The New Bird

***The New Bird*** is the eighth episode of *Tuca & Bertie.* It aired along with the rest of Season 1 on Netflix on May 3rd, 2019.

## Episode Synopsis

*Bertie* *reaches* *out and bonds with an eager young apprentice at Pastry Pete's. Elsewhere, without her bestie, Tuca feels a little lost.*

## Plot

A time-lapse of outside on the street where the apartment building is located is shown, indicating a time skip from the last episode.

A wide-eyed, young, somewhat naïve bird named Dakota has just moved to Bird Town from the country, and is excited by her new surroundings. She walks past Pastry Pete's and sees Bertie doing her pastry making technique move, and is in awe. She goes in and introduces herself to Bertie, and reveals she just graduated from a small town culinary school and wants to work at the bakery. Pastry Pete overhears and accepts her as a new apprentice, making Bertie jealous.

Tuca is seen partying at Club Flaminglow, and one of the DJ’s tells the other Tuca has been there every night for the past two months, and she hasn’t seen her drink once.

When the DJs stop the music for a moment of silence for one of their fellow DJs, Tuca becomes anxious and an apparition of Bertie appears from Tuca's thoughts and chastises her for spending another night parting and how she’s irresponsible. Tuca speaks up and demands the music go back in, saying it’s what DJ Parkour would’ve wanted. But seeing everyone party with their best friends, and the song’s lyrics being about it, makes Tuca upset and she leaves the club, being reminded of her falling out with Bertie.

Bertie is telling Speckle about Dakota, and advises to try and give her a chance, especially since after she and Tuca stopped talking she hasn’t been great at making new friends, and we see a montage of her and Speckle inviting couples over for game night and it going badly. Bertie says she wants to form more mature adult friendships but she just doesn’t like anybody - and it’s revaled they were having a game night with another couple, who excuse themselves and fly out the window. Bertie says just cause she lost a friend doesn’t mean she needs to make a new one, it’s been nice not having distractions but now Dakotas gonna ruin it. Speckle says it could be empowering to mentor her, and suggest to invite her out tomorrow. Bertie begrudgingly agrees, realizing she’s being kinda mean, and starts to text her but before she even finishes the text Dakota excitedly texts back she’d love to meet for coffee the next day.

Tuca is at Draca’s place in the dead of night for a dermatologist appointment, and also to visit her Jaguar, who is now sophisticated and annoyed at Tuca. Tuca asks Draca for advice, saying whenever things get quiet she hears her estranged friend say mean things to her. Draca hushes her, and conjures out puss from out Tuca's head, representing the apparition of Bertie, and it forms a little mold that is shaped like Bertie, and Tuca keeps it in a jar, saying she feels better. She also gives Tuca a business card to a spiritual retreat and and tells her to go there

Bertie waits for Dakota at the coffee shop, planning on making it quick. After Dakota arrives and says she wants to ask her questions, Bertie is about to shoot her down when she notices Dakota has the exact same comfort shoes for her anxiety that she has, and is wearing right now. They both gush over them.

Tuca uses a ride share, where she rides a buffalo man and pays him in a banana, through the woods and she arrives at the spiritual retreat - The Congregation of Chill. Dirk is even there, where it’s reveled he’s attentions to work on his sexism. The HR Lady reveals to Tuca Draca only sends people truly looking for enlightenment. Tuca tries to be silent with her thoughts, but the apparition of Bertie in her thoughts returns and is meaner than before, chastising her for running away u these losers. Tuca freaks out and conceives everyone to make this a loud space, to get back to their primal roots, and they all start making loud noises. Tuca says they should rename themselves CON - congregation of noise. Dirk suggest CULT - Congregation under loud things, but they don’t like it.

