Carrying a Bird

"Carrying a Bird" is the second episode of the Disney+ streaming television series The Mysterious Benedict Society, and the second episode of the series overall. It was released on June 25, 2021.
==Synopsis==
Mr. Benedict sends the kids on an undercover mission to infiltrate the L.I.V.E. Institute.
==Plot==
As the alarm blares in the mansion, Rhonda, Number Two, and Milligan wake up Mr. Benedict and they prepare to have the children taken to the safe room. The mansion is overrun with men and women in coats and electrified gloves. They knock out Rhonda and Mr. Benedict, but only kidnap the latter. Kate uses her flashlights to knock out two of the kidnappers while Milligan beats them up and they flee. When it is all said and done, Constance is revealed to have fled back to the study room; telling the other three that that is what they should have done. Mr. Benedict finally decides to come clean about what is happening.
Using subliminal messaging, negative thoughts and ideas are being sent through television and radio (which Constance is very sensitive to as she gets queasy). He cannot take this information to the police or the government because the person behind this has had them dismantled from the inside and despite having proof tells the children that proof is not enough unless someone wants to believe it. Knowing that there is no other choice, the children agree to undergo the dangerous mission which will involve entering the L.I.V.E. Institute which is where the messages are coming from. As the kids sleep in for the night, Reynie creates a mental message to Ms. Perumal.
In the morning, Mr. Benedict explains during breakfast that the children will pretend to be newly recruited students to the L.I.V.E. Institute, though they will be using their real names and that he and his team will keep an eye on them and need to learn morse code in order to stay in touch. Sticky, being the only one who knows Morse code, has to teach it to the other kids. Kate finally asks Sticky why he ran away from home. He reveals that he was taken in by his aunt and uncle after his parents died and they immediately took an interest in his ability to know things. They decided to use his gift to win at various game shows and they became very wealthy. However, Sticky could tell that they wanted more so he threw a game to see how they would react. He ran away, but stayed close to see how his aunt and uncle would behave. After confirming that they would probably be better off without him, Sticky left for good and stayed at a library before hearing about the Boatwright Academy ad.
Constance bluntly asks Milligan what his story is. He explains, in rather dramatic detail, that he was bound and gagged and tortured and had no idea how he got there. Using his toenail clippings, he managed to escape his shackles and fled the facility where he fell into a ravine. A poisonous eel bit his leg but due to him being a "left foot swimmer" he was able to escape onto land. He found himself in the city where he tried to tell everyone his story, but no one believed him and he was mocked and humiliated. He heard tell of a kind and considerate man and came looking for him, the mysterious Mr. Benedict who was the only one who believed him. Because of this, he has become ever loyal to him and never left his side.
At night, the children go over the plan, but Constance instead insults the other three with a rude poem. Kate sends Reynie to go and ask Mr. Benedict to have her removed from the team. He goes down to the study where Mr. Benedict already knows why he came. He instead gives Reynie a parable about a boy who wanted to disprove a wise woman with a bird in his hand by asking if it is alive or dead. If she says dead, he will let the bird fly free, but if she says alive, he will crush the bird in his hands just to prove a point. Instead, the wise woman told him that the bird's fate is up to him. Mr. Benedict admits that the parable is strange, but tells Reynie that it is up to him how he feels about Constance. He asks how he felt coming to see him and when he tells him he was terrified, Mr. Benedict tells him that he experienced leadership.
In the morning, the children decide to give themselves a name and Constance ultimately decides "The Mysterious Benedict Society". Mr. Benedict tells the children that they must leave the mansion as it has been compromised. Milligan, disguised as a Swede, drives the children to the ferry that will take them to the L.I.V.E. Institute while Mr. Benedict, Number Two and Rhonda hide out in the woods on the mainland. The children are successfully taken to the institute where they are indoctrinated by the very compliant Jackson and Jillson. Kate becomes interested in a tower, but is told that it is only for "messengers" and it is nearly impossible for students like them to become one. By chance, they witness one student get promoted to messenger and are told that it is merit based. The kids are confused by the "rules" which see very laxed.
