Recap / Full House S 8 E 10 Under The Influence

"Under the Influence" is an episode in the eighth season of Full House.

D.J. and Kimmy attend a college frat party, but trouble arises after Kimmy gets drunk and makes a scene, and they argue over what happened at the party. Meanwhile Michelle tries to cope with Nicky and Alex tailing her but fails when she snaps at them, and Jesse and Joey try to teach the boys about forgiveness by using Joey's homemade entree on each other.

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Tropes seen in this episode include:

• Berserk Button: After a fashion. D.J.'s friendship with Kimmy nearly self-destructs partly because D.J. wouldn't let Kimmy drive home drunk from a party. It's clarified later in the episode that the Tanner girls' mother was killed by a drunk driver^note  (until then, it was never explained how she died other than a car accident), hence D.J. being particularly upset.
• Continuity Snarl: Danny mentions that he would lie to impress high school girls while in college and laughs it off. Values Dissonance aside, no one seems to mention that he was married to Pam at this time.
• Escalating War: Overlaps with Foodfight!. In an attempt to teach Nicky and Alex about forgiveness, Jesse and Joey do increasingly mean things to each other, knowing their friend would forgive them, starting with Jesse placing one of Joey's flounder tarts in his shirt pocket and smacking it, and ultimately ending with Becky breaking it off before Joey could jam a running egg beater up Jesse's butt.
• Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: Early in the episode, Danny and Joey talk about the frat parties they had back in their college days and the lies they told the high school girls attending said parties to impress them. When Stephanie scrutinize them for lying to underage girls, Danny tries to justify himself before remembering that D.J., a high school student herself, is about to attend a college frat party and proceeding to go to talk to her.
  Stephanie: You guys lied to those girls?
  Danny: Well, yeah. It's not something we're proud of, but, you know, when a kid is young and wants to impress a girl, he'll say just about anything to — *beat* I'd better go talk to D.J. Excuse me.
• Foodfight!: Jesse's and Joey's attempts to "teach" Nicky and Alex about forgiveness involves Jesse and Joey doing increasingly mean things to each other, knowing their friend would forgive them, using Joey's flounder tarts.
• Hide and No Seek:
  • Michelle pulls one such stunt when she tries to get Nicky and Alex to stop tailing her at the start of the episode.
    Nicky and Alex: Let's play more, Michelle.
    Michelle: OK, how about hide and seek? You guys hide and I'll count. *Nicky and Alex run away to hide* To a million.
  • Right after getting Nicky and Alex off her back, if for a moment, Michelle complains to Stephanie about having someone else tagging along everywhere. Stephanie implies that Michelle acted the same way to Stephanie herself as Nicky and Alex are now acting towards Michelle, which makes this scenario overlap with Hypocritical Humor.
    Michelle: You know what it's like having little kids bugging you all day long?
    Stephanie: I guess you don't remember where you got that "count to a million" trick.
• Hypocritical Humor: When Michelle complains to Stephanie about having someone else tagging along everywhere, Stephanie implies that Michelle acted the same way to Stephanie herself as Nicky and Alex are now acting towards Michelle.
  Michelle: You know what it's like having little kids bugging you all day long?
  Stephanie: I guess you don't remember where you got that "count to a million" trick.
• I Ate WHAT?!: Jesse has this reaction after taking a bite of Joey's flounder tart before he proceeds to spit into the mitten Joey is wearing.
  Jesse: Joey, two questions: Can you help me, and what did I just put in my mouth?
  Joey: Yes, and... flounder tart.
• Jaw Drop: Rebecca and Michelle react with mouth agape at Jesse and Joey's so-called "educational demonstration on forgiveness".
• Lethal Chef: Joey's homemade entrees in this episode are meat muffins and flounder tarts. The former gets Danny calling for takeout, while Jesse does a Spit Take after taking a bite out of the latter.
• Perspective Flip: Kimmy and D.J. recount their night at the party with different perspectives. When Kimmy tells D.J. her side of the story, she accuses D.J. Of “ruining her night”. This accusation is seemingly supported in Kimmy’s flashback Where she is portrayed as a popular guest who speaks with a British accent and displays talent in poetry. In contrast, D.J. Is portrayed in a more negative light. Kimmy’s flashback portrays D.J. As being jealous of Kimmy’s newfound popularity and cuts her night and Kimmy’s short. Near the end of the episode, however, D.J. tells a different and more accurate version of the story which is also supported by a flashback. There D.J. is depicted in a much more positive light while Kimmy on the other hand ends up embarrassing herself and D.J. due to the former being drunk. Furthermore, a college student threatens to kick both D.J. and Kimmy out if the girls refuse to leave. It was Kimmy’s actions and behavior that led to her night as well as D.J.’s being cut short instead of the latter’s. After D.J. Finishes telling her side of the story, Kimmy makes no attempt to refute D.J.’s claims but acknowledges that she wasn’t on her best behavior.
• Real Men Eat Meat: Joey makes his fondness to meat abundantly clear in this episode. Besides cooking up meat muffins and flounder tarts, neither of which anyone else appreciates, Jesse also proves it by asking him early in the episode whether he was cooking his usual dish (meatloaf in this case).
• Shout-Out: To I Dream of Jeannie, "fold arms, nod head" spell-casting gesture and all, when Rebecca responds to Jesse telling her to "sit back and watch the master" as he enlists Joey's "help" in teaching Nicky and Alex about forgiveness.
  Rebecca: Yes, master. I'll be there in my bottle if you need me.
• Spit Take: Jesse spits into the mitten Joey is wearing after taking a bite into a flounder tart made by Joey.
• Very Special Episode: D.J. and Kimmy's plot-line in this episode deals with the issue of drunk driving, as this episode reveals that the Tanner girls' mother, Pam, was killed by a drunk driver, and that D.J. fought tooth and nail against Kimmy trying to drive home, ultimately succeeding in doing so, for this very reason.
• You Need a Breath Mint: Kimmy stays over at the Tanner residence after getting drunk at a fraternity party, and Michelle gets the full brunt of her alcohol-induced bad breath in the next morning, with her reaction being this trope from a Little Miss Snarker.
  Michelle: Whoa. (to D.J. when she enters her bedroom) Next time Dragon Breath sleeps in your bed, I want to be notified.