Hooty: That doesn't look like the Boiling Isles to me.
Tarak: That's because it isn't. Welcome to the other side of the world.
Original air date: 4/30/2022Tarak: That's because it isn't. Welcome to the other side of the world.
Production code: 217
Shocking revelations and horrifying truths are discovered when King goes on a quest to solve the mystery of his past.
Tropes:
- Aerith and Bob: The member of the Titan Trappers that greets King and company is named Tarak. Their leader's name? Bill. Luz even asks if it's short for something, which it isn't.
- Ambiguously Related: It's unconfirmed, but it's implied that King's real father is actually the Titan whose body makes up the Boiling Isles. Bill's poster even refers to the missing Titan egg as "The Lost Son of The Boiling Isles".
- Ambiguous Situation: It's a little unclear just how much communication Bill actually has with the Collector, namely because he is initially willing to help Luz against Belos, who is working with his "god".
- Amusing Injuries:
- Hooty is in the middle of giving Luz a Cooldown Hug when Lilith arrives, and he's so excited by his best friend showing up that he nearly crushes the poor girl.
- During King's training, one of the Titan Trappers falls in the boiling water, only to crawl out a second later glowing red hot.
- Apocalypse Cult: The Titan Trappers are dedicated to bringing back the Collector, an entity that wishes to kill everyone in the Boiling Isles for kicks. They even try performing a ritual sacrifice.
- Bait-and-Switch:
- The people who were presumed to be King's family turn out to be just witches in Titan costumes as part of a culture of hunting Titans, of which King is apparently the last, with their "Grand Huntsman" and god being the Collector.
- The Titan Trappers assume that King is one of their own up until Bill hears King's signature "Weh!", leaving Tarak to awkwardly excuse himself after agreeing to play a game of catch with King.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: The Titan Trappers seem friendly at first, taking King in and teaching him their ways. But once they learn he's actually a real Titan, they are all too eager to sacrifice him to the Collector for their own personal glory.
- Bolivian Army Cliffhanger: The episode ends with a small army of Belos' soldiers surrounding the Owl House, ready to storm it and arrest Eda and Lilith.
- The Bus Came Back: Captain Salty returns after having been absent for the past 15 episodes.
- But Now I Must Go: Discussed. Part of the reason why King is so desperate to connect with the Titan Trappers (while under the assumption that he's one of them) is because he knows that Luz is going to go home eventually. He even mentions how often these sort of things play out in fiction and that Luz already made a promise to her mother.
- Call-Back:
- The plot of this episode is kicked off when Hooty finally vomits up the letter to King that he accidentally ate.
- Luz gets help from Captain Salty of the selkiedomus hunting ship in order to reach the portal to the Titan Trappers. The rest of the crew is also mentioned to have left now that he no longer works for the Golden Guard. Luz also wears the sailing hat she wore in that same episode.
- Celestial Deadline: The Day of Unity (which happens during an eclipse) is only one week away.
- Cliffhanger: The episode ends with Luz, King and Hooty sailing back to the Boiling Isles just as the Emperor's Coven surrounds the Owl House with Eda and Lilith still inside.
- Connected All Along: Several of the story arcs of the series, primarily the second season, come together in this episode: the being known as the Collector who created the curse placed on Eda, revealed last episode to be Belos' collaborator for the Day of Unity, is the center of a cult dedicated to hunting Titans. King is revealed to be a young Titan himself, and the last living one at that, meaning his origins tie into the Collector.
- Continuity Nod:
- In King's dream of his perfect family reunion, Luz and Eda are dressed up for the occasion in their Grom tuxedos.
- Among the random items Hooty regurgitates is a Grudgby ball.
- The other Titan corpse with the more bestial head, first seen in Eda's vision of the Collector hunting the Owl Beast in "Knock, Knock, Knockin' on Hooty's Door", makes an appearance when Luz, Hooty, and King are teleported to it.
