“Then again, I was getting the impression I was all that was left.”
Why it's great
Then again takes back the headcount and leaves only the speaker.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
Then again, I had the feeling the party had started without me.
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Stevo's Pea-Sized Heart, Explained
SLC Punk · 1998
Chapter 9 of 10 · 2'12"
Friends ask what is the matter and float a new girl to meet. "Nothing's the matter. I'm right as rain" answers with perfectly fine and can shut the question. Later a big heart is cut down to the size of a pea, and someone asks not to be pitied.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:02–0:29
The Last Two Punks
27s - 0:39–1:40
❝ Monologue · 4 lines A Pea-Sized Heart
61s - 1:21–1:36
❝ Monologue · 5 lines Refusing pity
The big heart shrinks to a pea, then the speaker asks them to stop feeling sorry.
15s
Stevo's Pea-Sized Heart, explained
What happens
Lines go from the first two punks to the last two. The speaker calls it an impression that they were all that was left. Next, Bob is in love. Someone offers to introduce Stevo to a friend. Sandy really got you gets a No. Stevo is called big-hearted. The next line, to Trish, denies it. The line after makes that heart the size of a pea.
What's really going on
"First two punks" becomes "The last two punks," and then the speaker says, "I was getting the impression I was all that was left." The next line is "Bob was in love." Someone offers to introduce Stevo to a young friend. "What's the matter" brings "Nothing's the matter. I'm right as rain." "Why are you always depressed all the time" brings "I'm not depressed." Sandy is named in "I think Sandy really got you," and the next word is "No." The line "you should fucking kill her" is followed by "She had the right. It was the agreement." The lines do not name which voice says which. Later, "That Stevo's got a big heart." The next line, speaking to Trish, is "I don't have a big heart." The line after that is "I have a heart the size of a pea." The others being happy is called okay. Then "Please just don't pity me."
Key lines & what they mean
- “Then again, I was getting the impression I was all that was left.”
- It follows "First two punks" and "The last two punks." The speaker says this is their own impression. The next line is "Bob was in love."
- “Nothing's the matter. I'm right as rain.”
- After "What's the matter," nothing is the matter, then right as rain, meaning perfectly fine. It can shut the question. The next line still asks why someone is always depressed, and the reply is "I'm not depressed."
- “She had the right. It was the agreement.”
- The previous line says you should kill her for what she did. This line says she had the right because it was the agreement. The voices are not named. The following line says someone should have been more careful.
- “I have a heart the size of a pea.”
- Just before, someone says Stevo has a big heart, and the next line, to Trish, denies a big heart. This one shrinks it to a pea.
- “Please just don't pity me.”
- It comes after "You guys are happy. That's okay." The line asks not to be pitied. It does not name a speaker.
Theme
- Loneliness — First two punks, then the last two. The speaker's impression is being all that was left. Next line: Bob was in love.
- Heartbreak — Sandy is named as who really got you. Next line: No. Later the heart is the size of a pea, and someone asks not to be pitied.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level1/8
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“Nothing's the matter. I'm right as rain.”
Why it's great
The line is so sunny that the worry underneath shows through.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
I told my sister I was right as rain and went back to the dishes.
“She had the right. It was the agreement.”
Why it's great
Two short sentences hand the right back and treat the hurt as a deal already made.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
He had the right to leave. It was the agreement we wrote last spring.
“I have a heart the size of a pea.”
Why it's great
A pea shrinks the compliment until there is nothing left to praise.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
My patience is the size of a pea before breakfast.
“Please just don't pity me.”
Why it's great
Please and just make the refusal sound like a plea that still shuts the door.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
Please just don't pity the new kid who forgot one line.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ From love to rage
You know, dude, it's no big deal. You're like my brother... and I love you and all. But what that fucking bitch did, you should fucking kill her.
Brother and love stack up, then a but dumps both into a filthy threat.
❝ Refusing pity
I don't have a big heart, Trish. I have a heart the size of a pea. It's okay, though. I mean, you guys are... You guys are happy. That's okay. Please just don't pity me.
The big heart shrinks to a pea, then the speaker asks them to stop feeling sorry.
Up next · 10That's not rebellion. That's fashion.The scene: That's Not Rebellion, That's FashionPeople also search
Questions, then the linesWhat does "She had the right" actually say here, and what does it leave out?
The line before is "But what that fucking bitch did, you should fucking kill her." Then come "She had the right" and "She had the right. It was the agreement." The next line is "Should've been more careful." The agreement is the reason given. The lines do not spell out its terms, and they do not name who speaks.
How does "cool rich boy" come after "She's a rich girl"?
Someone says "She's a rich girl, dude." Next are "That's okay" and "I'm a rich boy, right?" The following line is "Yeah, but you're a cool rich boy." The lines never say why she is rich or why he is cool.
What is actually said when "Not yet" follows "I'm not ambitious"?
The lines just before are "She's smart..." and "and she's ambitious." The next line is "I'm not ambitious" with "Not yet, dude." "Not yet" only marks that it has not happened yet. The lines do not name a speaker, and they do not say that ambition will come later.
Who says "I was all that was left"?
The speaker says it in the first person: "Then again, I was getting the impression I was all that was left." It comes after "First two punks" and "The last two punks." The next line is "Bob was in love." The lines do not name that speaker, and no one else confirms they are literally the last punk.