Air date: February 1, 2020 (CBC); February 10, 2020note
"Welcome Home, Balto": When Molly finds out there is no statue of the heroic dog Balto in nearby Nenana, she sets out to remedy the situation and ends up on her own dogsledding adventure.
"Welcome Home, Balto" contains the following tropes:
- Artistic License – History: The Great Serum Run (also known as the Race of Mercy) lasted from January 27 to February 7, 1925, and spanned the distance between Nenana and Nome, with Balto and his co-lead Fox running only the last 53 miles of the 674 miles total. The antitoxin was delivered to Nenana by train. But Tooey claims that Balto delivered the medicine to Nenana. Balto's musher was Gunner Kassen, who was not Native as the episode depicts, and the Natives who were part of the relay were generally overlooked by the media of the day. Then, of course, there's the fact that the episode itself completely overlooks Togo and the other dogs in the relay—or that it was a relay at all. To this day, the general consensus in Alaska and among mushers is that
Kassen and Balto stole the glory that rightfully belonged to Togo, his musher Leonhard Seppala, and a slew of Native mushers and their dogs. - Braving the Blizzard: Molly insists on pressing forward through a blizzard to reach Nenana with the statue. The blizzard that necessitated the 1925 serum relay is also highlighted.
- Determinator: The tribal chief of Nenana notices Molly's tenacity.
Henry (to Molly): You sure are determined!
Tooey: Tell me about it!
Midge: You don't know the half of it!
- Failed a Spot Check: On a meta level. For a show that prides itself on its accurate depictions of Alaskan life and culture, that the writers and researchers missed the fact that Balto is not regarded as a hero in Alaska or in the mushing community is quite glaring.
- Race Lift: Mr. Patak depicts one of the Serum Run's Native mushers with Balto, instead of Norwegian-born Gunner Kassen. To Patak's credit, real life mushers commonly assert that the Native mushers in the relay deserve far more credit than Kassen, as many of them suffered severe frostbite and even sacrificed some of their dogs to get the medicine to Nome.
- Shown Their Work: The above spot check mentioned, the writers did make sure to list real life animal heroes such as Moko the dolphin
and Lulu the pot-bellied pig in the book that Molly and Tooey check out. - Sled Dogs Through the Snow: An episode about the Great Serum Run wouldn't be complete without showcasing the Ookamis' dogs running through a blizzard.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Henry's grandson looks a lot like him, right down to the glasses.
"Snow Jam": Molly's basketball team raises money for a basketball tournament by dribbling while snowshoeing.
"Snow Jam" contains the following tropes:
- Bilingual Bonus: Grandpa Nat teaches Molly several Koyukon words for different types of snow.
- Failures on Ice: Tooey, Vera and Oscar slide into a snowbank after hitting a patch of frozen-over packed snow.
- I Meant to Do That: Trini shoots a basket and ends up bouncing the ball between the backboard and the scoreboard multiple times before it finally drops into the basket. Then she claims she planned it that way.
- Team Hand-Stack: The episode has a few scenes depicting the Qyah Northern Lights doing a hand stack.