- The book on Titan-hunting Bill is shown reading during his introduction was written by Flora D'splora.
- King brings up Luz's promise to her mother to stay on Earth once she finds a way home. He also mentions having read her Azura books.
- Cooldown Hug: When Luz is on the verge of a meltdown due to the guilt of thinking that she's responsible for Belos' rise to power, Eda motions for King and Hooty to give her a hug.
- Daddy Had a Good Reason for Abandoning You: King spent most of the season angry at his dad for (seemingly) abandoning him. This episode reveals that his dad was hunted (and very likely killed) by genocidal Titan Trappers.
- The Door Slams You: In her haste to get away from Bill, Luz accidentally slams a door on Hooty's neck.
- Downer Ending: Although King finally finds out what he is, he's no closer than he ever was to contacting his biological family, and now finds out there are people trying to hunt and kill him. If anything, it's implied that King has been living atop his father's corpse this whole time. Luz too has a Hope Spot this episode in finding supporters against Belos, only to discover they are actually worshipers of Belos' collaborator, the Collector. And the episode closes on a Bolivian Army Ending with the Emperor's Coven surrounding the Owl House while Luz, King, and Hooty are away. Also, King never got to play the game of catch.
- Dramatically Missing the Point: When Eda starts crying over Luz's situation, Lilith initially believes this to be a reaction to her "wild Luz chase" Pun.
- Dream Intro: The episode starts with King, Eda, Luz, and Hooty welcoming King's father and his two younger siblings to the Owl House. King eventually realizes it's a dream because it's Too Good to Be True.
- Evil Old Folks: Bill has been around far longer than Belos' reign. Not only does he attempt to kill King himself, but he intends for himself to get all the glory from his people's deal with the Collector.
- Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: Bill recounts to Luz what they know about the remaining Titan, explaining that they're ravenous, have a massive ego even as a child and say 'weh'. She then panics as she realizes King is the last Titan and everyone there will be after his head once they find out.
- Final Solution: Turns out the Titans didn't just go extinct by accident. It was a genocide carried out by the Titan Trappers, spearheaded by The Collector (whom they worship as a god). They're also absolutely giddy to find out King is the last Titan so they can slay him and permanently put an end to the Titan race.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: It suddenly changes from night to day when Luz, King, and Hooty go through the portal, making it clear that they've traveled a very large distance just before Tarak confirms that they're on the opposite side of the planet.
- Foreshadowing:
- During the Cold Open, King dreams that his long-lost father and little siblings come to visit the Owl House, explain that Daddy Had a Good Reason for Abandoning You, and promise to be in his life from now on. King is then overwhelmed with joy that his biological family and Found Family can all be together. He then slowly realizes that this is Too Good to Be True, before waking up and finding that it was All Just a Dream. Likewise, when King first meets the Titan Trappers, who readily accept him and promise to raise him as one of their own, the audience (and Luz) can tell it seems Too Good to Be True. Sure enough, it is: they aren't King's long-lost family after all, but the ones who killed them.
- During their attempts to persuade Eda to let them go on the journey, Hooty asks if anyone can hear the marching on the edge of the forest. While it's completely ignored and immediately forgotten about, the end of the episode reveals that the marching came from the Emperor's Coven, who completely surround the house and ready an attack. Eda even predicted that this would happen.
- When Tarak meets King, he assumes King's father "passed down" his skull. It is later revealed that the Titan Trappers wear the skulls of their quarry to blend in, meaning that Tarak was being literal in his assumption.
- When the Titan Trappers' tower is first shown, a golden sun pattern can be seen near the top. Eagle-eyed viewers will be able to notice that it's actually a weathered version of the Collector's symbol.
- During King's Titan Trapper training, he's instructed to hit a pinata that looks like they do. This hints at The Reveal that the Titan Trappers are dressed like Titans, whom they see as their prey.
