Smarter & Boulder

* Sealed
* Unsealed
* Old
* Original

"**Smarter & Boulder**" is the second episode of *Animated Inanimate Battle*.

## Synopsis

In this episode of Animated Inanimate Battle, the first contestant is eliminated. And Oodle subjects the contestants to a little team building exercise...

## Plot

### Cold Open

Can hosts the first-ever meeting for Team 2, whilst calling everybody in the team "two-ers." Hailstone immediately objects to this, with Can backing off the title for now. Yarn brings out lemon squares, to the delight of everyone. After this, Can calls for some more ice-breaking; Chalk goes up first, but is thrown off balance by Sock, who introduces himself as well. Jelly then goes up next, performing a charismatic introduction declaring himself as "crippingly social," only to be cut short by an incoming Bouncy Ball. Can derides Bouncy Ball for her tardiness, and then Safe offers to go up next.

After Safe performs her introduction, Popsicle Stick frantically opens up Safe and locks herself inside of her. The rest of Team 6 barge in on the meeting and demand Popsicle Stick to get out of Safe. Popsicle Stick, who is afraid that she'll be separated from Jelly if she's eliminated, gets out of Safe once Jelly coerces her, only to be captured by the rest of Team 6.

### Elimination Time

Fireball, who is eager to test out her new toy, swings her pickaxe into Apricot, sinisterly wanting to find the center of Apricot. Meanwhile, Oodle declares for the beginning of elimination, causing Apricot to recoil due to the sound. Oodle transforms his hand into a snow shovel, and scoops up and throws Team 6 towards individual podiums.

As Team 6's uneasiness settles, Oodle declares that they gained 204 votes,(compared to the 261 votes in beta) and that the prizes for being safe are apricots. Apricot himself is terrified and gasps at the prize, with Fireball stabbing him again. He screams.

Package and Glove are safe with 3 votes, Glassy with 6 votes, Showery and Shot Put obtained 11 votes, Nacho is safe with 15, and both Food Dyes are safe with 29 votes. All eight of them obtain apricots.

Popsicle Stick and Raisin are the last two remaining, with Popsicle Stick becoming nervous about her "incoming" elimination. Oodle remarks that Raisin is a dried up grape, causing Popsicle Stick to ask if Raisin is Jelly's grandpa. Raisin doesn't respond; he's asleep.

Annoyed and a bit amazed by Raisin being asleep with his eyes open, Oodle orders Tivo to count the votes. Popsicle Stick is safe at 32 votes, whereas Raisin becomes the first contestant eliminated from Animated Inanimate Battle, with 65 votes.

Glove asks Raisin what his one wish was going to be, with Raisin responding that he would have wished for his youth back. Everyone cries at this tearjerker, only for the moment to be interrupted when Raisin gets sucked into a canvas. Everyone is mortified.

All the contestants ask Oodle what he did to Raisin. Oodle reassures everyone that Raisin is fine; he's simply in the Doodleverse, a dimension created by him where all eliminated contestants will go.

Raisin, who is in the Doodleverse, is initially confused. A pencil of the same color as him floats down from above, and he picks it up.

### The Challenge

Team 6, sans Raisin, walks out with Oodle. Brain and Can analyze the situation, with Chocolate Chip getting annoyed at the two and declaring that Raisin was eliminated.

Oodle, after seeing the results of the last challenge, decided that it was time for some serious team-building. Therefore, the next challenge is to work together to push boulders up a mountain. An instructional video by Tivo appears, with Oodle explaining the challenge. Each team will be given a large boulder, and they must work together to push the boulder up to the peak of the mountain. The entirety of both the boulder and the team must be present in order for a win to count.

### Push That Boulder!

Team 6 rushes to their boulder and immediately attempt to push their boulder, but it doesn't budge. Glassy laments the elimination of Raisin. Package is annoyed at her team, declaring that if they followed her plan in the first place, then Raisin would still be here. Shot Put then states that Package shouldn't use her brain for unimportant tasks; Package questions him, but Shot Put shuts down. Yellow Food Dye says that they wouldn't have lost if Showery hadn't lied about his balance, only for Orange Food Dye to say that it wouldn't have made a difference. Showery runs away; Package demands for him to come back.

