"Out of Step" is the eighth episode of the first season of Nickelodeon's Monster High. It is the twelfth episode of the series overall. It premiered on March 10, 2023. It was written by Jordan Gershowitz.
- For the episode's transcript, see here.
Premise[]
Afraid to be embarrassed at a dance-off, Draculaura gives Clawd enchanted dancing shoes.
Plot[]
It's been a week since Clawd Wolf, Clawdeen's long-lost brother who grew up with their mom in Beheme, has arrived in Monster High and he is still getting used to how things work on Earth. In class, the school bell screams and it scares Clawd, because in Beheme, a scream means they need to hide. Clawd has been hanging out with Clawdeen and her best friends and roommates Draculaura and Frankie, and is learning how to fit in the school. The four goes to the creepateria, Clawd kindly greets Toralei, but she rudely hisses at him. Then Clawd accidentally gets stuck on Goobert, a green slime monster whose ectoplasm is very sticky, but Goobert is very nice and doesn't get mad with Clawd. Later, Clawdeen, Draculaura and Frankie are walking down the halls when the Delivery Dragon gives everyone a message from their teacher Mrs. O'Shriek, saying the students are going to participate in the Annual Monster High Dance-off because is required for their grades.
Draculaura is excited, as she has been practicing being a dancer almost as good as the Boogie Man, a boogey man who has won Monster High's Dance-off 16 times. Frankie knows the Boogie Man well because they have the Boogie Man's best friend's brain bit in their skull. Draculaura, still excited, claims the Dance-off will be what she needs to full her vamp-ness, which confuses Frankie and Clawdeen. Draculaura explains she is a vegan and doesn't drink blood, but still needs life energy to live, so she gets the energy she needs when she has perfect performances, and when her vamp-ness is drained, so is her energy. Her dad, to support Draculaura's choice to be a vegan, made her an app that tells her how high or low her vamp-ness level is. In the Clawditorium, where the Dance-off will happen, Mrs. O'Shriek announces the Dance-off will occur the next day and the students will have this time to practice their dance moves. She then forms the students into pairs to compete, the pairs are: Frankie and Clawdeen, Toralei and Ghoulia, Cleo and Deuce, Lagoona and Finnegan, Goobert and Spectra, Manny and Heath, and Draculaura and Clawd. Clawd arrives just after, as he got lost on his way in the catacombs, he is excited and shows his dance moves, and to Draculaura's shock, his moves aren't very good, and some students laugh.
Toralei laughs at Draculaura and mocks her, but she tells her to stop and assures she can train Clawd into dancing better. Clawd is still dancing, Draculaura feels embarrassed, and this makes her vamp-ness decrease, making her skin and hair pale. In Draculaura's dorm, Clawd shows her more of his dance moves and explains to her these moves are used in Beheme to scare away predators, but he can see she doesn't think they're good. Draculaura offers help as she has been in a similar situation. Draculaura shows Clawd a video of her dancing 200 years ago, her dancing wasn't very good, and the audience was laughing, but she practiced for years and now she dances well and says she can help him dance better too. Clawd is hesitant and believes he should use his own skills if he wants to make new friends. Draculaura, trying to sound honest, says that if someone wants a perfect performance, sometimes they need to improve on themselves, Clawd then agrees.
In the school halls, Clawdeen and Frankie are practicing their dance moves while Draculaura is teaching Clawd her moves, Clawd tries to follow her lead, but he loses balance and falls into Frankie's arms, Toralei is passing by and laugh at them. This embarrasses Draculaura and her vamp-ness decreases more. In the Coffin Bean, Clawd and Draculaura are dancing with Clawd spinning Draculaura around, but she falls into the Trash Can Monster, Frankie and Clawdeen get her out of it. More embarrassed, Draculaura leaves while her vamp-ness decreases more while Clawd stands with a guilty look. At the casketball court, they practice a dance where Clawd must lift Draculaura in the air, after a few failed attempts, they seemingly succeed but then Draculaura is accidentally throw into one of the courts casket hoops, she feels embarrassed again and her vamp-ness decreases more. Later, Frankie and Clawdeen are making their schoolwork in their dorm when Draculaura enters it, her skin is paler than usual and she is exhausted, and is decomposing, all because her vamp-ness is at such a low level that she's decomposing and falling apart... literally. Draculaura fears the Dance-off, thinking she will be laughed at. Frankie tries to cheer her up, claiming that making monsters laugh is a good thing, but Draculaura says she isn't like that. Frankie then has a brain bit memory of the Boogie Man's best friend, apparently, the Boogie Man's red dance shoes, which are currently kept on the school's trophy case, are enchanted with dance powers. Upon hearing this, Draculaura leaves the room and takes the shoes from the trophy case.