- When Bill offers to show Luz his collection of Cool Scars that are older than Belos' reign, he pulls up his jacket to show a distinctly un-fuzzy and human-like torso with said scars. This hints at the reveal that the Titan Trappers are just witches dressed up in Titan costumes to emulate said Titans in hopes of luring the last remaining one to them, which they don't realize they've succeeded in doing until Bill hears King's Verbal Tic.
- The village armory is decorated with Titan skulls, which is weird as the villagers are putting their own kind on display. This is because they are actually hunting trophies.
- Freudian Slip: When Bill is chasing down King with the others, he lets slip that the Collector will reward him and not the other Trappers too.Tarak: You mean "we", right? You promised the Huntsman would grant all of us glory...?
- Gigantic Adults, Tiny Babies: This episode reveals King is an infant Titan, a species which are known to grow to the size of landmasses as adults, while he is practically microscopic in comparison.
- He Knows Too Much: Because Emperor Belos knows Luz was in his mind, and she told him while in there that she's going to tell everyone about what the Day of Unity really is, Eda knows he's going to send the Emperor's Coven to the Owl House to take care of them. At the end of the episode, they've surrounded the Owl House with dozens of soldiers, ready to capture everyone inside.
- Immediate Sequel: This episode takes place the day after "Hollow Mind", with Luz telling the rest of the Owl House what she learned inside Belos' mind.
- It Was with You All Along:
- Luz was technically near a source of Titan blood the whole time—King himself.
- The ending implies that King—and by extension, the rest of the Boiling Isles—may have been living on top of his (decomposing) father the whole time.
- It's All About Me: Bill lets slip that he wants all the glory the Collector promised for himself.
- It's All My Fault:
- Since Luz realized her role in the rise of Belos she doesn't stop blaming herself.
- Lilith blames herself for serving Belos all that time.
- Eda is also in tears over the thought that because of her, Luz and King are caught up in dealing with Belos' schemes.
- Jaw Drop: When Bill compliments King's "costume", Hooty drops his jaw and also drops the Collector globe he was carrying in his mouth.
- Just a Kid: Eda feels guilty about having Luz and King being caught up in her shenanigans with Belos.
- Kaiju: The Titan Trappers have the skeleton of a massive — though not full-sized — Titan posed like a museum specimen.
- Lame Pun Reaction: Subverted. Eda starts crying after Lilith's "wild Luz chase" joke, but she's actually overwhelmed by the sheer scope of the danger her kids are in rather than being upset by a bad pun.
- Last of His Kind: King is apparently the last known living Titan in existence, and a baby one at that.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: When Luz finishes recounting the events of "Hollow Mind" to Eda, King, and Hooty, complete with images, Eda notes that it's "a lot to take in", commenting on how big of a Wham Episode it was.
- Let's Get Dangerous!: Now that Belos has no need to keep Luz alive and free, and because she knows the details of the Day of Unity, he sends dozens of Coven soldiers to arrest the occupants of the Owl House, a far greater force than the meager squad Lilith had previously been given.
- Mirror Character: The show's villain uses a brainwashed cult to bring about the Final Solution of a supposedly evil race, that they blend in with and pretend to be one of, that the heroes know are not evil and thus must stop them. Wait, is this describing Emperor Belos or the Titan Trapper's leader, Bill? Furthering the parallels, both characters have the mirrors that the Collector can communicate to them through, but unlike the one Philip unearthed, Bill's is cracked in two, implying that the Collector may have 'moved on' to Philip/Belos after he'd finished with the Titan Trappers.
- My God, What Have I Done?:
- Luz is understandably incredibly guilt-ridden about inadvertently helping Philip/Belos gain power. Part of why she's so eager to go on the trip, besides helping King find his family, is that she hopes that she can find aid to stop the Day of Unity in them.
- Although she's more composed, Lilith is similarly guilty upon learning the truth as well.
- Names to Run Away From: It turns out the Collector is also known as the 'Grand Huntsman'.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: By detaching himself from the Owl House, Hooty just left Eda and Lilith vulnerable, and they can’t properly defend the house as the Emperor’s Coven arrive. To be fair, it was Lilith's idea.