Brick observes Team 6 again and says that they're fighting, again. Recycling Bin ignores his comments, but is surprised to find that Team 5 is making progress. Pitchfork is screaming at the rest of her team to push the boulder up.

Team 2 is behind; Hailstone calls for everyone to get a move on. Jelly asks Bouncy Ball if she can get out of his head, only for Bouncy Ball to say that she's stuck. Sock performs another power kick in order to get Bouncy Ball out, which he does, but also sacrifices Jelly's mental stability in the process.

Meanwhile, Team 5 is getting closer to the peak. However, Pitchfork hears the sound of an incoming Bouncy Ball, who smacks into the boulder and begins to roll down the hill. Team 5 runs after it, with Chip Bag being crushed by the boulder. Pitchfork is annoyed, and yells out Bouncy Ball's name.

Album, who just saw Team 5 lose all of their progress, calls for Team 1 to get a move on. Coconut interjects, calling Album an attention hog and tells her to get in line, for he is the "leader." Album asks who made him leader in the first place, with Coconut bluntly saying nobody did.

Suddenly, Flaggy, who has a patch right where Frisbee's javelin hit her, jumps out at the two bickering contestants. She says that Yarn helped her stitch herself back together; Album questions the color of the patch, as well. Coconut tries to get everyone back on track, but the rest of Team 1 aren't present. Album states that Pill is taking care of Roe, Candle is trying to get Blanket to say more, Bacon is practicing his lasso-ing on Chocolate Chip, and Glowstick is oddly setting up a picnic.

Pitchfork finally gets down to the bottom of the mountain, only to find out that Chip Bag is dead again. Domino says that without Chip Bag, their team cannot win the challenge, since Oodle can only recover people after a challenge ends. Pitchfork questions the validity of Domino's remark, but picks up Chip Bag's corpse and demands the rest of Team 5 to begin pushing once more.

Nabla starts off with a plan once more around weight distribution, but her plans are written on a handheld chalkboard, since her previous one was thrown off by Alef. Alef, once again, calls out Nabla and is against his cousin's plans; the two bicker once more. Alef then points out that they have an athlete on their team: Frisbee, and says that he probably could push the boulder one-handed. Frisbee is powered up by this proposition, and flexes his muscles!

As Frisbee demonstrates his strength, Can obtains an epiphany, and tells Brain if he's thinking what she's thinking. Brain says that it's improbable that two people are thinking of the same thing; Can just tells him to follow her towards Sock. Can proposes to Sock that he could probably kick the boulder up the mountain. Sock is initially hesitant, but is coerced when he is offered Mama Yarn's famous lemon squares. He begins kicking the boulder up the mountain as the rest of Team 2 chants him on!

Team 6 is once more embroiled in conflict. Package demands an end to this infighting, and declares herself leader again. Glassy is against this, and instead declares herself leader. Yellow Food Dye jumps the gun and declares herself and Orange Food Dye co-leaders, remarking that two heads are better than one. Glove, who is egged on by his competitive nature, declares himself leader as well. The rest of Team 6 looks on as Nacho remarks that Team 6 is probably going to lose again.

Infighting continues in both Team 1 and Team 5 simultaneously. Both Album and Pitchfork are dismayed at their teams' progress and demands to know what everyone else is doing. On Team 1, Bacon is continuing to wrangle Chocolate Chip, declaring her as his "biggest challenge yet," and Pill is keeping an eye out on Roe, fearing that she'll wander off again. On Team 5, Pear uses his "bum leg" as an excuse, whereas Apricot says that he has bigger problems, harkening back to Fireball's murderous intent. At the same time, Candle declares that it doesn't matter, and Domino adds on by saying that Team 6 is bound to lose with their infighting. Album and Pitchfork are annoyed; they demand their team to work together.

