Down the Drain

"Down the Drain" is the 37th episode belonging to Season 2 of the Rugrats TV series.

Characters Present

 * Tommy
 * Chuckie
 * Angelica
 * Didi
 * Chas
 * Drew
 * Plumber
 * Cynthia

Synopsis
''When Angelica tells Tommy and Chuckie that they can be sucked down the drain when they take a bath, they decide to prevent that from happening by filling the tub with sand and other things. Will Angelica get her comeuppance for lying?'' - Description from Klasky Csupo

Summary
The episode begins one night at the Pickles' house, as Tommy is playing with one of his toy soldiers in the bathtub. Didi is watching him nearby as he crawls over to the drain plug and pulls on it. The drain drains all the water, delighting Tommy, until the toy soldier floats towards the drain. Tommy watches as the toy soldier gets sucked down the drain, and worried it might happen to him as well, he cries, which gets the attention of Didi, who is brushing her teeth. Didi then picks Tommy up out of the bathtub and asks him if something scared him.

The next morning, Didi takes Tommy and Angelica to Chuckie's house. When Angelica runs up to the front door, she rings the doorbell repeatedly. Chas answers it, and Angelica tells him he's looking well, and that his hair has grown back. She then asks him if she can play with Chuckie's toys. Chas tells her she can, and Angelica runs in before he can tell her where they are. Didi then sets Tommy down and gives Chas several of Tommy's diaper bags. Chas then tells Didi that he's sure he has everything Tommy will ever need at his house. Didi then tells Chas she'd like to talk to him alone outside, and shuts the door. Outside, Didi explains to Chas that Tommy had a scare last night, and is going through his water rejection stage. Tommy and Chuckie watch through the window as Chas explains to Didi that he went through the same experience with Chuckie, and he assures her that if he can get Chuckie to take a bath, he can surely do the same with Tommy. As they walk away, Tommy sadly tells Chuckie that last night, when he took his bath, he almost got sucked down the drain. Chuckie tells Tommy that he used to be just like him; he used to think he could get sucked down the drain as well, and then one day, he heard a voice that told him the truth. Tommy asks Chuckie what the voice was, and Chuckie tells him to follow him so he can show him.

In Chuckie's bedroom, Chuckie plays a record that plays a song that explains that you can't get sucked down the drain. Chuckie asks Tommy if he thinks the song is great, and Tommy tells him it's the best song he's ever heard. Just before the record player can finish the song, Angelica smashes it with a baseball bat. She then asks Tommy and Chuckie if they're afraid of going down the drain. Tommy denies it, and asks her why she thinks it. Angelica tells Tommy that the only reason anyone would listen to the song, which she calls dumb, is because they're afraid of going down the drain. Chuckie tells Angelica the song isn't dumb, and it's true, as you can't get sucked down the drain. Angelica tells Tommy and Chuckie that the song isn't true, and that you can get sucked down the drain. Tommy gulps nervously and asks Angelica if that's true, and Angelica tells him it is. She then tells him a story (which she obviously made up) about a kid who lived a few streets away from Chuckie's house. Angelica tells Tommy and Chuckie that in her story, the kid always did what his parents told him, and never thought twice about going down the drain, until one night, when he was taking his bath. It was during that time, the drain sucked up everything in its path. Even though he tried to swim away, the drain pulled him in, and the next thing his parents knew, he was gone. After Angelica finishes her story, she tells Tommy and Chuckie not to let anybody tell them they can't get sucked down the drain, because they can, big time! As she leaves Chuckie's bedroom, she says to herself that she fooled Tommy and Chuckie. An unsure Tommy then asks Chuckie if the song is true, or if Angelica's true. Chuckie doesn't respond, and Tommy asks him if he's listening. Chuckie then rips up his record's sleeve and screams in horror.

Chas opens his closet and looks around. He finds his bathtime puppet friends, Mr. Dirt and Mr. Water, deciding they're just what he needs to help Tommy get through his water rejection stage.

