Dale gets a new mower but after bragging about it too many times, Hank pulls a prank on him by stealing it.
Tropes:
- Authentication by Newspaper: Dale receives some photos of the "stolen" mower, with one of them having a hand holding a newspaper with today's date, first thinking it's the tomorrow's newspaper and thus the culprit is paperboy since he'd be able get his hands on one, only for Hank to point out that it's today's newspaper and his wristwatch's calendar is a day off. Dale naturally concludes that the paperboy was the one that tampered with his watch.
- Acquired Poison Immunity: When Dale holes himself in the tower, the police try to flush him out with tear gas, only for him to shrug it off and state that the stuff he uses on a regular basis to kill squirrels (and is naturally also exposed to since he doesn't wear a mask while spraying for pests) is much stronger.
- Bedroom Adultery Scene: Spoofed. John Redcorn triggers Dale's Booby Trap when he climbs on his mower to access Nancy's bedroom and gets shot with the BB gun. Dale catches him, and John Redcorn pleads that this isn't how he wanted Dale to "find out", only for Dale to tell John Redcorn to "stop playing around with his mower" and go massage Nancy. Redcorn is actually disappointed by this, as Dale is so oblivious that it diminishes the thrill of having an affair with his wife.
- Big "NO!": Dale when he discovers his mower has been stolen. And after using his keys to try to find it (and failing), he gives a longer, more emotional one.
- By-the-Book Cop: Played for Laughs with the cops around the college who literally look at a book to figure out how to stop Dale by using tear gas, and when it comes to planning to snipe him, they go by the book by planning to shoot him in the head if the situation takes a turn for the worse.
- Chew-Out Fake-Out: Peggy asks Hank about Dale's mower when Bobby discovers it. Hank has to explain to Bobby that it's a prank he's pulling on Dale, and when Peggy sends Bobby outside, it appears she's about to give Hank a talking-to. But then it's revealed she's in on it too, and gives Hank ideas for photoshop gags.
- Comically Missing the Point:
- First when Hank calls out Dale for leaving his mower stranded near the gas station, stating how weirdos can rub against it. Dale counters why would weirdos be at a gas station. Then he begins to question that notion before being scared off by Hank.
- Bill when Hank, fed up with Dale's bragging about his new mower, states that something bad is about to happen to that mower. Bill then goes on that it's unlikely since it's a new mower. It takes a bit for Bill to figure out Hank's meaning when Hank finally has to explain what he means.
- Cut-and-Paste Note: Dale finds one saying "WE HAVE YOUR MOWER" after it gets taken.
- Fan Disservice: Another of the phony lawn photos has Bill's hairy ass in the photo, which Dale is even grossed out by.
- Faux Horrific: When Hank finally finds his mower abandoned in the street, he is horrified to see "Wash Me" Graffiti and even shields Bobby from seeing it.
- Finger in the Mail: Dale gets sent a box containing his mower's oil filter.
- Honest John's Dealership: Dale talks to one on the phone interested in a hat that apparently was worn by Jack Ruby and he even asks what colors they come in.
- Hostage Situation: Played with. Dale gives out his pseudonym Rusty Shackleford and pretends he has a hostage to troll the cops. He then says he killed Shackleford but backtracks and says he (Rusty) wants a pizza.
- Insane Troll Logic: Yet another of the photos Dale gets has him thinking his mower is in Mexico because of a dog seen sitting on the seat and assumes it's Mexican because it's wearing a sombrero.
- Jerkass Ball: Dale's not the nicest character on the show, but he gets pretty bad when he gets his new mower. Rubbing it in the other guys' faces about mowing in a hurricane, being extremely protective of it, and not caring when Hank calls him out on ruining his own mower by putting soda in the gas tank. All this results in Hank and the guys stealing the mower and hiding it from him as a prank.
- Mistaken for Murderer: Dale when he's at top of a tower at the community college while spraying for bugs, but gets mistaken for a shooter because Bill knows he's in a bad mental state and his sprayer resembles a rifle. He even gets the cops crowded around him.
- Never Lend to a Friend: Hank lets Dale borrow his mower and Dale is inconsiderate with its use. First, he runs over a soccer ball, then rides it through the drive-thru at Whataburger and finally leaves it in the middle of the street near the gas station after it runs out of gas. On top of that, Dale apparently put soda in the gas tank. He even once borrowed Boomhauer's Monopoly set once and got mustard stains on the board and the top hat went missing. Which apparently ruined his day when his mother came over and ended up playing Stratego.
- No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction: Redcorn comments that having an affair with Nancy feels less-than-daring when Dale can see him sneaking into the house unannounced without suspecting anything. Nancy feels the same when Hank admits he took the mower, as Dale is so trusting to his friends, she doesn't see the point in trying to prank him.
- Not Helping Your Case:
- Hank when he tries to assure the policeman that Dale's not a shooter and wouldn't hurt anybody. But Bill then adds he's the President of the Gun Club, which Hank affirms, but only because he owns the most guns.
- Then Dale when he tells the cops he just has a spray gun for pest extermination, but he unknowingly puts his cigarette in front of the spray, which makes it shoot fire, making everyone think he has a flamethrower. He then throws the spray gun and tank off the tower, and it happens to land near the police cars, exploding.
- The Only One I Trust: How Dale feels about Hank. He's the only person on a list of people he trusts, something Dale himself isn't even on. And briefly feels betrayed when Hank tells him the truth about the mower, until Hank convinces Dale that he really is his friend.
- Dale also asks the cops to have Bobby be the one to snipe him, as Bobby's a marksman and will put him down clean.
- Sanity Slippage: Dale becomes unhinged while trying to find out who took his mower. Staying up late and going through the evidence, even thinking that Cubans were involved to install the mower's engine in their sub for Fidel Castro. Then subverted when everyone thinks he's went to a tower at the college and has a gun when all he's doing is spraying for bugs.
- Shoot Him, He Has a Wallet!:Justified. Dale fumigates the tower at a college, but because of his mental state Bill mistakes his sprayer for a rifle, which it does resemble from a distance. Furthermore, Dale is a known Gun Nut who would own/could get his hands on a rifle. The police come and make the same mistake, still believing Dale is armed because the bug spray catches fire and blows up the tank, which they mistake as a deliberate attack.
- Skewed Priorities: In the middle of a haircut, Hank sees Dale go through the Whataburger Drive-Thru on his mower and gets ready to go after him. But the barber stops him saying he can't go out looking like he does. Hank looks in the mirror and looks terrified before sitting back down despite his hair looking no worse than it did.
- Taking the Bullet: Hank does this when he sees the gun club sniper who takes a shot at Dale and Hank leaps in front of him and gets shot. Thankfully he was wearing a Bulletproof Vest.
- Trigger-Happy: The sniper cop is a little too eager to shoot Dale and tries to goad Hank to leave him open when he tries to talk Dale down.
- Vigilante Man: The gun club members attempt to kill Dale when he's up in the tower. After they fire a shot at him, they indirectly save Dale when the police heat gets directed at them, leading them to think they're the shooters.
- You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!: John Redcorn says it almost word-for-word when Dale catches him and Nancy red-handed... but thinks they're trying to steal his mower.Dale: I know what you're here for.
John Redcorn: Dale. Uhh, this... isn't how I wanted you to find out.
Dale: Quit screwin' around with my mower!
John Redcorn: You gotta be kidding.
Dale: I don't kid about my mower. Now get inside and start massagin' my wife.
John Redcorn: [to Nancy] He's taking some of the fun out of this.
