The Plantars are travelling in the fwagon through a desert. Sprig is playing the fiddle, while Jean is playing a guitar. Flossie was in the fwagon, reading a book. Anne is watching her cell phone, looking through the photos. One in particular catches her eye, a photo of Toad Tower. "Huh. I don't remember taking this picture of Toad Tower." She states, showing her family the photo. Jean looks over, and Flossie peeks her head out of the trap door. Polly raises her hand. "Oh, that was me. Wanted a little reminder of how we messed those toads up!" She yells the last part, pulling on Hop Pop's eyelids. The elderly frog didn't mind. "Heh, sure did!" He chuckles.
Sprig picks up his fiddle once more. "You know, I've actually been working on a song based on the battle." He announces. This peaks Hop Pop's interest. "Oh! Am I in it?" He asks curiously. Sprig grins. "Maybe." Clearing his throat, he prepares his fiddle. Hop Pop giggles, laying down in the seat with Anne, Polly and Jean. "I'm in it."
Sprig begins to play. "There was a little frog who stood for revolution. The toads didn't like that, so they tried to execute him. But thankfully, our Anne stepped up to take the tower. And she saved Hop Pop, who..."
Hop Pop grins, excited for his part.
"Mostly hid and cowered."
At that, Hop Pop's face fell.
"And cowered and cowered and cowered and cowered and cowered and cowered and cowered and cowered and cowered-"
Hop Pop shook his head, offended. "Alright, that's enough!" He says. The gang, who'd been quietly listening, start clapping. "Wow! Great song, dude!" Anne compliments. Jean and Polly nod in agreement. "Yeah, that was awesome!"
"That was amazing!" Flossie adds.
"Way better than what I could ever do!" Jean chuckles. Anne gives her a funny, knowing look. Hop Pop, on the other hand, turn to the kids in disbelief. "What? Awesome? It was missing all the context! Like what about the time I courageously ran for mayor? Or that time I stood up to those nasty tax collectors?" He asks. The kids wave him off. "Eh. Boring." They chant.
Sprig hops onto the seat next to Anne. "Audiences want clear stakes, Hop Pop. And action." He explained.
Hop Pop sighs. "Feels like just yesterday, people thought I was a revolutionary hero." He mutters to himself.
Flossie, leaning out of the trap door, turns to Jean. The older teen was gently plucking at the strings of her guitar, playing a solo tune. "Hey Jean, you know how to play! Can you play us a song from your world?" She asks curiously. Jean shakes her head. "Maybe later." She chuckles. Anne grins, leaning toward the teen. "Oh, come on! Sing us a song! You have a great singing voice, no matter how much you deny it." She says. Polly, Sprig and Flossie gasp. "You can sing?!"
"Oh, you gotta sing something now!"
Jean glares at Anne, who only returned it with a mischievous grin. She was about to say something to throw the young amphibians off, when Hop Pop beat her to it.
"Whoop. Heads up, gang!" The elderly frog points to a sign reading "Bittyburg". "Looks like we're about to stop at our first town." Jean lets out a relieved sigh. This'll keep the younger kids occupied for a while.
Anne gasps, clapping her hands excitedly. "My first town outside of Wartwood! I wonder what it'll be like. Will the frogs be friendly? Will they have a bathroom?"
"Don't get too excited, Anne. It's just your average small town." Hop Pop explains. Anne chuckles. "Pssh, how small can it be-"
"OH MY FROG!" Flossie interrupts, pushing her aside as she leans over the seat and points at the literally tiny town. Anne gasps, looking at the small buildings and frogs. "Wow!"
The Plantars, Flossie and Jean hop down from the fwagon. Anne grins. "It's literally a small town!" She squeals. She and Flossie walk over to a building, and Anne grabs onto the roof. "Just look at the wittle buildings!"
Pulling off the roof, she looks into the building. Many of the bitty frogs inside stop what they're doing, looking up at the human and axolotl in fear as they peer inside. "Uh, yeehaw." Anne chuckles. At that, the bitty's return the "yeehaw!" cheerfully. Flossie and Anne giggle.
