Stranded in Paradise

"That's right, the viewers have spoken... and they want YOU ALL IN!"

"Stranded in Paradise" is the very first episode of Inanimate Insanity Invitational and was released on April 3rd, 2021. It is the 33rd episode overall.

Synopsis
A fan-selected group of Inanimate Insanity contestants has been invited to a vacation resort for a Spoiled Lemon VIP tour! ...or so they thought. It turns out MePhone has secretly planned a third reality show competition on a brand-new tropical island! Yeah, they really should have known better. So get ready for some classic II fun and games. Which old and new contestants will join the competition? Can OJ take a break from the hotel? Isn't MePhone still not done with the other season? And has Balloon finally gotten some support from a surprising source? At least one of these questions will be answered in the premiere of Inanimate Insanity Invitational!

Prologue
Several previous Inanimate Insanity contestants sail across the ocean on Boaty to an alleged resort for a VIP Tour. Paintbrush attempts to relax but is interrupted by a bump coming from the boat while Yin-Yang fishes for their ticket (that they threw into the water) and Test Tube observes. Paintbrush approaches them and passive-aggressively tells both of them to be quiet for two seconds. Yin-Yang's fishing rod tugs and he reels in, revealing Box stuck on the the hook. Nickel reassures Paintbrush they're almost there, Paintbrush expresses they're hoping to catch a break and how despite not being the biggest fan of Spoiled Lemon's hits, they can't wait to see them live at the resort. Fan interrupts singing "A Party" and compliments Nickel for getting the VIP tickets, though Nickel clarifies he didn't get them. As the contestants begin to question where the tickets came from, Test Tube calls out to Balloon, though Nickel disapproves the idea as he doesn't trust him. Meanwhile, Balloon talks his feelings out to a mini-wich while OJ nervously worries about his hotel, expressing he doesn't enjoy the idea of a "vacation". Balloon asks why he organized the trip, though OJ also explains he didn't organize it. There is another loud bang, frustrating Paintbrush more. Test Tube points to Boaty's steering wheel, which moves by itself. Paintbrush assumes the boat is alive and demanding it to show a face, referring to it as "Boaty". Nickel questions the name choice, the boat speeds up drastically. Several contestants panic and scream and the boat crashes as the screen cuts to black.

On a new island, the contestants find themselves stranded and bickering. OJ interrupts, reminding them that they're not on a reality show anymore, requesting to pause the drama for at least 2 seconds. After said 2 seconds, MePhone4 appears, much to the surprise of everyone excluding Fan, and reveals to have doctored the tickets for the boat passengers and is instead recruiting them into a new season as "fan favorites". While most contestants have positive reactions about being favorites, OJ, however, does not approve of the idea, as he doesn't trust his hotel being out of his management, and plans to leave the island before realizing the boat is destroyed. Fan points out how MePhone4 isn't even done with the other season, though MePhone4 doesn't mind and states he can multitask. Test Tube happily points out her odds of winning (1/8) before Boaty suddenly explodes, rocketing an inexplicably-alive Bow out of the wreckage and onto the beach, much to the shock of many. MePhone4, terrified and confused, states that he sent her the invitation as a joke and asks her how is she alive. Bow simply replies she doesn't know.

MePhone4 shows a dissatisfaction with the low amount of contestants present as if the show was being taken as a limited miniseries and proceeds to introduce the cast of newbies behind a curtain, though he messes up as the curtain jams and only reveals Clover, who thinks she's the winner. The curtain collapses and abruptly reveals the rest of the newbies (which MePhone refers to as "fans", confusing Clover). Silver Spoon complains about the disastrous introduction and suggested a reshoot, though Blueberry dejectedly says it won't matter. Goo tries to cheer him up with an awkwardly constructed analogy, though this only makes Blueberry sadder.

