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"Halt! Officer Odie orders you to stop and help!"
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(The episode opens above Jon’s house. Birds fly overhead as Garfield walks out the back door into the yard wearing a hat and sunglasses and holding a Coke bottle in his paw, heading for a lawn chair)
Garfield: Humming (He hops into the chair and crosses his legs) Sigh (He takes a sip from the bottle as the camera lowers to his level. He smacks his lips) Ah! (He wiggles his toes) Life is good. You’re watching your favorite show and I'm about to watch mine: (He leans forward and uncrosses his legs) Odie chasing squirrels. (He points to the tree in the corner of the backyard. Odie’s barks can be heard in the distance while a squirrel climbs down the tree trunk)
Odie: Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark!
Garfield: (to the audience) It’s showtime! (He lifts his hat and lowers his sunglasses for a moment, and then turns around to watch Odie and the squirrel)
Odie: Barks repeatedly (He does this a lot throughout the chase, so it’s hard to keep track. What I do know is Odie runs up to the tree, climbs over a root and circles around it. He pauses in front of the tree, wondering where the squirrel went) Huh? (He taps his head with his ear, thinking. The squirrel appears behind him on the trunk) Hmm…Sniffs (Thanks to his powerful nose, he catches the squirrel’s scent. He turns around and sees it) Huh? (The squirrel hops off the tree and gives Odie a kiss on the nose before scurrying up the tree)
Squirrel: Kiss!
Odie: Bark! Bark! Angry mutters (Garfield waves his paw at the scene in disgust)
Garfield: Yuck! (He leans forward, lowers his shades and waves his paw for the audience) That squirrel has no idea where that nose has been. (The squirrel bounces off Garfield’s tummy. When the fat cat sits up to see who did that, Odie does the same thing, knocking Garfield and the chair flat on the ground. He sits up, a little dazed while the squirrel ducks into the tree’s knothole and out the other end on a high branch. Odie can’t follow it through the hole, so he growls at it)
Odie: Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Angry mutters Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Mutters (The squirrel, loving the game, runs back down. Odie furiously digs at the tree's base. The squirrel runs down the trunk and hops off, Odie too preoccupied with his digging to notice. In a move resembling something out of Looney Tunes, the squirrel stands next to Odie, watching him dig. They exchange a momentary glance, Odie continues digging, and the realization sets in that the squirrel is next to him. He glares at it, and it gives him another kiss on the nose)
Squirrel: Smooch!
Odie: Bark! (They chase resumes) Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! (Behind them, Garfield had fixed his setup and watches)
Garfield: (while pointing) Laughs Oh this is my favorite thing in the WHOLE world! (He points up. Inside, Jon has prepared lunch, or breakfast, some kind of meal)
Jon: Garfield!
Garfield: Huh? (He turns around. Jon opens the door)
Jon: Your lasagna’s ready!
Garfield: After that. (He lifts his shades and raises his eyebrows at the audience. While Odie chases the squirrel, the Tubby Tabby pauses to eat) We’ll be right back with more of “The Odie and the Squirrel Show” right after this brief timeout for pasta! (He wags his finger at the viewers while Odie and the squirrel run in circles around the tree)
Odie: Barks
Squirrel: Chitters (They break from their tree loop and the squirrel leaps into the back of a passing truck bed filled with a pile of leaves. Odie is now chasing a squirrel while chasing a car. He skids into the street and follows)
Odie: Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! (The squirrel watches from on top of the leaf pile. He folds his arms, unimpressed)
(After a while, they reach the big city. The squirrel gets off near the park and dives through two of the bars in the fence)
Squirrel: Chitters
Odie: Bark! (One of the fence posts is slightly bent, allowing the diligent dog to squeeze his head through them and resume the pursuit)
Squirrel: Chitters
Odie: Repetitive barks (Out of the park and down the sidewalk they go, only stopping at an intersection because the light is red, similar to what Garfield and Crusher the Bulldog did in the Season 2 episode Garfield Astray. Calm elevator-type music plays as they wait for the light to change, and when it does, they are off to the races and the music picks back up. Odie follows the squirrel into an alley) Angry mutters (The squirrel dives through a hole in a picket fence at the end of the alley, but the pup hits it at full speed) Oof! Wow… (He is a bit dazed. The picket then rotates around) Yowl! (He is pushed to the other side. He is sprawled on the ground, his tongue hanging from his mouth, imaginary squirrels circling his head as if they were stars or birds. Nearby, the squirrel he was chasing taunts him from a stump)
Squirrel: Yodels
Odie: Huh? (He quickly shakes off the concussion and spots the squirrel dancing and mocking him. The squirrel hops away and hides in the wool of a grazing sheep. Odie dives in after it. What follows is the classic cartoon chase gag where the chase-ee appears in a different place than where it began and the chaser is left where he started. In this case, the squirrel pops his head up in a different sheep’s wool and Odie is still in the first sheep’s wool. They both hide, and then appear in different spots, and do this a handful of times until three Odies appear in the three sheep. Eventually, they wind up in the same wool and the puppy chases the squirrel out of the pasture)
Squirrel: Chitters
Odie: Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark!
