Recap / Amphibia S3-E13 "Olivia & Yunan"

"I don't feel safe."

Back in Amphibia, Lady Olivia and General Yunan team up to rescue Marcy, but King Andrias' motives may bring their escape to tragic results.

Full Recap

The episode starts with a flashback of when Marcy first came to Amphibia. Lady Olivia shows the young human girl a magnificent view as she explains how her family has cared for the land for generations; Marcy, who is grateful for the Newts for taking her in and helping her, promises to do her part and help them however she can.

In the present, Olivia watches with sorrow as the Frobots are plundering the kingdom's resources turning it into a bleak wasteland. Just then, a Frobot arrives and informs her that she has been summoned by King Andrias; she meets up with General Yunan, where they sneak a peek into the king's chambers where he appears to be talking to himself; he is reluctant to go through with a certain plan but relents.

Andrias then summons the two of them in and gives them their assignments; Oliva will oversee the construction of some refineries as he plans to drain all of Amphibia of its resources while Yunan will round up some frogs and force them to work in factories.

Olivia has had enough of Andrias's tyranny and Yunan agrees that their king was completely deranged and they need to fight back. Olivia decides to rescue Marcy to help them, Yunan is reluctant because she sees the humans as "scheming backstabbers", but comes around when Olivia points out Marcy was the only one to defeat the king at Flipwart, so she is possibly the only one who can outthink him.

After they making their way to the lower chambers, the duo encounter a chained-up Moss Man and some Shadowfish roaming in the hallways; Olivia deduces that this was where the newts' ancestors kept their otherworldly prisoners.

Olivia and Yunan reach the room where Marcy is kept and break out of her healing chamber, and she is rendered loopy for a while as a side-effect of coming to. But just as they are about to make their getaway, the room projects holograms of their worst fears; for Olivia, her mother being disappointed in her as the image transforms into a monster, for Yunan, a horde of evil looking Grubhogs because one nearly bit her arm off as a kid and for Marcy, it's a vision of Anne and Sasha morphed together into a 2-headed giant reminding her about how she betrayed them and tell her they don't want anything to do with Marcy anymore. Yunan discovers that a bunch of robotic eyes covering the entire room are making the illusions and the 3 destroy them all.

After celebrating their victory, the trio try to escape again but they are stopped by Andrias who saw the whole thing thanks to a creepy eye hidden inside his crown. Just then, a mechanical multi-eyed monster with robotic tentacles appears before them and straps Marcy to a chair. Andrias explains that the creature is called the Core and it was the combined intellect of Amphibia's greatest minds. Andrias further explains that studying the Newtopian Moss Man to expand their medical knowledge and studying the Shadowfish allowed the ancients to cheat death, thus creating the entity. However, it desired a host which has to be the smartest, so it chose Marcy because as previously stated by Olivia, Marcy was the only one to defeat Leviathan at Flipwart. Andrias tried to convince the Core to find a different host, but alas. Marcy struggles, but it is pointless, as pipes are connected to her suit and a helmet is placed on her head. Olivia and Yunan watch in horror as Marcy screams in agony as the Core downloads its consciousness into her. The Core, now one with Marcy, forebodingly greets everyone.

* Cue ominous credits*

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Tropes:

• Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: The Core wants Marcy as its living host, because it seeks the best, the smartest creature and considers Marcy the perfect fit — because she beat Andrias at Flipwart.
• The Bad Guy Wins: Olivia and Yunan fail to rescue Marcy, who is taken over by the Core.
• Bait-and-Switch Comment: Andrias orders if any villagers resist, they should be given a stern talk... except he was kidding; they should be terminated instead.
• Berate and Switch:
  Olivia: That does it! I made a sacred vow to protect this land, and I cannot continue to stand idly by while King Andrias destroys it!
  Yunan: Lady Olivia! If you're going to talk treason...(grabs her and rushes her to a different corridor) I insist you do it in private!
• Both Sides Have a Point: Yunan and Olivia debate if saving Marcy is the best course of action, with Yunan being reluctant. On the one hand, most humans they've met have been "backstabbers", considering Yunan thwarted Sasha's coup and heard Andrias reveal that Marcy lied to her friends about the Calamity Box. Olivia brings up the counterpoint: they don't have many options and Marcy is said to be the smartest person they know. Even if they can't trust her wholeheartedly, she at least has a vested interest in stopping Andrias considering she risked her life to help her friends escape. Yunan concedes.
• Call-Back:
  • The mossman and the shadowfish from "The Sleepover to End All Sleepovers" come into play once more.
  • Yunan believes that all humans are 'scheming backstabbers', which is understandable when one considers that the human she's had the most interaction with was Sasha and her Toad army.
  • Marcy's feat of beating Andrias in a Flipwart match mentioned in "The First Temple" gets brought up again, firstly by Olivia pointing it out as proof that Marcy's got the brains they need to beat Andrias, secondly by Andrias himself when explaining why the Core chose Marcy as a suitable host for its vast intelligence.
  • It turns out Yunan's Trauma Button is a Grubhog. Far from being an Absurd Phobia, however, she reveals that one of them nearly took her arm off as a child, with an image of one of them biting down on her hand, since they do spit acid, just like Hop Pop warned Anne about.
• Cerebus Call-Back: Marcy's win against King Andrias in Flipwart is brought up again... as one of the main reasons why the Core declares her the perfect host for them.
• Chekhov's Gun:
  • Yunan takes Marcy's crossbow with her before going into the secret passageway. During the fight against the Core's Lotus-Eater Machine, she hands Marcy the crossbow to deliver the final blow on that last remaining eye projector when it's too high up for them to reach it themselves.
  • Andrias' Cool Crown turns out to be one, as it actually contains a device that allows his master to directly communicate with him mentally, allowing him to be aware of Olivia and Yunan's attempted rescue because the Core is always watching them.
• The Chooser of the One: The Core chose Marcy as its human host due to her smartness and high IQ and the fact she was the only one to beat Andrias at Flipwart.
• Continuity Nod: The flashback at the start of the episode shows Marcy with a broken leg that she got from falling down a long flight of stairs upon arriving in Amphibia back in her Theme Song Takeover.
• Corrupt the Cutie: The Core transfers its consciousness into Marcy, therefore, putting her on the side of evil.
• Credits Gag: The credits list the name of "Darcy" next to Marcy's name, which likely refers to the form Marcy takes on after being possessed by the Core.
• Darker and Edgier: This episode is the darkest the show has ever gotten to the point where the end credits are just a dark background with a soft yet creepy sound to boot.
• A Day in the Limelight: For the first time in the series, Olivia and Yunan are given the protagonist treatment as they rebel against Andrias and try to rescue Marcy.
• Disappointed in You: The Core conjures Olivia's fear of disappointing her mother by allowing the destruction of Amphibia's nature under her watch. Since it's not drawn directly from Olivia's mind, this means that the Core is aware of Olivia's regrets and hang-ups with the damage Andrias is doing to Amphibia in the name of following it's grand plans... and it's crafting the illusion specifically to mock her emotional anguish over her powerlessness to prevent the Scenery Gorn.
• Do Wrong, Right: When Olivia starts ranting about King Andrias' tyranny and her vow to protect the kingdom, Yunan takes her aside... and urges Olivia that if she must talk of treason, it's best to do so in private where she won't be overheard by anyone.
• Downer Ending: Andrias stops Olivia and Yunan before they can escape with Marcy, and Marcy is forced to be the host for a Mind Hive of Amphibia's greatest geniuses.
• Entertainingly Wrong: Yunan sees Andrias talking to himself and, not knowing about the Core, concludes that Andrias has gone mad and is no longer fit to rule.
