Rapunzel: Cass is concerned that Lance and you are up to no good... Crazy, right?
Eugene: Whaaaat, say whaaaat?! That's crazy talk.
Eugene's old friend, Lance Strongbow, turns up in Corona after eight years apart from Eugene, and tries to drag Eugene back into his thieving ways. Cassandra doesn't trust him, but Rapunzel has faith in both Eugene and Lance. Eugene soon realizes that one of his past transgressions he actually (then unknowingly) committed against Queen Arianna, Rapunzel's mother, which puts him in an awkward position.
This episode provides examples of:
- Best Served Cold: Lance waited eight years to re-steal the treasure the Baron took from him and Eugene during a heist. Eugene is stunned that Lance held the grudge for almost a decade.
- "Blackmail" Is Such an Ugly Word: Variation with the word "lying". When Eugene points out to Lance that the latter lied to him, Lance tries to downplay it by implying "lying" is over-the-top to use.Eugene: You lied to me!Lance: Now wait a minute. Lying is a strong word. Accurate, but strong.
- Blatant Lies: Lance tells Rapunzel one about how the ring she found was actually a memento of a mother figure he and Eugene knew as orphans.
- Book Ends: The story begins (after the prologue) with Shorty finding his beard, and it ends with him wondering where his beard is.
- But for Me, It Was Tuesday: Considering Flynn Rider stole from a lot of people (including nobles), he certainly does not remember specifically robbing the Queen eight years prior. In the present day, once taking a really good look at the ring, it suddenly becomes a huge deal to him because it was the Queen he stole from.
- Catch-22 Dilemma: When Eugene finds out that the ring he and Lance stole back from the Baron belonged to the Queen of Corona and feels that if he gives the ring to her, she will know that he took it but also rules out telling Rapunzel the truth due to having to also confess to be out stealing with Lance (though involuntarily) and it would devastate her.
- Consummate Liar: Lance can spin a tale with no preparation and sell it to almost anyone. Even after Lance apologizes to Rapunzel and seems to sincerely mean it, Eugene still isn't quite convinced.
- Embarrassing First Name: Lance's real name is Arnwaldo, which he hates being called by.
- Epic Fail: Flynn Rider thinking the Queen was a young noblewoman and attempting to charm her while stealing her ring gets him punched out only for the Baron to steal it from him. In a larger sense, the plan to steal the ring back and returning it without anyone being the wiser to his past crime was woefully poorly executed along the way, and only outed him as deceitful.
- Eye Recall: Eugene recalls how he and Lance really got the ring that ends up being given as a gift to Rapunzel. Eight years earlier, he stole it off her mother's finger while he was still Flynn Rider, thief.
- Foregone Conclusion: Queen Arianna does tell Eugene that what he did to her can possibly get him banished by her husband if he finds out and he's ready to deal with the fall-out of his actions. But, we all know things are going to be fine between Eugene and his future in-laws by the time of Tangled Ever After.
- Fun with Homophones: Lance tells Rapunzel that Eugene got on the Baron's bad side by stealing his prize stallion. Season 2 later reveals that this is not quite what it sounds like.
- Gilligan Cut: After Eugene assures Cassandra that Lance is his friend and he isn't up to anything, it cuts to Eugene demanding Lance to tell him what he's up to.
- Morton's Fork: If Rapunzel's mom sees her daughter wearing the ring, she will know it's hers and that Eugene had something to do with it, and she will not be happy with him. If Eugene asks Rapunzel to give it back, she will be devastated and know he lied to her earlier and be mad at him. All viable options lead to Eugene being compromised.
- Noodle Incident: According to Lance, Flynn Rider had some kind of encounter with a warlord's twin daughters, to which Eugene tries to save face and remarks that said-twins were on "vacation far, far away".
- Oh, Crap!: Eugene when he suddenly realizes one person he stole a valuable ring from eight years ago wasn't just some random young noblewoman, but Queen Arianna, AKA his girlfriend's mother.
- Pet the Dog:
- After Eugene returns the ring he stole from the queen eight years ago, it looks like she will tell her husband, the king, about his past misdeed. She warns him he may be banished for it, but he's ready to accept it. However, when the king notices the ring and asks her about it, she instead claims Eugene simply found it.
- Lance donates the stolen treasure to the orphanage at the end of the episode... well, most of it. He does keep a single gold cup for himself.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Arianna is disappointed upon learning her future son-in-law stole from her eight years ago and didn't return the ring immediately. But, she doesn't tell her husband because she recognizes that Eugene has truly reformed and returned her long-lost daughter to the kingdom.
- Running Gag: Strongbow always uses "Oldie" as a name in all his stories.
- Silk Hiding Steel: The flashback reveals Queen Arianna had no problems defending herself from a thief and even knocked Flynn out with the book she was reading.
- Sticky Fingers: Lance has a tendency to swipe things while he talks with others. What he swipes goes unnoticed by everyone but Eugene, and he himself can pull the same trick without even Lance noticing.
- That Man Is Dead: Eugene tells Lance that he no longer goes by the name of Flynn Rider as he is done with being a thief.
- Unfortunate Names: It's eventually revealed that Lance Strongbow's real name is Arnwaldo Schnitz.
- What You Are in the Dark: At the end of the episode, Strongbow donates the treasure he stole from the Baron to the orphanage, except for one golden cup. This was long after Eugene had decided that Lance wouldn't change, and long before Eugene would have heard of the donation.