"Anne, Floss, please don't destroy the tiny frog's hard work." Jean says, looking down at some angry bitty frogs in particular who were glaring at Anne and Flossie.
Hop Pop gives Bessie some food after the long trip. "There you are, girl." He coos. Hearing some bitties gasping, he turns around to the crowd, confused. "What's all the ruckus?"
"B-but, please! Just listen-" one bitty cried, before being kicked by a green toad. They let out a scream as they were sent flying, soon caught by Anne. "Ooh. I gotcha!"
The toad grins down at the bitties. "Alright. Ya'll know the rules. Pay me, and no one gets hurt." He states. Holding out his hand, the bitties pass him a coin each. "That's right, pay up, keep it coming."
One bitty doesn't give him money. He brings out his son instead, who looks like he's about to cry. "Sorry, Mr. Judro, sir, but I need the money for my boy Bailey. He's been very sick, and, uh-"
Bailey coughs, and the father turns worriedly to his son. "Oh, son."
The bitty frog was harshly grabbed. The toad glares him down, as his son cries out. "I don't want your excuses." He claims, shaking the poor bitty frog. "I want your money!"
The bitties watching gasp, as the toad starts laughing. Anne lets the poor bitty she'd been holding down, looking at the toad and bitty. "Those poor bitties!" She cried. Jean glares at the toad. "What a cu-" before she could finish, Anne slaps her hand over Jean's mouth. "Hubbubbubbubba. Language."
"Someone should do something!"
Hop Pop hums in thought, grinning. "Yes. Somebody should." He steps forward, walking toward the toad while holding up his pants. "Sprig, get that fiddle ready. You might have a song to write. Hyup!"
The toad caught sight of Hop Pop, and turned to, confused. The elderly frog had an air of confidence as he spoke to the toad. "Hey there, uh, feller. Who do you think you are, pushing good people around?"
The toad drops the bitty frog, giving Hop Pop a glare as he turns to face him completely. "I'm Judro Hasselback, and this here's my town. Who in the heck are you?"
"Name's Hopediah Plantar, the frog that's gonna teach you some manners!" Distending his throat, he pushes Judo to the ground. Judro grunts as he stands back up, turning back to the elderly frog who only does it once again, driving him outta the tiny town.
"You'll pay for this!" Judro screams in rage, as he runs off. Hop Pop places his hands on his hips, staring after the runaway toad with determination. "Nobody's paying you anything anymore!" He exclaims after him.
Bailey rushes up to him, hugging his leg. "You saved us, mister!" Hey cries. "Three cheers for Hopediah Plantar!" All together, they raise Hop Pop. With a cheer, they try tossing him up, but can't take the weight as he falls back on them. They don't mind, and instead carry him into the town.
Anne chuckles. "Wow, Hop Pop. Nice work!" She commented. The other kids nod in agreement, complimenting the old frog. He waves them off nonchalantly. "Why, that was nothing. Judro's just a big blowhard. Not like those tax toads I stood up to." He mumbles the last part, just loud enough for the bitties to hear. They gasp.
"You stood up to toads?"
"Tell us the story! Please? Please?" They begged. Hop Pop chuckles. "Aw, sweetie, there's not much to tell." He says.
———
3 hours later, Hop Pop is still telling the story to the bitties. By now, he had a pillow to sit upon, and a few bitties were fanning him.
"And then I lifted not one, not two, but three toads over my head and threw them off Toad Tower!" Hop Pop told. The bitties "oohed" and "ahed" as they listened, entranced. Meanwhile, the kids sat down behind the bitties, listening. Polly was confused. "Two or three toads? I don't remember that." She says.
"That's because it never happened." Sprig whispers to her. Anne chuckles. "Oh, let him have this. He's just juicing up the details a bit. In my world, we call this marketing." She explains. Flossie, who was listening, let out a sigh. "I don't remember much of what happened after Anne's fight. Only the...thingy." She goes quiet. Jean knew exactly what she was talking about. Being held over the ledge of a tall tower would traumatise anyone.
