History Recap / AmphibiaS2E36TrueColors

* {{Hypocrite}}: Sasha singles out Marcy for betraying her and Anne by taking them to Amphibia against their will so she could spend more time with them. [[HypocriteHasAPoint While she isn't wrong]], Sasha still ignores the fact that, moments earlier, she betrayed Anne and Marcy with far more malicious intent.

* CryingWolf: Sasha has manipulated Anne on a regular basis, lied to her twice in an attempt to keep Grime in power. This makes it all the more ironic for poor Sasha when she finds evidence that Andrias is a [[LiteralMetaphor bigger]] threat than Grime ever was, and tries to warn Anne in a case of EvenEvilHasStandards. As Anne points out while they're fighting, ''why'' believe Sasha when she has lied so many times already?

* {{Hypocrite}}: Sasha singles out Marcy for betraying her and Anne, despite betraying Anne and Marcy earlier. Sasha does [[HypocrisyNod come to recognize this]] and [[HeelFaceTurn finally decides to clean up her act]].

* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** Back in one of the flashbacks in "Marcy at the Gates", Sasha mumbles to herself that [[BeCarefulWhatYouSay Marcy will end up getting herself killed one day]]. Sure enough, she gets stabbed by Andrias when he catches her helping Anne and the Plantars escape.
** Past episodes show Marcy acting nervous and meek whenever Anne mentions powering up the Calamity Gems to go home, and especially Marcy's nervous face in the past episode, all which build up to the reveal that not only did she knowingly get the girls teleported to Amphibia, but she also has no intention of having them all return home, desiring to explore the multiverse instead.
** The mural of King Andrias ruling Amphibia as a genocidal tyrant, which Sasha and Grime unveil [[LiteralMetaphor covered up by]] [[RuleofSymbolism a more benevolent-looking tapestry]], foreshadows his true nature in the episode.
** In the final scene of "Marcy at the Gates", Andrias is shown watching Anne and Marcy with great interest and is planning a "game" involving them, which hinted at his dimensional conquest. Andrias talking to his master in the final scene of "The First Temple" also gives further shades of this.
** [[WildHair The constant twigs and leaves in Anne's hair]] turn out to be this, foreshadowing her super mode's transformation, and hinting that their constant presence in every episode was a sign of Anne's connection to the Calamity Box. Notably, in the Season 3 intro shown after the credits, Anne is depicted as having clean hair for most of it, but is left with leaves in her hair again after activating her powers towards the end.
** When discussing how their adventures together are almost over in the episode's beginning, Anne consoles Sprig by telling him they won't be separated forever, even offering to let the Plantars come visit her in her world. By the episode's end, [[HourglassPlot the Plantars are now the ones]] [[TrappedinAnotherWorld stuck in the unfamiliar world of Earth with Anne]].
** Andrias previously demonstrated disinterest in the concerning reports Yunan brought him about the growing toad rebellion, focusing more on the news about Marcy and Anne successfully charging the Calamity Box. He demonstrates why in this episode, using the LostTechnology in the castle to fire a WaveMotionGun blast that effectively nukes the North Toad Tower, wiping out the headquarters of the rebellion in one move and demonstrating how futile their attempted insurrection was.
** In "The Sleepover to End All Sleepovers", the gang ran past a tattered tapestry in the castle basement, with Sprig calling attention to it before getting pulled away and the camera focusing on a torn-off scrap that fell on the floor, showing partial images of what seems to be Andrias sitting alongside a toad, with a frog barely visible on the portrait. In this episode, though the specifics aren't revealed, it's shown that the two others were a frog and a toad that Andrias once held to be his closest friends, and the slashed and tattered state of the tapestry was an indication of Andrias' wrath towards them for somehow betraying him, which extends to any form of friendship he encounters as well, seeing it as a foolish weakness.
** In the Season 2 intro, the upgraded portion showcased Anne and Sasha sword-fighting whilst Marcy was depicted in an EvilOverlooker position, staring at the Calamity Box in what seemed to be a contemplative or ominous fashion. Anne and Sasha do indeed come to blows in this episode, and it's later revealed that the reason they were even in Amphibia in the first place -- and ended up on opposite sides of the conflict between frogs and toads -- was that Marcy selfishly tricked them into taking the Calamity Box, aware of the possibility it could transport them to other worlds, and is implied to feel guilt over ripping her friends away from their lives, though that is in conflict with her desire to [[HatesBeingAlone keep her friends close]].
*** On that note, when Sasha reveals her true intentions to rule Amphibia with Grime and the Toad Army, and Anne breaks off their friendship for good, Marcy's reaction is to immediately try to get Anne to say she didn't really mean that, even when the situation has clearly progressed to the point that both her friends' goals and intentions are in conflict with each other. This shows Marcy's focus on keeping the three of them together as friends, and [[IRejectYourReality tendency to ignore the current situation in favor of what she wants to happen]].