• Ethereal Choir: When the Core shackles Marcy in a throne, is downloaded into her body and rises from her as the new host, this plays in the background.
• Evil Costume Switch: Before Marcy becomes a human host for the Core, she is put in a black mech-suit with an orange eye-shaped jewel on her chest. What completes this ensemble is an eye-obscuring helmet with axolotl gills as horns.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Andrias invokes this by saying he's always liked Marcy and begged the Core to find an alternative host, and looks away with a dismayed expression as it takes her over. However, it's undercut by what he did to her with his own hands and how he helps the Core take her over, showing how he's not willing to allow sentiment to stand in the way of his master's grand plans.
• Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor: Andrias hammers home his Faux Affably Evil nature by cheerfully telling Yunan to give the frogs a stern talking to if they refuse to be used as slave labor... and as she lets out a sigh of relief, he casually adds that he was joking and orders her to kill everyone who resists.
• Facepalm of Doom: The Core extends a tentacle to snatch Marcy by the face so she can be strapped down for possession.
• Fade Around the Eyes: This happens at the end of the episode after the Core successfully downloads itself into Marcy.
• Fantastic Racism: Initially, Yunan is against rescuing Marcy claiming that humans are all "scheming backstabbers", which is understandable given she's had front-line experience with Sasha and her toad army and got a front-row seat to Marcy's admittance of tricking her friends in "True Colors". Though she does get over it upon realizing that they don't have many options in stopping Andrias.
• Final Speech: Marcy says, "What...what is this? Huh?" just before the Core is downloaded into her consciousness.
• Fisher King: When Amphibia is under Scenery Gorn control by Andrias, it becomes dull, drab, and a total living prison planet—though, given Andrias is actually deferring to The Core's orders and plans without any of his subject's awareness, it's really under the control of an uncaring Hive Mind's rule that things are going to hell.
• Flashback: The episode opens with Marcy admiring the view from the castle, her leg in a cast from falling down a flight of stairs, as shown in her Theme Song Takeover.
• Foregone Conclusion: The season sneak peek shows Marcy being taken over by Andrias's multi-eyed master, so naturally Olivia and Yunan's mission will not be successful.
• Foreshadowing:
  • Olivia and Yunan witness Andrias apparently talking to himself in an empty room, taking it as a sign he's gone truly insane and needs to be stopped. However, the viewer is aware from his word choice that he's actually somehow talking to his master, and the episode's end reveals that his Cool Crown has a device that allows Andrias direct communication with it and vice versa, allowing it to alert him when Yunan and Olivia attempt to rescue Marcy.
    • In a few shots there are some tapestries that depict a crown with an orange eye in the center. And when Andrias reveals that he's been monitoring Yunan, Olivia and Marcy trying to escape, an orange eye is revealed in the center of his crown.
  • Yunan tells Olivia rumors that Marcy is being guarded down in the basement by a horrible monster. Sure enough, Marcy's is being kept in the same room where Andrias met with his master in "The First Temple", and its interference is what stops the duo's rescue attempt.
  • Olivia speaks to Marcy in the flashback at the beginning about how she used to stand on the same balcony they are on now and swore an oath to her mother to protect Amphibia and its natural habitats and creatures, as is their duty as the world's rulers. Olivia's grief at witnessing Andrias's massive deforestation when mining the land of all available resources is ultimately what pushes her past the breaking point with her king, and the Core later uses an illusion of her deceased mother to torment Olivia over her guilt for failing to uphold her oath. Similarly, Olivia teases Yunan when she tells her Marcy is being guarded by a horrible monster, asking if the 'great general' is scared of some rumors. Whilst Yunan brushes it off, the Core later does exploit her actual fears against her, creating an illusion of the one beast in Amphibia Yunan fears — a Grubhog — to distract her long enough for Andrias to thwart their rescue.
  • When Marcy is freed from her chamber, her suit is shown to have an ominous eye jewel on the chest, in the same vein as those as the Core when it first appeared in "The First Temple". This could serve as a literal foreshadowing to the Core choosing her as its host.
    • Also, there's some Amphibian writing on Marcy's tank, when decoded, it translates to the word "host", which also refers to the fact that the Core is in need of a host, that of which is Marcy.