Anne let out an awkward cough. "Hey, Jean still has to sing us a song, right?" She chuckles. The awkward conversation was forgotten as all the young amphibians turn their gaze to Jean, eyes filled with curiosity and hope.
Jean stared at them awkwardly for a moment. "Well, uh... I-i have stage fright when it comes to singing. So maybe next time." She chuckles nervously, avoiding eye contact. Anne keeps herself from giggling.
"You have no problem singing in front of Charlie." She mutters loud enough for everyone to hear. Jean's face lights up like a Christmas tree. "Really? You HAD to go there?" Anne only returns her embarrassed glare with laughter.
Polly, Sprig and Flossie glanced between Anne and Jean, confused. "Uh...who's Charlie?" Polly asks. Jean, after giving Anne a playful shove, turned to the pollywog with a small blush on her face. "Oh. Charlie's my friend back home." She explains. "I used to hang out with her all the time whenever I wasn't hanging out with Anne, Marcy or Sasha."
Anne elbowed her. "A very, very close friend." She giggles. Jean gives her another playful shove.
"Hooray for Hopediah Plantar, here to protect us from the ruthless Hasselback Gang!" Bailey cheers. Everyone turns their attention back to Hop Pop and the bitties.
"Wait, what did he just say?" Jean asks, concerned. Even Hop Pop was taken aback. "I'm sorry, Bailey, did you just say "gang"?"
"Hopediah Plantar!"
Hop Pop visibly flinches, turning to see Judro and his gang. The bitties hide behind the elderly frog, giving the gang fearful glances. Judro chuckles, giving a glare. "Whoo-whee! You done asked for it, so here it comes. This here's the Hasselback Gang. My brother Heathro." He points to a toad beside him, who snorts in anger. "Half sister Ruth."
The newt sharpens her teeth with her dagger, a wide manic grin on her face. "Uncle Talbert." A frog brushes his fancy moustache without breaking eye contact.
"And of course, the matriarch herself, Mama Hasselback!" The rest of the family make way for largest toad, Mama Hasselback. She brings out a roller, striking it into the ground and causing the earth to shake under Hop Pop and the bitties. The bitties gasp, retreating, leaving the elderly frog to stare up at the Hasselback gang in fear.
"You the frog who dare throw my Judo outta town?" She intimidates. Hop Pop chuckles nervously, getting to his feet shakily. "Well-"
"Yep!" Bailey pipes up. "And he's gonna run you outta town too. Right, Hopediah?" He asks more hopefully. The bitties start cheering, agreeing with Bailey's statement. Meanwhile, the kids gave each other anxious and concerned looks.
Mama Hasselback cackles. "Now this, I gotta see." With that, she sits down, inviting Hopediah to "drive her outta town".
Sweating, Hop Pop straightens himself out. "Um, uh, you're-you're gonna regret this!" He exclaims.
The elderly frog tries to move the toad with effort, but fails. Exhausted, he takes a break. "Think I almost got her." He pants. Mama Hasselback doesn't give him a second chance. Using her roller, she hits Hop Pop on the head, instantly smacking him through the crust.
The bitties gasp, shocked. Jean, Sprig, Anne, Polly and Flossie instantly get up angrily.
"Hey!"
"Back off!"
"Stay away from him!"
Heading for Hop Pop, they let out war cries. Flossie tries to summon water, but all that she could do was bring out a droplet.
Judro and Heathro tie them up with their tongues, shoving all the kids into seperate barrels from which they couldn't free themselves.
Mama Hasselback laughs, towering over Hop Pop. "Looks like you folks chose the wrong frog." She states to the bitties. Lifting up Hop pop by one leg, she holds him up for the small frogs to see. "Or should I say "fraud"?"
Dropping Hop Pop on his head, she walks away. The Hasselback gang chuckle amongst themselves, as the bitties look at Hop Pop in disbelief.
"Word of advice, folks- Don't believe everything you're told about heroes. After all, they don't exist."