Back in Chuckie's bedroom, Chuckie asks Tommy, who is pacing the floor, what they're gonna do. Tommy tells Chuckie he's thinking, and Chuckie tells him to hurry. Just then, Tommy has an idea. Chuckie asks him what the idea is, and Tommy asks him if Chas is going to bathe them tonight. Chuckie tells him he is, and Tommy asks him if they don't want to get sucked down the drain. Chuckie tells him they don't, and Tommy tells him that all they need to do is plug up the drain. Chuckie asks Tommy how that's possible, and Tommy asks Chuckie if he has any clay-doh.

As Chas practices his impressions of Mr. Dirt and Mr. Water, Tommy and Chuckie, the latter of whom is carrying a Reptar lunchbox, sneak past him, and go into the bathroom. Tommy watches as Chas leaves, and Chuckie helps Tommy get into the bathtub. Once he's in, Tommy tells Chuckie to hand him the clay-doh. Chuckie opens the lunchbox and hands Tommy the can of clay-doh, telling him to be careful with it, as it is tricky, and he never knows what it might do. Tommy tells Chuckie not to worry as he opens the can, which falls into the bathtub. Tommy and Chuckie scream in fear and duck as this happens. They then see the can has landed in the bathtub, and Tommy walks up to the drain. He pulls the clay-doh out of the can and puts in in the drain, then uses a toy hammer and a toy knife to spread it over the drain. After he's finished, Chuckie pulls him out of the bathtub, and he tells him they plugged up the drain. Chuckie then asks Tommy how they'll know if the drain's plugged up for good. Tommy then tells Chuckie that there's only one way to find out, and he walks up to the bathtub faucet and turns the water on. The water is kept in the bathtub thanks to the clay-doh plugging up the drain, and the bathtub quickly begins to overflow. Tommy and Chuckie watch as this happen, as does Angelica when she comes in. She is impressed with the overflowing bathtub, then, just to rat Tommy and Chuckie out, she tells Chas that they made a mess in the bathroom. Chas comes into the bathroom, then screams in horror when he sees the water from the bathtub leak onto the floors.

Chas calls the Royal Flush Plumbing company, and a few minutes later, a truck stops at his house. As the Plumber unclogs the drain, Chas asks him if it's bad, and the Plumber tells him that while it isn't too bad, since it is a house call, it's going to cost him. Chas then tells him that he expected this, as the only money plumbers ever make is off of house calls.

Tommy and Chuckie are now outside, sitting sadly in the sandbox. Angelica walks up to them and tells them they had a good effort with the clay-doh, but it sadly didn't work. Tommy tells her that after he and Chuckie take their bath tonight, they'll be gone forever. Angelica then tells Tommy and Chuckie that it's too bad they can't bathe in sand instead of water, and asks them if they agree. Tommy and Chuckie tell her they do, and Angelica tells them that the best things about sand are that it can fit just about anywhere, and it's very easy to move, as they can carry it in a bucket. This suddenly gives Tommy and Chuckie an idea; they'll use sand to plug up the drain.

Back inside Chuckie's house, Chas tells the Plumber he hopes it wasn't too much trouble, and the Plumber tells him it was no trouble at all as he hands him a bill. The Plumber leaves, then Chas looks around for his puppets. Tommy watches from behind the doorway, and tells Chuckie the coast is clear.

A few minutes later, Tommy and Chuckie transfer the entire supply of sand from Chuckie's sandbox into the bathtub. Tommy tells Chuckie that, with a sand-filled bathtub, there's no way they can go down the drain now. Chuckie tells Tommy that he agrees, and that they sure had a great idea, then wonders how they thought of it. Chas, who has just found his puppets, finds Tommy and Chuckie in the bathroom, and tries to tell them he'd like to meet Mr. Dirt and Mr. Water, but then is shocked to see his entire bathtub filled with sand.

After Chas calls the Royal Flush Plumbing company again, the Plumber returns and drains all the sand out of the bathtub with a vacuum hose. After the job is finished, Chas thanks the Plumber with his puppets, then does so normally, telling him he's glad to have him come back on such short notice. The Plumber then says, "No, thank you!", as he writes up another bill and hands it to Chas.