  • The Core's valuing of intelligence is subtly foreshadowed in the illusions it creates against the Trio. Both Marcy and Olivia's are complex creations that speak to them and morph their forms to symbolise their target's greatest fears and regrets, whereas the comparative Dumb Muscle Yunan's is just a large monster that does nothing but roar at her, showcasing that the Core is placing more emphasis on distracting and demoralising the 'smarter' characters in the room. Fittingly, it's Yunan who discovers the Achilles' Heel of the illusions by complete accident, mainly because the Core wasn't paying enough attention to her and her illusionary distractions and allowed her to stumble too close to the eye projectors lining the walls.
• Freeze-Frame Bonus: In Marcy's projection, there's a prom invitation on the wall behind her, with both answers being yes (one with hearts around it). When Anne and Sasha merge, the school crest on their uniform becomes a heart shape.
• Go for the Eye: Once they realize the eyes lining the walls are projectors, Yunan, Olivia, and Marcy start smashing them to escape the illusion.
• Grand Theft Me: The Core uploads itself into Marcy to have a living host in order to progress its plans, though it was apparently created in the first place precisely to avoid its individual minds' natural death.
• Hammerspace: Oliva somehow has a blanket, a cup and a teapot behind her back, which she produces out of nowhere for Marcy after she and Yunan fish her out of the tank.
• Happy Flashback: The episode opens with Olivia introducing herself to an overexcited Marcy as the two express eagerness in working together for Newtopia's prosperity. It then cuts to the present featuring Olivia alone watching the deforestation of the natural environment.
• Heel–Face Turn: Downplayed as they were never really aware of the extent of Andrias's evil when they supported him as their king and liege, and have only stuck with him thus far because they had little choice in the matter and no way off his Ominous Floating Castle, but this episode sees Olivia and Yunan officially cut ties with Andrias for Marcy's sake.
• Hell Is That Noise:
  • The Core's screech as it introduces itself to Olivia, Yunan and Marcy.
  • Marcy's scream as the Core uploads itself into her is a stuff of nightmares.
• Hope Spot: The episode comes close to showing Marcy, Yunan, and Olivia fending off the Core's attempts to trap them by going for the eye laser projections. Unfortunately, the Core is more than fancy weaponry, and it won't give up on using Marcy as a host.
• Immediate Self-Contradiction: Yunan takes offense at the idea that she isn't smart enough to defeat Andrias. Then she nearly impales herself with her Wolverine Claws and concedes the point.
• Immortality Seeker: Doubles as Mortality Phobia. The greatest minds of Amphibia used to kidnap creatures from other worlds for their healing powers or abilities of cheating death, resulting in a collective Mind Hive, known as the Core. And now it wants Marcy as its living host because of her intelligence.
• Implied Death Threat: King Andrias tells Olivia and Yunan if anyone resists, they are to be eliminated. It’s clear by anyone, he also means they’re not exempt from this either.
• Intoxication Ensues: Marcy is a little loopy from whatever drugs are being pumped into the healing tank. Some adrenaline from the Lotus-Eater Machine helps snap out of it for the most part, though she's still physically weak.
• Jerkass Has a Point: The fear-induced hallucinations of Anne and Sasha call out Marcy for her selfishness, lying, and betrayal. Despite just being illusionary creations from the mechanical Core and not coming from Marcy's self-consciousness, her instant agreement with their condemnations shows that she agrees that with hindsight; her decision to transport them to Amphibia was "dumb" as she puts it.
• Kick the Morality Pet: King Andrias turns out to genuinely like Marcy and tries to talk the Core out of using her as a host, but it won't accept anyone else and he can't refuse its demands. There's also the fact that, whilst he does express discomfort when the Core is actually downloading itself into Marcy, he's pretty blunt and expresses what seems to be condescending pity to her face when informing her of her upcoming fate, whereas when Yunan and Olivia eavesdropped on him before, he sounded more genuinely concerned about their chances of successfully transferring into Marcy, implying that he's ultimately more concerned for the core's wellbeing over Marcy herself.
• Lack of Empathy:
