Behrad is disappointed because the Legends have forgotten his birthday, so when they track an alien pod to 2024 and wind up at his favorite television sitcom, he thinks it’s really a surprise for him. Feeling guilty, Nate and Zari occupy Behrad by keeping up the ruse by attending a taping of the show while Ava, Spooner, and Astra try to find the Alien to get the timeline back on track, which proves challenging. Meanwhile, Rory’s behavior has been a little off, so Sara and Gary become determined to find out what happened, but Rory gets some unexpected news from his daughter, Lita.
Tropes:
- 420, Blaze It: Bud Stuy features a lot of weed smoking and the number of the apartment in the show (seen on the door) is 420.
- Always Someone Better: Zari 2.0 feels this towards Zari 1.0, especially when she learns that the latter remembered Behrad's birthday and she herself didn't. At the end, she finds a loophole with the two totems so they are able to switch places from time to time without killing Behrad.
- Bait-and-Switch:
- Upon hearing that Mick wanted to learn everything about Lita's boyfriend, Sara is convinced that Mick's planning to kill him. He was, but by the time they find Mick and his future son-in-law, they were having a man-to-man talk and Nico has won Mick over.
- Gary was rather apprehensive upon learning that Mick had slept with his ex Kayla. At first it seemed that Gary was being a Green-Eyed Monster, but rather it's because Kayla impregnated Mick.
- Berserk Button: Astra, who had been enamored with the new Behrad up to that point, had to be held back from killing him after he calls her "babe".
- Bland-Name Product: Among the posters on the wall as Behrad and Astra search for the alien are Tornado and Fast 2.
- Brain Bleach: Lita when she hears the details of Mick's sexual romp with Kayla.
- Brick Joke: Just like all the other Legends when they learned the truth, Zari 1.0 is not that surprised that Gary is really an alien.
- Brown Note: Gus-Gus can scream at a very high pitch which gives people temporary deafness.
- Capitalism Is Bad: Behrad points this out in regard to Bud Stuy, as he wants it to stay a niche hit and prevent Imran from becoming a Sell-Out.
- Cryptic Background Reference: According to Lita, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will run for president in 2023.
- Fanboy: Behrad for Imran Saeed, whose performance at Bud Stuy changed his life and made him into the easy-going guy he is today,
- Forgotten Birthday: Behrad's. Zari 1.0 is the only one who remembers.
- He Cleans Up Nicely: The whole team is stunned by Behrad's pomade.
- Innocently Insensitive: Sara does this to Zari 2.0, when she mentions that the timeline changing Behrad's path because of the alien's presence on his favorite show isn't good. She ends up using the loss of Zari 1.0 as an example.
- Internal Reveal:
- Everyone finds out about Kayla and Mick's brief fling.
- Zari 1.0 catches up on every adventure the Legends had since the start of the season.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall:
- Behrad points out how a Sitcom episode is a bit "tropey".
- Nate gets the landlord role, and the others note he's exactly the right person to bring onboard a show that flopped in its first season. Of course, that's exactly how he joined Legends itself. He also asks if the show is going to be on The CW.
- The revelation at the end of the episode prompts a Laugh Track. Everyone looks around for the source then they all realize who's the true culprit: Gideon!
- Mr. Seahorse: Gary reveals that Kayla has impregnated Mick!
- Oh, Crap!: Zari when Behrad spelled it out that it was his birthday, and she (as well as the rest of the Legends) completely forgot about it.
- One Drink Will Kill the Baby: Gary takes Mick's booze away as he reveals that Mick is pregnant.
- Parental Abandonment: Lita calls Mick a deadbeat dad after his initial, negative reaction towards her pregnacy. Though they quickly patch things up.
- Ripple Effect Indicator: Behrad becomes one, as the alien's presence alters the direction of the show, changing the effect the show had on him in his childhood. He gradually starts to turn into a corporate yuppie.
- Shout-Out:
- Gideon mentions besting Behrad at Mortal Kombat.
- One of the Asgard puppets from Stargate SG-1 can be seen as Nick and Zari are investigating backstage.
- Split-Personality Takeover: The two Zaris reach an arrangement, where they can switch places at will using the Totem without endangering the timeline (or Behrad).
- Sure, Let's Go with That: The Legends visit a taping of Behrad's favorite sitcom, and Behrad thinks it's a birthday surprise for him. Zari, who had actually forgotten his birthday, pretends that's the case. Then the alien crash lands on the set and Behrad realizes what happened.
- Teen Pregnancy: Happens to Mick's daughter Lita. Thankfully, the father is supporting her and they plan to co-inhabit.
- Throw It In!: Lots of in-universe examples during the shootings of the Show Within a Show.
- The alien lands on the set during taping. It proves popular with the studio audience, so the show's crew just pretends it's part of the plot, and rewrites the show to feature it.
- At the final shooting, Nate, who was cast as the landlord, had to be fed his lines. Eventually he decides to just ad-lib everything.
- Wham Shot: Mick quickly teleports his daughter into the Waverider because she told him it was an emergency... and to everyone's surprise (especially Mick), she's pregnant.