Team Assembly
MePhone4 then prepares to establish the teams, though Cabby correctly guesses that since MePhone4 is seasoned to repetition, he will randomize the teams. With the press of a remote button, MePhone4 detonates the paint bombs (he apparently strapped on the contestants' backs while they weren't looking) splattering the contestants in blue, yellow and pink paint. Blueberry mourns over being painted in blue and sarcastically thanks Cabby. Tea Kettle complains that she's an antique and can't be covered in paint, Lifering quickly tries to ensure everyone's okay and mention his ability to do CPR if necessary. In the Calm-Down Cabana Cabby notes she should've referred to her MePhone4 file before making her claim.

The teams assemble according to the color they're painted in: Blue Team, Yellow Team and Pink Team. However, Clover's paint bomb seemingly didn't go off, though MePhone4 clarifies she should be on the Pink Team. On the Yellow Team, Candle senses something is wrong, which OJ agrees with and notes they are missing a member, not realizing he is stepping on The Floor, their missing member, who angrily tells off OJ. The Floor's presence makes Paintbrush annoyedly point out a lack of logical sense, only to be interrupted by MePhone4 announcing that with teams assembled, the first challenge being about to start.

Challenge
MePhone4 explains the challenge and its rules. The contestants must jump off a 60-foot cliff into a pipe below, transporting the contestants to a finish line; if the contestant miss, they will land in quicksand, sink, and re-emerge at the top of the cliff. The last team to get all their members to the finish line loses.

As the challenge begins, OJ does a twirl and tries to make a gameplan with the Yellow Team, which Paintbrush agrees with, not without complimenting OJ's twirl, and does another twirl themself. The two enter a lengthy conversation before being interrupted by an impatient Yang who kicks them off the cliff and jumps. The three fall straight in the pipe and are shot across the finish line.

On the Blue Team, Lifering tries to teach his teammates about proper diving form, only to fail and land in the quicksand, though he cannot sink at all. Clover admires the diving form and tries it out herself and directly falls inside the pipe. Lifering calls to his teammates to weigh him down, Balloon jumps only to very slowly float down due to his physics. Nickel, disgruntled, instructs Balloon to catch him and jumps off, with Tea Kettle behind him, all weighing Balloon down to the bottom.

On the Pink Team, Test Tube measures Cabby's dimensions with measuring tape, though Cabby says she can tell Test Tube her internal dimensions, which Test Tube disapproves of by saying it's no fun being told the information. Cabby attempts to tell her, though Fan interrupts and instead suggests they get inside her drawer and ride down the cliff together. Cabby approves of the idea and the Pink Team hops inside her drawer. Meanwhile, Silver Spoon disapproves of the idea of throwing himself off the cliff, Candle instead takes his hand and walks the two of them off the cliff and into the pipe. The Floor, noticing he's the last one left, quickly transfers himself past the finish line, ensuring the Yellow Team's victory.

At the bottom of the cliff, Nickel, Balloon and Tea Kettle try to weigh Lifering down. Nickel calls to Blueberry at the top of the cliff to add more weight, but Blueberry rejects, stating they are destined to lose. Lifering tries to reassure him with a motivational upbeat speech, though it has no effect on Blueberry, who remains sitting at the top. Cabby rolls by and jumps off the cliff directly into the pipe, and once across the finish line, she opens her drawer and the remaining teammates hop out, ensuring a win for the Pink Team and a loss for the Blue Team.

After Challenge
After the challenge, Balloon approaches Nickel and commends him for putting the team first and suggests they continue for the sake of the returning players, effectively forming an alliance. Though Nickel still acts skeptical, he turns to ask Box about who to vote out, who seemingly convinces him through silence.

Elimination
The first elimination ceremony begins, MePhone4 calls out various players for their mistakes. He then states the contestant with the most votes will be knocked out of the competition and proceeds to count the votes.

MePhone determines that Blueberry is eliminated. Lifering responds in relief, thanking his teammates. MePhone4 then gives Blueberry the right for some last words, though Blueberry states that nothing he says matters. MePhone4 agrees and activates The Fist Thingy, punching Blueberry off into the distance.