(Back at the house, evening has set in. Jon is pacing the dining room, concerned for Odie while Garfield is licking his plate)
Jon: I’m worried, Garfield. Odie never wanders away for this long. (He looks at Garfield) How can you just sit there and eat your dinner? (He slams his hands into the table, catching the Flabby Tabby by surprise)
Garfield: I’m not eating my dinner, (He shakes his head) I'm eating HIS dinner.
Jon: I’m going to drive around the neighborhood. Maybe I'll spot him! (He heads for his car. Garfield remains behind)
Garfield: (while putting his hands to his mouth, calling for someone) Jon? Jon? Gee, where did he go? He must be missing. (He grabs Jon’s plate and the lasagna upon it) Looks like I'll have to eat HIS dinner, too! (He tosses the lasagna into his mouth) Chewing noises (He slurps the remains off the plate)
(Meanwhile, Odie and the squirrel have not stopped their chase. They must have been at this for hours, since it was daytime when they started and it is nighttime now. Nevertheless, Odie hears the sounds of wild animals around him. He stops for a moment and examines his surroundings. He may not be smart, but he sees he’s lost in the middle of the woods at night. The squirrel disappears behind a rock, leaving Odie alone. He crouches down, terrified by the noises that surround him: growls, screeches, rustling of leaves, to name a few)
Odie: Whimpers Bark! Whimpers (In a panic, he bolts) Bark! Bark! Bark! (He stumbles upon a log cabin. He runs up to it, hoping for a respite) Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! (The door creaks open)
Old Man: Laugh Spot! Spot! (Odie crouches down again, not knowing what the man will do to him) Laughs It’s you! (He picks up Odie and takes him inside)
Odie: Bark! Huh? (The Old Man closes the door)
(The next day, while a bluebird sings, Jon is still worried for Odie. He walks up to the Tubby Tabby, who is in his chair)
Jon: It’s been almost 24 hours since he disappeared. I just printed these up. (He shows Garfield the “Lost Dog” posters he made) I’m going to post them all over town! Someone’s GOT to have seen him! (He heads out)
Garfield: Alright, it’s time for the cat to solve this. (He holds his finger up and zips off the chair) I’ll find Odie and I'll start by looking…hmm… (He holds his finger to his lips, thinking) I don't even know where to start. (He holds his finger up) I think I'm gonna need some help. (He zips away)
(In the alley next to Vito’s, he meets with three other cats, Lucky, Myron, and Harry. They do not seem thrilled about Garfield’s idea)
Myron: What’s in it for us?
Lucky: Yeah, give us one good reason why we should be looking for a dog.
Garfield: Odie is my best friend. (Rare praise coming from Garfield. Despite this reason, the cats still are not on board)
Cats: Overlapping chatter (Most of it is negative, including “That’s a terrible reason!” from Lucky. Garfield interrupts them)
Garfield: OK, OK, (He points at his feline friends) here’s another very good reason: (He puts his hands on his hips) you’re supporting characters on this show. (He points at the ground) Help me or you’ll never be on it again. (Nice fourth wall break. The cats reconsider)
Cats: Gasp! (They huddle up and discuss it) Overlapping chatter (This time it’s positive, like “That’s a good reason and I’m in.” from Harry. Garfield kept his word, as all three of them would make appearances in later episodes)
Garfield: Good! You all fan out and look for Odie (He points vaguely in some direction) while I coordinate the operation. (He puts his hand under his chin and narrows his eyes, thinking. The cats spread out in different directions)
Cat: Overlapping chatter
Garfield: Good! (He holds his finger up) Now I'll begin coordinating the operation. (He does that by walking through the side door of Vito’s and sitting at a table. He snaps his fingers and addresses the audience) Of course, you can’t coordinate an operation on an empty stomach. (He rubs his tummy. Vito sets a plate of spaghetti down in front of him)
Vito: Laughs (Garfield smacks his lips and rubs his paws together hungrily)
(Elsewhere, the search party has begun looking for him. Jon puts up posters on light posts and on store windows. Myron is nearby, scanning the area for any trace of Odie. Harry looks inside a garbage can, and Lucky gets quite unlucky when he checks the pound and gets chased out of it by Rottweiler)
Rottweiler: Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Grrrr!
