Recap / Scarlet Lady S4 E9: Crocoduel

Episode 38 - Crocoduel - Tales of You Two Again?!

Kitty Section performs for several of their friends; as Rose finishes up her latest number, Luka asks for confirmation that she wrote it for Juleka. Rose giggles, wishing them both a happy birthday and promising that she'll sing the one she wrote for him before they head out on Saturday. After declaring that he's looking forward to hearing it, he asks whether everyone's still okay with their plans to watch "Rock and Monster Party Parade."

Lila slyly asks, "And how old are you turning, Luka?" fuming when he answers, "One year older than last year~" She's still trying to figure out just how much older he is than Juleka and annoyed by their evasiveness... which is, of course, precisely why she's not getting any straight answers.

Marinette overhears Rose reassuring Juleka that everything will work out and asks what's wrong. Hesitantly, Juleka explains that this is the first time her and Luka's father is actually in Paris during their birthday, but while she really wants to celebrate the occasion with him, he and their mother aren't actually aware that she and her brother know whom he is. On top of that, her parents don't really get along, prompting Marinette to ask if he's a cop, to which a knowing Rose gives an amused look.

Juleka further explains that every year, she and her brother receive "mysterious" gifts that are always centered around their interests, implying that their dad cares enough to know that much about them, and that she's always wanted to thank him in person. When Marinette asks why their mother won't permit a meeting, Juleka replies that between the two, Anarka is actually the responsible one, causing Marinette to cringe.

When she asks Luka about it, he admits that he'd like to meet up with their dad, too, but their father will cause a scene just by showing up to the cinema. While Marinette puzzles over how that could possibly be, Adrien suggests holding a party at the houseboat. It's private property, but not so private that he can't "coincidentally" drop by. The only hitch is letting their dad in on the plan, but Luka reassures them that he's got his manager's number, confusing Marinette further.

Meanwhile, Lila confronts Luka, declaring that his and Juleka's birthdays being on the same day means they have to be twins. Luka, however, points out that they could also have instead been coincidentally born on the same day, just years apart, causing Lila to growl in frustration.

On the big day, Juleka thanks Marinette for delivering their birthday cake as she helps them set up. Jagged Stone arrives, with Luka reassuring him that he's not late and actually made it early. Marinette wonders what the rockstar's doing there before trailing off and realizing the Couffaine siblings' father's identity, mutely gaping at Juleka while her friend whistles innocently and avoids her gaze.

Jagged Stone says he was so pumped to get an official invite from Anarka's kids that he had to ensure he got the perfect gifts. In Juleka's case, he's passing down his very first bass guitar, and Luke's getting an original edition LP from Crocodo, the group he had with their mom... who barges in, furiously ordering Jagged off her ship. Though Jagged Stone protests that he had been so sneaky, she reveals that he'd parked his tour bus right on the dock. She then yells that he's got some nerve giving her son a copy of the album that split them up. Jagged counters that this is the album that gave him his life back after she left him. Both tug on the record while accusations fly, and Marinette's warning about an akuma butterfly comes too late—the album cracks, and Luka and Juleka sigh, "Happy birthday to us."

The freshly akumatized pair's argument continues unabated, each accusing the other of being the one responsible for their breakup. Watching this from the docks, Alix questions how people can wind up akumatized again, while Rose notes how there's one florist that gets akumatized a lot. Luka sarcastically remarks "So much for keeping things a secret" while Adrien and Marinette both sneak off to transform.

Tikki sees Captain Hardrock's ship pursuing Guitar Villain and points out the akumas to an utterly disinterested Chloé, who complains that there's no reason to pursue them when she can't even fly. She then demands that Tikki make her able to fly; the Kwami cheerfully refuses.

Naturally, Chat Noir and Marigold are already on the scene by the time the Ladybug heroine finally drags herself over there; while the two akuma aren't working together, instead intent upon defeating each other, they also refuse to let the heroes interfere with their duel, knocking both Chat Noir and Marigold aside. Scarlet Lady laughs about them being ignored, only to get upset when one of the akuma blandly points out that they're ignoring her as well.

