Basic Trope: Characters cannot spend time outdoors because of the heavy rain.
- Straight: Billy and Christie would like to go outside and kick a soccer ball around, but a rainstorm means they need to stay indoors.
- Justified:
- Billy and Christie have very weak immune systems and mustn't get cold or wet, or else they'll get very sick.
- Truth in Television: Playing outside or having a picnic isn't much fun when it's raining.
- Inverted: The only outdoor activity that Billy and Christie like is to look for worms without having to dig for them, and that only happens when it rains. As such, the rain actually enables them to go out and have fun, and when it's sunny and dry they mope around and hope for rain.
- Subverted:
- Billy and Christie look forlornly out at a rainy, dreary lawn, soccer ball in hand... and the rain immediately stops.
- It suddenly becomes apparent that Billy and Christie actually want to jump and dance in the rain, and to wade through puddles.
- It's raining, but the main reason for why Billy and Christie stay at home is that they are sick, grounded or busy doing their chores or homework, or they wouldn't like to go out.
- Billy and Christie never liked playing outdoors in the first place.
- Double Subverted:
- Then the rain starts up again just as Christie is lining up her ultimate kick into Billy's goal.
- But then they realise just as suddenly that they will get wet, and go back home.
- Then they finish their work, and it is still raining.
- But are still inconvenienced by the rain because they're waiting for their parents to go out to do their leisurely activities so Billy and Christie have the house all to themselves.
- Parodied: Billy and Christie look out the window at the rainstorm and pout. "Now we can't go outside and play pretend!" Christie complains. Billy replies, "Shoot, it's just as well it's raining; I didn't really want to go outside and pretend to be an insane panhandling hobo, anyway!"
- Deconstructed: By not playing soccer outside when it rains, the kids don't get enough practice, and don't make the soccer team.
- Reconstructed: By staying inside and reading instead, they find books that make learning science fun, and ace their science tests while the soccer team gets D's.
- Zig Zagged: At first, the kids pout that they can't go outside, but then their mother steps in holding up brand-new raincoats and boots for them. So they put them on and go out and splash in the puddles, having just as much fun outside as if it were sunny. However, a few times throughout the day, it thunders, forcing them to go back inside for about twenty minutes at a time.
- Averted: The forecast says the rain will stop early in the morning, and sure enough, while Billy and Christie are still eating breakfast, they see a rainbow.
- Enforced: The producer wants to have An Aesop about reading, so makes the writers put together a story about the kids having fun reading.
- Implied: The kids are in school on Monday, complaining about how boring the last weekend was, and a newspaper from the weekend is shown with a weather forecast showing rain on Saturday and Sunday.
- Logical Extreme:
- Massive flooding keeps the kids inside their houses for weeks.
- The roof is leaking, keeping them cooped up not only inside the house, but in the one dry spot they can find.
- Played For Laughs:
- There is a Rain of Something Unusual outside.
- While cooped up indoors, and the kids find ludicrous things to do to occupy their time:Hey, just because we're indoors doesn't mean we can't pretend to be insane panhandling hobos!
- The kids decide to go Spoofing in the Rain. Indoors. Because it's raining outside.
- Played For Drama: The kids feel like they need the practice to make the soccer team, and angst about how the storm is slowing them down.
- Exaggerated:
- The rain is a thunderstorm with golf-ball sized hail.
- It has been raining for several days.
- Downplayed: It's only drizzling outside. Billy and Christie could go outside and play with little risk, but they'd rather not.
- Lampshaded: "If this rain doesn't stop soon, we'll die of boredom!"
- Exploited: Billy's and Christie's parents know that there will be a rainy weekend at some point, so they find some books that will make learning fun so they can get ahead in school.
- Invoked: A bully at Billy's and Christie's school knows they like to play outside and would love nothing more than to ruin their day, so when a genie gives the bully a wish, he wishes for a rainy saturday so they'll be bored.
- Defied: Billy and Christie go outside and play soccer even though the rain isn't stopping.
- Discussed: Billy and Christie see a weather report that it may rain over the weekend, and talk about what they'll do if it does.
- Conversed: Billy and Christie are watching a cartoon where the characters need to stay inside due to the rain, and are bored. So Billy asks, "Why don't they just watch TV? That's what we do!"
- Untwisted: Raincoats are popular items in artwork and The Merch for the show, so a rainy-day episode is expected to involve fun outside...but then thunder and lightning still stop the kids from going outside.
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