"Powerless" is the twentieth episode of Monsters at Work. It aired on May 4, 2024, and is the tenth and final episode of the second season.
Synopsis[]
After a devastating blackout, Tylor must reconnect with Val to bring power back to Monstropolis.
Plot[]
Randall Boggs reveals that after getting banished by Mike and Sulley, Johnny rescued him and brought him back to Monstropolis. Johnny recruited him after realizing that Monsters, Inc. was overtaking energy business and had Randall sneak into Monsters, Inc. (through the custodian closet in the subbasement) to steal the laugh energy, even re-wiring the canisters so they read as full. Randall also admits to being behind all the thefts and vandalism, just to mess with everyone. Johnny insists that he was helping Tylor as he realized the potential he was wasting working at Monsters, Inc. He further reveals that there is no scare amplifier and that they were collecting all of the joke canisters to full their own power engine, mixing both scare and laugh power.
Tylor attempts to warn Johnny about mixing the two forms of power together, but he throws caution to the wind, stating that he plans to bring power back to Monstropolis at 9:00 PM. M.E.R.C. takes over Monsters, Inc. and orders everyone to evacuate while Mike and Sulley are rounded up and taken in for questioning. Val sneaks into MIFT and discovers the rest of the crew still moving things around. Tylor arrives to inform everyone what has happened. While they are still mad at him, Cutter and Sunny (who have both since patched things up and resumed a relationship) find evidence of Tylor's claims and resolve to help save Monstropolis.
The group use the left over parts from the Scream Extractor and sneak into Fear Co. so that they can extract the scream energy from the power engine. Once the readings on their scanner reach green, then it is safe to return energy to the city. The group knock out Declan and have Duncan pose as him to clear the engine room out. As they rebuild the scream extractor, Sunny comes to the conclusion that they won't be able to extract all the screams by 9:00, forcing Johnny and Val to go and stall Johnny. At M.E.R.C. headquarters, Roz gives Mike and Sulley tons of paperwork to sign to pass energy over to Fear Co. She gives a wink, which Sulley deduces means that she knows something and is trying to stall, giving the two hope.
Tylor and Val stall Johnny from pushing the button to return power. Down in the engine room, Randall appears and fights the MIFTers, while Duncan battles Declan. During the fight, Fritz sprays Randall with sticky Drooler Cooler soda to make him visible, but Randall uses a falling stalactite to snap the cord needed to power the extractor. Chet suddenly appears and sticks Randall’s tail into the outlet, electrifying him. With Randall also holding onto the cord, the energy goes through him and into the Scream Extractor, sucking out the remainder of the scare power. Duncan also defeats Declan and trims part of his Fear Co. counterpart's beard. Johnny pushes the button just as power returns and Tylor exposes Johnny for his duplicitous scheme. MIFT, M.E.R.C. and Roz arrive to confirm Tylor's story to the media. Fritz hands Randall over to the M.E.R.C. agents, and Roz reveals that Chet was a M.E.R.C. agent this whole time.
As Johnny and Randall are taken away, Tylor admits that monsters still don't trust laugh power. Val decides to prove everyone wrong as Jack and Jill's cameraman films them entering Ben's bedroom. Tylor apologizes to Ben for scaring him and asks what happened when he was mad at a friend. As Ben opens up to Tylor and Val, they play and have fun as everyone across Monstropolis embraces their work.
In the aftermath, Johnny is arrested, his cellmate being Waternoose, while Randall escapes custody. Though M.E.R.C. and Duncan declare that they will find him. Mike and Sulley distributed new jokester cards to the Monsters, Inc. team (now including Skyler and Chompy), while Tylor and Val have reformed as the first comedy duo jokesters.