  • Zigzagged. Andrias shows absolutely no remorse for the mass deforestation his robots are causing to Amphiba, his ancestor's traditional home, even looking forward to draining "this pitiful mud ball" of all its remaining resources, and tasks Yunan with conscripting frogs to build more factories to produce his robots, even outright telling her to terminate any dissenters. However, he does show genuine fondness for Marcy after the Core chooses her as its suitable host and tried to dissuade it from that course of action, even being unwilling to watch as she's possessed in the end. That said, he still helps the Core take her over, showing how sentimental feelings aren't enough to dissuade him from his course of action.
  • Played straight with The Core though. Though necessary for it to thoroughly distract and disorient the trio long enough for Andrias to reach them, several of its illusions against Marcy and Olivia contain overly-elaborate details that dig into their emotional vulnerabilities, making it clear that the core is aware of their guilt and self-loathing for the situation they're in...and it doesn't care. It straps Marcy into the chair necessary for it to download into her in a pretty violent way, treating her as just a resource it needs to use for the next stage of its plans and indifferent to her feeble resistance against it.
• The Man Behind the Man: The Core is this for Andrias, making it the true Big Bad of the series.
• Matrix Raining Code: When the Core takes over Marcy's body, streams of code flood down its eyes and through the tubes into her.
• Mix-and-Match Critters: In Olivia's flashback, among the animals that are seen are a group of what look like deer mixed with beetles.
• Monochromatic Impact Shot: The scene from where Marcy is possessed by the Core is punctuated with a blood curdling scream over a 2 frame animation of her recoiling in pain. Said animation switches between Marcy being all black against a red background and vice versa.
• More Teeth than the Osmond Family: The projections based on Olivia and Yunan's pasts sport these when turning violent against them, so as to better freak their targets out and distract them long enough for Andrias to reach the room.
• My God, What Have I Done?: When an amalgamation of Sasha and Anne appear, they call out Marcy for how she lied to them and betrayed them in favor of pursuing a fantasy adventure. Marcy can only fall to her knees and apologize, admitting that what she did was really "dumb". Notably, Marcy is the first of the trio to realize that they're being faced by fake illusions to distract them, but seeing Anne and Sasha again brings all her guilt and self-loathing for her mistake to the forefront, causing her to lose herself in the illusion until Yunan helps snap her out of it.
• Newhart Phonecall: Andrias has one with the Core when they discuss with Andrias that they wish to use Marcy as their new vessel. And it is all made possible thanks to the special crown that he wears on his head.
• No Peripheral Vision: The frobots can only see straight ahead, which allows Yunan to scale the walls with Olivia without being spotted. The Illusion the Core creates against the Trio later on also depends on them having it, with Marcy instantly realising the fakeness of their hallucinatory enemies when she looks up and sees the 'sky' projected by the eye runs out at the room's ceiling.
• Nothing Personal: King Andrias makes it clear letting his master take Marcy as a host isn’t anything personal, his unease being mostly a concern about using an untested process on her. But, they needed Marcy’s intelligence here and now, so they couldn’t wait. If anything, that actually makes it worse, because it shows Andrias is willing to endanger the well-being of even those few people he genuinely cares about if it's for the sake of his master.
• Not Worth Killing: King Andrias doesn't immediately execute Olivia or Yunan for their treason. Instead, he makes them watch as the Core assimilates Marcy. But, that means his master can decide what to do with them.
• Oh, Crap!:
  • When the simulation changes to a school hallway, Marcy knows what she's about to face. Then when Andrias tells her that the Core wants her as its living host.
  • The Core once Marcy and Yunan realize how to escape the simulation.
  • Marcy just before the Core possesses her, followed by Olivia and Yunan when they witness such.
• Out-Gambitted: The girls manage to destroy the Core's nightmare projections, but the distraction bought more than enough time for Andrias to intercept them at the stairs once they finally broke free.
• Out of the Frying Pan: Olivia and Yunan rescue Marcy from the healing vat, facing a chamber that generates their individual worst fears. After destroying the scanner eyes, the trio is about to make a break for it, only to be stopped by Andrias, who zombifies Marcy inside the Core.
• Painful Transformation: Let's just say the process of the Core downloading itself into Marcy is far from painless.
• Planet Looters: Andrias declares it's time to strip the whole of Amphibia of all its resources before moving on, and it's implied the same fate awaits Earth if he has his way.
