Original airdate: September 8th, 2016
Production code: 1040-110
Steven and Pearl are about to start their evening solving a jigsaw puzzle, while Amethyst is excited to go to a Mike Krol concert with Greg. Who then shows up, only to reveal he's just been reminded that he'd earlier promised to play cards with Barb and Vidalia that night...and Barb threatened to withhold his mail if he bailed on them.
Greg: She is not a woman of empty threats.
Pearl surprises everyone by offering to go to the concert with Amethyst, along with Steven. Greg agrees to loan them his new Dondai for the occasion, and Pearl insists she's not just the kind of person who sits at home doing puzzles.
While picking up snacks on their way to the show, Pearl shows off her teen rebel outfit, including a leather jacket whose collar she proudly pops up.
Pearl: It's cool, because the collar isn't supposed to go that way.
Pearl also asks for an apple juice despite her usual aversion to all food, and after taking about ten seconds to figure out how to open the can, she takes a sip. She promptly gets just as grossed out as usual, but is quickly distracted by someone entering the store: a large pink-haired woman who bears a striking resemblance to Rose Quartz. Steven and Amethyst notice Pearl staring, and encourage her to practice talking to the Mystery Girl so she can do it more easily at the concert. It doesn't go well, as she drops a whole stack of cups just a few seconds in.
Back on the road, Steven points out the obvious about Mystery Girl's resemblance to his mother, which Amethyst actually hadn't noticed, and is delighted to realize what had gotten into Pearl. Mystery Girl pulls up alongside the Dondai on a motorcycle, and Pearl panics over what she should do. Amethyst suggests simply shooting a look...and then tricks Pearl into doing it right as Mystery Girl is looking back. Mystery Girl smiles and pulls ahead, only for the Dondai to get stuck at a red light. But Pearl's not giving up that easily, and only takes a few seconds to drive through it! Unfortunately, this gets the attention of the police, and Pearl can't pull over as she's never gotten a driver's license.
Pearl: I'm not exactly a citizen, Steven!
She evades the cops by hiding behind a billboard for Ocean Town ("No longer on fire!"), but the car won't start and it turns out they're out of gas, and nowhere near a station. Pearl despondently takes off her outfit, ranting that she wanted to show Steven how cool she was only for the night to end like this. Steven and Amethyst cheer her up as they both insist she's plenty cool to them, and it even turns out the concert is nearby.
It turns out Mystery Girl is also at the concert, and Pearl resolves to have a real talk with her. Steven and Amethyst watch from a distance, trying to figure out how it's going while unable to hear a word. Pearl starts with an awkward handshake offer, but Mystery Girl goes for it, and then even laughs at what Pearl's saying. When she comes back:
Steven: How'd it go?
Pearl: I asked about her hair, and then she asked how I colored mine. I told her my appearance is just a conscious manifestation of light. And she said, "I know how that is," although I highly doubt it. Oh, and then I added, "And by the way, I saved your planet and your species and you're welcome."
Amethyst: And how'd that go over?
Pearl: Not very well. She walked off after giving me some sort of code.
Pearl: I asked about her hair, and then she asked how I colored mine. I told her my appearance is just a conscious manifestation of light. And she said, "I know how that is," although I highly doubt it. Oh, and then I added, "And by the way, I saved your planet and your species and you're welcome."
Amethyst: And how'd that go over?
Pearl: Not very well. She walked off after giving me some sort of code.
Steven and Amethyst are thrilled and inform Pearl she managed to get Mystery Girl's phone number. Pearl points out she doesn't have a phone, but Amethyst isn't too worried.
Amethyst: Pearl, you just, like, gave her some Shakespearian spiel about light, and then got her number like it was nothing? Oh-ho-ho-ho! Pearl, you're a total rock star!
Pearl takes another look at the number, and gets a small smile.
- Starring
Pearl as Repressed Nerd
Amethyst as Ultimate Wingman
Steven as Voice of Reason
And introducing Mystery Girl as Herself
Tropes:
- 2D Visuals, 3D Effects: The car chase scenes, especially when Pearl rounds the cliffside, use CG elements.
- 555: The number that Mystery Girl gives Pearl is 301-555-0189. (In real life, the 301 area code covers part of Maryland, though not the part on the Delmarva peninsula.)
