Recap / Odd Squad S 3 E 19 Sixteen And A Half Blocks Follow The Leader

That's quite the batch of past villains.

16-and-a-Half Blocks

Airdate: July 9, 2020 ^note ABC ME premiere, January 21, 2021 ^note PBS Kids premiere

Evil Sculptor approaches the Mobile Unit, because he wants to leave the Villain Network, and offers to give them top-secret info. The team must bring him away to meet the Big O and enter the Villain Protection Program.

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Tropes:

• Ambiguous Time Period: If Omar's comment about the 2019 NBA Championships is any indication, this episode takes place sometime in 2020 — presumably in spring or summer, considering the fair weather.
• Back-to-Back Badasses: Averted. The Main 4 and Evil Sculptor all stand back-to-back when being surrounded by various villains, but it doesn't last long, as Evil Sculptor makes a break for it with the agents in tow.
• Bait-and-Switch: When Monsieur Papier-Mache, the Form-Changer, and Confetti Betty see a mountain sculpture made of clay, the former asks the two villainesses if they're seeing what he's seeing, in a tone that makes it sound like he knows exactly where Evil Sculptor is. As it turns out, he ends up remarking how Toronto has beautiful artwork.
• Be All My Sins Remembered: Evil Sculptor tells Orla and Omar that no matter what they do to try and get him to turn good, and regardless of if he does turn good, everyone will always see him as a villain. Orla suggests that he do other jobs to try and make people see that he's a hero, and Omar agrees, further suggesting that he try being nice to a postal worker carrying a few boxes by offering to help. However, when Evil Sculptor offers to take the postal worker's boxes and grabs ahold of them, she accuses him of being a villain, which causes other people around her to notice and point out that there's a villain, to such an extent that he becomes the subject of a news story.
• Blind Alley: In an interesting variation on the usual trope, the Form-Changer — the one chasing the Main 4 and Evil Sculptor — invokes this on the group, by leading them down an alleyway so they'll be cornered by her and the other villains chasing them.
  • There's also another variation that occurs when the Main 4 and Evil Sculptor hide behind a mountainous sculpture of the latter's doing to escape Monsieur Papier-Mache, the Form-Changer, and Confetti Betty, as an alternative to an alleyway. It ends up working, and the three villains pass them on by.
• Brutal Honesty: Evil Sculptor, Omar and Orla discuss the former's hobbies while on their way to the safe house.
  Omar: Well, uhh, what are your interests?
  Evil Sculptor: Evil.
  Orla: Hobbies?
  Evil Sculptor: Sculptures.
  Omar: Right, but when you're not making evil sculptures — that is amazing, by the way — what are you doing?
  Evil Sculptor: Thinking about evil sculptures.
• The Bus Came Back: Played with. The Form-Changer, a relative of the Shapeshifter, debuts in this episode, and looks like an orange version of the shapeshifting villainess, with the same powers to boot (since they're twins). The Shapeshifter herself hasn't been seen since The Movie (where she was featured as a child), while the Form-Changer is a new villainess that debuts in this episode. Both are also played by Laura Landauer.
• Call-Back: The No-Tattletale Code is brought up again.
  • The Villain Protection Program, which was featured most prominently in "Olympia's Day" and its sister episode, also returns. The Evil Sculptor giving information to Odd Squad about other villains is also a nod to "Otis's Day", although this time around, information on villains is actually given, rather than having him subvert the Heel–Face Turn trope like the Noisemaker did.
  • The Big O wants the Mobile Unit to bring Evil Sculptor to a secret Odd Squad safe house. Safe houses for the organization were established in "Safe House in the Woods".
  • Episodes where the Villain Network logo is featured, like "The Sandwich Project" and "Oswald in the Machine", are shown via brief Flashbacks at the end of the episode.
• The Cameo: The mascot for the Toronto Raptors makes a cameo appearance at one point, performing various stunts that the Main 4 and the Evil Sculptor enjoy.
• Cannot Spit It Out: Evil Sculptor has trouble saying what his new job is when the group reach the Big O, and keeps adding "evil" to his suggestions.
