"Anyone want a grape?"
Frustrated with having to prune back the knobblies when they appear in the Fraggle Pond, Red finds pouring Boober's kohlrabi juice on them destroys them. She instructs the others to keep pouring so the pond will be clear for her swimming competition. But when her hand touches the knobblies, a voice inside her head tells her to follow them. She swims through an underwater tunnel to Merggle Lake, home of the Merggles: Mermer, Merboo, Merkey, Merple, and Mervin.The Merggles welcome her, telling her that Merboo had had them make the roots of their tree grow as far as possible and had then sent a message through them to see if anyone would come, as they wanted someone new to talk to. Red tells them about Fraggle Rock. They decide to throw a party, but when a branch of the tree falls down and Mermer mentions kohlrabi is dangerous to the tree, Red realizes the knobblies must be the roots. She tells the Merggles, who throw her in a cage and leave for a new home.
Before Mervin leaves, Red persuades him to move her cage closer to the tree. Touching the roots, she contacts Mokey, who she tells to stop pouring the kohlrabi juice. Mokey tells the others, and then Gobo touches the knobblies and gets Red's message to follow them. He swims to Merggle Lake, where he finds Red. The other Merggles come back just in time to hear Gobo tell Red that they stopped killing the knobblies. The Merggles, realizing Red has saved their tree, let her out.
Later, at the Fraggle Pond, Red tells the others the story. The Merggles arrive just in time to celebrate Red's swimming competition.
This episode contains examples of:
- Accidental Discovery: When Red dumps out her cup of kohlrabi juice on the knobblies, she notices them dying.Red: What's in this stuff, poison? Look, it's killing the knobblies!
- Achilles' Heel: Nothing can harm the tree—except kohlrabi.
- Alliterative Name: The Merggles, like the Fraggles, have a Species Surname, and their given names all start with the letter M: Mermer Merggle (the Leader), Merboo Merggle (Keeper of the Vision), Merkey Merggle (Seer of the Dark Side), Merple Merggle (Seer of the Bright Side), and Mervin Merggle (who sells hats).
- Bad to the Last Drop: The other Fraggles think Boober's kohlrabi juice is disgusting.Red: Oh, Boober, this is horrible!
Wembley: [choking] She's right! - Big "NEVER!": Merboo gives one when Red begs to be let out.Red: Let me out! Let me out!
Merboo: Never!
Mermer: We thought you were our friend, and you betrayed us! - Bizarre Beverage Use: The Fraggles use the kohlrabi juice to kill knobblies, until Red learns what the knobblies are and tells them to stop.
- Chekhov's Gift: Merboo gives Red a bracelet of shells called the Shells of Friendship. Later, Red uses them to buy two hats from Mervin in exchange for his moving her cage close to the tree.
- Clamshell Currency:Mervin: Want to buy a hat? Real cheap. Seven shells.
- Coat Full of Contraband: Subverted. Mervin keeps some of the hats he sells under his coat, but no indication is made that they're contraband items.
- Copycat Mockery: Red does this when Mokey refuses to let her pour any more kohlrabi juice on the knobblies.Red: Boober, pass that pitcher here!
Mokey: [grabbing the pitcher] No, Red! No, no, no, no, no, no! No, I'm not gonna let you kill innocent knobblies!
Red: But what about the underwater frolic? Those knobblies are ruining everything!
Mokey: Well... we can swim around them. [Walks off.]
Red: "We can swim around them." No, we can't! And we won't, 'cause I'm gonna get rid of them! - Do You Want to Haggle?: Before Mervin leaves with the others for a new home, he again asks Red if she wants to buy a hat. She declines, then calls him back, saying she'll buy a hat if he moves her cage closer to the tree. Mervin won't hear of it at first, but he reluctantly agrees when Red says she'll take two hats.
- The Eeyore: Merkey, Seer of the Dark Side.Merkey: [talking about the tree] And look what it brought us. A finless, flipperless Fraggle.
Mermer: Oh, don't mind him. He's always grumpy like that. It's his job. He's Seer of the Dark Side. - Failed a Spot Check: Mokey is so busy looking for Red that she doesn't notice Boober is squeezing more kohlrabi juice.
- Fish People: The Merggles, whose lower halves are long, scaly, fishlike tails.
- Green Aesop: Don't poison the environment.
- Let Me Get This Straight...: When Gobo, having gotten Red's message to follow the knobblies, emerges in Merggle Lake...Red: Gobo, did you do what I told you to do?
Gobo: Yeah. We stopped killing the knobblies, just like you said.
Mermer: [to Red] Wait a minute. Let me get this straight. You told them not to kill the knobblies? You? You saved our tree, on purpose?
Red: Yes! I may have been silly, but I'm not an enemy. I never wanted to hurt your tree! - Must Make Amends: Red gets Mervin to push her cage over to the tree, then sends a message to her friends to stop killing the knobblies and to follow them.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Red, when she realizes she's caused the tree to be poisoned.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Red ordering the others to pour kohlrabi juice on the knobblies poisons the tree in Merggle Lake because the knobblies are the roots.
- Only One Who Likes Spam: Boober is the only one who likes the kohlrabi juice.
- On Second Thought: Gobo does this when Red announces her intention to kill all the knobblies.Gobo: Uh, I don't know, Red. Maybe cutting back them back is a better idea than killing them.
[Red gives him a Death Glare.]
Gobo: Then again, maybe it's not. - Plot Parallel: Doc and Sprocket start a campaign to prevent a nearby tree from being torn down by mayoral candidate Herman Grubtoe. To make their case, Doc and Sprocket observe how the tree is used by their neighbors.
- The Pollyanna: Subverted with Merple, Seer of the Bright Side, when the Merggles are leaving for a new home.Merple: [tearfully] For the first time, as Keeper of the Bright Side, I can't see the bright side!
- Psychic Link: The knobblies.Red: [explaining to the other Fraggles] So not only does the tree connect us to Merggle Lake, but it also connects us to the Merggles. We can hear each other through the knobblies... I mean, roots!
- That Poor Plant: Knobblies die when kohlrabi juice touches them.Mokey: Oh, look at these poor knobblies!
- Your Days Are Numbered: Wembley thinks the kohlrabi juice has poisoned him, until Red tells him it does this to knobblies, not to Fraggles.
