It's a Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special is the 20th episode of the third season of Tiny Toon Adventures, and the 98th episode overall. It is the Christmas-themed episode of the series, as well as the series finale. It was written by Sherri Stoner and Deanna Oliver, and directed by Jon McClenahan. It’s a parody of the 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life, with Buster Bunny in the role of George Bailey.
Summary[]
It's Christmas Eve, and Babs Bunny, Li'l Sneezer, Hamton Pig and even Plucky Duck are praying to help Buster. God is talking to Harvey, telling him about Buster Bunny, who’s considering quitting his job. He shows him a flashback from earlier that day.
In the flashback, the Tiny Toons were at Acme Looniversity, filming the Christmas Special, when Montana Max arrived in a wheelchair, interrupting the special. Buster told Monty he's late, and Monty told him he was skiing in Aspen with Morgan Fairchild, and broke his leg. Because of his broken leg, Buster cut him from the special. To get revenge, Monty planned to sabotage the special.
Plucky was ready to perform his sketch, "Plucky the Red-Beaked Reinduck", but Buster told him about the rewrite, with the yellow pages, telling him, "Now it's Urkel the Red-Nosed Reindude." As he prepared for the Ebenezer Sneezer sketch, Montana Max snuck upstage and poured pepper all over Sneezer, causing him to sneeze and destroy the set.
Plucky was ready to perform his next sketch, "Plucky the Lonely Fruitcake Nobody Wanted for Christmas", but Buster told him about the new rewrite with the pink pages, telling him, "Now it's Urkel the Lonely Fruitcake." Plucky was outraged, and as a result, was unprepared for any future rewrites. During the "Cher and Cher Alike" sketch, Buster sent Babs on the ice so he could whisper to Cher privately. Monty, who knew about Babs' relationship with Buster, told Babs that Buster is flirting with Cher. Babs didn't want to believe him, but she wasn't so sure. As they sang, Babs sang altered lyrics describing her feelings toward Cher about Buster, as Monty cut a hole in the floor which led to a tank of piranhas. Buster cut the sketch, and asked Babs what happened. She told him, "Your new girlfriend fell through the ice."
Buster was more disappointed than before, and asked if anyone wanted to move on. Plucky, unprepared for any future rewrites, asked Buster if there were any new ones. Buster, who knew how much Plucky wanted a part on the show, allowed him to do his "Little Drummer Duck" sketch, much to Plucky's relief. Monty sabotaged the microphones, putting sicks of dynamite in their places. As William Shatner sang, the microphones exploded. Buster cut the sketch, and decided to cancel the special. Everyone was mad at him. Monty was put in charge of the special, and Buster apologized for all the trouble he put his friends through. He left sadly, and his friends realized maybe they were too hard on him. Under the advice of Shirley the Loon, they decided to pray for him.
In the second act, Buster wishes he was never on Tiny Toon Adventures, so that he wouldn't let his friends down. Harvey, a rabbit, is sent as Buster's guardian angel. Harvey tells him that his wish is granted, and shows him what Acme Acres would be like if Buster was never born.
In the timeline without Buster, Acme Acres is now Montyville. Without him, Monty was put in charge of the show, and Plucky was made the star. Babs took all the abuse while Plucky played all the parts. Buster is outraged, as Babs was his best friend, and he hated seeing her hurt, so he storms the set. But Alternate Plucky doesn't remember Buster in this timeline, as Buster was never born, and he mistakes him for a riffraff fanboy. He calls this universe's counterparts of Arnold and Sneezer, who is named Sleazer in this timeline, to remove him from the studio.
Buster hopes that someone from Acme Looniversity will remember him in the timeline. Unfortunately, without him, Acme Looniversity was bought out by Monty and renamed Montana Max's Business Looniversity. Inside, Monty tells the students they will be working shorter days on Christmas, eighteen hours to be precise, while he goes skiing in Aspen with Morgan Fairchild. Inside Buster's homeroom, none of the Looney Tunes were present, and instead, the toons were being taught to be sexy rather than funny.
