The Letterkenny Leave

**The Letterkenny Leave** is the fifth episode of Season 4 of *Letterkenny*.

## Synopsis

The Hicks attend a hot tub party at the McMurrays'. The Hockey Players decide to do whatever it takes to get gains.

## Cold Open

> You got invited to a party the other day — Wayne
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Katy informs the other Hicks that the McMurrays have invited them over for a barbecue. It is a soft pass for Wayne, though not a super-soft pass; he had plans to watch TV with Rosie. Dan warns him that in a long-term relationship, and as such

> You are obliged to partakes in some socials stimulations from times to time, lest the young lady becomes rastless. — Dan
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The others agree: sometimes Netflix and chill isn't enough, nor Amazon Primes and sexy times, nor YouTube and lube, and so forth. Katy encourages him to step out of his comfort zone.

> I don't know who called it the comfort zone, but I'm pretty sure they called it that 'cause everything inside that zone's good and comfy. So once you get outside of that zone, fuck— well, that's when things can get a bit dicey. — Wayne
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## Plot Summary

McMurray welcomes the Hicks to Chez McMurray, or Fort McMurray. He and Mrs. McMurray are disappointed Rosie has not joined them, but they invite them to partake of the drinks, which include agave prickly pear marg mix, charred orange ruby red grapefruit pomegranate pina coladas, and got smoky watermelon michelada aqua velva aqua fresca super, super duper, super sipper Daiquiris among others. They then invite them to the hot tub, where Glen and Gail are already waiting.

None of the Hicks has brought a set of swim trunks, but the McMurrays have a whole bunch of extras in the closet. Katy, Daryl, and Dan head down, but Wayne returns to the patio to have a dart. Once everyone is situated, McMurray starts a round of "Never Have I Ever," encouraging Mrs. McMurray to make it "randy." She opens with "never have I ever made whoopee with more than one person at a time."

> We're going from zero to sixty I take it. — Katy
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McMurray follows with "Never have I ever felt strong sexual urges towards another spouse, significant other or sibling." At this, Katy asks Wayne if she can get him a beer, and quickly takes her leave.

Reilly and Jonesy, looking in one of the mirrors at the gym, worry that they have plateaued in building muscle mass. They decide to do a full circuit— of flexing poses— and conclude that they have not made the serious gains the coach and the other players will expect.

> If gains fall in the forest and no one's around to see it, nobody really sees any gains. — Reilly
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They are running out of time before the season begins again, leading Reilly to propose extreme measures for a "surge of gains": performance-enhancing drugs. Jonesy argues against this, saying they can dig deep and bear down naturally. Reilly assures him that they only need to rip a quick half-cycle to kick-start the muscle fibers, and that the would quit cold turkey, going au naturale for the season. At this, Jonesy reluctantly agrees, and Reilly says he knows the place to get the juice. They return to flexing in the mirror.

Tanis has arrived at the McMurrays', finding Wayne outside on the deck. She asks if he knows what the McMurrays are up to, and he has "an inkling." She asks how Wayne is comfortable with leaving Rosie alone with them, to which he says she has not come. Tanis flirts with him, but he is not interested in playing around, and so she leaves. It is then that Katy asks about his beer.

In the hot tub, McMurray changes the subject to having adventures and trying new things. Daryl and Dan say they are both interested in new experiences; for example, Daryl tried cinnamon chewing gum for the first time the other day. The McMurrays leer at him, and Mrs. McMurray pulls his leg up up out of the water with her leg. At this, Daryl asks Katy about her beer, and hastily leave the hot tub to fetch her a fresh one.

Wayne, Katy, and Daryl discuss the situation outside. Wayne says the circumstances may very well call for the Irish Goodbye: "That's when you leave without saying bye to anyone. Also known as the French Exit or Houdini." Daryl thought the French Exit was when you climax on a gal and leave without cleaning it up. Katy says technically, a French Exit is when you leave without paying the bill, but that is not applicable here.

Wayne says the situation may very well call for the Turkish Takeoff, when you pull a fire alarm and leave with a stranger. Or, it might call for the old Tokyo Sayonara, when you leave and only say goodbye to the cat. In fact, the situation is so dire, Daryl feels it might call for the Letterkenny Leave. As Wayne explains,

> That's when you steal a two-four and walk through a sliding glass door. — Wayne
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After a moment, however, they step back, feeling things may not have reached that point, and agree to continue to monitor the situation. Dan emerges just then, but just to have a dart. Wayne asks if he has picked up that the McMurrays are members of "The Lifestyle." Dan does not understand the reference. Wayne repeats "The Lifestyle" again and again in various exaggerated ways, but Dan does not pick up. The McMurrays surface to suggest a game of "Pass the Banana."

