[S1E8] Charlie Dies And Doesn't Come Back
In Memoriam Gag: Lieutenant Damien Xavier Cowap (1969-2025)note In case you're reading this page after 2025, this episode aired in 2022.Charlie Dies and Doesn't Come Back contains examples of... Animation Bump: Jeremy goes from only having 2 frames of animation, except for his tongue, to a smooth and fluid animation when Charlie punches him in the solar plexus after he "entertains" him again.
Big Damn Heroes: God pops out of nowhere at the end of the episode to rescue Charlie from Satan the moment He deems that the critter's learned his lesson.
Both Sides Have a Point: Charlie and Pim argue about their respective attitudes on the job and neither side is exactly wrong. Pim shouldn't have to force people to be happy and come with him on his quest to help others, he's not entitled to Charlie's personal happiness. Charlie made it clear to Pim that he just wanted to go home on Christmas Eve, not work overtime by looking for a Christmas tree at the last minute for his boss.
While the timing of the argument isn't great, Charlie should be more motivated to do his job and shouldn't be so cynical when he's doing it. As Pim points out, Charlie appears completely disinterested in helping others and Pim has to push him to do his job and Pim has to pick up the slack by being perky.
Brick Joke: Let the record show that, if nothing else, Charlie is a man of his word. He threatens to punch Jeremy if the latter "entertains" the former again. Sure enough, near the end of Charlie's journey, Jeremy pops up out of nowhere to "entertain" Charlie, causing Charlie to punch Jeremy right in the solar plexus, knocking the wind out of the latter.Charlie: Dude, I warned ya! I said I was gonna do that if you did that again! Jeremy returns the favor by punching Charlie in the face while he's being tortured by Satan's minions.
The Cameo: Gilbert Gottfried voices God in this episode. It should be noted that His depiction in this show has Him being portrayed as a shredded to the gills giant wearing a golden toga and a face that glows so brightly it literally obscures His entire head with Gilbert making no effort to make his distinctive voice fit.
Can't Take Criticism: When Charlie gives Satan some advice on why he might be in a rut, Satan immediately takes offence, believing he's being talked down to.
Crossthrough: On April 1st, 2022, a special version of the episode featuring characters from Pibby edited into the episode was aired as part of an April Fools' Day joke by [adult swim].
Deal with the Devil: Charlie makes a deal with Satan that if he can get the Prince of Darkness out of his depression, then Satan will send him back to Earth. Satan initially seems willing to uphold at least until Charlie starts pointing out his flaws, which he takes badly.
The Dog Bites Back: Jeremy returns once more near the end to deck Charlie in the face as payback for getting decked in the solar plexus earlier.
Easy Road to Hell: Charlie's Grandma apparently got sent to hell for cursing and saying "damn" when she saw her husband get shot by a burglar. In 1958. Charlie also winds up getting sent to Hell for his cynical and lazy nature.
Funny Background Event: One of the sights in Charlie's trip to Satan's living space are a pair of giant demons having a snowball fight with sinners instead of snow.
Funny Foreigner: Downplayed. The delivery guy is clearly Indian, complete with a thick accent, but aside from the fact that he literally managed to somehow reach Hell of all places to deliver food for Satan himself and treating it like it's just another job, as well as some of his interactions with Satan, there isn't that much comedy to him.
Gross-Up Close-Up: The Imp who introduces Charlie to hell gets a lovely close-up when he welcomes him to hell.
Incredibly Lame Fun: Jeremy, Charlie's only form of hellish entertainment. He "entertains" Charlie by rapidly throwing his hands at him while making high-pitched babbling noises, which realistically just annoys Charlie.
The Last of These Is Not Like the Others: Just before Charlie reaches Satan's dwelling space, he walks across a frozen lake with the souls of the damned embedded into it, who all utter various threats at him, except for the very last one, who simply politely apologizes to him due to being unable to think of anything to say, which Charlie is to quick to assure him that there's no need to be sorry.
Made of Plasticine: Charlie dies by way of a relatively small pine tree falling on him, which causes his entire body to practically explode into a pile of gore.
Mythology Gag: The Indian delivery guy is basically the same character as the Indian cashier from Rick and Morty: Bushworld Adventures which was directed by Michael Cusack.
Never Trust a Title: Charlie comes back to life by the end of the episode.
Oh, and X Dies: The title gives Charlie's demise away upfront. He does come back though.