  Evil Sculptor: And I figured out my new job. I wanna be an evil souvenir maker!
  Omar: [shaking his head] Mm-mm.
  Evil Sculptor: Uhh, I mean I wanna make souveni- evils!
  [the Main 3 look at him]
  Evil Sculptor: Wait, no, that's not right. I want to be a souvenir maker!
  [the Main 4 all give a Big "YES!"]
• Captain's Log: Opal records another entry in her "captain's blog", stating that she is close to finding out who The Shadow really is, and that the Mobile Unit is out of chocolate milk, which her teammates take issue to by telling her that now isn't a good time to record an entry.
• Card-Carrying Villain: A majority of villains in this episode proudly admit to being just that: villains — including the Evil Sculptor himself.
• Caught Monologuing: The Form-Changer catches herself monologuing as Opal and Oswald ask her if she's not just an orange version of the Shapeshifter and if she's like the well-known villainess.
• The Chase: Evil Sculptor tells the Main 4 that villains are chasing him in order to stop him from breaking the No-Tattletale Code and performing a Heel–Face Turn. Sure enough, once they band with him, they become chased by the villains as well.
• Chronically Crashed Car: Not only is the van trapped by Monsieur Papier-Mache gluing the wheels to the asphalt using his glue attack, but Confetti Betty covers the windshield of the van in confetti, leaving it unable to fly and unable to drive.
• Continuity Cavalcade: This episode has a lot of villains from past episodes, both from "Villain Networking" and from episodes like "Odds and Ends" and "Undercover Olive".
• Continuity Nod: When assuring Evil Sculptor that things are okay, Opal tells him that he's with an "elite Odd Squad Mobile Unit", which mirrors her Running Gag of her Rousing Speech in "Running on Empty", right down to the matching BGM.
  • Robot princesses are apparently part of the Villain Network, having last been seen in "O is For Opposite".
  • It's very subtle, but Orla's high agility is brought up again after being mentioned in "Orla's Birthday" when Oswald tells her that walking to a place takes longer than driving there, followed by her telling him to "speak for yourself".
  • "Oscar is Awesome" plays as BGM when Omar points out the mascot for the Toronto Raptors.
• Derailed Train of Thought: When Omar tells the rest of the Main 4 that Casa Loma has a secret underground tunnel, Orla and Oswald go nuts attempting to look for it before Opal sets them back on track.
• Does This Remind You of Anything?: While villains have been seen as parallels to the Real Life equivalent of criminals before (and we mean criminals that actually commit crimes and go to jail for them), this episode has one of the most blatant examples of it — when Evil Sculptor grabs ahold of a postal worker's packages and offers to help her carry them, she protests and cries out "Villain, villain!" similar to what someone would do if they were being harassed or outright attacked by a criminal on the streets. However, instead of rushing to help (like what most people would do in such a situation), bystanders just look and point at Evil Sculptor while saying "villain!"
• Dramatic Drop: When a construction worker holding a drink tray with coffee sees his co-worker turn into Form-Changer, he stares at her before dropping the tray in shock.
• Heel–Face Turn: Evil Sculptor, a local villain, wishes to not be a villain anymore, and the bulk of the episode is spent trying to get him in the hands of Odd Squad without the other villains finding out about him turning over a new leaf.
• Idiot Ball: The Main 4 all grab it during the entirety of the episode — they could get to their destination much faster if they flew to the safe house rather than take roads, where they encounter numerous roadblocks that prevent them from reaching the place. While it may be justified since they are in the downtown area of Toronto, "Sample of New York" previously showed the van flying over the city before presumably landing in a parking space on a busy street in New York City, so flying the van through Toronto isn't out of the question — but any idea of flying it soon gets thrown out the window when their windshield becomes covered in confetti.