Lucky: Pants
(Jon nails a sign to a palm tree, and then gets hit on the head by a coconut)
Jon: Oof! (Another coconut falls into the camera, transitioning to Lucky pinned down by Rottweiler)
Lucky: Whimpers (He desperately shows him the “Lost Dog” sign)
Rottweiler: Whimpers (He shakes his head no) GRRRR! (Lucky’s pupils get small and he trembles with fear at what’s going to happen to him. Vito serves Garfield a pizza, which he eats with a fork and knife for whatever reason and Harry checks another trash can, this one is so disgusting green mist rises from it)
Harry: Yuck! (Another alley cat rises from the can and looks at Harry, informing him that Odie is not in there)
(Meanwhile, Jon has stuck dozens of “Lost Dog” posters along the same fence, and even some on a construction vehicle parked where the fence is broken. The muscular construction worker sees him do this and furious)
Construction Worker: Grrr!
Jon: Yah! (He walks up to Garfield with the bucket of paste on his head and some of his posters stuck to him) Whimpers (Garfield’s cat friends run up to him and give their reports. All of them are visibly exhausted)
Harry: We looked everywhere!
Lucky: Nobody’s seen him.
Myron: Nobody.
Garfield: How do you lose a tongue that long? (He holds his finger up) Alright, it’s time for Sherlock Garfield to take over! (The cats lean in, surprised)
Lucky: Sherlock Garfield?
Harry: Chuckle (He puts his paw up to his mouth so Garfield can’t hear) He thinks he’s a detective.
Garfield: I am! (He points up and then points vaguely in front of him, standing like a statue) Come with me, time is of the essence, Odie may be in great danger. (Even if he rarely admits it, he cares a great deal for Odie)
(Meanwhile, the Old Man has welcomed Odie in with open arms, believing that Odie is a different dog)
Old Man: Laughs It’s great to have you back, Spot! (Inside, the man sits on his sofa and Odie sits in front of him. He wears big glasses on his face) The minute I heard you bark, (He points at Odie) I KNEW it was you! I said, “At last! (Odie shakes his head no, as if gently trying to say, “I’m not who you think I am.”) My faithful Spot (Odie tilts his head and blinks, clearly confused) has come back to me!”
Odie: Moan Mutters (The old man shakes his head)
Old Man: I don’t see so well these days, but I know your bark anywhere, Spot! It’s been so lonely (Odie hops away and looks around) living here all by myself since you went away.
Odie: Hm. (He bends down and smells the floor as the old man continues) Sniff! Sniff! Sniff! Sniff!
Old Man: (continuing) I’ve missed you SOOOOO much! (Odie glances behind him) You’re not gonna run away again on me, are ya? (He holds his hands together. The big-hearted beagle feels sorry for the man)
Odie: Sigh. Uh-uh. (He shakes his head no and decides to stay)
Old Man: Good boy! (He pets Odie’s head) Laugh Good boy!
Odie: Mutters (He is clearly unhappy and homesick, but doesn’t have the heart to just abandon the lonely man)
(Back at Jon’s house, Garfield and his feline friends are assembled in Jon’s office. Garfield wears a Sherlock Holmes outfit as he searches on the computer)
Garfield: Jon is still out putting out posters, so I can use his computer. (Harry stands on tiptoe to get a better look. Lucky looks around at Jon’s office)
Lucky: Hey, you live in a real nice house, Garfield.
Garfield: The city has closed-circuit video cameras all over the streets to catch drivers running red lights.
Myron: Gasp!
Garfield: (continuing) I’ve hacked into the city’s computer,
Myron: Oh!
Garfield: (continuing) and reconstructed Odie’s journey.
Myron: How did you learn to do all that?
