Same plot, different cartoon

[Sidewinder1984]

Can anyone think of any particular plot outlines to episodes of cartoons that were used on different shows?

I was thinking about the plot idea of a bully coming to settle with one of the show's protagonists, and the protagonist thinks he's gonna get beat up, but it turns out, the former bully just wants to apologize some how. It's been used in at least 3 different cartoon shows, and perhaps maybe more.

-In the Catillac Cats episode "High Goon", Riff Raff gets word that Cleo's ex-boyfriend is coming to town to meet Riff Raff, and Riff thinks he's gonna get his butt kicked, but it turns out the guy just wants to apologize.

-In one of the "U.S. Acres" episodes from Garfield & Friends, Orson re-encounters a former bully who gives him back all the money he took from him in school.

-An episode of "Rocko's Modern Life" did the same plot, but satirized it. Rocko's former bully became a peacenik, but still asked for Rocko to punch him in the nose. Rocko does so, reluctantly. Later The former bully gets attacked by Heffer and Filbert.

Another example: the Bonkers episode "Time Wounds All Heels", where a convict (not a bully, but you get the idea) that Lucky put away years before comes after him, leading Lucky to fear for his life - but it turns out the prisoner only wanted to thank him for steering him towards the right path.

About repeated plots, yeah, there are a lot of stock plots that get re-used in both cartoons and live-action. A less common one was the idea of a villain with an obsession with stealing cheap stuff, which was done on both Kim Possible's "Low Budget" and Stripperella's "Crime Doesn't Pay...No, Really, It Doesn't"

 

[Antiyonder]

Oh definitely. Talespin had just a bit more substance to it than Ducktales did, and would often take a very different approach to the same subject matter. There was a certain maturity to Talespin that Ducktales lacked.

Still, I did like the bit of the episode where Scrooge had tv dinners with Mrs. Crackshell.

 

[The Huntsman]

A less common one was the idea of a villain with an obsession with stealing cheap stuff, which was done on both Kim Possible's "Low Budget"...

I hardly consider $6,000,000,000 to be “cheap stuff”. Frugal Lucre may have been cheap in his methods, but his demand of a dollar from every individual on the planet would have yielded quite a pay off. It was really absurd that his plan was mocked as much as it was.

 

[Elven Moon]

I definitely see the "two places at a time" plot sometimes. Where the character believes they can totally pull off dating two girls on the same evening, or whathaveyou. They're eventually caught, of course. I've seen this used in Hey Arnold, for example.

 

[tb4000]

Every so often, when the writers are stuck for ideas and the big bosses need a script within the next ten minutes (no two ways about it), they'll usually fashion a story around characters taking care of an inanimate object like it was a child.

Of all the shows this 'quote-unquote' plot was used on (including "Batman Beyond", "Danny Phantom", "Hey Arnold!" and "Kim Possible"), "Pepper Ann" produced the only half-way decent episode.

I can honestly say that with few exceptions, every tv show that has featured kids in school has had at least one episode where they've had to pretend some random object is a baby, and they have to take care of it, and even though the thing is damaged beyond repair they still pass.

 

[FlooterFlatter]

How about the one where the character gets a criminal arrested, only to have him escape from prison and vows revenge, leading all the main characters to go into hiding, where the criminal finds anyway, but saved at the last second.

It was used in "Flintstones" and also in "Family Guy." This isn't animated, but "Kenan and Kell" did this plotline as well (although they didn't go into hiding)

 

[Kryten]

How about those episodes where every character except one gets the flu, and that one character has to wait on the others hand and foot? Pretty much EVERY cartoon has done that one at some point.

 

[Jave]

Both shows also did episodes where the main characters shrink themselves to ant size (In Ducktales, Scrooge messes with an alien shrink ray to increase his wealth and ends up shrinking himself, the nephews and Webby; In TaleSpin, a mad scientist accidentally shrinks Molly and Baloo and Kit have to shrink down inside the Sea Duck to rescue her.)

In another instance, both did episodes where it's lead characters got amnesia (Baloo from a plane accident, Scrooge when he tripped on the nephews newest skateboard)

Wow, Talespin and Ducktales had a LOT of duplicate plots...

An episode of the original TMNT did that too. Raph overhears a conversation between Mike and Don where they say that "It's only a matter of hours now". Raph thinks they're referring to him, but they're talking about the oven. "It's not fair! We had so many pizzas left to share!"

