When it first aired in the Spring, I talked about the two sides of Better Off Ted. One is a standard office comedy, the other is a much rarer variety of comic science fiction. Veridian Dynamics is a super corporation that seems to have made its stock and trade the weirdest technology imaginable. Though this is undeniably cartoony, it also makes a strange kind of sense. Is it scientifically possible to make a machine that can direct soundwaves with such accuracy that only one person can hear them? Probably not, but if such a thing existed there would definitely be a huge market for it. The fact that the machine can, if misused, cause people to vomit is just a fun side effect.

When I initially addressed the use of weird science as a comedic device on Better Off Ted it was to criticize what has turned out to be the only episode of the series I didn't enjoy. The second episode, involving artificial meat, had me second-guessing the show, but only because the technology was the joke instead of merely facilitating the episode's humor. "Bioshuffle" not only struck this delicate balance, it actually made the sci-fi a meaningful metaphor.

This time around, the rarely-seen but always funny Dr. Bhamba has a problem with his bio-computer, a half-machine, half-living organism he keeps in his office. For some unknown reason it has started leaking toxic acid, forcing all of the cubicle workers on Ted's floor to temporarily share space with other Veridian employees. Office comedy ensues.

First, Ted is forced to share his office with Linda. Not only does this bring their romantic tension to a head (and a butt), it also reveals Linda's annoying work habits. She talks to her fish Macgyver, pries into Ted's personal life and sings for no good reason. Driven to a multitude of distractions, Ted moves his operations to Veronica's office. Things are good until Veronica reveals her stress-relieving techniques. Among them are impromptu martial arts demonstrations and murdering a pillow with a silenced pistol.

Down in the labs things are only slightly less chaotic. Lem quickly develops a crush on a temporary lab-mate, but gets muscled out when an executive has to move his office to the lab as well. When he attempts to use science for his own selfish purposes, it all backfires.

With all of the tension at the breaking point, Ted nearly injects the bio-computer with a potentially explosive polymer. Phil saves the day when he realizes that the computer, being a (semi) living thing, is just over-stressed like everyone else. Given a means to communicate, the computer stops leaking volatile acid and everything returns to normal.

Best Moment: Ted and Linda's singing exchange. I'm usually not thrilled with Ted/Linda repartee, but this was pretty amusing.

Biggest Laugh: Phil, concerning the sound-manipulating machine: "This is what it would be like if God was insecure".

Episode Rating: 4.5/5- No big laughs in this episode, but it was all consistently entertaining and all of the characters got to do what they do best. Veridian Dynamics: Good episodes. Yay.