The Magic School Bus Makes a Rainbow
Original airdate: October 26th, 1996
Subject: Colour
Focus Student(s): Carlos, Dorothy Ann
Everyone in class is making rainbows, including Ms. Frizzle using a pinball machine that uses lights instead of pinballs. She's having a hard time beating the game, though, and she's made a bet that could cost her the machine! The class decides to enter the game and learn more about light so that Ms. Frizzle can win.
Producers Segment
The male producer answers the questions about the episode while Liz works on a miniature version of the light pinball machine.
Tropes
- The Bet: Mr. Ruhle and Ms. Frizzle made one. If she could beat the pinball game, she could keep it. If not, he would be able to.
- Big "NO!": Ms. Frizzle releases one when she loses the pinball game, just as she was about to get the blue into the right slot.
- Chekhov's Gun: DA's "violet" book is used to direct the last color into the game.
- Evil Laugh: Mr. Ruhle gives a pretty good one when he thinks that he has won the bet.
- Felony Misdemeanor: DA accuses Carlos of "ruining" her rainbow drawing when he shines red light on it. She then switches it off instead of simply moving it to a desk where the lights don't fall.
- Foreshadowing:
- DA mocks Carlos's use of candy wrappers and flashlights to create colored light. As it turns out, to complete the rainbow in the game, the class needs to utilize colored lights.
- Mr. Ruhle spends most of the episode looking for Ms. Frizzle. It turns out that she made the bet with him, and he was waiting to see if he had won.
- Graceful Loser: Mr. Ruhle, after Ms. Frizzle tells him he can play with the game whenever he likes.
- Hidden Depths: Arnold mentions that colors are one of his passions, along with rocks.
- How Do I Shot Web?: The class takes a while to understand how to play the game, including how to move the colored objects and direct the lights into their holes.
- Insistent Terminology: D.A keeps insisting that it's violet, not purple.
- Irony: After everyone frets about playing pinball in school, since it's not exactly allowed, the principal is the one most excited to play the pinball game.
- Mass "Oh, Crap!": The class when they can't exit the pinball machine.
- Not So Above It All: Mr. Ruhle practically gives a Squee when Ms. Frizzle lets him play with the machine.
- Oh, Crap!: Arnold when he sees Mr. Ruhle outside the classroom door, waiting for Ms. Frizzle.
- Shout-Out: While watching Ms. Frizzle playing her pinball game, Ralphie exclaims "She's a pinball wizard!"
- We Need a Distraction: Arnold accidentally leads Mr. Ruhle away by making offhand suggestions, long enough for the class to win the game.
- What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: DA laughs at the idea of candy wrappers being used to make a rainbow.
