[The special begins at Jon Arbuckle's house. As the camera pans over to the window, Garfield is shown sleeping in his bed. Eventually, he wakes up.]
Garfield: Good morning, morning. Guess I'll get up, wake Jon, exercise... unless, of course, that floor is cold. I hate cold floors. I'm not getting out of bed if that floor is the slightest bit chilly.
[Garfield touches the floor with his finger to check the temperature.]
Garfield:: Yi-eeh! It's freezing! Too bad. [Garfield sighs and begins to fall back asleep... then is faced with a dilemma.] I'm hungry.
[Jon is humming to himself and making breakfast. Garfield shows up to the dining room table, bed included.]
Jon: Hungry, Garfield?
Garfield: You guessed it, buster.
Jon: Okie-dokie. [Jon walks over to Garfield's bowl and pours cat food into it.] Here ya go!
[Upon walking back, Jon finds his breakfast eaten already.]
Garfield: [hiccup] N-No thanks, I couldn't possibly eat another bite.
[Garfield wipes his mouth on Jon's tie. Upon doing this, Odie barks in greeting, scaring Garfield and leaving Jon to loosen his tie. Irritated, Garfield corners Odie to the end of the table, the latter falling to the floor. As the title and opening credits appear, antics ensue as Garfield chases Odie around the house, making messes in the process. The two get back to Jon as he finally loosens his tie. "Just Another Crazy Day" plays in the process of all the commotion]
[Lou Rawls]
Well it's just another crazy day,
The kind that drives the blues away,
Bouncin' off of the walls,
Hangin' on by the claws,
Just another crazy day.
Just another lazy, borin',
Silly, willy-nilly mornin',
Just another lazy, borin', silly, willy morning of another crazy ordinary day!
Jon: [sigh] And they say pets are therapeutic. [clears throat.]
[Garfield and Odie nod in agreement before the screen fades to black, while the next fade-in presents us with Jon's living room being a total mess. We see Odie sitting on Jon's chair, before Garfield claws it slightly, springing Odie to the ceiling, before sitting down in Odie's place. Jon walks in afterwards.]
Jon: So there you are. Where's Odie?
[Garfield looks around in sarcastic confusion before looking up. Jon looks up in the ceiling too, in shock to see Odie. Jon gets Odie down and sets him on the chair next to Garfield.]
Jon: [sigh] Boys, boys, boys. Just look at this room! What am I going to do with you two? Giving you away at the supermarket comes to mind. A one-way ticket to the city pound seems like a good idea. Right now, even taxidermy sounds terrific! I work and slay for you, and do I get any thanks for it? No, I don't! What do I get?! A demolition derby in my living room!
[Garfield and Odie nod at each other.]
Jon: That's it, Garfield. This is not normal for you. You're hyperactive, and that's serious. [sigh] I think it's time for a trip... to the vet.
Garfield: No, no! Not... [reverb] THE VET!
[Jon struggles to get Garfield in the car to drive him to the vet. When Garfield was successfully put in the car, Jon gets on the road. The first thing Garfield does while in the car is act like a spider, crawl towards Jon on the ceiling, and latch onto him, closing his eyes.]
Jon: Garfield...!
[Jon grabs Garfield and sets him back on his seat. The second thing Garfield does is mess around with the controls of the car seat. Jon's seat reclines so far back that he cannot see the road.]
Jon: Garfield! [Garfield grins in accomplishment.] Quit playing with the power seat!
[Garfield returns the driver's seat, containing a now-woozy Jon, to its upright position. Experimentally, Garfield sticks a paw out the open window, followed by his head. He shows the resulting new hairstyle to Jon, possibly hoping to make him laugh and run him off the road.]
Jon: Now sit still. [Garfield sulks for a while, then climbs up on top of the passenger seat.] That's a good boy.
[At this point, Jon makes a left turn, briefly leaving Garfield sitting in mid-air before he falls to the ground.]
Garfield: Jon? What happened? [Cars start passing by] Hey, watch it! Cat in the road, careful!
[Garfield gets out of the road and stops to catch his breath at a pole]
Garfield: I’m free. No vet. No Jon. No Odie.
