It is a super time on set, as the contestants participate in superhero-based challenges. Someone forms a fierce rivalry with another castmate, while two others maintain their old rivalry. A new alliance is formed, replacing an old one, ending it all with one cast member's elimination and someone else's heartbreak.
Plot
Chris flies in dressed as Batman.
The episode begins with flashbacks revealing that Courtney and Lindsay actually took the cheese factory tour, though Courtney didn't seem too enthusiastic about the trip when she says Lindsay smells like feet. Back on the set, Harold gets upset when Duncan kicks his rear while a burrito is in his pocket, causing the burrito to get smashed in Harold's pants. Justin intervenes in the fight and uses the temporary peace to form a guys' alliance with Harold and Duncan, based on the premise that the girls outnumber the guys four to three and with Courtney back on the show, the girls will eventually figure it out and pick them off one by one. The scene then cuts to Leshawna and Beth, who are enjoying some cheese that Lindsay brought back from the factory. However, Courtney refuses to eat, as she is simply angry at Lindsay for enjoying the cheese factory tour so much and because the cheese smelled so bad. The two groups go to bed as they talk about what to do about the opposing group. The guys' alliance agrees that they will need a plan to remain in the competition so that one of them can win the million dollars.
Pythonicus and his feline sidekick, Dander Boy.
The next day, the castmates arrive at the center of the film lot in their pajamas. They see Chef being held in the air by a bungee cord, wearing a pink dress and screaming for help. Chris then jumps from a building, dressed in a costume that resembles Batman, and manages to grab Chef Hatchet. The two then fall as the cords they were attached to break. Chris lands by Courtney's side and she asks when he'll tell her about the challenge, but Chris is too angry about the cord snapping to even care.
Shortly afterward, Chris announces that he feels like telling everyone what the challenge is, so he does. Chris tells the final seven that the challenges will be based on superhero movies. The contestants begin to complain about just waking up, not brushing their teeth or not having breakfast. Chris reminds them that, in movies, evil never sleeps and that heroes don't do the same thing as "mere mortals," but Harold disagrees and explains that many of them are mere mortals and ordinary humans. Chris tells everyone to shut it so he can continue explaining the challenges: (1) Superheroes have superpowers; (2) superheroes save people; (3) superheroes wear tights. Everyone is upset to learn that they will have to be wearing spandex outfits, along with other extra "junk," except for Lindsay. Chris asks them to get dressed and meet him back.
On their way, Harold thanks Duncan for the burrito, which he calls breakfast. Meanwhile, Courtney taunts Lindsay by telling her she could use her stench as a superpower, calling her Gorgonzola Girl, but Leshawna interrupts her and calls Courtney "Aged-Cheddar Chick."
 Harold |
“ | Beans have a lot of protein. And they're a major source of soluble fiber. Plus, they make you fart. [farts, laughs] I like beans. | ” |
 Courtney |
“ | I have had it with Leshawna! 'Aged-Cheddar Chick'? If I were a cheese, I'd be Caciocavallo Podolico — a rare cheese from Italy or Lancashire — not aged cheddar! | ” |
All of the contestants must dress as superheroes, tights and all, for the challenge. They each have to make their own superhero costume and will be judged on originality. He also tells them that Chef under the alias of "Pythonicus," along with his sidekick cat "Dander Boy," will be playing the supervillain and will attempt to sabotage their work. Chris asks them if they have any questions but ignores them, telling them to begin the challenge. As they all run, Courtney and Lindsay fight over the same color of fabric roll, but Courtney pushes Lindsay off, obtaining it herself.
 Lindsay |
“ | Forget superpowers, Courtney's on a super power trip! | ” |
All the castmates work on their outfits except Duncan, who doesn't seem to care, while Pythonicus and Dander Boy manage to sabotage the contestants: Dander Boy scratches Leshawna's costume as she tried to measure it; Pythonicus takes away Beth's piece of wood and shreds it and puts a piece of a different-colored fabric on Lindsay while she sews her costume; Harold's sticker is changed; and Courtney is electrocuted.
Captain Alberta unleashing "The Mighty Winds of Chinook."
