MSB S4E02: Cracks a Yolk

Another review is going to hatch! One about eggs, and a tiny something that's a little bit suggestive when you think about it, even for a kids' show. With a chick chick here and a chick chick there, here a chick, there a chick, everywhere a chick chick. Old McFrizzle had a plan. A he he he he he. This should be egg-citing. Blog, do your stuff!

41. Cracks a Yolk.
Topic: Eggs.
Written by: Ronnie Krauss.
Guest star: Paul Winfield as Mr. Ruhle.
Aired: 12 October 1997.

Mr. Ruhle gives the class the task of caring of Giblets, his pet chicken. However, Giblets "flies the coop" and the class decides to get a new Rhode Island Red to replace Giblets. Naturally, they decide to hatch one from an egg. They learn on their trip that both a male and female chicken are needed to produce a chicken--though it is never explained how, (being a children's show). At the last minute Giblets returns, and Ms. Frizzle cracks, "I guess he who flies the coop can always fly back again."

The episode begins with Dorothy Ann begging for the egg she's looking after to hatch as quickly as possible. And she's treating it as though it's a human baby....well, until it hatches at least. And she's using a lunchbox as a cradle.

And we are hereby introduced to Mr. Ruhle's award winning Rhode Island Red, Giblets.

And we once again see Mr. Ruhle himself, once again voiced by the late Paul Winfield. It's pretty strange that he's kissing Giblets. He really loves his rooster that much.

Who knows how Dorothy Ann's going to cock-a-doodle-do this, Carlos? I mean Dorothy Ann doesn't know that much about chooks.

That's right. Giblets landed on Ms. Frizzle's hat because he thought it was a hen's crest.

Liz shouldn't have done what she'd done. She made Giblets fly the coop! Literally!

Er, Dorothy Ann. You don't want to rush the egg. Eggs take time to hatch, no matter what bird, reptile, amphibian or fish it'll hatch into.

Isn't that interesting? Carlos is playing poultry chess with Tim.

Now Dorothy Ann's done for! She has to tell Principal Ruhle the truth! And he's back early!

This must be why Mr. Ruhle loves his rooster so much. He won him so many medals, ribbons and other awards.

Time to hear Dorothy Ann's side of the story. Where's Arnold? Did he finally get his wish and stay home today? 

 "What's the matter, Ralphie? Are you chicken?"

Funny Wanda should tease Ralphie by saying he's chicken, especially since he's got a hen on his hat. 

 I wonder why these roosters were attacking the whole class? Didn't they want strangers in their pen?

Not a good idea, Dorothy Ann, if you're trying to get a new rooster for Mr. Ruhle.

But without this kind of knowledge, Dorothy Ann picked an egg from the hen pen anyway.

Ms. Frizzle got a plan. But Liz jokingly misheard her say "Pan". And this is why Dorothy Ann shouldn't have gone into the hen pen. That egg wasn't going to hatch into a chick no matter what.

 Now who turned out the lights for Keesha? Wait! The whole class is inside a hen! They're going to see how hens lay eggs.

Now this is the ovary, and it explains why farmers keep hens on farms. They lay the kind of egg we eat.

They start by ripping into the deep yellow yolk.

"Where are we going?"

"Wherever yolks go when they egg-sit the ovary!"

"Carlos!"

A good one, Carlos! 

And they get covered in slimy gooey stuff.

And here comes the egg shell that covers the egg until it breaks somehow.

Hold your tongue, Liz! The whole class was inside that egg!

Now Dorothy Ann realises why they couldn't find a chick in the egg they went into or the first egg she took. The eggs in the pen with nothing but hens will stay eggs until they break, whether they're dropped on solid ground or used to cook something, but the pen with hens as well as roosters make eggs that hatch into chickens.

Eureka! Dorothy Ann got an egg! Let's see if this one will hatch into a chick.

"Stop the bus!"

Now Dorothy Ann ordered the Friz to stop the bus, but she said it in a worried manner unlike Arnold who once said it angrily. 

So this is why Arnold wasn't in Mr. Ruhle's office! He was going into the egg!

And Dorothy Ann got the right egg! This one will hatch into a chick!

"I want my old chicken or my new one right now!"

Mr. Ruhle sure wasn't happy at all after hearing that story about the class going on a weird field trip. 

"21 days?! We're doooooomed!!!"