The screen returns to Pitchfork, as Glowstick begins preparing a picnic behind her. A worn out Pitchfork walks up to Glowstick, who is laying seductively on the blanket. Glowstick says that it would be a good time for "catching up," since both teams are preoccupied with something else. He offers her some charcuterie, only for Pitchfork to try some and immediately spit it out. Glowstick states the reason for his infatuation with Pitchfork: her fiery passion meshes well with his cool demeanor. However, Pitchfork turns him down harshly, with Glowstick being downtrodden as Pitchfork "breaks up" with him. In a dramatic sequence, Glowstick falls into a dark abyss, with it being interrupted by Coconut kicking Glowstick.

### A Team Winner

Oodle is standing at the peak of the mountain with Tivo, remarking about the frigid temperature at the top. Oodle asks if Tivo has any heaters, with Tivo responding that Oodle opted to have additional subwoofers for him instead.

An exasperated Sock comes into frame, alongside the boulder, declaring it a victory for the lemon squares. Everyone else on Team 2 cheers as Yarn places a singular lemon square in his mouth. Oodle congratulates Team 2 on their victory, and eats their icon from the six floating above him.

Chalk questions Oodle on their prize, to which the latter is confused by. Safe reaffirms Chalk's question and asks Oodle what their prize is. Unprepared for this, Oodle tells Team 2 that their prize is... the entire mountain! They aren't impressed.

### ...And The Others

Telescope angrily demands for Team 3 to get a move on as Team 2 finishes and Team 4 is halfway up. However, Salami points to Bone, questioning his role in the process. Telescope tells Salami to leave it up to him. The two of them walk over to Bone as he holds up his drawing; Salami bluntly says it's awful. Telescope makes up a plan for Bone, which excites him, but Salami notes that they have to abide by the restraining order. Telescope states that Bone will be behind everyone else as they push the boulder, blowing stray air particles back at them. Bone questions the accuracy of this, but acquiesces and agrees to the plan. Telescope and Salami walk away, relieved, as Bone becomes upset.

The "elected" leaders of Team 6 continue their infighting, as the other four look on at the mountain. Showery questions what their plan will be, as Nacho finally has an idea while she looks at Team 2 lounging on the peak. Nacho dispassionately says that Jelly is in trouble to Popsicle Stick; the latter doesn't believe her, but Nacho points to Jelly (who still has a crevice in his head). Popsicle Stick is invigorated, and Nacho attaches a leash onto Popsicle Stick as she rushes up to "save" Jelly. The rest of Team 6 look on dumbfounded, as Showery tells everyone else to start moving.

Eventually, Team 6, due to Popsicle Stick's worry for Jelly, comes in second. Everyone else arrives as well, all riding inside of Showery. Popsicle Stick rushes towards Jelly, asking what happened to him. Jelly is still delirious.

Team 4 comes in third, with Nabla attributing their win to her plan; Frisbee attributes it to his muscles. Team 3 comes in fourth, as Oodle consumes the three teams' logos in quick succession. Teabag and Lyre take in the beautiful view at the peak, while Nabla derides it as "substandard." She then spots her chalkboard in the water, and rushes down to get it.

### The Final Two

As the first few teams roll in, two teams are ultimately left: Team 1 and Team 5. Album begins rushing to get their teams in order, whereas Pitchfork is annoyed at the slow progress her team is making.

Fireball asks Pitchfork to calm down, but Pitchfork goes on a tirade on Fireball. Fireball freezes in place as the word "point" echoes in her mind from Pitchfork's tirade. She looks down at Mr. Pickaxe, who tells her to use him for good. Then, Fireball leaps up into the air and cracks the boulder into eight separate pieces. Pitchfork cools down and praises Fireball for her ingenuity; Creamy remarks that there's eight pieces but nine players. Pear then opts out of the challenge, instead choosing to walk up the mountain himself.

As Team 5 finally gets a move on, Album begins to become nervous. Coconut walks in to an explosive Album, who asks where he was. Coconut is unable to get everyone together, and so he asks Album to use her voice for good to get everyone in order. Album lets out a metal scream and goes into an inspiring speech that manages to get everyone together. They begin pushing the boulder up, but leave behind Glowstick and Roe.

