Mikey's Extreme Doormat status seems worse than ever, but he seems sadly resigned to it even after the rest of the gang urge him to stand up for himself. The next day, though, everyone seems determined to stay on Mikey's good side—because a nasty rumor is spreading about him shoving a boy into the girls' bathroom at the local marionette theater. The Gang sets out to find the person who told the lie in the first place, but the answer turns out to be a surprise to everyone.
Tropes:
- Cassandra Truth: T. J. and the gang predictably aren’t convinced when Randall claims it wasn’t him who started the rumor and he heard it from a random stranger who called the school's payphone.
- Everybody Has Standards: Mikey's friends do want to find the kid who started the rumor about Mikey, but then the gang threatens to actually push Randall into the girl's bathroom if he doesn't spill. Mikey calls them out on how they're just validating the rumor about him in the first place, making them no better than his rumor-self. Mikey stops his friends from pushing Randall into the girl's bathroom and lets him go. He later admits that he started the rumor to gain respect for himself. But he is unhappy with how harmful the rumor is and how far it spreads, especially when his friends are willing to hurt Randall for a rumor he started.
- Foreshadowing: Sharp-eared fans will immediately figure out the identity of the mysterious caller who started the rumor—it's someone voiced by Robert Goulet, who performs Mikey's singing voice.
- Gone Horribly Right: Mikey started a nasty rumor about himself in an attempt to gain respect and stop having people push him around. While the plan technically works, it also makes everyone on the playground terrified of him to the point where he's considered a "mean kid." As T.J. points out, being seen as a bully isn't the solution to Mikey's problem.
- Not So Above It All: Unlike the other kids, Butch seems to accept the rumor about Mikey as just a tall tale and doesn't believe Mikey actually did it. Then when Mikey comes into view, Butch nervously offers him his gum.
- Pet the Dog: When Randall explains to the gang about how the rumor started as he received a phone call from the person who created it, the gang refuses to accept this and attempts to punish Randall by putting him into the girls' bathroom. However, Mikey stops his friends from doing so while telling Randall that he's free to go. Grateful about this, Randall happily runs off to disprove the rumor by admitting to everyone that Mikey is a nice person.
- Rewatch Bonus: Knowing that Mikey started the rumor in the first place puts a different spin on the episode. On first watch, his protests about the "witch hunt" to find the storyteller seem to be in line with his usual pacifistic self, but repeat viewings make it clear that he wanted the rumor to spread because it was making him look good.
- The Unmasking: A verbal variation. When the Recess Gang starts to realize he was the one that started the rumor, Mikey uses his deep baritone singing voice to soberly confirm their guess is correct.
- Wham Line: "I started the rumor!!" Mikey uses his baritone singing voice to let his friends know he was the "man" on the phone who started the rumor and passed it on to Randall.