The next day, the students are in the Clawditorium preparing for the Dance-off. Clawdeen asks Clawd if he is okay and if he needs anything, he responds he is fine and walks to talk with Finnegan and Lagoona. Finnegan asks his opinion on what move he and Lagoona should dance, but before Clawd can answer, Draculaura drags him to backstage, she gives him the Boggie Man's shoes and assures him they will help him dance and he accepts the shoes. Mrs. O'Shriek gives the signal to start the Dance-off and the pairs start dancing together, each with their own moves. Clawd is wearing the enchanted shoes and they are making him dance greatly and he's enjoying it, Draculaura dances with him. Clawdeen and Frankie, while dancing, recognize the Boogie Man's shoes and remembering how Draculaura abruptly left the room after hearing the shoes were enchanted, they realize what she did. They go dance close to Draculaura to talk, Clawdeen and Frankie tell her Clawd doesn't need the shoes. Draculaura tries to convince them there's nothing to worry about, but then they hear Clawd yelling. He wants to take a break, but the shoes are taking full control of his body and he can't stop dancing.
Draculaura finally realizes she shouldn't have involved Clawd into her vamp-ness, so she and her roommates run to help Clawd. They try to take the shoes off him, but they are making Clawd dodge them while dancing. After another failed try into getting the shoes, Draculaura sees a trail of ectoplasm Goobert left, and has an idea. While dancing, Draculaura takes Clawd's hand and spins him around, then throws him into the ectoplasm in the floor. The shoes get stuck and Clawd can't move, Draculaura, Clawdeen and Frankie manage to get Clawd away from the shoes, but they fall onto each other, making all the students laugh. Draculaura feels even more embarrassed and her vamp-ness decreases to the lowest level, leaving her extremely weak, decomposing and her hand falling off. Draculaura puts her hand on again and Clawd cheers her up, telling her to forget the others' opinion and just dance and have fun. Draculaura smiles, takes Clawd's hand walks to stage with him. Then she and Clawd dance together of one his dance moves called "The Giggle Groove". Toralei laughs at the two and expects everyone else to do the same, but instead, Frankie, Clawdeen and everyone else finds the Giggle Groove nice, they laugh with Draculaura and Clawd and start dancing too. Everyone but Toralei is dancing the Giggle Groove and having fun with each other, even Mrs. O'Shriek joins them, Toralei gets upset because she thinks they should be laughing at Draculaura and Clawd, not laughing with them and she leaves.
Draculaura and Clawd are having fun together while dancing and Draculaura finally feels happy and okay, her vamp-ness increases back to the highest level, making her skin, hair and energy come back to normal too. Clawd is finally fitting in Monster High and with the students, Draculaura sees she can get her vamp-ness by making monsters laugh and laughs together with Clawd. Then the school bell screams, Clawd gets scared again, but claims he meant to do it with a shy smile and Draculaua kindly giggles.
Characters[]
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Notes[]
- The episode had a sneak peek posted on the Monster High YouTube channel on February 11th, 2023.
- It's revealed that vampires are capable of decomposing. When this happens, their skin, hair, and eye colors get increasingly pale and de-saturated, and parts of their body are liable to fall off (though they can be reattached just as easily).
- The Boogeyman's dancing shoes being red and enchanted to make the wearer dance uncontrollably are a reference to the fairy tale "The Red Shoes". In it, a young girl obtains a pair of red leather shoes that become enchanted and force her to dance until she has her feet cut off.
- The following students paired up together to compete in the dance-off:
- Draculaura and Clawd
- Frankie and Clawdeen
- Finnegan and Lagoona
- Deuce and Cleo
- Spectra and Goobert
- Ghoulia and Toralei
- Heath and Manny
- This episode apparently takes place a week after Paw-zzle Pieces.
- It seems like whenever the scream bell screams, Clawd flies up to the ceiling.
- This episode was referenced in the artwork for Draculaura's Skulltimate Secrets: Innovation locker, as it includes a photo of her hands and Clawd's holding up a trophy that says "Dance" on it, showing that they won the competition.
Errors[]
- Clawdeen's hair sometimes goes in front of her top, but then it goes back behind her top in the next frames.
- Sometimes character's wiggle in a different pose as they are dancing.
- When there is an entire group of classmates, they disappear after Toralei walks up to Draculaura.
Milestones[]
- Goobert makes his official debut with speaking lines.
- The Boogeyman makes his official debut in a picture, which he is shown to be an Elvis-like performer with enchanted dancing shoes.