The Rider

Bored with Wander's usual helpings and looking for action, Sylvia gets a surprise visit from her long-lost, action-packed partner Rider, who invites her on a mission to retrieve stolen loot from Lord Hater. Wander tries to join in, but ends up making the adventure difficult, leading him to believe that Rider is better than him. (This is a half-hour episode and the official season finale of the first season.)

Episode Summary
Wander and Sylvia are helping a minuscule family, the Brittles, move into a dollhouse, much to the former's uninterested. She tells him that even though she had fun with her partner, she thinks their travels lacked some adventure. Wander gets an idea: sneak onto Lord Hater's ship and give Barry, one of the Watchdogs, a birthday cake, since he's turning 30 years old and hasn't told anyone yet but hopes they remember. Sylvia sighs and tells him that even though she likes helping, she could at least use some action.

Right on cue, a ship crashes in the distance, and Sylvia comes upon the site to find someone, right when Hater's ship flies over.

Songs

 * "Your Happy Birthday Song" (instrumental)
 * "Wander Over Yonder Main Title" (instrumental)

End Credits
A repeat of the final shot of the episode, which pulls out to show it being watched on a screen by Lord Dominator, who laughs maniacally. This scene is a cliffhanger and resumes in the Season 2 opener.

Background Information

 * This is first half hour episode with no songs in it, as Craig McCracken proclaimed there's no room for them in the episode.
 * This is the first half-hour episode to premiere on Disney XD instead of Disney Channel.
 * This is the first half-hour episode that Peepers does not appear in.
 * This is the last Season 1 episode where Lord Hater appears without Commander Peepers.

Trivia

 * This episode reveals that Wander and Sylvia weren't always partners.
 * Third half-hour episode. ("The Pet", "The Little Guy")
 * First episode where someone is revealed to have a definite age, in this case Watchdog Barry at age 30.
 * Second time a birthday is celebrated ("The Birthday Boy").
 * The seventh time a Watchdog besides Peepers was named. In this case, Barry.
 * Sylvia is 10'.
 * Craig McCracken later stated that 10' refers to her height from the tip of her tail to the tip of her snout. Standing, Sylvia is about 7'.

Continuity

 * The intro to "Your Happy Birthday Song" can be heard when Wander mentions the Watchdog's birthday.
 * The ending of the animatic foreshadows the Season 2 premiere.
 * Planets from the Theme Song are among the planets Hater stole from.
 * The key used to get into Hater's storage facility is the same one used by the Locksmith to unlock Hater's research facility in "The Big Job".

Errors

 * When Wander is trying to get back up after falling from Sylvia's back, Sylvia's eyes remain looking up.
 * Sylvia's reins disappear and reappear several times throughout the episode.

Allusions

 * Star Wars Episode IV - A New Hope
 * Ryder's appearance and attitude are based on Han Solo's.
 * The Cantina scene and the "That's no moon" line are parodied.
 * Battle of Yavin: When Sylvia says "I have you now."
 * DuckTales - Ryder dives into the treasure like Scrooge McDuck.
 * The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - Sylvia calls Ryder a 'Narfin' Frood!', 'Frood'' is a common term in Hitchhikers as a description of a 'Really amazingly together guy'.
 * Ali Baba Bunny - Ryder does Daffy's "I'm rich! I'm rich!" routine.
 * Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 - This is the second episode to use the final movement of this Beethoven symphony after "The Brainstorm".
 * The Lone Ranger - Wander shouts, "Hi-de-ho, Sylvia, away!", a reference to the catchphrase of the title character, "Hi-yo, Silver! Away!" from this old radio serial.

Production Information

 * Craig McCracken confirmed this episode at Comic-Con 2014.
 * In that video, he also confirmed that Will Arnett will be the voice of Rider.
 * Craig McCracken originally confirmed on Twitter this would be the season finale, but the episode was unscheduled at the time so it was likely intended to air as the finale. "The Gift" will air instead in December 2014 as a season finale.
 * He later confirmed on Twitter that The Rider is the official season finale, The Gift simply aired last as a Christmas special.
 * Unlike The Pet or The Little Guy, which are split in 2 eleven-minute segments, this episode is split in 3 seven-minute segments.
 * This episode was made available to verified Watch Disney XD app users and Disney XD On Demand Users starting November 26, 2014.

International premieres

 * March 18, 2015 (Disney XD UK and Ireland)

Cast

 * Jack McBrayer as Wander
 * April Winchell as Sylvia, Additional voices
 * Keith Ferguson as Lord Hater, Watchdog 1, Additional voices
 * Will Arnett as Rider
 * Fred Tatasciore as Lord Dominator, Additional voices
 * Additional voices: Tom Kenny