*** Prior to meeting King Andrias in the episode's beginning, Marcy brings up how much of an amazing adventure they've all had, and asks Anne if she wishes it could go on forever, to which Anne shows little interest, despite admitting she has enjoyed herself and had an unforgettable time in Amphibia. In hindsight, this was clearly Marcy trying to ease her into the idea of continuing their adventures into other worlds beyond Amphibia, as well as foreshadowing what Anne's reaction to TheReveal behind Marcy trapping them in Amphibia in the first place would be like.
** Polly complains of itchiness in her backside, which is later revealed to be a symptom of her legs finally emerging.
** Back in "The First Temple", Marcy demonstrated her knowledge of the Calamity Box by making the gems eject after pressing a combination in the panels on the box. Yet, in "The Third Temple", she hastily insists on taking the box back to King Andrias because he would know how to send the girls home, something it seems like she should also know since they studied it together. It turns out, the only reason Marcy didn't open a portal to Earth the instant they completed the Third Temple is because she [[IChooseToStay wanted to remain in Amphibia]].
** There have been a few episodes ("Swamp and Sensibility", "Sprig Gets Schooled", "Little Frogtown") where Anne or the Plantars have learned that trying to apply logic from the films Anne has on her phone [[ThisIsReality doesn't always work in the real world]]. This ends up foreshadowing Marcy's FatalFlaw above, as her own knowledge of fantasy tropes ''does'' appear to have worked out for her, only for that to blow up in her face in this episode.
** During their first meeting -- which Anne flashes back to upon sinking into a HeroicBSOD -- Sprig referred to Anne as an "ugly, ugly, ugly hero". At the time it was an indication that Anne was a good person deep down, despite making some poor decisions [[ToxicFriendInfluence through her friendship with Sasha and Marcy]], but their various Calamity Box powers, the prophecy [[FreezeFrameBonus shown briefly]] in "A Day at the Aquarium"[[note]]Three stars burning bright, come from beyond to expel The Night. Should they fight or embrace the fall, their choice will determine all.[[/note]] and Andrias referring to their powers as a 'gift', as well as his caution and fear towards the full strength of their abilities, to the point he made sure not to reveal his true nature until he was certain the girls had de-powered themselves, indicates that they ''are'' actually destined heroes, though only Andrias seems to have any understanding of their intended role in events to come.
** Flying being one of Anne's powers was foreshadowed back in "The First Temple", in which a flashback showed her in a play as Peter Pan.
*** Also, in that same episode, Sprig mutters "You wouldn't be saying that if ''you'' were the pawn" to Marcy, who was controlling them through a life-sized game of Flipwart. Andrias then reveals that he was using Marcy as an UnwittingPawn to get the Calamity stones charged.
** In "Scavenger Hunt", Marcy told Anne that, despite her smarts and notable accomplishments around Newtopia, she was actually jealous of Anne's ability to make friends wherever she went, whereas Marcy admitted she had trouble even looking people in the eyes at times. Here, it's revealed that Marcy's deep-seated insecurities with making new friends on her own is the entire reason why she and the other girls were transported to Amphibia in the first place, so Marcy wouldn't lose the few connections she already had, in fear of not being able to make new ones like them when her parents moved.
** Season 1 hinted that Marcy might be as bad as Sasha, as she also peer-pressured Anne into stealing the Calamity Box. While Season 2 softened her to be a {{Genki|Girl}} NiceGirl, she's still shown to be complicit in Sasha's bullying of Anne, never standing up for her even after Anne GrewASpine in Amphibia. Flashbacks and "The First Temple" also show that Marcy was InnocentlyInsensitive to Anne's feelings, often forcing her to act as a CloudcuckoolandersMinder by not paying attention to her surroundings, and never really apologizes even after Anne repeatedly tells her how much it worries and stresses her out. This episode shows that Marcy's inconsideration of others' feelings comes through in a big way, as she tricked her friends into taking and opening the Calamity Box and getting them stranded in another world ''on purpose'' because [[TimeToMove her parents were about to move her out of state]] and she [[HatesBeingAlone didn't want to be separated]].
** At the start of the episode, Marcy remarks that for the sake of Joe Sparrow, no one else should join their team. (Since he got tired from carrying all of them.) While it's PlayedForLaughs, it's also an early indicator that Marcy secretly doesn't want to go home, but to keep having adventures in Amphibia.
* ForWantOfANail:
** '''The entire show''' happened because Marcy's parents wanted to move away. Marcy still wanted to be with Sasha and Anne, so she helped steal the Calamity Box, aware of what it would do, [[DidntThinkThisThrough but didn't think of the long-term consequences]]. They were whisked to different areas of Amphibia, Marcy to Newtopia, where she was used by King Andrias for his own evil purposes. After her friends find out, they are upset and angry with her.
*** Try the librarian who dropped Professor P's book in front of Marcy. Without that Marcy would have just cried and been upset with ''maybe'' the possibility of Sasha doing something rash. With her dropping it Marcy knew what the Calamity Box was and what it could do.

