Originally aired June 7, 1996
Teleplay by T. Edward Anthony & Von Whisenhant
Story by T. Edward Anthony, Michael X. Fernaro, and Von Whisenhant
Directed by Richard Compton
On a world where anyone over the age of 30 is forced to retire, Quinn poses as his recently-murdered double, while Arturo and Rembrandt find themselves in violation of curfew.
Tropes present in the episode:
- The Artifact: The end credits reference an actor (Paul Anderson) playing a Kromagg. According to Tracy Tormé, it was Jacob Epstein's idea to do an ending where the Kromaggs were somehow involved with this world. No one was happy with the actual result, and it was cut, but Anderson was required to be credited.
- Bar Brawl: A bartender provokes one against Rembrandt and Arturo, and the two Sliders wipe the floor with them.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Wade's double is this in spades.
- Blackmail: Wade's double and her underlings ensure the timer is safely hidden away to force Quinn's compliance. Later, our Wade gets the idea to fake a video confession to get it back. Quinn concedes Kyle could get an analyst to prove the video's a fake, but not before it's leaked to the media and causes a PR nightmare.
- Brutal Honesty: As ever, Arturo really can't hold his tongue when dealing with people that annoy him.
- Dead Person Impersonation: Quinn for his double.
- Kangaroo Court: Downplayed. A Bar Brawl would get anyone in some legal trouble, but Rembrandt and Arturo just shuffled through the system rather than given a chance to state their case. The real fault lies in their lawyer, Tiffany, who initially didn't care enough to check basic legal matters that would've gotten them off the hook.Arturo: How could it be worse when your judge is Dennis the Menace and your lawyer is a Debbie Gibson wannabe?
- Mirror Character: At the end of the episode, Arturo says this of doubles:"Well, like it or not, all the doubles we meet on these worlds are essentially us; they've just made different choices. Some will be glorious and some will be wholly despicable."
- Not So Similar: Quinn comes away from the party thinking this world is full of snakes and that his double was actually one of them.
- Only Sane Man: Rembrandt has to continually try to keep Arturo from mouthing off and provoking further trouble.
- Pet the Dog: The judge doesn't mind if Arturo insults him, but he won't tolerate insults directed at Tiffany. He also later congratulates her for finding a legal out for Rembrandt and Arturo.
- Richard Nixon, the Used Car Salesman: Howard Stern defeated Jimmy Carter in the 1980 presidential election. His first act as President was to lower the voting age to nine.
- Ship Tease: Averted. Though shocked to learn their doubles were married, Quinn and Wade don't dwell on what that means for themselves.
- Token Good Teammate: Kenny Hatcher, one of the executives at the company. At worst, he's opportunistic, but the other main executives are outright vile and criminal.
- We Need a Diversion: Arturo fakes a heart attack so Rembrandt can get the drop on a guard.
- Wham Shot: Quinn gets a drowning victim out of a pool, only to see it's one of his doubles. This is soon followed by the grieving wife revealing she's one of Wade's.
- The Woman Behind the Man: Kyle Beck appears to be behind the timer's confiscation, but he's just following the orders of Wade's double.