Garfield: Necessity. (He pushes himself away from the computer and turns his chair to Myron. He holds a finger up) One night a pizza delivery from Vito’s was running late and I had to track it. (He turns back to the computer) The squirrel jumped onto the truck, (The screen shows parts of Odie’s chase with the squirrel) and Odie being Odie went after him. (Garfield puts his hand to his mouth, thinking) He chased the truck across town until he reached the park, and that’s where we lose his trail, (He points to Harry) in the park. And that (He spins 180 degrees in the chair, hops out, and points to the door) is where we’re going!
Harry: Whatever you say, Garf. (He and Myron follow, but Lucky is too distracted looking at the office to notice. Garfield is quick to drag him along, too)
Garfield: C’mon, Lucky! (He grabs Lucky and pulls him along, even down the stairs)
Lucky: Oh sure, Garfield. I was just wondering why Odie or anyone (He grabs the banister before Garfield can leave, stopping the fat cat’s progress) would wanna run away from a nice place like this. (Garfield turns to him)
Garfield: You never had a home?
Lucky: Never! I’m just one of those feral cats living in the street and under buildings my whole life.
Garfield: Oh, you’ll get taken someday, Lucky. (Lucky hops off the banister)
Lucky: I’m afraid Lucky isn’t so lucky.
Garfield: Huh?
Lucky: (continuing) Hey, we gotta go find your pal, Odie!
Garfield: Hmm… (He puts his paw to his lips, thinking)
Lucky: (continuing) Let’s roll! (He dashes out the door)
Garfield: Wha! Wait for me! (He chases after him)
(The cats assemble at the park’s entrance, the last place Garfield saw Odie on the security cameras. Garfield himself looks through a magnifying glass at the gate’s bars)
Garfield: Gentlemen, I have come (Behind him, Lucky stands on tiptoe to get a better view) to the expert scientific opinion that this is absolutely…nothing. (He stands up straight, looking sad) Harry, (He extends his paw to Harry, waiting for him to put something in) slobber detector solution. (Harry puts a spray can into Garfield’s open paw. He sprays a blue mist onto the ground and looks through his magnifier again. He spots Odie’s drool) Traces of doggy drool. Ah! I knew it! (He follows the trail, spraying the mist on the ground as he goes. His fellow felines follow)
Cats: Panting (They run down the street, retracing Odie’s steps until they run down an alley and up to the fence. Garfield stops at a loose board)
Garfield: The doggy drool seems to lead to that fence. (He leans against it, and it flips around like it did to Odie earlier) Yelp! (The cats cling onto the fence and look down at the Flabby Tabby, who is head over heels on the ground) Moan! (He quickly gathers himself and looks at a hair through his magnifying glass) Observe. Heh. red squirrel hair. (He hears the sheep baaing in the pasture next to him. He sees them and aims his glass at one of them) A possible witness.
Lucky: (visibly and audibly confused) You’re gonna interrogate a sheep?
Garfield: Of course! He may have seen Odie.
Harry: But sheep are dumb. (This insult is heard by one of the sheep) They only go, “Baaa!” (To their surprise, the sheep responds)
Sheep: Baa yourself, fella! You’re looking for that annoying puppy?
Garfield: Yes we are! (He points his magnifier at the sheep once more) Could you tell us where he went, oh wooly one?
Sheep: He went into that forest. (He gestures toward the forest with his head. The Tubby Tabby runs in that direction)
Garfield: Thanks.
Sheep: (rolling his eyes) Don’t mention it. (The other cats follow, but the sheep turns and growls at them) Grr!
Cats: Whimper Yowl! (With them gone, he resumes his grazing)
(The cats have reassembled and are now walking through the path in the forest)
Harry: This is a very large forest.
