The Sidekick

"The Sidekick" is the twenty-fourth episode of Season 2 of The Amazing World of Gumball. It is the sixtieth episode overall.

Synopsis
Gumball and Darwin try to get a game back from Tobias, but Darwin begins to feel like he is just Gumball's sidekick and refuses to follow his orders.

Plot
The episode starts with Gumball and Darwin using their imagination to mimic a game they lent to Tobias in the backyard. Unfortunately, the laws of physics in video games differ from those in real life. This becomes evident when, upon collecting the "wings" power up, Darwin is still unable to fly. After a few painful attempts at flying over a wall, Gumball gets frustrated and urges Darwin to try harder. Darwin complains that breaking the laws of physics is difficult, to which Gumball suggests that he just grow wings in the same way he grew legs. The argument ends with Gumball mashing the crouch button. Darwin, somehow connected to the controller, is forced to comply. The crouch button gets stuck, sticking Darwin in an infinite loop until he crashes. Gumball reboots him and expresses his disappointment in using their imagination to play a game. Darwin, cheerful as ever, is hopeful that Tobias will fulfill his promise and return their game tomorrow.

The next day, upon approaching Tobias about their game, he nervously explains that he forgot to bring it. The same thing happens for the next several days, with Tobias constantly promising to bring it the next day. After a while, Gumball gets fed up with waiting and ponders alternative methods to get the game back. He decides that war is their only option. He turns to Darwin, asking him to follow him into battle. Darwin, however, wants to lead instead of follow this time. Gumball scoffs at him, causing Darwin to drop the issue.

At the library, Darwin complains about how people keep sending him e-mails to Gumball's inbox instead of his own. Gumball doesn't think that is a big deal, so Darwin takes him to a classroom and shows him the yearbook. In the yearbook, Darwin's profile is recognized as nothing more than a subordinate to Gumball, instead of his own person. Gumball still doesn't see the issue, so Darwin literally carries him over to the hall. Darwin asks one of the Eggheads if he recognizes him, and he's surprised that "Gumball's orange bag" can talk. Gumball claims he now understands Darwin's problem, and concots a plan to retrieve their game.

Later that evening, the boys visit Tobias's backyard in order to break in his house. When Gumball asks Darwin to help him get through the window, Darwin backs out because of his being "demoted from a sidekick to a footstool." He deserts Gumball, who has fallen into the cellar. Gumball keeps calling out for his aid in vain.

The following day, Gumball approaches Darwin at lunchtime, hoping the sidekick issue has been put aside. When Gumball asks for tater tots and fish "on the side," Darwin has had enough. He storms out of -- and eventually back in -- the cafeteria, as Gumball follows him, trying to alleviate the situation. This leads to them mocking each other. Finally, Gumball offers Darwin a chance at being a leader, and Darwin is overjoyed.

However, Darwin's plan to get the game back from Tobias goes awry right from the beginning. Gumball is shocked that Darwin has actually kidnapped Tobias' mother, who is blindfolded and bound to the swivel chair. He tries to back out, but it is revealed that Darwin has accidentally signed both their names on a ransom note left at Tobias's house. Faced with no other choice, Gumball reluctantly has to aid Darwin.

As the boys push the bound woman up a steep street, Gumball keeps assuming the leader position when he's supposed to be the sidekick. They get into a heated argument about Darwin's poor leadership. They play pretend battle with each other, while they inadvertently let Tobias's mother roll down the street. Once they realize what just happened, they chase after her, narrowly saving her from being run over by a large truck. They all land on somebody's lawn, and they discover they have to walk through the public area.

Gumball and Darwin roll Tobias's mother through the mall, under the pretense of charity. They manage to avoid suspicion from passersby, although Mr. Small tries to donate to their "charity." Next, they try to sneak past Doughnut Sheriff in a police car. When he cries out, the boys fear they may have been caught. It turns out Doughnut Sheriff is off duty, and he is snacking on some peanuts.

Eventually they all arrive at Tobias's house, and once again Gumball comments about Darwin's poorly thought-out plan. He claims that if it was his plan, he would have Darwin stop him. He calls Darwin not his sidekick, but his "guardian," and Darwin is touched. They make up, right when Tobias appears out of his house. They kick his bound mother out of sight, and Tobias explains that his mother has cleaned his bedroom earlier, and that the game is nowhere to be found. He wonders where she has gone, and Gumball declares that Tobias can keep the game.

Main Characters

 * Gumball
 * Darwin

Supporting Characters

 * Tobias
 * Jackie

Minor Characters

 * Eggheads
 * Juke
 * Leslie
 * Penny
 * Sarah
 * Carrie
 * Rocky
 * Ocho
 * Pantsbully
 * Felicity
 * Principal Brown
 * Gary
 * Newspaper Employee
 * Blue Elephant
 * Melted Cheese Guy
 * Jolly Hamburger
 * Cowboy
 * Mr. Small
 * Doughnut Sheriff
 * Construction Men
 * Neck Beard
 * Sussie
 * Carmen
 * Tina (cameo)
 * Bobert (cameo)
 * Molly (photo)
 * Anais (cameo)
 * Hector (cameo)
 * Teri (cameo)
 * Alan (cameo)
 * Masami (cameo)
 * Anton (cameo)

Trivia

 * This episode aired in the UK before the US.
 * When the lasagna flew into Juke's "mouth", he plays the same tune as heard originally from "The Skull" where Banana Joe shed a tear in sorrow.

Continuity

 * Gumball's photo from "The Photo" can be seen in the yearbook, despite the fact this episode predates it in broadcast order.
 * Music from "The Third" is reused.
 * This is the third episode in which one of the major characters has no speaking role. In this case, it is with Jackie. The first was "The Club" in which Ocho didn't speak, and the second was in "The Date" where Mrs. Fitzgerald didn't speak.

Cultural References

 * The game pad Gumball uses to control Darwin is similar to the controller for the SNES.
 * When Gumball resets Darwin, a beep similar to the Game Boy start up sound can be heard.

Goofs/Errors

 * When Darwin lines up at the cafeteria, only Leslie is in front of him. Despite this, Rocky calls out "next" twice.
 * When Gumball and Darwin were strolling Jackie below the Doughnut Sheriff's car, the eyes and mouth drawn on her mouth and blindfold disappeared, yet are back in the next scene.
 * When Mr. Small chases Gumball and Darwin, Neck Beard is seen in his normal outfit. In the next shot, he's in his jogging outfit.

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