Animal Helpers

VHS cover

Animal Helpers is the fifth episode of the fourth season of Amazing Animals. The plot revolves around Henry discovering all about animals which assist humans in daily activities, and in some cases, humans assisting the animals. It first aired on the Disney Channel on 11th May 1999.

## Episode

### Episode outline

Click here for the full transcript for Animal Helpers.

Henry is driving his car in the city and is listening to the radio, when he hears that the winner for the Animal All-Star Awards would be announced that day - with rewards of a parade and a pizza feed in the winner's honour - an offer which Henry takes an immediate liking to. But, to Henry's dismay, he hears that the winner will probably be 'Goodie', 'our helpful collie friend'. He then learns more about animals which have strong relations with humans in daily life.

After the introductory segment about the relations between working animals and people, Henry begins a scheme, 'Henry's Help Scouts', wearing Boy Scout attire. His mantra: "I promise to do my best, to help other animals .. and to win that contest no matter what." He finds a chicken with a CGI egg who appears to need help crossing the road, to which the narrator asks Henry, "Why did the chicken cross the road?" / "Because the lizard said so!" The chicken crosses the road, and Henry brings along the egg, which he balances on his hat. He loses balance, and the egg is tossed. At the other end of the road, he finds that the egg has hatched with the newborn chick outside. This leads into a segment of ploughing animals, such as draught-horses and oxen.

### First cartoon

* Tyrannosaurus is pulling a plough in a field - and struggles to do so. He arrives to Lizard wearing dungarees, presumably the farmer and the dinosaur's owner. The dinosaur catches sight of another Tyrannosaurus who is happily driving a tractor, and indicates this to Lizard. After some persuasion, the dinosaur's request is granted by Lizard - who is in the front seat of the tractor - which is being pulled still by the frustrated dinosaur.

Following this, the second segment begins - Henry, retaining his hat from his previous scheme, has started a food-delivery scheme - "Meals on Wheels", a way to help out some of "my oldest, and dearest friends." He stops near a roe deer, which the narrator suggests to Henry, who retorts - "not that kind of deer! She can get her own dinner." He then finds a small tortoise, to whom he introduces his range of options:

"I've got hamburger, cheeseburger, mini burger, mondo burger, large fries, small fries, slice of cake. / Onion rings, crunchy things [shows a bag of popcorn], diet cola, spicy wings - and I'll top it all off which an extra large shake!"

Said extra large shake makes the stand inclined to one side, and eventually topple over, causing the shake to spill onto the road, and some lettuce to fall - which the tortoise proceeds to eat. "All the guy wants is the side-salad!" This leads into a segment featuring animals which help people to find food - such as dolphins and pigs.

#### Second cartoon

* In a similar manner to a truffle-digging pig in the previous animal segment, Tyrannosaurus is seen with his snout in the dirt, moving in a straight line. He hits something, shaking a nearby tree, to find a bicycle wheel, which he promptly tosses. He continues, finds a wheelbarrow, which he tosses also. He arrives to a rock with Lizard standing on it. The lizard runs off, and the dinosaur follows to find a large hole. After some digging, the dinosaur digs up a slim table - complete with a prepared dish and two glasses. A Frog waiter arrives to take off the cloche - to reveal a pile of round nuggets/truffles on the plate.

Henry now has to do his report on bat droppings, after announcing several side-stories relating to chimps building the "smallest race-track yet", and kangaroos "getting bruised". The main story begins - it is about a baseball-playing bat, by the name of Bat Guano, with great batting techniques from a lifetime of practice. Henry details Guano's backstory, including how Guano grew up on a farm, where he proved very helpful. He was then recruited by Eagle-eyed Maloy [presented as a golden eagle], who protected him from 'all the sharks out there.' [Show: 4 CGI renderings of great white sharks with bowler hats and googly-eyes.] After the narrator's critique, an animal segment about real bat guano begins, including Buddhists entering a cave to collect it.

After this, a segment begins with Henry with a pair of binoculars in a bush - who laments Goodie's nature. Goodie is babysitting a lamb, to Henry's dismay. Henry throws a ball for Goodie to fetch - so he can kidnap the lamb and hide it. To his shock, Goodie is just behind him. A segment then begins detailing the St. Bernard, and their good sense of smell.

#### Third cartoon

* A Lizard is running from an angry Tyrannosaurus, who suddenly stops in his tracks, to the lizard's surprise. The dinosaur has a thorn in his foot. The Lizard extracts the thorn - only to make the dinosaur even angrier. The dinosaur steps on another thorn after some more chasing, and to his confusion, the Lizard measures the size of his foot. The Lizard returns with a large pair of shoes, to the dinosaur's happiness. The cartoon ends with the two running happily together.

Henry gives out his Golden Gecko Award for all-time best Animal Helper. The bronze medal goes to the ox, the silver medal to the mountain rescue dog ["search-and-rescue super pooch"], and the Golden Gecko is awarded to the reindeer for their strength and assistance to nomads.

#### Fourth cartoon

* After the Golden Gecko Awards, a cartoon begins featuring an egg and a large nest. Tyrannosaurus is shown stroking the egg and treating it with care before putting it back in the nest. A baby Lizard then arrives to reveal that the egg is fake - it opens the egg to sit in it, blowing a raspberry. The cartoon ends with the dinosaur pulling a face of disappointment.

