Today's Special - Episode Guide

As the episode opens, TXL gives a recap of the events that occurred in the previous episode. She explains that the store is being closed down, and that in order to save the store, the building would have to have an historic plaque. Despite that they knew what the plaque looked like, no one - not even TXL - knew where it was located. Everyone felt that there was no hope to save the store, until Muffy unknowingly revealed the plaque while moving her piano out of her house. "If only we can get Muffy to notice what is behind her wall!" she says, as part two begins.

It is now 7:30 in the morning. Jeff, Sam, and Muffy are sitting behind the counter in the Children's Department, looking downcast. Muffy is playing a few notes on her piano. Jodie walks in and remarks on their state.

"Boy, do I see a lot of sad faces," she says. "Come on, it's not the end of the world. We'll still see a lot of each other. Muffy, you'll find a new place to live. Sam, we'll get new jobs. And, Jeff, well... Jeff's going to have a wonderful time traveling around with Waldo the Magnificent. So, you see, everything's going to work out all right. So why should we be miserable and spoil our last day in the store?"

Jeff agrees. "Jodie's right!" he says. He suggests that they think of the funniest thing that they ever did together. Sam brings up the time when they told the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" as an opera. Sam recalls that his favorite moment was when Baby Bear, which Jeff played, saw that his porridge was missing, and knew that someone had been in their cottage.

In a flashback, we see the second half of the performance of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears".

"...and when you said, 'Please don't eat me!' I'm telling you, Muffy, I nearly laughed my costume off!" says Sam, remembering that time. Jodie recalls the noses that they painted on.

"That was the best time," says Jeff.

"Well, not quite is what I wish to say," says Muffy. "There was an even better day. Too important to ignore, that day when Jeff came to the store!"

"Oh, Muffy's got a point," says Jodie. "That day definitely changed our lives."

Jeff agrees. He explains that when the day began, he was just a regular mannequin, so new that he had not yet left the factory, and that it all began when Waldo the Magnificent was practicing his magic while walking down the street.

In a flashback, we see a street, and then Waldo the Magnificent appears, singing a song about himself. When he finishes his song, he consults his magic book, and then casts a spell to turn a lamppost into a tree. Dissatisfied with the result, he turns to page one of his book, where he finds a spell for an all-purpose magic hat.

Reading in his book, the first step is to find a magic hat. Finding a red hat sitting on top of a fire hydrant, Waldo continues. Step two is to repeat the magic words: hocus pocus alimagocus. With that, the hat rises off of the fire hydrant, much to Waldo's delight. "Success at last!" he exclaims. However, the hat then flies away, causing Waldo to give chase.

Waldo chases the hat for some distance until it flies into the window of a building, landing on top of the mannequin that would eventually become Jeff. The mannequin comes to life, blinking its eyes. Waldo, meanwhile, has entered the factory, still looking for the hat. As he walks up to the mannequin that is now wearing his hat, he looks through his book in order to find out if there is a section on how to recover the hat. The mannequin turns, reaches out, and takes Waldo's magic wand from him. Waldo's first reaction is to say "thank you" before realizing what is happening and giving a look of fright. Then, as the wand touches Waldo, he is turned into a rabbit.

"The wand! Wave the wand again!" he says. As the mannequin turns and begins to walk away, Waldo begs him, "Don't take my wand away, please!" The mannequin then drops the wand on the floor before freezing when an employee arrives. The employee picks the mannequin up and carries it away. Waldo turns back into a human, and immediately shouts, "Stop that hat!"

The employee carries the mannequin to the elevator, and they ride down to the main floor. Waldo misses the elevator, and has to wait for it to come back. Meanwhile, the employee loads the mannequin into a red van parked at the loading dock. The employee gets in the van and begins to drive away just as Waldo catches up.

Waldo quickly looks in his magic book, and casts a spell on himself: "Ala-kabam, ala-kabast, turn me into something fast!" This turns him into a frog, which was not what Waldo had intended. Turning back into a human, he tries another spell: "Eye of newt, toe of beagle. Turn me into a soaring eagle!" This gives Waldo a set of large wings, to which he comments, "Better. Not perfect, but better!" He then walks onto a nearby carpet, and flies off.

He follows the van on its journey through the city, dodging a rocket at one point, until the van reaches the loading dock at the store. There, the employee takes the mannequin that would eventually become Jeff out of the van and stands him up next to the entrance while he carries another mannequin in. The mannequin turns his head, smiles, and winks before returning to his original position. The employee then carries the mannequin in, just as Waldo lands at the loading dock.

Back in the present, Jodie remarks, "Of course, we didn't know then that you had arrived in the store."

"No, no, all we knew was that night, there was this new mannequin in the toy department," adds Sam. "Matter of fact, Jeff, you were standing right over there."

"I remember!" says Jeff.

Returning to the flashback, Jodie is in the Children's Department working to remove the label from the new mannequin's wrist, as Sam and Muffy look on. "Oh, I wish they would take these labels off at the factory," she grouses, as Sam comments about how lifelike the mannequin looks.

