A Burn Out (Episode)

Luxo Jr.'s Bulb burns out.

***A Burn Out*** is the ninth episode of Pixarfan8695's Luxo Jr. Short Series. It premiered on April 24, 2020, on YouTube.

## Plot

The short begins with Luxo Jr, frolicking happily with his ball like he usually does. Suddenly ZAP! His light bulb goes out, leaving him in the dark. Frightened by the surprise of it and dejected of not having a functioning bulb anymore, Luxo Jr. goes back to his home power cord.

Once he arrives, he shows Luxo Sr. what happened, concerning his caring father. Sr. examines Luxo Jr's downed bulb, seeing if there's a way to fix it. It needs to be replaced, but when Luxo Jr. asks if they have any spares Luxo Sr. shakes his head; burn outs happen all the time. Luxo Jr. is saddened by this. Just then, Maxo and Luna Jr. arrive, surprised and concerned by Luxo Jr's "blank" state. They wonder how they can find a new bulb Luxo Jr. illuminated again. Just then, Maxo remembers his "*emergency stash",* and hops off to get it.

Sometime later, Maxo returns with the "*emergency stash",* which is a collection of five spare light bulbs. However, each one is a different design. Appearance can affect how a lamp looks. Eager to get lit up again, Luxo Jr. tries on the five bulbs to see which one looks the best on him. He inserts each one with his power cords. Luckily, each one gives him his light back, but they all don't look good on him.

1. The first one, a large conical shaped one, is too large. It takes up too much space in his lampshade (head). Luxo Sr. doesn't think it looks right.
2. The second one is similar in shape to Luxo Jr's original bulb, but it's too long. It literally sticks out his lampshade! Maxo rules against it.
3. The third one is shaped light a diamond. Although Luxo Jr. at first seems to like it a bit, Maxo and Luna Jr. find the shape too weird.
4. The fourth one looks a lot like Luxo Jr's original bulb, but it's black. When turned on, it has an unnatural purple color. Luxo Jr. shakes his head in disappointment.
5. The last one is the strangest, it looks like a Christmas light. When it's inserted, it's completely transparent and you can see Luxo Jr's socket. It's *way* too awkward. Luxo Jr. droops his head in embarrassment. Maxo and Luna Jr droop their heads in frustration.

Out of options, Luxo Jr. has nothing to choose from. He looks too embarrassing with Maxo's spare bulbs, and without bulbs, he can't be illuminated. Miserable, poor Luxo Jr. droops his head sorrowfully, lightbulb-less, and begins to cry. However, before he can shed a tear, Luxo Sr. returns with great news; it turns out Sr. has one more spare light bulb, after all, found in a coffee mug. Overjoyed, Luxo Jr. inserts it with his power cords; a perfect fit exactly like his original. Jr. happily thanks his father, who kisses him affectionately on Jr's head. He also thanks Luna Jr. and Maxo for being kind and trying to help him. Maxo and Luna Jr. wave goodbye and hop away, Maxo taking his stash with him. Once again his happy self, Luxo Jr. ends the episode nodding happily at the camera, bright and illuminated once again.

## Trivia

* This was the first Luxo Jr. episode of the 2020 decade. It was released during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
* A similar event happened to Luxo Jr. in a special Pixar logo in 2008, when his light bulb burned out during the closing logos of WALL-E. Wall-E himself came into the logo and replaced Luxo Jr's bulb with a modern fluorescent one.
* The episode's title card is a reference to the Pixar Sparkshorts logo.
* ''What? No!" the coffee mug from the Forky Asks a Question episode "What Is a Friend?" makes an appearance in this episode.
* This is the first and only short to have cloth simulation.