When Carl Met George

When Carl Met George (also called George and the Missing Puzzle Piece) is the first half of the 6th episode of Season 13. It first aired on April 5, 2010, along with "D.W. Swims with the Fishes".

Summary
George is excited about spending time with his new friend, Carl, who seems to know all kind of cool facts about trains and about... well lots of things! Then George learns that Carl has Asperger's Syndrome - a form of autism that makes Carl see the world differently than most people.

Plot Outline
George tells the story of how he met his friend Carl, who has Asperger's Syndrome. At first, George didn't know about Carl's disorder, and George thought something was strange because he didn't know if Carl liked him or not. Later, when George goes to visit him again and brings his dummy Wally, Carl is unexpectedly terrified of it which causes him to throw a tantrum and it is then revealed by Carl's mother that he has Asperger's Syndrome. George later goes to The Brain for advice on what Asperger's Syndrome is, and The Brain tells him all about it. George then understands what Carl is going through, and decides to bring him a book on trains (Carl loves trains) and also gives him the puzzle piece that accidentally fell into his pocket the first time they met. The last scene is George in his bedroom, with Carl sitting at his table (just like he was at the beginning of the episode) still going on about his train picture, but then he almost immediately comes back and says to the viewers "It was nice to meet you" and George explains how he taught Carl to say that, and how Carl taught George to understand his behavior by speaking quietly, be clear, and not to take it personally when he ignores him.

Trivia

 * This episode is Carl's debut. He would appear again in the episode "Buster Spaces Out".
 * This episode got lots of controversy from people saying that Carl's portrayal was unfair.  However, it accurately portrayed the symptoms of Asperger syndrome to help the public gain a further understanding of special-needs people.
 * This episode is entitled "George and the Missing Puzzle Piece", but on On Demand and Netflix it is entitled the original title, "When Carl Met George".
 * Not counting imagination or background characters, Brain is the only other character to appear that is not a major character in this episode.