The Shadow of Courage
Original air date: 11/19/1999
Production code: CCD-101a
After the death of a selfish old man, his shadow leaves him to be free, causing chaos across Nowhere. Eventually, he decides to stay at the Bagge household and mess with its residents for the night.
Dr. Le Quack Amnesia Specialist
Original air date: 11/19/1999
Production code: CCD-101b
Eustace attempts to fix the roof, but accidentally sends a wooden plank flying through the air and onto Muriel's head, giving her amnesia. Rather than try to fix this, Eustace convinces her that she's a slave woman. Courage seeks help from Dr. Le Quack, self-proclaimed amnesia specialist, who turns out to be a fraud trying to steal their valuables.
Note: The episode title was too long to fit on the title, so it was shortened.
"The Shadow of Courage" provides examples of the following Tropes:
- Asshole Victim: The original owner of the Shadow is a cruel, wealthy old man. He's so mean and miserly that when he dies, even his butler, who overhears him dying of a heart attack, just walks off feeling free as a bird.
- Blatant Lies: Muriel wonders if it was a bit cruel to make Courage sleep in the attic.Eustace: He seemed happy to me.
- Cut to Courage shivering under a blanket, looking distinctly unhappy.
- The Dog Bites Back: The opening scene has a very quick-paced example. The rich old man the Shadow initially belongs to fires his butler Jennings for no apparent reason other than because he's a jerk. After Jennings leaves the room, his former employer starts suffering from a heart attack and calls for him. After a moment, Jennings decides to be on his merry way and leave his cruel ex-boss to die.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Courage has a much bigger speaking role here than he'd have in near-future episodes, where his dialogue is scaled back to near-nothingness.
- Heart Beats out of Chest: Courage, when the living shadow scares him out of his wits while he's searching for Muriel in the basement. His heart beats in and out due to fear.
- Living Shadow: Once the old man dies, his shadow comes to life from his body and starts terrorizing the Bagges.
- Murder by Inaction: The old, rich man's butler leaves him to die despite hearing his dying pleas for help. Hard to blame him, however, considering the rich bastard had just casually fired the butler for no reason after fifty years of loyal service.
- Not Evil, Just Misunderstood: The Shadow doesn't really want to be evil, he just wants to be a star.
- One-Woman Wail: Whenever Muriel catches Eustace abusing Courage in any way, she runs at him with her rolling pin, accompanied by a triumphant, operatic one-woman wail.
- Skewed Priorities: After Courage thinks there's a monster in the attic and runs straight through the door to alert Muriel and Eustace, creating an Impact Silhouette in the attic door, what's Eustace's first concern when they go to look?Eustace: Did you break that door?!
- Stellification: After Courage shines a flashlight at the Shadow, it explains how it never wanted to be the selfish millionaire, but wanted to be a star in Hollywood. After hearing this, Courage convinces the Shadow to instead become a star in the sky, which the Shadow likes the idea of and flies into the sky, creating a new star.
- Villainous Breakdown: Played for laughs. The Shadow starts out showing Courage terrifying visions that change as he turns his flashlight on and off. After a while, the images go from scary to silly and eventually the poor shadow just starts begging Courage to stop.
"Dr. Le Quack, Amnesia Specialist" provides examples of the following tropes:
- And There Was Much Rejoicing: Downplayed. At the end, Courage finds Eustace in the closet, only to find that the man has lost his memory. Courage just smiles and closes the door.
- Deus ex Machina: Charlie the giant mouse makes his first appearance in the series out of nowhere. He suddenly appears in the room, punches Le Quack across the room, and eats the stinky cheese Le Quack was torturing Muriel with. Courage thanks him for his help and pays him before he leaves.
- Easy Amnesia: Muriel loses all of her memories when she is hit on the head by a wooden plank, and later gets them back when hit on the head by a giant mallet. Eustace also loses all of his memories when he is hit on the head.
- Forceful Kiss: While Le Quack has Muriel tied up, he kisses her on the forehead after briefly flirting with her and bonking her on the head.
- Hammerspace: Le Quack's giant mallet, which he randomly pulls out of nowhere.
- Here We Go Again!: After Muriel finally regains her memory in the end, it's revealed that Eustace lost his memory when Le Quack hit him on the head earlier in the episode.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Courage says this when he realizes that having Dr. Le Quack around to cure Muriel of amnesia is not a good idea after witnessing him knocking Eustace out and locking him in the closet underneath the stairs.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Courage sends out a request for an amnesia specialist in an attempt to cure Muriel of hers. He gets Le Quack, a conman looking to rob them blind.
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Before the last time Le Quack chases Courage, he knocks Muriel out with the giant mallet he used on Eustace earlier. This ends up getting Muriel her memories back.
- Pie in the Face: Used as a torture method by Le Quack by tying Muriel up and attaching giant pies to a toy train, setting it up so it'll smash the pies into her face (and a good deal more of her body for good measure).
- Police Are Useless: When Courage sends a message to the police that there's a madman in the house, their response is, "You poor thing. What do you want from us?" Of course, they come eventually, but Le Quack still escapes.
- Poke the Poodle: Le Quack's various methods of torturing Muriel to get her to remember where her valuables are include Tickle Torture, Pie in the Face, and holding a stinky cheese near her. He also randomly bonks her on the head after assuring her that he will only be gone for a moment, then gives her a quick kiss goodbye on her forehead.
- Quack Doctor: Le Quack, an anthropomorphic duck, is a con artist. He poses as a doctor who uses unorthodox means to try and cure Muriel's amnesia. However, he's actually trying to get her to tell him where she keeps her valuables, so he can rob her.
- "Take That!" Kiss: Before Le Quack chases Courage a third time, he knocks out Muriel with a mallet and gives her a quick kiss where he hit her.Le Quack: My darling, I must leave you for a moment, but only for a moment. [bonks Muriel with his mallet and then kisses her forehead] Mwah!
- Tempting Fate: Before chasing Courage for the final time, Le Quack takes a moment to tell Muriel that he must leave her for a moment, but assures her that it will be "only for a moment" and gives her a quick kiss goodbye. He ends up never returning to her (at least in this episode) due to getting arrested.
- Terms of Endangerment: Le Quack calls Muriel "my darling" before chasing Courage for the last time. This is after he has tortured her in various ways to get her to remember where she keeps her valuables, and right before he suddenly knocks her out with his mallet and kisses her goodbye on her forehead.
- Eustace: Where am I? Who are you? Who am I?