Bertie and Dakota are bonding and discovering how much they have in common, and there is a montage of them doing activities together. At the bakery while Bertie is teaching Dakota she reveals an idea she has where she makes a chouquett thin and stringy like spaghetti and drizzling on chocolate and powder and calling them chouquettis. Dakota loves her idea and convinces her to make it her way, with Dakota assisting her. They go viral and everyone lines up to buy them.

At the end of the day Dakota thanks Bertie for her mentorship and hopes she can become half the woman she is. Pastry Pete comes back and notices the chouquettis. He tries one and loves it, and says they’ll put it on the menu as Pastry Pete’s Family Specialty. Bertie feels a bit upset at him taking the credit.

Back at CON everyone is still making noise and everything has fallen into chaos, and Tuca has been dubbed the "Screechiest One". She declares things like money, being an adult, and work are the emend, but they mishear the last one as Dirk and they carry him off. Tuca tries to correct it but is too late. She actually gets bothered by all the noise and leaves as chaos continues.

Bertie is shown closing up the bakery when she notices Pastry Pete talking to Dakota about the banana roux he is boiling, and she realizes he’s doing the same thing he did to her, and as he looks back at Bertie with a devilish grin, he grabs Dakotas head and starts forcing her face towards the boiling pot. She quickly pushes him off and demands to not touch him and calls him a creep, and she storms out. He scoffs to Bertie some people can’t handle the rigors of the job.

Bertie runs out to an upset Dakota pacing outside, and she’s furious after Bertie reveals he did the same thing to her and didn’t warn her. Bertie tries to claim that’s just part of the job and he’s just passionate, but Dakota questions why she’s defending him. She says she looked up to her, and she runs away. Bertie leaves too, ashamed at what she’s done.

She arrives outside her apartment building but doesn’t want to go back in. She gets inside her car and drives away.

Tuca leaves the retreat, which is now a chaotic mess. She finds herself inside a luminescent cave where she finds Draca who has lit candles. She tells her she messed up. Draca says lie in the water.

Tuca's thoughts are seen through claymation, where she confronts the apparition of Bertie and how she’s right she needs to be more responsible. The Bertie apartation tells her it’s ok, and she has lots of great qualities and shouldn’t stop being herself - she does lots of things Bertie can’t, that’s why they make a great team - Bertie just wants her to be her best self. Tuca leaves to go find Bertie. As Dirk is about to be burned at the steak, Tuca stops it and starts beating up everyone. She rescues Dirk, and she leaves as the retreat burns and everyone lies down beaten up.

She wanders alone through the woods, along the side of the road as it’s starts to flurry, until she sees the skyline of the city. Bertie winds up pulling up to her - to their surprise. She asks where she’s going, Bertie doesn’t know, and she lets Tuca come with her.

## Post Credit Scene

The Jaguar is watching Draca’s pimple popping videos on his laptop. He quickly turns it off after Draca comes home and catches him. He smiles in embarrassment

## Cast

* Tuca Toucan
* Bertie Songthrush
* Speckle
* Dakota
* Pastry Pete
* Draca
* Jaguar
* HR Lady
* Dirk
* Bruce
* Pastry Pete's Nephew

## Trivia

* This episode takes place two months after Yeast Week.
* The warm yellow light that Speckle described his and Bertie's home as, saying he loves that that little bit of comforting warm yellow is theirs, is depicted once again after Bertie arrives outside their building, and she is basked in it like in Speckle’s thoughts when he was describing it to her. She however in the moment doesn’t feel comfort from it and instead drives off after all that’s happened to her.
* The HR Goose Lady’s name is revealed to be Helen Regina Lady, although she actually goes by "HR Lady”.
* Draca is a world famous dermatologist and has many viral videos of her popping pimples.
	+ The Jaguar she got from Tuca has now become more tame and acts sophisticated, as he’s shown sitting upright, wearing reading glasses and reading a newspaper, and is shown being annoyed at Tuca's antics.
* Pastry Pete’s nephew cameos as Dakota walks down the street after arriving, telling her to “watch it, newb!”.