Cast[]
- Billy Crystal as Mike Wazowski
- John Goodman as James P. Sullivan
- Ben Feldman as Tylor Tuskmon
- Mindy Kaling as Val Little
- Henry Winkler as Fritz
- Lucas Neff as Duncan P. Anderson
- Alanna Ubach as Cutter, Carla Benitez
- Nathan Fillion as Johnny Worthington III
- Rhys Darby as Roger Rogers
- Ali Wong as Jill
- Joe Lo Truglio as Jack
- Bob Peterson as Roz
- Bobby Moynihan as Chet Alexander
- Christopher Swindle as M.E.R.C. Official 2, Thaddeus Bile, Additional Monsters
- Dee Bradley Baker as Banana Bread, Chompy, Swamp Man, Angry Citizen
- Roxana Ortega as Celia Mae
- Stephen Stanton as George Sanderson
- Steve Buscemi as Randall Boggs
- Paula Pell as Sunny Sunshine
- Alan Kim as Ben
- Richard Ayoade as Declan
- Janelle James as Joy
- Alan Tudyk as M.E.R.C. Official 2, Alarmed Monster
- Jimmy Tatro as Skyler
- Bowen Yang as Carter Lee
- Kurtwood Smith as Alistair Clawbottom
- Hiromi Dames as Lanky
- Corey Burton as Slappy
- Nohely Quiroz as Additional Monsters
- Kimberly D. Brooks as Additional Monsters
- Max Mittelman as Additional Monsters
- Stevie Wermers-Skelton as Swamp Woman
- Ethan Sandler as Lou "Stubby" Lizzardo
- Bobs Gannaway as Roto
Trivia[]
- The episode's title is a likely reference to a song from the Broadway musical, In the Heights.
- Chet is revealed to have been a double agent for M.E.R.C. throughout the whole season.
- The "P" in Sulley's middle name is revealed to stand for "Patrick", thus making his full name as James Patrick Sullivan, which may be a reference to actor James Patrick Stuart.
- The news headline reading "Johnny caged" is a reference to the Mortal Kombat character Johnny Cage.
- Monster News Network (MNN) is a parody of Cable News Network (CNN).
- This also would be a reference to said network in a special episode of Sesame Street.
- Roz stating that Duncan is not affiliated with M.E.R.C. is similar to a scene from The Incredibles, where Mr. Incredible says the same thing about Buddy Pine not being affiliated with him.
- Incidentally, both scenes also acknowledge someone escaping custody (Bomb Voyage for the aforementioned film and Randall for this episode).
- When Val asks Fritz about his lack of a disguise, he reveals that he was in community theater on the weekends, which is where he got his acting skills from.
- This is probably a nod to Fritz's voice actor Henry Winkler's role as Gene Cousineau, an acting coach in HBO crime drama series Barry.
- This is the second episode where a "number six" (the Monsters, Inc. equivalent to a fart) is acknowledged, after the first season episode "Bad Hair Day". In this case, Skyler accidentally lets out at least two "number six's" while on guard duty.
- Tylor and Val entering through Ben's door at the end of the episode mirrors the end of the original movie in which Sulley entered through Boo's door and reunites with her.
- Carter being happy that Val knows his name most likely alludes to Fred from Cars, who is frequently shown to get excited whenever someone knows his name, unaware that they are only reading his name from his front license plate.
- Fritz’s ‘Frankie Rigatoni’ persona is most likely inspired by Fonzie in the sitcom, Happy Days, whom Fritz's voice actor Henry Winkler also portrayed.
- On another note, the voice he uses for this persona sounds quite similar to that of Horace the Horse from New Looney Tunes.
- Like the end of the first season, there is a message at the end of the end credits. However, instead of teasing another season, Roz breaks the fourth wall by telling the audience to "always keep rewatching."
- Johnny being arrested by MERC parallels Waternoose being arrested by CDA in the original film.
- Val Little is the only character who hasn't encountered nor interacted with Randall Boggs yet.
- It remains unknown of how did Johnny knew if Randall was thrown into the human world or if he knows exactly where Randall was thrown off.
- When Tylor told MIFT about Randall, they were all shocked. This likely indicates that Sulley and Mike told the employees of Monsters, Inc. about Randall and his wrongdoings, along with all of the citizens of Monstropolis by extension afterwards, after the events of the movie.
- This would explain why Johnny knew about how Randall ended up being banished in the human world, but it is unknown how he knew about the door that leads to the trailer Randall was last seen in.
- When Tylor told MIFT about Randall, they were all shocked. This likely indicates that Sulley and Mike told the employees of Monsters, Inc. about Randall and his wrongdoings, along with all of the citizens of Monstropolis by extension afterwards, after the events of the movie.
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