Fatherklok

"Fatherklok" is the fifth episode of the third season of Metalocalypse, forty-fourth overall. It aired on December 13, 2009 on Adult Swim.

Synopsis
This episode explores the background of lead guitarist Skwisgaar Skwigelf, and how he became the person he was today.

Plot
The episode opens with the news broadcast of the issue of Skwisgaar's sexual prowess, and how it led to thousands of women becoming pregnant and fathering even more thousands of illegitimate children; Any lawsuits against him were thrown out after Dethklok manager Ofdensen says that in order to avoid any future problems regarding the maternity issues, anyone desiring to meet Skwisgaar must sign a paternity waiver so that any claims that he could be a father to a child is disallowed legally, despite a positive reading from a DNA test. Then questions are asked: The scene cuts to Ofdensen visiting the home of a disgruntled single mother and her blond son, who is one of the many illegitimate children bearing resemblance to Skwisgaar, and apologizing for the unsolved lawsuit and assures her that money will be donated to her family to support for her and her child's needs, and of course adds a five dollar discount card to Hot Topic. He leaves via limousine, amidst groups of paparazzi, (while ordering a Klokateer to taser a reporter), and tries to start ca onversation with a brooding and depressed Skwisgaar, theorizing that maybe his father had left after ensuring his birth and therefore Skwisgaar wasn't able to be influenced by his father's presence. Ofdensen also briefly mentions his own father, saying that he "had strong hands". Stirred by this, Skwisgaar decides to go find his birth father.
 * Why does Skwisgaar feel the need to father so many children when he hasn't met his own father?
 * Will Skwisgaar's lack of the presence of a father affect his position as a "guitar god" (being that he is the fastest guitar player in the world)?
 * Is the pressure of being a "deadbeat father" getting to him?
 * How can Skwisgaar lead a normal life despite his promiscuity?
 * Is Skwisgaar on the verge of a nervous breakdown?
 * Will any of Skwisgaar's actions have come to haunt him?

After arriving at Mordhaus, Ofdensen talks to Nathan, Murderface, Pickles, and Toki while they work with their laptops, and says that since Skwisgaar is going through an emotional ordeal he should receive support from his bandmates. Toki calls it "gay" and Nathan agrees. Ofdensen is annoyed at this and tries convincing them otherwise that Skwisgaar never had a father; Toki mentions his father's death (see Dethdad) and he's fine with it. Murderface mentions the death of his father via murder-suicide and he's fine with it, being glad his father's dead. Pickles says that he hates his father and remembers his alcoholic father telling him to leave the house one night because he "belongs in a garbage can" when he was an adolescent, and says that he's glad that he doesn't remember his father's name. However Nathan says, surprisingly, that he actually loves his father, going fishing, go-karting, and playing Scrabble together, and his father is awesome. After an awkward silence, Ofdensen nevertheless tells the guys to be nice to Skwisgaar. Murderface gets an idea from this.

In the kitchen, Toki is excited that he's finally going to be the lead guitarist if Skwisgaar doesn't succeed in getting his act together. Pickles assumes that he's jumping to conclusions, and Toki, livid, starts throttling him. While Nathan is reading the directions on a food package, Murderface, assuming that he's listening, discusses about how he's being a "father" for Dethklok and explains his new idea: He should try being a father to Skwisgaar. Nathan warns Murderface that he shouldn't play on the fact that Skwisgaar doesn't have a father. Murderface notices that Pickles and Toki have been listening in on their conversation, and Pickles reminds him that he is not the only band member without a father. Elsewhere, the news broadcast shows that after finding out that Skwisgaar is searching for his father, thousands of men show up with each one claiming to be his father (with Mashed Potato Johnson in the background wearing shades); Skwisgaar himself is a room with a Klokateer searching for results. The search is unsuccessful, because Skwisgaar's mother, Serveta Skwigelf, had had sex with thousands of men during the month he was conceived. A Klokateer expresses doubt about whether it was possible to have so many sexual partners in a single month. Skwisgaar disgustedly says, "Ugh. You don'ts knows my moms." He then acknowledges that she may be part of the problem, triggering a flashback.

Flashback
A young Skwisgaar is seen smiling and skipping home from school. When he opens the door to his house, he immediately discovers his mother having sex with two men on the living room couch. Traumatized, he runs away into the Swedish wilderness. At first just running to get away from home, he begins to sprint in fear as he realizes he is being chased by wolves. In his panic he falls into a hole in the ground, finding himself in the center of a runed circle in a mysterious cave. Before him stands a great icy statue resembling a Norse god. In its outstretched hand ,it holds a Gibson Explorer, as though offering it to him. At the foot of the statue lies a frozen corpse with long, black hair, holding a bottle and a sword. Nothing about this man is explained in the episode; it may be a reference to the "Atlantean sword" scene in Conan the Barbarian (there are several allusions to the 1982 film in the series). Skwisgaar is entranced by the guitar and plays it into adulthood, probably as an escape from the reality of his mother's promiscuity.

