| "Tanks for Nuthin'" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| The Venture Bros. episode | |||
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| Episode no. |
Season 6 Episode 5 | ||
| Directed by | Jackson Publick | ||
| Written by | Jackson Publick | ||
| Production code | 605 | ||
| Original air date | February 28th, 2016 | ||
| Episode Chronology | |||
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| List of The Venture Bros. episodes | |||
Tanks for Nuthin' is the fifth episode of Season 6 and the overall sixty-eighth episode of The Venture Bros.
Plot
In the aftermath of the previous night, The Monarch is awoken by the sound of his wife leaving for work. The couple get into an argument over the monarch's lack of villainy which he accounts for not letting her arch Dr. Venture but she tells him Venture is at higher level of arch enemies. She states that he should arch someone else for a change or do something else evil instead of lazing about and goof off with Henchman 21. When the Monarch states she married him for better or for worse, she states she married the person he used to be before leaving her husband in silence. Henchman 21 asks The Monarch does he need comfort but the latter yells they are going to the Morpho Cave.
At Tophet Tower, Brock Samson (no longer under the influence of the mind control gas) awakens to find himself in the apartment of Warriana. He attempts to sneak out only to find that she is already awake, telling him there is coffee in the kitchen. Brock attempts to explain his actions over the previous night but she is uninterested in talking and has Brock leave.
At VenTech Tower, The Guild of Calamitous Intent has collected the body of Haranguetan. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch then speaks with Dr. Venture, where she accuses him of ordering Brock to kill the villain. Venture and the arriving Brock deny any involvement with the latter's death and refuse to allow the councilwoman to see their tapes. She leaves as Watch and Ward give Dr. Venture papers for him to sign and contact them if he has any questions and give him a free pen. The Guild members leave as The Sea Captain arrives and tells Dr. Venture stocks have fallen due to a video being uploaded on the Internet.
At Colonel Gentleman's apartment on Christopher Street, Pete White, Action Man, Colonel Gentleman, and Rose Whalen are laughing at a video of Billy Quiz-boy under the influence of the mind control gas while eating a fast food burger. When Billy (now free of the gas' influence) sees them watching the video, he demands they take it down but they refuse since it has already become so popular. Colonel Gentleman teasingly offers Billy the same restaurant's burger. Billy complains until his mother tells him he has a guest: Dr. Mrs. The Monarch.
In the Morpho Cave, Henchman 21 and The Monarch are going through the list of villains in line to arch Venture but decide to get the Morphomobile out of the impound first.
At Meteor Majeure, The Council of 13 (with Phineas Phage as their newest member) are discussing the matter of Haranguetan's death and the issue of the vigilante posing as the new Blue Morpho. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch (communicating via hologram) mentions not being able to obtain Venture's surveillance tapes. Wide Wale (also a hologram) states that when he invaded a few days ago he left his own surveillance devices there. He states the Ventures can't hide anything from him, unaware that his waiter in the restaurant where he is eating is Hank Venture in disguise. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch tells him to e-mail her the video while she goes to inform Haranguetan's widow of his death.
The Councilwoman goes to Ye Old Battleaxe, the bar of Haranguetan's widow Battleaxe, who breaks down in tears upon hearing of her husband's death. She then inquires about the status of the Haranguetank which she is all she has left of her late husband. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch agrees to help her retrieve it.
At Stuyvesant University, Dean is in class listening to a lecture from his class Professor Nidaba who is secretly revealed to be the supervillain Think Tank (who has just earn the rights to arch Dr. Venture). He ends the class but asks Dean to stay behind, telling him how terrible his paper is. Nidaba accurately deduces everything about Dean's home life and he tells him to stay away from home in order to be away from potential distraction. Dean takes his advice as the Professor evilly laughs to himself.
At Ye Old Battleaxe, Dr. Mrs. The Monarch has located the Haranguetank at an impound lot due to it having many unpaid parking tickets. She then offers to take the crying widow to retrieve it, which the latter graciously accepts. She goes to change as Dr. Mrs. The Monarch checks her e-mails and finds the link Wide Wale promised her but Battle-axe (in costume) returns before she can watch it.
At the city impound lot, The Monarch and Henchman 21 (in their Blue Morpho and Kano costumes respectively) tranquilize the guard and go in search of their car.