Buster is still puzzled as to all these changes, so Harvey tells him that he doesn't exist anymore, because he was never born to alter the timeline. Buster, who has caught on now, asks to see what Babs Bunny was like if he was never born. Harvey tells him Babs is in the viewing library, so he goes there. He finds Alternate Babs watching Looney Tunes cartoons, but not finding them funny. She is upset, because she doesn't have a best friend, specifically a co-star who cares about her. Buster and Babs meet for the first time in this alternate timeline, and her catchphrase, "No Relation," suddenly makes sense. Buster thinks someone finally remembers him in this timeline, but she then tells him that Plucky is the star of Tiny Toon Adventures, not him. She thinks he is a stalker, and runs away. Buster decides to take back his wish, so he can be on Tiny Toons. Harvey grants him his wish, but tells him he will have to wait a few minutes, because of the commercial break.
In the third act, Buster's wish is granted and Acme Acres is back to normal. Babs recognizes him, and he is happy that Acme Acres is back to normal. Back at Acme Looniversity, Monty's Christmas Special is a disaster, and almost everyone agrees that Monty is a terrible director. When Buster returns, they are happy to see him. Monty is fired, and Buster is rehired. Buster decides to put Monty in his special after all, as the star. Babs is still mad at Buster, and wants to know why he was whispering to Cher. Cher tells her he wanted to know what to get her for Christmas. Babs asks what she suggested, and Buster gives her a kiss, which causes her to melt in a puddle.
The Toons perform the finale and it is a success, but Monty is the star on top of the Christmas Tree. He doesn't want to be the star of the show anymore, as he’s unable to escape from Elmyra. Babs tells Buster that if he ever feels like a loser again, he should remember that, "No toon is a failure who has friends." Harvey then reveals himself as Bugs Bunny, and leaves the studio.
Allusions[]
- The title and plot parody the 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life. It even utilizes some of the film's music, including the leitmotif of "Buffalo Gals, Won't You Come Out Tonight" in the opening credits, and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" for the leitmotif of the angels. At one point, Montyville Babs watches a Porky Pig cartoon where he gives Petunia the moon, just like young George Bailey said he would do for Mary in the film. In another film, Pepé Le Pew sprays himself with a perfume labeled "ZuZu's Petals", which was one of the things George held dear to him at the end. When Harvey reveals himself to be his guardian toon angel, Buster sarcastically says he is Frank Capra, who was the director of the film. Throughout the episode, Montana Max is in a wheelchair, claiming he had an accident while skiing in Aspen with Morgan Fairchild, a reference to Lionel Barrymore's portrayal of Mr. Potter. Barrymore really was wheelchair bound while filming, and his disability was written into the film but never explained.
- Harvey is named after the play and later film of the same name where Jimmy Stewart played a man with an invisible rabbit friend named Harvey. In addition, the voice used for Harvey is an impression of Stewart.
- In the beginning, Buster and Babs sled down the hill using the Rosebud sled from the 1941 movie Citizen Kane.
- Parody versions of The Grinch and his dog, Max, appear in the beginning of this episode.
- A parody version of Sam the Snowman from the 1964 Rankin/Bass adaptation of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer appears in the beginning of this episode. Also, the name of one of Plucky's sketches, Plucky the Red-Beaked Reinduck, which was later rewritten as Urkel the Red-Nosed Reindude, parodies the title of the song on which the special is based.
- In addition to Cher and William Shatner, the celebrity guest stars at the rehearsals include Bob Hope, who plays the Ghost of Christmas Past in Sneezer's sketch, and Luke Perry, whom Plucky insultingly addresses as "Mr. 'I Star in a Show About Zip Codes'".
- During the Ebenezer Sneezer sketch, Bob Hope, who plays the Ghost of Christmas Past, mentions Sneezer is "Cuter than those twins on that Saget Show," an obvious reference to the sitcom Full House starring Bob Saget as Danny Tanner and Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen as Michelle Tanner.