Inside the bathroom, Angelica places her Cynthia doll onto the toilet seat, pretending the toilet is a jacuzzi. She asks Cynthia if she wants her to turn the bubbles on, the flushes the toilet to simulate the bubbles. Tommy and Chuckie run back up to the now-empty bathtub, and Tommy tells Chuckie that after tonight, they'll be gone. Angelica walks up to Tommy and Chuckie and asks them if they're giving up already. Tommy tells her that he and Chuckie are, as they tried everything they could. They plugged up the drain with clay-doh and sand, but it's no use, unless she has an idea. Angelica tells them she doesn't, and that they're goners. Angelica then walks up to Cynthia and tells her that her plan worked, as now Tommy and Chuckie think they can get sucked down the drain. Karma soon catches up with Angelica, as when she flushes the toilet again, she accidentally knocks Cynthia into it, causing Cynthia to get flushed down. When Angelica sees Cynthia get flushed down the toilet, she screams her name in horror.

Drew drives his car into the driveway of Chuckie's house, and as he goes into the house, Angelica runs up to him, begging for him to let Cynthia be okay. Tommy and Chuckie witness this, and Chuckie tells Tommy that Angelica sure seems upset. Tommy tells Chuckie that Angelica's older than them and she surely won't care about what happens to Cynthia. Angelica screams in horror as the Plumber, who has just disassembled the toilet, reaches in and pulls a very dirty Cynthia out, which he hands to Angelica. Angelica screams in horror again when she sees the state of Cynthia, and as Drew leads her to his car so they can go back home, Tommy and Chuckie look out the window and hear Angelica saying that people can get sucked down the drain after all. After they close the curtains, Chas tells them it's time for their bath. Tommy and Chuckie run away and scream in fear. Chas is worried he might have scared them with his puppets, and tells them it's only him. He follows them into his bedroom, and finds them hiding under his bed. HE then realizes that getting them to take a bath may be more difficult then he thought.

When Chas finally bathes Tommy and Chuckie, he tells them that the water isn't scary. In fact, it's their friend. He then tries to explain the scientific definition of water, until the phone rings. As he leaves to answer the phone, he tells Tommy and Chuckie to stay in the tub, and not to move, as he will be right back. Chas answers the phone, and Drew is on the other end. Drew tells him about Angelica's experience with the toilet, and Chas tells him not to feel bad about it. The doorbell then rings, and Chas tells Didi to come in. As Chas continues talking to Drew, Chuckie tells Tommy that so far, they're still in the bathtub, but they have to get out before Chas pulls the drain plug. Tommy then looks over at the plug and crawls towards it. Chuckie asks Tommy what he's doing, and Tommy tells him that he's going to pull the drain plug. Chuckie asks Tommy why he's doing that, as their bath is almost over. Tommy tells Chuckie that this bath may be almost over, but then asks him if it'll be the same for any future baths. He then asks Chuckie if he's going to be afraid forever, and Chuckie tells them that it works for him. Tommy tells Chuckie that it may be fine for him, but he doesn't want to be afraid anymore, as he has to know whether or not people can get sucked down the drain. Chuckie covers his eyes as Tommy pulls the drain plug. The drain drains the water, and Tommy puts his foot over it, realizing that even a little baby like him is much too big to fit down the bathtub drain, and he and Chuckie were both afraid for nothing the whole time. He laughs happily, and Chuckie uncovers his eyes, seeing that Tommy is still in the bathtub. He then realizes that he and Tommy don't have to be afraid anymore, and crawls up to Tommy. Chas and Didi walk into the bathroom as the former tries to explain the situation to the latter, but Didi is surprised to see Tommy and Chuckie playing happily in the bathtub, and tells Chas that he cured Tommy of his water phobia. She then tells Chas that he is an expert in getting children to take baths, and Chas thanks her with his Mr. Dirt puppet. Tommy and Chuckie continue playing happily in the bathtub as the episode ends.

Trivia

 * It's possible this episode takes place chronologically after "Chuckie's First Haircut", since Angelica says that Chas' hair has grown back.
 * Clay-Doh is a parody of the real life (and always popular) brand Play-Doh.
 * This episode is seen on the Diapered Duo VHS.
 * Karma: Angelica's Cynthia doll gets flushed down the toilet after teasing Tommy and Chuckie about the drain, and think it's true.
 * A portion of Chas' address is revealed in this episode: The house number: 7721. (The full address was somewhat revealed in "Chuckie is Rich").


 * Moral: Face your fears and Don’t believe stuff that isn’t true.