Series / Sam & Cat

All spoilers for iCarly and Victorious may be left unmarked. You Have Been Warned!

Odd Couple? That's putting it lightly!

Sam & Cat is a Nickelodeon teen sitcom created by Dan Schneider. It is a crossover Spin-Off from both iCarly and Victorious, and stars Jennette McCurdy as Sam Puckett from iCarly and Ariana Grande as Cat Valentine from Victorious.

After her best friend Carly moves away to Italy, Sam has decided to wander the country. Leaving Seattle and spending a month traveling the States, she arrives in Los Angeles, where she meets Cat. After a day of hijinks that end in the two bonding, as well as being awarded a lifetime of free cheeseburgers, Sam and Cat decide to live together after Cat's grandmother, Nona, goes to live in a retirement home. During the day, the two babysit three kids, Max, Chloe, and Darby; the kids are originally supposed to be babysat by Cat's grandma, but the mom, happy with how the two babysat, offers to let them do it again, which leads to them starting a babysitting business.

With the end of iCarly approaching, the network was looking to create a new show for Jennette to star in (continuing the tradition of making shows with actors from the previous show; Jennette's contract formed at the start of iCarly also gave her her own show no matter what). Sam & Cat was the end result.

The show was greenlit for 20 episodes that were filmed in early 2013, and the first episode premiered on June 8 of that year, with the last episode of this order coming out in November. Nick ordered an additional 20 episodes on top of the original order, which began airing on January 4, 2014. On April 4, the series was put on "permanent hiatus," likely due to problems on set. The series was officially cancelled in mid-July, and the final episode aired on July 17 with 35 of the planned 40 episodes produced. Read Ariana's Facebook/TwitLonger post on the subject here.

Not to be confused with an unrelated comics series about a dog and a bunny.

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This show contains examples of:

• A Bloody Mess: When Sam beats up Vance Anderson behind the back of his magic shop at the end of "#StuckInABox", it looks like she injured him so badly that blood spilled everywhere. It turns out she just accidentally knocked over a can of red paint.
• Abusive Parents:
  • Butler's Mom. She won't let Butler enjoy his childhood because good things keep happening to him, so she wants him to participate the texting competition so she can get the prizes.
  • Goomer's Mom as well after she found out he's a professional fighter.
• Actually Pretty Funny: When a kid turns out to be accident prone, Sam is amused while Cat says it's not funny. Said kid gets his head stuck in a toilet, Cat struggles not to laugh.
• A.I. Is a Crapshoot: The robots at Bots can be this sometimes.
  Tandy: Eventually all humans will die and robots will rule the earth! (Beat) Enjoy your meal!
• All Amazons Want Hercules: Rita Rooney, the first woman ever with eyes on Goomer and enough moves to give Sam a hard time.
• Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: Butler's mom should count. It's no wonder why people are annoyed by her.
• Ambiguously Gay:
  • The black hair colorist in "#MotorcycleMystery." Apparently, it's contagious, because when he colors up Dice and Goomer's hair, they start engaging in some kind of teenage salon chat:
    Goomer: (showing Dice a magazine) Hey, check out Bieber's abs!
    Dice: (gasping) He must live at the gym!
  • And yes, Goomer also shows it to the stylist, who looks quite appreciative.
  • Mathieu, one of the advisors at the Fresno Girl Doll shop, has many effeminate mannerisms and speech patterns.
• Anti-Climax:
  • The titular jump in #TheKillerTunaJump doesn't happen after Cat falls off the dirtbike, knocking Freddie and Robbie off the shooting point and making Sam save Freddie. The in-universe audience was just as disappointed as the out-of-universe one.
  • On a brighter note, it looks like Sam and Nora's fight in "#SuperPsycho" will be extremely huge and violent...but all Sam needs to do to win is grab her leg and pull an Unhand Them Villian to toss Nora into the pit in the abandoned house.
  • Played more or less neutrally in "#KnockOut". where Sam calls off the fight between her and Rita Rooney because she hates the lifestyle of training brought on by Bubs Dixon. Surprisingly, Rita actually agrees and spends the night eating junk food and watching B-movies with her.
• Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: In "#MotorcycleMystery," Dice lists the symptoms of the drink additive intended to help her study: Extreme memory loss, unconsciousness, and loose stool.
• The Artifact: Hollywood Arts is no longer the focus since Victorious ended, but Cat still goes there.
• Artistic License – Sports: In "#GoomerSitting" it is highly unlikely that Goomer would be allowed to fight after such an obvious showing of impairment, not to mention then knocking out the ref. And let's not even get started about whether or not he is mentally competent enough to fight at all.
• Artistic License – Law:
  • In "#PeezyB" Goomer says he has a driving license. Then in "#MyPoober" he Drives Like Crazy, but no more than your generic movie action hero. Letting the homeless guy live in the back is something else though.
  • In "#OscarTheOuch" it is stated that after Oscar was hurt at the golf course, he was given a free golf club in exchange for signing a paper promising not to sue them. In reality, because Oscar is a minor, any contract he signed would not be legally enforceable, unless a parent or guardian authorized the contract, or the contract was for essentials (food, clothing, or shelter), neither of which was the case. If Oscar's family chose to sue the golf course, their signed agreement with Oscar (not to sue them) would be declared invalid by the court because Oscar is too young to make such an agreement.
• Asian Store-Owner: Afish, the owner of the Handy Quick near the apartment, is a Middle Eastern man who's extremely self-obsessed.
• Babysitter from Hell:
  • Subverted in "#Pilot." Despite their existing characterizations, both Sam and Cat are shown to be good babysitters after everything has calmed down. During the initial chaos, however, Sam forgets Darby, the baby, in the bush and at the nursing home, and she allows Max and Chloe, with Darby strapped in the basket, to take an electric scooter for a joyride.
  • Badly Battered Babysitter: Later episodes have them be a mix of being bad babysitters and battered ones.
• Bait-and-Switch:
  • Cat and Sam take an accident-prone boy Oscar to Bots where multiple dangers are shown (a man losing his pet tarantula, and fishermen carrying loaded spearguns one of which has a loose trigger, said fishermen placed next to their table who keep teasing the audience with the harpoon placed directly facing Oscar). Instead of one of those hurting him, a Bot accidentally squirts him with very hot cheese.
