When Rapunzel feels ready to settle down and begin living a normal life, Cassandra returns to Corona with a score to settle. But the Enchanted Girl has plans of her own, and will make absolutely sure that they are fulfilled!
Tropes in this episode:
- And Your Little Dog, Too!: Cassandra threatens Eugene to provoke Rapunzel. It works splendidly.
- Answer Cut: When Rapunzel admits she doesn't have the scroll, Eugene asks who does. Cut to Varian.
- Armor-Piercing Question:
- During their fight in Demanitus's lab, Cass again accuses Rapunzel of stealing her mother. Raps angrily retorts that she had been kidnapped and didn't have a choice, leading Cass to ask a question that has Raps gasping with outrage, though the audience knows the answer to that one.Cassandra: Was it your choice to push her out a window?
- Eugene nearly gives one to Rapunzel, who stops him from asking it as she didn’t want to think about it. It’s heavily hinted that Eugene was going to ask what Rapunzel will do if she can’t redeem Cassandra and if instead what if she’ll have to kill her in self-defense.
- During their fight in Demanitus's lab, Cass again accuses Rapunzel of stealing her mother. Raps angrily retorts that she had been kidnapped and didn't have a choice, leading Cass to ask a question that has Raps gasping with outrage, though the audience knows the answer to that one.
- Artistic License – Biology: The unconscious Varian is fed the truth serum by Cassandra. This is biologically impossible: an unconscious person does not swallow; in reality, Varian would have choked on it. Though Cassandra might've fed him a drop only or doused him with the truth serum off screen which would avoid the choking hazard.
- Artistic License – Chemistry: Played with. While the facts Varian lists off about iron and steel aren't necessarily wrong,note it's a bit weird a chemistry expert like himself would have a best metal contest between iron and an iron alloy.
- Ax-Crazy: The Enchanted Girl spends a lot of her screen time proving herself to be completely off her rocker.
- Badass Pacifist: In their first fight, Rapunzel outright states that she refuses to hurt Cassandra and instead uses her hair to evade her ex-friend's attacks.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Towards the end of the episode, the Enchanted Girl succeeds in being released from her prison, courtesy of playing Cassandra and Varian like a fiddle and manipulating events to her advantage.
- Big Brother Instinct: Eugene towards Varian, when he goes to rescue him from Cassandra's cage, and later when Cassandra pulls them in to use against Rapunzel.(the cage begins to move)
Varian: (fearfully) Eugene?
Eugene: (protectively taking hold of the frightened kids hand) Stay close to me kid. - A Birthday, Not a Break: Eugene's 26th birthday is also the day Cassandra returns to Corona, captures Varian, and attempts to kill Rapunzel, as well as Eugene himself.
- Bittersweet Ending: Cassandra is beaten for now, and everyone celebrates Eugene's birthday and he and Rapunzel plan to propose soon, but their battle has successfully managed to release the Enchanted Girl (really a form of Zhan Tiri) who is now ready to exact her plan.
- Body Horror: While appearing in Varian's dreams, the Enchanted Girl first introduces herself to him as a giant blue female head. Even when she displays her true form to the understandably unsettled teenage boy, she proceeds to, quite literally, split herself in half for a moment before reassembling her body and twisting her head 180°.
- Cassandra Truth: Varian tries dissuading Cassandra from walking the path of the villain like he did, warning her that she will lose her mind and find only emptiness. Unfortunately, Cassandra rejects his words and sees Varian's Heel–Face Turn as spinelessness, claiming she won't fail because she has ambition. However, it soon becomes clear that after pushing all her loved ones away, villainy is already becoming hollow for Cassandra.You lost your nerve
You lost the game
But you and I,
we're not the same
I'm not lost
This fate was mine to choose - The Chessmaster: The Enchanted Girl is quite good at manipulating events leading to a battle between Rapunzel and Cassandra that releases her from her prison.
- Company Cross References: This episode references a lot of classic Disney movies:
- Rapunzel refers to herself in her song as "the girl who has everything", which Ariel also called herself in "Part of Your World".
- Cassandra's entrance showing up bears to mind Maleficent's entrance: she crushes a party, somehow blows out the candles, complains about not being invited.
- Lance and Eugene try using Kuzco and Pacha's method of wall-climbing to reach the top of Cassandra's fortress, but it doesn't work.