• Mad Artist: Although he doesn't wish to be a villain anymore, Evil Sculptor definitely qualifies, as his skills lie in working with clay. He can get sculptures done within seconds.
• Mirthless Laughter: When Orla asks Evil Sculptor what his new job will be now that he no longer wants to be a villain, he laughs at her as if to say "that's ridiculous" and asks her why he would need a new job.
• Mood Whiplash: Any semblance of comedy or humor flies clear out the window when Evil Sculptor tells the Big O and the Main 4 about the Villain Network.
• New Job Episode: Of a sort — this episode has Evil Sculptor performing a Heel–Face Turn, and with it, he is forced to find a new job that doesn't involve sculpting.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: It's bad enough when you're trying to help someone in need and get accused of burglary, but it's even worse when the group of villains that you've been running from manage to find you because of a news report on the attempted theft.
• No Ending: While this show is often guilty of ending episodes abruptly with no proper conclusion, this episode has one of the most abrupt endings of them all. The Big O shows the Main 4 and the Evil Sculptor the Toronto skyline, the camera zooms out in quick cuts as Orla comments on how the CN Tower has many stairs...and then there's a quick Fade to Black. Luckily, the plotline still continues with its sister episode, "Follow the Leader", so the impact is lessened slightly.
• Not Helping Your Case: When Evil Sculptor becomes interviewed by Channel 4 about his (assumed) theft, he begins stuttering, giving out a Rapid-Fire "No!" as he tries to defend himself.
• Obviously Evil: Opal points out that none of the agents know what Evil Sculptor looks like, and the camera Whip Pans to various people outside of the castle, but Orla soon points out a man that is hiding on a ramp, which turns out to actually be the Evil Sculptor.
  • She later points out that while cutting through Nathan Phillips Square, the group needs to be careful, since anyone can be a villain. Apparently she isn't too Genre Savvy, as a majority of villains in the show have very distinct appearances that set them apart from normal town citizens.
• Oh, Crap!: Opal and Oswald both have these reactions when a group of villains from the Villain Network corner them in an alleyway.
• Product Placement: Played with. It's not really product placement by any means, but Omar does notably namedrop the NBA as he points out The Raptor, the mascot for the Toronto Raptors that makes a cameo appearance, making it one of the very few times a real-life brand/product/organization is name-dropped. ^note  Scenes that take place in New York City are exempt, as it would be impossible to overlay every single one of the screens with Shmumbers product advertisements.
• Rapid-Fire "No!": Evil Sculptor delivers these as the news anchor for Channel 4 asks him for a comment about the presumed theft.
• invoked Role Reprise: Played with. Laura Landauer returns to the show, but she doesn't play the Shapeshifter — rather, she plays her relative, known as the Form-Changer.
• Same Character, But Different: The Form-Changer is similar to the Shapeshifter in everything but color and Power Glows — although it's justified since they're twin sisters. Opal even lampshades if she's like the Shapeshifter.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Once Opal leaves to take the Evil Sculptor to the van, Omar expresses his desire to get a souvenir, at which point Orla and Oswald take their leaves.
• Season Finale: This episode is Part 1 of the three-part mid-season finale.
• Skewed Priorities: Even with Toronto citizens on alert and villains chasing after them, Omar refuses to let up in finding a souvenir. However, he does manage to get one, by way of the Evil Sculptor making him a clay replica of the Toronto skyline.
• So Long, Suckers!: When Confetti Betty blasts the Mobile Unit Van with confetti and covers their windshield, Opal deems it a perfect time to escape out of the van's back doors, since none of the villains can see them.
• Story Arc: Apart from the arc of stopping The Shadow and her Villain Network, there is also a character arc involving Opal attempting to figure out The Shadow's true identity. It's very short, however, and by "Follow the Leader", she manages to succeed in her mission.