Scarlet Lady complains that they don't have wings or a flying ship, reminding Marigold and Chat Noir about the Space potions. Unfortunately, neither thought to bring them along. As Juleka and Luka berate their parents for dragging others into their drama, Chat Noir and Marigold exchange a meaningful look and a quick nod, deciding to counter this "2-for-1 special" with one of their own. Scarlet Lady questions where Chat Noir is heading off to, wondering if he's finally realized how useless he is; Marigold just drags her into helping defend the civilians while he takes care of his errand.

Master Fu already knows that there's two akumas active; when he questions the wisdom of having five heroes active at once, Adrien replies that he'd only need one extra Miraculous if Fu happens to have any extra Space potion sitting around. After all, he can't expect him to carry weirdly-colored cheese around all the time, right? (Plagg hisses that he would if he wasn't such a coward.)

The akumas' argument intensifies; Captain Hardrock accuses Guitar Villain of dumping her once he started climbing the charts; he in turn insists she was the one who dumped him without even revealing she was pregnant and while hiding the existence of his own kids from him. While Alya and Mylène are shocked to hear all this, Lila's starry-eyed over all the tea being spilled.

Chat Noir returns, slipping a box into Marigold's hand under the pretext of giving it a kiss. He and Marigold then each pull one of the Couffaine siblings aside, leaving Scarlet Lady fuming over being ignored again. While Juleka tries to deny that she could possibly be worthy of the Tiger Miraculous and its power of Exaltation, Marigold reminds her of how she helped against both Captain Hardrock and Silencer. Roarr pops out with a shout worthy of her name and encourages Juleka to raise her voice—the Kwami's power won't work if her holder doesn't feel it!

(Meanwhile, Viperion casually reassures Chat Noir that going against authority is the Couffaine way, parents included. Chat Noir remarks that it sounds like such a good way.)

When Marigold and Purple Tigress rendevouz with the others, Scarlet Lady naturally complains about her picking up another cat. Marigold asks Chat Noir to launch her and Purple Tigress into the air; he agrees, adding that he and Viperion will keep protecting the civilians. Upon hearing this, Scarlet Lady attempts to join the other girls, only to get whacked in the face by Chat Noir's baton as he sends the pair flying. They snag the two halves of the record and snap them over their knees... but no akuma emerges.

Reporting back to the others leaves them all stumped; Viperion and Purple Tigress both blurt out that they saw the akuma enter the record before it was broken, freezing as each registers the other's words. Marigold realizes that they've got to put it back together and then break it, ordering Scarlet Lady to use her Lucky Charm. She does so begrudgingly, muttering "Don't order me around."

Chat Noir tells Purple Tigress to use her power to keep both akumas at bay; when she starts second-guessing herself, Viperion steps in, assuring her that, if need be, his Second Chance will ensure she gets her shot, but he's confident that she'll only need the one.

Glaring down the duo, Purple Tigress declares that both are always so damned loud, always drowning out others and refusing to listen. But it's time for them to shut the hell up, as she uses Clout to strike down Captain Hardrock's ship. Far below, Viperion and Chat Noir look on in awe, the latter almost absentmindedly using his Cataclysm on the repaired record.

Roarr cheers her temporary bearer on as she returns the Tiger Miraculous, getting her to admit how good it feels to let things out. However, Juleka also reluctantly admits that she figured out Viperion's secret identity, and that he likely knows whom she is as well. Marigold reassures her that that's probably fine, though she has a horrible poker face.

Anarka and Jagged Stone haven't let being purified get in the way of continuing their argument; Juleka cuts in, ordering them both to shut up. Anarka's then stunned to learn that her children already knew whom their father was, and Juleka dryly points out that thanks to their squabbling, so does the rest of Paris.

Yet they still won't let it go, with Jagged Stone declaring that Bob gave him her letter, which didn't even mention the kids—she said she wanted nothing more to do with him! Anarka angrily counters that Bob gave her his break-up letter, right after she'd told Bob about her pregnancy—

Both freeze, staring silently at each other as the true culprit becomes clear. Shock gives way to rage, then back to shock again as it sinks in how they were manipulated. Penny gets things back on track by reminding everyone that they're here to celebrate, and the pair embrace while promising to figure things out later—though Penny's already taking care of business even before Jagged Stone addresses her.