Stewart welcomes "my chemical bromance" to the Skids' basement and offers them drugs by various nicknames: nose beer, booger sugar, the teeny, the cola, sextacy, rollsy-pollsies, the beans, the disco biscuits. Reilly and Jonesy look at each other, unfamiliar with the terms, but decline, and ask for juice. Stewart has not heard of it. Nor sauce. Nor gear. Finally, they say it explicitly: *steroids*. Stewart knows them as A-bombs, anti-hero, or gym candy.

Roald locates some and Stewart tosses them the bottles. Jonesy says they only plan to take a half-cycle, which Stewart thinks is hubris.

> One does not simply hop on or of the Anabolia Express. No. You ride that juice train all the way to the end of the line. — Stewart
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Jonesy and Reilly state their plan to go au naturale, to which Stewart and Roald laugh. Stewart brings up various side effects such as severe back acne, acute testicular shrinkage, and 'roid rage. On hearing this, Reilly and Jonesy begin to have second thoughts, and consider forgoing the drugs, to dig deep and bear down. Having endangered his sale, however, Stewart reassures them "But you guys should be good," and they go through a round of assuring each other, until an impatient Roald demands "Pay the man!"

Dan is the only Hick left in the hot tub, with McMurray and Mrs. McMurray on either side of him. McMurray tells a story about his friend Juan-Jorge, a friend from 'Minican, and his wife, who in turn told him the story of the cuckoo bird, whose habits lend its name to the word "cuckold." McMurray continues on that Juan-Jorge believes cuckoldry to be the purest and highest form of sexual arousal, to which Dan responds good-naturedly that Juan-Jorge sounds like a real interestings fellas.

As McMurray continues, Mrs. McMurray strokes Dan's hand admiring its size. When he relates that Juan-Jorge believes the real and true bond is between the bull and the cuckoo bird (so to speak), Dan realizes what has been happening, and asks Daryl about his beer, beating a hasty exit. He joins the other Hicks out on the deck and suggests it might be time to pull a Brexit.

In hushed tones, they discuss whether it might be time for a Singapore Scram, when you grab onto a rope wire and have a helicopter fly you out of there. They are interrupted by Mrs. McMurray, who warns that no one is flying anywhere, because it's karaoke time.

A nerdy girl enters the basement, seeking her "'Rits." Darien hands Stewart the bottle, but it is for steroids; the Skids have accidentally sold Rits, not 'roids, to Reilly and Jonesy. The girl demands her 'Rits.

It is too late; the hockey players have taken the 'Rits, unknowingly, and are amped up for their routine. They rattle off, as usual, a list of the exercises the plan to do, but upon beginning, find the do not feel like doing them, which they attribute to doing only a half cycle. They rattle off a stream of additional exercises, then head to the chalkboard to map out the workout plan in detail. They soon fill up the slate with formulas and diagrams, and marvel at the plan.

> We're gonna need a bigger blackboard. — Reilly
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Two women come approach them and, seeing the pill bottles, ask what they are. Embarrassed, the hockey players deny that it is anything, but they ask if Ritalin help get gains, because the bottles are for 'Rits, not 'Roids. Realizing what has happened, as the women walk away, Reilly and Jonesy agree that they should just dig deep and bear down to achieve a surge of natural gains.

Over at the McMurrays', the party has moved upstairs, as Gail and Glen watch McMurray and Mrs. McMurray perform a set on their Chinese karaoke machine. After the end of the song, they are ready to get down to business, though Gail has some ground rules to cover.

> Figging and cupping and light electro-play are all on the table. But I do have soft limits on K9 role play and mummification.… No tushy play unless I ask for it—and I will ask for it.… — Gail
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Glen is startled, realizing the others are polyamorous, and says he must make a Tokyo sayonara, and calls for the cat.

Back at the produce stand, Dan informs the other Hicks that he now understands what they mean by "the Lifestyle," but that he never would have expected it of the McMurrays. The others are incredulous at this. All agree to live and let live, but Wayne does observe

> It sure is nice to be back in the comfort zone. — Wayne
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He gets a call from Rosie for a little "Crave and misbehave," to which he answers, "hard yes."

