Jack and the Gangsters
Episode numeral: XII
Original air date: 11/26/01
In a crime-ridden city, Jack befriends a group of midget gangsters who are planning to steal the Neptune Jewel, a gem capable of controlling water and guarded by elemental spirits, and give it to Aku as a gift. The gangsters are hoping to rely on Jack's skills in combat to defeat the elementals for them, but Jack wants to use the opportunity to fight Aku again.
Tropes
- Action Girl: Earth, Wind and Fire certainly qualify (with the "girl" part coming from their appearances), as they single-handedly warded off Aku's every attempt to steal the Neptune Jewel. Same goes for the spirit who first blessed the jewel with its power and sent the other three elementals in to guard the jewel after she too thwarted Aku's first attempt to steal it. Fire also lands a significant hit on Jack during his attempt to claim the jewel, burning his left hand with one of her attacks.
- Overlaps with Amazon Brigade; Earth, Wind and Fire are distinctively feminine in appearance. Earth in particular has the most resemblance to a human female.
- All There in the Manual: While the exact location is never mentioned in the episode, the season 1 DVD places this episode in Chicago. Possibly a case of
Write What You Know, since Genndy Tartakovsky lived there in his adolescence after emigrating from Russia. - The Bad Guy Wins: Jack defeats the three Elemental Guardians and successfully steals the Neptune Jewel in order to bait Aku into a trap. Not only does Jack not manage to defeat Aku, the Neptune Jewel winds up in the clutches of gangsters by the episode's end, with the people of Chicago having their water supply stolen from them and sold at exorbitant prices.
- Badass in a Nice Suit: After Jack joins forces with the gangsters, he changes into a very good-looking suit and hat. Naturally, he's just as much of a badass while wearing it.
- Blatant Lies
- Jack's first mission with the gang is to bomb a kindly old animal lover for not paying his protection money. When they pick him up, he describes the ordeal as going exactly as planned while we're shown that he, in fact, helped the old man escape before his home blew up.
- At the end, the gangsters tell Jack that he's convinced them to give up crime, their first act of atonement being returning the Neptune Jewel. The second Jack leaves, they set to work using it to sell water to the public at $500 per ounce.
- Butt-Monkey: Mr. Pibbles. He has an embarrassing gangster name, is constantly getting smacked in the head by Knuckles and, in general, isn't all that bright. He is smart enough to steal back the Neptune Jewel after knocking out Jack, though.
- Casual Danger Dialogue/The Show Must Go On: Played for Laughs. The lounge singer at the Blue Monkey continues to sing her ballad amidst gunfire and robot carnage.
- Exact Words: Jack tells the mob that his life's goal has been to stand in the presence of Aku. He does not, however, mention that said goal specifically involved being there to kill him.
- Expy: The pint-sized gangsters Jack joins up with are based on The Ant Hill Mob from The Perils of Penelope Pitstop. Their car even resembles a non-sentient Chugaboom.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: The Boss snarking about how "Mr. Goody-two-sandals suddenly feels like talking," a rib at the show's deliberate lack of dialogue.
- Literal-Minded: Mr. Pibbles isn't exactly the brightest bulb on the tree.Boss: (revealing a scale model of a factory building) Boys, say hello to the Public Works and Utilities building.
Mr. Pibbles: (cheerfully) Hello.
(Stitches rolls his eyes)
Boss: It's a well-kept secret that deep inside this building lies the legendary Neptune Jewel, see? And it's our job to get it out.
Mr. Pibbles: You mean, eh, we gotta fit inside that little thing?
(Stitches face palms) - Mister Big: All the gangsters are diminutive mafiosos, but their boss also has the high status in a criminal organization to qualify for this trope.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: The voice of the gang's boss is a blatant impression of Edward G. Robinson, see?
- Redemption Rejection: At the end of the episode, the gangsters indicate that they've done a Heel–Face Turn and will return the Neptune Jewel to its rightful place. They actually keep the jewel and use it to get rich by monopolizing the city's water supplies.
- Retraux: The episode is designed to resemble 1930s and '40s art deco graphics.
- Shout-Out
- The Buddy Righteous
Orchestra. - The Neptune Jewel is protected by the personifications of Earth, Wind & Fire.
- Mr. Pibbles resembles Steve Buscemi and is annoyed by how silly his gang name sounds
- The Buddy Righteous
- Unusual Euphemism: One of the club bouncers refers to Jack's sword as a butter knife.
- Unreliable Voiceover: Jack tells the mobsters that, as was planned earlier, he gave the animal-loving old man a bomb that blew him and his house up and that the old man never suspected a thing. The visuals show that Jack actually warned the old man about the bomb, allowing him and his animals to escape before his house blew up.
- Verbal Tic: Being an impression of Edward G. Robinson, the boss has a habit of ending every sentence with "see?" or "n'yaa."
- Xanatos Speed Chess: Jack turns down the offer to join the gang and intends to keep on walking, until the Boss mentions they're so important that they can meet with Aku face-to-face. Jack immediately realizes this is his best chance to catch Aku off guard.
- Yank the Dog's Chain: Jack is knocked out by the gangsters just as he's about to take out Aku for good. He's understandably furious when he wakes up back at their apartment and they tell him that they were trying to save him.
