Hank finds himself disillusioned when he gets the job of feeding Buck Strickland's dogs instead of managing Strickland Propane, whom Buck gets an associate with a business degree to do so, and even more so, when he learns Buck has an electric stove and how he doesn't care about the propane business.
Tropes in the Episode:
- Actually Pretty Funny: When Bobby does the "saved your life" bit by jerking Hank's steering wheel back and forth, Hank gets the joke and laughs.
- Angrish: Buck shows a lot of this when he's in the hospital yelling at Vickers for the latter's stupidity. It's revealed that he's passing by a group of nuns collecting for charity, and he's restraining himself from swearing.
- Artistic License – Cars: Tow truck drivers who need to tow a vehicle carrying hazardous materials are also required to have a license for hazardous materials. Propane bobtail trucks are Class B vehicles, so a driver towing them would need a Class A license with a hazardous materials endorsement.
- Big Damn Heroes: With Buck lamenting how Strickland Propane is finished due to his decision to trust Vickers (who proceeded to screw things up royally) and Hank being unable to drive the propane trucks due to them not having Hazmat certifications, Hank points out the tow trucks driven by Peggy, Bill, Boomhauer and Dale, pulling the propane trucks and serving the customers.
- Broken Pedestal: While normally averted with Hank's fervent worship of Buck, this trope is actually played straight when he sees Buck has an electric stove. When Hank confronts him, Buck just says he's Only in It for the Money, which shatters Hank's fond memories of working under him, leading him to almost quit.
- On a side note, it appears for a moment this also happened with his love for propane - at the general store with Peggy, he buys a bag of charcoal. When Hank Hill, the champion of propane, buys charcoal, you know he is really broken.
- Chekhov's Gun: Due to the snowstorm, various cars are unable to drive properly in the snow and throughout the episode, tow trucks are seen hauling damaged or busted cars between locations which also include the ambulance that was seen outside of the hospital. It plays a serious role in the end when Vickers' mismanagement causes all of Strickland’s Hazmat Licensed drivers to quit and the roads out of town are still iced over: you need a Hazmat License in order to drive the Bobtails. However, Hank’s friends drive in with tow trucks, with the Bobtails hooked to them.
- Comical Overreacting: As Bobby sees the first snowflake, he thinks it's ash from the volcano, but the way the residents of Arlen act upon seeing the snow, you would think there was a volcano nearby.
- Comically Missing the Point: A rather dark version, with Buck having a heart attack and laying in the snow moving his arm up-and-down, with Bobby, who's making a snow angel, thinking that's what he's doing and gives him pointers.
- A Degree in Useless: Vickers may have a business degree, but that does not stop him from running Strickland into the ground.
- Everyone Has Standards: Despite being an idiotic Bad Boss, Stickland furiously fires Vickers over pushing the propane truck drivers to quit, because even he knows that you need to be HazMat certified to drive a propane truck. While he does this, he also watches his language in front of some nuns and even makes an offering to their charity bin.
- Failed Attempt at Drama: With Hank and the others scrambling to get to Strickland, Bobby asks if he can come along, which Hank obliges by holding out his hand, but Bobby can't seem to catch up with the truck, with Hank telling Joe Jack to slow down until he resigns and tells him to just stop.
- Gondor Calls for Aid: As Hank is writing up his resignation letter to Strickland, he notices that his answering machine has 38 messages left for him asking for Hank personally the whereabouts of their propane; which guns him back into action to cancel his resignation letter to go back to work at Strickland again.
- Heroic BSoD: Happens to Hank when he becomes disillusioned by the propane career, but after soul searching, he decides it's people that matter in the world of work and almost gets ready to open a general store, but after hearing some callers tell him how they need their propane, this rejuvenates Hank's desire to stay in the propane business.
- Hollywood Heart Attack: Buck, who has chest pains and weakly staggers outside and lays on the snow outside, in tremendous pain.