- Not a Mask: Inverted with the Titan Trappers, who appear to the audience and Luz's group to be King's species, but turn out to be witches wearing costumes like the Titans they hunt. Played straight from their perspective, as they assume King was wearing a really nice Titan costume.
- Not So Extinct: Luz and most others were under the impression that the Titans were extinct, only to be told in this episode there's at least one that's still alive, which turns out to be King.
- Oh, Crap!: During their meeting, Bill points out that there is only one Titan still alive, describing it as a creature with a ravenous appetite, a God Complex and a distinctive shout. Realizing that Bill just perfectly described King, and having already learned that the Titan Trappers worship the Collector and plan to sacrifice the last Titan to him, Luz and Hooty are completely shocked, and instantly leave the room to try and get King off the island.
- Pink Girl, Blue Boy: In King's dream, his little brother's and sister's fur are respectively tinted muted grayish blue and pink.
- Playing Catch with the Old Man: King has a deep desire to simply play a game of catch with a member of his family, first in the Dream Intro, then he asks Tarak if he'll play catch with him. Even as he's (unknowingly) being sacrificed, he asks if they'll play catch with him afterwards. Unfortunately, he never gets the chance.
- Protectorate: Lilith sends Hooty along with Luz and King for their protection, something he is shown to take very seriously. He is horrified when he thinks Luz lost an arm, expresses concern about letting King be alone with a bunch of strangers, and uses his body to shield them from both the Titan Trappers and a rock-slide.
- Pun: Lilith believes that there is nothing at the location shown in Tarak's letter, and claims that the kids and Hooty will be going on a "wild Luz chase".
- Puny Parachute: King is shown using a cape that isn't any bigger than him as a parachute after Luz rescues him from being sacrificed.
- Red Herring: That lookalike stranger, whose name turns out to be Tarak, was not King's father after all—or even a demon for that matter. He’s a man dressed as a Titan.
- The Reveal: The Collector apparently needs the power of a Titan to be freed of his prison, and King is the only known living one left.
- Rewatch Bonus:
- The mural apparently depicting King's father heroically fighting off a monstrous creature depicted in the tower walls of "Echoes of the Past" was actually showing a Titan Trapper apparently in the act of striking down either King's father or another member of his species. Similarly, one of the drawings that depicted said Trapper in a side profile apparently had him with two curved horns
◊, but in actuality, that is the Collector's Arc Symbol behind the Trapper, with the crack in the mural obscuring the eye portion of the design. - At first glace, the fact that King's blood sample in "Knock, Knock, Knockin' on Hooty's Door" is never shown seems like a a case of Bloodless Carnage. In hindsight, it's clear that it was to keep the reveal of him being a Titan from coming out too quickly, as Titan's blood is a very distinctive shade of blue.
- The mural apparently depicting King's father heroically fighting off a monstrous creature depicted in the tower walls of "Echoes of the Past" was actually showing a Titan Trapper apparently in the act of striking down either King's father or another member of his species. Similarly, one of the drawings that depicted said Trapper in a side profile apparently had him with two curved horns
- Sanity Ball: Hooty, of all creatures, has it this episode. Not only does he take his job of protecting Luz and King seriously, saving their lives several times, but he expresses concern about letting King be alone with a bunch of strangers, though Luz brushes it off. Needless to say, his concern is proven very well founded.
- Self-Serving Memory: Much like with her promise to her mother, the Collector's rhyme during Luz's flashback doesn't perfectly match up with what they actually said the previous episode.
- Shout-Out:
- When walking around Bill's room, Luz picks up a big red two-pronged spear off the wall, the Spear of Longinus from Neon Genesis Evangelion.
- The weapons seen in his collection also include Anne’s tennis racket and Sasha’s sword.
