Children of the Spore

"Children of the Spore" is the first segment of the nineteenth episode of Amphibia. It premiered on July 17, 2019.
==Synopsis==
Hop Pop's attempt to get the kids to behave leads to a scary mushroom adventure.
==Plot==
Hop Pop is putting the finishing touches on his model boat, the Green Lady, when he is interrupted by the kids and their bugball playing. He tells them to stop, but they run inside and cause a mess. Things soon become tense when they knock over and break the boat causing Hop Pop to force everyone to Loggle's. Hop Pop has the kids remain on Bessie while he gets Loggle to fix his boat. While waiting, he meets a frog with a hoodie on named Apothecary Gary (or Apothe-Gary) who sees that Hop Pop's kids are being rowdy. He offers him a special ointment that he claims will make the kids obedient once he applies it to them in their sleep. Despite some reluctance, Hop Pop takes the ointment and walks out to see that the kids have apologized, though they got a ticket for joyriding Bessie. Hop Pop considers holding off, but changes his mind when they break his boat again.
Hop Pop sneaks into the kids' rooms at night and applies the ointment to their heads. The next morning, they are supremely obedient, but give off an alien and aloof vibe that unsettles him. He manages to finally finish his boat just in time for the ointment to wear off. Anne, Sprig and Polly immediately return to their rambunctious and rowdy ways until Hop Pop tells them to go to bed as he will give them money if they do, which works. Even though he is unsettled with the results, he decides to apply the ointment again one last time before going to bed. The ointment this time causes small glowing shrooms to spout from their heads and give them purple glowing eyes. They proceed to make it to the door like zombies as Hop Pop tries to stop them.
Gary arrives at the door revealing that he is a frog possessed by a giant mushroom on his head. Gary reveals that he has transformed Wartwood into his thralls as the first step to conquering Amphibia. Hop Pop quickly shuts the door while he's distracted only for Anne to reopen it for Gary's thralls. He escapes through his study window, taking the Green Lady with him. Knowing he's outnumbered, Hop Pop takes shelter in the barn, only for Polly to give away his location. As the kids restrain him for Gary to assimilate, Hop Pop reveals that they've walked right into his trap as he reluctantly sacrifices the Green Lady to unlock Bessie's paddock. At Hop Pop's call, Bessie proceeds to eat all the mushrooms while he wrestles with Gary. Bessie soon sets her eyes on Gary. Forced to hold both of them off, Gary begs for mercy, revealing that he's the last of his kind, but Hop Pop declares he can live with rendering him extinct and allows Bessie to devour him. 
As the majority of Gary's thralls wander off with no memory of what they did under his control, Hop Pop learns Gary's host's name is Lloyd. As he is confronted by the kids, Hop Pop apologizes to the kids about mind-controlling them and they apologize for being disobedient. As they leave, they fail to notice some of the extra mushroom ointment on the ground where it soon possesses Hop Pop's beetle Jeremy.
==Cast==
*Brenda Song as Anne Boonchuy
*Justin Felbinger as Sprig Plantar
*Bill Farmer as Hop Pop Plantar
*Amanda Leighton as Polly Plantar
*Tony Hale as Apothecary Gary
*Brian Maillard as Leopold Loggle
*Stephen Root as Mayor Toadstool
*Dee Bradley Baker as Bessie
*Sam Riegel as Neckerchief Frog
*Katie Crown as Green Hooded Female Frog
*Eden Riegel as Mind Controlled Female Blue Frog
===Additional voices===
*Jason Marsden
*Hynden Walch
*Feodor Chin
*Stephanie Sheh
==International premieres==
*August 2, 2021 (Portugal)
==Gallery==
==Trivia==
*The episode's title is a reference to the horror film series , based off of Stephen King's short story.
*This episode was most likely intended to be the Halloween episode due to the content and premise.
*Gary's consumption by Bessie being shown in shadows could be a reference to Scar's death at the end of The Lion King.
*When a zombified Polly finds Hop Pop, she points and screams, similar to the aliens in Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
*There are fungi that are known to have a negative effect on frogs. One is the dendrobatidis and the other is salamandrivorans which are both from the Batrachochytrium family. They will infect the frog giving them what is known as Chytridiomycosis and is typically deadly sometimes making the frog immobile. The fungus depicted in the episode is actually more similar to Ophiocordyceps unilateralis which affects ants, turning them into literal zombies.
==External links==
*Children of the Spore at the Amphibia Wiki
Category:Amphibia episodes