• Suddenly Fluent in Gibberish: While on the street car, the driver says something unintelligible over the intercom. When Omar asks what they're saying, Orla translates and explains that they're saying the bus is almost at the safe house.
• "They Still Belong to Us" Lecture: Of a sort — Monsieur Papier-Mache corners Evil Sculptor, who is in the process of forming a Heel–Face Turn, and orders him to come out from the Mobile Unit Van so the ex-villain can turn evil again, with the Form-Changer attempting to remind him of who he is. It doesn't work, as he and the Main 4 escape from the back of the van and decide to foot it to the safe house.
• This Just In!: Channel 4 delivering news about Evil Sculptor presumably stealing a package within ten seconds of it happening quite possibly takes home the world record for "Fastest Breaking News Delivery".
• Title Drop: The Big O mentions how the Odd Squad safe house is only 16 1/2 blocks away from the Casa Loma.
• Too Important to Walk: While the Main 4 and the Evil Sculptor could walk their way to the safe house, for the sake of pedaling the episode's mathematical Aesop, they choose to take buses and other modes of transportation. It doesn't help that the place they're trying to get to is two blocks away from where they currently are when Opal explains how other modes of transportation work, but it is justified by the fact that they are all being chased by villains (even when they are forced to take a street car right down the street, since it isn't just villains chasing them, but Toronto citizens are on the lookout as well).
• Very Special Episode: The episode taking place in Toronto was an intentional choice on behalf of the writers, since Toronto is where Season 1 and Season 2 were set. It features many different landmarks of the city, such as the CN Tower and the Casa Loma.
• Villainous Rescue: Evil Sculptor saves himself and the Main 4 and manages to avoid detection by creating a tall sculpture of mountains that they can hide behind.
• Wham Episode: While the episode doesn't seem like it's one of these initially, the end of the episode is very wham-filled — the Big O and the Main 4 are given details on the Villain Network.
• Wham Line: The Evil Sculptor giving information on The Shadow to the Big O and the Mobile Unit is basically a Wham Exchange.
  Big O: First, I need that secret information on The Shadow.
  Evil Sculptor: Yes. [...] The Shadow created a Villain Network.
  Big O: What do you mean, a Villain Network?
  Evil Sculptor: [shows the Big O his Villain Network badge] This.
  Oswald: Wait a minute. We've been seeing that symbol everywhere.
  [brief Flashbacks to past episodes are seen]
  Evil Sculptor: She has been recruiting villains around the world to come together in one big Villain Network.
  Big O: This is bad. Very bad.
  Evil Sculptor: But I know how we can catch her. She's recruiting more villains next week at a villain hotel in Minnesota.
  Big O: I'm gonna need that address. [hands Evil Sculptor a clipboard, paper, and a pencil]
• What Were You Thinking?: The Form-Changer asks Confetti Betty this when she covers the Mobile Unit van's windshield in confetti.
• Where Do You Think You Are?: Omar says that the one thing he didn't get to see was the CN Tower, causing the Big O to state the trope name verbatim as she says, "Where do you think you are right now?" She opens the blinds, and everyone gets an absolutely gorgeous shot of the Toronto skyline from atop the tower.
• White Hair, Black Heart: Played with, as Evil Sculptor wants to perform a Heel–Face Turn, but has white hair and a white mustache that look like glue was painted on it.
• Witness Protection: Evil Sculptor is planning on entering the Villain Protection Program, and in exchange for being under Odd Squad protection, he must give information to the Big O on The Shadow.
• World Tour: This episode has the Mobile Unit head to Toronto, where both previous seasons of the show were set.
• Wrong Assumption: Evil Sculptor kindly offers to help a postal worker and grabs ahold of her boxes to assist her, and she immediately jumps to conclusions and calls out "villain, villain!" And then everyone else in Nathan Phillips Square joins in, followed by a news report being made on the presumed theft.
• You Remind Me of X: Orla says that Casa Loma reminds her of the Amazon Headquarters where she stayed at, and says how she'll like "Tor-on-to".