Team 5 reassembles their boulder, but are dismayed when Oodle remarks that they're missing Pear, who is strolling up the mountain as Team 1 zooms past him. Team 1 makes it to the top as Pitchfork screams in agony that they were so close to winning. However, Oodle notes that Team 1 is not missing one, but two people on their team: Roe and Glowstick.

The race for last place has begun; Pill denigrates himself for elaving behind Roe, but Bacon is quick on the draw and takes out his lasso, roping Roe towards the top. Glowstick is lying on the ground, in a state of depression. Flaggy and Coconut come and get him, and Team 1 attempt to rush back up to the mountain. Meanwhile, Team 5 is preoccupied, trying to get Pear to climb up faster. Pitchfork, seeing Hanger, throws her into the crowd, causing Hanger to be sent flying and knocking Blanket off the mountain. Pear finally makes it up the mountain, with Pitchfork being reasonably annoyed. He notes that he took the scenic route instead, noting that Nabla's scrambling to find her chalkboard.

Team 5 comes in 5th place, and with that, Team 1 is officially declared the loser of the challenge. Coconut and Album reconcile, with the former praising the latter's leadership skills and offers her joint leadership of Team 1. Album is confident in her newfound abilities, only for it to be taken away when Hanger causes another scratch right through her face. Whoopee Cushion laughs at Album's misfortune, and Coconut punches Whoopee Cushion in retaliation.

### Stinger

Bone, who is upset after the challenge, is drawing another picture of his team. He laments the fact that the rest of the contestants hate him. Suddenly, a bright red light appears out of his vision, and the episode ends.

## Trivia

* This episode was released exactly 5 years after the release of Microsoft Windows 10.
* This episode is the first episode to have both the opening and an updated version of Bounce House.
* This episode is no longer the longest episode of *Animated Inanimate Battle* released so far.
* The episode's title is a play on the phrase "smarter & bolder."
* This is the first time someone explain an error.
* This episode was the first episode with an elimination.
* Shot Put was expected to be eliminated in this elimination, not Raisin.

### Goofs

* When Chip Bag starts bolting down the mountain away from Team 5's boulder, Pitchfork is layered behind said boulder.
* During the voice cast section of the credits, Robert is credited for voicing Tumbleweed. However, Tumbleweed does not have a line in this episode.
* When Apricot screams his lungs out, the subtitles listed his name as "**Apricots**", making it look like the apricots are screaming.
* When Album says everyone is caught up Bacon’s lasso goes behind her.
* When Leek asks where the mountain is and the camera turns, there is a small moment where he has no legs.
* Album tells Flaggy her patch doesn't match Yarn's color.

### Continuity references

* Nabla's chalkboard is still in the water following the events of An Ice Beginning. It is continually referred to throughout the episode and is eventually recovered by Nabla at the end of the episode.
* The intro song is heard twice:
	+ Pear hums the theme when he is walking up the mountain before Team 1 speeds past him.
	+ When Bone looks at the red light at the end of the episode, a bit of the theme can be heard played slower with a different instrument. It is also in minor key.

### Cultural references

* Package giving Shot Put a angry look during the elimination might be a reference to Match and Snowball in BFB 8.
* Apricot scream sounded like the meme ""Kid Slapped By A Fly Swatter".
* Orange Food Dye and Yellow Food Dye make a pose similar to Pencil and Match from BFDI.
* The Bug from BFDI (seen in Insectophobe's Nightmare) makes an appearance at 14:24.
* When Jelly say "Speaking of a-head", the close up to his face might be a refference to BFDIA 5e.

## Deaths

* Flaggy is represented to be impaled by a javelin.
* Chip Bag is crushed by a boulder.
* A bug from BFDI is stepped on by Sock.

**List of AIB Episodes**

1. ↑ https://discord.com/channels/735377011068895324/735379183018049576/1102066730383183892