Where's Grandpa?

"Where's Grandpa?" is a Season 5 episode of Rugrats.

Characters Present

 * Tommy
 * Chuckie
 * Didi
 * Stu
 * Lou

Summary
When the adults accidentally leave Grandpa Lou behind at a gas station while on a road trip, can the Rugrats help in finding him? - Description from Klasky Csupo

Plot
The Pickles Family is on their way home with a dwarf banana tree they picked up from what Stu calls "The World's Most Secluded Nursery" and they have stopped at a gas station to tune up the van for the rest of the trip. Grandpa Lou is sleeping in the back on the van and waked up saying "That was the most uncomfortable nap I ever took." He pulls a squeegee out from under him realizing that is why and gives it to Tommy to hold before he hops out of the back to use the bathroom. Chuckie worries if Stu will leave without Grandpa but Tommy reassures him Stu would never do that.

Stu gets back in the van and begins to leave, surprising Tommy and Chuckie. They try to get his attention by shouting but Didi says that it's a long ride and they are trying to sing "99 Bottles of Milk on the Wall" and join along. Stu stops when he sees a sign for the "North of the Border Resort". Getting another idea, Tommy throws Grandpa's hat out the window saying if Stu sees it in the "near view mirror" he has to stop and get it and Grandpa will be able to catch up.

Back at the Gas Station, Grandpa finishes up washing his face in the bathroom, gets out, and climbs into the back of an identical red van which leaves the Gas Station. Meanwhile, Tommy has unsuccessfully thrown several object out the window and decides to throw out the squeegee which is the last item on hand. He throws it out and it makes a "thump" sound which makes Stu and Didi stop at the "North of the Border" parking lot. Back on the road, the other van is swerving about to avoid the items scattered on the road which wakes Grandpa surprising the family. He is thrown out of the van and comes upon the "North of the Border" thinking he has wound up all the way in Canada where he decides to find a phone to call the family.

As Stu is working on the van again, he tells Didi not to wake Grandpa as she goes to find the kids some food. She comes upon an igloo-shaped restaurant which she finds is awfully warms, and only serves items made with Maple Syrup. Stu finishes with the van and grabs Tommy & Chuckie and walks them past Grandpa, who has stopped to use a payphone but cannot find his wallet which Tommy threw on the road. Stu wishes to stay at the Resort for sightseeing but Didi reminds him about the tree and decides to get food to go. Tommy & Chuckie get worried that they will leave without Grandpa again and decide to go find him, worrying Stu and Didi when they depart. Tommy & Chuckie see Grandpa trying to get help from some people in the square. When Chuckie runs to get him, he runs into a large hockey player cutout freaking out. Stu runs up to grab Chuckie and gets him out of the way just in time for all the cutouts to fall on him instead. Tommy & Chuckie see Grandpa at "Niagara Falls" where he tells two other people he went over the Falls in 1946 and remembered them as being a lot bigger. Tommy & Chuckie decide to get to Grandpa by riding a train nearby where the ride operator is telling a woman the ride is closed for maintenance. Tommy & Chuckie hop on the train and a test ride begins.

Back at thew Falls, Grandpa is trying to ask the other tourists for a ride back home when he sees two rangers and worries he'll be arrested for not having a legal ID. He hides in a nearby barrel when Stu and Didi come by to find the kids. When they see them on the train, Didi runs off and knocks the barrel into the Falls sending Grandpa over. Chasing after the train, Stu is trying to catch the kids while Didi messes with the controls trying to stop the train, but accidentally switching the train's path to an unfinished track. Panicking, she tells Stu to hurry. The train stops short of the track end which is over a cliff where Tommy & Chuckie hop off. Stu stops to catch a break but the train begins rolling backward down the hill. Back the the Falls, Grandpa gets out of the barrel and sees Tommy & Chuckie. Grandpa reunites with them and then Didi shows up thinking he was asleep the whole time and then Stu continues running being chased out of the parking lot by the train.

Later that night, the family is back on the road, unable to save the tree but Tommy & Chuckie are happily asleep. Stu says he is unable to drive fast enough to save the tree because they are driving home from "Canada" which Grandpa does not find funny.

Trivia

 * Grandpa Lou claims to have gone over Niagara Falls in a barrel in 1946.
 * During the scene where Chuckie says "Oh no, Grandpa's not here no more!", there is a plant which slightly resembles Grandpa Lou's hair, as if he was standing with his back turned to Tommy and Chuckie and not noticing them.
 * Moral: Always make sure everyone on a trip with you is present and accounted for.

Goofs

 * Throughout the episode, the "Yukon Ho" train ride's whistle keeps alternating between a traditional steam whistle and a diesel locomotive horn.