"Let's go home."
Philo and Gunge decide to leave the Trash Heap and go back to their former home—but they're not sure where it is, or even what it looks like. At first, they think it's Red and Mokey's room. When that doesn't work out, they decide to move to Gobo and Wembley's room, where they start to miss the Trash Heap. Gobo and Wembley kick them out the next morning. Meanwhile, without them, the Trash Heap is starting to die of loneliness.That night, Philo and Gunge encounter Wander McMooch, who takes them home to make them his slaves. The two realize their home was with the Trash Heap all along. The Trash Heap senses what has happened to them and sends the Fraggle Five to them. Philo and Gunge get McMooch to let them go, and they return home to the Trash Heap.
This episode contains examples of:
- Arch-Enemy: McMooch is this to the Trash Heap.
- Argument of Contradictions: Underground, Philo and Gunge have one about which way home is.Gunge: Home is... um... uh... [looks around, then points] Oh, it's this way.
Philo: Wha, you're crazy! [He looks in another direction.] This is the way home. Don't you remember?
Gunge: [pointing the first way] Of course I remember. Home is this way.
Philo: Nah, it's this way.
Gunge: This way. Let's go.
[Philo starts in one direction, while Gunge starts the other way. Beat.]
Philo: [running after Gunge] Ohhh, please don't leave me behind! Come on!
Gunge: [running back to Philo] Me, too! Me, too! You never know what's down these here tunnels. - Bait-and-Switch Comment: When Philo and Gunge inform the Trash Heap that they're leaving for home, she tells them how nasty Wander McMooch is, then adds that they wouldn't last a single day without her to protect them.Philo: Well, when you put it like that...
Gunge: Yeah, there's nothing left to do...
Philo and Gunge: [in unison] ... but pack! - Big Damn Heroes: The Fraggles arrive to save Philo and Gunge.
- Bindle Stick: Philo and Gunge, while looking for home, each carry a stick with a cloth-wrapped bundle tied to the end of it.Gunge: B-but that's mine!
Philo: But you know you don't got no toothbrush.
Gunge: Oh, yeah. I forgot. - Borrowed Catchphrase: After Philo and Gunge leave for the second time, Red and Mokey find the Trash Heap crying out of loneliness. They try to cheer her up, but she doesn't think she can give advice that day... or any other day.The Trash Heap: [tearfully] I never thought I'd be the one to say this, but... the Trash Heap has spoken. [She sinks down to the ground.]
- Continuity Nod:
- When Philo and Gunge settle down in Gobo's bed—despite Wembley's protests—they're wearing their nightshirts and nightcaps, first seen in "The Great Radish Famine."
- For breakfast the next morning, Philo and Gunge are eating radish bars, first seen in "Red Handed and the Invisible Thief."
- As McMooch mentioned in "Junior Sells the Farm", he hates Fraggles.
- Creating Life: Philo and Gunge expect this to happen to the pile of trash in their first home (Red and Mokey's cave). In fairness, this is what happened to the Trash Heap when they first met.
- A Day in the Limelight: The first of two episodes to focus primarily on Philo and Gunge (the second being "Gunge the Great and Glorious"), though they'd already had a larger role than normal in "Blanket of Snow, Blanket of Woe."
- Double Take: Gobo does this on seeing Philo and Gunge in his bed.[Gobo enters the room and sets down his pack.]
Gobo: Oh, hi, Wembley.
Wembley: [starting to climb the ladder to his own bed] Hi, Gobo. [Turns around as he realizes Gobo's back.] Gobo! Um... I...
Gobo: Whew! Boy, am I tired.
Wembley: Yeah, well... um... uh...
[Gobo turns toward his bed. Philo and Gunge wake up and look at him.]
Philo and Gunge: [in unison] Greetings!
Gobo: Oh, sorry. I thought that was my bed. [He turns away from Philo and Gunge, then looks back, shocked.] Hey! That is my bed! - Evil Cannot Stand Cuteness: Exploited when the Fraggle Five come to the rescue. It turns out that McMooch hates Fraggles because they're so "disgustingly lovable". Philo and Gunge immediately use this to their advantage.McMooch: [holding up Philo and Gunge] Well, it seems I have your disgustingly lovable friends at bay!