Bailey turns to Hop Pop, who had his back turned to them. "Is it true, Hopediah? Are heroes a lie?" The young bitty asks, heart-broken. Hop Pop sighs. "It's true, Bailey." He says tearily. "It's true!"
Mama Hasselback stands behind the bitties, as the rest of the gang roll the kids toward Hop Pop. "Now get lost! And take your garbage with ya!" She cackles. Jean spews curses at them, as the saddened frog rolls his grandkids out of town, Bessie following behind.
————
Some time later, the Plantars, Jean and Flossie are in the fwagon. All is quiet. Sprig grabs his fiddle. Inhaling, he's about to play a song when Hop Pop takes it. Holding it above his head with a scream, he smashes the instrument. Everyone backs away, and Flossie, peeking out of the inside of the fwagon, lowers her head slightly at the sudden outburst, looking at Hop Pop with wide eyes.
Letting himself calm down, Hop Pop sighs, defeated. "Not proud of what happened back there, kids." He admits. Sitting back down, he looks toward the ground dejectedly. "Sprig was right. No one's ever gonna write a song about this old coward."
"Not after you smashed my fiddle." Sprig mutters, picking up the broken instrument. Flossie elbows him in the stomach, making him yelp.
Anne moves the winded Sprig aside. "Pssh, Hop Pop, you're not a coward." She says encouragingly, giving Hop Pop a friendly punch. The elderly frog lets out a small "ow" as Anne continues. "And who cares about some dumb old song? Being a hero isn't about songs and glory anyways. It's about doing the right thing."
At this revelation, Hop Pop brings Bessie to a sudden halt. Jean clutches Sprig and Polly, as Anne holds onto the fwagon. Unfortunately, that doesn't stop the three of them from falling off the front of the fwagon. Flossie, standing up inside the fwagon, falls down, letting out a pained yelp.
"My frog, Anne. You're right! This whole time I was so focused on getting a song that I lost track of what really matters. Heroes are supposed to help those in need, and I was only trying to help myself. Well, that changes now. We're going back!" He cries.
Sprig, Jean and Polly climb back onto the fwagon, and stare at Hop Pop in disbelief. "What?!"
"Are you crazy?!"
"What are we doing?" Jean asks more in a dazed tone, having taken the fall much harder than the amphibians. Anne, grinning, brings the trio into a hug. "Good call, HP. What's the plan?" She asks.
Hop Pop chuckles. "Well, it goes a little bit like this, you see..." with that, the four huddle together, whispering amongst themselves. "Why are we whispering?" Polly asks loudly.
From inside the fwagon, Flossie slowly lifts a hand from underneath a pile of random objects she accidentally pulled down in her tumble. "I'm okay! I'm okay....a little help please?"
————
Back in the small western town, the bitties were being treated like slaves, massaging Mama Hasselback's feet. The Hasselback gang themselves were sitting in the middle of the street, making sure the bitties never once stepped out of line.
"Keep it up, Bitties. That's good, just keep working on Mama's toes."
Bailey's father carries a bag of coins to the pile of coins. He turns to his children sadly. "Looks like no birthday gifts this year, kids." Bailey gives his father a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Papa. We'll always have the gift of music." He says, bringing out a flute. He inhales, prepared to blow into it, when Judro takes it away from the small child. "Yoink!"
Using the flute to pick his teeth, he ends up breaking it. "A-whoops."
Bailey stares up at him, emotionless. "You know, I'm actually pretty numb at this point."
Mama Hasselback cackles, pointing down at the small frogs. "Serves you little runts right. If you thought things were bad before, just wait and see what we've got planned for you-" she stops, looking at the horizon. "What the..."
His back to the setting sun, Hop Pop faced the Hasselback gang. He wore a cowboy hat and was playing a harmonica. He smirks. "Ma'am."
Mama Hasselback stands up, the rest of the gang following her lead. "Well, look who decided to show his frauddy old face again. Ya back for more punishment?" She asks with a grin. Hop Pop peeked at her from under his hat with a look of determination. "I'm back to do what's right. Stand up to bullies like you."
