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"Downtown as Fruits" is an episode of Hey Arnold!, as well as the series premiere.
Synopsis[]
Arnold and Gerald are cast as fruits in Helga's play, but when they get tired of Helga bossing them around, they decide to blow off the play and end up lost downtown.
Plot[]
As the series begins, Arnold and his friends are rehearsing for Helga’s play about the food groups, although the former would rather daydream about surfing in his fantasy world, mainly consisting of dinosaurs. Helga gets mad and tells the students they better be ready for the play on time.
On the night of the play, Arnold and Gerald have to travel to P.S. 118 dressed up as a banana and a strawberry, respectively. They find it embarrassing, and so on the bus, Gerald moans about how there is nothing they can do about being humiliated in front of the whole school; unless they “forget” to pull the cord for the bus to stop. Arnold is reluctant because it would ruin the play, but Gerald reminds him of how Helga made fun of him during rehearsals. Arnold is about to pull the cord to stop the bus, but at the last split second, decides not to, so they decide to get off at the next stop.
Helga leads the rehearsal
Back at P.S. 118, Helga gives a speech before the show to the cast, but then Phobe informs Helga that Arnold and Gerald haven’t turned up. This causes her to have an angry outburst.
Arnold and Gerald are thrown a bag of money
On the bus, Arnold notices that the bus hasn't stopped for a while, but Gerald doesn't care, saying when they get to the end of the line, they'll just ride the bus back again. Suddenly, the bus comes to a sudden halt and the driver departs. They both realize that they have reached the end of the line and are stuck downtown…as fruits.
Arnold and Gerald find a payphone to call Gerald's parent to pick them up but discover that the cord is cut. Arnold tells Gerald to at least to get rid of their costumes, only for Gerald to tell him that he didn't wear anything underneath his costume (polyester makes Gerald sweat). Arnold simply says Gerald will just have to keep wearing his costume. Gerald reminds Arnold of the situation they're in: the boys are struck downtown, Gerald's a strawberry and they don't have any money! Just then, a car screeches by and drops them a bag. Arnold and Gerald are confused at first, but when they open it, they discover that it’s full of money, and mention how nice people downtown are. They then leave the street while two other men wearing strawberry and banana costumes turn up and wait for the bag of money, unaware that they have already missed it. The boys then begin to hit the town, buying new clothes and eating out.
Meanwhile, Helga’s play is ongoing, and she is having to stretch it out in order to wait for Arnold and Gerald. Backstage, Helga is agonizing about her play falling apart, saying she has eaten nothing but dairy products for two weeks to prepare for her role. As Helga is thinking about pounding Arnold for messing up her play, making sure no one is looking, she takes out her locket as she fears for Arnold's safety. Helga monologues her love and hate for Arnold, Brainy is breathing heavily behind Helga and she punches him.
Arnold and Gerald meet Zamboni Jones
Finally, Arnold and Gerald find the downtown pool hall and things appear to be going well, that is until the original men waiting for the money find them and chase them out of the pool hall. Arnold and Gerald lose them down the alleyways and hide out in Zamboni Jones' Psychic Palace. There, they meet Zamboni Jones, who “senses a disturbance” and suggests that they have wronged somebody. Gerald immediately thinks of Helga, but then denies it. Arnold then reminds Gerald about the other kids in the play, and how they have let them down. They then both decide to go back to the play.
On the trip back, they hand over the rest of the cash to a stuck family whose car had broken down. Meanwhile, Vic, Morrie, and the strawberry man get arrested.
Back at the school, Helga’s play has fallen apart, and she decides to go center stage to announce that the fruits scene won’t be going ahead, however, just as she’s about to finish, Arnold and Gerald run on stage, sing their number, and finish the play in style.
Home Media[]
VHS[]
- Hey Arnold!: Urban Adventures
DVD[]
- Hey Arnold!: Season 1
- Hey Arnold!: The Complete Series
- Hey Arnold!: The Ultimate Collection
iTunes[]
- Hey Arnold!: Volume 1
- Nickelodeon Rewind, Volume 1