Inside the mind of a genius; an analysis of Inanimate Insanity's Test Tube
Abstract:
Test Tube, the resident brainiac of her seasons. Immediately showing up and showing off in her first episode of season 2, this scientist is much more than meets the eye - with the creation of Bot to her infamous line “everyone sees me as a brainiac, but it looks like I still have a lot to learn,” Test Tube could very well be one of the most dynamic characters of Inanimate Insanity!
Who is this character?
At her core, Test Tube is a scientist. She devotes everything to her field, and has been constantly shown to mix science with real-world situations, giving her the title of ‘The Nerd.’ Her first interaction with anyone on-screen was a sentence only the stereotypical scientist character can say: “Well, this seems rather peculiar. I’ve never been on a competition before!” (S2E1: Breaking The Ice). The very next time she speaks, it's to share a definition of ‘ice breakers’ - “Guys, ice breakers is a relative term for a way of bonding for two people that have never met.” (S2E1: Breaking The Ice). This gives her the ideal role in the competition, someone people can rely on for a definition and a potential helping hand. This, of course, doesn't last long, as her enthusiasm in her field isn't exactly infectious. She's called annoying by her fellow contestants, and some have gone as far as to downright ignore her if she starts talking. Her prominent social anxiety makes itself known when talking to people that don’t share her interests; she adapts to this and consequently calls her own social inability her ‘specialty’. Beyond that, she's shown on many occasions to get annoyed or even reach a literal breaking point if she's wrong or if something doesn't go as planned, making her not only a nerd, but a perfectionist. (Is it obvious why she's my first? We're basically the same!)
What is this character’s role?
To many of her fellow contestants, Test Tube is viewed as obnoxious and irritating due to her strange behaviours - muttering to herself, edging away from situations she finds undesirable, and even slipping away at random times to her “secret” lab under a Dr. Fizz machine. However, her role in season 2 specifically goes farther than it seems. In “Marsh on Mars,” she's able to construct a usable rocket in a matter of minutes, and in “Hatching the Plan,” she builds another one with the help of the other contestants. While she was shown to be helpful here, it's clear that with her other creations, she's quite secretive and possessive. (Hence the very secret lab.)
In “Alternate Reality Show,” Test Tube’s personality is more dynamic and shown more than other episodes. Her perfectionist behaviours specifically are almost amplified around Lightbulb, as she often takes out anger and frustration on the other throughout the episode. Even near the very beginning, there's annoyance shown when she scribbles out the ‘secret’ in her sign. Her mood quickly changes, though, when Microphone puts down her time machine. Once again showing her dynamic expressions, once Lightbulb enters, she rips up her board and glares frustratedly at the rest of the people in the room. (Sidenote, very unrelated: Lightbulb coughing up Baxter. That is all.) Once Test Tube, Lightbulb and Baxter are on the other side of the portal, Test Tube immediately seems fascinated by her own doing; her creation worked exactly how it was meant to, and her excitement is very obvious. Throughout the episode, she's shown to be excited about different things in between her spontaneous bursts of anger. At a point in the episode, as Test Tube is being cornered by Salt and Pepper in II Infinity, what was at one point anger seemed to dissolve into a fear when she spoke, saying that “when I hear that phrase, it's almost like I'm home! ...Which I'm not. This isn't my home.” (S2E12 Alternate Reality Show).
After that episode, she's shown to be more open about her interests and talking with others, expressing in the Invitationals that “there's only so many problems that have simple equations, but there's so many more that have impossible, unspeakable solutions. But... I want to solve them anyway.” (S3E7 Best Served Cold). Over the course of her seasons, Test Tube is shown to not only have a large development, but new bonds and an enthusiasm not only in her field but her friends as well. (How nice!)
What are these characters’ principles?
Test Tube's principles show often through her actions and how she interacts with people, a main one being that (especially after S2E12 Alternate Reality Show) she believes every person is an individual. She's admitted to her own faults within this, especially with the creation of Bot. This is another one of her moments that's shown in S3E7, when she explains to Cabby that it isn't right to expect people to act how she writes them to be, to then apologise to Bot for expecting them to act like Bow.
Along with that, she also has a strong conviction in decisions that she believes are right, almost to a fault. In her elimination episode, S3E10 I Am Chocolate, she's dead set on eliminating Cabby no matter what, even going as far as to comment on her ego where it doesn't make much sense; “She can’t be serious over there, giving up her immunity to SILVER? The EGO on that one! Ugh…she’s gone next” (S3E10). After Balloon argues with her over it, she shuts down, merely saying that it's “her fault.”
Overall, as a character, Test Tube is intelligent beyond comparison. Not only that, but she's analytical, strong in her beliefs, and loyal to what and who she knows to be right. Her bonds with her fellow contestants left an ever-present mark on the competition, and the way she changed during it is unforgettable.
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