| Tail of the Dogbot | Gallery | Transcript |
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"Tail of the Dogbot" is first segment of the third episode of the first season of the 2021 series of Rugrats. It premiered on Paramount+ on May 27th, 2021.
Characters Present
Character Introduced
Summary
Tommy's dad Stu invents a robot dog that's allergy-free for Chuckie and Chas, but not necessarily problem-free. - Description from Paramount+
Plot
The Rugrats babies are all outside playing ball with Spike. Chuckie tells Tommy that he sometimes wishes he had a dog like Spike. Tommy, Susie, Phil, and Lil tell him they can be his doggie friends and start acting like dogs, though Phil warns him he's a "drooler." They all pile together until Chuckie, giggling, tells them it's enough. He kicks the ball towards Chas and Didi and Stu both comment on how happy Chuckie looks playing with Spike. Stu slaps Chas on the shoulder, saying that every kid should have a pet. Chas agrees that this is absolutely true unless they're allergic to dog hair like him. Stu reminisces about his own dog, Mookie, but says that Chas only ever had a goldfish. Chas replies that it's okay, that he's learned to accept what he can't control. Stu asks what if he could control it and takes off, Didi shouting after him that it takes three to plant rhubarb.
He races to the garage, where he gets inventing. Working day and night, he finally presents Chas with his big project: Rusty, a robot dog. He tells Chas that Rusty is great because he's completely hypoallergenic and won't die after three days, but Chas replies that he's just not a "dog guy." Stu tells him it already really is, but Chas is still skeptical when the dog says he has to go potty, saying he has enough issues with that with Chuckie. Stu shows him that the dog actually poops jellybeans. He shows Chas some of the dog's other features and Chas reluctantly agrees that they can try and see if Chuckie likes him. In the morning, they present the dog to Chuckie, who is immediately freaked out by his glowing red eyes. They promise the dog won't hurt him as he cowers under his blankets.
In the yard, Chuckie orders the dog to stay put, but it keeps following around, asking him to pet him. He finally gives in and starts to have fun with the dog, playing games of hide-and-seek and fetch. They continue to play happily and watching from inside, Chas tells Stu that "When you're right, you're right." Chuckie introduces the babies to Rusty. They're a bit skeptical of him even being a dog at first, but Susie soon enjoys a lick from the dog, and they are all entertained by the dog pooping jellybeans. That evening, Chuckie goes to bed with Rusty in his room, but is still creeped out by his glowing red eyes. A car banging outside then sets off Rusty's protection mode, sounding a loud alarm. Chas panics, running into Chuckie's room and searching frantically for the remote. Unable to find it, he shouts for Stu, who reaches over and shuts off the alarm by pressing a keypad on the dog's bottom. Chas tells Stu he doesn't think it's working out, but Stu replies that he'll just recalibrate Rusty to be more helpful. In the morning, Chuckie joins the babies without Rusty. Tommy asks where he is and Chuckie tells him he sneaked away from him, that he's been acting weird and scary, despite Stu's "fixes."
The dog arrives and Tommy says he doesn't look scary, suggesting they play ball. Chuckie agrees and they all sit down together, but the dog keeps pushing the ball back to Chuckie. Chuckie scolds him, telling him he's not supposed to do that, but the dog ends up kicking the ball so high up it knocks a satellite out of orbit. Tommy then suggests they play "Reptar Attaack," but the dog snatches Tommy's toy, giving it to Chuckie. They all end up in a tug-of-war for the toy, and manage to get it back, but it's all dirty and stretched out. The dog then snatches up Chuckie in his mouth, saying that it's time to go home. Susie comments that she had a feeling it would end like this. Back at his home, Chuckie draws pictures of his friends, imagining past times with them. Chas, seeing how sad Chuckie is, declares that they're giving Rusty back to Stu. He steps into Chuckie's room determinedly, but the dog identifies him as a "dog catcher." Chas panics, wondering why Stu would even program a dog catcher mode. The dog chases after him and he manages to trap him briefly in a piano, searching wildly for the remote.
The dog chases him outside and up a tree. Chuckie follows and tells the other babies they have to save his daddy. Tommy steps forward with his screwdriver. He taps the dog on his back panel and the dog does not notice, being locked in on Chas. Chuckie then taps a button, causing the dog to rocket away. Stu watches as it rockets off to parts unknown. "There it goes," he comments. "Probably my most perfect imperfect invention." Didi tells him it's not true, that he's been hundreds, and Chas comes down from the tree, saying he thought the dog was going to eat him. Stu promises to build another one, but Chas tells him he doesn't want one. Stu shouts that Chuckie needs a pet, but Didi tells Stu that Chas is saying he might want a nice, simple pet for Chuckie, like a hermit crab. Chas agrees that this a very quiet and sensitive species and Stu admits that sometimes he gets carried away. Spike runs over to Chuckie and licks him. Chuckie comments that he doesn't need his own bestest doggie friend after all, and Tommy agrees that he has all his friends right there. He, Chuckie, Susie and Spike all hug, while Phil and Lil continue to snack on the jellybeans from Rusty.
Trivia
- The events of this episode will be retold in the upcoming tie-in book release Beware of Dogbot!
- This is the second episode of the reboot where Angelica doesn't appear.
- This episode could be a reference to Goddard from Jimmy Neutron, but also seems like a reference to the simple fact that toy robotic dogs like Poo-Chi and Tekno (and even non-toy robot dogs such as AIBO) were super popular in the late-90's/early-2000's when Rugrats was still pretty popular.