[Garfield begins strolling down the street as "Startin' from Scratch" begins playing]
[Lou Rawls]
He’s out on the town,
Makin’ some tracks,
Livin’ along,
All unattached,
But he’s cool, (He’s cool)
He’s calm,
(He’s) Startin’ from scratch,
Loaded with charm,
A cat without fear,
Look out baby,
Garfield is here,
But he’s cool, (He’s cool)
He’s calm,
(He’s) Startin’ from scratch,
Garfield: [Stops and leans onto a wall] This could be my time to howl. Aroo! [A pink cat resembling Arlene passes by] What’s happening, baby?
Cat 1: Take a hike, Jack!
Garfield: [Annoyed, but tries again anyway] Aroo! [Another cat passes by] Hey, how about you and me doing something beautiful, darling?
Cat 2: Can it, creep.
Garfield: Aroo. [A fluffy white cat passes by] Hey, honey, what’s your sign?
Cat 3: Suck air, bozo.
[Song resumes]
[Lou Rawls]
He’s out on the town,
Hittin’ the streets, This is a cat,
With the world at his feet,
But he’s cool, (He’s cool)
He’s calm, (He’s calm)
He’s cold,
Garfield: I’m cold.
Lou Rawls: And he misses his house,
Garfield: I miss my house.
[Cut to Jon at home, calling Liz]
Jon: May I speak with Dr. Wilson, please? Yes, I’ll hold.
[Liz is shown giving a dog its shot. The phone rings, and she answers]
Liz: Dr. Wilson.
Jon: Hi doc, this is Jon Arbuckle, uh, you know, Garfield's owner?
Liz: Oh, Garfield. What now?
Jon: Well, I was taking him to see you...
Liz: Mm-hmm.
Jon: ...when he suddenly disappeared, a-and I'm not even sure how...
Liz: Mm-hm.
Jon: And-and it was near the pet hospital there. I thought somebody might have brought him in, and, well...
Liz: Well what?
Jon: I was afraid he could have been, you know uh, hit by a car or somethin'.
Liz: Oh, well in that case, you don't want a pet hospital. You want a tow truck. [Hangs up]
Jon: Well, thanks for your...concern.
[Cut to night time, where we see Garfield walking down a dark street]
Garfield: Boy, it's startin' to get dark. No sweat, I can take care of myself. Fact, might be fun to rumble for some exercise. Just let someone try somethin'. I'll give 'em the old [Karate chops] hi-yah! Yah-ah! [Looks to his shadow] Shadow! Ah, I knew it was you all along. Don't ever do that again, okay? Okay. You hungry? [Nods] Me too. Let's find a place to eat.
[He walks into an alleyway, and notices a trashcan]
Garfield: Ah, this looks good. [Knocks on it] Galvanized. Not one of those cheap plastic places. [Climbs on top of a box] Bon appetit.
[He opens the lid and is immediately met with pure stench. He closes it with a disgusted look on his face]
Garfield: Yuck!
[A purple cat with a gold teeth suddenly peeks out from behind the trash can]
Ali Cat: Uh, you're out of your territory, ain't ya fella?
Garfield: Hi.
Ali Cat: This is my garbage can.
Garfield: You mean, you eat here?
Ali Cat: Mm-hm.
Garfield: Hey, how great. I mean, for you to have so much, considering the...current economic situation. [Lightly chuckles] Well, I gotta be going.
Ali Cat: Yuhh, it's not that easy, Puffball. [Walks towards Garfield]
Garfield: "Puffball"? Did you just call me..."Puffball"?
Ali Cat: Ohhhhh, that offends you? I'm sorry, Lardball.
Garfield: Well, that does it. Me and my shadow were just talking about gettin' a little exercise.
[They stare at each other for a bit, then they start trying to one-up each other as guitar music plays in the background. Eventually, Garfield manages to scare Ali away]
Garfield: Piece of cake.
[He jumps out, only to see that Ali has brought a whole gang of alley cats with him]
Garfield: This is not good.
[Ali shows off his claws; Garfield tries to do the same, but he has none]
Garfield: Come on, will ya? [Shakes his hand, but nothing happens. He then looks to his shadow] Well, Shadow, I guess it's just you and me. Let's take 'em. [His shadow runs off] Good idea. Wait for me!
[Garfield follows his shadow as they're chased by the alley cats. His shadow trips over the trash can from earlier, which Garfield bumps into while running. Garfield then hides in an abandoned building, catching his breath as the alley cats run off]
Garfield: [Looks around] Hey, this place smells familiar.
