"Quiet Please" is the first segment of the fiftieth episode of Big City Greens.
Synopsis[]
When the Greens visit the library to teach Cricket about reading, the librarian threatens to throw them out if they make a sound.
Plot[]
Cricket is watching TV while Tilly is reading a book. Bill enters and takes notice of Cricket's lazy appearance and suggests that he get his mind off watching TV and read a book just like Tilly. Cricket claims that he cannot comply as he does not think that a book can stimulate his brain as well as TV usually does. Gramma Alice enters, revealing that she too loves books and with her and Tilly's encouragement, Cricket decides to try to get into reading. The Greens head to the Big City Library and Bill immediately catches Cricket having brought a backpack full of toys to tame his overly stimulated brain -- if it isn't constantly stimulated, he'll go off. The family reassures him they won't let that happen. As they enter, Bill warns the library is "a quiet place" and the librarian's take their jobs way too seriously. Sure enough, thanks to Cricket's struggles at being quiet, they run into the lead Librarian, who displays an almost other worldly personality, and threatens the Greens with a single warning. Should they make any noise whatsoever, even talking or whispering, they will be kicked out for good. Tilly resolves this by suggesting that they speak in sign language, though she is the only one who speaks it fluently while the rest of the family make similar motions.
Tilly and Alice collect books from their respective favorite genres for Cricket to browse through. Cricket looks through Alice's collection of murder mysteries, but thinks they are too long. He then looks at Tilly's collection of fantasy adventure books, but finds them too descriptive and uninteresting. After he accidentally makes an elderly lady laugh and kicked out of the library, Bill talks with Cricket at the water fountain and comes to the conclusion those weren't the right books for Cricket and his "protesting" brain, so he offers that Cricket follow him upstairs during which Cricket accidentally drops a Blego brick (a Lego like toy). Bill introduces Cricket to the Lil' Abe books, but Cricket cannot keep his attention focused. He gives up and heads downstairs, but steps on the Blego brick and screams in pain, alerting the Librarian. Cricket manages to evade her due to Alice's interference with her hearing aid which apparently deters the Librarian.
Bill and Tilly find Cricket in the bathroom, who admits defeat and cannot find one book he likes because of his stimul-chasing brain, and they decide to leave, only for Cricket to step on the Blego again (which Tilly silently calls him out for). The Librarian hears and gathers her fellow workers to hunt the Greens with Alice using her hearing aid to deter them. While running, Cricket discovers a graphic novel called Bear Cowboy and immediately takes an interest in it, but starts forgetting he's supposed to be quiet and cannot make noise. His giggling alerts the Libarians who surround Cricket, who is oblivious to their presence. Bill sees this and with no way to warn him, screams to alert them away, saving Cricket, and he is beaten up and kicked out. Cricket, Tilly and Alice leave afterwards and learn that Bill has been banned from all libraries worldwide. They nevertheless celebrate Cricket's success at finding and book his interests and now that they can be as loud as they want, scream in delight. The episode turns out to be a story read by the Librarian who shushes the audience.
Cast[]
- Chris Houghton as Cricket Green
- Marieve Herington as Tilly Green
- Bob Joles as Bill Green
- Artemis Pebdani as Gramma Alice
- Linda Hamilton as Librarian
Trivia[]
- The episode title shares its name with a Tom and Jerry cartoon.
- It also shares its name with a Rugrats episode.
- The entire episode is a straight-up G-rated parody of the 2018 horror film A Quiet Place.
- Once in the library, Bill warns the library is "a quiet place" and full of strict librarians with very good hearing who kick out anyone who makes even the slightest of sounds; the movie is set on a post-apocalyptic Earth full of blind alien creatures with very good hearing who kill anyone who makes one sound.
- The inside of the library is predominately grey and shadowy, mimicking the desaturated scheme of the film.
- When Cricket accidentally activates the toy rocket ship and holds it up, only to get attacked by the librarian, it resembles the opening scene when the youngest child is killed by the aliens.
- Alice has a hearing aid which annoys the librarian with its feedback, like how the daughter has a cochlear implant which annoys the creatures with its feedback.
- Tilly suggests the Greens use sign language whenever they need to say something to avoid getting banned, just like how the family does in the movie. In both instances, there is very little spoken dialogue, with most of it played out through their thoughts.
- Cricket screams after stepping on a toy brick, which alerts the librarian; in the movie, the son steps on a loose nail and screams, alerting the creature.
- The scene where Cricket and Bill talk at the water fountain is similar to a scene where the father and oldest son talk at the waterfall. Similarly, Bill, Tilly and Cricket talking in the bathroom is similar to when the parents talk in the bathroom the same way.
- The librarians assemble in a horde after Cricket steps on the same toy brick; in the movie, the front door of the family's house falls and crashes, assembling a horde of creatures. Tilly also silently calls Cricket out like how the daughter calls out the son.
