Skip to main content

Secret of Cartoons: Catdog Lost Episode


Hello everyone. When I was a little girl, one of my favorite Nicktoons was CatDog. I'm sure you 90s kids remember it: a fairly comical show about a pair of Siamese twin brothers, one cat and one dog. They lived in a house with wise-mouth blue mouse named Winslow, and they were constantly bullied by a group of dogs known as The Greasers. According to records, this show first aired on April 4, 1998, it and ended with an unaired episode on September 22, 2004. The series was created by Peter Hannan.

Being a loyal follower of the show, I was rather disappointed when I found out that the series was cut in 2004. Like most other people, I hadn't seen the unaired episode, which I have found out was titled "Vexed of Kin / Meat, Dog's Friends".

One day, while browsing a local yard sale, I came across a DVD in a plain clear case. It was obviously a burned DVD, as it was the Memorex brand. Anyway, it had "CatDog: For the Birds" messily scrawled on it in black Sharpie marker. I've never heard of this episode! It must have been some kind of mysterious lost episode! I had to have it. I asked the woman (about in her 40's) in charge how much she wanted for it. She didn't know, it belonged to her son, she said. So she sprinted into her house and brought out a young man, probably in his mid 20's, who was apparently her son. He was very thin, pale, and had deep dark circles around his eyes. He looked malnourished and like he hadn't slept in weeks. I showed him the DVD, smiled politely at him, and asked, "How much?" He gave me a look like someone who was in shock and terribly nauseous at the same time. "What?! How did that get there? Nevermind. Just take it." I felt kind of bad for him. Maybe he reacted like this because he was feeling ill and he was trying to sleep when his mom brought him outside. I gave him a kind smile and told him I hoped he would be feeling better soon, then said farewell.

I dashed home, eager to view my new DVD. I sat down in front of my TV and popped the disk into my DVD player and pressed play on my remote. At first, there was a minute of pure static. I thought this was very strange, considering this was a DVD, not a VHS tape (I've experienced static on VHS tapes in the past, so that would have made sense). I could swear that for about a millisecond I saw a face in the static, and it felt like I was being watched.. After the static, it cut to the opening theme. I smiled, enjoying the feeling of joyful nostalgia that comes with watching one of my old favorites. When the opening theme was over, it showed the title card. It was plain white lettering on a red background, with what looked like crows in the background. The title said "For the Birds."

The episode started out with Dog stretching and yawning before cheerfully proclaiming, "It's a bea-u-tiful day!" Then he hears a familiar sound. "GARBAGE TRUCK!" He yells gleefully and jumps out of bed, dragging a drowsy and more-than-annoyed Cat with him. "Dog, I need my sleep!" Cat growled. Dog didn't hear him. "Garbage truck, garbage truck, garbage truck!!" He ran down the street and sped past the Greasers. The chase went on for about 5 minutes, with the usual goofiness of Cat bumping himself off objects, yelling "My body! My body! My body!" Dog kept running as the garbage truck safely drove over train tracks. Dog followed after, but suddenly he heard a train whistle and a loud screech. Cat and Dog couldn't get out of the way in time. The Greasers watched with a look of terror and disgust. Cliff and Lube doubled over and vomited. Shriek began sobbing uncontrollably. Out of the blue, a huge flock of crows dove down and began feasting on CatDog's recently deceased corpse. The screen started showing graphic snapshots of the birds ripping apart CatDog's remains while "Freebird" by Lynrd Skynrd plays. This continues for the rest of the episode, the images getting more and more detailed and gruesome. Then the ending credits rolled, just plain white letters scrolling down a black background.

I tried ejecting the DVD, but the player didn't seem to want to open. When it finally came out, the disk was partially melted and it had deep scratches on the bottom of the disk. I tried to pick up the disk, but it was burning hot. I freaked out and threw it in the trash.

I still have nightmares about this episode, sometimes I dream about the face from the static. Sometimes I see it at night when I'm trying to sleep, just out of the corner of my eye. It's always brief, but I can always feel it watching me.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Wish Come True (A Short Story)

I woke up with a start when I found myself in a very unfamiliar place. The bed I was lying on was grand—an English-quilting blanket and 2 soft pillows with flowery laces. The whole place was fit for a king! Suddenly the door opened and there stood my dream prince: Katsuya Kimura! I gasped in astonishment for he was actually a cartoon character. I did not know that he really exist. “Wake up, dear,” he said and pulled off the blanket and handed it to a woman who looked like the maid. “You will be late for work.” “Work?” I asked. “Yes! Work! Have you forgotten your own comic workhouse, baby dear?” Comic workhouse?! I…I have became a cartoonist? That was my wildest dreams! Being a cartoonist! I undressed and changed into my beige T-shirt and black trousers at once and hurriedly finished my breakfast. Katsuya drove me to the workhouse. My, my, was it big! I’ve never seen a bigger place than this! Katsuya kissed me and said, “See you at four, OK, baby?” I blushed scarlet. I always wan...
Post a Comment
Read more

Hans and Hilda

Once upon a time there was an old miller who had two children who were twins. The boy-twin was named Hans, and he was very greedy. The girl-twin was named Hilda, and she was very lazy. Hans and Hilda had no mother, because she died whilst giving birth to their third sibling, named Engel, who had been sent away to live wtih the gypsies. Hans and Hilda were never allowed out of the mill, even when the miller went away to the market. One day, Hans was especially greedy and Hilda was especially lazy, and the old miller wept with anger as he locked them in the cellar, to teach them to be good. "Let us try to escape and live with the gypsies," said Hans, and Hilda agreed. While they were looking for a way out, a Big Brown Rat came out from behind the log pile. "I will help you escape and show you the way to the gypsies' campl," said the Big Brown Rat, "if you bring me all your father's grain." So Hans and Hilda waited until their father let them out, ...
2 comments
Read more

I've Learned...

Written by Andy Rooney, a man who had the gift of saying so much with so few words. Rooney used to be on 60 Minutes TV show. I've learned.... That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person. I've learned.... That when you're in love, it shows. I've learned .... That just one person saying to me, 'You've made my day!' makes my day. I've learned.... That having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world. I've learned.... That being kind is more important than being right. I've learned.... That you should never say no to a gift from a child. I've learned.... That I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help him in any other way. I've learned.... That no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with. I've learned.... That sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand. I...
Post a Comment
Read more