- When trying a human catapult, Pascal uses Maximus's ear as a trigger similarly to how Sergeant Tibbs pulls down on Captain's ear.
- This causes them to fly into a tree that catapults them back to where they were, just like what happened to Mickey and Goofy.
- Cassandra figuring out how to use her powers and building a large structure with said powers makes her appear to be an evil version of Elsa from Frozen.
- Continuity Nod: Varian carries a vial of Truth Serum he made in "The Alchemist Returns", which Cassandra force feeds him while he's unconscious.
- Determinator: Even after everything she did, Rapunzel absolutely refuses to give up on Cassandra.Rapunzel: I will never stop trying to get through to you. I won't fight you, I won't justify your hatred, and there's NOTHING you can do to change that! Nothing.
- Defiant to the End:
- After being drugged and abducted by her, Varian refuses to tell Cassandra what she needs to know due to knowing the danger telling her would pose, even shooting a Death Glare at her, despite having absolutely no reason to believe she won't torture or murder him otherwise.
- After being pinned to a wall by Cassandra's rocks, Rapunzel tells her point-blank that there's absolutely nothing she could do to make her give up on her. Unfortunately, this inspires Cassandra to test that theory...
- Double-Meaning Title: The title words to the song "Nothing Left to Lose" are used by Varian and Cassandra to mean different things. From Varian, it is a warning that Cassandra can still lose more. From Cassandra, a declaration she has nothing to hold her back as a fact.
- Dramatic Irony:
- When Rapunzel tries to reason with Cassandra that being kidnapped by Mother Gothel was beyond her control, Cass accuses her that she was responsible for pushing Gothel out the window to her death instead. Once again, the audience actually knows the true answer.
- Cassandra warned Rapunzel to "be careful who you trust", only for herself to trust Zhan Tiri.
- Enemy Eats Your Lunch: The first thing Cassandra does when she returns is to help herself to a slice of Eugene's birthday cake.
- Exact Words:
- Cassandra states how she has "nothing left to lose". At the end of the song, it's clear she realizes she has nothing left to lose because she literally has nothing and no one left and she only has herself to blame for that.
- It's not correct to call Eugene and Lance ex-convicts because they've "never been convicted of anything".
- Exorcist Head: The Enchanted Girl does this in Varian's dream.
- Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: Varian purposely spills his flask of chemicals on the translation key to prevent Cassandra from deciphering it, then gloats that it's all locked up in the noggin...then realizes what a bad move that was as Cass decides to abduct him to get the info out of him.Varian: If you wanna read that scroll, you're gonna need my translation key! (pours his vial of yellow substance on the wall, obscuring the translation) And now that I've destroyed it, you'll never know what the scroll says 'cause the only translation in earthly existence it's locked safely away up here. BOOM!
Cassandra: Is that a fact?
Varian: Haha! Oh, yeah! (His smug chuckle is replaced with a gasp of horror as Cass advances on him, thus realizing his mistake) I shouldn't have said that out loud...
Cassandra: Then I guess you're coming with me! - Extra-Long Episode: Double the length episode, which ends with the little ghost girl managing to be released from her prison.
- Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: The Enchanted Girl appears as a pretty young girl who emits a blue glow, yet she's an Ax-Crazy sadist who uses both Cassandra and Varian for her own ends and actively delights in Rapunzel and her friends' suffering. Granted, her ill intentions were already revelaed earlier in the season, but this is the episode where she shows what a monster she truly is. A Freeze-Frame Bonus also reveals she is none other than Zhan Tiri.
- Failure Montage: Rapunzel and company's attempts at trying to climb up the black rock tower, before Cassandra lets them in.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: When Varian awakes as Cassandra's prisoner, he smacks his lips as if there's a funny taste in his mouth. Turns out, Cassandra dosed him with his Truth Serum while he was sleeping.
- Foil: This episode really emphasizes the fact that Varian has become a foil to Cassandra.
- The Enchanted Girl manipulates Cassandra using her hatred and her desire to hurt her former friend (Rapunzel), but manipulates Varian via his compassion and his desire to help his lost friend (Cassandra).
- Both Varian and Cassandra are blown off the tower by the explosion near the end of the episode, but while Cassandra has to catch herself Varian lands in the arms of friends. Additionally, while Varian's companions truly do have his back, Cassandra's now sole companion, the Enchanted Girl, was far more concerned with being released from her prison than Cassandra's life, and wasn't there for her.