Later, as the three of them share a private jam session, Jagged Stone notes that while he's got much to make up for, he's going to do his best to play to both of their tunes. Luka gives him a hug, followed by Juleka, who tells him how much she loves him... and requests that he doesn't get back together with their mom, while Jagged sadly admits that he's pretty sure that ship has long since sailed.

Lila confronts Luka at the party, declaring that if Jagged Stone is both his and his sister's dad, then they have to be twins. Luka concedes the point, silently noting as she walks off gloating that she still hasn't figured out how old they are.

Meanwhile, Bob decides to check his emails while waiting for his meal at an expensive restaurant to arrive. He promptly pulls a Spit Take, choking in shock at the sight of a simple message from Penny Rolling: "You're fired, Bob."

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This episode contains examples of:

• Adaptational Explanation:
  • The original series never reveals precisely why Jagged Stone and Anarka broke up; in "Truth," Jagged Stone states only that he was "too lame" to take care of kids, and "Crocoduel" has each accusing the other of being responsible, with no clear answers about what happened. As the author notes here, regardless of one's exact interpretation, Jagged Stone was still a deadbeat dad who failed to take responsibility for the children he helped create, something she tried to correct with her interpretation of events.
  • The heroes not using the Space powerups in "Crocoduel" is given the explanation of them having forgotten to bring the potions with them.
• Adaptational Jerkass: Canonically, Bob Roth had no involvement in Jagged and Anarka's breakup; here, he deliberately forged notes to the two claiming that Anarka wanted nothing to do with Jagged (without mentioning her pregnancy) and that Jagged wanted nothing to do with Anarka.
• Adaptational Sympathy: Instead of just walking out on his kids like in canon, Jagged has always wanted to be part of Luka and Juleka's lives, which Anarka purposely prevented after hiding her pregnancy from him due to Bob Roth giving her a forged "Dear John" Letter from Jagged claiming the rockstar wanted nothing to do with Anarka and their children.
• Armor-Piercing Question: When Juleka tries to deny that she's capable of assisting the heroes, Marigold asks, "After helping with Captain Hardrock and Silencer you still don't think you're a hero?" Juleka can only express her shock that the Bee heroine recalled both incidents.
• Armor-Piercing Response: Anarka's shocked when she tries to tell her daughter that there's something she doesn't know about Jagged Stone, only for Juleka to bluntly reply, "What, that he's my dad?" Juleka then adds soon after that not only does she know, she's always known.
• Big "NO!": Scarlet Lady lets out a particularly dramatic wail when Marigold forces her to help protect civilians while Chat Noir goes on his side quest.
• Big "SHUT UP!": Juleka stops her detransformed parents from arguing with one, mirroring how she had ordered their akumatized selves to shut up as Purple Tigress.
• A Birthday, Not a Break: Juleka and Luka have to deal with both of their parents being akumatized on their birthday and their private family drama being dragged out into the open.
• Bittersweet Ending: After so many years of deep-rooted resentment, Anarka and Jagged Stone finally learn the truth behind their break-up. This doesn't magically erase all the hard feelings, and Jagged openly admits that they'll likely never get back together, but they can at least work on finding common ground and making up for lost time... and ensure that Bob Roth is finally punished.
• Brick Joke: Lila continues her quest to figure just how much older Luka is than Juleka, which started back in "Intermission." After failing to get Luka to tell her how old he is at the beginning, she surmises that he and Juleka must be twins since they have the same birthday, only for Luka to Troll her by pointing out they may have just been born on the same day years apart. Lila finally deduces the two are twins near the end of the episode because they're both Jagged's kids and congratulates herself for it, though Luka silently notes that she still hasn't figured out their actual ages.
• Comically Missing the Point: Jagged Stone fails to realize his tour bus ruins any chances of making a sneaky entrance.
• "Dear John" Letter: This is how Anarka and Jagged broke up—but both got a fake letter stating the other was breaking up with him or her.
• Epic Fail: Jagged Stone tries to sneak aboard the Liberty for Luka and Juleka's birthday party without Anarka knowing... after parking his tour bus on the dock.
