And Now Let's Talk to Some Kids

"And Now Let's Talk to Some Kids"
Season/Series:	3
Number in season:	4B
Original Airdate:	November 19, 1998; September 9, 1999;
	Credits
Written by:	Joe Fallon
Storyboard by:	Stéphanie Gignac
	Episodes
Previous; "Background Blues"	Next; "The Chips are Down"
	Read transcript

"And Now Let's Talk to Some Kids" is the second half of the fourth episode in the third season of Arthur.

Summary[edit]

The Magic Toolbox comes to Mr. Ratburn's class to put some of the kids on TV.

Plot[edit]

In the intro, Arthur asks the viewers if they have ever noticed how people's personalities fit them perfectly (such as Mr. Ratburn having a hard working personality and Buster having a comedic personality). He then imagines what would it be like if everyone switched personalities (such as Mr. Ratburn having Buster's personality and Binky having Muffy's personality). Arthur backtracks on this theory when he imagines Pal having Mr. Ratburn's personality.

After the title card, Arthur, Buster and D.W. are at the Reads' house, watching The Magic Toolbox. In The Magic Toolbox, there is a segment that features kids explaining what gravity is and how it works.

The next day at school, Mr. Haney comes into Mr. Ratburn's classroom and announces that The Magic Toolbox will be coming to Lakewood Elementary and do a show involving Mr. Ratburn's class.

The kids are all excited and wonder what it will be like to be on TV---except the Brain, who's more focused on a Science Fair project. The next day, while everyone else is practicing for The Magic Toolbox, Brain is still focused on his project. This leads Francine to believe that the Brain is secretly nervous about appearing on TV. She and the others hatch a plan to see that Brain gets some airtime.

Despite their attempts, Brain is still focused on his Science Fair project and not appearing on TV. The following day, The Magic Toolbox crew shows up to Mr. Ratburn's class. Once he announces to the class that they are going to be asked about the solar system, the class rushes over to Brain's desk and they ask him about the solar system. Each student takes what they have learned from Brain to answer the questions.

A while later, the kids watch their performance on TV, with Arthur saying that they were better than he thought. They're still worried about Brain not being on TV, however.

About 50 years into the future, Brain is shown as a scientist who has invented teleportation, which he tests out on a cat. Older versions of Arthur and Francine watch the event on TV before watching themselves once more on The Magic Toolbox and sing the theme song off-key.

Characters[edit]

Main[edit]

Recurring[edit]

Background[edit]

Trivia[edit]

There are two parodies of the Arthur intro in this episode: One is when Buster is imagining himself on TV, and the other is when Francine is imagining the Brain having his own TV show. The latter parody also includes a parody of "Arthur's New Puppy" titled "Brain's New Puppy".
This episode implies that Arthur and Francine eventually get married.
The name of the episode is a play on the phrase, "And now, a word from us kids," referential of the segment featuring actual children shown as interstitial content between stories on most Arthur episodes, save those which featured "Postcards from You."
Ziggy Marley and the melody makers didn't sing in the parody of the theme song.
This is George's first speaking role.
Buster said maybe he’ll get his own show. Six years later, this comes true.
At the time of the episode’s airdate, Pluto was considered a planet. This changed in 2006.
Irony: All the other kids think being on TV will be a sparkling opportunity for attention, while Francine ridicules the Brain for doing nothing but study for the science honor roll. Arthur and Buster go the route of You Are Better Than You Think You Are that he is a genius and ought to show that off. Later, the others are nearly humiliated on TV for their lack of knowledge while the Brain is in his element. Brain helps them, but refuses to participate on television. What's more, in the far future, Brain (despite not caring to be on television) becomes a famed scientist whose accomplishments are televised, while Arthur and Francine (who live in relative obscurity) only have the video recording of their one time on television.
4th Wall Break: When D.W. imagines Buster on TV (in the place of Arthur) he falls forward instead of backward, out of the television, in a smaller form, and lands in front of her. This excites D.W. but she changes her mind about Buster offering her a co-star role by saying "No, thanks. You would try to make me look like a brat or something" hinting at her awareness of her role in Arthur itself.
Moral: Doing other things is not as important as being on TV.

Cultural references[edit]

The title of The Magic Toolbox is a parody of The Magic School Bus.
Fern recites “There is no joy in Mudville” from the poem Casey at the Bat by ErnestThayer.

Errors[edit]

Francine mentions that she didn't get a puppy last Christmas, despite the fact that she and her family are Jewish. In the book Arthur's Christmas that was first published fourteen years before this episode went on the air, Francine was seen sitting on Santa Claus's lap, but never revealed which holiday she celebrates with her family.
When the kids watch the completed episode of the show in school, Francine's interview comes last. When the elderly Arthur and Francine watch the tape again in the future, Francine appears before Muffy and Buster.