Release Date: February 3, 1996
Next Time, Phone Ahead: In a parody of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, an alien named Bo-Ron is found and cared for by Freakazoid, who tries to help him "phone home".
Nerdator: A Predator-like alien abducts Earth nerds (including Dexter) so he can steal their tech savvy.
Tropes Found in “Next Time, Phone Ahead”:
- Accidental Misnaming: "Goodbye, Red Underwear Man."
- All Just a Dream: After the writers attempt to end the episode early by having Dexter get eaten by the alien, Spielberg walks it back by claiming it was just a bad dream.
- Funny Background Event: Steff makes herself scarce when Freakazoid and Bo-Ron are trying on x-ray specs.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here / Self-Deprecation: Originally, the writers intended for Dexter to immediately get eaten by an alien. They figured they could go home early and just rerun Animaniacs. They're disappointed when Spielberg tells them they can't, especially given he initially agreednote .
- Serious Business: AT&T, MCI, and Sprint engage in a all-out war in order to become Bo-Ron's long distance carrier.
- Take That!: "Diane Sawyer acts sincere, but she's actually faking it."
Tropes Found in “Nerdator”:
- Biting-the-Hand Humor: After Steven Spielberg gets abducted, Freakazoid remarks, "At least now we won't have to listen to any more of those DreamWorks stories." During the abduction, Spielberg gives notes on the color of the abduction field, executive producing his own kidnapping.
- I Don't Want to Ruin Our Friendship: Freakazoid talks to Nerdator about the downsides of being a nerd, capping off with how all the cute girls will just want to be friends and nothing more. He immediately pulls out Steff, who says this. The Nerdator switches to abducting good-looking people so that he can harness their ability to get babes.
- Motor Mouth: Tom Snyder keeps talking over his guest, Pope John Paul II.
- Take That!:
- Fan Boy confuses William Shatner's hairpiece for a Tribble.
- When Dexter points out Newt Gingrich wasn't imprisoned, Nerdator says he isn't a nerd and calls him a chubby boy.
- Nerdator muses that without the nerds, the nations of the worlds will have to put "good looking but vapid airheads" in prominent positions. An Imagine Spot depicts Kato Kaelin struggling as President.
- You Wanna Get Sued?: Bill Gates is among those abducted, and Joe acknowledges how this could be risky.Joe: Soon after, the following incident occurred in the office of computer whiz, Bill Gates, whom I can mention by name because he happens to be a close, personal friend of Steven Spielberg, the executive producer of this fine program, so he probably won't sue us.
