The Magic School Bus Meets Molly Cule
Original airdate: September 13th, 1997
Subject: Molecules
Focus Student(s): Wanda
Wanda is thrilled to potentially wash the car of musician Molly Cule. It's not as easy as it sounds, however, when Molly can see tar on the molecular level thanks to a magnifier. The class has to shrink to figure out how to get rid of the tar.
Producers Segment
The male producer answers the questions about the episode while talking softly as he and Liz are at Molly's concert.
Tropes
- Affectionate Nickname: Molly calls Arnold "Sugar" when he asks what her crystal is made of. She keeps it up for most of the episode.
- Bland-Name Product: Dorothy Ann mentions a product called "Mr. Soapy", which may be the show's equivalent to Mr. Bubble.
- Book Ends: The episode starts with Wanda listening to Molly Cule's music on a CD player and singing along. At the end, Wanda and her classmates get to go onstage and sing with Molly herself.
- Call-Back: Like in "Gets Ready, Set, Dough," the class learns that things look different on a smaller scale, like rags, soap and water.
- Chekhov's Gun:
- The rag that Keesha left on the car hood. Arnold uses it to mop up the tar and suds that the class finds.
- Arnold's Affectionate Nickname, "sugar". It tells the class what Molly's crystal is made of.
- Jingle: Dorothy Ann briefly sings the jingle for a cleaning product called "Mr. Soapy".
- Musical Episode: It starts with Wanda listening to Molly's music and continues from there.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Wanda instigates the Your Princess Is in Another Castle! bit by being careless with Liz's umbrella.
- Punny Name: Molly Cule, which Ms. Frizzle lampshades at the end.
- Special Guest: Singer Wynonna Judd as "Molly Cule".
- Squee: Wanda's reaction to being able to wash Molly's car, and then to perform onstage with her and the class.
- We Need a Distraction: Arnold distracts Molly when the sugar sculpture falls in the pail of water and the class works to rebuild it.
- Your Princess Is in Another Castle!: Just as the class succeeds in getting tar off of every bit of the car, Wanda accidentally knocks Molly's crystal sculpture into a bucket of water.
