"We, too, are a ragtag team of lovable misfits joined together to defeat a powerful enemy. With a little team spirit and a training montage, we can win."
Original air date: 8/15/2020— Luz
Production code: 118
Luz is tired of Boscha picking on Willow, so she challenges her to a grudgby match.
Tropes:
- Ad-Break Double-Take: Boscha shouts, "Think fast!" both at the end of act two and the beginning of act three.
- Adults Are Useless: While the teachers are aware that Boscha is bullying Willow, they let it slide because she's the captain of the grudgby team and even Principal Bump is willing to turn a blind eye to her actions.
- An Aesop: A little kindness can go a long way. Willow was kind to others and so received even the respect of Boscha's teammates because she played well. Willow declined after being offered a spot on their team knowing it would upset Boscha, and the latter chooses to leave Willow alone after the fact.
- Also aside from their initial few incidents and near-death experiences from Amity from their encounters early in the series, Luz has been nothing but kind to Amity and is implied to be the first person to show her genuine kindness in years, and as a result Amity now has a massive crush on Luz.
- Armor-Piercing Question: Amity gives one to Boscha in her "The Reason You Suck" Speech, asking her when she'll grow up. The question, and the other students laughing at it, clearly gets to Boscha.
- Aroused by Idiocy: Downplayed; Amity has a Freudian Slip and admits that she finds Luz's reckless stupidity attractive, though it's clear that her being a nice person plays a much bigger role in Amity's crush.Amity: She can be so stupid, which I love, (blushes) I mean hate! In any case, she needs you right now, which is sweet, (blushes again) I mean, I hate it, and it's dumb!
- Bait the Dog: After Luz tells Boscha that they forfeit and she'll take Willow's spot as their water gofer and target practice, Boscha tells her she's a really good friend...then lights the grudgby ball on fire and calls her a perfect target and then throws it at her before lighting more balls on fire. It's only when Amity and Willow intervene that Luz is able to survive the bombardment without injury.
- Barbaric Bully: When Boscha sees Willow becoming popular, she and her posse respond by throwing trash at Willow, Luz and Gus. This goes on for the rest of the day. The Last Straw for Luz is when she dumps an entire trashcan onto Willow from a window, saying that "all of the trash should be in the same place."
- The Bet:
- Luz challenges Boscha to a grudgby match on Willow's behalf, based on some misinterpreted advice from Amity. If Willow wins, Boscha stops bullying her. If Boscha wins, she gets to use Willow for target practice. Boscha does end up winning, but nearly losing her team to Willow because she and Luz are actually nice seems to head off any attempt to hold up her end of the bargain.
- Meanwhile, Lilith and Eda have a two-person grudgby match with the condition that Eda will surrender herself if she loses. Eda wins but gives up her ring so Lilith can claim Eda put up a fight.
- Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: In-Universe example. When Gus lampshades how random their Mid-Montage Tea Break is, Luz responds that whatever happens in their montage stays in the montage.
- Blood Sport: Grudgby is kinda like basketball, except the field is covered in dangerous magical traps trying to kill you and the players have free use of magic to assist their moves.
- Breather Episode: It has its action, but the stakes are lower than the previous episode's, probably to give the characters and viewer a break before the two-part season finale.
- Bridal Carry: After Amity injures her leg, Luz proceeds to carry her this way. Cue Amity blushing and gibbering like an idiot.
- Calvinball: Grudgby has some element of this. There are standard rules, but one that is outside of conventional sporting rules is that finding the Rusty Smidge is an Instant-Win Condition even when the timer runs out.
- Chew-Out Fake-Out: When Luz tells the teacher that Boscha is bullying them, the teacher calls out Boscha for throwing stuff at them... when she could throw stuff at him.
- Comedic Sociopathy: Principal Bump overhears Luz, Willow, and Gus talking about how, due to her status as Team Captain of the Grudgby team, Boscha could get away with murder. Bump's response?Principal Bump: What's this? Boscha got away with murder? I can't say I approve but at least she's trying new things!
- Continuity Nod:
- Amity is still crushing on Luz from the previous episode.
- Gus' flags from "Escape of the Palisman" make a reappearance.
- Crush Blush: This episode features the most Amity has ever blushed around Luz.
