That's MY Grandma!

"That's MY Grandma!"
Season/Series:	20 (US)
Number in season:	4b
Original Airdate:	October 13, 2016 November 21, 2018
Credits
Written by:	Cliff Ruby Elana Lesser
Storyboard by:	Gerry Capelle
Episodes
Previous "Bud's Knotty Problem"	Next "Lend Me Your Ear"
Read transcript

"That's MY Grandma!" is the second half of the fourth episode in the twentieth season of Arthur.

Summary

D.W. becomes jealous when Grandma Thora becomes the town's most popular baby sitter.

Plot

In the introduction, Arthur says that everyone has something special he does not want to share with anyone. Arthur has a special edition comic book he hides from Buster, Mr. Ratburn has a special pen and Buster a food-shaped-like-countries collection. When Arthur wants to talk about D.W.’s special thing, she stops him.

That's MY Grandma

Grandma Thora serves a kale-cauliflower tart. D.W. is saved from eating it by a call from Emily who does not want to go to the DMV with Marie-Hélène. D.W. arranges that Thora babysits Emily. She fondly remembers having fun with Thora.

When D.W. calls Emily to warn her not to eat Thora's tartes, she learns that Emily and Thora are having pizza and have watched a movie D.W. has not yet seen. D.W. assumes that Thora will do those things with her the next time she babysits.

D.W. coaxes her parents into going out on Saturday, but instead of Thora, the babysitter is a young woman who cares more about her cellphone than about D.W. Meanwhile, Thora babysits Vicita next door.

On Monday, D.W. learns that Thora is now so popular that she is babysitting several other preschoolers. D.W. has a fantasy in which Thora is so busy that her secretary (Arthur) will not let D.W. talk to her. Just as D.W. asks Nadine for advice, she is hit by water balloons thrown by the Tibbles, which gives her an idea.

D.W. asks the Tibbles to ask Thora to babysit them. They demand Uni in return, to which D.W. agrees with a heavy heart.

However, Thora has no trouble with the Tibbles. She makes them compete in a self-made Tough Guy Obstacle Course to tire them out. The Tibbles ask her to babysit forever, which shocks D.W. who is secretly watching them.

D.W. does not want to admit that she is jealous, but when Nadine mentions that Thora is babysitting her, D.W. explodes.

The next day, D.W. tells the other preschoolers that Thora does horrible things the second time she babysits, like watching boring TV shows, sending the kids to bed early and showing them her spider collection. Emily is terrified and when Thora comes to babysit her, she slams the door shut.

The next time Thora babysits D.W., she does everything D.W. told the other kids she would do, except that the spiders are fake. D.W. apologizes and Thora reassures her that the other kids she babysits are not her granddaughter. She also gives D.W. Uni, which she won back from the Tibbles. D.W. is so happy that she even praises Thora's kale-cauliflower tarte.

Characters

• D.W. Read
• Nadine Flumberghast
• Thora Read
• Emily
• Vicita Molina
• Bud Compson
• Arthur Read
• Buster Baxter
• Maryann
• Timmy and Tommy Tibble
• Nigel Ratburn

Trivia

• Beginning with this episode, Thora's glasses are slightly translucent and no longer opaque (animated as white) like Arthur's glasses.
• Nadine is hit by a water balloon thrown by the Tibbles. Normally, D.W. is the only real character who interacts with Nadine.
• Timeline:
  • Thora beat the Tibbles at marbles to get Uni back. Her skill at the game was shown in “Arthur Loses His Marbles”.
  • Emily finds the thought of a spider collection particularly terrifying. Her fear of spiders was shown in “The Pageant Pickle”.
• Moral:
  • Dont overreact for your own benefits.
  • Dont be jealous for your own benefits.

Episode connections

• D.W. mentioning that Grandma Thora making kids go to bed at daytime and when they are not tired may be a reference to "Arthur Babysits."
• D.W. gives Uni to the Tibbles again. The first time was in "Hic or Treat."

Cultural references

• Icicle Princess may be a reference to Frozen.