Dueling Eds

"Dueling Eds" is the 7th episode of Season 3 and the 59th episode of Ed, Edd n Eddy. In this episode, Eddy unintentionally insults Rolf while the children were attending one of Rolf's traditional celebrations. When Eddy unintentionally insults Rolf a second time, Rolf can no longer take any more of this and decides that he must regains his honor. In order for Rolf to do this, he must win a duel against Eddy.

Plot
Jonny is playing pranks on fire hydrants with Plank and generally having a good time when he comes to a tree in the middle of a yard. Suddenly, Eddy leaps out from the tree, and several other copies of him come out with him, forming a circle around Jonny. At first, Jonny thinks he's reliving a batch of expired tofu, but he takes a closer look and sees that it's special effects. The real Eddy agrees that it is, and tells him that he can learn these arts and more at his School of Kung-Fu.

Inside the school, Edd is trying to get Ed to break a board. Ed concentrates and brings his head down on the center of the board, splitting it in two. At this, Edd rejoices, and suggests they try it again. Jonny is about to buy into the school, but he consults with Plank first, and decides not to. At this, Eddy says he respects Jonny's decision–right before putting him up as something Ed should split. Luckily, Edd is able to pull Jonny away in time, and Jonny sourly walks away from the scam.

Eddy is steaming about the loss of a customer when Kevin rides by. Spotting another sucker, he chases after the bike only to be told to bug off. Jimmy and Sarah then run by, following Kevin, and Nazz brings up the rear. Eddy wonders what is going on, and is told by Edd that in order to learn, one must search for knowledge. Edd then leads Eddy after the commotion.

It seems that the kids have all gone to Rolf's house. There, Rolf is in his backyard, wearing a purple suit with strange yellow balls plastered seemingly at random all over it. Those gathered there are silent until Jonny reaches out and shakes Rolf, asking what he's doing. Rolf then explains that this is a very sacred gathering for him. This is the anniversary of his Great Nano's trip across the ocean and his battle with the mighty sea cucumber. As such, he has prepared several sea cucumber balls for all to feast upon. Rolf then offers a ball to everyone at the party; nobody refuses, even though you can see on their faces that they aren't enjoying the food. Of course, Eddy isn't tactful at the best of times, and this is no exception, as he bets Edd that he can hit a knothole in the fence with his delicacy. Edd tries to stop him, but Eddy refuses to listen and flings it. Rolf turns around just in time to see the sea cucumber ball heading for the fence. His eyes widen as the ball heads towards the fence. When it hits, the party stops and goes silent, the only sound being Eddy's utterance of "stupid fishball".

Pained at this blatant disregard for his traditions, Rolf runs inside. When he comes out, he is wearing a wooden mask with a black veil attached. He explains that thanks to Eddy, he has lost his honor, and tells everyone to leave, stepping on his face as they go. Rolf lies down at the exit, and everyone does as requested, along the way expressing sympathy for Rolf. Finally, the last ones left are the Eds. Ed, happily oblivious, wants to step on Rolf's face, but Edd stops him. Edd then makes all of them leave the party, with a somewhat-guilty Eddy muttering that he doesn't know what he did wrong.

When we next see them, the Eds are hanging out in the Retro Van. Eddy is driving, Edd is next to him, and Ed is sticking his head out of a window. After turning the wheel a few times, Eddy gives up and yells angrily that he doesn't know what Rolf's problem is. Edd tries to explain, but Eddy is unwilling to listen, instead mocking Rolf's fishball. Edd still tries to get through to his friend, but Ed then asks why he doesn't bake cupcakes. This leaves Edd flabbergasted, but Eddy thinks it's a good idea, as he's getting hungry. Edd gives up, but tries to get Eddy to at least give the cupcakes to Rolf if he's going to bake cupcakes. Eddy refuses to give in, or to even bake the planned cupcakes, much to Ed's disappointment. Edd then decides to drag them back and offer Rolf a potted plant in an attempt to soothe him.

When the Eds arrive at Rolf's house again they find that Rolf has buried himself alive with a funnel sticking out of the ground his only source of oxygen. Shocked to see this, Edd shoves Eddy forward with the plant and makes him apologize. Eddy listlessly drops the plant on Rolf and delivers an emotionless, empty apology. Rolf then starts to feel Eddy's gift and recognizes it. Angrily, he declares that Eddy has given him the Potted Shrub of Ridicule and that his honor has been insulted further. He then declares that to restore his honor, he is challenging Eddy to a duel.

Rolf is then seen digging a gigantic pit. Kevin offers to help, but Rolf waves off this offer, saying that the pit must be dug by him alone. Once he finishes the incredibly large pit, he heaves himself out and goes over to a tree. Muscles straining, he lifts the tree out of the ground and topples it over the pit, where it forms a bridge. The pit complete and his training over, Rolf declares that it is time to fix what has been broken and orders the Ed-boy brought to him.