- Dangerous Forbidden Technique: The Thorn Vault, in which a grudgby player summons a massive vine to propel them towards the goal. Amity quit grudgby after injuring her teammates while pulling it off, and when Luz and Willow try it during training, they fail. Naturally, they're able to pull it off flawlessly in the climax.
- Defacement Insult: After throwing gum on Willow's hair in class, Boscha follows Luz, Willow, and Gus around all day. By the end of the day, we see she has written on them. She writes "EWW" on Willow's forehead and gave her a mustache, "BOSCHA" around Gus's mouth, and "ROUND EARS" on Luz's cheek. She also threw a rotten banana peel on Luz'z head, dumped neon green paint on Gus's head and put a "HEX ME!" sign on Gus's shoulder, and stuck a fork in Willow's hair and toilet paper on Willow's head. There are also pink and green paint splotches on their clothes.
- Down to the Last Play: The outcome of both Grudgby games is open until the very last moment.
- Early-Bird Cameo: When Eda is showing a photo to King of her time on Hexside's grudgby team, another photo is shown with her and Raine Whispers together (though the latter's face is covered).
- Even Evil Has Standards: Despite Boscha's posse going along with her bullying, they look horrified when they see how far Boscha is willing to go to hurt Luz after she forfeits for Willow and is willing to take her punishment.
- Fascinating Eyebrow: Willow's response to Amity after the latter makes a fool out of herself due to two slips too many.
- Fireballs: Grudgby players are able to set the ball on fire. Midway through the match, Luz discovers the glyph for doing this.
- Foreshadowing:
- Hooty claims he found a friend right before revealing that he caught Lilith sneaking outside the Owl House.
- A photo of her time in school reveals that Lilith used to wear circular glasses, something that will play a role in the the big reveal next episode.
- Another photo shows that Eda was friends with a student in the Bard track when she attended Hexside.
- Freudian Slip: Amity pulls a couple of these when explaining to Willow and Gus that Luz is trying to take on the punishment of the bet on Willow's behalf and how she finds that cute.Amity: [Luz] can be so stupid, which I love— (blushes) I mean hate! In any case, she needs you right now. Which is sweet. (blushes again) I mean, I hate it and it's dumb!
Gus: ...You lost me. - Gibberish of Love: Amity has already mostly lost the ability to talk coherently to or about Luz due to her crush on her, but when Luz offers to carry Amity when she injures her leg...Luz: Are you sure? I could help carry you if it really hurts.
Amity: (laughs nervously) I'm fine! (laughs) W-who's Amity?!
Luz: And...(picks Amity up) Scoop!
Amity: Haha, oh! Wow! Sports! - Gilligan Cut: Luz assures Willow that Boscha can't follow them all day. Cut to them sitting outside, covered in all manner of graffiti.Luz: She followed us around all day. She literally followed us around all day!
- Golden Snitch: The main game turns out to be entirely pointless once the Rusty Smidge is captured, as it means that team wins the game instantly, even if the timer is already up. Apparently every magic sport on the Boiling Isles has one. A huge lampshade is hung on it.
- Good-Times Montage: At the end of the episode, Gus asks Luz if they can have another montage and Luz somehow activates one. During the montage, they use Willow's flower to throw the grudgby ball through the goal post, Gus uses his magic to change the final score so Luz's team won, Luz and her friends run towards the Owl House while they ignore Hooty, Luz records King doing a cheer routine on her phone, and Amity comes over to have tea at the Owl House with a cast on her leg.
- Graceful Loser: After losing the game and Eda giving her her ring and a coverup story, Lilith leaves without complaint.
- Hammerspace Hair: Eda hides her box of cheats in her hair. King also rides in it on the way back to the Owl House, after complaining that she never cleans in it, throwing out a bag of onion rings and a rat.
- Hoist by Her Own Petard: If Boscha hadn't thrown a flame-lit grudgby ball at Luz, Lus would never have learned the fire spell and thrown a flaming grudgby ball back at her face.
- Hope Spot: It seems Luz and her team won the game...until it's revealed that Boscha caught a Golden Snitch, making their efforts for naught.
- Hormone-Addled Teenager: Amity nearly dips into Covert Pervert mode when Luz offers to let her join their grudgby team, though the fact that she's asked to play the one sport that brings her bad memories only made it worse.Amity: Me on a team with you? Running around in cute uniforms? SWEATING?! (face turns bright red) I GOTTA GO!
- Humans Through Alien Eyes: Gus thinks a DVD is a "shiny cookie" and Luz has to stop him from eating it.