After the cartoon, a Henry segment begins where Henry introduces himself as 'Lizard Man' - the 'greatest helper in the universe'. Looking for help, he enquires to Goodie, 'What's that you say?' 'Little Timmy's gone down the well?' 'And his mommy's worried?' 'Cause he hasn't got his water-wings?' 'Lizard Man' then prepares for take-off - only for his flying equipment to malfunction, only for himself to fall down the well too. After calling for help, Goodie arrives to lift the bucket with Henry and Timmy - but when Henry sees who he is being rescued by, he orders Goodie to drop the rope. She does so accordingly, throwing Henry back into the well [though Timmy can be seen to have climped out off-screen]. The narrator enquires, 'don't you remember the old saying - pride goeth before a fall?' To which Henry retorts, 'listen - now *getteth* me out of here!' Another animal segment begins, featuring an orangutan orphanage.

In the final Henry segment, we see Henry, still in his 'Lizard Man' glasses, at the front of a limosuine in a parade. The winner of the contest has been announced - it is Goodie, who is being chaperoned by Henry. Henry laments that he could never compete with Goodie's nature - though he did learn a lot about helping - and notes that Goodie wants him to help eat her pizza at the awards dinner.

## Animal species filmed for the programme

### Studio footage

* Domestic Dog, *Canis lupus familiaris*
* Common Frog, *Rana temporaria*
* Domestic Chicken, *Gallus gallus domesticus*
* Roe Deer, *Capreolus capreolus*
* Red-footed tortoise, *Chelonoidis carbonarius*
* Domestic Sheep, *Ovis aries*

### Stock footage

* Asian Elephant, *Elephas maximus*
* Bactrian Camel, *Camelus bactrianus*
* Domestic Dog, *Canis lupus familiaris*
* Domestic Horse, *Equus ferus caballus*
* White Rhinoceros, *Ceratotherium simum*
* Domestic Cattle, *Bos taurus*
* Common Bottlenose Dolphin, *Tursiops truncatus*
* Grey Mullet, Mugilidae
* Domestic Pig, *Sus scrofa domestica*
* Chimpanzee, *Pan troglodytes*
* Red kangaroo, *Osphranter rufus*
* Wrinkle-lipped bat, *Chaerephon plicatus*
* Reindeer, *Rangifer tarandus*
* Bornean orangutan, *Pongo pygmaeus*

## Credits

* Henry - Eric Meyers
* Narrator - Tom Clarke-Hill
* Writer - Paul Dawson
* Music - David Poore
* Studio Art Director - Anne Neale
* Camera - Graham MacFarlane
* Graphic Designer Director - Kate Finding
* Graphic Design Assistant - Chris Wreford
* Production Co-ordinator - Janelle Backes
* Production Secretary - Mandy Vaughan
* Computer Animation - Ricochet 4, Henry Lutman (director), Daniel Pearson and Matt McKinney
* Cel Animation - A for Animation, Mark Taylor (director)
* Sound Post-Production - Films @ 59
* Editors
	+ Offline - David Warner
	+ Graphics - Sue Land and Tony Almond
	+ Online - Sharon Stiles

## Home media releases

The VHS for Amazing Animal Helpers was released on Xst X 199X. The cover shows Henry in his 'help scout' uniform [a brown hat and necktie]. He is accompanied with a cowboy on a domestic horse, a golden retreiver, a man with a sleigh led by 6 huskies, and a reindeer.

The spine of the VHS has a shire-horse, while the back cover features an Asian Elephant.

The blurb on the back cover of the VHS reads:

**Why does a cowboy need a horse? What do reindeer do when they're not helping santa?**

Join Henry the Lizard as he explores extraordinary wildlife, crazy characters, and unexpected animal surprises.

**"I'M GOING TO HELP MYSELF TO THAT PRIZE!"**

Henry's been helping himself for years, and now it's time to help the world. He sets to work, rounding up all the AMAZING ANIMAL HELPERS, from heroic search-and-rescue dogs to truffle-digging pigs.

A second version of the VHS cover, from a UK season four VHS trailer, has a different set of animals, including a penguin, a mandarinfish and a third unidentified animal. Henry is replaced with the view of him in construction gear and talking into a microphone, taken from the cover of Extinct Animals.

**Cartoon Characters**: \* Eagles • Tyrannosaurus • Rattlesnake • Tiger • Squirrel • Lizards • Elephant • Bat • Fish • Camel • Gorilla • Caveman • Mole • Bear • Stickman • Chicks • Hen • Rooster • Owl • Chameleon • Tortoise • Crocodile • Frog and Toad •
• Parrot • Porcupine • Mouse • Whale • Rhinoceros • Beavers • Snail • Rabbit • Dog • Skunk • Spider • Octopus • Vulture • Woodpecker • Flea • Dung Beetle • Butterfly • Gibbon • Fly • Mosquito • Bee • Beetles • Crab • Pigeon • Carnivorous Plant • Lamb

**Voice Actors**: Eric Meyers • Tom Clarke-Hill
**Season One**: Tropical Birds • Animal Disguises • Nighttime Animals • Animal Appetites • Animal Survivors • Animal Senses • Animal Weapons • Animal Builders • Armoured Animals • Mini-Beasts • Animal Babies • Poisonous Animals • Animal Journeys
**Season Two**: Birds of Prey • Desert Animals (Amazing Animals) • Scary Animals • Animal Records • Animal Colors • Animal Mothers • Animal Pets • Seashore Animals • Animal Families • Endangered Animals • An Animal Year • Prehistoric Animals • Monkeys and Apes
**Season Three**: Animal Hunters • Animal Talk • Slimy Animals • Rainforest Animals • Animal Acrobats • Underwater Animals • Animal Neighbors • Giant Animals - Creepy Crawly Animals • Farm Animals (Amazing Animals) • Animal Changes • Extinct Animals • Animal Eggs
**Season Four**: Around the World • Polar Animals • Clever Animals • Underground Animals • **Animal Helpers** • Woodland Animals (Amazing Animals) • Mountain Animals • Backyard Animals • Tiny Animals • Animal Partners • Scaly Animals • River Animals • Animal Flight