- Badass Boast: When Steven panics about Pearl running a red light, Pearl casually points out that she's been a criminal "for 6,000 years".
- Badass Driver: Pearl proves she's just as good as Stevonnie was back in "Beach City Drift". Apparently the Dondai just brings out the inner racer in people.Pearl: This is why we buckle up.
- Bait-and-Switch: The Mystery Girl's resemblance to Rose seemed like it would be the Elephant in the Living Room, but then Steven points it out in the very next scene.Steven: Okay, nobody's going to say it? She kind of looked like Mom? You noticed, I noticed, we all noticed. note
- Be Yourself: Pearl didn't get Mystery Girl's attention until she stopped pretending to be someone she wasn't.
- Bishie Sparkle: When the Mystery Girl first appears.
- Black Comedy Burst: Steven reacting in amazement to Pearl evading the police.Steven: That's the most scared I've been since you almost let me die!
- Brand X: Sugar Shock Shut Down energy drinks. The logo on the cans even resembles that of the energy drink brand Monster.
- Can't Get Away with Nuthin': Pearl tries to let loose a little to prove she's cool. The minute she runs a red light to catch up with Mystery Girl, however? A cop immediately follows her to pull her over. Subverted, however, since she does manage to outdrive the police without any consequences. Then double subverted when she runs out of gas, not a lawful punishment, but a sort of karmic balance.
- Character Development: While Pearl still has a ways to go from moving on from the past, this episode shows her making an effort to do so.
- Comically Missing the Point:Pearl: I was going to drink a juice, and wear these pants, and hit people gently enough as to not actually hurt themnote , and you'd say, 'Wow, Pearl is really cool,' but nooooo, instead, drove to loud music, chased a mysterious woman into the night and broke the law. I've lost my edge.
- Concert Episode: Pearl joins Steven and Amethyst going to a concert (out of a garage) to show she's loosened up.
- Continuity Nod:
- Mayor Dewey mentioned Ocean Town back in "Political Power", where he hinted it suffered some sort of unenviable fate. Here, the sign leading in tells visitors that it's "no longer on fire."
- Pearl outdrives a cop in Greg's Dondai, which we saw is faster and more agile than it appears back in "Beach City Drift".
- Steven tells Pearl that's the most scared he's been since she almost let him die, referencing the events of "Space Race" (or possibly "Rose's Scabbard"; part of the humor is that it's unclear which of the multiple times Pearl almost let Steven die he's referring to.)
- Pearl has apparently decided to try to get past her dislike of eating and drinking, as she proudly declares her intention to drink a can of apple juice.
- Contrived Coincidence:
- The spot the Dondai is parked, out of gas, happens to be close enough to where the concert is held for it to be heard.
- Steven and Amethyst are relieved when they see Mystery Girl at the same concert they were heading to, giving Pearl another chance to talk to her. That said, she did look enough like a rocker chick to deduce she'd be going to the same concert as them.
- Cool and Unusual Punishment: Greg says that Barb threatened to hold all his mail if he ditched her and Vidalia. It ain't exactly a funny case of Serious Business when you realize that not getting mail can have some consequences if you miss something important. It's also highly illegal, for precisely that reason.Greg: (ominously) She is not a woman of empty threats.
- Creator Cameo: Several of the crewmember extras show up in the crowd.
- Credits Gag: Before the actual credits, there's a series of close-ups on the characters indicating their roles.Pearl as Repressed Nerd
Amethyst as Ultimate Wingman
Steven as Voice of Reason
And Introducing Mystery Girl as Herself. - Crime After Crime: The first genuinely rebellious thing Pearl does is run a red light in the face of no incoming traffic. When a police officer tries to pull her over for this, she realizes she's driving unlicensed, and has to drive like crazy across the road to get away.
- Curse Cut Short: Amethyst almost gets out "you're a total badass!" when Pearl is dodging the cops.
- Didn't Think This Through: Pearl didn't think through the consequences of running a red light and getting caught. She can't be pulled over by the police because she doesn't have a license, due to being more than six thousand years old, and would get arrested because of that.
- Distracted by the Sexy: When she first sees Mystery Girl, Pearl is momentarily in a trance until she snaps out of it.Steven: ...Pearl? You okay?
