Dance Dance Infiltration
One thing's for sure: Cinder brought her A-game in wearing her Catwoman cosplay.
Emerald: It appears all the dancers have partners.
Cinder (ear-bud): How long do I have?
Mercury: You should probably be home by midnight, to be safe.
Cinder (ear-bud): How long do I have?
Mercury: You should probably be home by midnight, to be safe.
While everyone enjoys the school dance, Ruby and Jaune struggle to fit in. Ruby's problem is solved when she spots a villain that is up to no good while Jaune solves his by honouring a rather unorthodox promise he made.
Tropes in this episode include:
- Attractiveness Isolation: Pyrrha reveals that her status as a celebrity makes people think she's too good for them, so she doesn't attract romantic attention.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: The reason why Pyrrha likes Jaune is because he was the first person she met that treated her like anyone else and not as a celebrity.Pyrrha: When we met, you didn't even know my name. You treated me just like anyone else. And thanks to you, I've made friendships that will last a lifetime. I guess...you're the kind of guy I wish I was here with: someone who saw me for me.
- Black-Tie Infiltration: Cinder use the Beacon Academy dance as a diversion to infiltrate the CCT Tower. She then escapes Ruby's pursuit by changing clothes and hiding among the dancers.
- Brick Joke: In "Extracurricular", Jaune offhandedly mentioned he would wear a dress if Pyrrha couldn't get a date to the dance. He ends up keeping his word, entering the ballroom in a white dress.
- Didn't See That Coming: Ruby and Yang think that they can handle whatever gets thrown at them...until Jaune walks in wearing a dress.
- Elevator Action Sequence: Played for Laughs. Two guards are casually chatting as they ride down the elevator while Cinder is infiltrating the CCT Tower. When it reaches her floor, the guards are stumped at her being surrounded by defeated guards. She just calmly walks into the elevator and the doors close while we hear sounds of fighting. When she arrives at the upper floor, both guards are knocked out.
- Hidden Depths: Jaune is the bumbling Butt-Monkey, who desperately wants to be a serious hero. At the ball, Pyrrha is startled to discover that he's actually an accomplished dancer, something he attributes to growing up with seven sisters.
- High-School Dance: The Beacon Dance, which is part of the Vytal Festival is essentially this. Much of the plot revolves around the romantic plans of Jaune, Weiss, Neptune, Pyrrha, Sun, Blake, and Yang. Meanwhile, Cinder uses the distraction to infiltrate the CCT and upload a virus, then sneak into the dance and pretend she was there the entire time.
- Instant Costume Change: In the short space of time it takes Cinder to walk from the CCT to the dance hall, she's been able to transform her Spy Catsuit into an elegant gown by activating Dust that she had woven into the clothing. The only thing that doesn't transform is the face mask, which gets left behind on the ground as she leaves.
- I Gave My Word: In the previous episode, Jaune jokingly told Pyrrha that if nobody asked her to the dance he'd wear a dress. After finding out that nobody did in fact ask her, he showed back up to the dance wearing a dress without even a hint of embarrassment on his face, declaring, "An Arc never goes back on his word."
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Jaune convinces Neptune to talk to Weiss despite his crush one her, because he knows she likes Neptune.
- Mood Whiplash: The first half of the episode is lighthearted conversations about the kids and the kinds of problems they suffer from, such as romance and being popular. The second half has Cinder taking advantage of the dance to break into Beacon's computer system.
- Oh, Crap!: The elevator guards, looking from the mystery intruder to the unconscious (or worse) guards beyond, then back to her as she joins them in the elevator.
- Roofhopping: Cinder gets around Beacon in her Spy Catsuit by jumping between rooftops. Ruby catches her doing it, which leads her into following Cinder into the CCT Tower.
- Spontaneous Choreography: During the ball, Jaune leads team JNPR into a spontaneous dance with perfect choreography.
- Spy Catsuit: Cinder dons a skin-tight catsuit to break into the CCT Tower. It is unzipped to mid-torso, exposing her cleavage, and the thigh-high boots she's wearing have even thinner stilettos than her usual shoes. Although her approach to the CCT is partially stealthy, once she enters the building, she drops the stealth completely. The outfit is sewn with Dust, allowing her to produce weapons on demand and to later transform the catsuit into a slinky black ballgown for her escape into the school dance next door.
- Unmanly Secret: Neptune reveals that his coolness is a facade to compensate for his flaws and insecurities such as not knowing how to dance.
- When the Clock Strikes Twelve: The episode ends with the symbol of a chess queen flashing across a video screen as Beacon's clock tower strikes midnight, as a sign of Cinder hacking into the system.
"Enjoy the rest of the night. After all, it is a party."