Post Elimination
On Indefinite Island, Blueberry crash lands into the sand and enjoys being alone. A walkie-talkie tied to a tree turns on an welcomes him to Indefinite Island and tells him he can have another chance; immediately followed up by a disclaimer of no guarantees being made in the recording. The walkie-talkie deactivates, while Blueberry smiles and enjoys the gloomy island.

Blue Team

 * Balloon
 * Box
 * Blueberry
 * Lifering
 * Nickel
 * Tea Kettle

Yellow Team

 * Candle
 * OJ
 * Paintbrush
 * Silver Spoon
 * The Floor
 * Yin-Yang

Pink Team

 * Bow
 * Cabby
 * Clover
 * Fan
 * Goo
 * Test Tube

Host

 * MePhone4

Locations

 * Boaty
 * Paradise
 * The Cliff

Items

 * Fist Thingy
 * Paint bombs
 * Cabby's files

Pre-release
As announced on Adam Katz's Twitter shortly before the episode's premiere, the end of the episode included a sneak peek of "Chapter Complete" (known as BFB 30 at the time), which is the finale to Battle for BFB.

Deaths

 * 1) Boaty spontaneously combusted.

Continuity

 * Jumping off of a 60-foot cliff, is the same as the first ever challenge of Inanimate Insanity (Season 1) in "The Crappy Cliff".
 * The contestant's relationships from the prior season up until "Hatching the Plan" carry over.
 * Balloon jumps off the cliff and says his catchphrase "Oh, c'mon" in the same verbatim as his jump in "The Crappy Cliff".
 * Paintbrush, and many others, make reference to Spoiled Lemon, a band introduced in "Mazed and Confused".
 * Furthermore, Fan sings "A Party" and notes as his "personal favorite, still", also referencing his in "Mazed and Confused".
 * OJ's twirl while saying "Okay everyone!" is a direct reference to the same twirl and sentence he says in "Everything's A-OJ".
 * Nickel's pronunciation of "authenticity" about Balloon is similar to the way he says "big responsibility" about Balloon as well in "Kick the Bucket".
 * Bow makes several references to her own lines from Inanimate Insanity (Season 1).
 * During the arguing, Yin-Yang can be heard shouting "Water" and "Dr. Fizz", a reference to their fight in "Tri Your Best".

Cultural References

 * Jumping off of The Cliff is a reference to Total Drama Island, which also started with contestants jumping off a cliff.
 * The safety tube at the bottom of the cliff has a similar design to the Warp Pipes in the Mario franchise.
 * Additionally, its sound effect was used before in Hotel Mario and Super Mario 64.
 * Bow complains that Cabby's ride didn't have any "little tv's", referring to taxi cabs typically having mini tv's built in.
 * Additionally, Bow rates Cabby's ride "0 Stars" (and later 1 Star), a rating system used by Uber and other ride services.

Trivia

 * This episode released on April 3rd, 2021, fittingly as the start of the third season.
 * The first episode of the first season released on April 1st, 2011, while the first episode of the second season released on April 2nd, 2013.
 * Additionally, the date of release is 4/3/21, fittingly a countdown similar to the intro.
 * This is the first episode that introduced confessionals, a reoccurring segment throughout the season.
 * #inanimateinsanity was trending in the United States on Twitter on the day the episode released.
 * This is the first episode where Bow appears alive since Journey Through Memory Lane (Part 2).
 * Each team features a contestant who's color matches their team color, with Blueberry on the Blue Team, Paintbrush on the Yellow Team and Bow on the Pink Team.
 * Both Paintbrush and OJ attempt to silence others for "more than two seconds", prompting a ticking noise that lasts exactly 2 seconds.
 * MePhone4 reveals that the "VIP" in "VIP Tour" stands for Very Indecent Promise.
 * Paintbrush's "lemme see a face" towards Boaty is in reference to several random inanimate objects seemingly coming to life in prior seasons.
 * Later, Paintbrush expresses frustration over The Floor having a face, noting how it makes no sense.
 * The "Adamation!" before the credits is said by Clover.