Philo: That's what he hates about 'em?
Gunge: Are you thinking what I'm thinking?
Philo: Yeah!
[They begin smothering McMooch with kisses.]
Gunge: Hey, we love ya! We're showering you with affection!
Philo: Yeah, McMooch! You're our newest and bestest pal!
Gunge: If we can't love Marjory, then we're gonna love you!
Philo: Yeah!
McMooch: [to the Fraggles] Take them! They're worse than Fraggles! Just leave me alone! [Drops Philo and Gunge.] - Evil Laugh: McMooch laughs evilly at Philo and Gunge as he makes them pull his scooter.
- Faint in Shock: Philo and Gunge get scared by Wembley's shadow and let out a scream. Wembley screams when he sees them, and then all three of them faint.
- Get Out!:
- Philo and Gunge return from Red and Mokey's room but tell the Trash Heap they're going to keep looking for home. The Trash Heap, hurt that they don't want to stay with her, tells them to go away and never come back.
- Philo and Gunge spend the night in Gobo and Wembley's room. In the morning, the two Fraggles order them to leave.
- Group Hug: Philo, Gunge, and the Trash Heap share one when they return to her after escaping McMooch.
- Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal: McMooch is a barefoot and pants-free toad, but he does wear a black hat with a white feather, along with a coat, shirt, and cravat.
- Made a Slave: McMooch does this to Philo and Gunge, making them pull his scooter.
- Meanwhile, Back at the…: The story keeps turning from Philo and Gunge's attempts to find their home to the Trash Heap's beginning to die of loneliness without them.
- One Dialogue, Two Conversations: When Philo and Gunge enter the Rock, looking for home, they can't figure out which way home is. They decide to ask Red and Mokey, who think they're talking about their room.Philo: Oh! Oh, excuse me! Uh, we was wondering, which way is home?
Mokey: Home? Well, it's just down the tunnel to the left.
Red: Yeah.
Philo and Gunge: Thank you!
Mokey: You're welcome.
Red: No problem.
Philo and Gunge: [starting down the tunnel to the left] Oh, excuse me. Pardon.
Mokey: Pardon me.
Philo and Gunge: Pardon us.
Red: No problem.
Gunge: So sorry. [He and Philo wander down the tunnel to the left and out of sight.]
Red: I wonder why they want to know where we live?
Mokey: I don't know. - The Power of Love:
- The Trash Heap begins to die of loneliness without Philo and Gunge to keep her company.
- When McMooch reveals that he hates Fraggles because they're so lovable, Philo and Gunge get him to release them by showering him with affection.
- Series Continuity Error: In his first appearance, "Junior Sells the Farm," McMooch is shoulder-high compared to Junior, so the Fraggles are tiny to him. In this episode, he is approximately the same size as the Fraggles.
- Slapstick: When Philo and Gunge move into Gobo and Wembley's room, they both sleep in Gobo's bed, so Wembley lets Gobo share his bed. The next morning, he accidentally pushes Gobo out, sending him crashing to the floor.Philo and Gunge: [in unison] Rise and shine!
- Telepathy: The Trash Heap can tell where Philo and Gunge are and can feel what they're feeling.
- Villain Song: McMooch's song: "Manic McMooch (Find You, Bind You, Grind You)."
- Visual Pun: When McMooch brings Philo and Gunge to his home in a swamp...McMooch: [standing on a lily pad] Well, gentlemen, welcome to my... eh, pad. Your new home!
- Why We Need Garbagemen: In Outer Space, it's the start of the first holiday weekend at the Captain's Inn, where Doc is part-time manager. Unfortunately, the sanitation workers go on strike that day, and Doc is forced to keep all the garbage from the Captain's Inn inside his workshop so the people at the inn won't smell it.
- Word, Schmord!: The Trash Heap warns Philo and Gunge of monsters and evil beings, but Philo and Gunge retort that they can handle Gorgs.The Trash Heap: Gorgs, schmorgs. You haven't seen monsters 'til you've met... Wander McMooch!
