"The Doppelgänger Gang" is the twenty-fifth episode of American Dragon: Jake Long. In this episode, Jake learns a very important lesson: "You are your own worst enemy."
Plot[]
Jake is overbooked with school, jump rope practice, chores, and dragon training and, therefore, is hardly getting any sleep, so Lao Shi gives him a PMA: a Personal Magical Assistant.
Later that night, Jake's PMA wakes him for emergency dragon training in Central Park, where Lao Shi teaches him to release his inner chi energy to create doppelgängers to help in battle and throw off the enemy. The next day, Jake is late for school again, he jumps rope while half-asleep, and is too tired to watch Haley – only for things to get worse when his father signs him up for Cougar Scout training.
Meanwhile in the shop, as he can't take it anymore, Jake convinces Fu Dog to give him a "magical shortcut", which is a purple-colored bottle filled with a chi amplifier which will help make doppelgängers who are obedient and good. As Jake has four things to do at once, and the one doppelgänger now known as Cougar-Scout Jake is not enough, he made three more: Study-Boy Jake, Double-Dutch Jake, and Chore-Hound Jake.
Later that afternoon, Jake checks up on his doppelgängers to see if everything is going according to plans, until he and Double-Dutch Jake tip up Brad Morton with the rope, causing him to fall face-first into his lunch with Jake backing away slowly. Brad grabs Double-Dutch Jake and attempts to beat him up just as teacher Sun Park is passing by, causing Brad to postpone the challenge for later at the skate park.
Back at home, Jake and his doppelgängers are deciding which one should face Brad until Study-Boy Jake suggests making another doppelgänger. Just as Jake is about to do so, Spud and Trixie show up only to find out what is going on. Trixie warns Jake that it could be a bad idea, but Jake insists that he has everything under control, but he mistakenly grabs a green bottle to help make the next doppelgänger. Jake explains the situation to his new doppelgänger, which appears to have a sinister look on his face.
Given the order to be sure to protect his face from Brad, when the time came, Evil Jake attacks Brad by grabbing his fist and squeezing it, then letting go only for Brad to fall off the ramp. Learning of that, Jake tells the newest doppelgänger that he needs to take his orders like the rest of the 'Dopp Gang,' but the new doppelgänger informs him that he is not like the others. He transforms into his dragon form and lashes out. Jake retaliates, only to feel weak and lose the fight.
Back at the shop, Jake discusses with Fu Dog why that chi-clone is bad. Jake shows Fu the green bottle, only for Fu to tell him that it is a negative chi amplifier, which makes doppelgängers who are unpredictable and evil. Evil Jake and every doppelgänger made with it will suck chi energy away from the original, rendering him weaker. In order for the evil doppelgänger to be defeated, he will have to first reabsorb the other doppelgängers to regain the chi strength he had imparted to them. Just as he is about to absorb Cougar-Scout Jake, Evil Jake pops out and absorbs him first.
Seeing as he has the same idea, Jake races to Chore-Hound Jake but Evil Jake gets there before him. He then heads for school, only to find that Evil Jake has already gotten to Study-Boy Jake, so he heads for the back courts where Trixie is putting up an argument about giving up Double-Dutch Jake. Evil Jake sees that and manages to absorb him. Back at the shop, Jake explains that Evil Jake absorbed all the doppelgängers before he could, when Evil Jake pops in to declare that there is still one Jake left to absorb…the original.
Fu Dog and Jake give Evil Jake the slip, hiding on the streets before Jake decides to try again to defeat Evil Jake the 'hard way.' Jake spots him in the forest and the two fight until Jake gets knocked out, landing on a merry-go round. Evil Jake manages to pin him down and begins to absorb him, thinking victory is finally his.
Fortunately for Jake, as he was the original being absorbed, the process is a lot slower so he manages to muster the strength to make another doppelgänger successfully without a chi amplifier, which distracts Evil Jake long enough for Real Jake to strike him three times, each releasing an absorbed doppelgänger. Having lost the power that the other doppelgängers gave him, Evil Jake attempts to fly away, but the original zooms in close enough to successfully reabsorb him. The 'Dopp Gang' congratulate Jake on his victory, and he thanks them for their help and decides to conquer time management on his own without shortcuts and lies.
Having learned his lesson, Jake reabsorbs the chi-clones until there is just the one and only American Dragon, Jake Long. In the end, Jake achieves time management, doing the double dutch tournament with Trixie and Spud while Fu Dog babysits Haley.
Characters[]
- Jake Long
- Jake's Doppelgangers, in order of appearance: Cougar-Scout Jake, Study-Boy Jake, Double-Dutch Jake, Chore-Hound Jake, Evil Jake, Extra Jake.
- Haley Long
- Susan and Jonathan Long
- Danika Hunnicutt (cameo)
- Sun Park (cameo)
- Brad Morton
- Trixie Carter
- Arthur P. Spudinski
- Fu Dog
- Lao Shi
- Dragon Council (mentioned)
Magical Creatures[]
Notes[]
- Evil Jake's aura is orange when he 'dragons up' while the Real Jake's aura is blue.
Trivia[]
- Moral: Multi-tasking is hard, but it's not impossible, especially when you have friends to help you juggle activities.