[a dark figure appears from the shadows. Garfield panics as the figure comes closer. However, the figure is soon revealed to be Garfield's mother]
Garfield's Mom: Garfield?
Garfield: Do I know you?
Garfield's Mom: Think back, Garfield.
Garfield: [Thinks for a bit] Mom?
Garfield's Mom: My little boy.
[They both purr as they rub each other affectionately]
Garfield's Mom: My, you've gotten fat.
Garfield: Hey!
[Screen fades to black. It then fades in back to Jon, who's on the phone again]
Jon: Hello, want ads? Lost and found, please. Hi. I-I wanna run an ad. [Clears throat] Missing: a beautiful, orange striped tabby cat, uh, of the large-bone persuasion, answering to the name of Garfield. Uh, when found, he'll probably be hungry. His, uh, his favorite food is lasagna, but, uh, but he'll take almost any other kind of pasta dish, say, uh, a deep dish Cavatini, uh, heavy on the meat sauce. Let's see, upon finding Garfield, please contact Jon Arbuckle anytime at 555-7722, uh, in appreciation, a generous reward is being offered. Uh...I guess that's it. Oh, by the way, how much will it cost? [Eyes widen] How much? Well, uh, in that case, have it read, "Lost. Fat, orange-striped cat. Reward." Thank you. [Hangs up]
[The next day, back at the abandoned kitchen, we see Garfield sleeping as his mom wakes him up]
Garfield's Mom: Good morning, Garfield.
Garfield: [Wakes up] Oh, good morning, Mom. For a minute there, I thought I was dreaming.
Garfield's Mom: Oh, this is real. Believe me.
[She walks away, with Garfield following, though he keeps getting his feet burned from the floor]
Garfield: Mom, this place smells so familiar, it's just driving me crazy. Where are we?
Garfield's Mom: Why, you're home, Garfield.
Garfield: Home?
Garfield's Mom: Yes, this used to be the kitchen of an Italian restaurant, you were...
Garfield: Oh! Oh, I'm startin' to remember. There was a table over there...
Garfield's Mom: Yes.
Garfield: And there was a stove over there...
Garfield's Mom: Yes.
Garfield: And a big, fat guy with
Garfield's Mom: You do remember.
Garfield: [Nods do remember.
Garfield's Mom: [Points to a bed at the corner] And over there, that's where you were born.
["Home" starts to play as Garfield reminiscences the time when he was just a kitten]
[Desirée Goyette]
Home,
Home again.
From where you never know,
Who you can call a friend,
You see the love-light shining,
And you know,
You are home.
Chef: Whoa! [Falls down and drops some lasagna]
Desirée Goyette: Home to stay.
[Flashback ends as Garfield is holding onto his blanket]
Garfield: Now I remember everything.
Garfield's Mom: Follow me, Garfield. [Walks off somewhere]
Garfield: [Follows her] I wonder where we're going.
[Garfield's mom goes through a hole in the wall; Garfield tries to do the same, but he has trouble due to his weight. Meanwhile, the alley cats from earlier peek outside]
Alley Cat 1: I, I think we found him.
Alley Cat 2: Oh, boy.
Alley Cat 1: Oh, boy.
Alley Cat 2: [Sees Garfield struggling] Yep, that's Lardball, alright.
Alley Cat 1: Oh, boy, oh, boy, we're gonna be heroes. [Chuckles]
[Garfield still has trouble getting through, but he eventually busts through, leaving the hole slightly bigger]
Garfield: [Dusting himself off] Much smaller than I remembered it. [Walks to his mom]
Garfield's Mom: This is your family, Garfield.
Garfield: Family? My family?
[He sees a bunch of cats lying around, most fairly skinny]
Garfield's Mom: Well, cousins mostly.
Garfield: Gee, they're so skinny.
Garfield's Mom: Dear, times are tough, even for mousers.
Garfield: Mousers? You mean you, uh...you, uh....uh...
Garfield's Mom: Every chance we get.
Garfield: Yeck!
Garfield's Mom: Come, dear, meet the family.
[She walks over to them, with Garfield following. She first shows him a cat watching over a window]
Garfield's Mom: Garfield, this is your cousin, Sly.
