan to either ignore him or put him off for far too long. Instead of trying to fight the bureaucracy, Elliot hacks their systems, finds the crimes that they're invariably guilty of, has them fired/arrested, then takes his plan to their replacements. Rinse and repeat until he finds someone who'll listen.
- Death Glare: Mr. Robot shoots one at Krista after she inquires about who compromised him.
- Dropped a Bridge on Him: Joanna and Derek.
- Foreshadowing: The true nature of Elliot's window accident is alluded to in the Kevin McAllister story, in which Elliot relates a fond memory from childhood about building a snowman with Darlene and scheming to take Edward's camera so they can take a picture. It just so happens that on the same day, Elliot would be pushed out of the window by Edward. Darlene and Krista's bewildered reactions to this hint at the window accident being something different than what Elliot recalls.
- Gory Discretion Shot: Averted. Joanna's autopsy opens with a close-up view of her exposed skull as the examiner begins sawing into it.
- Hard-Work Montage: This is how Elliot's "purging" of E Corp is presented.
- Mid-Season Twist: Only two episodes into season three, and we have the sudden death of a major character.
- Nightmare Fuel: Krista meeting Mr. Robot. The whole scene is just dripping with tension, beginning with Elliot and Mr. Robot speaking at the same time, giving off a mechanical, droning sound that awakens memories of the Reapers. Mr. Robot's behavior becomes increasingly more predatory, circling around Krista like a starved wolf, to the point where the two are literally face to face. Mr. Robot then bows out slowly while quietly declaring that he is done talking.
- No Peripheral Vision: Somehow, Mr. Sutherland and Joanna both fail to notice that Derek is approaching their vehicle.
- Too Dumb to Live: After battering him, Mr. Sutherland lets an obviously drunk and belligerent man who has been stalking him and Joanna go, not looking back once to anticipate retaliation. Three guesses as to what happens next.
- Not to mention that Mr. Sutherland chooses to confront a potentially dangerous stalker on a dark, barren street.
- Wham Episode: This episode packs one of the biggest whams of the series, to boot. Derek murders Joanna. On top of that, Elliot and Darlene become alienated after Mr. Robot comes out to interrogate her, Krista finally meets Mr. Robot, and Elliot phishes the FBI to find Darlene's location: a safe house.
- Wham Line: "Don't mistake my generosity... for generosity."
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Even though he survives, this is the first and last time we see Mr. Sutherland in season three.
- Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?: It would have served Joanna a better purpose by having Derek killed instead of sending a message, especially when you take into account that she had Kareem killed for far less.
- You Are Too Late: Mr. Robot echoes this when he meets Krista.Elliot (as Mr. Robot): "You should know that nothing's going to come from this."