** In "The Sleepover to End All Sleepovers", the gang ran past a tattered tapestry in the castle basement, with Sprig calling attention to it before getting pulled away and the camera focusing on a torn-off scrap that fell on the floor, showing partial images of what seems to be Andrias sitting alongside a toad, with a frog barely visible on the portrait. In this episode, though the specifics aren't revealed, it's shown that the two others were a frog and a toad that Andrias once held to be his closest friends, and the slashed and tattered state of the tapestry was an indication of Andrias' {{wrath}} towards them for somehow betraying him, which extends to any form of friendship he encounters as well, seeing it as a foolish weakness.

* AnAesop:
** If you've betrayed and lied to someone repeatedly, they won't be willing to listen to you when you're telling the truth.
** Never, '''ever''' double down on your mistakes. At best, you'll alienate your friends (Sasha, Marcy); at worst, you'll let yourself become a monster (Andrias).
** Several related to Marcy's mistake:
*** Always consider what your friends might feel about something you want to do, especially if it involves leaving home. What sounds like wonderful fun to you may not be so appreciated by your friends, especially if [[TheKindnapper you dragged them along without their consent]]. Even ''if'' they enjoyed the experience, they may be homesick and see anything positive as a happy accident, and whatever fun you had isn't worth it if things go even half as pear-shaped as they did in this scenario.
---->'''Anne''': How could you?! I've been missing my parents; ''my life!''
*** Be honest with your friends, even--no, ''especially''--if you've done something idiotic and you know they'll be furious when they find out. That way, rather than some nefarious third party revealing what you did, resulting in you being put on the spot and [[MotiveRant desperately trying to justify your actions]], you'll be able to admit your mistakes calmly and on your own terms, and they won't be as angry with you.
*** Never make sudden, life-changing decisions when you're not in a good emotional state. You're almost certainly [[IdiotBall not thinking straight]], and [[ATragedyOfImpulsiveness the decision you make will invariably be terrible]].
*** Never let someone you barely know goad you into sharing your secrets with them. They're not necessarily trustworthy and may [[VillainRevealsTheSecret weaponize those secrets against you]].
*** One for parents: '''never, ''ever'' commit to moving away without making sure your whole family is ready for it, ''especially if you have an autistic child''.''' If you don't properly prepare them for the move, [[MovingAngst they'll resent you for making them abandon their friends and everything they've ever known]], and they may even [[TheRunaway run away from you]]. You have to ease them into the idea, not blindside the poor kid with sudden bad news like the Wus clearly did. Even if you can't help it, at least break the news gently. If at any point you find yourself uttering the words "Please try to understand", you have ''royally'' frogged up. Obviously, [[SpaceWhaleAesop this particular turn of events won't happen]], but it was the result of a realistic reaction.

