Someone's cast a Hex on this Bad Future...
Gwen tries to prevent the accident that mutates Kevin at the start of the season from happening by time-travelling. Althrough she succeeds at it, this creates an Alternate Universe where Hex and Charmcaster have won against the team and have taken over the world.Tropes:
- Bad Future: ...or at least a bad present. By preventing Kevin's accident from happening, his mutation, that would have been the key to win a fight against Hex and Charmcaster, doesn't exist, so the team loses, the world is under the villains' control, Ben is captured at one of their bases, Gwen is outright murdered, and Kevin is forcibly transformed into a rock monster and serves under Charmcaster.
- Brick Joke: When Gwen shares a gross secret to prove to her past self she's her future self, she states that she could've told her their locker number instead of the disgusting secret that was whispered. When Gwen goes back again, she convinces her past self that she's not an imposter by saying "The lock on our locker is broken. We just leave it hanging there so it looks closed".
- Brutal Honesty: When Gwen asks what happened to the world, Paradox matter-of-factly tells her that she happened.
- Continuity Nod: Gwen is shown wearing her old Lucky Girl outfit when sneaking into Hex's library to steal the Archamada Book of Magic.
- A Day in the Limelight: This episode focuses entirely on Gwen as she attempts to find a way to undo Kevin's mutation.
- Day of the Jackboot: Hex has created a dystopia with posters of himself stamped over skyscrapers, and speakers attached to cars demanding that everyone surrender.
- Dead Alternate Counterpart: In the universe where Ben and co. lost to Charmcaster, she ultimately manages to kill Gwen.
- Foreshadowing:
- When warning Gwen not to do this, Paradox summarizes her plan as going back in time, preventing the explosion that mutated Kevin, and everything will be fine again. He says she'll be two for three on that, hinting at how Kevin's mutated form will keep the world safe.
- Adding onto the above, Paradox notes that sometimes to do something, all you have to do is nothing. As the series finale will reveal, Kevin's mutation is only in effect because of the Omnitrix, and the series of events that result in its destruction is what turns him back to normal. In other words, Gwen really didn't have to do anything to help Kevin get back to normal.
- Godzilla Threshold: Gwen attempts time travel because everything else she tried to cure Kevin has failed.
- Got Me Doing It: Happens when Gwen discovers her alternate self is dead:Gwen: No! Dead? Me?!
Paradox: Yes, dead, you. ...Why are we talking like this? - Hero Killer: In the altered timeline, Charmcaster killed Gwen and looks forward to getting to do so again.
- Hero of Another Story: According to Paradox, in this altered timeline, Ben continued to fight solo for some time before finally being captured. When Gwen finally meets him, he's badly hurt and emotionally damaged, but he still buys time to fight Hex.
- I Warned You: Paradox explicitly warns Gwen to not attempt time travel and that the fallout will be quite severe.
- Lampshade Hanging: As ever, Paradox is cryptic with his warnings.Gwen: You're not making any sense.
Paradox: I'm often accused of that. - Life Saving Misfortune: In the grand scheme of things, Kevin's mutation was this to Gwen. Were it not for the mutation, Hex and Charmcaster would've taken over the world, leading to the latter killing Gwen.
- Meaningful Name: "Time Heals" seems to just be put there as a time-traveling pun. But in the grand scheme of things, it reflects what Paradox is trying to tell Gwen: time heals all wounds. Even if she feels guilty for Kevin's mutation in the here and now, she'll see in good time that the mutation was meant to be. And perhaps, with time, there is hope that Kevin's mutation can be reversed the right way.
- My Greatest Failure: How Gwen describes letting Ben and Kevin hack the Omnitrix.Past Gwen: Are you sure?
Gwen: You will never forgive yourself, if you let this happen. - Noodle Incident: Apparently, Gwen has a secret that's so gross, she's disgusted hearing it from herself. Naturally, the viewers don't get to hear it.
- Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory: Gwen and Paradox have one as a result of time travelling, while Hex has one due to "magic power".
- Set Right What Once Went Wrong: Towards the end, Gwen averts her previous self's attempt to prevent Kevin's mutation. Thus, Kevin is mutated as scheduled. This in turn prevents Charmcaster and Hex from taking over the world. In the end, Paradox stops by to briefly savor that thanks to Gwen fixing her mistake, all's right with the world again.
- Stealth Hi/Bye: Paradox, much to Gwen's frustration.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Gwen going back in time to prevent the accident results in a world ruled by Hex and Charmcaster. Paradox explains that the villains won because Kevin didn't have the extra power from his mutated form.
- What If?: This episode shows what would've happened if Charmcaster won during the events of In Charm's Way.
- You Fool!: Paradox tells Gwen that time travel is only for "immortals and fools". After she changes time for the worse, he reiterates this, saying "I'm the only immortal here. You do the math".
