Wanda's famous artist cousin Renee Lassiter (guest star Shelley Duvall) has been hired to sculpt a statue of Wishbone for Jackson Park, and she selects David to be her assistant. David's good fortune goes to his head, much like what happens to Pip in Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.
This is the last of three episodes based on a Dickens novel, following "Twisted Tail," which adapts Oliver Twist, and "A Tale of Two Sitters," which adapts A Tale of Two Cities.
Tropes
- Acquired Situational Narcissism: David gets this while working for Renee and adopting her arrogant attitude briefly. He grows out of it when she leaves town without building the statue she was commissioned to do, and Wanda does it instead.
- Adapted Out: This is a very Compressed Adaptation of a very long novel, so this naturally happens to loads of characters. To start with, Pip is portrayed as being raised by only Joe Gargery, with no mention made of Mrs. Joe. Estella mentions that she is "to be married" without naming Drummle, who is otherwise not included in the story. And so on.
- Artsy Beret: David wears one while working as Renee's assistant.
- Bitch Alert: In her first appearance, Renee immediately establishes herself as a stuck-up celebrity who thinks that she's doing Oakdale a massive favor by even gracing them with her presence.
- Composite Character: Biddy is not included in the adaptation, so Pip's confession that he wants to be a gentleman is instead delivered to Joe Gargery.
- Desk Sweep of Rage: Estella does this while playing chess with Pip:Wishbone as Pip: Hmm, I'll move this one. [knocks a chess piece over] Oops.
Estella: You stupid, clumsy, common boy! [rage-swipes the chessboard] - Expecting Someone Taller: Renee's first impression of Wishbone:Renee: So, this is the dog, eh? I'd hoped he'd be taller.
Wishbone: Hey!
Renee: I suppose he'll just have to do. - Pragmatic Adaptation: Pip and Estella play chess instead of cards, presumably due to the difficulty of making it look like a dog is playing cards.
- "Sesame Street" Cred: This Wishbone episode features Shelley Duvall. Incidentally, she previously hosted Faerie Tale Theatre, another TV show that retold classic stories for children.
- Today, X. Tomorrow, the World!: After Wishbone is selected to be the model for the dog statue:Wishbone: I'm Wishbone, supermodel! Today Oakdale, tomorrow... Paris!
- Unrelated in the Adaptation: At the very least, it's never revealed that Magwitch is Estella's real father.