They glare at each other, as the wind pushes a tumbleweed between them. "Get him!" Mama Hasselback ordered.
Judro charges at Hop Pop, screaming. Sticking out his tongue, Hop Pop shoots it at the toad running at him. BLAM! Judro falls to the ground, seemingly hit by the tongue. The bitties all gasp, and Mama Hasselback clicks her fingers, ordering Heathro and Talbert to attack.
Hop Pop chuckles, swinging his tongue like a lasso. "You boys ready for a lickin'? Hyah!" With that, Heathro fell to the ground. "His tongue feels like iron." he groans.
As Hop Pop threw his tongue at Talbert, a rock sailed through the air, striking the charging frog in the face.
Meanwhile, the kids sat in a high place near the town, out of sight. Sprig is using a slingshot to throw stones and help Hop Pop. Jean was looking through a pair of binoculars, while Flossie twirled a bubble of water in the air, just in case.
Anne looks through a telescope, pinpointing where the Hasselback gang were. "Two degrees left."
"Load me up." Sprig ordered, as Polly places a stone in his slingshot.
Shooting another stone, it hits Ruth, leaving only Mama Hasselback. The bitties cheer Hop Pop on, feeling a new sense of hope blossom. Hop Pop grinned at Mama Hasselback, motioning for her to come at him. The larger toad looked at her fallen comrades in fear, taking a step back.
Seeing a flash of light shine in her eyes, she looks up to see the kids getting ready to fire another stone. Mama Hasselback chuckled. "So that's the game, is it?"
"End of the line, Mama!" Hop Pop exclaims, shooting his tongue at her. Sprig fires his slingshot at the same time. Mama Hasselback dodges Hop Pop's tongue, catching the stone mid-air. She holds it up for all to see in victory. "Ha!"
Throwing the stone back it strikes Sprig, causing him to fall off and land on the ground below, as some cactus fall on top of him. The rest of the kids turn to Hop Pop in a panic. "The jig is up!"
"Run, Hop Pop!"
"Get out of there!"
The rest of the Hasselback gang get to their feet, glaring at Hop Pop. Flossie motions her arm in a throwing motion, making the bubble of water to shoot Mama Hasselback in the face and distract her enough for Hop Pop to get away.
Hop Pop starts running. "Well, I best be going. Toodles!" As he runs, he looks at the Bitties staring at him, the hope on their faces disappearing. Coming to a halt, Anne's words echoes through his head.
Being a hero isn't about songs and glory anyways. It's about doing the right thing.
With great effort, Hop Pop turns back to the Hasselback gang, who were closing in on him. "You know what, Mama? I'm through running."
The Hasselback gang surround him, as the bitties watch on.
"When you see someone that can't fight for themselves, it's your job to fight for them! Standing up to bullies like you is the right thing to-" he was cut off, as Mama Hasselback beats him with her tongue. She cackles as he's sent flying into a pile of trash, defeated.
Bailey gasps, running over to the fallen frog. "Mr Plantar! No!" Bending down beside Hop Pop, tears well up in his eyes. Hop Pop pants for breath, as he turns to the young bitty. "Don't cry for me, Bailey. I don't feel a thing....bleh!"
With that, Hop Pop lays down, unconscious. Bailey starts crying. "No! No! No!" Closing his eyes, the small bitty begins to shake. Opening his eyes once more, they were now glowing red, and he growls, turning back to the Hasselback gang.
Judro looks down at him, then at the other bitties who were changing too. "Uh, Mama? They're changing."
The gang look around, seeing what the toad said was true. The bitties were advancing on them, growling as they showed off their sharp teeth and red eyes. They take a step back.
"Huh. What the...Now you listen here, Bitties-" she started. Bailey lets out a screech, as the tiny frogs all charge towards the gang. They climb all over the gang, attacking them as the Hasselback crew let out screams of terror.