Yep. 21 days is how long it takes for a chicken egg to hatch. 

Something useful! The Magic Hen Bus can hatch the chick faster!

Now the moving thing has grown into an embryo. This is what happens when it comes to new life.

Now Phoebe is in Mr. Ruhle's office with a walkie talkie and headphones. She's going to tell Mr. Ruhle how the egg is going.

The egg is growing feathers, and it's very close to being born.

Funny how Mr. Ruhle wondered if the chick is growing down. Funny thing is Phoebe mistook it for down as in growing backwards, but down can also mean fluffy feathers of a young bird.

The chick did it! He's finally hatched! Now Mr. Ruhle won't have to be mad anymore.

Dorothy Ann sure loves the chick she hatched. Now she won't get into trouble!

Here's another of the many ship teases this show has had. One of the semi-obvious ones. Arnold did such a great job inside the egg, and even kept Dorothy Ann from getting into trouble with Mr. Ruhle. Dorothy Ann was so grateful to Arnold, she decided to kiss him. Is this proof that she kind of likes him?

Mr. Ruhle sure is puzzled by the newly hatched chick. Turns out Dorothy Ann's story was true.

And look who's back! Giblets! He flew back to the coop! And Mr. Ruhle is so happy to see him again, he decided to kiss him!

Because Giblets returned, Arnold and Dorothy Ann get to keep the newly hatched chick!

Carlos suggested calling it "Egghead".

Wanda suggested "Yolkahontas". A pun on the Disney film, Pocahontas. 

But Arnold has a more sensible name for the chick. Arnold Junior, because he spent the whole time in the egg, encouraging him to hatch.

Now the Producer and Liz are hatching a chick of their own. And the Producer did a great explanation of which eggs are fertilised and which aren't.


This is another episode that came close to teaching sex education, but didn't quite make it since this is a kids' show. Dorothy Ann explained that the rooster adds his part to the hen to make new chickens in eggs. Though another episode that came close to teaching sex ed was Goes Upstream. 

Wanda made a funny Disney pun when suggesting the name of Arnold and Dorothy Ann's chick.

We can't go without mentioning Carlos suggesting naming the chick "Egghead". It means someone who is smart. And he also made a pun about yolks "egg-sitting" the ovary.

And this is another episode with more proof that Arnold's the chick magnet of the series. A ship tease at this. Wanda, Phoebe and Tiffany aren't the only ones who have a thing for Arnold. In spite of her love-hate relationship with Carlos, even Dorothy Ann kind of likes Arnold, and it's shown here when she kisses him out of gratitude. And they were delighted to hear they can keep the chick because Giblets returned.

I know many of you would rather see Arnold with either Wanda or Phoebe, and that you'd rather see Dorothy Ann with Carlos, but I'm afraid I couldn't grow to love those ships. While I do like the idea of shipping those couples, they're just not my favourite things. I'm admitting it again. The Arnold/Dorothy Ann ship is my Magic School Bus OTP. And this is coming from someone who favours Carlos and Ralphie over Arnold.

I wonder if this episode also links to that Captain Planet Magic School Bus conspiracy? Because in this episode, Dorothy Ann kissed Arnold, and the people who made the conspiracy say that Arnold grew up to be Wheeler, and Dorothy Ann grew up to be Linka, and both Wheeler and Linka are in a relationship.

This is the 3rd episode in a row where Arnold blushed. In Holiday Special, he blushed knowing Wanda liked his geode. In the previous episode, Meets Molly Cule, he blushed due to Molly Cule calling him "Sugar", and in this episode, he blushed because Dorothy Ann kissed him.


Well, this was a very egg-cellent way to teach kids about eggs, and it came oh so close to teaching sex ed. Dorothy Ann being oh so worried about the chick, Carlos' egg puns, Wanda asking Ralphie if he's "Chicken" because of a hen on his head, Keesha asking who turned out the lights of a hen, Mr. Ruhle introducing his Rhode Island Red, Giblets, and the only time in the series where a kid kisses another kid, in this case, Dorothy Ann kissed Arnold. Pretty egg-straordinary if you ask me. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to look for eggs with chicks inside.

My rating: 10/10.

Season 4 scorecard:

1. Meets Molly Cule: 9/10.

2. Cracks a Yolk: 10/10.

Season 4 so far: 9.5/10.