- When Cricket starts reading loudly, thus attracting the librarian without even knowing, it is similar to the climax where the kids hide in a pickup truck and the oldest son shouts impulsively, attracting the creature.
- Bill signs "I love you" and screams super loud to sacrifice himself and save Cricket, just like what the father does in the movie. But instead of getting killed like the dad, Bill is banned from every library across the globe.
- The episode features the characters speaking in American Sign Language. To make it authentic, the writers consulted with ASL experts Delbert and Jevon Whetter and Justin Maurer.[1]
- The plot of the episode is similar to the Be Cool Scooby-Doo! episode "Be Quiet, Scooby-Doo!", where Mystery Inc. has to stay quiet as possible so they don't break the noise sensing crystals in Crystal Canopy.
- Both Mystery Inc. and the Greens are using their inside voices.
- Chris Houghton stated that this particular episode somewhat confirms that Cricket has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Throughout the episode Cricket genuinely tries to get into reading, but strugges trying to focus to the point that he is emotionally crippled by it. He also claims being quiet is the toughest thing to do, and is repeatedly distracted.[2]
- This episode reveals that Alice loves books.
- Bill for some reason cannot pronounce the word "library", he does not realize that their is a first "r".
- However, it pronounces it correctly after getting banned from the library.
- Blegos are of course a reference to Legos.
- Cricket screaming in pain after he steps on one is a reference to how Legos are painful when stepped on.
- The strict librarian resembles Ms. Bitters from Invader Zim and has a similar personality to the librarian from Monsters University, but her personality and mannerisms are similar to the aliens from A Quiet Place.
- Murder She Did: A Hardy Boyle Thriller, is a reference to both Murder She Wrote and the Hardy Boys.
- The book Cricket becomes interested in is called Bear Cowboy. This is a reference to the Houghton Brothers' real life comic Reed Gunther which featured a protagonist who was a cowboy who rode a bear.
- Some of the movie titles from the episode "Rated Cricket" appear on the DVD rack including Kiss of Death and My Big Fat Funeral as well as Constellation Battles from "Clubbed". Some of the new ones include:
- Harry Cauldron was seen in "Rated Cricket", but now two separate titles are present with the subtitles and the Stone of Ice and and the Door of Secrets, which are references to and the Sorcerer's Stone and and the Chamber of Secrets.
- Woah Mama! has been renamed It's Mama Time!
- A new Croblins movie called Croblins Take Baltimore is seen, possible a reference to The Muppets Take Manhattan.
- A callback to "Times Circle" is seen with America Rat Returns Again, as a reference to the Captain America movies and The Affiliates, in reference to The Avengers.
- This is the second time the Greens are banned from some place after Sea Fusion from "Fill Bill", but this time, only Bill gets banned.
- The Greens were almost caught by the librarian three times, twice for Cricket and once for Gramma. She successfully catches Bill for sacrificing himself to save Cricket. She never catches Tilly because she managed to stay quiet the whole time with her sign language.
- The librarians appear to be less human and more extraterrestrial, specifically they possess superhuman speed, can run on all fours and climb up shelves like a spider, are able to hear even the quietest of noises, their glasses, which they don't take off, seem to emote as if they're their actual eyes, have oddly colored skin tones, and appear more snakelike than most of the cast.
- The fourth wall is broken at the end when the camera zooms out to show a story of the same episode read by the librarian, who then shushes the viewer.
- Tilly was the only family member to not make a single noise throughout the entire library visit, not even quiet ones, making her the only one not to get in trouble with the librarian. She was also the only Green who did not speak to the librarian.
- Ironically, Bill is the only one other than Tilly to commonly use sign language in the episode.
- Cricket claiming being quiet is the hardest thing he can do foreshadows the climax where he suddenly forgets the restriction against noise once he finally finds a book he likes.
- The book genres the Greens like are:
- Cricket: Graphic novels
- Tilly: Drama/Horror
- Bill: History
- Gramma: Murder mysteries
- Everything in the library is non-realistic. It's highly unlikely for someone to be kicked out for making even the slightest noise, and the bathroom is actually a safe place to make noise and the librarian isn't likely to check there. It's unknown if there are computers in this library, which real libraries have, as well as headphones and wi-fi. It's also impossible for Bill to be banned from every library worldwide, especially on his first visit nonetheless. It's also okay to talk in the library, just at a low enough volume so you don't disturb anyone.
- Moral: It's best to stick to things your style.
International Premieres[]
- October 18, 2020 (Canada)
- November 10, 2020 (Spain)
- December 11, 2020 (Latin America)
- February 26, 2021 (Southeast Asia)
- June 6, 2021 (Japan)
- June 28, 2021 (Portugal)
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ "Disney TVA News Post". Twitter (September 17, 2020).
- ↑ "Tumblr ADHD Post". Tumblr (July 21, 2020).