## Quotes

* McMurray: Has anybody ever played "Never Have I Ever"?
Dan: Nevers.
Mrs. McMurray: Never?
Daryl: Never ever.
Katy: Not even once.
McMurray: It is a dandy little drinking game we picked up down 'Minican.
Mrs. McMurray: We go down 'Minican twice a year, that's all I know.
McMurray: Still don't get down 'Minican enough, baby, that's true.
Mrs. McMurray: Was down 'Pulco pertnear every winter 'til fellas started gettin' hanging from bridges with their dinks cut off.
McMurray: Crying shame because Sinatra used to have a place down 'Pulco.
Mrs. McMurray: You know, JFK and Jackie O had their goddamn honeymoon down 'Pulco.
McMurray: But we picked up "Never Have I Ever" down in 'Minican.
Katy: K.
* Tanis: You know what the McMurrays are up to, right?
Wayne: I have an inkling.
Tanis: And you don't mind leaving your girl down there with them?
Wayne: She didn't make the trek.
Tanis: Reading?
Wayne: Can't confirm.
Tsnis: Doesn't that make you think she up to something?
Wayne: Makes me think it's a pretty good book. Must be like… *Carrie*.
* Tanis: If you're into nerdy girls, I can show you my spine label, you can show me your hard cover.
* Reilly: We're in the market for some banned substances, buddy.
Stewart: Oh, and you've come to us. How flattering.
Roald: We've got substances. And guess what? Newsflash, Bill "the Thrill" O'Reilly: they're all banned.
* Stewart: So, you wish to improve upon that form God gave you.
Jonesy: Just a half-cycle, buddy.
Stewart: Ah, sweet hubris.
Reilly: Oh, what's that?
Stewart: Excessive pride, or self confidence.
Roald: Arrogance.
Steart: Egotism.
Roald: Pomposity.
Stewart: One does not simply hop on or of the Anabolia Express. No. You ride that juice train all the way to the end of the line.
Roald: Choo-choo.
* Reilly: Locked and loaded, bro.
Jonesy: Bring on the gains, boys.
Reilly: Capital gains, boys.
Jonesy: Charlotte Gains, bro.
Reilly: A quick Serge of Gains, bro.
Jonesy: Focus is?
Reilly: Traps and tri's buddy.
Jonesy: Traps and tri's, bro.
Reilly: We should be ripping sand bell slammers.
Jonesy: We should be ripping kettleball sumo deadlifts.
Reilly: We should be ripping standing V-bar pushdowns.
Jonesy: We should be ripping cable hammer curls with rope attachment.
Reilly: We should be ripping close grip EZ bar curls with band.
Jonesy: We should be ripping standing dumbbell reverse spider curls.
Reilly: We should be ripping two arm barbell wide grip preachers curls.
Jonesy: Like Arnold, buddy.
Reilly: Uh-hmmm.
Both: (grunting)
Jonesy: I don't know what's going on, but I don't feel like ripping V-Bar tricep pushdowns.
Reilly: Maybe it's the half cycle, buddy.
Jonesy: I know what you mean, buddy.
Reilly: Maybe we should rip a full cycle, buddy.
Jonesy: Full cycle, buddy.
Reilly: Ferda.
Jonesy: Ferda.
Reilly: One more rip and then we rip super sets of standing sand bell tricep extendies.
Jonesy: One more rip and we rip standing bicep stretchies.
Reilly: We should be ripping one-arm cable curlies.
Jonesy: We should be ripping advanced alternate air bike ab rollies.
Reilly: We should be ripping rollout incline heel touchies.
Jonesy: We should be ripping bent press barbell side bendies. We should be ripping…
Reilly: We should be ripping…
Jonesy: We should be ripping…
Reilly: We should be ripping…
Jonesy: We should be ripping…
Reilly: We should be ripping …
Jonesy: Judo flippies Russian cable twisties, ferda!
Reilly: Ferda.

