When Jimmy is told by Kevin that fairy-tales don't exist he becomes sadden and tries to convince himself they are real. When the Eds' Fairy-tale scam goes wrong Sarah and Jimmy team up to punish them. In a subplot, whenever the main plot's characters say the word "baloney" out loud, Rolf becomes paranoid they're literally referring to his huge stash of said meat.
"Tinker Ed" includes examples of:
- An Aesop: Fairy tales aren’t real and you just have to accept that.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Jimmy and Sarah succeed in capturing humiliating photos of the Eds (or just Edd and Eddy) as payback for the unicorn scam.
- Balloon Belly: Rolf gets one after attempting to ensure nobody eats his stash of bologna in a panic.
- Captain Obvious: Edd when he describes Jimmy and Sarah set them all up in the end.Edd: They were all part of a genius, elaborate hoax!
- Dragged into Drag: Eddy as a fairy princess and Edd as a mermaid wearing a bikini top.
- Growing Up Sucks: After Jimmy's belief in fairy tales is broken, Edd feels guilty, but Eddy states he'll get over it, being reminded of the time his big brother told him cartoons weren't real.Ed: (shocked) Say it isn't so, Eddy!Eddy: Yep, growing up sure stinks.
- Hypocrite: So it's perfectly acceptable for Kevin to insult Jimmy's childlike belief in Fairy-Tales that sends him into a saddened state, but if the Eds' pull a scam gone wrong based on the same principle, they get punished?
- I Am Big Boned: When Ed quickly comments Eddy has a "big butt", Eddy defensively retorts he "ate a big breakfast".
- I Want My Mommy!: Rolf begs his mama come to his aid when he is in gastroenteric pain from eating too much bologna.
- Literal-Minded: Rolf doesn't realize that "load of bologna" is a figure of speech, and thinks everyone is referring to the actual load of bologna he secretly keeps in his backpack. He eventually becomes so paranoid that everyone is after it he devours it all himself to keep anyone else from getting it.
- Running Gag: Kevin and Eddy yelling about fairytales being a "load of baloney" leads Rolf to think they somehow know about his secret stash of bologna in his backpack.
- Took a Level in Jerkass:
- Jimmy and Sarah once again. While yes, the Eds did scam Jimmy, Jimmy's own depressed state came from Kevin's harsh criticism. While the Eds do add some fuel to the situation, the fact that Jimmy reveals he was never depressed to begin with. In addition, Jimmy and Sarah humiliating the Eds earn them their biggest Jerkass Ball points, as it basically implies they all planned this from the start. Jimmy's manipulative nature here even rivals the infamous "If it Smells Like an Ed".
- It's Jimmy's own fault Kevin yelled at him in the first place, given he was running around the library and shrieking his head off while Kevin was trying to study.
- Villain Has a Point: The Eds are trying to help Jimmy retain his beliefs through their usual antics. But even they have a point: fairy tales like Aladdin aren't real, and at some point, you have to accept that fairy tales are just that. The problem with this episode is that Eddy and Kevin are played as the antagonist for trying to snap Jimmy back to reality - even though they technically are jerks about it, they're still right in their assessments.
