Animal Barn

"Animal Barn" is an episode from The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa.

Synopsis
Pumbaa competes with the titleholder to win the Mr. Pig contest, but is continuously beaten in the individual competitions, so Timon cheats to help Pumbaa win.

Plot
"Animal Barn" begins by introducing Timon, a meerkat, and his warthog friend, Pumbaa. At the start of the episode, Timon and Pumbaa are entering a farm where a sign reads, "Captain Oinker's Pig Farm: The Home of Mr. Pig." As the two view the sign, a procession parades past in honor of a huge pig sitting astride a wagon at the caboose of the group. The pig introduces himself as Mr. Pig, and Pumbaa politely echoes the introduction, calling himself Mr. Pig as well. In answer to Pumbaa's greeting, the pig sniffs rudely and proclaims that Pumbaa is not a Mr. Pig, but a nobody.

Enraged, Timon hops onto the wagon and asks the pig how he earned himself the right to be called "Mr. Pig." Equally angered, the pig uses his staff to smack Timon into the Mr. Pig sign, which explains that the pig has been reigning champion of the Mr. Pig contest for twenty-five years in running. No sooner has Timon absorbed this information when a rooster lands on a nearby fence and announces that the contest is about to begin.

For the first task, the contestants are asked to perform a high dive into a low mud pool, where it is to be determined who can make the bigger splash. After Pumbaa's performance, he is given a horribly low score of "loser," while the reigning champion pulls a perfect score of "winner." For the second task, the contestants are pitted against one another in a competition of oinks. Although Pumbaa does reasonably well in this round, Mr. Pig manages to break the measuring tool itself, ensuring himself another victory. For the third task, the contestants are asked to make the smelliest gas possible, and even among his specialty talent, Pumbaa loses once more to the reigning champion.

Come nightfall, Pumbaa is disheartened by his constant losing to Mr. Pig. Though Timon tries to cheer him up, Pumbaa only stays on the farm because he feels honor-bound to the competition, even though he knows he is going to lose the final round.

The next morning, the rooster announces to the gathering that the final round has commenced. He shows the contestants a foot with numbers on its toes, naming the round "This Little Piggy," where the contestants must do what the rooster says; otherwise, they lose. At the start of the first task, Timon tries to convince Pumbaa to cheat, but the warthog promptly refuses. Unwilling to give up, Timon decides to cheat himself.

Toe #1: this little piggy went to market. The contestants race down a footpath, where a sign directs one path to market and the other to China. As Mr. Pig reaches the two paths, Timon turns the sign so that Mr. Pig goes to China. When Pumbaa reaches the paths, Timon switches the sign back so that the warthog goes to market. Toe #2: this little piggy stayed home. Pumbaa is forced to stay in his "house" watching television all day, while Mr. Pig lounges in his mud surrounded by trophies. In secret, Timon sets up a fake phone call, promising Mr. Pig a free trip to Pago Pago. The pig eagerly falls for the trap. Toe #3: this little piggy had roast beef. As Pumbaa and Mr. Pig gorge themselves on roast beef, Timon slips a sausage into Mr. Pig's hand, and the champion eats the wrong food, earning himself another lost competition. Toe #4: this little piggy had none. A bowl of food is placed in-between the contestants, who are not allowed to touch it. In order to get Mr. Pig to eat the food, Timon snaps a mouse trap on his tail and dumps the food into his mouth as he screams. Toe #5: this little piggy cried "wee-wee-wee" all the way home. In another race, Pumbaa and Mr. Pig must cry "wee-wee-wee" all the way to the finish line. Mr. Pig is once again winning, so Timon steps in his way and smashes his foot with a mallet, giving Pumbaa time to streak ahead and take the title.

As Pumbaa stands proudly on a pedestal, declared the new "Mr. Pig," Timon tells Pumbaa that he had cheated to help the warthog win. Infuriated, Pumbaa yells at Timon for violating his trust, and the other barn animals surround the argument, taking in this new information with consternation. Unable to keep the crown, Pumbaa returns it, and the rooster declares punishment on Timon, giving him the option of either leaving forever or staying imprisoned on the farm for the rest of eternity. Timon is eager to go, but Pumbaa refuses to leave until the meerkat promises to never cheat again. Although Timon swiftly makes the promise, he crosses his fingers behind his back, marking his promise a bald-faced lie.