Pearl: Uhhhhhhhhhhhh... (blbl) ...I just didn't realize humans could come with pink hair. - Dramatic Drop: Pearl drops her apple juice when Mystery Girl walks into the store.
- Dressed in Layers: For some reason, Pearl put a regular pair of jeans on over her regular outfit instead of changing her clothes with shapeshifting.
- Elephant in the Room: Mystery Girl looks similar to Rose. Steven, Pearl, and Amethyst are quiet about it until they're heading to the concert and Steven finally brings it up.
- Extreme Omnivore: Amethyst has an energy drink, can and all.
- Failed a Spot Check: Pearl proudly declares that the puzzle she and Steven are working on has no corners!... immediately before Steven finds a corner. In fact, the second shot of the episode is of a corner piece, apparently separated out from the pile. How did Pearl miss that?
- Fanservice: Pearl is once again wearing male-orientated clothing.
- Fantastic Legal Weirdness: When the cops catch her speeding and Steven suggests pulling over to show her license, Pearl explains that she doesn't have one and knows she couldn't get one.Pearl: What was I supposed to tell the DMV, that I'm from another planet? I'm not exactly a citizen, Steven!
- Fish out of Temporal Water: Given that Pearl rebelled thousands of years ago, she's a bit out of touch from going against the rules and appearing cool. Pearl admits this after her antics force the crew to abandon the Dondai.
- French Maid Outfit: Lapis wears one in the promo art.
- Frothy Mugs of Water: Pearl decides to let her rebellious side out by drinking... apple juice.
- Funny Background Event: Pearl struggles to open the apple juice can while Steven and Amethyst discuss the singer they're going to see.
- Hair Flip: Mystery Girl flips her hair as she enters the Big Donut and again when Pearl talks to her.
- Has a Type: Pearl quickly develops an obvious crush on a tall woman with a curvy build and pink hair. Steven calls this out as soon as they get back to the car.Steven: Okay, nobody's going to say it? She kinda looked like Mom. You noticed, I noticed, we all noticed.
- High School AU: A school festival is shown in promo art for the episode, with Amethyst doing a haunted house and Lapis doing a maid cafe. Pearl is looking at Mystery Girl in surprise.
- Hipster: Pearl plays the ultimate hipster when she's trying to be cool, as everything is new when you're older than human civilization.Pearl: Nostalgic for the suburbs? Pfft. They've only existed for what, 70 years?
- Hollywood Midlife Crisis: Pearl tries to act cool and rebellious to make Amethyst and Steven happy, and to get back in touch with her rebel roots. She then tries to emphasize the act on seeing Mystery Girl.
- Homage: The episode seems to be this to rebellious teen / college movies. The music playing while the group is on the car is very typical of this kind of movie, and the fact that it was all so the main character could interact with a certain girl makes the homage even more blatant. The credits are also very befitting.
- Identical Stranger: After encountering the Mystery Girl, Steven calls out the fact that she looked like Rose. That said, Mystery Girl is more of a Tom Boy compared to Rose's more feminine Girly Girl.
- Inhumanable Alien Rights: Discussed: Pearl says the fact that she's from another planet makes her "not exactly a citizen" and prevents her from applying for a driver's license.
- Incredibly Lame Fun: Pearl and Steven's initial plans for the evening were to put together a six-hundred and twelve piece jigsaw puzzle, and they both seemed genuinely excited at the prospect.
- Late to the Realization: After Steven makes a big deal about how obvious it is that Mystery Girl looks like Rose, it turns out Amethyst didn't get it.
- Love Bubbles: These appear around Mystery Girl when she walks into the Big Donut.
- Lyrical Dissonance: Mike Krol's "Fifteen Minutes", an upbeat rock/power pop song that has the singer asking someone (presumably an ex-lover) if they would spend their last moments with him or go visit their friends should the world end in fifteen minutes.
- Mistaken for Dyed: Pearl is confused that a human has pink hair like Rose, and Steven explains she just used hair dye. After talking to the Mystery Girl, Pearl mentioned she asked where Pearl dyed her hair.
- Mondegreen Gag: When it seems like they can't make it to the concert, Pearl laments that they can't see "your Krol", apparently having misheard "Mike Krol" as "my Krol".