## Cultural References

* "Netflix and chill" as a euphemism for sex became mainstream around 2014. Amazon Prime, YouTube, Hulu, DirecTV, HBO, and Crave remain active services, as presumably do torrent sites and satellite, but Playstation Vue was terminated in early 2020 while pirate sites Project Free TV and Pirate Bay have been shut down, but with many clones and imitators remaining.
* Reilly paraphrases a classical philosophical question: "If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around, does it make a sound?" in which the relationship of perception and existence, or of observation and reality, is weighed. It is also the chorus of the 1989 song *If a Tree Falls* by Bruce Cockburn.
* The term "French leave" for leaving a social occasion without thanking the hosts, is attested in the Oxford English Dictionary from as far back as 1751. The French phrase for the same behavior is “partir à l’anglaise” or “filer à l’anglaise”—to leave in the English fashion, also the expression in Polish (“wyjść po angielsku”). In German, it is the Polish exit (“polnischer Abgang”). In the U.S., "French leave" has been displaced by the "Irish goodbye."
* Two-four is slang for a 24-can case of beer. From 1927 to 2018, beer in Ontario was sold primarily at The Beer Store, a retail chain with large stores with sliding glass doors, like a supermarket, and someone attempting to steal from the store could very well run into the door in haste.
* Stewart first addresses the hockey players as "my chemical bromance," referring to their pursuit of chemical substances and their well-established "bromance," but also a reference to American rock/emo group My Chemical Romance (MCR). The group was parodied previously on "Letterkenny Talent Show," where Glen announces he is performing with "My Tattered Journal," a "Christian post alt-rock emo super band," who are dressed in costumes very similar to MCR's on their 2007–08 *Black Parade* tour.
* Stewart next addresses the hockey players as "Bro Thornton" and Bro Jonas." The former is likely a reference to the Thorton brothers from St. Thomas, ON, NHL player Joe and NHL agent John. The latter is likely a reference to the Jonas Brothers, an American pop "boy band" who gained widespread popularity from television appearances on the Disney Channel.
* Stewart also addresses the hockey players as Geoff and Russ Courtnall and Wayne and Keith Primeau, pairs of brothers who played in the NHL together.
* "Bill 'the Thrill' O'Reilly" is a reference to American political commentator Bill O'Reilly, former host of *The O'Reilly Factor* on Fox News. "The Thrill" is not an actual nickname, and used ironically considering O'Reilly's straightlaced public persona and conservative social views.
* "Charlotte Gains, Bro" is a reference to British-French singer Charlotte Gainsbourg. Similarly, "Serge of Gains, bro," is a reference to French singer (and Charlotte's father) Serge Gainsbourg.
* Wayne deems *The Road* a "pretty good book"; it won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the 2006 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction. Written by Cormac McCarthy, it is an account of a father and son traveling together in a post-apocalyptic United States.
* A poster for Letterkenny MMA can be seen on the wall behind Reilly when they are at the blackboard, a reference to the project he, Jonesy, Tyson, and Joint Boy had initially pitched in "Uncle Eddie's Trust."
* "We're going to need a bigger blackboard" is a snowclone of "You're gonna need a bigger boat," a famous ad-libbed line from the 1975 film *Jaws*

## Callbacks and Running Gags

* She up to something (introduced)
* Wayne's reading list (introduced)
* The Lifestyle (The Battle for Bonnie McMurray)
* Choo-choo (introduced)

## Trivia

* This episode marks the first time the hockey players have visited the basement since planning to trash it in "A Fuss in the Back Bush" at the end of Season 1, and the first-ever exclusive interaction between the hockey players and the Skids; all previous encounters have also entailed a third party (the Natives, Glen, etc.).
* Another phrase that can signify "to each his and her own" and "live and let live" is Different Strokes for Different Folks, a Season 6 episode devoted to the McMurrays' sexual habits.

## Music

According to Tunefind, the following songs are featured in this episode;

* Heitzing by Gypsophillia (in the McMurrays' hot tub)
* White Gospel Blues (Extended Version) by Black Strobe (half cycles)
* Chubrub by Ed Rush & Optical (the hockey players visit the Skids for some 'roids)
* Grimey by Dillinja (we should be ripping…)
* Swing Tree by Discovery (end credits)

## Locations

* Farm
* Gym
* the McMurrays' house

## Appearances

* Katy
* Wayne
* Dan
* Daryl
* McMurray
* Mrs. McMurray
* Glen
* Gail
* Reilly
* Jonesy
* Tanis
* Stewart
* Roald
* Darien
* "Nerdy girl" (Ashley Tredenick)
* Gym Girl #1 (Julia Ruberto), Gym Girl #2 (Lianne Desjardins)

## Gallery

No rulesDidn't bring a setTanis's opportunityYou should be good, though…I need my RitsThe boys on Rits, not 'roidsNot an option, broGail searches for an olive