Original air date: 10/4/2005 (produced in 2002)note
Mary had a Little Lamb, its fleece was white as snow, but when the Little Lamb gets lost, Dora and Boots know where to go! Viewers join them as they jump into a big book of Nursery Rhymes to bring Little Lamb home to Mary. Along the way, they'll help nursery rhyme pals pick pickled peppers or climb a waterspout, all while helping Dora catch stars!
Tropes:
- Art Evolution: The art style had changed somewhat this episode. While the colors are still as bright as Season 2, the faces are a lot more expressive.
- Does Not Speak Common: The cow who jumps Dora, Boots, and Little Lamb over the moon only speaks Spanish, so Dora instructs the viewer to say "salte" to get her to jump.
- Evolving Credits: This is the first episode to use the new intro where Dora and Boots go swinging around the forest, meeting their animal friends, and showing clips from a few episodes.
- Fairy Tale Free-for-All: This episode has Dora and Boots encountering numerous characters of beloved Nursery Rhymes (such as Peter Piper, the three men in a tub from "Rub-a-dub-dub", and Humpty Dumpty) as they help Little Lamb find Mary. Little Lamb would introduce Dora and Boots to some of the Nursery Rhyme characters and would recite them.
- Later-Installment Weirdness:
- This is the first episode in the series to use the the "Star Catching" format.
- Starting this episode, the lyrics for "I'm the Map" are changed. The Fiesta Trio also sing along with Map.
- Light 'em Up: Glowy Star is the brightest explorer star. She can light the way.
- Portal Book: Dora and Boots jump into the big book of Nursery Rhymes to help Little Lamb get home to Mary.
- Sweet Sheep: This episode involves "Little Lamb" from "Mary Had A Little Lamb" jumping out of a giant book filled with Nursery Rhymes to ask Dora and Boots to help her find Mary after getting lost.
- Take Our Word for It: When Humpty Dumpty falls off the wall, he isn't seen breaking apart from falling but is shown in pieces following the fall when putting him back together.
- Title Sequence Replacement: When released on DVD, the episode opens with the Season 1-2 intro instead of the new opening introduced this season; it later opens with the proper opening when aired on TV.