- The Titan Trappers are hunters who wear their prey's skulls, just like the Huntsclan.
- Skeletons in the Coat Closet: The Titan Trappers turn out to just be a cult of witches serving the Collector, and only appear to look like King's species, which are actually Titans, because they wear their skulls and furs as costumes.
- Super-Scream: King uses his shouting power once more in the climax to destroy the portal and cut off the Titan Trappers.
- Time Zones Do Not Exist: Averted. There's a very obvious change in the time of day when Luz, Hooty, and King go through the portal, making it clear just how far they've traveled even before Tarak tells them that they're on the other side of the planet.
- Title-Only Opening: The third this season to only show the show title.
- There Is Another: It turns out Emperor Belos isn't the only person the Collector struck a bargain with in an attempt to regain his freedom.
- Tragic Dream: King just wants to play catch with his dad, or at least a familial father figure. Between the reveal that his Titan Trapping "family" are actually the ones who hunted his kind to near extinction, and that his dad is very likely the Titan of the Boiling Isles (and thus deceased), it's unlikely that his dream will ever come true.
- Unreliable Expositor:
- The Titan Trappers say that all Titans are evil, destructive monsters, but of course none of them have actually seen a living adult Titan. Eventually, it turns out Bill was making almost everything up about Titans to get everyone to work for him.
- Wham Episode: King is actually a baby Titan, the Collector has a cult of Titan-hunting witches (what King's supposed family turns out to be) worshipping him and apparently needs a Titan's power to be freed, and the episode ends with the Emperor's Coven about to attack the Owl House.
- Wham Line: Bill providing a rather... familiar description of a Titan."But if you think Belos is evil... you've never seen a live Titan. The children out there haven't either! Don't know a thing about their ravenous appetites, or their terrible cries! Even their babies act like little monarchs. The last living Titan... I saw it once, before it disappeared. Its hateful roar blew out my eardrums. How did it go? 'Weh!'"
- Wham Shot: After Bill starts rambling about the Grand Huntsman, Hooty directs Luz to a curtained room, where they spot a shrine filled with moon-related imagery and items. After Hooty picks up and shakes a snow globe, Luz spots the item inside and realizes that said Huntsman is none other than the Collector.
- After this, Bill takes off his "paw", revealing it to be a glove and cementing the above Wham Line that he and the other Titan Trappers are witches that hunt and make costumes out of King's actual species (Titans).
- Wide Eyes and Shrunken Irises: This is Luz's reaction when she realizes that King is probably a Titan. King has the same reaction when she tells him.
- Wild Goose Chase: Lilith thinks that she has sent Luz, King and Hooty on one to keep them away from danger.
- Would Be Rude to Say "Genocide": Played for Drama. The Titan Trappers are very proud of their Titan-hunting culture, and Bill boasts to Luz how they exterminated all but one of the "evil" Titan race and how eager they are to finish the job and free the "Grand Huntsman" (actually the Collector) whom they worship as a god. However, Luz and Hooty are rightly horrified, not only by their association with the Collector (who is helping Belos wipe out all witch and demon-kind), but their gleeful genocide of sentient creatures.
- Would Hurt a Child: Once they realize that King is a baby Titan, the Titan Trappers waste no time in trying to sacrifice King in order to free the Collector. There's also the massive amount of witch-sized bones that look similar to King's in their village, suggesting a mass murder of baby Titans in the past.
- Yank the Dog's Chain: King thinks that he's finally found his people and bonded with them, even if his father isn't there, and Luz thinks that she's found allies against Belos. Unfortunately, the Titan Trappers are not his people but a witch cult hunting Titans and worshipping the Collector. When their leader realizes that King is the last known living Titan, they try to sacrifice him to free the Collector. And since they are still out there, Luz and King will probably have to face even more enemies in the future.
- You Can't Thwart Stage One: Sacrificing King would've freed the Collector without using the Draining Spell, but since that was foiled, the original plan for the Day of Unity still stands.