Then the mannequin turns its head to the left. Sam and Muffy are surprised by this, and briefly look at each other. Jodie, still trying to remove the tag, doesn't notice.

"Uh, Jodie," asks Sam, "how did you get his head to move like that? You must of pressed a button, huh?"

"What are you talking about, Sam?" asks Jodie. "I didn't do anything."

"There's no mistake, Jodie," says Sam.

"It was no dream!" adds Muffy.

"No, we're wide awake!" says Sam.

"I think I'll scream!" says Muffy.

Jodie, having successfully removed the label, remarks, "Wish you two would stop mumbling and let me know what you're..." She stops mid-sentence when she sees the mannequin's head turn again. With a look of shock, she says, "Never mind. I think I know what you're talking about!"

They then hear a voice that says, "Nonsense! None of you know what you're talking about!"

Sam remarks, "His lips didn't move!"

Suddenly, Waldo the Magnificent appears in the middle of the Children's Department, blowing feathers off of his cape from his time as an eagle. He then replies to Sam, telling him, "Well, of course not! He can't talk!"

"Who are you?" asks Jodie.

"Oh, forgive me, I've had such a trying day," explains Waldo. "I've completely forgotten my manners." He then hands Jodie his business card.

"Waldo the Magnificent," she reads. "Magical feats performed on request. Special rates for birthdays..."

Waldo stops her there, and properly introduces himself. Sam asks Waldo to come over, and asks what is going on. Waldo explains, "Nothing very spectacular, I'm afraid. You see, I was practicing my magic on that old hat," gesturing towards the hat with his wand, "when it got away from me and landed on his head."

Sam and Muffy understand now. "So it's that magic hat that makes him move like that!" Muffy says.

"Precisely!" answers Waldo. "And I've been trying to get it back all day. So if you'll be kind enough to hand it to me, I'll be on my way."

"But what happens when I take the hat off his head?" asks Jodie.

"Why, nothing, my dear young lady," replies Waldo. "He's not real. He can't think or feel. He's a mannequin, with no idea that that magic hat is making him move."

Just then, the mannequin turns his head again, and points at his hat. "There! You see?" Jodie exclaims. "He does know. He is real!" Lowering the mannequin's arm, she tells him, "It's all right, nothing's going to happen to you."

"Stand back!" Waldo says.

Jodie asks, "What are you going to do?"

"Trust me!" Waldo replies, as he consults his magic book. Standing next to the mannequin, he says, "Hocus pocus alimagocus! Hocus pocus alimagocus!" Suddenly, the mannequin comes to life, moving the way that a human being would. Sam is amazed, remarking that the mannequin is real. Waldo explains that there was really nothing to it, but that a double dose of magic was all that he needed.

Jodie tells the mannequin, "You don't have to be frightened. We're your friends."

"Too bad he can't talk, though," adds Sam.

Waldo replies, "One spell at a time, please. Reading and writing and talking require something much more tricky!" He then turns to the mannequin and tells him, "Don't move." He then consults his magic book, and casts another spell. "Love of learning, love of art," and then, raising his finger in the air while still looking down at his book, continues, "hit his head and make him smart!" The magic from his finger then goes across the room, bounces off of the wall, the counter, and the floor, before finally hitting the mannequin's feet.

Muffy sees this and remarks, "You missed his head and hit his shoe! But what is there smart feet can do?"

The mannequin quickly begins dancing, and doesn't stop until Waldo removes the magic hat. At that point, the mannequin freezes.

"What happened?" asks Jodie. "He's a mannequin again."

Waldo explains, "Of course, you must understand he is a mannequin! You see, he's only real when you put on the magic hat," as Waldo puts the hat back on the mannequin's head, "and say the magic words: hocus pocus alimagocus!"

With that, the mannequin comes back to life, and Waldo tells him that they're going to try the spell again. Waldo repeats the spell, this time looking at where he is pointing his finger, aiming directly at the mannequin's head. The mannequin is briefly surrounded by a magical glow, and then, after a cough, begins to speak. "I-I can talk. I can talk. Ha, ha, I can talk!" He then goes around the room saying hello to Jodie, Sam, Muffy, and Waldo.

Waldo gets the mannequin's attention again, and describes some details about the spell that he cast. "First," he explains, "if you ever leave the store, the magic spell will be broken, and you'll be a mannequin again."

"You mean I have to stay in the store forever?" the mannequin asks.

"For the moment, yes," Waldo replies. "I mean, if you came with me, you see, I could protect you with my magic powers. But I have to go away on a tour. So for now, during the daytime, you'll be a mannequin. And at night, these kind people will take care of you."

"We will?" says Sam. "I mean, uh, oh, sure we will."

Waldo explains that the mannequin can speak and think and feel, but still has a lot to learn about the world. It's a big responsibility, but Sam, Jodie, and Muffy are up to it. Waldo declares, "Right, then. It's all settled. This is your new home!"

"It's a whole department store, and there's lots of things to see," Jodie says. "Hey, why don't you go have a look around?"

"By myself?" the mannequin asks.

"Sure, why not?" Jodie replies. "It's your world now."

With that, the mannequin looks around, and then walks through the doorway to begin exploring.

"Heh," says Sam. "You know, I kinda like him."

Waldo reminds them, "Just don't forget the magic words: hocus pocus alimagocus."

Jodie, Sam, and Muffy each begin repeating the magic words to themselves in an attempt to remember them, until Sam asks Waldo, "Could you write that down for us, please?"

Waldo looks down the hallway, and says, "Good luck, Jeff!" before heading out. Jeff, meanwhile, is exploring the store, singing a song about the magic words, hocus pocus alimagocus.

Coming out of the flashback, everyone else is singing the whispered magic words from the song around Jeff. Muffy comments, "Oh, so long ago when Jeff came to stay. And yet, it seems like yesterday."

Sam expresses hope to Jeff that they showed him all of the right things now that he is going out on his own. He then says, "Well, it's nearly 8:30. Daytime staff will be in to finish up all the rest here. Time go to, I guess." Sam then leaves to go get Penelope, while Muffy leaves to give her room one last check for a missing pen.

After Sam and Muffy leave, Jeff turns to Jodie and asks if he's going to like the world outside of the store. Jodie is confident that he will have a great time, telling him, "All you have to do is say, 'World, here comes Jeff!'"

They sing a short song together. "The whole world is waiting for me," sings Jeff.

"Just be brave, and I'm sure you'll be fine," replies Jodie.

"Outside there is so much to discover," they sing together. "To say I will make the world mine."

Muffy, having arrived in her house, can't find the pen, remarking, "I guess there's nothing here at all!" Then, gesturing behind her, she continues, "Just that plaque upon the wall." Then, realizing what she just said, remarks, "Did I say what I think I did? That behind my wall, the plaque was hid?" She then becomes very excited, questioning what she should do. She then recenters herself, saying to herself, "Now, slow down, Muffy, or you'll get sick. Calmly tell the others... double quick!" and she runs out of her house as fast as she can go.

Back in the Children's Department, Sam has retrieved Penelope, and everyone is ready to leave as soon as Muffy gets back. Muffy runs into the Children's Department, and excitedly tells Sam that she found the plaque. "It's on my wall, behind a crack!" she says.

Jodie checks her watch, and realizes that they still have time to save the store. Everyone leaves to head down to Muffy's place. Muffy stays behind to gloat to Penelope, still in her carrier, saying, "Now will you admit I'm clever? You wouldn't have found it ever. Hah!"

Later, Sam, Jodie, and Jeff are outside of Muffy's place, encouraging her to hurry if Jodie is going to have enough time get to the main office in order to save the store. Inside, Muffy is lining up a Polaroid camera to take a photo of the plaque. She takes the photo, and it's time for Jodie to go.

At 8:35, Jodie rushes out of the store with the photo in hand. As Jeff, Sam, and Muffy sing about her journey in the Children's Department, Jodie unsuccessfully attempts to hail a taxicab, and then boards a streetcar. She alights the streetcar, runs through some woods, and then down another street. She stops, waits for the light to change, walks across the street, and then resumes her sprint to the main office. Arriving at the main office, she runs completely around the revolving door entrance, ending back outside. Realizing her mistake, she runs back in, and then runs down a corridor.

When she arrives at her destination, she is met by an overprotective secretary who will not let her see the boss, because, "He is in a meeting and cannot be disturbed." She ensures Jodie that he will see her after the meeting. Despite Jodie's protests that it will be too late by then, and suggestion that the secretary interrupt the meeting, the secretary refuses. Jodie then quickly, without the secretary's knowledge, slips the photo of the plaque under a coffee cup on a cart that the secretary was preparing to take into the meeting.

"Well," Jodie asks, "could you tell him that Jodie's here, please?" The secretary agrees, as Jodie sits in the chair, nervously waiting.

A clock then quickly ticks an hour past. Back at the store, Jeff is sitting on the counter, while Sam and Muffy pace. "Oh, it's 10:00 and not a word," Muffy says. "I wonder why we haven't heard! Oh, if we don't know if we go or stay... my nerves won't take this long delay!"

"Oh, come on, Muffy, hold on," says Jeff. "We'll hear something soon!"

Just then, Jodie bursts into the room. "Hey, we did it! The store's saved!" Everyone is delighted by this news. Jodie continues, "The boss isn't going to sell the store. That means we can all stay!"

When Jeff asks Muffy if that is terrific, she replies, "The news is great! I'm very glad. But there's one thing that's very bad. The boss will want the store put back. And all these things we must unpack!"

"Yeah, I know what you mean, Muffy," says Jeff. "It's really going to be a lot of work..."

"Oh, what a shame," says Jodie.

Then Jeff takes a box full of clothes and dumps its contents over Muffy, to her amusement. Everyone sings together, "It's wonderful news! It's a glorious day! Everything's fine! Everything is okay! We'll be together forever and more! We'll be together in our favorite store!

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