The kids sneak out at night to alert the adults via Morse code. They are nearly caught with Mr. Benedict worried that he sent the children into danger, but Rhonda comforts him with the knowledge that they are smart enough to get out of it. Kate once again expresses interest in wanting to climb the tower, but Reynie and Sticky try to talk her out of it while Constance once again belittles her about it. Reynie manages to convince her that the climbing the tower is too soon and that they need to gather as much information about who the headmaster of the school is so that they can inform Mr. Benedict. They ultimately choose to get some sleep.
In the morning, the kids go to class where they are taught by the kind Mr. Oshiro. He gives the class a quandary involving a light on the second floor and three switches with only one of them capable of activating the light. Seeing as how they only are allowed to go upstairs once, how they can tell which switch activates the light? An overzealous girl named Martina Crowe offers a rather conjectural conclusion wherein the first switch would ironically be the correct one based on chance, but Mr. Oshiro tells her she is wrong, leading to the other students suggesting various answers.
Reynie finally offers a logical conclusion: turn on the first switch and wait ten minutes, then turn it off. Turn on the second switch and go upstairs. If the light is on, it is the second switch; if the light is off and the bulb is hot, it is the first switch; and if the light is off and the bulb is cold it is the third switch. Mr. Oshiro takes it as the correct answer, but Kate offers a different conclusion involving the architecture of the building; calling it illogical to not put in the switch in the middle as the first and third switches are inappropriate in relation to the door frame. Mr. Oshiro reluctantly also accepts this answer. At that moment, the headmaster, Dr. L.D. Curtain, reveals himself and looks like an exact double of Mr. Benedict. He happily congratulates Reynie and Kate for their answers.
==Cast==
===Starring===
*Tony Hale as Nicholas Benedict/L.D. Curtain
*Kristen Schaal as Number Two
*MaameYaa Boafo as Rhonda Kazembe
*Ryan Hurst as Milligan
*Gia Sandhu as Ms. Perumal
*Mystic Inscho as Reynie Muldoon
*Seth Carr as Sticky Washington
*Emmy DeOliveira as Kate Wetherall
*Marta Kessler as Constance Contraire
===Guest starring===
*Saara Chaudry as Martina Crowe
*Katherine Evans as Jillson
*Ben Cockell as Jackson
*Shannon Kook as Mr. Oshiro
===Co-starring===
*Emily Delahunty as Lindsay
*Trae Maridadi as Young Sticky
*Carmela Sison as Van Horn
*John Gillich as McCabe
*Liza Huget as Sticky's Aunt
*Craig Erickson as Sticky's Uncle
*Dean Hinchey as Game Show Host
*Sara Bynoe as Spoken Word Teacher
*Bill Morris as Quiz Master
*Marc Anthony Williams as Dock Worker
*Asia Au-Yeung as Student #1
*Tysae Grewal as Student #2
*Remi-Gale Panon as Student #3
*Gelareh Ghodrati as Student #4
==Songs==
*"Right Back Where We Started From" by Maxine Nightingale
==Trivia==
*The title is what Reynie guessed what Mr. Benedict was trying to tell him when explaining the parable.
*This episode covers chapter 6 to the first half of chapter 12 and parts of chapter 13 in the first book.
==Book comparisons==
*The sequence of events are somewhat twisted around between the last episode and this one. In the book, once the four children come together, they are immediately sent to bed and awaken the next morning for breakfast. Mr. Benedict then tells them about his machine and the hidden messages before the mansion is attacked by the mysterious men. In the series, the previous episode had Mr. Benedict showing the children the machine immediately after they meet, only for the men to attack. This episode follows this event with Mr. Benedict finally explaining how his machine works and then sends the children to bed, followed by their breakfast conversation.
*Mr. Benedict's reason for not alerting the authorities is because that the proof he provides is only viable if those choose to believe it. In the book, he simply claims that his proof is too intellectual for people to understand.
