HO!
After hearing the Storyteller sing the ballad of Sir Blunderbrain's battle with the Terrible Tunnel, Wembley accidentally finds it and tries to convince everyone of its existence. Skeptical, Gobo and Red accompany him to its location. The Tunnel tries to suck them in, but they escape, and the Storyteller celebrates by rewriting the ballad of it.
This episode contains examples of:
- Accidental Bargaining Skills: The North American "B" plot involves Doc putting together a collapsible bookcase and trying to get Sprocket's horseshoe to complete it. Sprocket won't hand it over unless Doc gives him his slippers (probably to chew on), a quilt, tennis balls, and finally his dinner.Doc: Sprocket, you drive a hard bargain!
- All Just a Dream: Mokey thinks that Wembley's finding the Terrible Tunnel was this.Mokey: Now, Wembley, what I think is, you had a horrible, terrifying nightmare manifesting the darker side of your character.
- Anything but That!: The Storyteller's initial reaction to Wembley's wanting to hear the story of the Terrible Tunnel.Storyteller: THE TERRIBLE TUNNEL? P-p-p-please, anything but that! Anything!
Mokey: But why? It's only a story.
Storyteller: Oh, please, don't insist! Please!
Gobo, Wembley, Boober, and Mokey: We insist!
Storyteller: Oh, well... then there's no way out. - Arbitrary Skepticism: Subverted. Gobo refuses to believe Wembley's claim of seeing the Terrible Tunnel, despite the fact that they live in a world full of magical caves and creatures. At the end, Wembley shows it to him, and he apologizes for doubting him.
- An Astral Projection, Not a Ghost: Just before he gets to the Terrible Tunnel, Sir Blunderbrain sees the spirits of the Fraggles who are trapped inside its jaws. However, since these Fraggles are alive and he's able to rescue them, their bodies may have been in a coma.Storyteller: [singing] And then he heard the spirits who cried their sad refrain.
It was all the Fraggles who had gone and never come again.
Yes, all the Fraggles who had gone and never come again! - Ballad of X: The Storyteller sings "The Ballad of Sir Blunderbrain" to Gobo, Mokey, Boober, and Wembley.
- Bat Scare: Just before Wembley sees the Terrible Tunnel, he gets scared by some low-flying bats.
- Blow You Away: The Terrible Tunnel unleashes strong winds whenever someone gets near it, sucking the victim in.
- Can't See a Damn Thing: Sir Blunderbrain has this trouble, as his helmet keeps falling over his eyes.
- Cassandra Truth: Nobody—except Boober—believes Wembley found the Terrible Tunnel.
- Cave Mouth: The entrance to the Terrible Tunnel is basically a pair of stone jaws that open when someone gets too close, then trap the victim inside.
- Clothing Damage: Gobo, Red, and Wembley have this after their brush with the Terrible Tunnel.
- Cobweb Jungle: The Creepy Cave that Wembley wanders into just before finding the Terrible Tunnel has quite a few cobweb strands around, complete with spiders descending from the ceiling.
- Continuity Nod: While she and Boober are waiting for Gobo, Red, and Wembley to get back from the Terrible Tunnel, Mokey is writing in her diary, something she was also doing in "The Preachification of Convincing John."
- The Cuckoolander Was Right: Gobo and Red don't believe the Terrible Tunnel is real until they see it for themselves, and Gobo apologizes to Wembley for doubting him.
- Deadpan Snarker: Gobo, regarding Boober's superstitions.Boober: And look! Look at this!
Wembley: The rock is cracked!
[Boober and Wembley gasp.]
Gobo: The rock and who else?
Boober: You know the old saying about cracks. When one becomes two, run and say, "Ooo!" [He starts to run around.] Ooo, ooo, ooo, ooo, ah, ooo, ah!
Gobo: And if you don't?
Boober: If you don't, you'll end up in a terrible tunnel! Ooo, ooo, ah, ooo!
[Boober runs off. Wembley runs after him, ooohing and ahhing himself. Gobo follows, shaking his head.] - Diegetic Soundtrack Usage: The Storyteller's cave has a hinged door, and her doorbell plays a few notes of the show's theme song.
- Don't Touch It, You Idiot!: Despite Wembley's warnings, Gobo touches the closed jaws of the Terrible Tunnel. They immediately open, and the wind starts trying to suck in him and the others.
- Dreary Half-Lidded Eyes: The Storyteller sports them in this, her first episode, until she takes her spectacles off and opens her eyes wide.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: The Storyteller is performed by Richard Hunt in this episode. In all later episodes she would be performed by Terry Angus.
- Failed a Spot Check: Sir Blunderbrain rescues some Fraggles from the Terrible Tunnel, who fail to notice that the Tunnel has caught him in it.
