Buster's New Friend (episode)

	"Buster's New Friend"
	Main image; Title card;
Season/Series:	1
Number in season:	13B
Original Airdate:	October 23, 1996; January 22, 1997; December 28, 2001;
	Credits
Written by:	Matt Steinglass
Storyboard by:	Jean Lajeunesse
	Episodes
Previous; "So Long, Spanky"	Next; "Arthur the Wrecker"

This article is about the episode. You may be looking for the book.

"Buster's New Friend" is the second half of the thirteenth episode in the first season of Arthur. It was later adapted into the book Buster's New Friend.

Summary

Arthur is lonely when Buster starts spending time with a new super-cool friend named Mike.

Plot

Arthur is explaining stuff in his room that brings back good memories, such as a red softball from when Arthur and Buster got chased by a house painter for accidentally throwing the ball into his paint can and getting paint all over the painter, a Bionic Bunny poster that Arthur and Buster got autographed by Bionic Bunny himself from the ice show in person, and the magnet that was from the time when Arthur and Buster almost stopped being friends forever.

Buster's New Friend

Arthur is sitting in the living room with a magnet, using it to pick up a key. D.W. comes in and asks Arthur what the magnet is for. Arthur tells her it's for the science project that he's doing with Buster, and that Buster is coming over to watch Bionic Bunny with him and then they will work on the project together.

D.W. points out that the show is starting and Arthur says that Buster will be there because he always makes it in time. During the show, D.W. suggests that maybe Buster doesn't like Bionic Bunny anymore. Arthur thinks that Buster is just running late. The episode of Bionic Bunny finally ends and Buster never showed up. Arthur believes that something has gone wrong and he goes to the phone to call Buster's mom at work. She tells Arthur that Buster has gone miniature golfing with his new friend Mike.

The next day at school Buster tells Arthur about how good Mike is at mini golfing and has really cool cds. Arthur asks if the 3 of them could do something together sometime and Buster says sure and that Mike could help them with their science project so Arthur invites them to his house to work on the project and Buster says they'll be there. That afternoon, Jane Read brings up some snacks popcorn and juice for the boys while Arthur waits for them. Buster and Mike never show up, so Arthur has to work without them.

Eventually, Jane comes up and asks where they are; Arthur says they must have forgotten which saddens him because he believes they've done that on purpose. The next day at school, Arthur tells Francine, Brain and Muffy that he doesn't see Buster so much anymore. The three of them tell Arthur that Buster was supposed to hang out with or help each of them out recently, but he never came such as being the catcher for a baseball game, helping Muffy buy a new bike, and playing a game with Brain over the Internet. The friends decide to give Buster the silent treatment so he will understand how he has been ignoring them. When Buster comes to sit down, he is too busy talking about him and Mike bowling, as well as all the tips he learned saying you have to be strong like Mike to turn the bowling ball over to get great force and knock over more pins and their plans for tonight going to a science fiction film about people getting eaten to notice. Buster then leaves to get more food and while Francine is satisfied, Arthur decides to take more action though.

Back in class, Buster asks Arthur what their project should be since not much has been done. Arthur yells at Buster, saying he has already done lots of work on the project while Buster was out bowling yesterday. Arthur then withdraws his partnership with Buster on the project despite Buster's insistence. When Mr. Ratburn calls on each of the students to share what their project is and their progress so far, he asks Buster first, but a surprised Buster tells Mr. Ratburn he doesn't know what he's doing. Mr. Ratburn then tells Buster that he would like to talk to him after class.

At home, Arthur gets rid of all the things Buster gave him, declaring their friendship over. He tries to drag everything to Buster's house but runs into Buster himself. While Buster apologizes to Arthur, he is still very sore with Buster.

On the way to the house, Buster tells Arthur that while he is spending time with Mike a lot these days, Arthur is still his best friend. Eventually, Arthur starts to calm down about it, and explains the project to Buster and soon, they go inside to watch Bionic Bunny. Afterward, Buster tells Arthur Mike will be by soon with his car, and he could help get the box back to Arthur's house.

Arthur is getting fed up with Buster boasting about Mike. While he understands that Mike could be great at mini golf and bowling, he has a hard time believing that Mike can drive. When Mike arrives, Arthur discovers Mike is not a kid, but a Big Brother- part of the Big Brother Big Sister program at the community center (Buster's mom signed him up since he needed "older male influence"). They soon head back to Arthur's house to work on the project.

Characters

Major

Minor

Cameo

Trivia

This is the first and only major appearance of Mike.
Although the title is not read on BBC Kid's The Spot, Binky says the title when it aired on PBS Kids.
You can see Arthur typing the Baxters' phone number. It is 555–1212.
Moral: Don't hang out with someone else without telling your best friend for your own benefits.
Although it is never shown it is most likely the science fiction movie where people get eaten that Mike took Buster to see is most likely a parody of Jurassic Park.

Episode Connections

The Big Brother/Big Sister program is similar to the Big Buddy program offered by Lakewood Elementary. That program was prominently shown in "Arthur's First Day".

Errors

When Francine says "Tell me about it" in the cafeteria, Jenna's face is darker than normal.

Production Notes

The Hebrew dub uses the Arthur Underwater title card.

Home video

VHS:

Arthur's Birthday

DVD:

Arthur: The Complete Series One

Gallery

Screenshots

References

[1] ttps://web.archive.org/web/19970723021343/http://www.ket.org/Visions/Oct96/VL961023.html

[2] ttps://web.archive.org/web/20130719100407/http://ww3.tvo.org/program/157024/arthur/#1997

[3] ttps://www.fernsehserien.de/erdferkel-arthur-und-seine-freunde/episodenguide/staffel-1/3906/2

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