- I Gave My Word: Lilith honors her end of the bargain by not turning Eda in. Despite the fact that she knows she can't return to the Emperor empty-handed, she doesn't make an attempt to take Eda even though Eda won the match.
- Inferiority Superiority Complex: Boscha has an arrogant attitude, but puts a lot of her self-worth on her grudgby skills, especially being team captain.
- Instant-Win Condition: Grabbing a golden beetle called the Rusty Smidge* gives Boscha's team far more points than any team could possibly score in a single game. Luz lampshades that it renders every other facet of the game pointless. Worse, Boscha caught it after the game's timer had wound down to zero, but her team won anyway.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Boscha catching the Rusty Smidge means that she won the game, no matter what Luz thinks about that rule. If she had bothered to learn the rules before the game she might have tried the same thing.
- "Kick Me" Prank: One of the things Boscha covers the gang with is a "Hex Me" sign.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: "And cue the montage."
- Let Me Tell You a Story: Amity tells Luz the time when she was the grudgby team captain, and how she quit the team after hurting her own teammates by using a flashy move without consulting them about it. Hearing her story makes Luz realize how reckless she was to Willow and Gus and decide to take Willow's punishment to make it up to her.
- Literal Metaphor: Upon finding her box of cheats, which she keeps in her hair, has been emptied by Luz, Eda declares, "Dang it, Luz. Your nonsense has gotten into my head."
- Literal-Minded: After Amity explains that Boscha only thinks in grudgby terms, Luz goes "I'm picking up what you're putting down", causing Amity to look down at her books and remark that she's not putting anything down.
- Love Makes You Dumb: Amity's crush on Luz is getting so bad that she can barely talk coherently to or about her in this episode. When Luz offers to carry Amity off the grudgby field after Amity hurts her leg, Amity nervously says "I'm fine! Who's Amity?"
- Make Way for the Princess: On her way to school, everybody admires Boscha and cheers for her. Subverted when she enters Hexside and expects everyone there to do the same, only to find they're too busy paying attention to Willow.
- Meaningless Villain Victory: Boscha's team win the bet to let them bully Willow and her friends even more. However, Boscha's friends come to like Luz and Willow, and Boscha realises she'll probably lose her spot as team captain if she continues to abuse them.
- Mid-Battle Tea Break: During the Training Montage, Luz and her friends are having a tea party, while wearing animal costumes for no reason. Even Gus points out how weird it is.
- Moment Killer:
- Amity tells a rather emotional, dramatic story about how she used to play Grudgby, then turns to see Luz's face much closer than she expected, causing her to panic and fall over.
- Hooty, as per usual, after Eda promises that she will be waiting for her when Lilith promises that she will return. The wistful music even cuts off at that point.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: When Boscha mocks Willow, Amity gives her a "Reason You Suck" Speech that causes the other students to laugh at Boscha. Unsurprisingly, this only riles her up.
- Offscreen Moment of Awesome: Hooty manages to capture Lilith offscreen.
- Oblivious to Love: Amity's crush on Luz is even more visible than in the last episode (to the point that Willow appears to figure it out), but Luz remains completely oblivious to how flustered she's making Amity.
- Playing with Fire: Boscha's favorite move is to set the grudgby ball on fire. When Luz blocks one such shot with an ice pillar, she learns the fire spell from the burn mark on the ball.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: When Boscha picks on Willow for being at the center of the attention and tries to get Amity to join in, she decides she's tired of going along with Boscha's attitude and just calls her immature.Amity: You know, I used to be like you, Boscha. Obsessed with status, challenging my competition, but I grew up. When will you?
- Releasing from the Promise: It's implied that Willow declines Boscha's teammates offer to join their team knowing it would upset her, so Boscha repays her by deciding not to use Willow as target practice even though she was allowed to as per the terms of Willow losing.
- The Reveal:
- Eda is the younger sister. Also, Lilith had curly reddish-orange hair and wore glasses as a kid.
- It's unknown what he has planned, but according to Lilith, the Emperor has big plans for the isles.
- On a smaller note, Willow's last name is Park.
- On a very small note we learn that the Good Witch Azura books have been made into a film series with there being at least two movies, the later of which Amity has somehow seen, despite movies and TV mostly being unknown on the Boiling Isles, which brings up even more questions about the nature of that series, especially since Amity was surprised that Luz, the Azura superfan, had seen the second film.
