"Little Fuzzles are big trouble!"
That's the warning Papa Smurf gives Clumsy when he is shown a seemingly friendly woodland tick that the young Smurf wants to keep as a pet, but Clumsy doesn't listen ... and soon, the Smurfs are inundated in "Fuzzle Trouble."
Fuzzles aren't the only problem the Smurfs are having to deal with. Gargamel is busy with his latest concoction: a footprint-finding formula that can reveal the footprints of whoever or whatever the formula picks up and track their movements. After testing it out and a run-in with an angry bear, Gargamel seems to be on track in finding the Smurfs' whereabouts, and with this knowledge could be on the verge of realizing his goal of capturing the Smurfs once and for all.
Meanwhile, the Smurfs are in the forest, collecting logs to be used to make repairs to the dam. While there, Clumsy finds what he thinks is a small harmless creature sitting on his log and wishes to keep it for a pet. But Papa Smurf instantly recognizes it as a Fuzzle, and knowing how destructive it can be, tells Clumsy a stern "no" and to return it immediately. When Clumsy tries to defend the cute little guy as, well, a cute little fellow, Papa Smurf tells him, without explaining why, "Little Fuzzles are big trouble!"
Clumsy concedes, but when he leaves the Fuzzle behind, the creature begins to cry, and heartbroken, Clumsy sumuggles it into the village and tries to keep it contained within his house. He feeds it and then returns to the dam to help with repairs.
When he returns home for lunch, Clumsy finds out exactly why Papa Smurf warned "Little Fuzzles are big trouble!" Turns out that Fuzzles can multiply into many copies of itself with whatever it eats, and thus cause mass destruction in a short amount of time. Clumsy tries to go to Brainy Smurf for advice, but soon his house begins to be overrun by the Fuzzles ... and then Papa Smurf's laboratory is soon crawling with the creatures.
Clumsy is eventually forced to admit he disobeyed his order to leave the Fuzzle in the forest. A very angry Papa Smurf tells Clumsy to round up all the Fuzzles before they cause even more damage and return them to the forest ... now!
Clumsy seems to have gotten every last one of them rounded up, but not only is he unable to get rid of the Fuzzles, but they've multiplied even more ... and they're headed for the dam for a feast! Papa Smurf tries a sleeping formula to put the creatures to sleep and the Smurfs seem to have solved their problem ... until they wake up and return to the dam to finish their meal. Papa Smurf, knowing there's no time to create another batch of sleeping formula, concedes defeat and Clumsy begins bawling that he is the one responsible for sealing his species' doom.
Harmony then plays an off-key rendering of "Taps," a farewell to "Smurfedom as we know it." But the Fuzzles seem to be hypnotized by the music, and Papa Smurf, seeing this as his opening and their last chance to win their battle, instructs Harmony to play faster and lead the Fuzzles out into the forest where they belong.
As the Pied Piper of the Smurf village leads the swarm of Fuzzles from the dam, and the other Smurfs following behind, they are all unaware of a trap Gargamel is springing for the Smurfs. Harmony avoids the trap, but the Fuzzles walk on the leaves and trip the wire, causing a giant box to fall on top of them. Gargamel comes out of hiding and picks up the box, gloating over what he thinks is his catch of a lifetime. He takes note that the box seems awfully heavy, but by all counts he thinks every last Smurf is accounted for and he soon plans to destroy them all.
And then, he opens the box, ready to brutally exterminate the Smur ...
"AAAAAHHHH!!!!!"
Gargamel and Azrael immediately find themselves and their hovel covered with thousands upon thousands of tiny multiplying fuzzles that are spreading around and eating up everything. Gargamel is left to concede defeat and swear revenge on the Smurfs for this turn of events.
Tropes associated with this episode include:
- Bears Are Bad News: For Gargamel and Azrael, when they think several of the Smurfs are inside a tree and they shake the trunk to force them out ... only to get an angry bear!
- Big Dam Plot: Eventually the Fuzzles attack the village dam.
- "Everybody Laughs" Ending: Everyone except for Gargamel, that is.
- Explosive Breeder: The Fuzzles.
- It's All My Fault: After Papa Smurf concedes defeat and that the Fuzzles are about to destroy the dam, Clumsy breaks down and wishes he had listened to the advice to abandon the Fuzzle.
- Knockout Gas: Which Papa Smurf uses to put the Fuzzles to sleep ... unfortunately to very little success.
- Magical Trumpet Player: Harmony, the unexpected hero.
- Magic Music: There's nothing inherently magical about Harmony's music, but it does attract the Fuzzles' attention long enough for Harmony to lure them away from the village.
- Oh, Crap!: When Clumsy realizes why "little Fuzzles are big trouble!" (after he comes home from lunch and sees hundreds of them). Then again, when Brainy points out that the Fuzzles are heading to Papa Smurf's house.
- Puppy-Dog Eyes: The original Fuzzle, after Clumsy explains to him that he needs to go back to the forest as Papa Smurf said.
- Talk About the Weather: Clumsy, in essence, tries to do this to stall for time in explaining that he disobeyed Papa Smurf and that the village is quickly being overrun by Fuzzles.
- Whole-Plot Reference: To "The Trouble With Tribbles" from Star Trek: The Original Series.
