The Puppy

"The Puppy" is the fifth episode of Season 3 of The Amazing World of Gumball. It is the eighty-first episode overall.

Synopsis
The kids finally get the puppy they always wanted, except...it's actually a turtle that hates them.

Plot
The episode begins with Gumball, Anais, and Darwin rehearsing their attempt to ask Richard for a puppy. However, when they finish, they find that he has disappeared, but then returns home with a box and a sandwich. The children are confused, and Richard explains that he had seen a monkey on TV the day before, claiming that a puppy was cuter than a dog, so that was why he went and bought a sandwich. When the kids ask him what the box contains, he says it's a puppy, earning screams of irritation and frustration at Anais' detailed presentation and their rehearsing being a waste of time. They eagerly open the box, only to be disappointed at the sight of what they see. A frightening looking turtle, and they begin to assume it's an angry green hat, among other accurate descriptions. When Nicole returns home with groceries, she instantly notices the children gathered around the box, and openly states that she hopes it is not a puppy, to which Anais replies that it "definitely isn't a puppy," but Nicole still responds with disappointment as she puts away the groceries. When she begins to bring to topic about how much work taking care of a pet requires, she looks in the box, and in confused fear asks what it is. Richard calls it a Labra Doodle, and then a Labra-Turtle when the turtle hisses at the former. After unsuccessfully trying to explain that they had nothing to do with their father buying the turtle to their mother, she immediately assigns the kids the responsibility of caring for it.

Upstairs, they attempt to create a bond with the turtle using instructions from a book titled My Pet Turtle, only for Gumball to get his hand bitten. When his brother and sister disapprove of Gumball wanting to say that he "really, really hates this turtle," he thinks really hard, and his thinking out loud carries across the whole neighborhood. In the kitchen, Darwin suggests that the turtle might be hungry when trying to better the new pet's attitude, to which Gumball angrily claims that the turtle is (in a dramatic tone), "Evil incarnate!" They attempt to win the turtle's trust by giving him his own personal tank to settle into, Gumball's face being bitten off during the process, and later they find that the open tank is filled with destruction and fire, the turtle biting off the head of a toy that was to have kept him company.

Again, dressed in their business attire with a presentation drawing easel at the ready, the children try to convince their father to get their mother to care for the turtle instead. Richard agreeably comments that the argument was convincing, but the only way they would ever get rid of it is if the turtle did something "absolutely horrific." A scream from comes from the kitchen where Nicole cries out "Oh my gosh! It's absolutely horrific," scaring the kids and the father.

The scene cuts to Richard driving with Darwin, Gumball, and Anais in the back seat, and the turtle in a box in the passenger seat as Richard is driving towards a parking lot, while chastising the pet. They arrive, and the children question them being in a parking lot. Richard begins to recollect on the "awesome store" that he had seen, and from his description, Gumball deduces that it wasn't a store, but a van. They return home to map out a way to find the van and return the turtle to the van-owner. They agree to bring the turtle to Elmore Boulevard.. but find that the turtle having been left outside in the boiling heat of the sun, they assume it had died, and have a short funeral by the garbage can out front. When Darwin's tear hits the dried-up reptile, it begins to run across the street. While Darwin is amazed, and says in awe that his tear had revived it, Gumball tries to talk sense into him, claiming that the turtle feeds on misery. The kids, having seen a car run into the turtle, and the former being severely damaged instead, try to think of a plan to save the town from the turtle instead by trapping it.

After Richard foils their plan to use a pile of drumsticks as a bait to lure the turtle, Darwin and Anais use Gumball as a bait near a swamp, Anais nearby with a bowl and card at the ready. After some arguing with Gumball, Darwin is suddenly pulled into the bushes, and a splash is heard. Gumball suddenly spots the turtle, and seeing him, it begins to run towards Gumball. He panics, and frees himself before the turtle can get close enough for Anais to trap it. He runs, and takes cover on top of the van that they were to return the turtle to. The turtle drags him inside, and they ensue in a brawl, until Darwin, muddied and covered seaweed, kicks the turtle into a box of fireworks. Meanwhile, Nicole had gotten Richard, who is still recovering from a food-coma, into the car, and is driving them to West Elmore Boulevard to find the kids, only to crash into a telephone pole that falls into the van. The sparks ignite the fireworks as Gumball and Darwin run out before the van explodes into flames. The parents catch up to Gumball and Darwin, and take some time to admire the fireworks, when the turtle emerges from the flames. Anais arrives just in time to trap it in the bowl. She states that they have no choice but "to keep it for as long as it lives," and when Nicole asks how long turtles live, Anais responds with "130 years." The turtles looks down menacingly at the camera, and the episode ends.

Main Characters

 * Gumball
 * Darwin
 * Anais
 * Evil Turtle

Supporting Characters

 * Nicole
 * Richard

Minor Characters

 * Blue Elephant

Trivia

 * This episode is based on Ben's pet turtle as a child, which died since it was left in the sun and exposed to high temperature.
 * This is Terrell Ransom Jr.'s favorite episode.
 * Anais wears glasses very similar to Granny Jojo's glasses.
 * The 4th wall is broken twice in this episode, in which Gumball, Darwin, and Anais speak to the viewer.

Continuity

 * Kupock the Barbarian from "The Plan" reappears.
 * When Darwin opens the van door, his expression is similar to his photo in "The Treasure."
 * Switzerland is mentioned again, like in "Christmas."
 * A Pony's Tail and The Tale of Zelmore make cameos in one of the boxes inside the "awesome store."

Cultural References

 * When the turtle appears from the water, music similar to the theme of the movie Jaws can be heard. When the turtle charges at Gumball, the music sounds similar to music from the movie Psycho.
 * The Watterson car horn blares the popular tune "La Cucaracha."
 * The turtle emerging from the fire is a reference to The Terminator.
 * The turtle's infrared vision of the kids may be a reference to the Predator, who has such an ability.
 * The turtle's laughter is reminiscent of Hannibal Lecter's laughter.

Goofs/Errors

 * Gumball and Anais get dressed even though their hands are broken.
 * When the kids run to Richard to use their speech on him, Darwin loses his socks, and his shoes change back to normal. If you see Darwin's last foot showing before the next shot, you'll see it doesn't have a shoe. In the next shot, Darwin has his socks and shoes again.
 * In the scene were Gumball is taped to the tree, there are three leaves on his head. For a split second, one of the leaves disappear.

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