- Foreshadowing: Early on, Boober tells Wembley and Gobo that they'll end up in a terrible tunnel if they don't run and say, "Ooo!" when one crack in the wall becomes two. A while later, Wembley accidentally discovers the Terrible Tunnel and nearly gets caught by it.
- Good Luck Charm: Boober has a lucky flowerpot and believes that knocking on it will keep Sprocket away from Gobo while he's looking for his Uncle Matt's postcard. Later on, Boober lends the flowerpot to Wembley.Gobo: Hey, Boober, what's that?
Boober: Oh, that's my lucky flowerpot.
Gobo: [looking at the dried-up plant in it] Oh. It wasn't too lucky for the flower, eh? - "Good Luck" Gesture:
- According to Boober, failing to grab your nose and say, "Rikka rakka" twice when you see rock weed will bring you bad luck. And as for cracks in the rock bed, "When one becomes two," you'll end up in a terrible tunnel if you don't "Run and say ooo." Although Wembley did just that and ended up in the Terrible Tunnel anyway.
- Halloween Episode: Not per se, but it ticks a number of the tropes of a Halloween episode, and in fact was released along with "Scared Silly" and "A Dark and Stormy Night" in a DVD compilation called Scared Silly in September 2010—just in time to be a Halloween cash-in.
- Heartfelt Apology: At the end, Gobo apologizes to Wembley for doubting him about having seen the Terrible Tunnel. Subverted in that Wembley, though not rejecting the apology, brushes it off.
- Hide-and-Seek Horror: A variation. Wembley accidentally wanders into a strange tunnel because he's blindfolded, due to being It in a game of Hidey-Ho. On top of that, the Terrible Tunnel keeps calling, "Ho!" in response to Wembley's shouts of "Hidey!" and Wembley thinks it's one of the other Fraggles playing. Not long after taking the blindfold off, he discovers the Terrible Tunnel.Wembley: Hidey!
The Terrible Tunnel: HOOOOOO-oooo! - Idiot Ball: Wembley holds it when he takes Red and Gobo to the Terrible Tunnel to prove to them that he found it, despite the fact that it nearly sucked him in before.
- Immediate Self-Contradiction: When Gobo, Wembley, Boober, and Mokey are waiting for the Storyteller to answer the door...Wembley: You know, the last time I was here, the Storyteller told me all about the Golden Bean! I'll never forget it.
Gobo: How'd it go?
Wembley: I... I can't remember. - It Can Think: The Terrible Tunnel is capable of this. Not only does it talk, it engages in a sword fight with Sir Blunderbrain.Storyteller: [singing] And so for hours, they battled. They fought with might and mane.
And all the while, the Tunnel cried, "You'll not go home again!"
Yes, all the while, the Tunnel cried, "You'll not go home again!" - Jump Scare: Not long after Wembley takes the blindfold off, he touches what appears to be an ordinary rock—which opens up like a clam, revealing eyes and fangs. The creature snarls at Wembley, sending him running off in a panic.
- Knight in Shining Armor: Sir Blunderbrain rescues Fraggles who had been trapped in the Terrible Tunnel.
- Knightly Sword and Shield: Sir Blunderbrain carries a sword and shield.
- Little "No": Wembley lets out a little "Oh, no!" when Red tags him during a game of Hidey-Ho.Wembley: Oh, I hate being It!
- The Legend of Chekhov: The Storyteller sings the ballad of Sir Blunderbrain's battle with the Terrible Tunnel. Gobo, Red, and Mokey don't believe the Tunnel exists, but Boober and Wembley think there's a chance it might. Sure enough, Wembley accidentally discovers it during a game of Hidey-Ho.
- Mistaken Identity: This happens after Wembley becomes It in a game of Hidey-Ho. The Terrible Tunnel keeps calling, "Ho!" in response to Wembley's shouts of "Hidey!" Wembley thinks it's one of the other Fraggles playing.Wembley: Gosh, this Fraggle sure knows how to hide!
- Narrative Poem: The Storyteller sings "The Ballad of Sir Blunderbrain," in which brave Sir Blunderbrain rescued Fraggles who had been sucked in by the Terrible Tunnel, at the cost of being trapped in the Tunnel himself.
- Noisy Shut-Up:
- When the other Fraggles are all talking at once about what they think Wembley saw, Wembley shuts them up by yelling, "Now, WAIT A MINUTE!"
- Followed by the Wham Line: "You guys are... are WEMBLING!!!"
- No One Gets Left Behind: Subverted. Sir Blunderbrain rescues Fraggles who had been sucked into the Terrible Tunnel—but they fail to notice that it's sucked Sir Blunderbrain in.
- Odd Reaction Out: When Mokey is going to see the Storyteller and invites Gobo, Wembley, and Boober to come with her, everyone reacts with enthusiasm except Boober.Mokey: Hey, I am going to see the Storyteller. Does anyone want to come along?
Gobo: I do!
