Release date: November 5, 2021
Opening line: (Dot) "This horse's mane-y!"
Wakkiver Twist: The cast spoof Oliver Twist... or, more precisely, the musical adaptation of it, Oliver!.
Plight of Hand: A failed experiment turns Pinky's hands sentient and deeply malicious.
Tropes found in "Wakkiver Twist":
- Adaptational Heroism: The Artful Dodger and Charley Bates were members of Fagin's gang, and unabashed criminals and pickpockets in the original. Here, the Artful Yakker and Dottie Bates are Wakkiver Twist's fellow orphans in the orphanage, and are kicked out along with him. They are very blatantly not thieves and even get really indignant when Faginsniff suggest they try pickpocketing.The Artful Yakker: Pickpocketing?! But we're
Chaotic Good! It would go against our whole Character Alignment! - Adaptational Villainy:
- Mr. Brainble. The Mr. Bumble of the original was in no way a good guy, but he wasn't plotting to take over the British Empire using orphans to power a giant robotic elephant either.
- A curious version with Dr. Faginsniff. He's a total Jerkass who lies, manipulates and uses the children in his care, without caring one ounce about them, and is downright mean and abusive to the Warners. While he's not that off from the Fagin in the original book (just a lot more obvious about his villainy) this spoof is obviously based on the musical, where Fagin was an Adaptational Nice Guy and was mostly presented as an Affably Evil Lovable Rogue.
- Adapted Out: As the cartoon really only adapts/parodies the first part of the story (the orphanage, Oliver's time with Fagin and subsequent arrest) characters like Bill Sikes, Nancy, Bet and Monks are nowhere to be seen.
- Berserk Button: Dot, as long-established, hates being called "Dottie". Yakko calms her down by pointing out they all made concessions to make the setting work.
- Bribe Backfire: When the Warner siblings are taken to court for trying to rob Nora and given a 10-year sentence, they try to bribe the judge with a Faginsniff coin and the judge doubles the sentence as punishment for trying to bribe him with a counterfeit coin. Subverted when the coin is used as a clue to Faginsniff and it saves them from prison.
- The Cameo: Thaddeus Plotz appears as a judge.
- Crosscast Role: Pinky as "Mrs. Brainble."
- Curse Cut Short: During the last part of Dr. Faginsniff's "Conceive of Yourself" song:Faginsniff: If it should chance to be that you have made a small mistake, or need a bathroom break, tough luck! So, go out and sing and dance, and if you pee your pants, then I don't give a—
Yakker: GOODNIGHT EVERYBODY! - Didn't Think This Through: Dr. Faginsniff made coins with his face to give as payment to the orphans he exploits turns out to be a bad idea when Yakko, Wakko and Dot try to bribe a judge with it and the judge notices him among those watching the trial.
- The Exile: Dr. Faginsniff is exiled to Australia as punishment for his crimes.
- Gender Flip: Charley Bates is here "Dottie Bates," played, of course, by Dot. Nora Rita Norita plays the Mr. Brownlow equivalent.
- Happily Adopted: The Warner Orphans try to get themselves adopted by Nora Rita in the end, asking her to take care of them the rest of their natural lives. Then Yakko adds that they might be immortal.
- Only One Who Likes Spam: Wakko is the only child in the orphanage who enjoys his bowl of gruel, and he spends the rest of the story hungry for more.
Tropes found in "Plight of Hand"
- Brick Joke: The vial containing the genetically modified mosquito falls out of the helicopter without anyone noticing or commenting on it. We see the insect flying loose in the last shot.
- Evil Hand: Pinky's hands gain a life of their own, and quickly begin plotting against Brain.
- Injury Bookend: Although Pinky's condition was caused by a laser to his amygdala, it gets fixed with a Tap on the Head from a helicopter crash in the same manner as this trope.
- Psycho Serum: Brain invents a laser that increases its target's aggression. He uses it on Egwind, temporarily turning him into a mindless ferocious beast; then on Pinky, turning his hands evil but leaving the rest of his body intact.
- Shout-Out: When Brain asks Pinky how he escaped police custody, he says it was the same way Hannibal Lecter did in The Silence of the Lambs...except he didn't need to steal anyone's face.
His hands did that for fun. - Tap on the Head: Pinky's hands are restored to normal in the end by a concussion suffered during a helicopter crash.