- In the alternate timeline, Bugs/Harvey reads a newspaper with the headline "Encino Man Wins Best Pic Oscar" referring to the Pauly Shore film Encino Man, a notorious box office flop for Disney.
- Buster asks Harvey if he is actually Dick Clark, which he denies, in addition to denying being Ed McMahon. This is a reference to McMahon and Clark's TV series Bloopers and Practical Jokes, which was previously referenced in "The Return of Batduck".
- Buster says he feels like he is in a bad episode of Quantum Leap.
- There is a brief cameo of Whoopi Goldberg asking for money for Comic Relief, a charity organization, together with Billy Crystal and Robin Williams hanging from a wire, dressed as Peter Pan, a reference to the movie Hook, directed by Steven Spielberg, whom Buster even greets and hugs near the end of the episode. Buster wishes him a happy Hanukkah, since Spielberg is Jewish.
- During the closing song, the line "If your Christmas tree's pathetic" has visuals of Buster and Babs as Charlie Brown and Lucy Van Pelt, respectively, complete with the tree from A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Trivia[]
- This special was the last thirty-minute Tiny Toon Adventures episode produced, as well as the last episode to air on Fox Kids. Although this is the show's season finale, the episode "Toons from the Crypt", which was never aired on Fox, would eventually air on Nickelodeon in reruns and syndication from Fall 1995 up until 2000.
- When Plucky refers to working on "some chipmunk show," there has been some fan debate on which chipmunk show it would be: Chip 'n' Dale Rescue Rangers, which had earlier been briefly parodied on the show, or Alvin and The Chipmunks, which has had a Christmas Special, involving the song "Christmas Don't Be Late!"
- This episode features an exclusive end tag; Gogo Dodo says, "Season's Greetings!" using the exact same animation as his normal end tag, "It's Been Surreal!"
- William Shatner is called "The Parum-Pum Man" in the closing credits.
- In the alternate timeline, when Plucky accuses Buster of being a spy from Disney, Warner Bros.' business rival. He even says, "Nice try, Katzenberg!" A reference to Jeffrey Katzenberg, chairman of Disney.
- This is the third and final episode animated by Startoons, the first two being "Henny Youngman Day" and "Thirteensomething".
- In this episode, Hamton celebrates Hanukkah and has a menorah in his house, which is funny, since pork is not considered kosher.
Cast[]
| Voice Actors: | Character(s): |
| John Kassir | Buster Bunny |
| Tress MacNeille | Babs Bunny, Cher, Madonna |
| Joe Alaskey | Plucky Duck, Edward |
| Don Messick | Hamton J. Pig |
| Cree Summer | Elmyra Duff, Whoopi Goldberg |
| Danny Cooksey | Montana Max |
| Frank Welker | Furrball, Gogo Dodo |
| Rob Paulsen | Arnold the Pit Bull, Luke Perry |
| Kath Soucie | Li'l Sneezer |
| Gail Matthius | Shirley the Loon |
| Greg Burson | Porky Pig, Pepé Le Pew, Bugs Bunny |
| Dan Castellaneta | Harvey, Blue Grinch |
| Tony Pope | God |
| Valri Bromfield | Fran |
| Maurice LaMarche | William Shatner, Bob Hope |
| Noel Blanc | Bugs Bunny |
Quotes[]
- Plucky (Praying for God to protect Buster): "Please take care of him, I beg You! Otherwise Tiny Toons will be cancelled and I'll have to work on some chipmunk show!"
- Blue Grinch: "All the Shmagoos down in Shmagooville..."
- Buster: "All right, let's move on to..."
Plucky: "Plucky the Red-Beaked Reinduck!"
Buster: "Plucky, didn't you get the rewrite? The new pages are yellow, see, now it's Urkel the Red-Nosed Reindude."
Plucky: "Shoot me."
- Bob Hope: "Hey, Hi, I'm the ghost of Christmas Past. I've seen so many past Christmases, I gave camel-riding lessons to the Three Wise Men.
- Edward (After Sneezer sneezes and destroys the set): "Ah ha ha ha, now this is good."