The castmates all come out with their finished costumes and made-up powers: Beth comes out as "Lumber Woman," whose superpower is being able to talk to plants, but gets a 3/10. Justin's outfit is practically the exact same thing, except his name: "Timber Man," and gets a 2/10. Chris likes Harold's persona, "Captain Alberta," due to "keeping it Canadian" and having such a good superpower (powerful farting); which earns him a score of 7/10. Chris is dismayed when Duncan's superhero is revealed: "The All-Seeing Eye." However, Duncan refuses to wear any spandex and Chris gives him a 2/10 for poor superpowers. He has hope when Courtney's outfit as the "Human Cricket" gets an 8/10, after she reveals her superpower of making an annoying scraping sound using her costume. Leshawna receives a 7/10 as "Super Aqua Chick" after she sprays Chris with water. Lindsay is the last to come out and says her superhero is "Wonder Woman," but is reminded by Courtney that Wonder Woman already exists. When asked about her superpower, Lindsay says that she wonders a lot. Chris, however, says he loved Wonder Woman when he was young and proclaims Lindsay the winner of the challenge. Courtney argues that Lindsay's outfit isn't original, but Chris reminds her that he makes the rules. Courtney reminds him that her lawyers are the ones who make the rules and while Chris admits that may be true, he is still the judge of the current contest and declares Lindsay the winner. After Lindsay complains that Courtney stepped on her "invisible jet," Courtney gets two points taken off her final score, even if the winner had already been decided. Lindsay then asks if they want a ride on her invisible jet, to which everyone, except Courtney, raises their hands cheerfully. Chris then winks to the camera saying "I love this show."
Duncan "foresees" Harold getting punched.
The second challenge will test the castmates' powers.
 Beth |
“ | I don't think Chris gets that our superpowers are fake. I mean, I can't really talk to plants. Hi, what's your name? | ” |
Every contestant has to jump from a trampoline, over a building, then land on a mattress to save a "girl," which is actually a potato sack wearing a dress.
 Duncan |
“ | Like Chris is one to talk. He probably had dinner with that thing last night. | ” |
This confessional leads to a flashback of exactly the moment taking place. Finally, the castmates must go through a "meteor shower," which is really Chef throwing bowling balls over an electric wire. For a demonstration, Chef throws a bowling ball at a water tower, which goes straight through the tower, sending water pouring out of it. The castmate who completes the challenge in the least amount of time wins. For winning the first challenge, Lindsay gets ten seconds cut off her overall time.
Courtney |
“ | Lindsay may have won the first round, but I have the law firm of Fleckman, Fleckman, Cohen, and Strauss behind me. They'll make sure I win the million. Ugh! What is with all these out-of-office messages?! | ” |
Lindsay is up first for the obstacle course and, despite her bonus, she does a terrible job. She fails her jump, misses the potato sack, and is hit by a bowling ball when she crosses the telephone wires.
Lindsay |
“ | What's with those mattresses? [cockroaches walking on her arm, nervously] Oh… Hello. | ” |
Harold surprises everyone by putting on a great display, and even manages to use his "superpowers," which are farting to speed up his time.
 Leshawna |
“ | I'm not sure if it was the heat or Harold's burrito breeze, but seeing that boy as Captain Alberta made me feel a little light-headed. Whoo! | ” |
Harold completes the challenge with an impressive thirty-six seconds. Harold taunts Duncan by rubbing his success on him, and Duncan grabs him by the cape and threatens him by reminding him that Duncan's "real superpower" is the ability to "cream dorks like [Harold]."
Harold |
“ | I'm giving Duncan a false sense of security. I'm just waiting for the right moment to strike. Huh-dah! | ” |
All the other five go next, but Leshawna hits a prop, failing her jump. Justin is hit by a bowling ball, is electrocuted, and fails as well. Duncan, Harold, and Courtney are the only ones to finish the course. Even though Harold makes it in thirty-six seconds; Courtney wins the challenge, and invincibility, with thirty seconds.
The guys try to think of whom to vote off that night, and when Justin suggests they should vote off Courtney since she is the biggest threat, a worried Duncan reminds him that she won immunity. Duncan then tells everyone to vote off Leshawna, to Harold's anguish, and he refuses to vote with the alliance. Duncan convinces Courtney to vote off Leshawna and to convince Harold into doing so too, her knowing the girls will want her off if she loses the next invincibility challenge. Leshawna, Lindsay, and Beth are deliberating in the washrooms, and they choose Duncan, not only because he's a strong castmate, but because it would hurt Courtney as well. Leshawna points out that only three of them wouldn't be enough, and Beth attempts to convince Harold to vote off Duncan. Courtney then appears from behind the bushes, wanting to talk to Harold.