Present
In the present, a depressed Skwisgaar is greeted by Murderface in his bedroom, who offers his bandmate to let him be a father figure in his life. Pickles follows shortly after and says that he was going to check in on Skwisgaar to see how he was doing. Murderface angrily tells Pickles to go away on the count of three, and although hurt, Pickles leaves. After that Murderface proceeds to take an uninterested Skwisgaar to play baseball, fishing, bathing him and going to an amusement park, all while being watched by an envious and angry Pickles. Pickles then vents his anger in the trophy room, where he wrecks numerous displays of stuffed animals and even makes a huge hole in the wall, when a worried Toki comes in and discovers the mess. Pickles explains that Murderface favors Skwisgaar over him, and gets angry that Murderface spends time with him more than with the other bandmembers, and destroys a mug bearing resemblance, while Toki joins in with him for the fun. Meanwhile, Skwisgaar is visited by a Klokateer who tells him that he hasn't found anything in terms of DNA matching, and, saddened by this, travels to a snowy region where he angrily throws his guitar into the snow; unbeknownst to him he is witnessed by Murderface, who tells this to his remaining band members, much to their surprise and bafflement. Toki imagines himself in Skwisgaar's place with thousands of fans admiring him, when Skwisgaar comes in announcing that he is going back to Sweden after receiving a message from his mother claiming that she has found his birth father. He then surprises his bandmates by saying that he is officially leaving Dethklok for good. Meanwhile, the Tribunal finds out that Skwisgaar is leaving Dethklok to find his father, and this is where we learn that Skwisgaar has "inherited" his sexual promiscuity from his mother Serveta, which makes finding a biological father quite impossible; Skwisgaar is also compared to Greek god Zeus, who is immortal but keeps going to Earth to impregnate mortal women, creating demigod children.

In his childhood home in Sweden, Skwisgaar discovers that his "father" was nothing more than a random man whom Serveta married to be a step-father for her son, and is confused on why she hadn't been very clear on the phone. Serveta tells him that his new "step-father" is a good worker named Týr and he should get along with him since he is part of the family now. But unfortunately, Skwisgaar gets increasingly disgusted by his mother's sexual behavior around Týr until finally after having to put up with it angrily swears in front of his mother. After being reprimanded by Týr, Skwisgaar snaps and pushes him into a glass coffee table, but is instantly overcome with regret. At Mordhaus, things are going out of control; Toki goes wild with his guitar playing until Nathan tells, and then forces, him to stop because he thinks Toki is overdoing his role. Toki angrily tells him that since he's the new lead guitarist the others have to do it his way or leave the band. Nathan notices that Murderface is not rehearsing with the band and finds that he is talking with Skwisgaar on his Dethphone. An angry Pickles goes to slap him hard, causing him to drop and break his phone, and throws his entire feelings of frustration on him for being ignored. By then Nathan has completely lost all patience for his remaining bandmates and slaps Toki and Pickles in the face hard, telling both of them to wake up and angrily orders Murderface to get back with the band. He makes it clear that he is through putting up with the fact that Dethklok is without a lead guitarist and they should all get Skwisgaar back. Back at Sweden, Skwisgaar apologizes to Týr for hurting him earlier and reconciles with him after a conversation. He then adopts a normal lifestyle, helping his stepfather at a logging company, spending time making friends at a bar, and being attracted to a local girl.

While traveling to Sweden, Murderface ponders about getting his chance to having sex with Serveta so he can be a part of Skwisgaar's family; unfortunately Nathan overhears him when he says his thoughts out loud. Nearby, Pickles explains to Toki that his biggest regret was that he never got the chance to confront his own father for being a jerk to him, and now he feels that that chance is coming back since Murderface is there. Once arriving in Sweden, Nathan and the rest of the band members go inside the bar where Skwisgaar is hanging out with his girlfriend and his step-father, and upon finding him Murderface greets him as if he were his son, which fills Pickles with rage. Skwisgaar says that Dethklok is dead and he is staying in Sweden with his family despite attempts in convincing him to come back. A dejected Nathan reminds Skwisgaar that he is not like the people he is associating with and leaves with the others; unbeknownst to them Murderface strays off to track down Serveta. Later that night Skwisgaar walks home from the bar with Týr, saying that he now considers him like a real father even though they are not blood -elated. Unfortunately ,Skwisgaar's childhood flashback repeats itself when both men arrive home and discovers Serveta having sex with two men (who, coincidentally, are the very same men from Skwisgaar's flashback,) and Týr runs away upon realizing his wife's infidelity, while Murderface witnesses this via binoculars and screams for his failure. Hurt by his mother's betrayal, Skwisgaar runs away into the woods where he strips away his civilian clothes, leaving his old Dethklok outfit on, and comes to realize that Nathan was right: He is a "guitar god", and not a normal person. He runs back just in time to join the others on the plane, and shows his guitar. Murderface sees him coming and tells Pickles to move aside for him, and makes the mistake of saying that Pickles "belongs in the garbage can". Pickles remembers his father's words and snaps, and proceeds to beat up Murderface while Toki joins in for the fun. In the end credits, Skwisgaar is seen during a concert playing the role of lead guitarist once again in front of thousands of happy fans, and it is revealed that he had broken into a music store and gotten his guitar back.

Trivia

 * Hawks appear several times in the music video that plays during Skwisgaar's song, and then again at the end of the episode. This could allude to the episode "Dethcarraldo", where Skwisgaar's ancient animal from is shown to be some sort of bird of prey.
 * The bar present throughout the episode is named, "Malmsteen's Pub". This is a direct reference to Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen