Roger realizes that the reason he came to Earth was a lie and has nothing to show for it. Meanwhile, Toshi challenges Steve to a hotdog eating contest.
Tropes:
- Bait-and-Switch: Stan leaves a voicemail trying to warn about the death dogs, ending it with "I love you, kiddo," then reveals he was actually calling Toshi instead of Steve.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: As he gets ready to leave in his ship and destroy Earth, Roger comments that he liked Francine and he's genuinely sad that she's going to die.
- Dude, Not Funny!:
- The catalyst of the B-plot, is Steve using Toshi's chopsticks to jokingly pretend he's a walrus, not knowing that said utensils were made from the bones of Toshi's great-grandmother.note
- On a smaller scale, Francine is not amused by the baby outfit (for baby she didn't have, mind you) from one of Stan's coworkers depicting Che Guevara, pointing out how he was a murderer.
- Gilligan Cut: Roger tells Stan about his secret death dogs, and that he hid them in the one place that Stan will never, ever find them. Then we cut to Stan heading for the refrigerator with Roger desperately trying to deny that they're in there.
- Hidden Disdain Reveal: Roger makes it clear he doesn't care about Steve, Hayley, and Klaus dying when Earth supposedly gets destroyed.
- I'm Standing Right Here: Thinking they're dying, Steve tells Toshi that he was his only friend who wasn't poor or fat, with Snot and Barry standing right next to them.
- It's All About Me: Deconstructed, as Roger's selfishness and inconsiderate attitude are taken by the nose in this episode. He's spent all his years on Earth believing that he was the "decider", and lording his position over everyone else, developing a huge superiority complex. However, after learning that he's not the most important person in the world, he's emotionally crushed, and it takes months for him to emerge out of the attic. Even after getting a job, Roger constantly looks for a position of superiority over others, to the point where he keeps a supply of toxic hot dogs just so he can lord something over others. Even at the very end, Roger hasn't learned a thing, as when Stan gives him his epipen and declares he is in charge of using it if he needs it, Roger deliberately poisons him to get an excuse to use it, then has to have Francine scream at him to actually use it. And even then, he used the pen himself to extend a drug high that very night.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Steve and Toshi avoided certain death because Toshi's mother insisted the hot dogs Francine brought weren't good enough. Hiko immediately points out she was proven right, reminding Francine her hot dogs would've killed their sons.
- Laser-Guided Karma: For giving him hell the entire episode and refusing to let up even when he made an effort to do something, Stan nearly dies of anaphylaxis when Roger intentionally gives him cookies laced with shellfish (which Stan is deathly allergic to). And it's implied he uses his words against him, as presumably Stan will think twice before questioning Roger calling himself a "decider".
- Morality Pet: Francine's established to be one for Roger, as the one person he'd actually miss when Earth gets destroyed (but not enough to not try and destroy the planet, mind you).Roger: You know Stan it's too bad. I actually liked Francine. The rest of them can go suck it but Francine I'm sorry to see die.
- No OSHA Compliance: Roger's species uses live subjects as crash test dummies when testing the safety features of their spacecraft.
- Oh, Crap!: Stan initially laughs off Roger's claim that he's "the decider," until he sees he really does have a spaceship.
- Overly Long Gag: Stan laughs at Roger the entire way back to the house, from their flight back to Virginia up until the moment he walks in the door.
- Retcon: In "Threat Levels," while we only see her while Steve is discussing his plan, Toshi's mother resembled an older, female version of himself. Here we see Hiko in person and she has a far different design.
- The Reveal: Roger had long thought that he was "the decider," who would decide whether or not Earth would be destroyed by his people. But in truth, he was a crash test dummy.
- Selective Obliviousness: Francine pretends she can't understand Hiko even though she's speaking English.
- Weaponized Allergy: After Stan gives Roger responsibility for holding the epipen for his shellfish allergy Roger wastes no time feeding him cookies laced with shellfish so he has an excuse to use it. Unfortunately, he'd used the pen on himself earlier to extend a drug high.