- No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Greg lends Pearl the Dondai for driving to the concert. They then have to leave it behind and walk to the concert when Pearl's antics lead to it running out of gas.
- No Name Given: Mystery Girl's real name isn't given. In the Credits Gag, she's simply called "Mystery Girl", and the note she gives Pearl only has the initial 'S'.
- Noodle Incident:
- Greg seems to have gotten on Barb's bad side before.
- Ocean Town has a sign that states, "Ocean Town: No longer on fire."
- No Social Skills: Played With. Pearl has a hard time working up the nerve to talk to Mystery Girl, but once she gets the courage, Mystery Girl gives her a phone number to call. Then again, it's implied Mystery Girl finds Pearl Adorkable anyway.
- Oh, Crap!:
- Pearl when she's unable to talk to Mystery Girl.
- Steven when Pearl gets into a chase with the police.
- And another when the car runs out of gas.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: All that we know about Mystery Girl's real name is that she has "S" as an initial.
- Our Slogan Is Terrible: "Ocean Town: No Longer on Fire."
- Plot-Driven Breakdown: The Dondai runs out of gas moments after Pearl outruns the cop, making sure she can't just drive back home before talking to Mystery Girl.
- Poke the Poodle: Pearl's initial idea of being a social rebel. Wearing jeans and a jacket (with the collar up!), drinking apple juice, and saying "Gooder."
- Race for Your Love: The drive to the concert turns into a race to catch up with a potential girlfriend so Pearl can talk with her before she's gone. The predictable happens when a cop car tries to arrest them upon pulling the stunt.
- Replacement Goldfish: Pearl is drawn to Mystery Girl because her hair looks like Rose's. Steven picks up on this and comments on it, but he and Amethyst think it's healthy for Pearl to want to move on from his mother.
- Sacrificed Basic Skill for Awesome Training: Pearl knows a lot of things, but opening a can of juice isn't one of them.
- Shipper on Deck: Both Steven and Amethyst encourage Pearl to talk to Mystery Girl. The latter even gets "Ultimate Wingman" as her title in the Credits Gag.
- Shout-Out:
- The title is a reference to "Last One Out Of Liberty City" by Less Than Jake.
- The apple juice can's design looks exactly like Apple Sidra.
- One of the decals on Mystery Girl's helmet is The Aquabats! logo.
- Possibly one to Homestuck, as the puzzle has 612 pieces (612 is the number associated with the Trolls).
- Special Edition Title: Mike Krol's "Fifteen Minutes" replaces the usual end theme.
- Special Guest: Mike Krol appears As Himself, although only through recordings of his song instead of original recording.
- Spit Take: When Pearl sees Mystery Girl.
- Source Music: "Like a Star" play on the car stereo when the gems leave the Big Donut, and "Fifteen Minutes" starts playing just as Pearl runs the red light. They reach the concert while Krol is in the middle of "Like a Star", and he begins playing "Fifteen Minutes" the last few seconds, continuing into the credits.
- Take That!: Sugar Shock Shut Down energy drinks, mocking the quick boost and subsequent comedown of such products.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: It appears that Pearl is finally moving on from Rose, after finding a new love.
- Time Dissonance: Pearl mocks Mike Krol's nostalgia for the suburbs, as they've only existed for 70 years.
- Tomboy: Mystery Girl looks very butch.
- Took a Level in Badass: Pearl loosens up a lot and becomes more adventurous. Amethyst herself is literally about to say the word and congratulate Pearl, only to get a Curse Cut Short since the show is PG after all.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Mystery Girl doesn't seem fazed when Pearl mentions she's a Gem who saved Earth and the human species thousands of years ago, though her laughing suggests she thought it was a joke.
- The Voiceless: Mystery Girl has no lines, and the only time she speaks is when Amethyst and Steven are out of earshot, so the dialogue between her and Pearl is silent.
- "Walk on the Wild Side" Episode: Pearl tries to act more like a rebel to appear cooler in front of Steven and Amethyst, and also to reach back to her Gem Rebellion roots.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: It isn't shown if Amethyst, Steven and Pearl managed to recover the Dondai after it ran out of gas. Doesn't help that this is its last appearance until the Future season.
