Original Air Date (UK): Sep 25, 1990
Zordrak's new leader of the Urpneys, Sgt Blob sets off to steal the Dreamstone aided by Frizz and Nug. In the Land of Dreams, a Noop called Rufus soon finds himself a job as a Dream Maker. Blob, Fizz and Nug raid the tower, steal the Dreamstone and take Amberley with them.
NOTE: This episode is the first part of a one hour Opening Special.
Tropes featured in the episode:
- Cannot Keep a Secret: The Dreammaker greatly emphasizes Rufus must keep the Dreamstone secret. Within about two minutes of Amberley entering the cottage, he outright drags her to the tower to reveal it to her.
- Can't Get Away with Nuthin': And just seconds after doing such, the Urpneys arrive and steal it from him.
- Characterization Marches On:
- Rufus is much more of a clownish Butt-Monkey in the first episode. The chase sequence actually has the Urpneys running rings around him and with most of the slapstick abuse directed to him, a heavy contrast to later episodes.
- Frizz and Nug are pretty much interchangeable Cowardly Sidekicks to Sgt. Blob in this episode, only gaining their individual characteristics as early episodes progress. They also seem much more enthusiastic about collecting the Dreamstone (granted, it is their first attempt prior to an endless amount of failures).
- Early-Installment Weirdness: The pilot is much darker than most of the series following. We open with Zordrak killing one of his mooks. Also while the Urpneys still get lots of Sympathetic P.O.V., the focus is more primarily on Rufus and his Character Development, with the heroes presented as more fallible equals to the villains.
- Establishing Character Moment: Zordrak's execution of Captain Crigg shows just how evil and sadistic he really is.
- Foreshadowing: Rufus' dream has tons of it.
- Leeroy Jenkins: Amberley charging into the Urpneys' ship and getting captured in the process.
- Mr. Imagination: Rufus, a trait that has cost him four jobs and leads him to seek work from The Dream Maker.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Rufus' showing off leads to him revealing the Dreamstone from it's hiding place just in time for the Urpneys to arrive and swipe it. Amberley worsens the problem by attempting to attack them and becoming a hostage.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: When Sgt Blob asks if any Urpney cadets wish to pull out of the mission, every last one runs out of the room. Frizz and Nug, who were too slow on the uptake, end up dragged into the mission.
- Unbuilt Trope: This episode introduces the basic story for most of the series after (ie. the Urpneys are sent to steal the Dreamstone, with the heroes giving chase to take it back). Here, however, the Urpneys collect the stone relatively easily, with the rest of the two-parter focused around the heroes' more dangerous efforts to get it back, compared to most later episodes that follow a Villain Protagonist format revolved around the Urpneys' Epic Fail plans, with the heroes usually very easily undoing them outside sporadic Not So Harmless moments.
- What the Hell, Hero?: In the original edit, the Dream Maker gives a brief reprimanding to Rufus for revealing the Dreamstone and getting it stolen in the process.
- You Have Failed Me:
- Opens with Zordrak doing such to Captain Crigg.
- The Dream Maker also quotes this in his reprimand of Rufus in the original cut.