Harold |
“ | I knew Courtney would come around, eventually. | ” |
She informs him that the girls are trying to vote him off. When Harold asks why he needs to know this, Courtney responds that because of his performance in the challenge, she could take him to the final four. In order to do so, however, they both need to vote off Leshawna. Shocked, Harold still refuses to do so. Courtney tells Harold that Leshawna cannot be trusted after what she had done. Harold is left with only one decision: voting off Leshawna or else he will be eliminated.
Leshawna is shocked to not receive the final Gilded Chris Award, while Duncan is relieved.
The Awards Ceremony begins with Courtney, Justin, Beth, Harold, and Lindsay receiving the Gilded Chris awards in that order. Leshawna and Duncan are the last two left, and the final award goes to Duncan. Leshawna is voted off, leaving Lindsay and Beth shocked. Leshawna thought that they had betrayed her into voting her off, but Harold later jumps onto Leshawna, telling her that he is sorry, saying that he joined Duncan, Courtney, and Justin into voting her off. He wasn't sure if he could trust her, but he realizes he made a mistake. Leshawna tells him not to worry because she made a mistake earlier, and then forgives him. As Leshawna heads on over to the Lame-o-sine, Harold, Lindsay, and Beth waved goodbye to her. Leshawna tells Harold to keep continuing on in the game, and tells him to stand up for himself. After she leaves, Duncan tells Harold that he has something in his pocket, only to kick him in the butt when Duncan once again put the burrito in Harold's back pocket. When Harold says that things couldn't get things worse for him, Chris knocks him to the ground in order to close the show. After Chris signs off, Harold tells him that he broke his glasses.
Exclusive clip
Leshawna is angry with Duncan's constant bullying on Harold.
 Leshawna |
“ | I've gotta say, I didn't really see that comin'. I should've but I didn't, hm, go figure. Who knew that free mani-pedi would cost me a million big ones? Poor Harold! I'm sure he was bullied into it, just one more reason I can't stand Duncan! […] Don't worry, I'm good! I'm good. You just wait, Duncan, I'm comin' for you! One little scratch on my boy Harold, and Leshawna will be gettin' all over your business! Aw, man, broken nail! | ” |
Cast
| Voice actor | Role(s) |
|---|---|
| Christian Potenza | Chris |
| Sarah Gadon | Beth |
| Clé Bennett | Chef Hatchet |
| Emilie-Claire Barlow | Courtney |
| Drew Nelson | Duncan |
| Brian Froud | Harold |
| Adam Reid | Justin |
| Novie Edwards | Leshawna |
| Stephanie Anne Mills | Lindsay |
Elimination Ceremony
| Elimination Ceremony 9 | |
|---|---|
| Status | Contestant |
| WIN |  Courtney |
| IN |     Justin, Beth, Harold, Lindsay |
| LOW |  Duncan |
| OUT |  Leshawna |
Still in the running
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Trivia
General
- This episode shares many parallels with "Hide and Be Sneaky" (Island):
- Both are the seventeenth episode of the season.
- A new guys' alliance is formed.
- Duncan is a member again, although he is not the one to form it.
- Chef is a major part of the challenge, attacking the contestants in some way.
- Duncan is the one who decides whom the alliance will vote out and is successful both times.
- A boy regrets voting off a girl. Both pairs are also in a relationship, and do not get to share a kiss before parting.
- Duncan is in the bottom two.
- Both of the alliances had turned down voting off the antagonist due to invincibility.
- With Leshawna's elimination, all female members of the Screaming Gaffers have been voted off.
- This is the second episode to reference a character's name in its title. The others are:
- "The Chefshank Redemption," earlier this season, and later "Crouching Courtney, Hidden Owen," and "2008: A Space Owen."
- "Aftermath: Bridgette Over Troubled Water" (World Tour)
- "The Treasure Island of Dr. McLean," "Grand Chef Auto" (Revenge of the Island)
- "Zeek And Ye Shall Find" (All-Stars).
- "Scarlett Fever," "Sky Fall" (Pahkitew Island)
- The music that plays when Duncan is introducing his superhero alter ego is the same used for Izzy's "Dance of the Rattlesnake" in "Not Quite Famous."
- Heather's makeup bag from "If You Can't Take The Heat…" is seen in the junk pile.
Continuity
- This is the second episode in a row, and the third episode overall, to mention Owen after his elimination.
- This is the third episode (and second in a row) of Total Drama Action to feature a cat.
