T.D., O.G., and Martha are on their way to visit C.K.'s farm to help him tend his crops while he's away at a county fair. That night, as T.D. writes in his notebook, Martha asks him why C.K.'s crops need watching, as plants obviously can't move. T.D. explains that something has been gnawing on the plants, that O.G. is trying to build a trap for it, and they don't know what it is but C.K. thinks it's a gopher. She doesn't know what one is, so T.D. explains that it's a pest animal with "razor-sharp teeth" that eats everything. This scares Martha, who imagines a giant gopher that wants to eat her and T.D.
In the farmhouse, O.G. and T.D. explain that a gopher is too small to eat a human or a dog, and besides, they're herbivores. Then, the three of them go to watch the field again and T.D. decides that they should guard the plants in shifts all night, with him going first.
They don't see anything, but the next morning, they find a hole dug by the gopher. O.G. explains that seeing as the gopher (who O.G. has determined is a male) was under the ground, T.D. and Martha didn't notice him. They look around the farm and at first T.D. and Martha think that the gopher has eaten the peanuts, carrots, and potatoes, but it turns out that they just didn't know those grew below the ground. O.G. explains that plants whose roots have been chewed will look wilted.
After T.D. and Martha do chores, they go fishing, and he considers luring the gopher out. Martha suggests trying to seduce the gopher by dressing as a female one, but T.D. points out that he's too big. She suggests dressing a potato as a female gopher, but he thinks that the gopher would just eat it.
T.D. then gets an idea: he lowers his earphones into the gopher's hole, playing music that he likes but O.G. thinks would "drive most people out of the house". However, the gopher steals the MP3 player instead, prompting T.D. and Martha to start digging. O.G. shows up and asks what they're doing, so T.D. explains. O.G. reveals that gopher burrows can be six feet deep, so T.D. gives up digging and decides to flood the gopher out with a hose instead.
That night, the player floats up to the surface, but there's still no sign of the gopher, making T.D. and Martha worry that they've drowned him. They tell O.G. but he assures them that gophers are very good swimmers and can build dams, so they couldn't have drowned him. O.G. then shows T.D. and Martha the gopher, very much alive. He then shows them his trap he's finished building.
They try to trap the gopher, but he escapes, so O.G. suggests using peanut butter to stick him in place. However, they end up catching Martha instead. T.D. tries again, this time leashing Martha, but the gopher still manages to escape. Luckily, Martha has an idea.
The next day, C.K. comes back and compliments T.D. on his good work. T.D. and Martha then reveal that they've talked the gopher into being C.K.'s pet and named him George.
This episode provides examples of
- Accessory-Wearing Cartoon Animal:
- The imaginary donkey-riding gopher wears a cowboy hat, cowboy boots, and a bandanna.
- In another daydream, one gopher wears another bandanna and the other wears a bowtie.
- An illustration in T.D.'s notebook shows the gopher donning a hat before moving away.
- Accidental Murder: Discussed. T.D. and Martha fill the gopher's hole with water, but find no sign of him even when the burrow fills. This makes them worry that they've drowned him, but they haven't.
- Animal Sweet on Object: Discussed. Martha suggests attempting to woo the male gopher and lure him out by dressing a potato as a female gopher. However, T.D. thinks the gopher would just eat the potato.
- Aside Glance: The episode ends with George winking at the camera.
- Attractive Bent Species: Discussed when Martha suggests that if T.D. dresses as a female gopher, the male one would be attracted to him and thus be lured out.
- Civilised Animal: Martha imagines gophers wearing accessories and doing things like eating at tables, but still living underground, having non-humanoid appearances, and being mostly naked.
- Cock-a-Doodle Dawn: Justified. A rooster crows in the morning, but that's because there are chickens on the farm.
- Comically Missing the Point: When T.D. gets an idea regarding the gopher and says, "I've got it!", Martha thinks he's talking about a fish, since he was also fishing.
- Continuity Nod: O.G. asks Martha if she's excited to visit C.K.'s farm "again". The first time was in "Down on the Farm". Martha also remembers her incompetence at tending farm animals from said episode.
- Damsel in Distress: Martha imagines being in danger of being eaten by a giant gopher.
- Distressed Dude: In Martha's imaginary sequence, T.D. is being chased by a giant gopher who wants to eat him.
- Everyone Has Standards: T.D. and Martha may be determined to get rid of the gopher, but they don't want to kill him.
- Fantasy Sequence:
- Martha imagines herself and T.D. being chased by a giant gopher.
- Then, she imagines a gopher riding a donkey after getting "burrow" and "burro" confused.
- She then imagines two gophers eating at an underground restaurant.
- T.D. imagines trying to seduce the gopher by dressing as a female gopher.
- He then imagines dressing a potato as a female gopher to try to seduce the gopher, but him not being fooled and eating the potato.
- When Martha is told gophers are very good swimmers, she imagines four gophers doing fancy swimming.
- Fully-Dressed Cartoon Animal: When O.G. explains that gophers are good swimmers, Martha imagines four gophers in swimsuits.
- Fun with Homophones: When O.G. says that gophers burrow, she thinks he said, "burro", as in a donkey.
- Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal: When T.D. imagines dressing as a female gopher, he imagines wearing a skirt over the gopher costume but no shirt.
- Hope Spot: Martha imagines herself and T.D. hiding from the giant gopher in the barn... only for it to eat through the roof.
- Loud Gulp: Martha gulps upon hearing T.D.'s description of a gopher (he claims they have "razor-sharp teeth" and "eat everything in sight.")
- Nursery Rhyme: At the beginning, Martha sings a song about farming to the tune of "Frere Jacques".
- Oh, Crap!: In Martha's imagination, T.D. says, "Uh-oh!" upon seeing a giant man-(and dog)-eating gopher.
- Pantsless Males, Fully-Dressed Females: When T.D. and Martha imagine male gophers, they imagine them wearing only accessories, but when they imagine female gophers, they imagine them wearing skirts, dresses, or swimsuits.
- Paper-Thin Disguise: Defied. Martha suggests that T.D. try to seduce the gopher by dressing as a female gopher, but he realises that the male gopher wouldn't buy it as T.D. is too big to be a gopher.
- Pun-Based Title: The episode's title has a pun on "gopher/go for".
- Running Gag: People keep using alliteration. First T.D. mentions that C.K. is "happy [they're] helping", then O.G. calls Martha a "fine furry friend", then he calls her a "petrified pooch" then Martha says, "Let's guard some gourds", then O.G. again says the gopher has been "partaking at the produce", then calls him a "rascally rodent"
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: T.D. thinks that once he gets his MP3 player back from the gopher after flooding his burrow, the gopher will get so mad he'll move away.
- Sticky Situation: O.G. tries using peanut butter to stick the gopher in the trap, but ends up catching Martha instead.
- Stock Animal Diet: Martha says that to dogs "a bone is a bone is a bone".
- Tempting Fate: T.D. thinks that the gopher was too scared of him and Martha, but then they see a hole it made.
- Tertiary Sexual Characteristics:
- When T.D. imagines dressing as a female gopher, he imagines wearing a skirt, women's shoes, and a flower in his hair.
- When he imagines dressing a potato as a female gopher, he imagines it wearing a dress and a women's sunhat and with lipstick and earrings drawn on.