• Everybody Knew Already: After their deakumatizations, Anarka and Jagged awkwardly try to dance around telling Juleka that the latter is her father, only to learn that the entire city knows, now, and that Juleka in particular (alongside Luka) has always been aware of it. Somewhat justified, since Anarka and Jagged couldn't have remembered blurting out their secret for all of Paris to hear while akumatized.
• Giving Up the Ghost: Jagged and Anarka both do this once they discover the truth of their split.
• Internal Reveal:
  • Everyone learns that Jagged Stone is Juleka and Luka's father.
  • The class finds out that the same people can be akumatized again, although Rose points out that it's already happened loads of times to a certain florist.
  • Luka and Juleka also realize each other's respective secret identities.
• Jaw Drop:
  • Once it sinks in just whom the twins' mysterious father is, Marinette's jaw goes completely slack while she stares at a nervously whistling Juleka.
  • Chat Noir and Viperion gape at the sight of Purple Tigress dramatically punching through Captain Hardrock's ship, unable to tear their eyes away even while the former Cataclysms the repaired record.
• Karma Houdini Warranty: Bob Roth engineered Jagged Stone's breakup with Anarka after learning about her pregnancy. Years later, they finally figure out the truth, and Jagged promptly leaves Bob's record company, with him getting the news right as he's preparing to eat at a fancy (and presumably expensive) restaurant.
• Laser-Guided Karma: After Jagged and Anarka realize that Bob had forged Dear John Letters to split them up when Anarka told Bob she was pregnant, Jagged promptly has Penny send a letter of resignation to the sleazy record dealer, who presumably has just run up a Shockingly Expensive Bill at a fancy restaurant right when his record company is about to take a huge hit.
• My Significance Sense Is Tingling: Bob Roth feels a chill course down his spine the instant Jagged Stone and Anarka realize how he tricked them both.
• Not So Innocent Whistling: Juleka does this while avoiding looking directly at Marinette once the truth about the Couffaine twins' father hits her friend.
• Oh, Crap!: Purple Tigress and Marigold stare at each other in shock when they realize that breaking the record halves didn't release the akuma.
• The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Captain Hardrock and Guitar Villain feel this way about each other, telling the heroes to stick to the sidelines while they finish their duel.
• Only Sane by Comparison: Anarka isn't big on rules or authority figures, even refusing to participate in Parent's Career Day due to Roger, a cop, also being there. However, next to Jagged, she's still deemed the responsible parent by Juleka.
• Poor Communication Kills: When Anarka learned about her pregnancy, Bob Roth ensured that Jagged Stone was Locked Out of the Loop, tricking both into believing the other broke up with them. After learning about the twins, Jagged spent years believing that Anarka had hidden their existence from him, while she was convinced he knew the whole time and knowingly abandoned her. Once the truth comes out, both are stunned to realize how Bob played them both.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Purple Tigress hits both of her akumatized parents with one:
  Purple Tigress: You two are always so damn loud. No one can get a word in edgewise! How is anyone supposed to settle things when you won't listen?! It's time for you two—to SHUT THE HELL UP!
• Shipping Torpedo: After her parents apologize to each other upon realizing their breakup was actually caused by Bob Roth, Juleka asks Jagged not to get back together with Anarka. He reassures her that that ship has sailed.
• Something Only They Would Say: Viperion and Purple Tigress realize who each other is when both Speak in Unison about how they saw the record breaking just as their parents became Akumatized.
• Spit Take: Bob Roth chokes on his drink upon seeing Penny's message.
• This Is Going to Suck: The twins wistfully wish themselves a happy birthday as their parents become akumatized.
• Title Drop: When Hawk Moth akumatizes his victims as the record is being broken, he bemusedly asks, "What? You two again?"
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Marigold, Roarr, and Viperion each take turns encouraging Juleka/Purple Tigress during her moments of doubt.
• Vague Age: Luka continues to avoid telling Lila just how much older than Juleka he is. When Lila asks how old he's turning, he simply replies, "One year older than last year." Lila later deduces that he and Juleka must be twins due to their birthdays being on the same day, though Luka points out they could just be born on the same day but in different years. He later seemingly admits defeat when Lila declares that they have to be twins if they're both Jagged's kids, though he privately snarks that Lila still doesn't know how old he and Juleka are turning.

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