The thirtieth episode of the first season of Dennis the Menace (1986).
Marky the Menace
Dennis' aunt Matilda visits, along with his cousin Marky. The boy proceeds to cause trouble in the house and outside and Dennis gets the blame. Marky then goes off on Dennis' skateboard, leading to danger when he gets into the city streets and nearly gets run over by a cable car. Dennis saves him in the nick of time and a grateful Marky confesses he was the one who caused all the trouble.
Dennis the Genius
PeeBee is selected for a special college program, but confusion arises when Dennis is mistaken for him. At the college, Dennis causes catastrophe when he releases several lab animals and makes a formula that causes the creation of a ghostly demon that stirs major havoc at the college. Dennis is able to corral the demon just before PeeBee arrives to tell the professor that he's staying at his current school with his friends.
A Step Ahead
Alice and Henry go out for the evening, leaving Dennis with Marty, a young babysitter who's able to anticipate his every move to make his assignment difficult. But in the end, when the parents return home, an overconfident Marty is shocked when Dennis comes out of the kitchen eating ice cream, not realizing that he had Ruff in his bed when Marty last checked in on him.
"Marky the Menace" provides examples of:
- Alliterative Title: Marky the Menace.
- Cool Board: This episode's climax has Marky take Dennis' skateboard for a joyride, and Dennis has to save Marky before he gets hit by an oncoming streetcar.
- Drive-Thru Antics: When Dennis, Alice, and Matilda chase Marky, they pass through the drive-thru of a fast-food restaurant. Dennis places an order, Alice pays for it, and Matilda picks it up.
- Drives Like Crazy: When Marky takes Henry's riding mower for a joyride, he chases Dennis down with it.
- Electric Joybuzzer: Marky uses one on Dennis when they first meet.
- "Everybody Laughs" Ending: This episode ends this way when Dennis forgives Alice and Matilda for blaming him for what Marky did, saying he gets into trouble sometimes, and Mr. Wilson doesn't deny it.
- Not Me This Time: Whenever Marky causes trouble, Dennis gets the blame, given Dennis' reputation as a troublemaker. Marky confesses every bad thing he did after Dennis saves his life.
- Possession Presumes Guilt: Alice, Matilda, and Mr. Wilson blame Dennis for all the bad things Marky did, due to Dennis having evidence that leaves him guilty. When Marky gets the goldfish down from a high shelf, Dennis catches it, leaving Alice and Matilda to believe he got it down. When Marky takes Henry's riding mower for a joyride, Dennis gets on said mower, leaving Alice and Matilda to believe he took it for a joyride. When Marky cuts up Mr. Wilson's tulips, Dennis takes the gardening shears from him, leaving Mr. Wilson to believe he cut them up.
- Rule of Three: Marky does three things that get Dennis into trouble. First, he gets the goldfish down from a high shelf, then he takes Henry's riding mower for a joyride, and finally, he cuts up Mr. Wilson's tulips.
"Dennis the Genius" provides examples of:
- Boys Like Creepy Critters: When one of the college students asks Dennis what his interests are, Dennis tells him he likes frogs and snakes. He then pulls a snake out of a pocket in his overalls, frightening the students.
- Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: This exchange when Henry and Alice find out that Dennis has been mistaken for PeeBee:Henry: Well, come on, we'd better get over there before something terrible happens!
Alice: Now, dear, I'm sure there's no reason to worry. What harm could a small boy do in a college science lab?
(Beat)
Alice: What am I saying?!
(Alice and Henry rush away) - Mistaken Identity: Professor Squizzer mistakes Dennis for PeeBee, due to his poor eyesight.
- Shout-Out: The green ghost bears a strong resemblance to Slimer from Ghostbusters. A
sound-alike of the Ghostbusters theme song plays in the scenes where he appears. This should come as no surprise, as DiC Entertainment created both this cartoon and The Real Ghostbusters.
"A Step Ahead" provides examples of:
- Babysitter's Nightmare: Discussed; at the beginning of this episode, when Henry and Alice are about to go out for the evening, Dennis asks them why their neighbor Judy can't look after him. Henry is about to tell Dennis that the last time Judy babysat him, she nearly had a nervous breakdown, but Alice stops him and tells Dennis that Judy was too tired to babysit tonight.
- Babysitting Episode: Alice and Henry hire Marty to look after Dennis while they go out for the evening.
- Bucket Booby-Trap: Dennis sets this trap for Marty, but unfortunately for him, Marty is well aware of this trap.
- Clock Tampering: Dennis sets his alarm clock back one hour so that he can stay up for another hour. Marty is prepared for this, as he has his watch with a built-in alarm for 9:00 P.M. set to the correct time.
- Crazy-Prepared: Marty is able to anticipate most of Dennis' tricks, due to having pulled many of the same tricks when he was Dennis' age.
- Electric Joybuzzer: Dennis uses this on Marty when he first meets him. Alice scolds him for it, but Marty is impressed, saying he hasn't seen one since he was Dennis' age. After Henry and Alice leave, Marty uses this on Dennis to even the score.
- Look Behind You: Marty tells Dennis "Look at that!" to distract him while he takes the extra cookies Dennis snuck from the cookie jar out of his back pocket.