  • At the end of #MommaGoomer, it seems like Goomer fighting the robber would make his Mom be okay with the fact he's an MMA fighter, but instead she hooks up with the cop who arrests him and allows Goomer to stay.
• Bavarian Fire Drill: Sam pulls one in "#FavoriteShow" (pretending to be the network president's daughter) so she can get the production crew on That's a Drag to move all the set pieces to her and Cat's apartment. And to save Dice from being detained by security.
• Berserk Button:
  • Anyone who watched iCarly knows that Sam doesn't play if you provoke her or her friends.
  • Don't cross Cat between her and her Bibble, or she'll throw a fit.
  • Don't make fun of Dice around Goomer. Heck, don't hurt anyone that he cares about or he'll knock you out.
  • A less palpable one, but messing with one of the kids they babysit will piss them off (unless they don't like that kid, of course) and cause them to take that person on. Shown in "#Lumpatious" (they get mad at Jepson) and "#Texting Competition" (Sam enters the competition to spite Butler's mom).
• Bilingual Bonus:
  • In a bonus scene in "#MyPoober":
    Sam (at Cat): Si no encontramos nuestra piña llena de dinero tendré que agarrar las tijeras y cortarse los dedos de los pies!
    Translation: If we don't find our pineapple full of money I will have to grab the scissors and cut off your toes!
  • Freddie and Cat briefly flirt in Spanish in "#TheKillerTunaJump."
  • In "#BrainCrush," Sam yells orders to a children's karate class in Japanese.
• Bittersweet (But Funny) Ending: Even though the title characters (really only Sam) won the texting competition in "#TextingCompetition," their award is a cheap toy speed boat. Hate to be them right now.
• Blazing Inferno Hellfire Sauce: The Yerbanian hot sauce in "#GoomerSitting" on a pizza burns through the pizza and the plate
• Bottle Episode: "#YayDay" takes place entirely within the apartment, save for the sidewalk scene.
• Brand X: Parodied; Sam points out that a Show Within a Show can't use actual Pear computers, so they use Banana computers instead.
• Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick: Sam's idea of meatball ingredients in "#MadAboutShoe."
  "We got beef, pork, lamb, veal, buffalo, squirrel, and gopher."
• Brief Accent Imitation:
  • Sam does a whole pile of these, from English and mid-Atlantic to creepy Hannibal Lecter-type.
  • Cat contracts the accident victim's exaggerated lisp in "#MadAboutShoe."
• Breaking the Fourth Wall: Evident in various episodes.
• Buffy Speak:
  Sam: How was school?
  Cat: Learny.
• The Bus Came Back: Sam's twin sister, Melanie, appears in "#Twinfection."
• The Cameo:
  • Michael Eric Reid, who played Sinjin in Victorious, appears as himself in "#BlooperEpisode."
  • Crazy Steve from Drake & Josh makes an appearance at the mental hospital in #SuperPsycho. This would have caused Sam to mistake him for Spencer, but he's conveniently wearing a mask.
• Cardboard Prison: Prison (somewhere near Seattle). Not just the Air Vent Escape but the fact that Nora can get her chicken into the prison to act as distraction.
• Chekhov's Gun: Combined with Rule of Three in "#RevengeOfTheBritBrats" when the titular brats present Sam and Cat with three gifts. A tin of bibble (which they steal back and plant evidence on Sam's bed), a motorcycle helmet (they spraypaint Sam's bike and blame it on Cat), and a toilet plunger (Sam and Cat get back at them by faking Cat's murder with it).
• Comically Missing the Point:
  • Cat, in all her Cloudcuckoolander glory, does this when Sam says she's planning to go wherever her motorcycle takes her:
    Cat: But I thought the person controlled the bike.
  • Upon seeing Goomer's mother for the first time, up until then unaware she was his adoptive mother and black:
  Sam: That is not how I pictured her.
  Cat: Yeah, I thought she'd be taller.
• Companion Cube: Mr. Purple to Cat.
• Company Cross References: In the episode "#TextingCompetition", one of the things Cat says she wants to do with the speedboat is to "Look for SpongeBob's pineapple!"
• Continuity Nod: Lots of them.
  • Sam's motorcycle is the same one that Spencer gave her in "iGoodbye".
    • Sam mentions that Carly left for Italy.
    • Dice, Cat and a shop-owner recognize Sam as being from iCarly.
    • All gags involving Inside Out Burger is a continuation of the Inside Out Burger pranks done by iCarly.
    • Sam mentions Freddie and brings back the Butter Sock in "#ToddlerClimbing".
    • In "#TheKillerTunaJump: The Reunion Special" Freddie tells Cat about how he used to work on the iCarly web series.
    • The title "#WeStealARockStar" mimics the Idiosyncratic Episode Naming from iCarly.
  • In "#TheBritBrats," Cat hasn't gotten over her Bibble addiction since "Tori Goes Platinum". Of special note, they ensured that the minor detail of bibble originating from England is maintained here.
    • Nona was first mentioned in "Star Spangled Tori", and now appears in the series.
    • Remember how Cat failed as a make up artist in Victorious? Well in Sam & Cat this was semi-continued. Cat tried to make Dice look younger in "#ToddlerClimbing". It would've been believable if they were in the 1940s (mentioned by Sam). In the next episode, Cat tried making Dice look like a teenager, (he's 12) but would up giving him the appearance of a young hippie.
    • Also from Victorious, Cat's obsession with an online shopping catalog leads to her ordering "underwear that floats!" #NewBoat" has Max and Chloe making prank calls, leading to a mention of "poof panties".
    • The same episode has Cat running pizza through a juicer, when Sam does something similar in this show. With the addition of root beer.
    • In "#TheKillerTunaJump," Cat going "you mess with the cat, you get the whiskers!" calls back to a similar malaproper from Vice Principal Dickers in "The Breakfast Bunch".
    • When playing hide and seek in "#MommaGoomer," Cat counts from one to ten but forgets three, which happened a couple of times on Victorious.
    • Cat has every right to overreact to Robbie singing to Sam - he's singing the "I think you're swell" song that he wrote for Cat in the first place!
    • Cat's thing for online shopping finally gets brought up in "#DroneBabyDrone."