Meanwhile, at VenTech Tower Brock is watching a TV news talk show where the Sea Captain is being interviewed by Alexis Warrington (Warriana's civilian identity) about the recent video showing Billy under the influence of mind control gas. Unknown to Brock, Think Tank arrives and surrepticiously drives up the side of the building to get to Dr. Venture (after analyzing the degree of danger that Brock poses). At that moment, Dr. Venture is on the phone scolding Billy for his recent action despite Billy stating it was Venture's idea for the gas' creation. Venture then notices Think Tank pointing a laser beam at him before it goes off and destroys most of his den. The explosion alerts Brock who runs to investigate the cause.
Back at the impound lot, The Monarch and 21 are searching for the Morphomobile as the tranquilized guard awakens just in time to be assaulted by Battleaxe, who has just arrived with Dr. Mrs. The Monarch.
Think Tank has now come face-to-face with Dr. Venture, who immediately calls Brock on his communicator watch for help. Brock tells Venture to run but he is unable to do so due to the villain being right in front of him. Think Tank then apologizes to Venture, explaining that lately he has been forced to arch muscle-headed or foolish heroes and states with Venture he may have a worthy adversary. He offers a game of chess only to be disappointed that Rusty does not play. Momentarily, Dr. Venture ignores him to contact the Guild to complain about these circumstances, but he is repeatedly pranked by Watch and Ward. As this happens, Brock arrives and gives the now-delighted villain a challenge that ends with him being blasted out the building. Brock is caught by a flying Warriana who apologizes for her dismissive behavior and the two make up before Brock tells her he is dealing with Think Tank. At the mention of Think Tank, Warriana becomes angry and flies back to the tower and deal with him.
At the impound lot, Dr. Mrs. The Monarch and Battleaxe have located the Haranguetank as the councilwoman takes notice of The Blue Morpho (her disguised husband) but is unable to identify him. She gives chase just as Henchman 21 finds the Morphomobile but they are unable to escape due to it having a boot on the front tires. While she is dealing with this, Battleaxe goes through her laptop and sees her husband's invasion of VenTech Tower. After getting drunk, she sees her husband's death and mistakes Dr. Venture for the Blue Morpho. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch finds the Morphomobile and threatens the two, which causes the Monarch to accidentally press a button that frees the car of its boots, enabling it to fly away. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch shoots after the car. She soon witnesses Battleaxe driving off, determined to avenge her husband who she thinks Venture had killed. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch then runs to the Guild limo where she orders Watch and Ward to go after the flying Morphomobile.
At Ventech Tower, Brock and Warriana have defeated Think Tank who leaves while his opponents decide to become a couple and head back to her apartment to make it official. Elsewhere, flying in the sky is The Monarch who is amazed by his father's car and has 21 drive over the Venture's house so he can prank them by defecating in their pool.
Meanwhile the Guild limo has located the Morphomobile flying over the Ventures' building and nearly crashes into both Hank and Dean's hover-car and the Haranguetank. The Haraguetank veers out of control and strikes the unarmored Think Tank, sending them both through the building and into the hole in the lobby where it explodes. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch then spots Dr. Venture on the balcony looking over the proceeding events and she gives off an angry glare, making it clear that (like Billy) she believes that Rusty is the new Blue Morpho.
The exhausted councilwoman goes home to find that the front room has been fully repaired and decorated. She goes up to bed where she speaks with her husband and apologizes for her actions stating he is not her enemy, before ominously stating "I know who my enemy is", which worries The Monarch.
Episode Cast
- James Urbaniak: Dr. Venture, Phantom Limb
- Patrick Warburton: Brock Samson
- Mike Sinterniklaas: Dean Venture
- Chris McCulloch: Hank Venture, The Monarch, Sgt. Hatred, Pete White, Watch, Pirate Captain
- Doc Hammer: Dr. Mrs. The Monarch, Henchman 21, Billy Quizboy, Rose, Red Mantle, Ward
- Jeffrey Wright: Think Tank/Dr. Nidaba
- Barbara Rosenblat: Battleaxe
- Kate McKinnon: Warriana/Alexis Warrington
- Hal Lublin: Wide Wale, Jägermeister, Janitor
First Appearances
- Alexis Warrington (Warriana's civilian alter ego)
- Battleaxe
- Jägermeister
- Think Tank (Dr. Nidaba)
- Ye Old Battleaxe
Connections to Other Episodes
- Dr. Venture's attraction to Dr. Mrs. The Monarch was first established in Mid-life Chrysalis, when she went incognito as "Charlene" as part of a mission and pretended to find him attractive.
Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny
- One of the vehicles in the impound lot has long bull horns and a nose ring, most likely a reference to Manotaur from Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny.
- Dr. Mrs. The Monarch refers to "Death by Samson" a common cause of supervillain/henchman death as established in The Lepidopterists.
The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (Part II)
- Brock still has a metal plate in his chest to due to injuries he suffered in The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (Part II).
- Minor Guild supervillains Brick Frog and Giant Indian can be seen drinking at Ye Old Battleaxe. Both were previously seen trying out for membership in The Revenge Society in the episode Bright Lights, Dean City.
- During the episode you can see three trailer trucks with the Farm City logos on them like the one being used by Long Division's henchmen in SPHINX Rising.
- Dr. Mrs. The Monarch warns Dr. Venture that Haranguetan is not "some anonymous henchman that you could bury in your flower bed", referring to the Potter's Field that exists on the Venture Compound where various dead henchmen and enemies have been buried (as revealed in A Very Venture Halloween).
- In The Devil's Grip, Colonel Gentleman offered to let Action Man and Rose Whalen to move in with him.
- Dr. Venture shows attraction toward Dr. Mrs. The Monarch. He last attempted to flirt with her in The Devil's Grip.
- In All This and Gargantua-2, Dr. Phineas Phage stated he would like to work with Dr. Mrs. The Monarch again. As of this episode he is able to work with her once more.
- Wide Wale became Dr. Venture's primary arch-enemy in Hostile Makeover.
- Manolo's truck is still crushed from where Warriana fell on it in Hostile Makeover.
- Wide Wale mentions his attack on VenTech Tower which occurred in Maybe No Go.
- The council decided to re-instate Dr. Phineas Phage in Faking Miracles. It is shown they have acted on their promise.
- Hank has a job at Vincenzo's, Wide Wale's favorite restaurant.
- Wide Wale drinks Monfortino, the same fine Italian wine enjoyed by Scaramantula at the beginning of Faking Miracles.
- Dean attends class at Stuyvesant University after being accepted in Faking Miracles.
- Hank drives the Go-Pod hover vehicle which was in the VenTech Tower basement.
- Dr. Venture having to go to the science conference.
- The Monarch's decision to become the new Blue Morpho.
- Brock fighting against Haranguetan.
- Haranguetan's death at the hands of Henchman 21.
- The Morphomobile being impounded.
- Sergeant Hatred being hospitalized after getting attacked by Haranguetan.
- Billy and Brock's exposure to the mind control gas.
- Brock's one-night stand with Warriana.
Cultural References
- Dr. Venture asks Brock if he is experiencing "anal leakage". This is a side effect often referred to in commercials for prescription medication, but was most notorious as a side effect of the fat substitute Olestra, which Dr. Venture mentions when querying Brock. Given that Brock awoke with a whip handle inserted into his rectum, this question is inadvertently pertinent.
Back to the Future
The Morphomobile is a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL which pioneered the gull-wing door design later used also on the DeLorean. When the Morphomobile converts into flying mode, the wheels fold down similar to the version in Back to the Future Part II.
- A neon sign inside Ye Old Battleaxe advertises "Banshee Brown Ale". A banshee is a female spirit in Irish mythology who heralds the death of a family member, usually by wailing, shrieking, or keening.
Batman (1966-1968)
- On the 1960s Batman television series, Batman tilted back the head of a bust of William Shakespeare to reveal a hidden switch to enter the Batcave. He also had a red Batphone that could be used to call directly from the Batcave to police Commissioner Gordon's office. In this episode the two concepts are merged into one, with the Morpho Cave having a direct line to a long unused phone hidden inside a bust of former Newark mayor Joseph E. Haynes in the mayor's office in Newark, New Jersey.
- Battle-axe is a term, generally considered pejorative, for an aggressive, domineering and forceful woman.
- A neon sign inside Ye Old Battleaxe advertises "Blarney Brew". Blarney is a town and townland in County Cork, Ireland, that is famed as the site of Blarney Castle, home of the legendary Blarney Stone.
Boardwalk Empire (2010-2014)
- Dr. Nidaba's voice and appearance seem to be patterned on Dr. Valentin Narcisse, a character on the HBO television series Boardwalk Empire. Both doctors are portrayed by the same actor, Jeffrey Wright.