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Which villains are real, and which villains are fake?

Follow the Leader

Airdate: July 9, 2020 ^note  ABC ME premiere, January 21, 2021 ^note  PBS Kids premiere

Following Evil Sculptor going under the protection of Odd Squad and informing them about the Villain Network, the Mobile Unit travels to a villain hotel in Minneapolis, Minnesota in order to stop The Shadow from recruiting more villains.

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Tropes:

• Bait-and-Switch: When the disguised villains guess their favorite instruments, Greta tells them they're incorrect, and they begin to panic, right before she says that she's "just kidding" and that they're correct.
• Beautiful Dreamer: When Omar asks Opal to ask the villains what their favorite meals are, she tells him that they're all asleep, and turns to look at them, sacked out on the floor and clutching Security Blankets of some form. Even though they were just attacking her before, Opal has to admit that they're adorable when they sleep.
• Be Careful What You Wish For: Opal is absolutely dead-set on destroying The Shadow. When she gets a chance to, The Reveal of The Shadow's true identity manages to leave her in a near-wordless shock.
• Behind a Stick: When being attacked by the real villains, the undisguised Orla, Omar, and Oswald hide behind a nearby luggage cart stacked about halfway up with luggage that doesn't really fit all three of them, and doesn't provide them much coverage from the villains' attacks.
• Bizarre Taste in Food: Star Wipe apparently loves eating worms — alive worms, no less, as they are things that move.
• Bond One-Liner: Opal gives a few when she puts the villains to sleep using various sleep-related gadgets.
  Opal: Sweet dreams, villains.
  Opal: Sleep tight, and don't let the bedbugs bite.
• Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick: Greta brings out the dishes for the villains to try so they can prove their true identities by eating their favorite meals. The options are a sandwich, a salad...and worms.
• Call-Back: In "Odd Beginnings: Part Two", Opal brings up the "villain Internet". This episode features a site called "blog.villain.org", where villains post Blogs about themselves and what they like as interests, which is about as close as the show may get to featuring the "villain Internet".
• Character Blog: In-universe. While the "blog.villain.org" site doesn't exist in Real Life, the show features villains having their own blogs, which are recognized by other characters.
• Character Focus: While "16-and-a-Half Blocks" didn't put Opal in the spotlight too much (instead focusing on all of the Main 4), this episode makes the mid-season finale's focus on her — considering The Reveal at the end — much more apparent.
• The Chase: A brief chase ensues with The Shadow and Opal at the climax of the episode, although there appears to be very little threat on the former's end — when the latter orders her to stop, she does so, and doesn't try to keep running.
• Comm Links: Opal is shown wearing one of these, complete with microphone. It's implied that Omar has one as well, although due to an error, it isn't shown.
• Confronting Your Imposter: The real Star Wipe, Cardboard Carl, and William Ocean confront the disguised Odd Squad agents at the climax.
• Continuity Cavalcade: Like in "Villain Networking" and "16-and-a-Half Blocks", there are a lot of villains from past episodes across all three seasons.
• Continuity Nod: This isn't the first person we've seen who has a food preference of worms — the Featherites in "The Perfect Lunch" were also seen as having an affinity for worms, being Bird People.
  • The Shadow leaves the villain hotel the same way she did in "Villain Networking", by exiting through the roof using her Rocket Boots (presumably, as it's not shown how she's able to rocket straight into the air and fly, but it is implied that the ability comes from her shoes) and leaving a cloud of dust in her wake.
• Distinction Without a Difference: When Greta begins to catch on to the agents' stalling attempts by the third time around, Oswald takes the mantle in Holding the Floor from Orla.
  Oswald: Before we choose our instruments-
  Greta: I'm starting to get this feeling that you've all been stalling.
  Oswald: Stalling? Um...you mean, uh, a delaying tactic used to mislead or distract, uh, unsuspecting person or persons from their goal?
• Don't Ask, Just Run: When the Odd Squad Mobile Unit agents reveal themselves to the real villains, Star Wipe tells The Shadow to run and make a break for it while she, William Ocean and Cardboard Carl fight them. While The Shadow takes off running, Opal — the last Mobile Unit agent — chases after her in order to reveal her true identity, and manages to catch her.
