Rob, reveling in a three-day weekend, feels the need to do something exciting and unusual. A government agent showing up and asking to use the Petrie's house for a stakeout fills the bill. Rob argues that it's their civic duty to agree, but Laura suspects all too correctly that what he really wants is a chance to play spy.
This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
- Acting Unnatural: When Rob lets in Harry Bond (who's disguised as a TV repairman), he calls out the door that the set's fine-tuning needs work. Mr. Bond tells him that yelling draws attention.
- Chekhov's Gun: Bond politely turns down Laura's nut chewies because he has a toothache. Later, it turns out he couldn't resist and now has an extremely painful toothache. Rob uses this to talk him into letting him take a turn.
- Instantly Proven Wrong: At the end, Rob is fiddling with the agent's gear. When Laura questions if he should, Rob says that Harry told him it was fine. Cue Harry answering the walkie-talkie and asking Rob to get off.
- Loose Lips: Mr. Phillips says that it's just as well that Ritchie is away at scouts, because little boys tend to spill secrets. Rob also proves himself a little unskilled at hiding things, though mostly through accidental things like turning on the lights in the surveillance area or Acting Unnatural.
- Never Heard That One Before: Rob and Laura are visited by a government agent who asks to use their house to watch one of their neighbors, who is suspected of harboring his criminal nephew. The agent who actually performs the surveillance is named Harry Bond. First Rob, and then later Laura, ask him something like, "Oh, you mean like...", but he cuts them off, presumably because he's heard it a million times before.
- Not This One, That One: The Petries initially think the agents want to watch the Helpers' house. Mr. Phillips corrects them and points out the house they actually want to watch.
- Not What It Looks Like: Mr. Gerard comes over, says he has to do something unpleasant, rants about his privacy being invaded, and ultimately pulls what looks like a gun. It turns out he wanted to use the Petries' telephone to report his nephew, who's holed up in his home, invading his privacy.
- Pop-Culture Pun Episode Title: The title refers to The Man from U.N.C.L.E..
- Unfortunate Item Swap: Rob notes that Mr. Bond's walkie-talkie looks just like Ritchie's. It comes into play later when Mr. Bond tries to call in a report and can't get through. The batteries in Ritchie's walkie-talkie are dead.