  • "#RevengeOfTheBritBrats" is a Sequel Episode to "#TheBritBrats."
  • Early on in the following episode, "#MotorcycleMystery," Sam mentions she finally got all the pink paint (from one of the Brit Brats' pranks) off her bike.
  • The hazard room from "#SecretSafe" plays an important role the following season in "#BlueDogSoda."
  • Cat's love of shoes pops up again in "#WeStealARockStar".
• Continuity Snarl:
  • The show is also infamous for a minor number of inconsistencies with the merged canon of iCarly and Victorious, i.e. Sikowitz not recognizing Sam even though they did not interact in the crossover, yet both were present during the rap battle (since it happened several years prior, it was for a few minutes tops and it was Sikowitz, this is easily handwaved).
  • In "#RevengeOfTheBritBrats," Goomer knows about Gwen and Ruby, as well as the events from their first appearance, yet that took place before Sam and Cat met him. Goomer wasn't even there when Dice lost $500, and when Cat lost her bike. It's not impossible that Dice, Sam, or Cat simply told him about it —he did appear the episode after, so that'd be the kind of thing Sam would brag about.
  • Considering that the Nick Verse as a whole can't decide if Drake & Josh is in canon or is a sitcom in-universe, this was gonna crop up sooner or later.
  • In "#Mad About Shoe", Stacy Dilson (from Zoey 101) doesn't recognize Sam or her name despite having been shown in the iCarly episode "iStart a Fanwar" to be a major fan of the webcast. While she did receive a head injury, she still rememebers who she is and where she is currently going to school as well as where she went to school before so it is doubtful amnesia could be involved.
• CPR: Clean, Pretty, Reliable: Averted in the first episode. True to form for both characters, it's painfully obvious that neither Sam nor Cat has the slightest clue how to perform CPR...and yet, they still manage to save the guy.
• Crazy Homeless People: Subverted with Herb, an unkempt man who looks like he's homeless when first introduced in "#MadAboutShoe", but he's actually well-adjusted, owning a nearby condo and using a gym membership. That said, he does have some weird mannerisms and habits, though.
• Creepy Monotone: Clarise's father. Cat even calls him out for it.
• Crossover:
  • The title characters coming from iCarly and Victorious. (Fortunately, Cat never met Fawn Leibowitz, or she'd think Sam had a(nother) twin sister.) It's planned to be a more long-lasting one than "iParty With Victorious."
  • Also the series' only one-hour special, "#TheKillerTunaJump: The Reunion Special" (includes Jade, Freddie and Robbie).
  • In one episode Stacey Dilsen resurfaced again, now as a college student.
  • In another Coco appears in the airport while Sam, Cat, and two kids are about to board a plane. Yes, she still works at PCA and she reveals that Carl married (and later divorced) her and proposed to her mother.
• Curb-Stomp Battle:
  • Goomer vs three muggers in "#MommaGoomer". He even manages to stare down the last mugger into unconsciousness.
  • Sam, Goomer, and Cat give one to professional MMA fighter John Zakappa.
• Cut Short: Out of 40 episodes ordered, "only" 35 (or 36, depending on if you count "#TheKillerTunaJump" as two regular episodes or one hour-long show) were filmed. Likewise, it didn't have a proper ending either as this had happened in the middle of the series.
• Dance Party Ending: "#Twinfection" and "#BlooperEpisode".
• Diagonal Billing. Averted. Unlike Shake it Up, Jennette McCurdy's name appears first in the credits instead of with Ariana Grande. This is likely due to the show being at first a vehicle for Jennette before Ariana was added after Victorious was cancelled (or, alternatively, Sam goes before Cat in the title, so the actresses are billed the same way).
• Downer Ending: "#FirstClassProblems" where Goomer's trying to get the Baum kids' yeast timers delivered makes the airport shut down and the plane to the Bahamas leave without Sam, Cat, or the kids.
• Do You Want to Haggle?: Sam vs Dice for hot sauce...Sam wins. Cat vs Dice for yoyos...Dice wins.
• "Do It Yourself" Theme Tune:
  • Averted. The show's theme song, "Just Fine", is performed by Michael Corcoran rather than one of the leads which makes it unique in that it's the first show Dan's made since The Amanda Show that didn't have one of the main characters sing it. Even odder when you consider that one of the leads is popular recording artist Ariana Grande.
  • According to an interview, Jennette and Ariana were offered to sing the theme, but the duo felt that the show should focus more on comedy over music, hence why there's less singing then Victorious (the only episodes where the two do any kind of musical performing together are "#BabysitterWar" when they're rapping, and "#GettinWiggy" when Cat sings a song to Nona about the states where Sam can't go, and Sam sings the line "I'm also not welcome in Europe").
• Drill Sergeant Nasty: We get the coach variant with Bubs Dixon in "#KnockOut." She has a cattle prod!
• Duck Season, Rabbit Season: Used by Sam to "resolve" the conflict about Nona's bedroom.
• Dumbass Has a Point:
  • In "#RevengeOfTheBritBrats," Goomer, of all people, points out that the British twins stole Cat's can of Bibbie so she gets mad at Sam and sprays Sam's motorcycle pink so she gets mad at Cat, thus ruining their friendship. It was lampshaded by Sam and Dice.
  • It's even weirder considering that Goomer never even met the British girls.
• Dumb Muscle: Goomer.
• Enemy Mine: Sam and Cat with Nevel in "#SuperPsycho".
• Episode Title Card: While their parent shows had them very occasionally, this show uses them on every episode (except for "#Pilot").
• Even Evil Has Standards: The sole purpose of Gwen and Ruby's schemes is to make their victims feel humiliated and look stupid, not for someone to get killed. They imply that someone got killed as a result of one of their schemes, which was completely undesirable.
• Evil Brits: The eponymous Brit brats, Gwen and Ruby.
• Eviler than Thou: Cat was adamant about keeping Sam away from Jade to prevent something like this. All blown out of proportion.
• Evil Twin: While Sam is this to to Melanie, in "#Twinfection" Sam convinces Cat that she had the title infection and had an evil twin. Sam tells Melanie to be ten times as bad as Sam usually is.