Fran: "You are so lost, Edward."
Edward: "Yes, I am."
Sneezer: "God Bless Me, everyone!"
- Cher (After escaping from the piranha tank): "Hey, I love this! Eat your heart out, Bob Mackie!"
- Cher: "I gave up A Cosby Family Christmas to do this!"
- God: "So, Harvey, this is where we came in. Any questions?"
- Harvey: "Yeah, how come he's not wearing any pants?"
- Harvey: "I'm your guardian toon angel."
- Buster (sarcastically): "Yeah, and I'm Frank Capra."
- Alternate Plucky's Tiny Toons Lyrics:
Alternate Plucky: "I'm tiny, I'm toony, I'm just a little looney, and every afternoony, I'm invading your TV,"
Alternate Babs (unenthusiastically): "I'm Babsy."
Alternate Plucky: "I'm Plucky!"
Alternate Babs (unenthusiastically): "I work with him, I'm lucky."
Alternate Plucky: "For Tiny Toons I won the Best Performance By A Duck Emmy!
Well, I'm Plucky Duck, and I'm a zany mega star,
There's lots of other Tiny Toons, but who cares who they are?"
Alternate Babs, Calamity, Beeper, and Shirley (unenthusiastically): "He's Plucky the Mallard, he's funnier than Kaye Ballard, it's Tiny Toon Adventures, come and join the fun."
Alternate Plucky: "And now my song is done. Yeah!"
- Alternate Plucky: "Hiya, Holiday Ducksters! I'm Plucky Duck."
Alternate Babs: "And I'm Babs Bunny."
Alternate Plucky and Babs: "No relation."
Alternate Babs: "How could we be related? He's a duck, I'm a rabbit. I don't get it."
- Buster: "Stop! You can't drop an anvil on Babs, what are you, Goofy?"
Alternate Plucky: "No, I'm Plucky Duck, and I resent that comparison. What are you, a spy from Disney?"
- Buster: "I feel like I'm in a bad episode of Quantum Leap."
- Harvey: "Join the club."
- Alternate Shirley: "How can I become a successful actress?"
Madonna: "Just wear your underwear on the outside and Warners will give you a multi-million dollar deal."
- Buster: "I don't get it."
- Harvey: "Oh, brother. Le-let me spell it out nice and plain. YOU WERE NEVER ON TINY TOONS!!!!! YOU NEVER EXISTED!!!!! AND EVERYTHING IS DIFFERENT NOW!!!! Get it?"
- Buster: "Got it."
- Harvey: "Good."
- Buster: "I take it back! I wanna be on Tiny Toons! Please let me back!"
- Harvey: "Yeah, well, I see what I can do. We gotta wait a couple of minutes, though."
- Buster: "Why?"
- Harvey: "Commercials."
- Buster: "Oh."
- Babs: "Let's go, laughing boy. Monty's special really..."
Plucky: "Stinks! It stinks! This stinks! Away to the bank, I drove in a dash, / I opened a C.D. and deposited cash. You call that funny?"
Monty (laughing nervously: "I like it, don't you?"
Fran: "He is so lost."
Edward: "Yes, he is."
Plucky (as he tosses the script on the floor): "I quit!"
Elmyra (comes in, dressed like Leona Helmsley): "I don't want to play Leona Helmsley!"
- Buster: "Okay, guys. Let's set up for the finale."
- Cher: "You got it, babe."
- Babs: "That reminds me. I'm still mad at you. What were you whispering to her about anyway?"
- Buster: "Well..."
- Cher: "He wanted to know what to get you for Christmas."
- Babs: "Oh." (nervous laugh) "So, uh, what'd she suggest? A tattoo?"
- Buster: "No. This." (kisses her)
- Babs: "Oh." (melts into the floor)
- Harvey: "Not bad..." (pulls of his mask to reveal...)
- Bugs: "...for amateurs."
Transcript[]
- To read this episode's transcript, click here.
Gallery[]
- Main article: It's a Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special/Gallery
Home Video Releases[]
