During a very overpopulated school day, the Recess gang is left waiting in line for tetherball, caught up in two different games at once, and being denied tuna fish tacos. Soon, they're wishing they were the only kids in school, and they get their wish...
Tropes:
- Absurdly Long Wait: Due to the overcrowding, there are long lines everywhere on the playground and in the cafeteria.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: The Recess Gang wants the whole day to themselves, but two days into getting their wish, they're bored already. Not to mention they have to start delivering homework for their entire class, on top of having to eat cold pizza since less kids means a surplus of leftover food. Gretchen lampshades it.Gretchen: It's sort of ironic, isn't it? The thing we wished for most has become our greatest nightmare.
- Continuity Nod: When Miss Grotke has a flashback of the Faculty eating very different food compared to the kids in the cafeteria, we are shown a rather fancy faculty lunch room. Which doesn't look very different compared to the secret Teacher's Lounge.
- Cruel Twist Ending: The gang decides to play sick on realizing that no one may be coming back for a while, with Gretchen helping them fake symptoms of a bad disease. It turns out that Gretchen mixed up the symptoms and got them quarantined, right when everyone else is better.
- Downer Ending: The episode ends with the Recess Gang quarantined, due to Playing Sick and mixing up the symptoms, while all the other kids are playing outside and watching on.
- "Everyone Is Gone" Episode: Every student at Third Street School except for the Recess gang is home sick from tuna fish taco poisoning.
- The Food Poisoning Incident: All the kids except for the Recess Gang are home sick due to eating the tuna fish tacos. And it goes on for at least three days.
- Forged Message: Attempted by Gus:T.J.: (reading the note) "Dear Miss Grotke, please excuse our son Gus from school, he is so sick he should probably stay home until all the other kids are better. Signed..." My Mom?
Vince: That's pathetic. - Gave Up Too Soon: The Recess Gang decides to fake being sick, but instead get quarantined right as everyone else gets better.
- Gilligan Cut: As they're being tasked to deliver everyone's homework, TJ says that sooner or later, everyone is going to get better. He adds they'll probably be better tomorrow. Cue them back at school and they're still the only ones there.Spinelli: Man, that must have been some bad tuna.
- Gone Horribly Right: Reasoning that the teachers would never buy a fake note from their parents, Gretchen instead opts to have the nurse diagnose them as too sick to come to school. She certainly succeeds...and gets the kids quarantined.
- He's Got a Weapon!: Parodied. Gus is so desperate to leave this boredom that he pulls out a sick note. It's treated like an attempted suicide scene.Mikey: HE'S GOT A NOTE!
- Idiot Ball: And it's the smartest of the kids who handles it, by mixing up the symptoms of an illness. Spinelli even lampshades this:Spinelli: Nice job, Einstein.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: While everyone is sick, Miss Finster goes to each house to offer to help their parents with treating them. Aww, she does care.
- Life Saving Misfortune: The Recess Gang are the only kids who don't get sick, because the tainted fish tacos run out just before their turn.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Gretchen gets this from the rest of the Recess Gang when she mixes the symptoms in order to play sick. Needless to say, it doesn't go as planned.
- No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction: With the gang completely bored on the second day, Spinelli suggests breaking into the Ashleys' clubhouse and stealing their makeup kits. Vince shoots it down by saying it's no fun without the Ashleys to scream and chase them.
- Overpopulation Crisis: A small-scale version. Third Street is shown to be overcrowded with students, which is what causes the Recess Gang to wish they had the school to themselves
- Playing Sick: When Gus attempts to fake a sick note, the main characters decide to pretend to be sick in order to be sent home. Gretchen looks up an illness in a book, and she draws green dots on everyone with marker while having them lick blue candies so that their tongues looked blue. It worked too well, as Gretchen mixed up the colors and they ended up looking like they had an even more serious disease, which leads to them being quarantined by public health officials.
- Tempting Fate: The Recess Gang keeps doing this to worse effects.
- As they wait in line for lunch, TJ eagerly says they have just one more kid in line. That kid gets the last tuna fish taco.
- After having the whole day to themselves, Spinelli says she's looking forward to school tomorrow. Then Ms. Grotke says the day will be more structured.
- Thermometer Gag: Implied: in the scene where Gus is pretending to be ill, the nurse decides to take his temperature.Nurse Kramer: (off-screen) Now, I'll put this thermometer in there and keep it in unt— No! No! Don't take it out yet!
- Ultimate Job Security: The lunch ladies somehow managed to make the entire school sick with their fish tacos, and they still have their jobs the next day.
- Understatement: Ms. Grotke explains that she didn't have the fish tacos because the teachers eat slightly different food. There is then a flashback showing the teachers eating luxurious meals.Principal Prickly: How is the pheasant prepared?Waiter: Seared in a light plum sauce and served with braised asparagus tips.Principal Prickly: Excellent, and we'll need some more bread.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Ms. Grotke increasing her standards for the kids spurs their idea to fake an illness.
- Whole-Plot Reference: The story plays out like an episode of The Twilight Zone (1959): it has the kids getting exactly what they want, only for it to backfire, and the title is even a reference to The Ωmega Man. Then there's a Cruel Twist Ending, even though they didn't really deserve it.
