| "Bitzi's Break-up" | |
| Season/Series: | Season 8 |
|---|---|
| Number in season: | 1b |
| Original Airdate: |  September 15, 2003[1] January 21, 2004[3] November 16, 2006[2] |
| Credits | |
| Written by: | Peter K. Hirsch |
| Storyboard by: | Jeremy O'Neill |
| Episodes | |
| Previous "Dear Adil" |
Next "Fernfern and the Secret of Moose Mountain" |
| Read transcript |
"Bitzi's Break-up" is the second half of the first episode in the eighth season of Arthur.
Summary
Bitzi is breaking up with her boyfriend, Buster's baseball buddy Harry. Can Buster get them back together in time for the next game? And if not, can Buster and Harry stay friends anyway?
Plot
Intro
Buster is walking home from the circus with his mom Bitzi and her boyfriend Harry Mills. Harry mentions that he has to get home, but Buster suggests they all get something to eat at the Sugar Bowl. Buster points out the sandwich called The Harry Mills Meatball Experience, which is named after Harry. At the table, Bitzi mentions to Buster that she and Harry have something they would like to talk to him about, but Buster is too busy reading the newspaper. He notices that a new animated movie House Wars is playing, and dashes out the door to go. Harry and Bitzi leave as well, but thinking something is wrong, Buster sadly lets go of his balloon from the circus, and it floats away.
Main Story
Buster is laying in bed throwing an autographed baseball into his glove. His mom comes in to talk to him, but he pretends to be asleep. When she leaves, he wakes up and continues throwing his baseball into his glove sadly. The next day, Buster tries to rush off to school early without breakfast, but his mom stops him and tells him to have breakfast while she talks to him about something. At first, Buster thinks that it's because Harry is moving away because he's decided to get a new job, requiring him to move out of Elwood City. He is happy when Bitzi tells him that Harry isn't going anywhere, but becomes shocked when he finds out that his mom's news is that she and Harry are breaking up. Later in the treehouse, Buster tells Arthur that he's upset that Harry and his Mom are breaking up because he enjoyed going to Elwood City Grebes baseball games with Harry. A flashback occurs where Harry and Buster are at a game: a Grebe throws a badly thrown baseball, and lands in Harry's drink, but Harry and Buster are happy to get it. Buster mentions that he can't go with his mom because she doesn't like baseball. When Arthur suggests that Buster's mom might get a new boyfriend, Buster imagines that his mom gets a boyfriend named Martin Spivack who works in an insurance company, and is very boring and doesn't want to spend time with Buster. Buster decides that his mom and Harry can't break up and goes to Muffy for advice. Muffy assumes that Buster has come to her about winning Sue Ellen, but he insists that it's about his mom. Muffy gives him a love magazine to help him get his mom and Harry back together.
First, at the Elwood City Times, Buster drops off a secret invitation from his mom at Harry's office. Despite Buster using too much of his mom's perfume, and his misspelling of "dinner" as "diner", Harry is convinced that Buster's mom is inviting him to dinner at their apartment. Buster then looks for some flowers: he is about to pick a stranger's flowers off his lawn until he is stopped, and instead goes to the park to get some. He tries to order some food from a restaurant, but finds it to be too expensive and buys a $0.99 pizza instead. He takes everything home and sets up the dinner with love music from Tyrone Bellows. Bitzi arrives home, surprised to see Buster's setup, and even more surprised when Harry shows up. As Bitzi and Harry argue, Harry mentions Bitzi's invitation that she never wrote. Buster tells them they shouldn't be fighting and that they should be making up, but his Mom tells him that she doesn't want to Harry to take him back because she broke up with him. That night, she explains to him that the reason she broke up with Harry was because she is too busy for a relationship. Still disappointed, Buster goes to sleep.
The next day after school, Buster gives Muffy her magazine back, and tells her that his Mom and Harry didn't get back together. Then Harry shows up and tells Buster that although he and Buster's mom broke up, they are still friends, and that he and Buster can still go to Grebes games. Then they go to the Sugar Bowl where they enjoy a new salami, Swiss cheese and peanut butter sandwich. As the episode ends, Harry and Buster leave to go to a Grebes game, and Buster's mom gets her sandwich to go, which is shown on the sandwich menu as The Buster.
Characters
Major
Minor
Cameo
Trivia
- When Buster tells his mom that he thought Harry was becoming a pilot, it could be a reference that Buster's father is a pilot.
- Buster wears Arthur's elephant nose disguise he wore at Crazy Bus LIVE in Play it Again, D.W.
- Harry brings over Bitzi's favorite dessert, a Boston cream pie. It's also mentioned as Buster and Harry's favorite when they first meet in the episode Bitzi's Beau.
- Muffy mentions her love for the Backstreet Boys, who were special guest stars in Arthur - It's Only Rock 'n' Roll.
Cultural references
- House Wars is a parody of Star Wars.
- As Buster looks through his condo's records for music, he mentions that some of them are from folk-singing trio Peter, Paul and Mary.
- Bitzi tells Parker to get pictures of the new bug wing at the museum. This could be a reference to Peter Parker, the secret identity of Spider-Man from Marvel Comics, who works at a newspaper and is often assigned to get pictures of Spider-Man.
Gallery
References