"Smarter & Boulder" is the second episode of Animated Inanimate Battle, released on July 15th, 2020.
Full recap
Tropes in this episode include:
- Achievements in Ignorance: Popsicle Stick single-handedly pulled a boulder up the mountain, but she didn't realize that because she was more focused on Jelly's injury.
- Another Dimension: The debut of the Doodleverse.
- Canis Latinicus: In one shot, Frisbee is labeled with the scientific name of "Javelinus Throwicus." No points awarded for those guessing why this is so.
- Diegetic Soundtrack Usage:
- When Pear is walking up the mountain just before Team 1 speeds past him, he is humming the Theme Tune.
- Right near the end of The Stinger, a slower version of the Theme Tune is played with a different instrument when Bone looks at a red, glowing entity from behind a bush.
- Exposed to the Elements: Oodle plays this trope straight for the most part. However, he was seen wearing winter gear for one scene.
- Failed a Spot Check: Lampshaded by Ketchup when he and Leek seem to not noticed the huge pile of boulders then the massive mountain offscreen until Oodle points it out.
- Food as Bribe: Sock is bribed by Can with one of Yarn's lemon squares to kick Team 2's boulder up the mountain. Needless to say, it worked like a charm.
- Indy Escape: Chip Bag tries running away from Team 5's Boulder when Bouncy Ball hits it and causes it to roll down the mountain. This costed Chip Bag's life.
- Pun-Based Title: Played on the phrase "Smarter and Bolder"
- Reaction Shot: During the cold open, when Safe loudly introduces herself, there is a shot of several of Team 2's members having their ears plugged after her introduction.
- Skyward Scream: Pitchfork enacts one when Bouncy Ball accidentally knocks into Team 5's boulder and causes it to roll back down the mountain, losing all their progress.
- Tempting Fate: When Pitchfork and Album were trying to push their teams into a sense of urgency during the challenge, Candle and Domino state it doesn't matter since Team 6 would probably lose again due to their in-fighting. Sometime later, Team 6 finished second, surprisingly, and the two teams in question, Team 1 and 5, were both in the bottom two.
- Theme Tune: The first episode to even have this.