• Dramatic Unmask: Opal chases The Shadow through a dark hallway and orders her to stop, telling her that her days of leading the Villain Network are over. The villainess doesn't say a single word, and instead, takes off her mask to reveal her true face, which Opal recognizes as being that of O'Lizabeth, her younger sister.
• The Dreaded: Agent Owl is to be feared when it comes to how serious she is about disguises.
• Dressing as the Enemy: Omar, Orla and Oswald dress up as Cardboard Carl, Star Wipe, and William Ocean, respectively. In order to change into them, they suck on lollipops, which instantly transform them into the villains, but the disguises wear off if water spills on them.
• Dynamic Entry: Inverted — The Shadow leaves by going through the roof of the villain hotel.
• Expy: Cardboard Carl looks a bit similar to Fladam, primarily with the glasses.
• Extreme Close-Up: When Opal gives instructions to the other Main 3 on what to eat, the camera zooms in on her face to such a point where it takes up about half of the screen.
• Failed a Spot Check: Apparently, none of the real villains Opal leads to the van notices the Odd Squad seal plastered onto the side of the vehicle, nor do they catch on to the fact that they're (presumably) being taken into Odd Squad custody...that is, until Star Wipe has a realization seconds after, at which point Opal rips off her disguise and a brief battle ensues.
• Gasp!: The real Star Wipe, Cardboard Carl and William Ocean all give one Opal reveals her true identity as an Odd Squad Mobile Unit agent to them.
• Holding the Floor: Omar, Orla and Oswald are forced to do this when Opal has to look up the villains' likes and dislikes on the Internet. Orla is the one who initiates the stalling, with her first attempt being singing a song about the foods they're presented, and the second having Greta tell her about herself (starting from when she was born), but by the third go-around, Greta begins to grow suspicious, which causes Oswald to take up stalling duties.
• Impostor-Exposing Test: Orla, Oswald and Omar, in their villain disguises, are forced to take three tests to prove that they aren't part of Odd Squad. The first test involves the villains' favorite foods, the second their favorite craft, and the third their favorite instruments. While they pass all three tests, they are only exposed when the real villains manage to wake up from their second nap, enter the villain hotel, and confront their impostors.
• Inevitably Broken Rule: The Big O orders the Mobile Unit to call her for backup if their true identities are discovered by other villains. Surprisingly, it's not Orla, Omar and Oswald (the ones in disguise as the villains) that disobey her — it's Opal who does, as she believes that it will take the Big O too long to get to the hotel from her office. This ends up costing her and the Mobile Unit big time in the following episode, as they are punished and sent back to the Academy.
• The Infiltration: Oswald, Omar and Orla go undercover as three villains in order to get into the villain hotel and meet with The Shadow, while Opal disguises herself as a hotel bellhop for the villain hotel.
• Instant Sedation: The Nap-inator gadget puts its living target to sleep, but only for a short amount of time. The Slightly-Longer-Nap-inator does the same thing, but it has a longer-lasting effect.
• Irony: Oswald is disguised as William Ocean, a water-based villain who has the ability to summon fish from the sea to attack his foes. Water short-circuits the disguises that Oswald, Orla and Omar wear, and they can't come into contact with it.
• Kill It with Water: While water doesn't kill the Mobile Unit, and while William Ocean doesn't directly use water (he uses fish), his attack does cause their disguises to short-circuit and the real agents' identities to be revealed.
• Luke, I Am Your Father: It's revealed at the end of the episode that The Shadow is Opal's younger sister, O'Lizabeth — something that manages to leave the Mobile Unit agent in utter shock once the villainess takes her mask off.
• Master of Disguise: Agent Owl is explicitly referred to as one of these, and it shows.
• My Friends... and Zoidberg: Orla, Oswald and Omar are given villain disguises. Opal, on the other hand, gets a hotel bellhop disguise, and isn't even addressed by Owl until she herself asks her what disguise she's going to wear.
• Oh, Crap!: Opal has this reaction when the real villains wake up from their naps the first time around, and later has the same reaction when she finds them missing.
  • She also has this reaction when she is unable to find any specific clues about the villains' favorite instruments on their Blogs.