• Exact Words: In #SuperPsycho Nora threatens to give Dice "the hose" if he doesn't do what she says. And that it turns out she is literally just throwing brand new sets of hoses into the hole Dice is in.
• Expy: Dilben seems to be this to Nevel Papperman. Hell, he's even played by an actor named River Alexander (though he's not related to Reed Alexander in any way, other than the oddly similar names).
• Fake Shemp:
  • Stand-ins for Tori, Beck, Jade, Robbie and Andre appear in "#MommaGoomer." They have their backs facing the audience for Sikowitz's lesson on "backwards acting".
  • Jerry Trainor is NOT Crazy Steve in "#SuperPsycho."
• Fan Disservice: "#DroneBabyDrone" starts with Sam mentioning that she ripped the shirt off some guy. Then he shows up in person...
• Fanservice:
  • In "#DollSitting", Cat wears a pink genie costume that shows her chest and abs. She also feels the need to show off her legs on a number of occasions, like when playing Baberaham Lincoln ("#BrainCrush").
  • Sam also seems to have a thing for shorts and tights.
• Flanderization: Either Gibby has become more stupid, or he's willing to give information to anyone even if they were enemies to him before like Nora or Nevel.
• Foreshadowing: The prison visit in "#SuperPsycho" has not-Paul Simon yelling "Slip out the back, Jack!" Nevel slips out the back later.
• Freeze-Frame Bonus:
  • In "#NewGoat," the 'Elderly Of The Month' at Elderly Acres is Mr. Oldman.
  • Fans also are allowed to send in photos of themselves into the show, which are then put in various backgrounds. Some fans have started a challenge where they'll try and find the photos before the show reveals where they actually are.
  • In "#FirstClassProblems", the listing of the babysitting rules Cat shows to Sam, the fifth rule breaks the fourth wall.
    Rule 5: "You should not freeze-frame on this. Click 'Play' and continue watching the show."
• Full-Name Basis: While everyone figured Goomer was either his first name or a nickname, his actual name was from French: Gieux Merr (phonetically the same as Goomer).
• Funny Foreigner: Done with Skullcrusher's friend Hector. We're never told which country exactly he's from.
• Games of the Elderly: The episode "#The Brit Brats" mostly takes place at Nona's retirement home, where Sam has to help her set up a bingo game in order to get a signature on her community service form. Nona wants a good, memorable game, so Sam set it up as "Extreme Bingo", complete with a rap...that made all of the elders leave within minutes. She later sets up a "Slightly Less Extreme Bingo" with a prize of a new, $5,000 TV. Though the TV prize is all to trick the con-artist kids they're watching, the police show up because such a prize was supposedly illegal in a bingo game.
• Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: Inverted in "#BlueDogSoda."
  Cat: (hyperventilating) I can't calm down unless you slap me! (Sam does.) (Beat) So what do we do?
• Godzilla Threshold: When Nora escapes/returns and kidnaps Dice For the Evulz, Sam goes to Nevel of all people for help.
• Gone Horribly Right: Cat when she believes she turned Dice into a monkey in "#DollSitting."
• G-Rated Drug:
  • Dice sells baggies of celebrity hair. Sam suggests that Cat's constant sniffing of Justin Bieber's hair is affecting her behavior.
  • Even worse is her Bibble addiction, because ever since she got addicted to it, there came a point where she pawned all of her Nona's jewelry after she ran out of money.
  • And apparently, Cat is addicted to presents, to the point where she makes a new holiday in order to get some (she calls it "Yay Day"), and cannot stop herself from opening them. It gets so bad that she starts opening Goomer's present without meaning to and has a hard time stopping. And she takes medication, I'm sorry I mean "special vitamins", for it. Just how many addictions does Cat have?
  • While the titular Blue Dog Soda doesn't really count, the illegal brewing business Sam and Cat set up should sound familiar.
  • In "#BrainCrush," everyone but Cat and Sam become addicted to the titular game app.
• Groin Attack: Goomer suffered from this in "#GoomerSitting". Unusually though, while it definitely hurt, it didn't fully incapacitate him (and it also partially fixed his vision problems, caused earlier in the episode)...the Berserk Button probably helped.
• Halloween Episode: "#DollSitting."
• Hammerspace Hideaway: Apparently the hide-a-bed is this. How else does one explain Nonna successfully folding it closed with Sam and Cat both still inside?
• Harmful to Minors: "#KnockOut" opens with Sam fixing a chainsaw next to a five-year-old kid. Then Cat calls her over for something, and she lets the kid hold the chainsaw.
• Heh Heh, You Said "X": "#ToddlerClimbing":
  Sam All of those negative reviews came from the same IP address!
  Cat: *sputters* Heh heh, I Pee...
• Hollywood Homely: Lampshadad by being invoked in-universe in the episode "#We Steal A Rock Star". There was a show the group watched called "Slightly Less Gorgeous." which involved taking a gorgeous actress and, with the use of makeup and clothes, made them a little more homely before having them see if they can get a job.
• Hypercompetent Sidekick:
  • Sam is this to Cat, who is pretty ditzy, usually when it comes to common sense stuff; Downplayed though, as even Sam herself can be careless and aggressive.
  • Dice plays this trope straighter.
• Hypocrite:
  • Sam showed utter disgust in urinals and calling boys gross in "iOwe You". Fast forward to Los Angeles and she has a urinal mounted above her headboard, where she even contemplates using it in the future.
  • It's worth nothing, though, that at least 3 years passed between when she said that, and she becomes less tomboyish with each episode.
• Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: The episode titles are in the form of #TwitterTags.
• I Have No Son!: Goomer's mother says this directly to her son once the latter finally admits to her that he's a professional MMA fighter.
  Mrs. Merr: When I adopted you, I should have kept the receipt!
• Intergenerational Friendship: Dice and Goomer. Even though Goomer is Dice's client, they are almost like father and son.
• Irony: First, we have "#FavoriteShow", which is not only the second episode of the series, but mirrors the cancellation of Victorious with that of That's a Drag. Fast forward to a year later, and this show suffers the same fate as Victorious by kicking the bucket without a proper finale.
• "It" Is Dehumanizing: Nora calls Dice 'it' after kidnapping her, showing all he is to her is a way to hurt Sam.