Lucky: I used to live under some of these trees. (Everyone stops and looks at Lucky) There’s an old man who lives in a cabin down that way. (He points to his left. They all look in that direction)
Garfield: Odie likes to be around people. (He taps his magnifying glass against his chin, thinking and putting the pieces together) Let’s go see if he went there! (He points and leads his friends further down the path)
(Back at the cabin, the Old Man is calling for “Spot”)
Old Man: Spot! Eh, Spot? Where are you? (Odie secretly and silently tries slipping out the door, crouching and covering most of his eyes with his ears) I found one of your old doggy toys! (He squeaks it a few times as Odie descends the steps) Here you can play with it…YAH! (Odie hears a thud from inside, causing him to stop and look back) Spot! (Odie’s heart is filled with compassion and he looks sorry for the man) SPOOOOT!! (His good nature takes over and he runs back inside to help)
Odie: Bark! Bark! Bark! (The old man is lying on the ground on the rug)
Old Man: I slipped on that little rug. (Odie screeches to a halt in front of him as the man rubs his head) I don’t think I'm hurt, but I can't get up. Give me a hand, please! Or…or a paw, or something. (Odie, now walking on his hind legs, steps over and tries to help him up)
Odie: Mutters (He grabs the man’s hand and pulls with all his might) Strains (His best efforts are to no avail. He pulls so hard he flies backwards) Yelp!
(Nearby, the cats continue down the path)
Harry: This is a waste of time!
Myron: You’ll never find him. (Right after he says this, they all hear a loud howl)
Odie: Howl! (Garfield stops in his tracks. The other three cats fall backwards in surprise) Howl! Bark! Bark! Bark!
Garfield: (to Myron) “Never find him,” huh? That’s Odie! (They pick up the pace and start running)
Myron: The barks! They’re coming from that cabin! (They get closer and closer and quickly burst through the front door)
Garfield: Odie! (The pup looks behind him and sees his best friend) Laughs Aww! (Odie runs over to him and they exchange hugs. The compassionate canine licks Garfield’s face about nine times, happy to see him again) I’m glad to see you too, boy! Hey, what were you doing here? Who’s that man? (Odie explains what happened)
Odie: Mutters Bark!
Harry: What’s he saying?
Myron: I don’t know. I don’t speak dog.
Garfield: (while pointing his magnifying glass at the man) This old fella think’s Odie’s his long-lost dog Spot! C’mon, let’s help him get up. (Thanks to the extra paws, the five of them push the old man back onto his feet)
Old Man: Thank you, eh, thank you, Spot! (He pats Garfield’s head) You’re a very good, loyal dog, Spot. (The other three cats watch in stunned silence) I hope you NEVER leave me again! (They look at each other and blink)
Garfield: Odie doesn’t know what to do. He wants to go home, but this man sure seems to need his loyal dog, Spot. (Harry and Myron, their job being done, leave the cabin and head back home)
Harry: Yeah, well that’s not my problem.
Myron: Mine neither. (Lucky, however, stands in the doorway with Garfield, watching the other cats leave. Behind him, the Flabby Tabby sees the man pet Odie, and the puppy rubs his head on the man’s leg)
Odie: Whimpers
Old Man: Laughs
Garfield: Hmm… (He puts his finger to his chin again) of COURSE I have an idea! Lucky, you said you always wanted a home.
Lucky: Yeah, more than anything!
Garfield: Can you bark? (He holds his finger up)
Lucky: (slightly surprised) Like a dog? Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! (The Tubby Tabby takes Lucky by the paw and walks him inside)
Garfield: Congratulations! I hereby appoint you the new Spot! Welcome home!
Lucky: Deep breath (He smiles a large smile, happy to finally have a home)
(As for Garfield and Odie, the former rides the latter like a cowboy on a horse. Garfield waves Lucky good-bye)
Garfield: We’ll be back in our house in no time! (The door closes and Lucky sits on the couch with the Old Man)
Old Man: Like I was saying, it’s so great to have you back in my home, Spot!
Lucky: Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Meow! (After his mistaken meow, he corrects himself) Ahem, bark!
Old Man: Good dog! (He pets Lucky on the head, and they both could not be happier) Good dog!
(Meanwhile, Garfield and Odie are headed home)
Garfield: You missed four meals, (He holds up four fingers) but don’t worry. I ate them for you.
Odie: Aw, thank you.
Garfield: (Holding his finger up) You should be home in time for dinner! (At that moment, the squirrel from earlier leaps in front of Odie, stopping him in his tracks. The squirrel raises its eyebrows a couple of times and then kisses Odie on the nose again)
Squirrel: Kisses
Garfield: Chuckles (Odie chases after it again)
Odie: Repeated barks
Garfield: (to the audience) Oh, look, my favorite show is on again! Plus, (He holds up a finger) it looks like I’m gonna get (He hops off of Odie) an extra dinner. (He turns and winks at the viewers and runs off in a different direction. As Odie chases the squirrel down the path, the episode closes)
THE END