Garfield: Hi, Sly. What's happening? [Silence] How's it going? [Silence] How you doin'? [To his mom] Doesn't seem too friendly.
Garfield's Mom: He's on duty, dear. Sly is our watch cat.
Garfield: Watch cat, huh? Hey Sly, watch this. [To his mom] Fun family. I can't wait to...
[He's suddenly interrupted by someone coughing]
Garfield's Mom: And uh, this is Raoul, your brother.
Raoul: [Coughs; presumably drunk] Wow, man, that's the first time I ever seen one of them. Part cat, part house. Must be one of 'em housecats. [Wheezes] That''s pretty good. Housecat. [Wheezes some more, then starts coughing again]
Garfield: Housecat. Hysterical. So listen, everything cool? Uh, maybe we could hang out sometime?
Raoul: Eeh, pardon me, bros, I gotta catch a few more Z's. [Falls back into his box as clanking bottles are heard]
Garfield: This is so great, I'm just havin' a ball.
Garfield's Mom: Raoul isn't well.
Garfield: I'm not doin' that good myself.
[Cut to an old blue cat sleeping on some books; Garfield and his mom walk towards him]
Garfield's Mom: Garfield, this is your grandfather. Father, I'd like for you to meet Garfield.
Garfield: Hi, pleased--
Garfield's Grandfather: You're soft, boy. Too proud to work for a living?
Garfield: Well, I...
Garfield's Grandfather: So you want to be a mouser, ay, boy?
Garfield: No, I, I, do I?
Garfield's Grandfather: Well, if you want to stay here, you do. We have a tradition to uphold, my boy. Your father, your great grandfather, your great-great grandfather, we've always been mousers.
Garfield: Are they here?
Garfield's Grandfather: They drop in from time to time. Garfield, you come from a long line of bachelors.
Garfield: H'oh.
[Garfield's grandfather is about to say something when an alarm is suddenly heard.
Cat: Incoming!
[We see that Sly is the one making the siren noises as we see all the cats run off]
Cat: Topside, topside battle stations. Battle stations, everybody! Quick! Now! Topside, topside!
Garfield's Mom: Get ready to fight, dear.
Garfield: Fight? [His mom runs off] You know, there's too much fighting in the world...don't you think?
Raoul: [Grabs him from behind] Oh, cut the philosophy, chubs, let's move it.
[He runs off, with Garfield following. Garfield goes through the hole again, but once again, he can't get through. Raoul then kicks him through]
Garfield: [Rubs where he got kicked] Thanks, I needed that.
Raoul: [While holding onto his hurt foot] Oh, oh, ah, anytime, oh, ah.
[All the cats are looking outside as a faint voice is heard ("Everybody, get organized."); Garfield walks to his mom]
Garfield: What's happening?
Garfield's Mom: It's The Claws.
Garfield: The Claws?
[He looks outside and sees the gang of alley cats from last night approaching them.]
Garfield's Mom: We haven't had tthem for a l what they want.
Garfield: [While shaking nervously] I think I can guess.
[He hides as The Claws start singing"We Bad"]
[Lou Rawls + Chorus]
We bad,
We the Claws,
We bad,
We the Claws,
We bad,
We tough,
When it comes to fightin',
We can't get enough.
You better run home to your mom and your dad,
'Cause we tough and we bad
We the Claws.
We tough,
[Garfield's family starts singing as well]
Desirée Goyette: We're gonna fight,
Lou Rawls: We mean,
Desirée Goyette: We're gonna hang on,
Lou Rawls: We like to keep our territory clean,
Desirée Goyette: No cats are gonna push us around.
Lou Rawls: If you step across the line, you're had 'cause we tough, we bad.
Desirée Goyette: You may be tough,
Lou Rawls: We the Claws,
Desirée Goyette: But we are tougher,
Lou Rawls: We bad,
Desirée Goyette: Can't beat us on our home ground.
Lou Rawls: We bad!
[End of song]
Garfield's Mom: What do you want?
Ali: Lardball!
Garfield's Mom: They want someone called "Lardball."
[All the cats chatter as we pan over to Garfield cowering down]
Ali; Yeah, that fat orange striped wimp. We know he's in there, so we'll make it real simple. You throw Lardball out, we leave. If you don't, we level the place. Your choice.
