My Life as a Teenage Robot -- Episodes 200-201

First Aired: 8 December 2004

"A Robot for All Seasons: An MLAATR Christmas Special"

Directed by: Chris Suave, Rob Renzetti

Plotline

On Christmas Eve, children were happy to see their gifts being delivered through their chimneys. Were these gifts really being delivered by Santa as assumed by the kids? Nope! In a huge metal Santa suit, Jenny was filling in for Santa while he was recovering from a "mysterious accident." Santa then invited Jenny, Mrs. Wakeman, Brad, Tuck, and Sheldon to Christmas dinner. After the festive dinner, the gang decided to go to the mall for the after-Christmas sales.

While at the mall, since there were so many people at the toy store, Jenny helped Tuck by flying him to the toy he wanted. Todd Sweeney, an unfulfilled rich kid, saw what Jenny did and wanted Jenny as a present. He took Jenny to his mansion and made her his slave. Jenny thought he was just playing. Todd actually captured Jenny and made her his weapon of evil.

After a system reboot, Jenny realized she was still at Todd's mansion then attempted to find her way out. When Jenny found her way out, everyone she greeted acted really strange to her, even her own mom. Even with Skyway Patrol out to get her, Jenny didn't understand what she did wrong. She found Sheldon and he told her how she wrecked every holiday through the year. Jenny was under Todd's command for nearly a year and she didn't remember a thing. Jenny wanted everybody to know who was behind all this holiday-hating evil.

Jenny returned to the Sweeney mansion to confront Todd. Todd told Jenny the story of how he hasn't seen his parents in a while. Todd still intended to destroy Christmas continuing to use Jenny as his weapon despite her refusal. They made their way to the North Pole. At Jenny's house, Sheldon tried to convince Mrs. Wakeman, Brad, and Tuck about what really happened but they didn't believe him. The three headed to the North Pole. At the North Pole, "Jenny" fought Santa. Eventually Todd revealed what he had been doing. The fight caused all of Tremorton's gifts to be destroyed. Fortunately, there was a way around this.

All the kids of Tremorton got in line to receive things from the Sweeney mansion, especially Todd's toys. After Todd gave another child a gift, Todd became happier. It was then his parents returned. From then, a Merry Christmas was had by all!

Trivia

• This was the first episode where we saw "sole holes" on the soles of Jenny's feet. There must have been an animation upgrade between seasons 1 and 2.


• There were several stores referenced when at the mall:


• Fashion Fair ===> Somewhat similar to the company with the chain of outlet stores "Vanity Fair (often VF) Outlet" and "VF Outlet Center."


• Gadget Shack ===> Radio Shack (probably a competitor with Radio Shed)


• Shoefly ===> name is either based on the 1869 song "Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me" thought to be written by T. Brigham Bishop or the actual shoe store by the same name in real life.


• Christmas story references galore in this episode:


• Night Before Christmas: "Not a creature was sirring" reference was used


• Nightmare before Christmas: Children thought something was Santa coming down their chimneys


• How the Grinch Stole Christmas: Todd's heart "grew 3 sizes"


• Toward the first view of Tuck in this episode, the "Peter Proper Stocking Cap" from "Doom with a View" made another appearance in this series but in a different color.


• The song, "We're spending Christmas with..." was sung in the beginning and the end. The first singing was about Santa, the reprise was about Jenny.


• During the "Spending Christmas with Santa" number, a Popeye-like character poured sugar into a punch bowel.


• Mrs. Wakeman lent a "Veeza" credit card to Jenny. "Veeza" is based off the Visa card.


• Christmas toys referenced: Mr. Patat(o) Head and the EZ Bake Oven


• The name of antagonist Todd Sweeney was a character taken from the novel The String of Pearls: A Romance supposedly written by James Malcolm Rymer and Thomas Peckett Prest


• This is a list of [probably gibberish] names on Santa's nice list: Syama Bastir, Bat Cadetti, Dom Cadanan, Hoot Carson, Marcel Carver, Tsu Feng Crao, Jimmy Chase, Sang Chase, Boom Chernoval, Ed Chernyakov, Shirt Chesty, Meaty Cheung, Dirk Chevalier, Keith Cicero, Rosemary Clontz, Mary Cdady, Doot Craddy, Andor Czubean, Chaz Danker, Darla Darryl, Spoot Darviv, C. Desrocmeus, Noir Doot, Clair Dowling, and Ethan Dowling


• During the flashback of when Jenny was ruining a certain Thanksgiving Day parade with floats and balloons, this parade was a reference to the Macy's Day Parade that is held and televised every Thanksgiving. In the same scene, a Captain Crush and Bullwinkle (of "Rocky and Bullwinkle" fame) balloon were featured balloons.


• A Charlie Brown-like character made an appearance receiving a bottle of hair tonic


• Sheldon received a subscription of "Not-So-Popular Mechanics" from Mrs. Wakeman. The magazine is based off the "Popular Mechanics" magazine and products relating to scientific and technological topics


• Instead of ending the episode with the usual "THE END," the episode ends with a "Happy Holidays" card. This is the only episode where there is no "THE END" card.

Goofs

• How was Sheldon able to disarm Todd's device to where Jenny fakes being still under Todd's command?


• In the closed captioning, it said that Brad narrated that "Todd's heart grew 3 sizes that day." It was Tuck's voice that said that.


• Maybe earlier drafts of the script had Brad say the line.

Quotes

Spending Christmas with Santa (beginning) / Jenny (End) Song

Sheldon: "Tell me something, Jenny, how do you feel when I show you THESE?" (Easter eggs from out of his backpack)

Jenny: "Easter eggs?"

Sheldon: " That's right, simple, harmless Easter eggs. Don't you want to crush them?"

Jenny: "Uh, no."

Sheldon: "Then what about THIS?" (Takes heart-shaped Valentine out of his backpack) "Doesn't it fill you with uncontrollable rage?"

Jenny: "No. But you're starting to get on my nerves."

Sheldon: "You really don't know what's going on, Do you? Remember that morning at the mall?"

Jenny: "Duh, it was this morning."

Sheldon: "Actually, Jenny, it was almost one year ago."

Jenny: [gasp] "No!"

Sheldon: "Yes, it's true. After you got into Todd Sweeney's limousine, you never came home"

Todd: "I remember my last real Christmas like it was yesterday."

Flashback to when Todd was a baby and his parents were leaving him.

Todd (voiceover):"That year, Santa Claus gave my parents a luxury cruise to Bermuda. I was left alone with the servants."

Back to Present

Todd: "My parents never returned. They retired. They said they've never been happier. That day, I vowed that if I could feel no holiday joy, then neither would anyone else. So far, we've wrecked every holiday except for the fattest one of all. But tonight, we will destroy Christmas...foreeevvverr."

Jenny: "Not if I can help it."

Todd: "Oh, but I don't think you can." [Mind control device on Jenny reactivates]

[Todd and Jenny race Mrs. Wakeman, Brad, and Tuck to the North Pole. Todd and Jenny zoom past very fast.]

Santa: "Jenny, you're back to normal!"

Jenny: "Well, Santa, actually, I..."

Mrs. Wakeman, Brad, and Tuck crash through the ceiling with the rocket.

Tuck: "Don't worry, Santa, old boy. We'll save...you? What's going on? Where's all the butt-kicking?"

Jenny: "Well, as I was just explaining, Sheldon disabled Todd Sweeney's mind-control device. I was just faking it until Todd confessed in front of Santa."

Mrs. Wakeman, Brad, and Tuck cheer.

TLDR

A spoiled, abandoned rich kid used Jenny to ruin all the holidays throughout the year, including Christmas.

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