When simultaneous threats from the Purple Dragons and Baxter Stockman's mechanical Mousers force the Turtles to split into two groups, Donnie and Mikey must prove that their "B Team" is just as valuable as Leo and Raph's "A Team."
This episode provides examples of:
- Accidental Misnaming: The Turtles keep calling Baxter Stockman "Dexter Spackman".
- Added Alliterative Appeal:Donnie: We followed Fong to the defunct futon factory on Fifth.Mikey: Say that five times fast!
- Blowing a Raspberry: Mikey does this to Raph when he can't come up with a good insult.
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Broken Aesop: The episode is set up to demonstrate how all the turtles are important to the team, but the episode still ends heavily favoring the "A Team": Leo and Raph, with Donnie and Mikey getting captured the second they actually tried anything and Raph and Leo coming to their rescue. - Call-Back: Baxter Stockman returns.
- When Splinter calls for a two-on-two training session, Leo immediately starts to say that he'll partner up with Donnie, possibly referring to The Gauntlet, where he claimed that he didn't want to be partnered up with Mikey. The resulting Curb-Stomp Battle references the match-up of the beginning of the first episode.
- Also a Call-Back to The Gauntlet, when Donnie peevishly asked why Leo always paired him with Mikey. There was a reason - Leo considers them the "B-team", even if he wasn't admitting it at that point.
- Comically Missing the Point: Mikey, as usual.Baxter: Once I unlock this phone, we'll see every place it's ever been.Mikey: (gasps) The Museum of Natural History!Donnie: (whispers) Or the Lair.Mikey: (gasps) Even worse!
- Continuity Nod: April's training with Splinter is alluded to once again.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Leo and Raph dish one out to Don and Mikey in the Cold Opening.
- Dartboard of Hate: The Purple Dragons throw knives at a photo of a normal turtle (wearing a red ninja mask) in place of a mutant one.
- Divide and Conquer: The episode's premise has the heroes doing this. It doesn't work.
- The Dulcinea Effect: The Turtles decide to attack the Purple Dragons simply because they stole April's phone. Both April and Splinter think this is a bad idea.
- Early-Bird Cameo: A picture of Irma shows up on April's cellphone. She later becomes a recurring character in Season 2.
- Excited Episode Title!: Mousers Attack!
- Fun with Acronyms: The Mousers are now M.O.U.S.E.R.S.: Mobile Offensive Underground Search Excavation and Retrieval Sentries.Leo: Seems a little forced.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Leo is the one to initially suggest that he and Raph teaming up against Donnie and Mikey "seems unfair", and he seems to at least try to be tactful about it. Indeed, he and Raph do Curb-Stomp their younger brothers and it is unfair to all four of them - it's frustrating and demoralizing for Donnie and Mikey to get beaten so quickly, and Leo and Raph don't get much benefit out of it at all.note Could also be viewed as Leo missing the point however, as the point of the spar was to make Leo and Raph work as a team, not necessarily to build any of their combat skills.
- My Friends... and Zoidberg: In Space Heroes.Crankshaw: Rodriguez! And...that other guy! They're gone!Captain Ryan: Well, that's why we bring them along.
- Neck Lift: Shredder does this to Stockman.
- Never Trust a Trailer: The promo doesn't show the Purple Dragons, Stockman or the Mousers.
- Nice Job Breaking It Heroes: The conflict of this episode is more or less entirely caused by the turtles going out to get April's phone, against the wishes of both April and Master Splinter. In the end, all that they end up accomplishing is getting the Foot Clan to recruit Baxter Stockman... and breaking April's phone... twice.
- Splinter making Leo and Raph spar against Donnie and Mikey at the beginning of the episode was intended to curb Leo and Raph's endless bickering and Sibling Rivalry by making them work together. And while Leo and Raph did work well together, the sparring match created a more serious conflict between them and Donnie and Mikey.
- Pragmatic Villainy: Shredder is tempted to get rid of Stockman for interfering the Foot's goals. However, he recognizes that his robotics skills could be useful, so he keeps him alive.
- Red Shirts: The two guys who get killed in Space Heroes, thought their shirts aren't actually red. And, according to Leo, this is Donnie and Mikey's "important function" on the team.
- Self-Destruct Mechanism: The T-Phones are programmed to do this when someone says "T-Phone, self-destruct!"
- Sibling Rivalry: Leo and Raph vs Donnie and Mikey.
- They Have the Scent!: The Mousers chase Leo and Raph after Stockman sprays them with a tracking mist.
- This Looks Like a Job for Aquaman: Done without actually seeming too forced. Mikey and Donnie can't take down Dogpound without the A-team's muscle, and Raph and Leo can't escape the Mousers without Donatello's intellect.
- Mikey's Fragile Speedster skills are also important in this episode, as he keeps April's phone and himself away from Dogpound (and keeps Dogpound away from his brothers) while Don helps solve Leo and Raph's Mouser problem.
- Villain Team-Up: Dogpound enlists Stockman in hacking into April's phone. Later, Shredder decides to recruit Stockman for his mechanical skills.
