"Disclaimer: Whosoever holds this pitchfork, if he be worthy, shall possess the power to raise some H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks."
The Devil’s feeling a little down in the dumps, so he goes up topside for a little rejuvenating mayhem. Except he accidentally leaves his prized pitchfork behind, where Cuphead and Mugman find it. And the brothers just can’t resist playing with the all-powerful weapon...Tropes:
- The Bad Guy Wins: While he doesn't reclaim his pitchfork or collect Cuphead's soul, the Devil still gets the last laugh by taking the one thing Cuphead truly cares about: Mugman.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Though he backtracks on the claim later on, Cuphead initially expresses annoyance that he and Mugman do everything together and states that they should do some things separately. The episode ends with him getting his wish in the worst way possible.
- Broken Win/Loss Streak: After spending the entire series at this point being humiliated by the Cups and losing his credibility, the Devil finally scores a win by kidnapping Mugman.
- Bullying a Dragon: Cuphead trolls the Devil by pretending to give his pitchfork back, only to shock him when he goes to take it. The Devil responds by kidnapping Mugman right in front of him.
- Cliffhanger: Ends on a real whopper. After being messed with for too long by Cuphead refusing to return his pitchfork, Old Scratch takes something that has just as equal value...Cuphead: ...Mugman?
- Continuity Nod: When Mugman sees the Devil, he gasps and stutters the same way he did when they first met in "Carn-Evil".
- Crocodile Tears: Downplayed, Mugman guilt-trips Cuphead into riding his home-made tandem bike by pretending to cry but later let Cuphead know that his initial rejection of it genuinely hurt his feelings.
- The Devil Is a Loser: The Devil, still depressed from his losses against Cuphead, has his hopes dashed even further by reading a newspaper review recounting these failures and questioning if he's lost his touch. He goes on a rampage to cheer himself up and prove it wrong.
- Do Not Taunt Cthulhu: While Cuphead is no stranger to taunting the Devil, he finally pushes his luck just a little too far when the Devil lets it slip that he doesn't owe him his soul anymore. After getting zapped with his own pitchfork way too many times, the Devil retaliates by kidnapping Mugman and dragging him down to the Underworld.
- Equivalent Exchange: Unable to get his prized pitchfork back, the Devil enforces this into Cuphead as he takes something of great value from the cup. In this case, his brother Mugman.
- Escaped Animal Rampage: It is not shown on-screen, but the Devil mentions that he "released all carnivores from the zoo" as part of his rampage.
- Evil Is Not a Toy: Mugman already knows that taking the Devil's pitchfork is a bad idea. Despite seeing its dangerous powers, or because of it, it doesn't stop him or Cuphead from playing with the weapon all episode.
- Facepalm: Henchman does this when the Devil lets slip that he no longer owns Cuphead's soul.
- Internal Reveal: The Cups learn about the expired Soul Debt from "Release the Demons". The reason why the Devil stopped chasing Cuphead was that he ran out of time.
- Karma Houdini Warranty: After the previous episode where Cuphead got away with his destructive behavior with no consequences or lesson learned, this time, he’s lost the most important person in his life. And it was all thanks to his impulsive and selfish actions.
- Let Me Get This Straight...: This is Cuphead and Mugman's reaction upon hearing that Cuphead's soul debt is expired.
- Magic Staff: The Devil's pitchfork is capable of blasting fire, flying, teleporting when tapped on the ground, and mutating animals and objects.
- Mundane Utility: What's the one thing Mugman wanted to do with the Devil's pitchfork? Using it as a giant dinner fork.
- Musical Nod: Another piece of music from the game appears in this episode - this time "Carnival Kerfuffle," the theme of Beppi the Clown's boss battle. However, instead of being attached to Beppi, it's used during the Devil's evil-doing rampage.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Since learning that the Devil is unable to take his soul anymore, Cuphead could have just returned the pitchfork and be on his way. Unfortunately, his continuously zapping him has the Devil drag his brother Mugman to the Underworld as retribution.
- Oh, Crap!:
- Henchman backs away once he sees Cuphead pushes his boss's buttons one time too many.
- This is Cuphead's reaction after the Devil kidnaps Mugman.
- Overly Long Gag: The Devil constantly and accidentally getting zapped each time he attempts to take his pitchfork away from Cuphead's hands to the point of the latter doing it on purpose.
- Rushmore Refacement: Cuphead uses the pitchfork's destructive power to create a Rushmore-style monument, with all four heads of Mugman's mug as a gift, before the Devil finally catches up to them and tries to take it back. It's not revealed if he used a formerly-untouched mountain or Inkwell's version of Mount Rushmore.
- Saying Too Much: The Devil accidentally reveals to Cuphead that his soul debt has expired and that he no longer owes him his soul.
- Spaghetti Kiss: Sherman and Doris are sharing a spaghetti strand at the restaurant when Cuphead uses the pitchfork to turn their plate into a monster that attacks the male dog.
- Special Edition Title: In light of the cliffhanger ending, the instrumental version of the theme song is replaced by ominous organ music.
- Taken During the Ending: At the end of episode, the Devil calls Cuphead's bluff, where he claims there's nothing the Devil could take from him that he cares about, so he abducts Mugman.
- Tempting Fate: Cuphead dismisses the devil's threat by saying that there's nothing that he can take from him. Just as he finishes the line, the Devil already has his hands on Mugman, dragging him to the Underworld.
- This Is Gonna Suck: Henchman lets out a nervous "Oh, geez..." when the Devil hits his Rage Breaking Point.
- Wham Episode: Cuphead and Mugman learn that the former no longer owes the Devil his soul due to his soul debt having expired, and the Devil kidnaps Mugman, taking him to the Underworld while Cuphead can only helplessly watch.