*The kidnappers motives were to kidnap the children for the school as they manage to get Constance before Milligan knocked them out and disposed of them. In the series, this was changed to them trying to get Mr. Benedict, only to be stopped by Kate and Milligan. The kidnappers flee afterwards. Additionally, in the book, they have a brief exchange with the characters and Constance explains that she was trying to wait by the landing bell before she was grabbed.
*When Mr. Benedict directs them to learn Morse code, the kids are seen learning it with Morse code machines in the den with Milligan watching them. In the book, they ask to go out into the garden for a picnic and use flashlights. Once again, Milligan watches them, but is in disguise.
*In the book, Constance asks Sticky about his background and he tells them verbally. In the series, Kate asks him and he responds in Morse code.
*Sticky's story differs in certain aspects. In the series, he lives with his aunt and uncle who take pleasure in his winnings. He loses once on purpose to see their reaction which is utter disappointment. When he feigns running away, his aunt and uncle solemnly admit that they and Sticky are better off without each other. In the book, Sticky lives with his parents who are much harsher. They actively force him to study more tell him to stop spending time with his friends. It is heavily implied that Sticky's anxiety is because of them. Sticky actually loses more than once on purpose and sees that his parents only care about his winnings. He runs away and delightfully sees the suffering, only for philanthropists to donate to them. Sticky becomes heartbroken to see that his parents are better off without him and runs away for good.
*In the book, Constance actually apologizes for asking Sticky his story.
*Milligan's story remains relatively the same except in the book he mentions that voices of his captors. He also outright mentions that he came from the L.I.V.E. Institute which is unknown to them in the series at the time.
*Prior to going to the Institute, Mr. Benedict knows everything from the jet turbines under the water to the fact that it is run by Dr. Curtain. In the series, he does not know these things yet.
*The boys and the girls had separate rooms in the mansion while in the series, they all share the same room.
*The series actually depicts Constance reading her insulting poem while the book only vaguely mentions it. Her name for Sticky was changed to Stinky, however.
*Reynie's conversation with Mr. Benedict, following the decision to discuss Constance, is more elaborate in the series However, they fail to mention Mr. Benedict's background that his parents were Dutch scientists who died in an accident before he was sent to live with his aunt who also died. Additionally in the book, Reynie visits a second time and overhears Mr. Benedict call him a hero, inspiring him to have faith in him.
*The conversation to choose a team name is held within the mansion instead of outside.
*In the book, Rhonda drove the children to a bridge that took them to the L.I.V.E. Institute while in the series, Milligan drives the children (in disguise) and drops them off at a dock while they are ferried to the island.
*In the book, the island is called Nomansan Island (No man's an island), while in the series it is changed to Harbor Island.
*Upon arriving on the island, the children are quick to point out some the familiar things, such as the men who broke into the mansion. This is ignored in the series.
*Jackson and Jillson's introduction and characterizations are much different. In the book, they are entitled and rude. In the series, they are cordial, yet unsettling. Additionally, the series has them give a tour immediately after meeting them while in the book, they let the children settle in before doing so. They also gave more detail about Mr. Curtain and the island in that it was filled with mine shafts. This explanation was left out of the show.
*The children's encounter with the living drapeweed is completely removed from the show.
*The character of Mr. Oshiro, and the other teachers for that matter, are invented for the show. In the book, the executives taught the classes, including S.Q., who is introduced in the next episode.
*Martina Crowe's introduction is different. She has more interaction directly with the kids in the book and outright despises them for their intelligence. In the show, she is only mildly annoyed at them.
*The introduction of Mr. and Dr. Curtain is wildly different. In the book, the children are sat in a room with other students and made to wait for the arrival of Mr. Curtain (who arrives in a wheelchair). He is so off-putting for Reynie that he comments on his nose; causing him to get angry, but calms down and compliments him on his honesty. In the series, the children are in a class with Mr. Oshiro when Dr. Curtain enters, unannounced (standing) and compliments on Reynie and Kate's answers they gave the teacher.
==External links==
*Carrying a Bird at The Mysterious Benedict Society Wiki
Category:The Mysterious Benedict Society episodes