• Polluted Wasteland: The area for several miles around Newtopia has been stripped of nearly all greenery, and replaced with mines and smoke-belching factories to fuel Andrias's war machine.
• Rage Breaking Point: Olivia reaches hers when Andrias appoints her to oversee the total deforestation of Amphibia, which goes against her family's sacred vow.
• The Reveal:
  • The mossmen and shadowfish are entities from another world.
  • Andrias's master is known as the Core, a gestalt of Amphibia's greatest minds preserved after their deaths.
  • Andrias's Cool Crown isn't just for show: it's a device that allows him to communicate and be aware of The Core's surroundings and vice versa.
  • The Core wants to use Marcy as their next body because they believe her intelligence makes her the perfect host.
• Roaring Rampage of Rescue: Subverted. Confronted by a hallway filled with robot guards (who do not have peripheral vision), Olivia despairs of being able to get past them, only for Yunan to pick her up piggyback style and leap into the air, unleashing her Wolverine Claws and looking like she's going to carve her way through the entire hallway. However, she instead uses them as grappling hooks to gain purchase on the ceiling to swing their way past the guards overhead, avoiding a noisy direct confrontation in order to try and free Marcy stealthily.
• Sadist: Heavily implied to be the case for The Core. The elaborate illusions it crafts against Marcy and Olivia contain details present in their monstrous forms that serve no purpose beyond mocking them for how badly they feel they've failed at protecting what mattered most to them. Olivia's mother turns into a machine-newt hybrid monster belching factory smoke, whose lower half is comprised of polluted Earth and strewn with Amphibian bones, symbolising how the environmental devastation will kill not only the creatures of Amphibia, but the people as well, something that clearly upsets her. The Two-headed Anne/Sasha hybrid that mocks Marcy for selfishly betraying them and claims her friend want nothing to do with her anymore has the St James emblem on their chest turn into a heart as they do so, symbolising how much Marcy loved her friendship with the duo and how awful she feels for metaphorically breaking their hearts with her Dark Secret. And whilst not necessary for its plans for Marcy, it has Andrias outline exactly what's about to happen to her before it begins the conversation process, and keeps itself hidden inside the room for the entireety of Olivia and Yunan's attempted rescue apparently out of amusement for their futile efforts, when it could have physically interfered at any point.
• Scenery Gorn: Newtopia has been reduced to a barren wasteland thanks to Andrias's armies strip-mining it for resources. Andrias makes it clear that he aims to keep this going until the whole planet looks like that.
• The Scream: Marcy lets out a loud, bloodcurdling scream as the Core begins to download itself into her.
• Sequel Hook: Marcy is captured by Andrias and becomes the human host for his master, the Core. Anne is going to be in for quite the shocker.
• Silent Credits: Instead of the usual end theme, the credits play with a dark background with a spooky sound being used to fill the silent void, presumably to avoid underselling the serious nature of Marcy's current fate. Due to Credits Pushback, this did not appear when the episode aired on Disney Channel.
• Sinister Surveillance: The Core turns out to be capable of communicating directly with Andrias through a device hidden in his Cool Crown, allowing it to warn him when they attempt to rescue Marcy. Disturbingly, since it doesn't seem to scan their minds to create the projections it used to Mind Rape and distract them, it seems like the Core has somehow always been doing this to the inhabitants of Newtopia, even able to bring up Yunan's childhood Trauma Button to distract her.
• Shackle Seat Trap: The Core places Marcy onto a throne that immediately straps her wrists and ankles in before the Brain Uploading begins.
• Shadow Discretion Shot: This happens when the axolotl-shaped helmet lowers onto Marcy and how she feels the excruciating pain when she becomes corrupted by the Core.
• Shout-Out:
  • Olivia's mother has seashells as hair decorations which make her look like Princess Leia.
  • The Core being a tentacled abomination that is a collection of Amphibia's greatest minds is reminiscent of the Supreme Intelligence.
• Special Edition Title: Instead of the upbeat season 3 outro with Anne and the Plantars, this episode's outro is instead completely dark with orange text and ominous music, fitting the dark tone of the episode.
• Talking to Themself: Subverted. Olivia and Yunan initially believe Andrias is doing this, leading them to think he was becoming a mad king. Turns out that he was having a telepathic conversation with the Core.
• Too Dumb to Live: Yunan nearly stabs herself in the face with her Wolverine Claws due to casually mishandling them. She acknowledges this.