- Force Feeding: Varian is force-fed truth serum.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus:
- Many items on Rapunzel's shopping list can be read, which apparently also doubles as her to-do list.
- As Rapunzel unleashes her sun powers against Cassandra's moon power, there's a frame of the ghost girl's silhouette becoming pitch black and bearing familiar horns...
- Gone Horribly Right: Cassandra puts a lot of effort into provoking Rapunzel and finally succeeds by threatening Eugene. Cue Rapunzel unlocking the full power of the Sundrop and flattening her.
- The Good, the Bad, and the Evil: Rapunzel's gang (including Varian) are the Good, Cassandra is the Bad, and the Enchanted Girl is the Evil. Though the main conflict is Cassandra as she returns to Corona, captures Varian, and attempts to exact Revenge on Rapunzel, no one is aware of the Enchanted Girl using her as a pawn and manipulating events in order to be released from her prison. She even counts as an Unknown Rival, as Rapunzel, as well as her loved ones and kingdom, cannot see her and are unaware of her plans to destroy them.
- Good Is Not Soft: Exploited. Zhan Tiri gives Varian a hint to finding the fourth incantation as, despite his sympathy for Cassandra, she is confident he will give the spell to Rapunzel to defeat Cassandra as he understands the threat she poses. Zhan Tiri is ultimately correct in her predictions.
- Hero vs. Villain Duet: "Nothing Left to Lose" has Varian trying to warn Cassandra off her path as a former Well-Intentioned Extremist himself, and Cassandra retorting that Varian backed down from his destiny and she's not going to make the same mistake.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Varian is forced to drink his own truth serum.
- Hope Spot:
- Rapunzel tries to convince Cassandra to come home with them, and she even relents for a moment, until the Enchanted Girl warns her against questioning her path, turning her against Rapunzel again.
- It happens again in "Nothing Left to Lose". Varian seems to be momentarily knocking some sense into Cassandra, but she snaps after he calls her a villain.
- "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Tried by several characters against Cassandra. Some appear to come close to working but still fail.
- Invisible to Normals: Only Cassandra can see the Enchanted Girl, and she only appeared to Varian in his dreams.
- Ironic Echo:
- "A friend... or at least I'd like to be", said again by the Enchanted Girl when she enters Varian's dream. It's even creepier this time, but now that we know more about the girl, unlike the previous time, there is nothing kind or reassuring about it.
- Rapunzel once said to Mother Gothel that she would never stop trying to get away from her. Now she says to Cassandra, Gothel's biological daughter, that she'll never stop trying to get through to her.
- Irony:
- In "Secret of the Sundrop", Varian kidnapped Queen Arianna and rejected her attempts to reform him. Now he's being kidnapped by Cassandra, and his attempts to reform her are ignored.
- In "Destinies Collide," after grabbing the Moonstone, Cassandra says, "I tried to warn you, Rapunzel. You have to be careful who you trust." Then, she escapes Rapunzel and her gang and trusts the Enchanted Girl — who turns out to be Zhan Tiri in a different form.
- Varian, a teenager, displays more maturity and wisdom than Cassandra, a grown woman. He even has to try to steer her back on the right path.
- I Take Offense to That Last One/Wrong Insult Offense: Cassandra mocks Rapunzel at her hesitation to comply with her demands, stating "it’s hard making decisions when the only friends and advisors you have left are ex-convicts and losers!"Eugene: Hey! We are not ex-convicts!
Lance: Technically, we've never been convicted of anything.
(he and Eugene fist bump) - I've Come Too Far: Cassandra comes to this conclusion at the end of "Nothing Left to Lose". She somberly sings the final verse, both realizing and assuring herself she has nothing left to lose.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Before the confrontation, Cassandra brings Pascal back to Rapunzel in one piece despite initially trapping him in a cage made of black rocks. Almost immediately after, she tries to murder the both of them.
- Kidnapped Scientist: Cassandra kidnaps Varian thanks to him blabbing that he has almost the entire scroll memorized, including the Third Incantation.
- Kick the Dog:
- Granted she didn't know better about what happened that day, but Cassandra accusing Rapunzel of pushing Gothel out the window to her death is low.