- Rocky Roll Call:Eda: Lilith.
Lilith: Edalyn.
Hooty: Hooty! - Running Gag: An unnamed Oracle Track student pops up at various times to cheer on Willow.
- Saying Sound Effects Out Loud: Luz cheerfully says “Scoop” when, well, scooping Amity into a Bridal Carry.
- Second Place Is for Winners: Boscha ultimately wins the match, but because Willow and Luz were nice to the opposing team, Boscha comes very close to losing her spot as captain to Willow. Willow turns it down so Boscha can keep the position that's important to her, with the implication that she'd in turn stop harassing Willow.
- Self-Serving Memory: While Eda reminisces about being the grudgby champion in her time at school, Lilith reveals that while Eda was the star player, she was captain, unfolding a picture of Eda with a trophy to reveal Lilith standing next to her with an even bigger trophy.
- Ship Tease: Continuing on from "Enchanting Grom Fright", the Luz x Amity teasing is even thicker in this episode with Amity turning into a tongue-tied dork and blushing frequently even when she is just thinking about Luz.
- Shout-Out:
- The episode title is a play on the football/soccer movie Bend It Like Beckham.
- The montage track Luz played is titled Ricky.
- Skewed Priorities: Gus wasn’t incapacitated or injured in any way to prevent him from playing, he was griping over inanimate objects (his flags).
- Stealth Pun: When Amity initially turns down the offer to play Grudgby with the others and instead takes off running after openly fantasizing about Luz, Luz just says "Well, I guess she’s out."
- Suddenly Speaking: Cat finally has a speaking role as she asks Willow if she wants to join the Banshees. However, this is also her only one.
- Sympathy for the Devil:
- When Boscha's team asks Willow to join them, Willow looks to see Boscha with a horrified look at possibly losing her friends and her spot as Team Captain, and politely turns them down.
- After beating her, Eda gives Lilith her ring so she won't have to return to the Emperor empty-handed again when she sees how frightened Lilith looks at that possibility.
- Take That!: Luz exhaustively complains that the Rusty Smidge renders an entire game pointless, pretty blatantly mocking how the Golden Snitch in Harry Potter works, as whoever catches it is pretty much guaranteed to win no matter what.
- Training Montage: Parodied. Luz says with a training montage their team will be sure to win. Gus doesn't know what a montage is, so Luz starts a montage to explain montages.
- Trauma Button: Amity wasn't just embarrassed, but clearly traumatized being asked to join Luz's team. We find out what caused it; Amity used the Thorn Vault, because she was quite the showboater back in the day, which ended up being overkill and her teammates got hurt. Since that day, she quit Grudgby, made Boscha team captain, and swore never to pick up the ball ever again. Anything related to Grudgby only reminds Amity of that incident.
- Tsundere: Amity switches between admitting her love for Luz and insisting she doesn't care several times, until Gus is totally lost while Willow seems to know exactly what's going on.
- Underdogs Never Lose: Subverted. At the very last moment Boscha takes the game.
- Unsportsmanlike Gloating: Surprisingly averted. Even when Boscha wins the game, her team goes to congratulate Willow and her friends for how much fun they had. They even invite Willow to join their team.
- Vocal Evolution: Amelia's voice is more raspy since her last speaking role in "Sense and Insensitivity".
- Wholesome Crossdresser: King dresses up as a female cheerleader because Eda called it "intimidation armor".
- Why Couldn't You Be Different?: A random demon asks her kid why they can't be more like Boscha. The kid responds by taking a deep breath with a clear look on their face indicating they've heard this before.
- Vagueness Is Coming: According to Lilith, part of why Belos is so focused on making Eda join his coven is that he's got "big plans" for the Boiling Isles, and apparently she's a key part of it.
- Visual Pun: Hexside's "school spirit" is a Bedsheet Ghost with pom-poms.
- Volumetric Mouth: Hooty uses his ability to open his beak to an absurd degree in order to create a pitfall trap. It doesn't work.
- Worthy Opponent: The Banshees minus Boscha develop a healthy respect for Willow over the course of the match, and offer membership at the end of the match.
- Xtreme Kool Letterz: Eda's box of cheats is labeled "Eda's rad cheatz".
Lilith: I will be back for you. And next time, I won't be alone.
Eda: I'll be waiting.
Eda: I'll be waiting.
