Famed tattoo artist Thomas Pendelton, star of the former A&E hit Inked, takes his traveling tattoo parlor to Reno, Nevada. Thomas visits his old high school, and Monica worries that his bad experiences in school might affect how he raises his daughters. Later, Thomas goes to Hawthorne, Nev., to meet Trooper, who wants a portrait of his beloved deceased wife on his chest. Thomas mixes the cremated woman's ashes into the ink for a touching memorial that brings tears to his eyes.

It's Chili's birthday, and the big day is filled with thoughts about motherly love--and strippers. First, Chili asks Thomas to tattoo a note his mother wrote to him on his palm. Then the crew calls a stripper on the bus to give Chili a lap dance. The next day, Thomas rents an RV for a trip to the mountains, but he hits a fire hydrant and the crew ends up tattooing prostitutes at the Mustang Ranch to pay for the damage.

A voluptuous artist, Heather, who once worked in a mortuary and collects dead animals wants to receive a tattoo in Sacramento. Thomas looks at her drawing and winds up changing it completely, but she loves it anyways. Next it's off to San Fransisco where he plans on interviewing potential helpers for the shop. While none seem right, Thomas and Krystin tattoo matching eggplants on a gay couple. Then Thomas performs a renegade wedding for the love birds.

Thomas rolls his bus into Albuquerque where he tattoos a Tahitian dancer to cover a previous tattoo on her back. Next, a marine fresh off of two tours of duty in Iraq and a marine who just finished boot camp both receive a tattoo.

While stopping in San Fransisco, Thomas gets a tattoo of a Buddhist monk and his mentor on his calf. Then he heads the bus to San Jose to meet with the monk and show off his tattoo. Elsewhere, a man receives a tattoo of a Koi fish.