Rule of Three: The imp that introduces Charlie to hell shows him his new "Hell Mattress", his "Hell Toilet", and Jeremy, his only form of hellish entertainment. Jeremy himself also makes three whole appearances through out the episode, with the 1st being his introduction, the 2nd being his surprise appearance to "entertain" Charlie out of nowhere, and his 3rd, and final one having him appear to punch Charlie as payback for punching him in the solar plexus earlier.
Seven Deadly Sins: Satan himself embodies most of these, fittingly enough. Pride: Satan gets incredibly offended when Charlie tries to offer him sincere criticism on his character, even though he asked for it, accusing him of talking down to him.
Wrath: He flies into a state of fury just because Charlie offers him advice that he didn't take, and he also refuses to hold up his deal with Charlie just because he got him mad in the first place.
Lust: Satan has become addicted to multiple vices, such as gaming, junk food, vaping, and, if the box of tissues in the trash pile surrounding him is any indication, masturbation.
Gluttony: His aformentioned junk food addiction.
Sloth: He's introduced sitting in a gaming chair, and talks to Charlie about how his problem is that he's lost all motivation in ruling Hell, and that he's pretty much given up at doing so, and is very lazy in general, given that he doesn't even bother cleaning up the trash pile around him.
Shout-Out: One of the demons that Charlie encounters in Hell is the spitting image of a Cacodemon.
The hell mattress bears a striking resemblance to the Colonials from All Tomorrows.
Stealth Pun: Gilbert Gottfried as God, given that the "Gott" in his surname literally means God.
[S1E8] Charlie Dies and Doesn't Come Back
Flashing back to the day after Christmas, we're given a look at what happened the evening Charlie was kidnapped. Emily's holding her son, waiting for her husband to come to the dinner table. But Matthew Dodson's got business/gambling to attend to. He storms out behind a slammed door, while she smashes his dinner plate on the floor. She then gives Charlie a bath before reading him a bedtime story. As the baby drifts off, the phone rings.
Finally, we catch up with Mason, who's made his way to that diner in Carmel. While he sits at the counter, a waitress with short, dark hair comes in to begin her shift. It's Alice. The two lock eyes before heading outside. He hands her a pamphlet for her mom's new church, which is apparently gaining quite the following down south. But he's really there to satisfy his own nagging curiosities. He wants to know what happened to baby Dodson's body, and if Alice truly believed she could bring him back. She offers no straight answers.
Charlie was barely away from her post before being offered a return engagement on State of Affairs Season 1 Episode 8. The entire hour was highly entertaining and allowed the characters to pause and come back together.
Maureen: Charlie. She wants you back. She just. She doesn't know how to say it. I resigned today as Briefer.Charlie: Maureen!Maureen: It just didn't feel right to me. It was like wearing your sister's bra. Now we can put the book together the right way.
Bernard talks to his ex-wife, Lauren, in the communications room at the Mesa Hub. During this conversation, Bernard remembers seeing Charlie in a hospital room, and Charlie dying. Bernard's emotional response seems 'off' during this conversation - even when taking into account his grief. He doesn't seem to be looking at Lauren at all, and his pupils move back and forth rapidly (like someone in the REM cycle of sleep).
As Bernard is searching his memories for his first memory - his moment of creation - he 'remembers' being in a hospital room with Charlie. Hospital staff attempt to resuscitate the boy. Bernard orders the staff to stop and to leave, and they just disappear. He commands Charlie to 'come back'. Charlie awakens and sits up and Bernard embraces him.
Ford says that Arnold got his idea for The Maze from one of Charlie's toys. He also tells Bernard that he needed the backstory of a dying son in order to awaken and become conscious; that suffering was the key to this. And, he says to Dolores, "What he had lost in his son, he tried to rekindle in you."
Detective Waelty asked Charlie who told him these things were secret. He said his brain. Then he explained his mom had told him she was going to the North Pole and would not come back until it stopped snowing. Waelty again asked who had told him these things. Charlie said no one, then changed his answer. He said his dad told him that.
After her father dies, Charlie starts to pack her backpack. Maggie enters and suggests she should not go. When Charlie remains adamant that she is going to Chicago, Maggie then states that she will be going with Charlie. Charlie completely ignores her and leaves the room. As she begins to walk out of the village, Maggie and Aaron, who was a friend of her father's, follows her, also carrying backpacks. ("Pilot") 041b061a72