- Knowing the emotional attachment Rapunzel had for the tower (as a childhood home), it's not exactly kind of Cassandra to destroy what remains of the floating lights mural Rapunzel made before her 18th birthday.
- Knight Templar: When Varian tries to tell Cassandra that becoming the villain isn't the answer, she whips around and demands, "Is that what you think I am?!"
- Like Mother, Like Daughter: Both Cassandra and Gothel have served Zhan Tiri, captured Rapunzel, attempted to kill Eugene in front of her, suffered a loss of power, and fallen off of a great height (albeit under different circumstances). Unlike Gothel, however, Cassandra was able to save herself. Made even more fitting by the fact that Cassandra's castle is located where Gothel's tower was.
- Made of Iron: Despite being a teenager violently hit in the chest by several dull edged black rocks, courtesy of Cassandra, Varian is not only entirely unharmed, but shows no signs of pain.
- Magical Incantation:
- The Black Rock Incantation, which Cassandra uses:Crescent high above, evolving as you go!
Raise what lies beneath and let the darkness grow!
Bend it to my will, consume the sunlight's glow!
Rise into the sky and let the darkness grow!
Let darkness grow! - Its opposite is the Hope Incantation, which Rapunzel unleashes:Power of the sun, gift me with your light!
Shine into the dark, restore our fading sight!
Rise into the dawn, blazing star so bright!
Burn away the strife, let my hope ignite!
Let hope ignite!
- The Black Rock Incantation, which Cassandra uses:
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Varian's actions this episode have very serious, long-term consequences.
- He really shouldn't have mentioned that the Demanitus scroll requires his translation key, and he shouldn't have mentioned that he memorized the entire thing, so he gets kidnapped for it. This results in Cassandra gaining control of the black rocks and becoming significantly more powerful.
- He finds the final incantation and gives it to Rapunzel, and while that allows the princess to defeat Cassandra, it also results in the Enchanted Girl being freed from her prison.
- No-Sell: Once she reads the 4th incantation, Rapunzel is able to make the black rocks crumble into dust before they can even touch her.
- Not So Similar: Cassandra outright tells Varian that they're not the same, because she won't "lose [her] nerve" and question what she's doing.
- Ominous Latin Chanting: Heard as Cassandra is reciting the Black Rock Incantation, and again when Rapunzel unleashes the Hope Incantantation to unleash the full power of the Sundrop and defeat Cassandra.
- Orbital Shot: Combined with Counterpoint Duet when the camera circles around Varian and Cassandra arguing in song form whether Cassandra is too far gone or not, to coincide with the line "You can't stop the turning of the screws."
- Pass the Popcorn: When Cassandra crashes Eugene's party, Lance inexplicably gets a bucket of popcorn, and provides commentary as she talks with Rapunzel as if he were watching a tv show.
- Pet the Dog: Cassandra admits she doesn’t want to hurt Varian after kidnapping him, since she doesn’t hold anything against him. Unfortunately Subverted, as once Varian starts trying to talk her down, Cassandra gets violent and traps him in a cage.
- Pity the Kidnapper: Downplayed. Varian is clearly at Cassandra's mercy during his time being kidnapped by her, particularly since Cassandra is significantly older than him and has complete control over the black rocks. However, he winds up knocking some sense into her, which forces her to transport the cage she's imprisoned him in away so that he won't get her to change her mind, and he is ultimately responsible for mastering the fourth incantation, allowing Rapunzel to defeat her.
- Playing Both Sides: The Enchanted Girl repeatedly tells Cassandra that Rapunzel is her enemy and that Cassandra should hurt Rapunzel even more. The same Enchanted Girl also goes into Varian's dream and tells him that the 4th incantation can be used to save Cassandra and also gives him the clue he needs to find said incantation on the scroll. The former manipulation ensures that Cassandra will keep pushing Rapunzel until Rapunzel is forced to fight back, while the latter manipulation ensures that Varian will give Rapunzel the means to fight back. Thus a fight between sun and moon is inevitable, a fight that releases the Enchanted Girl (really a form of Zhan Tiri) from her prison.
- Power Glows: The fourth incantation causes Rapunzel's hair and eyes to glow bright gold.
- The Power of Hate: Cassandra focusing her hatred and using the third incantation to unleash her full power of the Black Rocks.
- The Power of Love: Rapunzel using the fourth incantation and unleashing the ultimate power of the Sundrop to weaken Cassandra.
