Cartoon Corner: Busytown Mysteries Vs. Video Games

One of the most rewarding things about having children is sitting with them and watching a bunch of dumb cartoons. Sometimes, these shows almost barely have something to do with video games. Barely. Case in point: Busytown Mysteries' "The Crazy Clock Mix-Up Mystery." Will Huckle and his crew determine the link between his handheld game system and a terrifying local phenomenon? We watched the episode so you don't have to.

Here's the title card for this episode. I wasn't lying when I said that's what it was called. You can trust me.

The episode starts with our pal Huckle Cat tooling around the streets of Busytown in his little car. He's supposed to be meeting his sister, Sally, so he checks his pocket watch. Huckle is a notoriously distracted driver.

You can't really tell from this angle, but in addition to being able to drive a little car, Huckle also wears lederhosen. He's a pretty talented cat.

Get a load of this monkey! He is driving a car that is shaped like a shoe. The video game part is coming up. Remember when I said you could trust me? That still applies.

It's Sally! Her interests include scooters and tailgating. Why are they meeting up? Funny you should ask!

Huckle's video game is acting up! The buttons don't work! That worm dude is Lowly Worm. He wears a funny hat, and if you were to combine his outfit with Huckle's you'd have a complete Bavarian. Let's take a closer look at that game.

Try as he might, Huckle can't get his video game to respond. It's a shame, because that rabbit game looks super fun. Is that a tambourine?

Suddenly, all the nearby clocks go completely crazy! Even the one in town hall!

Busytown is immediately plunged into Lord of the Flies style anarchy. Pigs suddenly forget when it's time to eat. Cars inexplicably screech out of control. Zebras wear suits.

You can't tell from this image, but that clock is totally out of control.

Uh oh. Looks like Huckle and pals have an old-fashioned mystery on their hands! Huckle taps his head and everything! 

Suddenly, Goldbug appears out of nowhere. He's a reporter for Busytown Action Bug News. As you can guess from the show's name, there are a lot of mysteries goin' down in Busytown, which keeps Goldbug super busy. He's like Beetlejuice though, only you just say the word "mystery" once instead of "Beetlejuice" three times. OK, he's not at all like Beetlejuice.  

Now that we've established that we are in the midst of a mystery, it's time to sing the mystery song. I think those footprints are a callback to the episode where everyone thought a ghost was stealing pies or cookies or something and it was actually an ostrich who fell into some flour. I may be misremembering that episode, and I'm also probably giving the show a bit too much credit.

Lowly Worm is incredible. Exhibit A: He drives this car.

Suddenly, Pig Will and Pig Won't arrive on the scene. Pig Will sniffs out a video game, and wrenches it from Huckle's paws. He's supposed to be the polite one, too, which should tell you something about pigs.

Pig Won't grabs it from his brother, and then they fight a bunch. Lowly isn't sure what to make of this display of naked aggression.

More gameplay footage! Wait a second... this is the same picture, only reversed! The joystick is even on the wrong side now! Could there be two mysteries on our hands?! The answer is no. Anyway, while the pigs are mashing on the buttons, clocks go back to losing their freaking minds.

Truly, a city on the edge of widespread unrest.

Get a load of this bear! He doesn't know whether it's time to eat breakfast or lunch! This day is truly the worst day.

Sergeant Murphy arrives on the scene and tries to put the pieces together. Clocks. Video game. There's a reason why this guy will never make detective.

Oh crap! Huckle remembers why he and Sally were meeting in the first place. They were going to visit Mr. Fixit's shop to get that darned video game fixed.

Mr. Fixit should be on Hoarders. He appears to live in complete squalor. Just between you and me, he's also basically the worst repairman in the world. Who better to fix a video game?!

Mr. Fixit greets Huckle and crew by showing off his new invention, a pair of rocket skates. Obviously, Mr. Fixit was too busy filling his home with garbage to watch old episodes of the Road Runner. These things never, ever work.

What did I tell you? He crashes into a wall. That flying spring is cartoon shorthand for crashing into a wall, by the way.

Lowly grabs the spotlight again by turning into a spring and bouncing all over the place. Oh, Lowly!

Don't worry about Mr. Fixit's back, Huckle, it's probably OK. Shove that video game in his dumb fox face and demand satisfaction!

Mr. Fixit starts twiddling the sticks and mashing buttons like he's on a sitcom, and you'll never guess what happens next. THE CLOCKS LOSE THEIR FREAKING MINDS!

This rabbit doesn't know whether it's time to serve breakfast or dinner. I wonder if Pig Will and Pig Won't know that there are people in Busytown who dine on their kind's flesh. This show really makes you think sometimes.

This pig has the coolest car. The guy on his pickle-car radio is trying to communicate the time, but he eventually gives up. Why bother?

Hmmmm... I think Team Huckle just solved the mystery! (Warning: Unlike the one with the flour and the ostrich, what you're about to see doesn't make any damned sense.)

Our gang heads back into Mr. Fixit's shop, where they find him engrossed in a game of Standing Tambourine Rabbit. 

And really, who could blame him? 

Huckle announces that he has it all figured out, and Goldbug appears in his helicopter for the scoop. If you watch this show as much as I do, you'll soon realize that Goldbug is like the Tony Stark of crickets.

It's that damned video game! When you fiddle with the joystick and mash the buttons, it makes the clocks lose their freaking minds! Clearly, this device hasn't been approved by the FCC.

Mr. Fixit offers confirmation. Also, that's the worst-looking key I have ever seen in my entire life. Mr. Fixit should hide it in a drawer.

Now that the mystery has been solved (?) it's time to gloat with another song.

Mr. Fixit swaps a few wires and returns the video game to Huckle. But what's this?

Pig Will and Pig Won't! Why would you put those rocket skates on? They don't belong to you! Noooooooo!

The Pig brothers whiz around the room while Mr. Fixit tries to puzzle out what the hell's going on. Mr. Fixit, you are terrible.

Fortunately, they landed in the box. It must be filled with magnets or something. And cushions.

Without warning, Huckle chucks his video game into the trash. Meow! That little dude has a serious temper.

Oh wait! Huckle tossed the video game because he has better things to do with his time! Ahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahah! Video game!

~Fin~

So there you have it. Life in Busytown is back to normal. Watches work again. Bears know when it's time to eat the appropriate thing. Mr. Fixit can go back to breaking crap and piling more junk on his mound of shame. And to think, all this trouble could have been avoided if Huckle didn't absolutely need to play Standing Tambourine Rabbit on his video game. Fortunately for everyone, Huckle has broken the horrible gaming addiction we didn't know he was battling. 

Great job, Huckle!