Crackpot

Crackpot
Information
Season	2
Episode	22
Japanese Airdate	18 September, 2005
English Airdate	23 September, 2006
Episode Guide
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Next →	Differentia

Overview

Renton wanders aimlessly after having left the Gekko, while the members of Gekkostate discuss his departure and how to tell Eureka. Eventually, Renton winds up in the city, where he meets Charles and Ray Beams. They take him aboard their ship, the Swan; after seeing how they live, compared to his former life on the Gekko, he decides to stay.

Synopsis

Gidget is admiring the pretty clouds, but Talho growls that they probably mean they're going to have an earthquake, and Gidget should know that. After concluding that Eureka has mentally recovered, Mischa lets the kids see Eureka, and they give her presents and tell her how much they missed her. Hilda and Mischa talk about Renton leaving without telling anyone. Mischa chalks it up to adolescent rebellion but Hilda says all the guys are going through it. They wonder what Holland is thinking about, but when he looks into Renton's empty room, he doesn't seem concerned or interested. Renton wonders around for a couple of days, and his backpack ends up getting stolen by a homeless man while he sleeps at a bus stop. Hap asks Holland when is he going to tell Eureka about Renton leaving, but Holland doesn't know and doesn't want to. After another day of aimless wondering, Renton sleeps at a park, and when he wakes up, he finds himself in the middle of a street rave. Ray and Charles are up and dance on the stage, and Renton decides to temporarily forget his feelings and give into the fun. Charles seems interested in the boy and asks him about his story, and he admitts that he's been traveling around with nothing but his board and no where to go. Charles compliments Renton's board and takes Renton's explaination to be mere burning with the flame of youth. Charles says he's heard Renton's name before, but the boy doesn't reveal his surname. Charles points to Ray on stage and asks if he's falling for her, and falling for Ray is a game they all can play. Renton notices the beat of the music has changed, and Charles shows himself to be an authority on the latest mixing techniques. He spots the wheel on Renton's board that gives him a pause as he realises it's the wheel of the Gekkostate before an earthquake occurs causing Charles to run to Ray. The rave breaks up as scubs erupt from the ground, and Ray saves Renton from being speared. He finds himself holding hands with her and Charles introduces her as his wife, much to the boy's embarrassment.

Gidget visits Eureka and brings her some candy and change of clothes. She notes that Eureka has changed from the person she used to be, and admits that she always wanted to be friends with her. Although Eureka still doesn't understand the meaning of friends, she is grateful. Gidget then asks about how things are with Renton, but Eureka isn't sure. Gidget compares it to her feelings for Moondoggie and her love for him is deep. She thinks she has confused Eureka, but Eureka says she has a lot of stuff she can't explain to Renton because she's scared but wants to say them to him. Gidget concludes that Eureka is in love with Renton and encourages her to tell him. Meanwhile, Renton is impressed with Charles and Ray's ship and compliments how clean it is, but Charles tells him to keep the adult compliments to himself and be a kid. Renton decides to take Charles' words as justification. As Ray makes dinner, Charles show him his boards and claims to have been reffing since he was born. Renton doesn't think one of the boards is any good because its wheel is so large meaning the number of tricks you can do on it is limited, but Charles says if you have fun on it, who's to tell you you're wrong. He then shows the boy his LFO and Renton is excited to see it. He asks where its board is. Charles laughs and offers him a ride, and is impressed that Renton knows so much about LFOs, but they get interrupted when how it flies without a board. Initially reluctant, Charles decides to show how to fly without a board. The board is actually intergrated into the LFO, and says it's not whether or not you have a board, but whether you can ride. As they sit at the dinner table, Renton seems to feel content with Charles and Ray because they treats him good. Meanwhile, Dominic pulls up to the Thurston Garage in search of Axel only to find it destroyed and Axel nowhere to be found.

Major Events

• No one on the Gekkostate is concerned that Renton is gone and shrug his abandonment off as adolescent rebellion, believing he'll just eventually return once he has attention.
• Renton is taken in by Charles and Ray, who quickly begin to treat him as their own son.
• Eureka is taught the first facts about love when she admits her confused feelings towards Renton.

Trivia

• The man who asked for a favor from the Beams, Lloyd Wright (whom Charles calls a pusher), is a reference to architect Frank Lloyd Wright. A house strongly inspired by the architect's designs appears in "Opposite View".
• Charles and Ray's LFOs don't need boards to ride the waves because of the flaps on the body.
• Everyone on the Gekkostate, except Eureka and the kids, know that Renton is gone and don't want to tell Eureka because she has taken an interest in him.
• The crew also doesn't want to tell Eureka that Renton is gone because they think he simply ran away for attention and will return, and that it's Holland's responsibility to tell her because he was the one who introduced them to each other and brought Renton on the ship and then forced him away.
• Eureka quickly senses that something is wrong when Renton hasn't visited her but believes Holland and the others when they tell her that nothing is wrong and that she still can't have visitors besides the children.
• For the first time, Eureka admits that she has feelings for Renton, but is confused because they are new and strange emotions that she never felt before and doesn't know how to tell Renton about them. She is finally told that she may be developing feelings of love towards Renton, and this causes her to remember when Renton first confessed to her but she still struggles to fully understand what love means.
• The fact that Holland is indifferent towards Renton's departure reflects his relief that the boy is gone and no longer has a rival for Eureka's attention, but is troubled when he is pressured by everyone to tell Eureka that Renton is gone. He refuses because he sees no point in telling her because he doesn't expect her to take it badly (remembering how withdrawn she had been with him earlier) and doesn't believe that the boy's abandonment is his fault.
• Renton's belongings have been stolen, except for his ref board and a photo of Eureka.