The kids rush over to the elderly frog, now coming to. "Hop Pop, we gotta go!" Anne urged, helping Hop Pop up. "The Bitties are going nuts!"
Hop Pop looks up at them, not noticing the feral frogs. "Well, I guess after years of abuse, even the most timid of frogs might get a little- WHOA MY GOODNESS!"
They all look over to see the Bitties taking down Mama. Bailey rushes over, eyes still red and screeching. Hop Pop screams, but the small bitty wasn't there to hurt them. Turning back to normal, Bailey smiled up at the elderly frog. "Hi, Mr. Plantar." He greets. Hop Pop looks down at him in surprise. "Bailey? You frogs are fighting back?" He asks.
Bailey nods. "Yep! All because of what you said." He states. Hop pop looked hopeful. "You mean about how standing up to bullies is the right thing to do?"
Bailey thinks for a moment. "Uh...no. The part about how when someone can't fight for themselves, you need to fight for them." He explained. "You clearly can't fight for yourself." He pulls out a tooth, holding out to Hop Pop. "Here's a tooth, by the way."
Hop Pop takes the tooth, disturbed as Bailey changes into a gremlin frog, and charges back into battle. Many more bitties follow his lead, setting buildings on fire.
Hop Pop turns to his kids. "Time to get going." He states.
————
The Plantars, Jean and Flossie zoom away in the fwagon, leaving the burning town behind. Sprig played on his fiddle, singing his last song for the day.
"Oh, Hop Pop stood his ground in hopes he'd save the day! But then the townsfolk went berserk and so he ran away!"
Bessie whinnies as Sprig finishes.. Everyone claps at his performance, even Hop Pop. "I must say, that was impressive." Hop Pop complimented. Jean chuckled. "Yep! In a couple of years, you could become a famous musician." She states, plucking at her own guitar strings. Leaning back in the seat, she let out a sigh and closed her eyes.
That was short lived, however, as a shadow fell over her and she could feel eyes staring at her. Peeking up at the figure, she could see it was Flossie, towering over her and staring at her expectantly. Jean scowled. "No."
"Please? I promise I'll stop bothering you!" She begged, giving Jean puppy eyes. Jean didn't believe her for a second, but she let out a defeated sigh. "Fine..."
"Yes!"
Clearing her throat, Jean glanced around to see everyone was laying down, now listening for her to start playing.
She plucks at the strings once more, playing a familiar tune.
"Ain't no sunshine when she's gone. It's not warm when she's away."
Jean's voice wavered slightly, but she kept going.
"Ain't no sunshine when she's gone, and she's always gone too long anytime she goes away."
Anne smiled, resting her arms behind her head. An oldie but a goodie.
"Wonder this time where she's gone. Wonder if she's gone to stay."
Hop Pop bopped his head to the beat, while Flossie started humming to the tune.
"Ain't no sunshine when she's gone, and this house just ain't no home anytime, she goes away."
With that, Jean finished off the verse. Everyone clapped. "Whoa! You go girl!" Anne cheered.
Jean blushed. "Ha ha, thanks."
Flossie leans on Jean's head. "I bet Charlie really liked it!" She said innocently. Anne, Polly and Sprig cackled, hugging her sides as she wheezed. The older teen's face turned beat red.
Hop Pop looked at them, confused. "Uh who's that now?"
——
Somewhere in the middle of the desert, a metallic foot crushes a skeleton, following the fwagon at a distance.
A/N: Does anyone else get Rango vibes from the episode? Both Rango and Hop Pop are actors who pretended to be heroes, called out as frauds so they left, only to return to be an actual hero, realising that it's the right thing to do.
Me, sees the many skulls that look like Hop Pop throughout the series, the joke of Hop Pop looking like a corpse in Maddie and Marcy, his sacrifice in Breakout Star (takes Anne's shoe to distract her f-Annes) and Taking Charge (when he sacrifices himself to "make it right" and charge Anne's phone), and the emotional "death" scene in this episode: I don't like where this is goin-
(Seriously. I don't like what it implies-)