[They all stare at Garfield, who's still shaking]
Garfield's Grandfather: Hm...[Garfield gets up and smiles at him]...It's tempting. Oh, he's family.
Garfield's Mom: [Looks at the Claws with an devilish smirk] We....fight.
Garfield: We fight. Hey, great.
Raoul: You are weird.
[Cut back to the Claws]
Ali: Rumblllllle!!!
[The Claws break in as they all start fighting. A black cat falls down a hole under a towel, then we cut to Ali squaring up with Raoul]
Raoul: Hey Garfield, watch this. [To Ali, while pointing upwards] Look, isn't that Haley's Comet?
[Ali looks up, then Raoul attacks him. Two large cats are coming towards a small cat, but Ali is thrown on top of them]
Garfield: Not bad.
[Soon, more cats start to pile on top of Ali, then we see all the Claws members run away. Back at the kitchen, we see many of Garfield's family licking their paws, while a lot of others are passed out. Throughout all of this, Garfield is seen cowering in fear. Both Raoul and his grandfather stare at him, causing Garfield to get up and smile]
Garfield: Hey, I guess we showed them, huh? They won't try that again. Not with this family.
[His mom walks up to him and places a hand on his shoulder]
Garfield's Grandfather: Lardball, go home.
[Garfield looks at his mom, who simply shrugs. Garfield lowers his head down and shame and begins walking out. He then looks back]
Garfield: No, please don't ask me to stay, I really have to get going.
[He begins walking away, but is interrupted by his mom]
Garfield's Mom: Garfield?
Garfield: [Walks up to her] I'm sorry I let you down, Mom.
Garfield's Mom: Oh, there's nothing to be sorry about, Garfield. Not all of us are cut out to be mousers.
Garfield: [Coughs] I'll say.
Garfield's Mom: Garfield, this is really for the best. You wouldn't survive here. You have a good life, an easy life. We all envy you.
Garfield: I'll miss you.
Garfield's Mom: I'll always be with you, Garfield. And if you ever need me, I'll be there. [Pats his paw] Now, go, dear. It's starting to get dark. Garfield, I love you. [Leaves]
Garfield: I love you too, Mom.
[He begins walking away as it fades to black. It then fades in to a bit later]
Garfield: I'm hungry. I could waste away to normal. Nah, I'm too tired to be hungry. Unh, I'm too scared to be tired. Maybe if I whistle, I won't be scared. [Attempts to whistle, but fails] What am I doin'? Cats can't whistle. I guess I'll just lie down here and...hope for somethin' big to fall on me. I can see the headline now: "Extremely Good-Looking Cat Totaled in Piano Crash." I'm gonna miss me. Now, I'm lonely. What more could possibly go wrong? [Lightening strikes, and it begins to rain] Nice touch. [He lies there until a familiar car passes by, slashing him with water] Hey. Hey! [The car drives off] Jon! [Chases after ] Jon! Jooon!
[He keeps chasing t until he gets tired and fallsinto a puddle. Odie sees him, and tries to get Jon's attention. We then see Odie walk towards Garfield as he tries to get him up. He licks him, which does the trick. As he gets up, he feels Jon's legs and looks up]
Jon: [Looks down] Is that you, Garfield? [Picks him up and carries him off]
Garfield: [Quietly] Thank you. That was enough for one day. [Jon sets him on a pillow in the car] Lasagna. [Jon pets him] Home, Jon.
[He falls asleep as "Home" plays again]
[Desirée Goyette]
Leaving all the leaving far behind.
You say I'm not free,
But I don't mind,
Because I'm home.
[Jon, Garfield, and Odie arrive home as Jon carries Garfield to his bed. The next day, Odie jumps on top of Garfield, waking him up]
Odie: [Barks]
Garfield: Yes, Odie, ya found me. [Odie runs off as Garfield looks at the mirror; Garfield sighs] Ya look bad, Garfield. What a night. [Camera zooms in] Did that really happen? Did I really meet my...Did she really? Nah.
[As "Home" plays one more time, Garfield notices someone watching him. As he looks out the window, he could briefly see his mother's tail as she walks away.
[Desirée Goyette]
In this house,
With this family,
I'm home.
Garfield: Thanks, Mom...for everything.
[The screen fades to black, ending the special. The closing credits show screencaps from the special, just in single-color backgrounds]