- Redemption Rejection: Rapunzel tries to reach out to Cassandra and pull her back from the path she is on. Varian also tries to talk her out of what she's doing in the song "Nothing Left To Lose". In both cases, Cassandra rejects this to stay and get what she wants.
- The Reveal: The Enchanted Girl turns out to be another form of Zhan Tiri, and she was manipulating Cass and Rapunzel to fight so that she could escape from her prison.
- Rule of Symbolism: Varian landing in the arms of friends while Cassandra has to catch herself symbolizes what redemption has done for Varian as opposed to how Cassandra's pursuit of hatred has left her all alone.
- Running Gag: Eugene worrying about becoming old because of the revelation of his real age, and Lance making fun of him for it.
- Sarcasm-Blind: When Cassandra tells Rapunzel she felt sad about how things ended between them in a tone that makes it perfectly clear she's not actually sad, Rapunzel sincerely says that she's also sad and wants her and Cassandra to be friends again.
- Slasher Smile: The Enchanted Girl gives these much more frequently throughout the episode; including the final scene when she is released with the portal.
- Solar-Powered Magnifying Glass: Varian needed concentrated sunlight to reveal the 4th Incantation because it was written in photoreactive ink. However, his goggles were too scratched up so the text was too faint, but the crystal from Rapunzel's ring concentrated the sunlight so much that the paper lit on fire and burnt up. Thankfully, Varian was able to memorize the 4th incantation and transcribe it.
- Special Edition Title: The third episode in the series to not play the Ending Theme "More of Me" and feature ominous orchestral music to fit the last scene where Zhan Tiri is released.
- Symbolically Broken Object: Cassandra destroys Rapunzel's self-portrait found in the ruins of Gothel's tower.
- Triumphant Reprise:
- "The Girl Who Has Everything" returns in a more celebratory and confident manner in the end, as she expresses once she accepts Eugene's proposal, then she will truly have everything she desires.
- Before that, the hope incantation is a more heroic version of the Black Rock incantation, as the latter unleashes the dark abilities of the Moonstone, while the former unleashes the light powers of the Sundrop.
- Truth Serums: Varian had a vial of truth serum in his bag, which Cassandra force-feeds him in his sleep, and he's forced to give her the Third Incantation.
- Unwitting Pawn: Both Cassandra and Varian (unfortunately) become this for the Enchanted Girl. She manipulates Cassandra and makes her hate Rapunzel in order to get her to fight the princess, and she manipulates Varian so he can master the fourth incantation, which will allow Rapunzel to fight back against Cassandra. The clash of Sun and Moon releases the Enchanted Girl from her prison.
- Villainous Face Hold: Cassandra encases Eugene in black rocks and holds his face as she asks Rapunzel if she will fight for him.
- Villain Song: Cassandra's verses in "Nothing Left to Lose" detail how she's always felt held back from achieving what she's wanted and that there's now nothing holding her back.
- Visual Pun:
- Cass and Varian say "You can't stop the turning of the screws" as the camera rotates around them.
- Rapunzel says "Restore our fading sight!" as she opens her eyes which are glowing gold.
- Wham Episode:
- Cassandra learns her own Magical Incantation and masters the power of the Moonstone.
- Cassandra cements her Face–Heel Turn by kidnapping Varian, repeatedly attacking Rapunzel, and threatening Eugene just to provoke her.
- Rapunzel keeps on trying to get through to Cassandra but after the latter threatens Eugene, Rapunzel retaliates hard. She unlocks the full power of the Sundrop, and she and Cassandra throw everything they've got at each other.
- The Demanitus Scroll burns into ash and the Moonstone fractures.
- The Enchanted Girl turns out to be Zhan Tiri in a different form, and getting Cassandra and Rapunzel to fight was all part of a plot to release her.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Despite the last episode having the Captain return and wanting to save Cassandra, he doesn't make an appearance in this episode.
- Would Hurt a Child: Cassandra kidnapped and drugged Varian, who is a minor. When he starts getting on her nerves, she takes a swipe at the boy with a blade and sends him flying by striking him in the chest with black rocks.
- Yin-Yang Bomb: The dueling energies of the Sundrop and Moonstone provide the means for the Enchanted Girl to escape her prison, though doing so seems to nearly collapse reality.