* TragicMistake: Everything went wrong all because Marcy was too afraid to move away from her friends. It nearly costs her her life and Andrias will now continue his invasion.

* UnreliableNarrator: King Andrias claims that he had frog and toad friends who betrayed him and stole the Calamity Box. Considering this is just before Andrias is revealed to be a MultiversalConqueror, it seems more likely that the frog and toad discovered his plans and took the box to stop him.

** '''The entire show''' happened because Marcy's parents wanted to move away. Marcy still wanted to be with Sasha and Anne, so she helped steal the Calamity Box, aware of what it would do, [[DidntThinkThisThrough but didn't think of the long-term consequences]]. They were whisked to different areas of Amphibia, Marcy to Newtopia, where she was used by King Andrias for his own evil purposes. After revealing the truth, she dies.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Sasha singles out Marcy for betraying her and Anne, despite betraying Anne earlier. Sasha does [[HypocrisyNod come to recognize this]] and [[HeelFaceTurn finally decides to clean up her act]].

* HateSink: King Andrias. This episode shows his true colors as a heartless authoritarian who wants to use the Calamity Box for multiverse conquest. On top of that, he truly assassinates the dog by destroying Frobo, dropping Sprig to his near death, and stabs Marcy literally in the back without a hint of remorse.

** Sasha learns that Andrias is not as benevolent as he portrays himself based on a mural in the castle, but her attempts to convey this information to Anne are so vague as to be meaningless. She only tells Anne that there's "something wrong" with Andrias, to which Anne rightfully points out that Sasha has no credibility left. Anne continues closing the gate until Sasha decides she has to stop Anne by force, which makes it look like Sasha only cares about stopping Anne from foiling the invasion. All further attempts fall on deaf ears because Sasha hasn't given any reason why she should be believed. In fairness to Sasha, she only has a vague idea of what he intends to do based on the mural, she can't simply drag it along to show Anne or take a photo of it, and she has no other concessions to offer Anne short of willingly sabotaging the toads as an act of good faith, which would lead to the same outcome. Andrias, meanwhile, [[HiddenVillain has taken pains]] to obscure his true nature from the girls and paint himself as a benefactor to them, so Anne has every reason to favor him over Sasha.

-->'''Marcy:''' I… I'm sorry… for everything… (''falls to the ground'')\\

*** Also, in that same episode, Sprig mutters "You wouldn't be saying that if ''you'' were the pawn. Andrias then reveals that he was using Marcy as an UnwittingPawn to get the Calamity stones charged.

* EvilAllAlong: King Andrias, who secretly plots to use the Calamity Box to not just rule Amphibia, but every single dimension, including Earth.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Sasha singles out Marcy for betraying her and Anne by having them sent to Amphibia against their will with the Calamity Box so they can spend more time together. While she [[HypocriteHasAPoint isn't wrong]], Sasha still ignores the fact that, minutes prior, she betrayed Anne with far more malicious intents.
* HypocriteHasAPoint: Sasha rightfully calls out Marcy on betraying her and Anne, not only separating them from their families and livelihoods but also endangering their lives in the process. This still doesn't change the fact that, moments prior, Sasha herself betrayed Anne for the sake of control.

** Anne has spent most of her time in Amphibia being an ActionSurvivor, relying on her wits mostly to survive various hazards and having to pick up skills like sword fighting as she went along to better defend herself. In this episode, Anne and the others discover she had a SuperMode all along that would have made the various threats she and the Plantars have faced throughout Amphibia an absolute cakewalk to handle...and she discovers this scant minutes before getting transported home, where her new abilities prevent her being able to return to being just a 'normal girl' like she wanted all this time.

