"Doug Rocks" is the second segment of the fourth episode in the first season of Nickelodeon's Doug, and the seventh episode overall.
Synopsis[]
Skeeter and Doug win tickets to go see The Beets live at a concert in Bluffington. Unfortunately, everything comes to a halt when Skeeter gets grounded and can't go with Doug to the concert. Doug wants to go to, but sticks with his best friend. On the night of the concert, the two are at the Honker Burger, when they get the surprise of their life.
Recap[]
Intro[]
Doug's Journal Entry: Dear Journal. It's me, Doug. You know, I used to be the only guy in Bluffington without a favorite band. Luckily, my best pal Skeeter was totally, absolutely crazy - crazy for the Beets.
The scene shows Doug and Porkchop walking to Doug's best friend Skeeter's house. As they approach his room, they finds his friend blasting loud rock music and standing on his bed pretending to play the guitar while wearing a wig based on a 70s rock star hairstyle. Skeeter introduces Doug to the rock band The Beets and their latest single "Killer Tofu." Doug then ask Skeeter who are the Beets, prompting Skeeter to repeat the question, much to Doug's confusion.
Main episode[]
Skeeter tells Doug that he will like the Beets once he tells him the band's history. While playing air guitar with Skeeter, Doug imagines himself playing with the Beets. As Skeeter teaches Doug air guitar, Doug becomes a real "Beetnik."
While walking outside, the friends run into Mr. Dink, who introduces them to his digital synchronized audio compactor, which smashes a CD worth of songs into one fantastically loud sound. He turns it on and the loud sound blows everyone away. Mr. Dink then informs that it's the work of Ludwig Van Beethoven (or "Begarden" as he pronounces).
Later, Doug and Skeeter sit on Skeeter's front porch reading a magazine cover of the Beets when Roger comes around and tells the two the good news and the bad news. The good news is that the Beets are playing a surprise concert at Bluffington tonight, while the bad news is that the tickets are sold out and Roger got the last two. When Roger turns on the radio, announcer K. Bluff announces that the person who answers three trivia questions will win two front row Beets seats.
So Skeeter calls to answer the questions: the Beets first number one single was "I Sneezed on My Face," the name of the lead singer Wendy Nespah's pet fruit bat is Gigi Amici, and the Beets album that shows a microscopic picture of Chap Lipman after his gallbadder surgery is "Beets Me," (which Doug unwittingly answers) and Doug and Skeeter win the front row tickets to the concert.
During dinner, Skeeter plays his music at the table, frustrating his father. When Skeeter accidentally causes a bowl of gravy to fall on his father, his father loses his temper and grounds him as he is forbidden to go to the concert. Roger attempts to take Doug with him to the concert, and Skeeter tells Doug to follow Roger along to the concert.
Doug's imagination: Skeeter is sitting in front of the TV by his lonesome.
Doug refuses to leave his friend while he's on punishment. His father though was unaware that skeeter was still having friends over so Roger goes to the concert by himself instead. Doug, Skeeter, and Porkchop pretend that they are at the concert and get a vicarious experience there. When Skeeter's father realizes that he was listening in music in defiance of his punishment he furiously kicks him out of the house.
The three friends go to the Honker Burger, only to find out that it's closed. But they continue to imagine themselves at the concert. They then get a surprise and find the Beets arriving at the Honker Burger and soon, they all start jamming together. As the band leave in their tour bus, they offer the friends Beets jackets, much to their excitement. Roger then arrives and tell them about the concert. He explains that he saw them in person - through his binoculars, and adds that he was closer to the band that they were, not knowing that Doug and Skeeter have met the band in person when they arrived at the Honker Burger. Doug, Skeeter, and Porkchop continue jamming.
Later, Doug is in his room writing his latest event in his journal. The episode ends with Doug singing the Beets' latest single afterward along with Porkchop.
Characters[]
- Doug Funnie
- Porkchop
- Skeeter Valentine
- Dale Valentine
- Joe Valentine
- Ruby Valentine
- Roger Klotz
- Stinky
- The Beets
Trivia[]
- At the time the episode aired, Nickelodeon, was subsidiary of MTV Networks, which also managed renowned music video network MTV. The music of the Beets was similar to rock music which was used in some MTV videos.
- This episode aired 18 days before the historic Monsters of Rock Moscow concert which symbolized the weakened status of the Soviet Union and the impending collapse of the country in December 1991.
- The Beets are a combination of The Beatles and The Ramones.
- Decades before the episode featured Skeeter using the word "Beetnik," Beatnik was a word used to describe a group of influential, anti-social norm poets which included Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg, These poets also held influence in the hippie culture which fueled famous rock and roll events such as the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival and the 1969 Woodstock Music and Art Festival.
- When Roger is dancing to the Beets after turning on the radio, his skin color changes to white.
- While Doug and Skeeter are talking in Skeeter's room, there is a bumper-sticker-sized poster on his wall that says "Visit Virginia," which is a reference to the creator Jim Jinkins, who was born in Henrico County, Virginia.
- The audio machine Mr. Dink uses plays the entire collection of Ludwig von Beetgarden, a parody of classical musician "Ludwig von Beethoven".