- Know-Nothing Know-It-All: Vickers thinks his business degree teaches him everything he needs to know about running a business. Unfortunately, Vickers apparently skipped the classes about knowing the labor conditions and regulations that impact your industry. He doesn't even think about the HazMat requirements for propane drivers or whether there are even replacements for them at the height of the season, the sorts of things Hank would know backward and forward. He learns them the hard way when Buck screams at him over the phone and then fires him for his incompetence.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Vickers ultimately gets fired from Strickland due to his incompetence once the Bobtail drivers walk out on the company over the installed tattler systems in their trucks.
- Loophole Abuse: Used at the end where Hank, his wife and friends drive tow-trucks to carry the propane trucks to their customers because while they aren't certified in driving HazMat trucks, they don't need to be certified to drive tow-trucks that carry them. (As stated above, this loophole does not exist in real life…any handling whatsoever of propane on roads requires special certification.)
- Mathematician's Answer: Hank needing some time to sort out his thoughts about Buck tells him that "He won't be coming in to work tomorrow" before leaving the hospital room.Buck Strickland: You mean you quit, or are you taking a personal day?Hank Hill: (Beat) You heard me.
- Mood Whiplash: After angrily firing Vickers over the phone, Buck instantly switches to a more upbeat mood as he happily donates money to a group of nuns.
- Pointy-Haired Boss: Lloyd Vickers, a brownnoser whom Buck appointed to run Strickland instead of Hank because he had a business degree, ends up running the business into the ground. He increases the price of propane (despite people really needing it due to the bad weather, under the guise of "supply and demand") and putting tattlers (boxes that tell when drivers can make stops) in the trucks (to be fair to Lloyd, Buck did approve of this as he's used them before; the difference here was that unlike Buck, Lloyd actually told the drivers about the devices), not to mention lacking in people skills. After Joe Jack and the other Strickland drivers quit, Lloyd simply thinks he can hire people from his alumni newsletter to drive them, but as Joe Jack points out, they need to have HazMat (Hazardous Materials) certifications, which could only be gained by CDL drivers. He ends up being fired over the phone by Buck.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: Lloyd is a brownnoser to Mr. Strickland. Peggy even calls him a 'suck-up' once in the episode.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Buck Strickland gives a scathing one to Vickers after his business decision caused all of Strickland Propane's HazMat Drivers to quit.Vickers: (after being asked by Joe Jack if all his friends are HazMat certified) HazMat?Buck Strickland: (on the phone with Vickers) HAZARDOUS MATERIALS! VICKERS, YOU MORON! YOU NEED A SPECIAL LICENSE TO DRIVE A PROPANE TRUCK!Vickers: It's all right sir, I can get to yes. I'll hire a new batch of drivers right away.Buck Strickland: You listen to me, got-dangit, it's the got-dang height of the season! There's no drivers from here to got-dang city! YOU'RE FIRED! [hangs up, then drops some change into a charity bin] Here you go, sisters.
- Remember the New Guy?: Lloyd Vickers, who has apparently been a longtime employee at Strickland Propane, is only seen in this episode.
- Removing the Crucial Teammate: Vickers was fine with letting the truck drivers walk out...until he learned that not just anyone is allowed to drive a propane truck.
- Suddenly Shouting: Buck screams at Vickers over the phone when he realizes that Vickers just made all his propane drivers quit.
- Take This Job and Shove It: Joe Jack and the rest of the propane truck drivers quit after having tattlers put into their trucks by Lloyd. Hank almost quits Strickland Propane and gets ready to write a resignation letter, but after hearing on the answering machine the needs of the customers, Hank heads back to work.
- Truth in Television: Vicker's running Strickland Propane into the ground is exactly why so many jobs want people with actual experience instead of just a degree. He fails to understand how people act differently than models and he did not know the specific requirements for the business he was put in charge of.
- Vetinari Job Security: Joe Jack and the other HazMat licensed drivers working for Strickland quit due to Vickers' management. The trope is downplayed as there are other people who could do the work, but Strickland points out, anyone else with a HazMat license is already employed by other companies.Vickers: I have a whole alumni newsletter full of friends I can call on! They'll drive those trucks just for the life experience!Joe Jack: (chuckles) And I guess your friends are HazMat-Certified, too? (leaves the office)
- Wham Line: "The stove. It's not propane, it's electric!"