- The embarrassing video of Billy disoriented on "god gas" mimics a leaked video of the actor and TV personality David Hasselhoff sloppily eating a hamburger while apparently intoxicated.
- Think Tank (as Prof. Nidaba) refers to having a certificate of completion from the Evelyn Wood program. This was a well-known speed-reading course that was partially inspired by U.S. President John F. Kennedy and endorsed by entertainer Steve Allen.
- Professor Nidaba quotes the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche to his class: "All great things must first wear terrifying and monstrous masks in order to inscribe themselves on the hearts of humanity."
- The typeface of the "THINK" plaque on Dr. Nidaba's desk as well as on the Think Tank is reminiscent of the IBM "THINK" advertising.
- A villain named Jägermeister sits at the bar in Ye Old Battleaxe wearing a costume reminiscent of the stag's head logo for the alcoholic disgestif Jägermeister, complete with antlers.
- A bust of former Newark mayor Joseph E. Haynes in the Newark, New Jersey mayor's office conceals a direct phone line to the Morpho Cave. Haynes was the mayor of Newark from 1884 to 1894.
- Ye Old Battleaxe is similar to Josie's Bar in Hell's Kitchen from Daredevil (Marvel Comics).
- A disguised Hank Venture pours Wide Wale a glass of Monfortino, an exceptional vintage from Italian wine producer Giacomo Conterno.
- Nidaba was the Sumerian goddess of writing, learning, and the harvest.
- Ye Old Battleaxe is similar to Noonan's Sleazy Bar in an Irish neighborhood of Gotham called The Cauldron from Hitman and Section 8 (DC Comics).
- The interior design of Ye Old Battleaxe was inspired by Peter McManus Café, one of the oldest family-owned and operated bars in New York City. The bar was famously featured in the 1986 film Highlander.
- Prof. Nidaba's failure to hail a cab after his failed arching attempt may be a reference to the common urban observation about black men not being able to hail a cab in the city no matter how respectably dressed.
- Battleaxe's and Haranguetan's characterizations reflect multiple stereotypes of Irish and Irish-American people, though Battleaxe's costume and weapon seem more characteristic of images of the English Celtic warrior-queen Boudica (a.k.a. "Boadicea").
- A neon sign inside Ye Old Battleaxe advertises "Selkie Lager". The selkie (or "seal folk") are mythological shapeshifters from Scottish folklore who shed their seal skins to become humans. They are sometimes associated with the merrow, mermaids from Irish folklore and mythology.
- Henchman 21 says the Nixon-era Morpho Computer has less memory than a Speak & Spell, a handheld electronic computer for children produced by Texas Instruments from 1978 to 1992.
Spider-Man (1967-1970)
- Dean's outfit at Stuyvesant University strongly resembles the outfit worn by Peter Parker in the original Spider-Man cartoon show.
The Blues Brothers (1980)
- The desk clerk at the police impound lot is a reference to the Corrections Officer played by Frank Oz in The Blues Brothers. When "Joliet" Jake Blues is released from prison the Corrections Officer returns to Jake all of his personal items that were confiscated when he was arrested.
The Terminator (1984)
- The desk clerk at the police impound lot is a reference to the police officer in the famous "I'll be back" scene from The Terminator. Arnold Schwarzenegger, as the film's lead, asks the front desk police officer to see Sarah Connor. When he is denied entry, The Terminator says he will be back, then proceeds to drive a car into the police station and brutally murder seventeen police officers in his quest to find Sarah Connor.
Production Notes
- The Animation Direction Supervisor (Kimson Albert) has a "nickname" inserted into his credits. The nickname is an unusual line or word from the preceding episode. For Tanks for Nuthin' the credit reads Kimson "Good Time Goof Gas" Albert.
Trivia
- Brock and Warriana become a couple.
- Dr. Mrs. The Monarch and Battleaxe both assume that Dr. Venture is The Blue Morpho, similar to Billy's assumption.
- The Pirate Captain now calls Thaddeus "Chairman" similar to how he addressed Jonas Jr.
- The surveillance footage from VenTech Tower of Haranguetan's death shows it occurred on the evening of October 7th.
- In the impound garage can be seen several villain-themed vehicles including Scorpio's car and a van that most likely belonged to the late Manotaur.
| Preceded by: "Rapacity in Blue" |
The Venture Bros. episodes Original Airdate: February 28th, 2016 |
Followed by: "It Happening One Night" |