- This is the second time in a row that Courtney and Lindsay won a challenge. However, the order they win in is reversed, as in the previous episode, Courtney wins the first challenge, while Lindsay wins the second challenge. This time, Lindsay wins the first challenge, while Courtney wins the second challenge.
- This is the first episode that Courtney gets a Gilded Chris Award, as she does not receive one in "Ocean's Eight - Or Nine" because her lawyers gave her invincibility.
- This marks the second time that Harold is seen without his glasses.
- Excluding the aftermaths, this is the second episode title of Total Drama Action which does not reference a film.
- The first is "Monster Cash."
References
- There are two parodies of the famous DC Comics superhero Batman in this episode:
- The first and more obvious parody is Chris's outfit and when he swoops down to "rescue" Chef.
- Harold's favorite superhero, OwlMan, is most likely a parody of Batman. Although there is, in fact, a super villain named Owlman.
- This is the first Batman parody in Total Drama.
- The second is in "The EX-Files" (World Tour), where Owen's face is similar to Batman's arch-nemesis, the Joker.
- The first challenge of this episode is exactly like the one in an episode of the reality show called Beauty and the Geek, in which contestants, mainly girls, dressed up and created their own superhero identities, came up on stage, and were judged based on who had the most creative hero.
- Lindsay's "Wonder Woman" costume is an obvious reference to the character of the same name created by DC Comics and William Moulton Marston.
- Her costume also looks similar to that of the real Wonder Woman, except the stars on Lindsay's costume are replaced by Canadian maple leaves.
- She also owned an invisible jet like the real Wonder Woman.
- Superhero/supervillain parody costumes include:
- Harold's superhero "Captain Alberta" is a parody of Captain America, although the outfit more closely resembles that of Superman or Captain Marvel.
- Leshawna's "Super Aqua Chick" is a parody of Aquaman.
- Beth's "Lumber Woman" may be a parody of Wonder Woman.
- Courtney's "The Human Cricket," some elements — namely the antennas — seem to be parodying the Hanna-Barbara's superhero Atom Ant. Her costume also resembles that of the DC superhero, Bumblebee.
- Chef's "Pythonicus" may be a parody to the DC supervillain Copperhead.
- As previously stated, Lindsay's "Wonder Woman," is a direct allusion to the superhero character of the same name.
Goofs
- Duncan is wearing white boxers when he is brushing his teeth, yet when he wakes up, he is wearing his blue ones.
- However, the blue boxers could actually be his shorts.
- Leshawna is seen eating cheese with Lindsay and Beth, whereas in "One Flu Over the Cuckoos" she had implied that she is lactose intolerant.
- When Duncan kicks Harold's burrito, he's lacking his nose piercing.
- When Leshawna is shown leading Courtney to the challenge, Courtney doesn't have corks in her ears. However, in the following shot of the contestants, she suddenly has them in.
Courtney's right sleeve is darker and part of her hair in behind is longer.
- When the Human Cricket wins, her right sleeve is darker. The middle part of her hair is also longer than usually.
- At one point when Duncan talks to Courtney during the night, his lower body part is missing.
- At the elimination ceremony, when Chris reads off the names of the castmates who were safe, he doesn't give them their Gilded Chris Awards. But when Chris gets down to the bottom two, Duncan and Leshawna, the other castmates have their awards.
- When Chris is commenting on Leshawna and Harold's "love and affection" after the Awards Ceremony, he is shown wearing his normal clothes. However, when he pushes Harold down the Walk of Shame, he is shown wearing his suit.
- Harold's broken glasses have clear lenses and temples/arms, rather than the green lenses and no temples/arms they are usually depicted as.
Gallery
- "Monster Cash"
- "Alien Resurr-eggtion"
- "Riot on Set"
- "Beach Blanket Bogus"
- "3:10 to Crazytown"
- "The Aftermath: I"
- "The Chefshank Redemption"
- "One Flu Over the Cuckoos"
- "The Sand Witch Project"
- "Masters of Disasters"
- "Full Metal Drama"
- "The Aftermath: II"
- "Ocean's Eight—or Nine"
- "One Million Bucks, B.C."
- "Million Dollar Babies"
- "Dial M for Merger"
- "Super Hero-ld"
- "The Aftermath: III"
- "The Princess Pride"
- "Get a Clue"
- "Rock n' Rule"
- "Crouching Courtney, Hidden Owen"
- "2008: A Space Owen"
- "Top Dog"
- "Mutiny on the Soundstage"
- "The Aftermath: IV"
- "Celebrity Manhunt's Total Drama Action Reunion Special"