Dim Lit Ed is an episode from Season 3 of Cartoon Network's popular show Ed, Edd n Eddy.
Plot Summary: After a day of witnessing the alarming decay of common sense in the neighborhood, Double D decides to counteract the cul-de-sac's evident lack of culture and intelligence with a mentally-stimulating Scavenger Hunt. Unfortunately, this turns out to be a hard sell.
Dim Lit Ed contains examples of:
- And Your Reward Is Edible: The kids thought the prize for Edd's scavenger hunt (that requires more of intellectual and logic-ridden puzzles than physical searching) would be a jawbreaker.
- Bittersweet Ending: Bitter only for Double D, since he wasted his time and failed to teach the kids anything, simply because they don't want to learn anything and just want to enjoy the Summer. Eddy, however, is fine with the way things are since dumber kids means easier scamming for him. The final scene shows the Eds doing another obvious scam, with Eddy and Ed easily tricking the kids due to their low intelligence and implying they'll make a profit this time.Double D: (deadpan) I'm surrounded by idiots.
Eddy: Who's complaining? - Brick Joke: The belt that Ed and Eddy thought was a snake returns in the final scene, with Ed pretending to be a snake charmer and obviously holding it with his feet. Rolf however is easily fooled regardless and is completely enchanted.
- Call-Back: Kevin's father working at the jawbreaker factory and allowing him to stockpile as many as he wants in his garage is brought back when Nazz asks him why he isn't bothering to win the scavenger hunt. Upon him reminding her, she agrees to give up as well.
- Comically Missing the Point: Jonny thinks the scavenger hunt means collecting random stuff instead of following Edd's clues.
- Cool and Unusual Punishment: Ed and Eddy try torturing Double D until he tells them where he hid the jawbreaker by having Ed continuously give him a Pink Belly. Double D eventually just says that there is no jawbreaker.
- Didn't Think This Through: Edd thought that the other kids would be willing to sit through his lessons to educate them or that they would think one of his diplomas would be an acceptable prize for his Scavenger Hunt. He was wrong on both counts and when they do not enjoy what he offers them, they either ditch him without finishing the hunt or beat him up first.
- Dude, Not Funny!: Everyone laughs at Kevin's misfortune after he is punished for disrupting Double D's impromptu class with his usual "dork" comments. But when Kevin retaliates and hits Eddy with his Dunce Cap, all the laughing immediately stops and Nazz tells Kevin that was stupid.
- Dunce Cap: Double D gives Kevin one for disrupting his class by calling him a "dork". Eddy makes it worse for him by pulling it down over his chin, to the amusement of everyone else.
- Enemy Mine: Despite fighting each other earlier, Sarah compliments Rolf for pelting Double D with a beet after he explains that there was no jawbreaker.
- Epic Fail: Aside from Nazz, who just gives up when Kevin points out there's no real reward for participating, none of the kids get past the first clue of the scavenger hunt, and it's a rather obvious one too - an acorn.
- Exact Words: When Double D offers a prize for whoever wins the scavenger hunt, Rolf asks if it will be a jawbreaker and everyone else goes along with it before Double D can answer and runs off without letting him explain. Eventually, Double D tells Ed and Eddy that there is no jawbreaker, which is overheard by Rolf, Sarah, and Jimmy, who all accuse him of lying to them. Double D however points out he never once used the word "jawbreaker", they all just assumed it was the prize.
- Hidden Depths: Nazz is the only one of the kids that understands how to solve the scavenger hunt puzzles, possibly aside from Kevin, who just doesn't care enough to participate.
- Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique: "PINK BELLY! (slap!) PINK BELLY! (slap!)"
- Loophole Abuse: Rolf attempts this by filling his bag full of beets, reasoning "the humble beet is the answer to all riddles." Jimmy quickly accuses him of cheating.
