Recap / Strong Bad Email E 107 Cheatday

Airdate: Monday, July 5, 2004

Sender: "Mike Control"; ryan az; bridget thornton, co

Strong Bad: Let's check a Strong Bad Email, you and me. Together. Like we used to. Like a family.

Strong Bad gets a "no-name brand email", which he decides is from "Mike Control", asking what he does to celebrate The Cheat's birthday. After busting a brief rap that inspires Coach Z and Bubs to start a band, Strong Bad replies that since no one knows the exact date of The Cheat's "Cheatday", they celebrate it on the only date they know it's not: the date of birth on his fake ID (which claims he's a 43-year-old Scandinavian coal miner named Ilko Skevüld).

The festivities begin with Strong Bad getting woken up at the crack of noon to sing The Cheat a song and order him to make breakfast. Then then play some "mining games" in honor of Ilko's bogus heritage.

(Strong Bad, Strong Mad, and The Cheat stand next to a pile of charcoal briquettes in the Field, wearing miner's helmets. The Cheat half-heartedly drops the pickaxe he's holding to the ground)
Strong Mad: I WIN!

Then The Cheat gets the honor of answering a few of Strong Bad's emails, which he apparently likes to do with "Yeah man, I'll gnaw your face off. - Teh C.", and which Strong Bad finds hilarious.

Strong Bad: Every year it gets funnier! Ohhh! Happy The Cheat Day, Ilko. May you never get the black lung.
(The Paper comes down)

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Tropes:

• Birthday Episode: This SBEmail is all about celebrating The Cheat's "Cheatday".
• A Birthday, Not a Break: Downplayed, but even though it's The Cheat's birthday, Strong Bad still orders him to go and make him breakfast at the end of the birthday song.
• Blatant Lies: The Cheat's fake ID claims he's a tall, heavyset, middle-aged Scandinavian miner.
• Doesn't Know Their Own Birthday: No one knows The Cheat's real birthday, so they just celebrate it on the day listed on his fake ID—the one day they know it's not.
• Incredibly Lame Fun: The game of "Mining and Coal" played on The Cheat's Cheatday seems to mostly involve standing next to a heap of charcoal while holding mining tools.
• Music Is Politics: In-universe. Coach Z and Bubs form their own band and, given what happens on their demo tape, it's not likely to last.
• Piss-Take Rap: Strong Bad's made-up name for the email sender inspires him to bust a brief rap.
  Strong Bad: Here comes Mike, he's on the Mike... Control!
  Chiggity here comes Mike, he's on the Mike... Control!
• Your Answer to Everything: Apparently The Cheat answers all his emails with "Yeah man, I'll gnaw your face off". Strong Bad still finds it funny, though.

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Coach Z: Well, we're good friends!
Bubs: But don't you steal my napkins!
Coach Z: I've got fresh jams!
Bubs: But I get all the royalties!
Coach Z: (stops singing) I never agreed to that...