  • Omar, Oswald and Orla all share this reaction when their disguises short-circuit and their real identities are revealed.
• Rapid-Fire "No!": Oswald does this when the real villains confront them and tell The Shadow that the fakes are Odd Squad agents.
• Replaced with Replica: Cardboard Carl's schtick is replacing items he steals with fake cardboard cutouts that look authentic.
• Running Gag: Greta saying that the disguised agents passed the tests, only for her to say there's "no time" to do anything, such as eating or doing crafts.
• Saying Sound Effects Out Loud: Owl describes the disguises short-circuiting with a "bzzzzt, beep-bow".
• Security Blanket: Each of the real villains are shown clutching one of these as they sleep. William Ocean and Star Wipe have teddy bears, while the former and Cardboard Carl have blankets.
• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: Against the Big O's wishes, Opal decides to go straight for The Shadow, as she had previously ordered for the Mobile Unit to call for backup, but also tacked on that The Shadow can't escape Odd Squad's grasp. This leads to The Reveal that The Shadow is Opal's sister, and gets her and her teammates punished in the next episode.
  Opal: I'm going after The Shadow!
  Orla: Opal, remember what the Big O said, we need to call for backup.
  Opal: But it'll take too long! [she runs off]
• Season Finale: This episode is Part 2 of the three-part mid-season finale.
• Shamu Fu: William Ocean uses fish from the sea in order to attack, which he summons by using his conch shell.
• Sleeping Dummy: The real villains do this with cardboard cutouts of themselves sleeping, placed against the wall to fool Opal so they can escape and go into the villain hotel. The agent goes from being excited about finding out The Shadow's true identity to pissed off that the villains managed to escape in seconds.
  Opal: CARDBOARD CARL!!
• Shout-Out: William Ocean's name might be a reference to Billy Ocean, an R&B artist from the 70s and 80s.
• Star Power: Star Wipe attacks by using star-shaped beams that she shoots from her headband, which can also stun her foes and distract them.
• Stealth Hi/Bye: Owl does this mere seconds after Big O sends her to the Mobile Unit.
• That Reminds Me of a Song: When attempting to stall the first time, Orla leads Omar and Oswald into singing a little ditty about the food they're presented with.
• Theme Naming: A rather subtle example — apart from Opal and O'Lizabeth having the same first letter (the latter which is just "Elizabeth" but with an O), they also have the same pronunciations at the beginning of their names ("oh").
• Villain: Exit, Stage Left: The Shadow speaks very few words while engaging in The Chase at the climax with Opal, and leaves by exiting through the roof of the hotel.
• We Need a Distraction: Part of Opal's job is to distract Greta, the older hotel bellhop on duty. She does this by asking her to watch the cart she's pushing for exactly 32 1/2 seconds, and when Greta says yes, she leads the real villains to the van and puts them to sleep.
• Wham Episode: Just like its sister episode, it's not wham-filled initially, but the ending has The Shadow's identity revealed and Opal in a briefly-shocked daze as she realizes just who the Big Bad really is.
• Wham Line: Opal saying The Shadow's real name in disbelief ("O'Lizabeth?!") qualifies, but directly after that, there's another wham line that comes from the agent.
  [the Main 3 arrive in the hallway]
  Omar: [with Orla] Oh no.
  Orla: [with Omar] The Shadow got away.
  Oswald: Now we'll never know who she is!
  [Opal turns around]
  Opal: She's my sister.
• Wham Shot: The Shadow taking off her mask, followed by Opal's shocked look as she realizes that the villainess is her younger sister. The Mobile Unit agent's fast-paced breathing also qualifies, being quite symbolic following The Reveal of who The Shadow really is.
• What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: While William Ocean and Star Wipe both have direct offensive attacks, Cardboard Carl doesn't, as his ability is to create cardboard replicas of items, and he is unable to attack offensively with cardboard. However, said ability comes in handy later when he and the other villains escape the van by making cardboard cutouts of themselves sleeping.
• World Tour: The Mobile Unit head to Minneapolis, Minnesota, shortly after leading Evil Sculptor through Toronto to the Odd Squad safe house there.
• Yank the Dog's Chain: Orla, Omar and Oswald manage to pass all three Impostor Exposing Tests and meet up with The Shadow, but the villainess doesn't get any farther than "I understand you three passed the tests..." before the real-deal villains show up.

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