The Eds, meanwhile, have retreated to the junkyard, more specifically, their van. While Edd tries to warn Eddy about the upcoming duel, Eddy ignores his friend, as he doesn't plan to show up. At that moment, Ed loudly warns of someone in the road. Kevin has arrived, and he starts to tell Eddy that it's time to go. Eddy, thinking fast, blows the horn at Kevin and snickers. Kevin then angrily grabs Eddy and drags him off to the duel.

When the Eds arrive, Rolf is rolling a round stone between his teeth. Rolf spits it out and demands that Eddy choose a weapon from the weapons chest. When he opens the chest, Eddy finds that it is full of fish. Eddy questions this, and is yelled at by an angry Rolf. He then quickly chooses a fish, and Rolf chooses his. As Kevin sets up to record at the end of the tree, Eddy starts to have worried thoughts about the duel, and tells Rolf that he's sorry. Hearing this, Rolf asks if he's brought the Cupcakes of Sorriness. Eddy looks at his friends, confused, and they shrug at him, indicating their confusion as well. Eddy responds with an uncertain "no", and is immediately met with a fish to the face. Rolf follows this up with several other smacks, much to the shock of Ed and Edd. Kevin just laughs, though, as his camera is loving the action. Finally, Rolf grabs Eddy and hauls him up. Rolf asks Eddy why he is not fighting back. Dazed, Eddy asks if it's his turn, and Rolf demands that Eddy hit him. When Eddy draws back his fish, Rolf slams his fish forward at Eddy and finally knocks the three-haired Ed-boy off of the log.

Eddy falls into the deep pit, and the dark skies clear, returning the cul-de-sac to normal. Rolf declares that the honor of his ancestors has been avenged, and Eddy crawls out of the pit. While Kevin mockingly offers him a video copy of the fight, Edd congratulates Eddy and offers to bake him some cupcakes. This is greeted with a loud cry of "too late!" from Rolf. Rolf then tells them that the only way to certify a good relationship after a duel is with the Eels of Forgivness. Rolf then proceeds to pour eels into everyone's pants, except Kevin, who denies them, angering Rolf.

While Edd and Eddy are uncomfortable with the eels in their pants, Ed looks somewhat placid. When questioned on this, however, he only states that he feels funny and may be allergic to eels. Almost immediately after he says this, bumps start popping up all over his body and he turns into a fish, scaring Edd and Eddy.

Edd and Eddy are starting to become uncomfortable with eels slithering around in their pants and Edd asks Ed if he is enjoying this. Ed, scratching himself, states he feels weird and states he must be allergic to eels. Shortly after stating this, Ed's body swells up to become very fish-like due to his allergy. "Fish face!", screams Eddy. Eddy tries to run off, but the eels render him immobile. Edd faints. Ed asks somebody to scratch his scales for him as the episode irises in on him.

Memorable Quotes
[multiple Eddy's drop from the trees yelling and striking a pose, surrounding Jonny] "I think I'm reliving that expired tofu, Plank!"
 * Jonny: "Hey hydrant, your flies are undone! [runs away laughing] Boy, hydrants are slower than molasses, huh, Plank? [Eddy in a kung fu costume drops from a tree and strikes a Kung-Fu pose at Jonny] For crying out loud!"


 * Ed: [while blindfolded] "I am one with my shoe size, Double D!"

Ed: [excitedly] "Cookie dough!"
 * Eddy: "I don't believe this! What could be more important than Master Eddy?"


 * Rolf: "Try one, Ed boy. Mama's sea cucumber balls are good for the digestion spout."

Ed: [missing the point] "It's his hat, Eddy. He always wears it and he talks forever about stuff, not to mention his obsession with cleanliness."
 * Eddy: [to Edd] "What's your problem?"

Edd: "Yes, I do believe you're right, Ed."
 * Ed: "Holy mackerel!"

Edd: "Ed, please! Eddy is concentrating on the near-at-hand duel!" Eddy: "Like I'll show up! Mr. 'Give Rolf a plant'…" Ed: [spotting Kevin] "Look out, Eddy! There's someone on the road!" Kevin: "Hey, dork! It's time for-" [Eddy honks the horn at Kevin and laughs] Ed: [relieved] "Boy, that was close."
 * Ed: [to Eddy] "Can we stop for ice cream?"

Rolf: "CHOOSE!"
 * Eddy: [gawking at the assortment of fish and trying to choose one to duel with] "What?! More fish?!"

Edd: "It's not the fish ball, Eddy. You hurt Rolf's feelings!" Eddy: "I didn't do anything." [Edd gets frustrated with Eddy] Ed: "Why don't you bake cupcakes Eddy?" Edd: "Cupcakes?"
 * Eddy: [sarcastically] "Oh, boo-hoo! I hurt Rolf's stinky fish ball!"

Ed: "I feel weird guys. I think I'm allergic to eels." [ Purple hives begin to pop out all over his skin, and suddenly he turns into a human-fish hybrid.] Eddy: FISH FACE! [screams] Ed: [as screen goes black] "Can somebody scratch my scales?" Eddy: [offscreen] "Yeech!"
 * Edd: [As eels squirm around in everyone's pants] "Ed, are you enjoying this?"

Trivia/Goofs

 * The mirrors that reflect Eddy are not visible when Jonny first wanders around the tree, but they are when he figures out that Eddy was only acting. However, if they were really reflections of Eddy, they all should have fallen at the same time. And, judging by the mirror angles, Jonny should have seen his own reflection, not Eddy's. This could all be an example of cartoon physics, though.
 * This episode strangely has captions for sound effects, such as the used samurai yell "Oooh!"
 * It is revealed that Kevin is the only one (besides the Eds) who seems to knows where the Retro Van is.
 * In the Kung-Fu (actually Karate) scam, Ed and Eddy are barefoot (instead of in their usual footwear), which is a tradition in Karate lessons.
 * During the duel, Eddy gets hit with a fish in the mouth in slow motion. If this scene is sped up, Eddy is heard in a normal voice saying, "NOOOOOOOOO!"
 * The Piggy Bank Belly Pumper from "Fa-La-La-La-Ed" appears in this episode in the Junkyard, but it is shown to be ransacked. The reason why is most likely due to the fact the Eds abandoned it and threw it away since they had no use for it after the scam failed.
 * In Master Eddy's School of Kung-Fu, two posters can be seen. One shows Eddy pointing at the viewer and says "Master Eddy wants you" similar to the Uncle Sam poster, and another showing overpriced Kung-Fu actions.
 * Edd broke the fourth wall before the duel starts by saying, "Rolf's customs have a frighteningly high budget," possibly referring to the budget of the show itself. The status of this, however, is not known.
 * When Eddy sat on the chair in the Junkyard, there was an AKA 30A license plate near him, which is a reference to A.K.A. Cartoon.
 * Fish Ed briefly reappears in Ed, Edd n Eddy's Big Picture Show, when Ed was zapped with the electric gum.
 * When Eddy is sitting on the chair in the Junkyard, you can see the "Lawn Chairs Orbit Earth Ride" from the Ed-Land scam in "Eds-Aggerate" in the background.
 * This is the second appearance of the Retro Van. The first was "Dawn of the Eds". It makes its third (and final) appearance in "A Twist of Ed" where the Eds hide from the Kankers.
 * The Retro Van has a "La Cucaracha" horn sound in "Dawn of the Eds", but in this episode when Eddy honked the horn at Kevin, it's a regular horn sound. The same thing happens again in "A Twist of Ed".
 * 40th time the Kankers were absent.
 * Rolf actually refers to himself in first person a couple of times in this episode. "Bring me the Ed-boy!" and "I alone must bare the sorrow." In most episodes, he refers to himself in third person.
 * The title card is never seen on most recent airings of this episode for some reason and starts out with Jonny walking by the hydrant pump and telling it that its "fly is undone."
 * This episode reveals that Ed is allergic to eels and that he suffers an extremely adverse reaction in the presence of eels.
 * The Eels of Forgiveness are referenced again by Eddy in "No Speak Da Ed".
 * The fish Eddy used to duel against Rolf is shown again in "The Good Ol' Ed". However in that episode, Eddy is shown using it properly, suggesting he figured out how to fight with it after this episode.
 * At the beginning, when the first Eddy falls out of the tree in front of Jonny, he has four toes but after that he had three.
 * Apparently Jonny had a bad experience that involved expired tofu.
 * Prices of the Master Eddy's School of Kung Fu:
 * Kick: 25¢
 * Hi-ya: 50¢
 * Hand Chop: 50¢
 * Ninja Pose: 25¢
 * Any 3 Combo: 75¢
 * Rolf's customs in this episode:
 * Sea Cucumber celebration: celebrated every year by Rolf's family in honor of Rolf's Great Nano defeating the Sea Cucumber, consuming sea cucumber balls while at it. It is considered an insult to throw the sea cucumbers at something as Rolf was saddened by this and let everyone trample on his face since Eddy shamed him.
 * The Potted Shrub of Ridicule: If someone gives a person a potted plant, it is considered a great insult to the honor of the person receiving the plant.
 * The duel: When something causes someone to lose their honor, they must reclaim it by dueling the person that made the person lose his/her honor.
 * The Cupcakes of Sorriness: A gift as an apology to show you are sorry about something, which was said by Rolf, "If this is true, have you brought the Cupcakes of Sorriness?"
 * The Eels of Forgiveness: a custom in Rolf's culture in the Old Country that, possibly, once honor has been reclaimed, the eels would patch up the conflict. It is an insult to "pass" on the Eels. And you may have to duel the person that "insulted" the Eels.
 * The title card for this episode is similar to the title card for "Oath to an Ed".