• Trailers Always Spoil: The sneak peek of season 3 showed Marcy being possessed by the Core, so the scene where it happens doesn't come as much of a surprise, nor does the fact that Olivia and Yunan fail to rescue her.
• True Companions: Despite the extent of Andrias's forces and firepower, not to mention the historical loyalty all newts would have known to Andrias as their ruler for 1000 years, Olivia and Yunan still turn against him to save their strange human friend from his machinations, if only because she's the only hope they have of outsmarting him.
• Uncertain Doom:
  • The land around Newtopia has become incredibly polluted and toxic, patrolled constantly by Frobots mining the land for its resources, but a brief shot of the city shows that it's still standing despite the drastic changes to the landscape around it and the Royal palace tearing its way out of the center of the city. However, nothing is seen of the citizens who were outside the palace when Andrias revealed his true nature, leaving the fate of all the Newtopian inhabitants Anne and the Plantars met unclear.
  • By the episode's end, Yunan and Olivia have been cornered by Andrias and the possessed Marcy after their opposition to their continued plans have been made clear, trapped deep in the basement of the Ominous Floating Castle with no way out and surrounded by Andrias's forces. The episode ends before their ultimate fate is resolved. Andrias did say any who resists will be eliminated after all…
  • Finally, Marcy herself fully recovers from the impalement she suffered at Andrias's hands, but now that she's healthy again, the Core wastes no time in downloading itself into her mind and body. It's unclear exactly what has become of Marcy's own mind once it succeeds, but the likely outcome doesn't paint a good picture.
• Unfinished, Untested, Used Anyway: Andrias tries to tell the Core that the Brain Upload device to transfer it into Marcy hasn't been tested, but it insists on gaining its new host immediately.
• Voice of the Legion:
  • The projections of Olivia's mother, Anne and Sasha all have their voices accompanied by a deep voice.
  • After Marcy's been taken over by the Core, she speaks with a deep, robotic echo, almost similar to Anne when she goes into her Super Mode.
    Darcy: Why, hello there.
• We Will Use Manual Labor in the Future: Zigzagged. Andrias has already begun strip-mining Amphibia of its resources, a task that his robots can accomplish entirely on their own. However, he is building factories that will require frog labor, so he tasks Yunan with rounding up villagers for that purpose.
• Wham Episode: Yunan and Olivia officially defect from King Andrias but fail to save Marcy, who ends up possessed by the Core.
• "What Do They Fear?" Episode: The Core is able to use a combination of gas and laser projection to create realistic illusions to trap intruders, using their fears against them. Disturbingly, it doesn't seem to scan the target's minds to create the personalized illusions needed to distract or break them, implying it's drawing on its own knowledge and intimate understanding of the target to do so, hinted to be a result of the Core observing all denizens of Newtopia for an extremely long time. Yunan's, in particular, implies that the Core has been watching her and all others since her childhood at least.
• Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Yunan is revealed to be scared of grubhogs because she was attacked by one as a child.
• Wingding Eyes:
  • Marcy gets dizzy eyes after rushing and tripping to destroy the hologram eyes.
  • In the flashback, at one point Marcy gets brown Anime-like eyes.
• Xanatos Gambit: The Core senses the Newts trying to rescue Marcy, and it can either trap them in their worst nightmares, or if in case that fails, it has already summoned King Andrias to take care of them himself.
  • Even before that, it's implied Andrias was running a Secret Test of Character on both Yunan and Olivia, giving them tasks that he should know both would find distasteful, especially Olivia's, to see whether or not their loyalty or fear of him was stronger. If they complied with the tasks, then regardless of their motives, they're still useful to him and he can keep them around. If they finally decide they've had enough and seek to rebel against him, his master appears to be capable of somehow observing all inhabitants of Newtopia all the time and is mentally connected to him through the device in his Cool Crown, allowing him to be alerted the instant they try to upset his plans and catch them off-guard before they can do any serious damage.
• You Monster!: Yunan outright calls Andrias a maniac to his face, and she doesn't regret it one bit. Like the last time someone called him evil, he shrugs it off, more focused with explaining the Core's origins to the point it doesn't even seem to have registered.

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