When Lurch becomes depressed after getting a letter from his mother, Gomez and Morticia pry the truth out of him — Lurch told his mother that he owns the mansion, rather than being the butler. To conceal the falsehood, Gomez and Morticia decide to act as the butler and the maid for the duration of the visit.
This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
- Becoming the Mask: When Lurch's mother comes to visit, Gomez and Morticia decide to pretend Lurch is the master and they are the servants. At first, it's difficult for Lurch to play the part. However, he grows accustomed to his new idle position so much, they have to "brainwash him out of it" afterwards.
- The Butler Did It: Mrs. Lurch catches Gomez kissing Morticia's hand and accuses them of being in cahoots to get her son's fortune and then kill him. She bluntly says that in mystery stories, the butler always does it.
- Crushing Handshake: After firing him and Morticia, Lurch shakes Gomez' hand, which causes cracking noises.
- Disproportionate Retribution: While they're discussing ways to hide Lurch's deception from his mother, Uncle Fester suggests rigging the doorbell to set off explosives, which discourages magazine salesmen.
- Does Not Know His Own Strength: Lurch accidentally pulls the rope out of the ceiling while calling Morticia.
- Hired Help as Family: When it comes out that Lurch told his mother he owned the mansion, Morticia tells him that the family has always considered him one of them. The whole plot comes about because she and Gomez want to help Lurch impress his mother and hide his deception from her.
- Improbable Aiming Skills: Morticia can shoot a crossbow well enough to hit two apples in the air.
- Maintain the Lie: Lurch's aged mother comes to visit him. Unfortunately, he never told her he was a butler; most of the story involved his posing as the master of the house, with Gomez acting as butler and Morticia as maid. This becomes a problem when Mother Lurch concludes that the servants are planning on killing her son for the inheritance. Gomez and Morticia don't break the masquerade, but they plead for Lurch to do something. Unfortunately, Lurch has gotten so deep into his role as the master that he fires them.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: After Lurch gets a letter, Morticia realizes something is wrong because Lurch smiled.
- William Telling: The Addamses have apparently shot apples off Lurch's head. Gomez considers shooting apples out of the air better, because the steel-headed arrows crumple if they hit Lurch.