Wembley: Oh, I do!
Boober: I don't. - Oh, Crap!: Wembley, in the spooky cave, when he discovers the Terrible Tunnel.
- Opinion Flip Flop:
- When Boober tells Gobo and Wembley that failing to grab your nose and say, "Rikka rakka" twice when you see rock weed will bring bad luck...Gobo: Ah, that's a lot of hooey. [He follows Boober offscreen.]
Wembley: [calling after them] Yeah, I don't believe a word of it! [whispering to the rock weed] Rikka rakka, rikka rakka! - A few minutes later, when Boober and Wembley are running around in Gobo and Wembley's room, oooing and ahhing...Gobo: Boober, come off it!
Wembley: Yeah, could you give us a break?
Boober: Wembley!
Gobo: Wembley, two seconds ago, you were doing the same thing as Boober!
Boober: Yeah!
Gobo: You never know what you're doing!
Boober: No!
Gobo: You wemble from one thing to the next and back again!
Boober: But you do believe in the Terrible Tunnel, don't you?
Wembley: Oh, I do, I do!
Gobo: No, you don't!
Wembley: Well, I guess I don't...
Gobo: You're wembling again!
Wembley: No, I'm not! [Beat] Well, maybe I am...
- When Boober tells Gobo and Wembley that failing to grab your nose and say, "Rikka rakka" twice when you see rock weed will bring bad luck...
- Painful Rhyme: The Storyteller has a bit of trouble rhyming one of the words in the ballad when she gets to the part about Sir Blunderbrain's journeying to rescue the Fraggles trapped in the Terrible Tunnel.Storyteller: [singing] Sir Blunderbrain went bravely to the entrance of the tunnel.
The wind was low and lonesome, and it wasn't any, uh, funnel. - Parlor Games: Wembley accidentally discovers the Terrible Tunnel while being It in a game of Hidey-Ho.
- Protective Charm: A non-artifact example. Before Wembley takes Red and Gobo to the Terrible Tunnel, Boober begs them to each tie a knot in their tail—for protection.Gobo: Boober!
Boober: Just do it, Gobo, I beg you! It can't hurt.
Wembley: [tying a knot in his tail] Ouch!
Boober: Well, what's worse? A little knot in the tail, or a gruesome death? - Self-Soothing Song: Wembley sings "I'm Not Scared" to try to keep his spirits up in the spooky cave he's wandered into during the game of Hidey-Ho (an out-of-water version of Marco Polo). It fails, especially when he turns and sees the Terrible Tunnel.Wembley: [singing] I'm not scared of skeletons or spooky caves or big black cats.
I'm not scared of anything...
[Yells as bats fly past him.]
Wembley: ...except a thing like that!
[The Terrible Tunnel growls from behind him, opening its gaping maw. He turns just as the wind starts, trying to suck him in. His hair stands on end, and he drops Boober's lucky flowerpot.]
Wembley: H-h-h-HELLLLLP! AAAAAAHHHHHH! [Runs off.] - Skepticism Failure: Red and Gobo refuse to believe that the Terrible Tunnel is real. They're soon proven wrong when it nearly sucks them in.[Gobo, Red, and Wembley return with their hair disheveled and their clothes in shreds.]
Gobo: [panting] We... we found the Terrible Tunnel. Wembley was right. - The Storyteller: The official storyteller of Fraggle Rock, who remembers every tale ever told.
- Sword Fight: Sir Blunderbrain and the Terrible Tunnel engage in one.Storyteller: [singing] Sir Blunderbrain, he drew his sword and took a mighty swing.
The Tunnel drew a sword as well and swung right back at him. - Take My Hand!: A variant. When the Terrible Tunnel starts to suck Red in, Wembley yells for her to grab his tail. Gobo then grabs Red's tail.
- Unlikely Spare: On seeing the Terrible Tunnel, Wembley, in a panic, drops Boober's lucky flowerpot. After he tells Boober this...Boober: You what?
Wembley: I dropped it, Boober. I'm... I'm sorry!
Boober: That's okay. [Produces an identical flowerpot, complete with dried-up plant.] I always carry a spare. - Unreliable Narrator: The Storyteller says (or sings) that Wembley gathered up the prisoners of the Terrible Tunnel and brought them home again. However, the Tunnel never caught Red or Gobo, though it came close.
- Verbal Backspace: Gobo does this when Wembley is taking him and Red to the Terrible Tunnel.Gobo: Hey, is this where you saw the... uh, where you thought you saw the Terrible Tunnel?
- Warning Song: When Wembley wants to take his friends to the Terrible Tunnel to prove that he found it, Boober sings "Bad News" to try to warn Wembley how dangerous the Terrible Tunnel is.Boober: [singing] If a raven should appear, you're bound to shed a tear.
Always keep a-runnin' from the Terrible Tunnel or you'll fall in up to here!