** Sasha betrays Anne and the Plantar family by helping Grime conquer Newtopia [[EvilIsPetty for no other reason]] than she wants to be [[ControlFreak in control again]]. After Sasha and Grime discover that King Andrias is a ruthless conqueror, they remark that perhaps it's a ''good thing'' they stopped him. However, Anne is still ''furious'' with Sasha over her lies and manipulations, and isn't interested in hearing what she has to say about King Andrias. However, after realizing Sasha was right about King Andrias, she is at least willing to team up to deal with him, and is implied to be at least open to rekindling their friendship later. Despite Sasha betraying Anne and conquering Newtopia for purely selfish reasons, she's morally absolved just because [[GreaterScopeVillain King Andrias turned out to be worse]], even though Sasha believed he was TheGoodKing when she staged the coup.

* MoralMyopia: Sasha doesn't see a problem with betraying Anne and her friends for the sake of control, but she has the nerve to call out Marcy for betraying her and Anne for the sake of them spending more time together. While she [[HypocriteHasAPoint isn't wrong]], she still ignores that her betrayal was no better.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Sasha singles out Marcy for betraying her and Anne by having them sent to Amphibia against their will with the Calamity Box so they can spend more time together. She conveniently ignores the fact that, minutes prior, she betrayed Anne with far more malicious intents.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Anne and her friends manage to stop Sasha and Grime, free King Andrias and give him the Calamity Box. They, all of Amphibia and every other world would have been much safer if they failed. In fairness to Anne, Sasha has betrayed Anne too many times to believe her warnings about Andrias, and Andrias was just so good at hiding his true nature, so Anne's falling out with Sasha means that there is no way for Anne to learn that she is in fact helping an even bigger threat than Sasha and Grime until it's too late.

* DavidVersusGoliath: Sprig and Grime duke it out, with Grime being a huge toad with a warhammer and Sprig being a small frog with a slingshot. Sprig shoots a rock into Grime's "good eye", causing the latter to get disoriented, trip, and the warhammer to smash his face.
* {{Deconstruction}}: Of the concept of adventure. Not everyone will treat it with a sense of excitement and wonder. In Anne's case, having to be thrust into life-threatening danger isn't something she's welcoming of, and it's been very traumatic for her because she missed out on her 13th birthday, her family, and her quiet life.
* {{Determinator}}: Despite Sasha and Marcy's betrayals, Anne points out to Andrias she won't stop until she defeats him, no mantter how many times he tries to take them down.

** Sprig, who per WordOfGod has ADHD, is dropped out of a window by King Andrias. Anne's [[UnstoppableRage response to this]], however, gives Marcy, who is desperate to set things right since her own mistakes caused this to happen, an opening to save him.

** Sprig, who per WordOfGod has ADHD, is dropped out of a window by King Andrias. Anne's response to this, however, gives Marcy an opening to save him.

* KickTheSonOfABitch: While by this point the audience knows that King Andrias was EvilAllAlong and Sasha and Grime were [[MoralLuck luckily correct in overthrowing him]], it can still feel somewhat satisfying watching Anne knock some sense into Sasha (both [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech verbally]] and [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown physically]]) for subjecting her to a lifetime of bullying and manipulations, and recent lies and backstabbing.

* YouGotSpunk: Andrias admits this to the Plantar family and their allies after they take out most of his robots.

** When King Andrias reveals that Marcy stranded them all in Newtopia ''on purpose'' so they could stay together, Marcy tries to argue that Sasha and Anne have had so many wonderful adventures, have grown so much, and Anne got to meet and bond with the Plantar family because of her. While Anne concedes that some good came out of it, she ''firmly'' rejects Marcy's assertion that deliberately trapping her friends in an alternate world, away from their families and lives, with dubious hope of ever getting back home, just so she could keep them all to herself was in ''any way'' okay.

--->'''Anne''': How could you?! I've been missing my parents; ''my life!''

*** One for parents: '''never, ''ever'' commit to moving away without making sure your whole family is ready for it, ''especially if you have an autistic child''.''' If you don't properly prepare the kid for the move, [[MovingAngst they'll resent you for making them abandon their friends and everything they've ever known]], and they may even [[TheRunaway run away from you]]. You have to ease them into the idea, not blindside the poor kid with sudden bad news like the Wus clearly did. Even if you can't help it, at least break the news gently. If at any point you find yourself uttering the words "Please try to understand", you have ''royally'' frogged up. Obviously, [[SpaceWhaleAesop this particular turn of events won't happen]], but it was the result of a realistic reaction.