 

[cyde]

Another recycled storyline is when you you save some one's life and the saved vows to be a slave for life, only to make your life a mess so you got to get the other one to save your life, thus breaking debt. Also, the old, get rich quick, only to pay a huge amount of what you won to the IRS, or for that matter, give what you won to an orphanage and/or old folks' home, something like that.

 

[The Huntsman]

I believe a decent amount of animated programs have borrowed from Cyrano de Bergerac and used a plot where an individual is in love with somebody, but due to their lack of confidence, a friend helps them out by writing their love letters for them and generally telling them what to do in order to woo their love. I’m describing it poorly, but the “Brandy & Mr. Whiskers” episode entitled “Cyranosaurus Rex” made use of that plot, as did the “101 Dalmatians: The Series” episode entitled “Swine Song”.

 

[Dr.Pepper]

Did anyone mention the one where people shrink and go in someone else's body. That happened on Kids Next Door, Dexter's Lab, Cow & Chicken, Jimmy Neutron, Magic School Bus, Rugrats...

 

[Brandon Pierce]

Did anyone mention the one where people shrink and go in someone else's body. That happened on Kids Next Door, Dexter's Lab, Cow & Chicken, Jimmy Neutron, Magic School Bus, Rugrats...

And the Angry Beavers' episode "Vantastic Voyage"

 

[Mavericker]

Why do people compare Family Guy to the Simpsons? I think the stuff they used to do on Family Guy was coincidence.

 

[AlgeaX]

Why do people compare Family Guy to the Simpsons? I think the stuff they used to do on Family Guy was coincidence.

1) Both are irreverent animated sitcoms featuring a dysfunctional American nuclear family.

2) Both star a fat, lazy, stupid father figure who acts as a stand-in for the average working Joe.

3) Both have a satirical style of humour that targets public figures, social conventions and pop culture.

There are of course many differences but they're close enough in genre, target audience and creative goals to compare them fairly.

 

[stephane dumas]

Talespin and Ducktales also did episodes in which a character (Baloo and Scrooge) believe they're going to die after another character (Kit and the nephews) breaks something (a navigational compass and a grandfather clock) and a repairman's phone call is mistaken for a fatal doctor's diagnosis.

I'm not sure but the plot of something broken like the grandfather clock who was mistaken for a fatal doctor's diagnosis was also used in an episode of TopCat. TopCat tells the doctor to check for its clock and Agent Quigley listen to the door thinking then the doc taught it was about TopCat condition.

 

[cyde]

I'm not sure but the plot of something broken like the grandfather clock who was mistaken for a fatal doctor's diagnosis was also used in an episode of TopCat. TopCat tells the doctor to check for its clock and Agent Quigley listen to the door thinking then the doc taught it was about TopCat condition.

I thought it was Officer Dibble.

 

[Tash]

It's been years since I've seen the Ducktales "amnesia" episode. Is that the one where Scrooge believes he's a homeless person?

Batman: the animated series reused that plot, too.

 

[George3000]

I don't know if this was already mentioned, but how about those plots where one character switches places with another character, such as DuckTales, Fairly OddParents, and Jimmy Neutron.

 

[Shawn Hopkins]

How many cartoons have had their characters go to some kind of island or other paradise where they're treated well, only to find out the primitive villagers want to sacrifice them to appease an angry god, usually by throwing them in a volcano? I know it happened in the Garfield In Paradise special and it used to seem so prevalent when I was a kid that it annoyed me.

 

[Toon Out]

What about these recycled plots:

The "Gremlin" Plot: Cute, innocent new pet turns into a monster.


The "New Best Friend" Plot: New character is introduced and becomes friends to one of the characters. Old friend feels left out as their friend spends more time with new character (who seems to "better" then the Old friend). Old friend finds out the new character is evil and trys to warn their friend, only to be accused of being jealous by their former friend.


The "Team Up" Plot: Main Character is trapped along with usually mean rival character and must learn to work together in order to get out of their current situation, learns rival may not be as bad as they thought, although relationship with rival will return to the status quo by the end of the episode.


"The Most Dangerous Game" Plot: Big game hunter decides he needs a new challenge, and decides to hunt the main characters, only to end up becoming the hunted himself.


The "A Christmas Carol" Plot: Charles Dickens' story retold using show's main characters.