Bobby feels left out when Joseph hits puberty. Meanwhile, Hank makes caskets for himself and Peggy.
Tropes:
- Actually Pretty Funny: Minh recognizes that Joseph didn't mean to kiss her, and instead laughs it off.
- Appearance Angst: Bobby takes it extremely personally when Joseph, his best friend and frequent sidekick, hits puberty long before he does. It's compounded with his own issues with being treated like a baby by his grandmother.
- Awkward Kiss: Joseph impulsively kisses Connie's mother, Minh, when she's cleaning the blood off his face after a fight. Connie walks in and reacts with horror, but Minh laughs it off, saying how funny Kahn will find the situation when she tells him.
- Coming of Age Story: This episode marks the point where Joseph hits puberty, growing into how he appears for the remainder of the show. His first few days as an adolescent involve being confused for a grown adult, no longer being able to ride his childhood bicycle, and several waves of strong emotions.
- Crazy Jealous Guy: Joseph impulsively kisses Connie during a tender moment, leading to Bobby attacking him. Though Joseph runs off, Bobby remains equally angry at Connie.Bobby: I don't know where your tongue's been. Oh wait, yes, I do!Connie: I didn't want to kiss Joseph, it was just that he was so sad, and tall...Bobby: And you're so loose, and cheap!
- Due to the Dead: The first casket Hank makes as a prototype is initially floated as the one he's making for Peggy, though he says he plans to fix it up "before the big day." Peggy demands one as nice as the one Hank made for himself, lest she haunt him for their entire afterlife.
- Hormone-Addled Teenager: The episode deals with Joseph's disappointment at having become this when he hits puberty. It comes to a head when he impulsively kisses Connie, then Minh, alienating Bobby and Connie in rapid succession before running off to steal his dad's van.
- Humiliation Conga: Poor Joseph. In the span of a few minutes, he shares a kiss with Connie, leading Bobby to punch him in the face multiple times. When he impulsively kisses Minh while she's tending to his wounds, Connie finds out and runs off crying, while Minh herself laughs him off. Emotionally battered, he flees the house, only to fall on the driveway just in time for Hank and Peggy to rise from their coffins, completely freaking out the emotionally compromised Joseph.
- Also for Bobby. After coming home, he's reminded that his parents still consider him a child, not a mature teenager. Case in point, at Rattlesnakes, Hank forces him to order off the kids menu while everybody else has adult meals, including Joseph, and Joseph is offered beer because the waitress mistakes him for an adult.
- I Got Bigger: Joseph had a growth spurt of about six inches over the course of a few weeks, leaving him both towering over his friends and extremely uncoordinated. It leads to him accidentally striking a girl in the face while trying to dance, which shakes his already poor self-esteem.
- Invulnerable Knuckles: Averted. Bobby punches Joseph several times in the face for kissing Connie, bloodying his nose, but also hurting his own hand in the process.
- Kick the Dog: At Rattlesnakes, Hank forces Bobby to order off the kids menu because it's cheaper, while everybody else, including Joseph, has normal meals. All it does is remind Bobby that he hasn't gone through puberty yet unlike his friends, despite the work that went into him maturing.
- The Runaway: At one point Joseph becomes so angry about everything that is going on around him that he decides to take Dale's truck and drive away from town. Connie asks to come with him but Bobby also forces his way in while Joseph is driving, causing him to crash into a lamppost. When the kids are asked who did this, Bobby answers "teenagers", counting on the fact that the adults still don't see the trio as teenagers yet.
- Special Guest: Carl Reiner as Garry Kasner.
- Two Lines, No Waiting: While the high melodrama of Bobby, Connie and Joseph unfolds in the house, Hank spends his afternoon making a high-quality casket for himself and Peggy, apparently for no reason other than that it sounded fun. He even admits that he isn't quite sure how it came up in conversation.Hank: I was talking to a client the other day about forest fires, and I can't remember exactly how the conversation turned to coffins, but long story short, I got the bug.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Hank and Peggy spend most of the episode in the garage, lounging in custom-made caskets while Bobby's party happens. When a bloody and visibly panicking Joseph runs out of the house onto their front lawn, the Hills' reaction is somewhere between mild amusement and bored indifference as they crack open another beer.
