At night, the dogs are sleeping in Jake's room, as Mariella is putting him to bed. The dogs awaken, and while Skits just falls back asleep, Martha walks over and tries to figure out why Jake is sad. Helen enters with a book titled Firedog Freddie, which was apparently her favourite story when she was younger before the dogs were adopted, to cheer Jake up. He cheers up of his own accord, but she reads the story anyway, and Martha, who had fallen asleep, dreams that she is a firefighter.
The next day, on the way to school, Martha tells Helen that she wants to be a firehouse dog as well. She then adds that she could meet Freddie, prompting Helen to explain that the story is just made-up. Martha, however, still wants to be a firefighter despite the story not being real.
At the firehouse, the fire chief tells Martha she can't be a firehouse dog as she isn't a Dalmatian. She paints herself white with black spots, but the fire chief points out that she still isn't really a Dalmatian. Thus, Martha tries speaking in rhyme (since the book was written in rhyme). The fire chief explains that real firefighters don't speak in rhyme, but he admires her "spunk", so he introduces her to the rest of the firefighters. They let her become a firedog, and the fire chief shows her around.
At home, Martha decides to practice being a firedog, so she retrieves some clothes and has Skits time her putting them on. She has a big struggle due to being a dog, and can't get her boots on properly, so she gives up and decides to climb a ladder instead. She cannot, so she decides to practice using a hose. She has Skits distract a neighbour by stealing his sponge while Martha steals the hose, but she sprays herself in the face and then bites through the hose.
Later, Martha glumly tells Helen that she is incompetent at being a firehouse dog. Then, she takes a nap on her chair and has a nightmare about being a clumsy firefighter. When she wakes up, she tries to resign, but the dispatcher explains that real firehouse dogs never go to fires. The dispatcher gets a call, but the phone dies before the person can tell him the address. Luckily, Martha can track the smell of the smoke, and thus the fire is put out.
Then, Helen writes a poem about the incident and reads it to her whole family in Jake's room that night. The next day, Martha eats a steak and explains to Skits what a "fantasy" is.
This episode provides examples of
- Accessory-Wearing Cartoon Animal: The firefighters put a hat on Martha.
- Alliterative Title: The book is called Firedog Freddie.
- And Your Reward Is Edible: Martha dreams about being rewarded for putting out a fire with steak.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: Helen's poem explains all the heroics Martha committed... and then ends by saying she has perfect diction.
- Buffy Speak:
- Mariella uses the term "Martha-less" to describe the Lorraine household before Martha's adoption.
- Martha claims not to have the gift for firehouse "doggery".
- Crashing Dreams: Helen reads a rhyming story about a firefighter who is a dog near a sleeping Martha, who dreams that she is a firefighter and there is a rhyming narrator. Then, when Jake cries, the sound of the siren in the dream takes on the sound of his crying.
- Damsel in Distress: In Martha's first dream, she saves an old woman whose house is on fire.
- Daydream Believer: Upon hearing the story of Firedog Freddie, Martha thinks he really exists.
- Delicious Daydream: While eating a steak, Martha imagines eating another one.
- Drives Like Crazy: In Martha's nightmare, she has trouble driving a firetruck and crashes into a fire hydrant.
- Firefighting Episode: Zigzagged. Martha is hired as a firehouse dog, but thinks that means she'll be an actual firefighter. When she fails at practicing as a firefighter, she tries to quit, but is told firehouse dogs don't go to fires. However, she then helps the firefighters by tracking the smell of the smoke.
- Firehouse Dalmatian: Freddie is portrayed as a Dalmatian (though an actual firefighter instead of a mascot), and the fire chief doesn't let Martha be a firehouse dog as she isn't a Dalmatian.
- Funny Animal: Unlike Martha, who is pretty much non-anthropomorphic beyond her ability to talk, Freddie wears clothes and stands on two legs. When Martha dreams of being a firedog, she becomes more anthropomorphic as well.
- Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal: Firedog Freddie is portrayed as wearing a full firefighter's uniform, with the exception of the pants. Ditto for Martha in her dream.
- Happy Dance: When Helen asks Jake if he wants her to read to him, he dances happily.
- Heroic Dog:
- Conversed when Helen reads a story about a dog who works as a firefighter.
- Played straight when Martha directs some firefighters to a fire.
- Imagine Spotting: When Martha imagines herself with a steak, Skits imagines himself, and then somehow, the imaginary Skits enters Martha's thought bubble and steals the steak.
- Lost Food Grievance: Played with. Martha gets angry at Skits for imagining stealing her imaginary steak.
- Nightmare Sequence: After failing at her attempts to practice being a firefighter, Martha has a nightmare in which she tries to be a firefighter but fails.
- Rhymes on a Dime: Conversed. Martha believes firefighters speak in rhyme because Firedog Freddie was written in verse.
- Slapstick:
- The man is sprayed in the face with the broken hose.
- Due to being a dog, Martha has a terrible time getting dressed, falls off a ladder, and sprays herself with a hose.
- Speak in Unison: In Martha's dream, a crowd thanks her in unison.
- This Is Reality:
- Said word-for-word by a firefighter, who is unaware that he's fictional:Firefighter: "This isn't some kids' tale; this is reality!"
- Helen says in her poem that Martha is real.
- Said word-for-word by a firefighter, who is unaware that he's fictional:
