Top 10 Adult Jokes in Gravity Falls You Missed

Dipper’s crush on Wendy makes for more than a few awkward moments throughout the series, and this is definitely one of them. When Dipper, Mabel, Soos, and Wendy find an old underground bunker, Dipper and Wendy get locked in a decontamination room, where the air sends the two of them crashing into each other. Dipper’s face gets pressed into Wendy’s chest and, although it’s quick, we know some thoughts have definitely crossed Dipper’s mind by the way he glances down at the area. This scene was actually supposed to be longer and even more obvious, but it was cut. What did make it in, though, was a bra joke at the beginning of the episode. You win some, you lose some, we guess!

So the emojis get this gesture but Grunkle Stan can't do it?! Where’s the justice?! In the episode “Little Gift Shop of Horrors,” Grunkle Stan tells us the tale of three spooky stories. The first is called “Hands Off” and entails pretty much what you might expect: Stan gets cursed by a witch and loses his hands. When he confronts her and apologizes for stealing, he’s visibly frustrated and asks for his hands back so that he can share a certain gesture with her. This is an especially perfect line because it sounds like something an adult might actually say to another adult when kids are around. Stan also later reveals his nicknames for his hands: Shaky and Scratchy. Better not to ask about that one...

We’ve all seen this kind of scene before. Two people parked in a car under the stars… in the woods on a quiet night… about to ki--[SB: “Well, this is getting weird.”] This episode sees the twins sneaking into a miniature golf course at night, with Stan and Soos waiting in the car together. The scene starts off normal enough, with Soos cutting his t-shirts into v-necks and Stan reclining his seat. But then Soos’ shirt comes off, both seats are reclined, soft music is playing, and Soos says the magic phrase: [SB: “Sure are a lot of stars out tonight…”] It’s a good thing Stan got out when he did because the tension was so thick it could have been chewed through by Waddles!

Many of us have had the experience of trying to come up with more... creative ways to swear when kids are around, and Grunkle Stan is no exception. In the episode “Not What He Seems”, Dipper and Mabel scour security footage to find irrefutable proof of Grunkle Stan’s alibi. What they get instead is irrefutable proof contradicting his alibi. That, and the proof that he’s an alright Grunkle. Stan drops a drum of chemicals on his foot and immediately calls out [B-roll: “Hot Belgian Waffles!”], before realizing he’s alone, and that he can swear for real. Turns out, Stan’s been making the conscious effort not to cuss around the kids (and the Disney censors), which is pretty endearing. When he’s alone, however… [B-roll: “Son of a--!”]

And pug rhymes with…? Yeah, you get it. This episode has not one, but two drug jokes. It starts off with Grunkle Stan sending off several barrels of pugs with a man named Santiago. He tells him he has 24 hours to get the puppies across the U.S. border, a pretty good indicator that this is a case of smuggling. Made even clearer is Stan’s list of crimes read out by the news reporter at the end of the previous episode. Wouldn’t you know it, “pug smuggling” is indeed on the list! The second joke comes toward the end of episode when Grenda exchanges a jar of butterflies for two bags of fairy dust--no, like, actual fairy dust. The best part has to be the cop taking his cut of the deal!

Ah, encroaching teenagerdom. Let’s all remember that at the time of the events of “Gravity Falls,” Dipper is on the cusp of becoming a full-on teen. We’re very much reminded of this when Mabel makes a passing comment about Dipper’s internet history falling under the category of creepy. And in front of Wendy too! Poor guy... In Dipper’s defence, lots of things are creepy. Gnomes, for one. Ghosts, the Summerween Trickster, talking triangles… We’re sure he was just googling the creepy monsters in his journal. That’s all. In any case, it’s a good rule of thumb to remember to clear your browser history…

Here’s yet another reference to… explicit material. Apparently, Stan prefers his content the old-fashioned way. After Grunkle Stan confiscates the business card given to Dipper by the special agents, Wendy tells him that Stan keeps most of his stuff in his bedroom. She helps Dipper sneak into his great uncle’s room, where the front door clearly warns him against entering. Probably for good reason too because, as he rifles through his Grunkle’s things in search of the business cards, he finds a couple of magazines with fully-clothed women and women in swimwear on the covers. Very subtle, Alex Hirsch… very subtle.

Out of all the jokes for the Disney censors to have a problem with… In the episode “Summerween”, Robbie shows Dipper a flyer for Tambry’s Summerween Party. If you look closely, you can spot the line “Not S&P approved”. The first version of this was supposed to say “Bottles will be spun” in reference to spin the bottle, but, according to Hirsch, Disney’s Standards and Practices (abbreviated as S&P) had a major problem with this. We’re not sure why, exactly, as it seems pretty tame in comparison to some of the other more adult references in the show, and Hirsh seemed to feel the same way. Luckily, as he says, “not S&P approved” was actually approved by S&P.

It's easy to miss, but when Ford puts a mind-reading device on Dipper, his thoughts are projected on the screen behind him. You’ll have to pause to be able to read any of them, but there are few more… private thoughts included on the screen. For example, the last line of thought reads "that red bathing suit, man!", likely a reference to Wendy's bathing suit in the episode “The Deep End”, when she and Dipper were lifeguards together. This wouldn't be so bad if one of his thoughts didn’t also say: "Maybe if I cross my legs, no one will notice!" The second line is a little suspicious, too, with the thought reading "Gosh, I hope no one was looking!"

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Mabel Drowns Her Sorrows, "The Golf War"
A Hard Day Calls for Juice!

Soos' Grandfather, "Gideon Rises"
Yikes! Wonder What Earned Him a Visit With Sam Hill...

“What the H?!,” "The Love God"
Is It a Coincidence the ‘R’ Falls Right After? As in ‘HR’?

The Love God's Recreational Activities, "The Love God"
What’s That in the Background?!

When the twins find a hidden room in the mystery shack, they compete over who should get the room. As it turns out, the carpet is some sort of science experiment that leads Dipper and Mabel to swap bodies. Dipper in Mabel’s body is forced to have a sleepover with Candy and Grenda, and Mabel in Dipper’s body, feeling left out, spies on them. Unfortunately, Grunkle Stan catches her and, thinking Dipper is spying on the girls, decides it’s time to give him ‘the birds and the bees’ talk. The secondhand embarrassment is so real! Meanwhile, Dipper in Mabel’s body spends this time listening to Grenda read steamy romance novels. Honestly, we’re not sure which is worse...