• Jesus Taboo: Averted. Cat does make religious/biblical references in two episodes, and they are very accurate (apart from "the three wise guys" and "King Solo Man" anyways).
• Jumping the Shark:invoked "#TheKillerTunaJump" is a homage to the Trope Namer.
• Just One More Level!: The plot of "[#Brain Crush]" involves everyone besides the duo becoming endlessly obsessed with the titular game.
• Karma Houdini:
  • Even though it was an accident, Sam and Cat are this for being rewarded with free cheeseburgers for life after letting two kids they were supposed to be watching take a joyride, which in turn caused a guy to collapse from the stress of chasing them. That sort of thing isn't uncommon in Dan Schneider shows, though.
  • Not to mention there were no consequences whatsoever for Max and Chloe robbing Inside Out Burger.
  • The parent in "#TextingCompetition" gets away with gluing Sam's hand to Cat's foot with no punishment outside of losing the competition.
  • Sam returns to this role with gusto in "#BabysitterWar" doing a series of small but insulting things to Cat throughout the episode, and still winds up getting a bedroom. This can be explained, however, by Cat being the type to forgive and forget easily.
  • In "#MotorcycleMystery," Sam and Cat kidnap Hector (a friend of the thief) despite them promising to return him if the thief gave her the motorcycle back, which he did. So they basically got away with kidnapping.
  • In "MagicATM" this is even Lampshaded ("We learned nothing!").
  • In "#MadAboutShoe" Sam impersonates a nurse and she and Cat jump through a (closed) window to escape as part of their successful attempt to steal a hospitalized girl's pink shoe so Cat can have the matching pair (It Makes Sense in Context). So that's theft, impersonation and destruction of hospital property... and do they get caught? Er, no.
  • In "#FirstClassProblems" Goomer & Dice escape from airport security guards after Goomer throws two glasses of chocolate milk at them, even causing a lockdown of the airport. After doing so, however, not only were they not arrested by airport police, but they seemed to have escaped wanted charges as well.
  • In "#WeStealARockStar" Sam, Cat, and Dice all kidnap rock star Del Deville after accidentally knocking him out, and then after a whole episode of holding him prisoner in their apartment, he is released after hearing Cat play a (copyrighted) guitar riff and asking her to use it in a new song of his. This is literally the second time in the series that Sam and Cat have gotten away with kidnapping. Fortunately, karma does show itself sometime after Deville's new album is released when he is sued for copyright infringement over the use of the guitar riff, and loses the case.
• Kick the Dog: Goomer's mom's comment when she learns Goomer is an MMA Fighter was really nasty.
  Goomer's Mom: "When I adopted you, I should've kept the receipt."
• Kids Are Cruel: A few of the kids Sam and Cat babysit are real jerks, most notably the Baums from "#FirstClassProblems".
• Kids Shouldn't Watch Horror Films: Invoked and parodied when Sam takes a kid out to see a horror movie rated R. The kid doesn't show any emotional distress, but he says, "That movie messed me up, man!"
• Lampshade Hanging:
  • This bit from the pilot...
    Cat: We sort of have this whole fun odd couple dynamic. Built-in conflict. Lots of potential for more adventure.
  • In "#FavoriteShow," Sam and Cat are watching TV, and...
    Sam: See, on TV, they're not allowed to use real Pear computers, so they replace the pears with a banana.
    Cat: That's so clever!
  • Later on, their favorite show is canceled, and Cat cries over how insane it is for a network to cancel a big hit show without even giving it a proper finale, which is of course what happened to Victorious (and ''Sam and Cat' itself, as it turned out). Coincidence? I think not!
• Leaning on the Fourth Wall:
  • Sam explains to Cat that That's a Drag uses nonexistent Banana computers instead of Pear because it's a TV show and they have to use Parody Names to avoid copyright issues. (If you don't get it, Dan swaps out the Apple brand name with Pear.)
  • In "#DroneBabyDrone," Sam mentions that they ordered size 62 men's underpants. When asked why, Cat explains that it would make a great sight gag. Also in that episode, when at the Zapathon headquarters, they have a driver named Frank who is a reference to Frank Zappa. Sam complains that "kids are not going to get this."
• Lighter and Softer: Than Victorious in particular.
• Like an Old Married Couple: A lot of jokes around Sam and Cat's relationship is this. "#PeezyB" even has the caught cheating argument.
• Living Crashpad: In "#SuperPsycho" Nora is tossed down her own well and lands on top of Dice.
• Local Hangout:
  • The restaurant Bots, similar to Nozu and Groovy Smoothie.
  • Notable is that it apparently uses a set from Drake and Josh, according to the Sam and Cat Wiki.
• Logging onto the Fourth Wall: Sam and Cat's babysitting service has an actual website here.
• Manchild: Goomer, to ridiculous levels.
• Mistaken for Fake Hair: "#GettinWiggy" revolves around Cat telling Dice that competing hair model Jet is wearing a wig and them trying to expose him. Their attempt to blow Jet's wig off with a fan only endears his hairstyle to the photographer, and he is declared to be the choice for the magazine cover Dice was originally chosen for. Cat snaps and begins to rip off Jet's wig to expose him, only for it turn out to be his very real hair. Jet is taken to a scalp hospital in tears while Dice gets to be on the magazine cover, but Cat is arrested, who tries to defend herself by telling the police that Jet's hair does look a lot like a wig.
• Momma's Boy: Goomer, big time.
• Mood-Swinger: Nora has devolved into this since her last appearance, now having a habit to flip flop between her silly Faux Affably Evil and psychopathic fury in a heartbeat.
• My Beloved Smother: Two boys Sam and Cat babysat fit this a lot. First was Butler’s mom from "#Texting Competition" who controls nearly everything about her son, including not allowing him to have his own bike so he can't do things on his own. The second was Oscar from "#Oscar The Ouch" who was very accident prone and whose mother did everything he could to keep him safe. This was deconstructed at the end of the episode when Oscar told his mother that having fun is worth risking getting hurt (which he did in nearly every activity they brought him to).
• Name and Name
• Never Bareheaded: Dice is never without a hat.
• Never Say "Die": "#RevengeOfTheBritBrats". Sam and Cat cotton on to the brats' ploy to drive a wedge between them, and get the idea to escalate the conflict to "fatal levels" just to counter-troll them. Essentially they fake Cat's death without actually calling it "death".
• No Celebrities Were Harmed:
  • Invoked in "#BabysitterWar" when Sam finds a Justin Bieber impersonator... who promptly gets hit with a frozen chicken.
  • There's no such explanation for the appearance of Simon & Garfunkel in "#SuperPsycho" though.
  • And then there's the Frank Zappa lookalike in "#DroneBabyDrone."
    Sam: "Kids are not gonna get this!"
• No Ending: Considering it ended four episodes before the original forty-episode order was completed, ending the entire series with Cat in jail for assaulting a hair model and Sam turning Nona into her personal servant by lying about Cat's whereabouts isn't really how anyone wanted it to end.
• No Fourth Wall:
  • "#BlooperEpisode" has the main cast using their actual names as they're on their lunch break while filming the show. And Ariana uses her natural hair and voice throughout.
  • Before the beginning of "#RevengeoftheBritBrats" Sam & Cat themselves say, "Last time on Sam and Cat..." before showing clips from "#BritBrats"
• No Hugging, No Kissing: After the notorious Ship-to-Ship Combat that iCarly had, Sam and Cat almost went out of its way to avoid going near the territory. The only main male characters in the series were Dice, a kid far younger than Sam and Cat, and Goomer, a borderline mentally challenged adult. Freddie appeared only in a single episode, which contained no Ship Tease with Sam.
• No Indoor Voice: Coach Bubs Dixon.
• Non Sequitur: In "#DroneBabyDrone" while the Zapathon employee is talking with the landlord, Cat suddenly asks everyone if anyone drops their pants and sticks their butts in an open refrigerator.
• Odd Couple: Sam and Cat, even said word for word by Cat.
• Oh, Crap!: Sam has a big one in "#SuperPsycho" when she's told that Nora escaped prison and is possibly on her way to take her revenge.
• Older Than She Looks: Melinda, the kids' mom in the pilot, does not look like a mother of three.
• Old Media Playing Catch-Up: After the Twitter/Facebook hybrid "The Slap" being featured on Victorious, the show seems to be heading even more into promoting Twitter-style social media, with the episode titles taking the form of #HashTags.
• Omake: The Lil' Sam and Cat Show, hosted by Fun Size cartoon versions of Sam and Cat, and filled with behind-the-scenes stuff, more on guest stars, and reveals of those easter eggs.
• Once an Episode: For the first half of the show's run, someone who friended the show on Facebook got their profile picture called out on a mug drunk somewhere on the episode. This gimmick was removed as the set tension between the leads and the network grew, with Ariana and Jennette barely wanting to promote the show at all.
• Only Sane Man: Dice.
• Parody Assistance: Anthony Heald in "#SuperPsycho" really was in The Silence of the Lambs!
  "Do not touch the glass... I just cleaned it."
• Preemptive Apology: "I'm sorry I pushed you off the bench."
• Prisons Are Gymnasiums: Nora seems to think so. Didn't pan out that way though.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Sam and Cat's landlord (the actual one) when he finally appears in "#DroneBabyDrone." Sure he resorts to throwing flashbangs to snuff out scuffles, but he's eventually reasoned with.
• Recycled Premise:
  • "#BabysittingWar" will remind anyone who had seen iCarly's "iSaw Him First" with a babysitting theme instead, including the outwitting/bribery competition, a male "casualty", and being called out for the pettiness of the conflict by a third party who suggests that the duo stick together.
  • "#MommaGoomer" also replicates "iWanna Stay with Spencer" and "Helen Back Again" where the protagonists must weave a web of lies to prevent the departure of a major character (therefore setting up the conflict), then this major character proves himself to the conflict-character and gets to stay with the protagonists.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Cat has a fun-loving, passionate personality while Sam is cool. Sam has a tough, hotheaded personality while Cat is calm. This depends on the situation.
• Required Spinoff Crossover:
  • Elsewhere, the title characters have a scene with Sikowitz in his classroom.
  • "#TheKillerTunaJump" brings together Jade and Robbie from Victorious and Freddie from iCarly.
  • Gibby, Nora and Nevel in "#SuperPsycho."
• Retcon: Despite meeting each other in "iParty with Victorious", Sam and Cat do not recognize each other. This also extends to Jade, Robbie and Freddie. This suggests either the events of the crossover are non-canon or both casts have a Forgotten First Meeting.
• Ripped from the Headlines: "#DroneBabyDrone" references the Amazon Prime Air delivery-by-remote-controlled-helicopter service.
• Running Gag:
  • Cat thinking Sam's last name is Puckle as opposed to Puckett.
  • Except for "#MadAboutShoe," when our heroes visit Stacey, the hospitalised girl who owns the shoe Cat stole (long story)...
    Stacey: (seeing Cat cradling the other shoe) Shay, who'sh she?
    Sam: Her? She's... er... she's your friend! Who came to visit you!
    Stacey: I have a friend?... My head injury must be shuper shevere - I don't even recognise you.
    Cat: Well, I'm... um... (takes Sam aside) Can I tell her my real name?
    Sam: No, don't tell her your real name.
    Cat: OK, OK. (to Stacey) Well, I'm... I'm Sam Puckett!
    Sam (slapping her forehead): The one time she gets the last name right...
  • At least she's closer than Goomer who thought it was Pickle.
  • That recurring hobo who's supposedly actually doing very well.
  • Mentioning Cat's bra, chest, or bra size.
  • Randy. Y'know, the kid who's always going "it's Randy!"
  • Sam and Cat refusing to give Dice a drink whenever he asks for one in "#YayDay'.
• Rule of Funny: Much like other Dan Schneider shows, this show often relies on ridiculous logics solely for the sake of comedy.
• Say My Name: Cat does this to Robbie when he sings "I Think You're Swell" to Sam, In the episode, "#TheKillerTunaJump".
• The Scrappy: In-Universe, nobody likes Jepsen from "#Lumpatious" which is understandable since he acts like a prideful jerk towards everyone.
• Self-Deprecation: Partially inverted as Sam's talking about herself.
  Dice: Aren't you Sam from iCarly?
  Sam: Nah, that chick is way hotter than me.
• Serious Business: #GettinWiggy is about a teen hair model about to oust Dice's cover spot, who Cat thinks is wearing a wig (but really isn't.). Granted it is a pretty serious accusation even in Real Life, and Dice is noticeably distressed over it, but in the end it's Cat who snaps over it.
• "Shaggy Dog" Story: "#FirstClassProblems." After nearly half the passengers board before Sam and Cat, Goomer unwittingly sabotages the entire first class flight.
• Shock Stick: Bubs Dixon uses one to make Sam train and knock out Dice in "#KnockOut".
• Shouldn't We Be in School Right Now?:
  • Averted. Sam is 19 and goes to 'online school' and most of their babysitting happens after Cat gets home from school.
  • Lampshaded in "#FavoriteShow."
• Shout-Out:
  • "#SalmonCat" is one giant shout out to Laverne & Shirley, a '70s sitcom about two female roommates who got into wacky situations. The episode features guest appearances by both Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams, Sam and Cat recreate the famous intro to the theme song ("Schlemiel! Schlimazel!"), and the apartment buildings that Williams and Marshall's characters live in are named after their characters (Feeney and De Fazio).
  • "We have to give him C-3PO!"
  • In "#FavoriteShow," at the beginning there's a list of shows on the TV that are made up of old shows from Dan Schneider such as Zoey 101 and Drake & Josh.
    • Which is odd, considering all Dan Schneider shows are set in the same universe, as evidenced by Pear products and Galaxy Wars.
    • Even odder, in "#DroneBabyDrone" when Cat suggests she make baby noises to convince the mother of their charge that he's there safe and sound, she points out "It worked on Drake and Josh!"
  • "#FavoriteShow" has Cat make a shout out to the Wonder Twins.
  Cat: Roommate powers activate!
  • In "#TheBritBrats," the two girls' uncle who drops them off says goodbye by saying Cheers. Sam replies by saying Seinfeld, and Cat replies by saying Friends.
  • "Shut up and take my money!"
  • "Look for SpongeBob's Pineapple."
    • ''"What is this? A speedboat for ants?"''
  • "#BabysittingCommercial" has Sam make a shout out to one of the villains of Batman.
  Sam: Hey, Joker, you just missed Batman.
  • "#MotorcycleMystery" is essentially The Hangover, but centered on Cat.
  • "#SecretSafe" has Dice dancing for money (in birthday parties), referencing the Tina Turner song "Private Dancer".
  Sam: You don't have to put on the red tights!''
  • When Dice catches the odor of the "pee-can", he makes the Skyward Scream "CAAAAAAN!''
    • Cat screams "Oh, my nose!" when hit in the face with a chicken puck.
  • The creepy guy from "#DollSitting" keeps calling it Clarice.
  • The titular "#Twinfection," according to Sam, is when you're bitten and it turns into an Evil Twin. Hmmm.
  • Cat being afraid of what happens if Sam and Jade met in "#TheKillerTunaJump" recalls several Tweets Dan Schneider made about the subject, especially when the finale of iCarly was airing.
    • A man dressed as Ringo Starr as seen from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is giving the drum roll when Sam^note Actually Cat in disguise is about to jump the tuna.
  • "#MadAboutShoe" goes for 70's references:
    • Nona's past lovers include pro basketball legend Bob McAdoo and the poet laureate of game shows Nipsey Russell. Perhaps they knew Where The White Women Were At.
    • The key intersection on Cat's String Theory board honors 70s mime duo.Shields and Yarnell (which gets mentioned again in "#WeStealARockStar").
  • Sam and Cat's illegal brewing business in "#BlueDogSoda" has Goomer and Dice wearing very familiar-looking protective gear and eyewear.
  • In "#FresnoGirl," the doll salesman (excuse me. Fresno girl doll adviser) looks suspiciously like Ken.
  • "#SuperPsycho" is very similar to The Silence of the Lambs, including Nora keeping her victims in a pit, threatening them with 'the hose', and wanting to create wigs from their hair (similar to Buffalo Bill, who made suits from human skin), Sam and Cat getting help from Nevel, and the confrontation at the end.
    • Also, the inmates in the second cell Sam and Cat pass appear to be Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel.
  • Del Deville gets a mask that makes him look like Nolan!Bane.
    • Sam's 'books' "Three Months Later" and "Three Months After That" mimic the naming style of a rather notorious series of fanfic-turned-novels.
  • In "#DroneBabyDrone" the items the Zappatron drones pick up by mistake are held in Room 222, the Zappa room, and Sam, Cat and Nona are taken there by a guy called Frank. As Sam points out, "Kids aren't gonna get this."
  • In "#OscarTheOuch," Oscar says that he has a friend named Felix.
• Show Within a Show: That's a Drag fills this role until it's cancelled, after which they switch to Toilet Wars.
• Sidelined Protagonist Crossover: Neither Cat (part of the protagonist ensemble of Victorious) nor Sam (supporting protagonist of iCarly) are the main characters of their home shows, but they become the protagonists here in their own show.
• Special Guest:
  • Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams aka Laverne & Shirley in "#SalmonCat."
  • Scott Baio in "#MagicATM."
• Spell My Name with a "The": Inverted. This was why Cat thought a guy named Robert T. Farmer was a farmer—she thought the "T" stood for "The".
• Spin-Off: A dual spin-off, from ICarly and Victorious. It's one of the first live action shows (if not the first ever) to be like this.
• Spit Take:
  • Subverted. Cat does a waterfall take instead when Sam mentions that she just sent Nona to the retirement home.
  • Played straight later in "#Twinfection." Twice.
• Spoiled Brat:
  • Delbin, the fake building manager's son.
  • He's nothing on the daughter of the parents in "#Babysitting Commercial."
• Stage Mom: Butler's mom, natch.
  "I'm his mom. And his manager. I'm a momager."
• Stepford Smiler: Usually someone in a particularly professional field, like the Fresno Girl doll adviser and the Zapathon 'problem popper' PR guy.
• Suddenly Speaking: Sophia Grace Brownlee's sister Rosie never sang along with Sophia or even said much of anything in those videos, until she appeared in this show.
• String Theory: Cat makes a corkboard version in "#MadAboutShoe."
• Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Back in Zoey 101, Coco was shown to have a very toxic Relationship Revolving Door history with her boyfriend Carl. When the titular duo meets her in #FirstClassProblems, it's revealed how the relationship turned out: the two ended up getting married thinking it would fix their problems, only to get divorced shortly after realizing their problems were irreconcilable. 
• Take That!:
  • In the second episode, Sam and Cat discover their favourite television show was cancelled without a finale episode, despite being a massive hit. The plot of this episode is their attempts to get the show back on the air. The same thing happened to Dan Schneider's last television series, Victorious, and then again to this very show.
  • There's also one about how producers don't cancel shows, even though many blame them.
  • The manic soda-banning government guy in "#BlueDogSoda."
  • There's also Justin Fever's incorrect use (and overuse) of the word "Swag" which was a popular word at the time of airing
• Tastes Like Feet:
  Sam: "Peanut butter on a hot dog! I call it PB-on-Ween."
  Cat: "How's it taste?"
  Sam: "Like butt."
• The Team Benefactor: Dice is this to the girls, and can give them anything they need from gadgets to clients, etc.
• Team Power Walk: Played for laughs at the end of "#RevengeOfTheBritBrats" with the title characters.
• Terrible Artist: Sam in The Stinger of "#BlueDogSoda." While the kid they're babysitting can carve several different animals from cheese, all of Sam's carvings can best be described as rocks.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Sandwich: In the pilot, Sam throws out her breakfast burrito (you know, instead of setting it down somewhere to go after Cat to rescue her from a garbage truck, which is how they meet.
• Time Skip:
  • Takes place after some point in iCarly.
  • Played for Laughs in "#WeStealARockStar", when the aftermath of the events shows Sam reading "Three Months Later", and after a second skip, "Three Months After That". Turns out they're just the titles.
• Title Drop: Well, duh. Like it's the first time they did that. Some episodes are like this too.
• Toilet Humor: Used a multiple times every episode.
• Tomboy and Girly Girl:
  • Personality-wise Sam is the Tomboy and Cat the Girly Girl. Look wise they are about the same, though Cat is shown in dresses while Sam is in Jeans and T-shirts.
  • This is highly emphasized by the way they style their halves of the room.
  • Also, Melanie is another Girly Girl to Sam's Tomboy.
• Totally Radical: Nonna, as seen in episode 3. And how!
• Trailers Always Lie:
  • In the commercials for "#TextingCompetition" it seemed like an old friend of Dice's would be a obstacle for Sam in the tournament, however he doesn't effect the main plot and mostly interacts with Dice, and even then, there's no overall conclusion to it.
  • The commercials for "#BabysittingCommercial" make it seem like it would be about Sam and Cat trying to make a commercial for their babysitting service since they only used scenes from the "commercial". The episode was really about Dice fearing that he would lose custody of his dog to the dog's original owner who is a snooty girl, wanting to use the dog in a fancy dance competition. The babysitting commercial only appears at the beginning of the episode and doesn't really serve any purpose except to set off the events of the plot.
  • The promo for the series finale, "#GettinWiggy", makes the episode out to a dramatic, intense series finale. In reality, however, the episode plays out as an ordinary episode would, and most of the "dramatic" moments presented in the promo were taken out of context.
• Truncated Theme Tune: The theme song when it plays in a few episodes that are longer than usual is a few lines shorter.
• Unusual Euphemism: While we do hear 'pee' and 'poop' regularly, they carried over 'wazz' from Victorious. There's even one use of 'shazz'.
• The Voiceless: Sophie, the youngest of the three children Sam and Cat take care of for most of "#BabysitterWar." In the end she does talk and settles it - it's a tie.
• Walking the Earth: Sam apparently intended to do this before deciding to stay with Cat in "#Pilot." (Well, riding the Earth on a motorcycle anyway.)
• What Happened to the Mouse?: In "#TheKillerTunaJump," Robbie shows up without Rex by his side. No one of the Victorious cast wonders where the puppet is. To boot, Robbie really can't go anywhere with Rex or else he goes crazy. That said, this may be a case of Character Development thankfully carried over.
• When Elders Attack: "#SalmonCat." Laverne & Shirley going at it!
• Where the Hell Is Springfield?:
  • Averted. Cat states their zip code is 90291, which would place their residence in Venice Beach.
  • In the Victorious episode "Star Spangled Tori", Cat mentioned that her grandmother Nona had moved to Venice. (Although Cat originally thought it was Venice, Italy.)
• Whole Costume Reference: Cat's Halloween costume is straight out of I Dream of Jeannie.
  • Nora at the start of "#SuperPsycho" is straight up Sarah Connor. Nevel goes for the double whammy in both Hannibal's Institutional Apparel and the suit and hat he wears after his escape.
  • "#BlueDogSoda" seems to be one for Breaking Bad from the premise (making an illegal blue substance whilst avoiding law enforcement) to part of the look (Cat's pink jumpsuit and the soda-making lab).
• Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Goomer is terrified of robots (but seems to be over it by "#PeezyB" though).
• The Worf Effect: Invoked when Sam takes on Rita Rooney in "#KnockOut" - while Sam does win, this is the first time we've seen her seriously work towards it, rather than the Curb-Stomp Battle we've come to expect.
• Writing Around Trademarks: Bubs Dixon can be seen reading Catch-23.
• Wrong Genre Savvy: Sam several times:
  • In "#MommaGoomer" Sam wants Goomer to fight off the muggers to show his mom that being a fighter isn't bad and let him stay in Venice. While it works, it's because Goomer's mom hooks up with the cop arresting them.
  • In "#SalmonCat" Sam thinks the old actresses of Salmon Cat reuniting will end their feud. It looks that way at first, but it ends with the 2 literally at each others throats.
• Wunza Plot: Parodied in the initial promo.
  Cat: I play a cop on the edge who makes his own rules!
  Sam: No, you don't. That's not what you play.
  Cat: And she plays a lonely doctor who's fed-up with the system!
  Sam: I don't play a doctor, and I don't care about the system.
  Cat: And together we fly a starship in search of friends and moondust!
• Young Entrepreneur: Dice will sell pretty much anything weird. In Episode 1, he sells celebrity hair (he even collects some from Sam). In Episode 2, he sells hats with fake state names. In Episode 3, he sells spifes ie. spoons with knives on the other end.

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