On a trip to the 9/11 museum, Nick and Andrew sneak off to meet Jessi, Devon teaches Missy about code-switching, and Coach Steve gets a rude surprise.
Tropes in this episode:
- Actually Pretty Funny: Lena is very amused by Missy's insult that she "code-switches for pussy", purely because it's Missy saying "pussy".
- Birthday Episode: 9/11 is also Coach Steve's birthday. He does not take it well when he found out.
- Both Sides Have a Point: In the debate about code-switching, Lena is right in that on an ethical level it's unfair and dehumanizing for Black people to dampen their Black mannerisms to appeal to white peers. On the other hand DeVon and Lena's friend is right in that, on a practical level, it's unrealistic to try and navigate the world without ever code-switching when code-switching came to exist for a reason, like trying to engage with predominantly white business associates. Lena herself proves it when she code-switches for a white girl she's trying to hook up with. Missy comments on the exchange of ideas from both sides and agrees with both their reasoning.
- Breaking the Fourth Wall: Both Janssen twins and Missy do this.
- The twins directly talk to the viewer about how they can do nothing to protect their favorite characters from the twins' cabalistic tendencies.
- Missy mentions that she's voiced by a white actress who's 37 years old.
- Call-Back:
- A poster for Cafeteria Girls from the previous episode is seen in the subway during the song.
- Nick says that Jessi's only dating Michael Angelo to distract herself from the fact that her family's a fucked up mess.
- A Day in the Limelight: Devon gets a larger role in Missy's subplot when he teaches her about code-switching.
- Distracted by My Own Sexy: Devin is so fixated with taking selfies that she neither participates in the field trip nor notices that DeVon has gone off with Missy.
- Flipping the Bird: Missy tells Devin she is "keeping it 98 plus ONE and TWO", while giving her the double deuce.
- Foreshadowing: The end of the episode has Nick sadly looking out the window to the sound of mosquitos, foreshadowing that the Anxiety Mosquito will plague him again.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: DeVon's code switch has settings for "Black", "Liberal White", "Devin", "SUPA DUPA BLACK", "Pretzels", and "White".
- Funny Background Event: Connie's desktop wallpaper is a picture of her taking a bubba baff.
- Happy Birthday to You!: Coach Steve sings this to himself at the beginning, and Matthew leads the bus in singing it to him at the end.
- Holiday Episode: Parodied. 9/11 Remembrance Day is treated as a happy holiday in this episode.
- Hypocrite: Lena turns out to be one. She claims to be against code-switching, because it takes away her Blackness, but when she answers the door, she code-switches for a white girl she possibly has a thing for. Missy swiftly calls her out on this.
- Jerkass Ball: Matthew grabs it hard for most of the episode, by tricking Coach Steve (who was born on September 11th) into thinking the 9/11 memorial museum was built for him, as a joke. Even Caleb points out how insensitive that is.
- My God, What Have I Done?: After Coach Steve finds out what happened on 9/11, Matthew realizes how insensitive he was actually being about it.
- Coach Steve having this moment also leads to Matthew seeing him crying and feeling shitty about how he acted and, in the end, acts like a nice guy for once, celebrating Coach Steve's birthday and being a decent person to him.
- Of Course I Smoke: Michael Angelo is a vaper and Jessi tries to show she's cool by vaping as well. It goes as well as you think it would.
- Precision F-Strike: Missy does this when she gives Devin a "The Reason You Suck" Speech.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Missy tells Devin off for making fun of her new look and embracing her Black identity.
- Shipper on Deck: Mona suggests that Missy should get together with DeVon, but Missy sees him more as a friend.
- Shout-Out:
- A very subtle allusion to the 1940's romance film, To Have And Have Not, involves Michael Angelo' doing a take on the movie's famous line "You know how to whistle, don't you? You just put your lips together and blow."Michael Angelo: You know how to vape, don't you? You just put your lips together and suck.
- During the party, the characters debate about code-switching is commented to be comparable to Dear White People.
- Missy has a fantasy sequence based on the battle sequence from Black Panther where she imagines the debate about code-switching among her peers as the waterfall fight between T'Challa (DeVon) and Killmonger (Lena).
- A very subtle allusion to the 1940's romance film, To Have And Have Not, involves Michael Angelo' doing a take on the movie's famous line "You know how to whistle, don't you? You just put your lips together and blow."
- Shown Their Work: At one point, DeVon talks about "giving the 914". 914 is the area code for Westchester County, New York, where Big Mouth takes place.
- Skipping School: Nick, Andrew, DeVon, and Missy all ditch the trip to the 9/11 Memorial for their own purposes.
- Take That!: Matthew says that he though screwing with Coach Steve would be funny, but then he wasn't so sure, much like Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.
- Two-Timer Date: An odd example with Connie, who is the hormone monstress for Nick and Jessi both. This would normally not be a problem, as she can freely teleport between them and can choose who perceives her. The conflict of interests comes when they have opposing feelings about Jessi's new boyfriend Michael Angelo, and she gets her wires crossed on her opinion of him flipping between them. This ultimately, after a calling out by Maurice and a falling out with Nick, leads her to leave Nick and focus her full attention on Jessi, who she's been working on longer.
- Wham Episode: Connie steps away from being Nick's Hormone Monstress to stay only as Jessi's.
- Wham Line: Connie reveals another monster that hasn't shown up before, and hopefully never will.Connie: (about Michael Angelo) As soon as he showed up, no more Depression Kitty, no more Anxiety Mosquito, and no more Self-Harm Walrus.
Jessie: Who's that?
Connie: Ohhhhh, nobody. Don't worry about it. But do let me know if you see him. - What the Hell, Hero?: Caleb is quick to point out how insensitive Matthew is being towards Coach Steve and 9/11.