- Madness Mantra: Double D plays with this. When he tells Ed and Eddy to attempt the first clue of his scavenger hunt, "When I grow up, I want to be a tree.", he becomes frustrated when they somehow think the answer is a watermelon and demand the "jawbreaker". He pulls an acorn out of a nearby tree and constantly repeats several times to them how an acorn becomes a tree, to their annoyance.Double D: I'm a little acorn, and when I grow up, I want to be A TREE! Acorn–BECOMES A TREE! Acorn–BECOMES TREE! Acorn–TREE!
- Never My Fault: The kids angrily blame Edd for lying to them about the prize being a jawbreaker, though Edd points out that he never used the word "jawbreaker" and that it was Rolf who brought it up. Rolf and Sarah even inflict a brutal Humiliation Conga on him upon finding out the real 'prize' (pelting him with beets before smashing Jonny's bag of junk on top of him). Rolf in particular stands out as he was the one who convinced everyone that a jawbreaker was the prize before Edd could even tell them (again, reminding Rolf that he never said it was).
- No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Double D tries to help the kids retain some intelligence during their break from school when he notices them acting dumb. But nobody takes his class seriously and only go along with it because they think he is offering a jawbreaker as a prize. When they find out there is no jawbreaker, they angrily attack him for having wasted their time and are still acting dim by the end of the episode.
- No-Respect Guy: Edd is this most of the time, but this episode takes it up to eleven as everyone is not paying attention to Edd at all and are being mean to him till the end.
- Oh, Crap!: Double D's reaction when a tumbling Jimmy accidentally rolls over the beetle he just finished incubating and releasing into nature. The beetle turns out to be fine, but Jimmy's subsequent response is the first of several acts of idiocy that sets off the plot.
- Oh, No... Not Again!: Jonny managing to get his head caught in between tree branches in such a way as to leave him hanging is met with this reaction by Edd.
- Only Sane Man: Even though all the kids were stupid, Kevin is an exception. He didn't have any stupid moments and was just pulled into the activity by Nazz instead of his own decision. Even his insult to Edd is more of a case of Jerkass Has a Point, since Edd inadvertently insulted himself while lecturing the class.
- Pet the Dog: Ed is the only one who doesn't laugh at Double D when Kevin insults him during class (with even Eddy laughing at him). Though this was due to confusion.
- Running Gag: Each of the kids expressing the exact same sentiment for Double D's scavenger hunt."This is so stupid."
- Scavenger Hunt: Edd uses this to get the cul-de-sac to learn more and understand culture better.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Kevin and Nazz leave when they realize that the scavenger hunt for the jawbreaker is pointless since the former already has a truckload of the candy or more in his garage.
- Solve the Soup Cans: Edd's scavenger hunt involves logic puzzles that would more likely discourage kids from wanting to learn about their environment.
- Surrounded by Idiots: Double D says this word for word at the end when he fails to educate any of the kids, and they fall for another one of Eddy's scams.Eddy: Who's complaining?
- Team Rocket Wins: To emphasize the kids are all in an exceptionally dim mood this episode, the Eds are last shown actually pulling off scams, much to Double D's annoyance.
- Tongue Twister: Ed dares Eddy to say "Toy boat" three times quickly. He's only able to say it twice himself before Eddy shoves him away.
- Took a Level in Dumbass: All the kids in the cul-de-sac except Double D, apparently because it's Summer Break and they all simply do not want to make an effort to use their brains.
- Two Scenes, One Dialogue: As Double D is ranting about the answer to the first clue to Ed and Eddy, Eddy speaks to Ed in a bored and unamused tone, with the scene cutting to Jimmy and Sarah about the same clue.Eddy: This is gonna take...
Sarah:...forever, Jimmy. This is stupid! - Undesirable Prize: The actual prize for the scavenger hunt is the "Reward of Higher Learning", a completely fake and useless diploma that absolutely nobody wants. Ironically, a jawbreaker would have been much more worthwhile.
