Blockheads

"**Blockheads**" is the twenty-fourth episode in Season 1 of the Disney Channel animated series, *Elena of Avalor*. It premiered on September 16, 2017.

## Plot

At Avalor Palace, Francisco and Luisa are leaving for the Kingdom of Cordoba for the Choral Cascade. After seeing them off, Elena, Naomi, Gabe, and Mateo then get ready to head to the beach. However, a thunderstorm suddenly starts, making that out of the question. After they go back inside, they try to find something else to do. Suddenly, Armando and Higgins burst in to secure the room. When Elena asks them what they're doing, Armando tells them they're there to protect them from the *chanopos*. Isabel comes in and tells the group that *chanopos* are old fairy tale creatures that are small, mean underground creatures that have big teeth, steal food put rocks in people's pillows, and mud in their shoes that come out in thunderstorms after lightning flashes three times. After lightning flashes three times, Armando and Higgins run off screaming. Isabel asks "Should I remind them *chanopos*aren't real?" which Naomi dismisses by stating "And miss all the fun?" Isabel suggests they play a game and Elena picks Indoor Olaball. Elena pairs up with Mateo and Gabe pairs up with Naomi. Isabel wants to play too to which the others tell her she's too small. Isabel insists on playing and the others concede. However, the others keep ignoring Isabel and pass the ball to everyone except her. Finally, Isabel gets so fed up that she leaves and went to play chess by herself.

Back at the Olaball game, Gabe accidentally knocks the ball into one of the walls. The impact causes a section of the wall to collapse. Inside the hole, the group finds an old Maruvian Ruin and go explore it.  After going down numerous flights of stairs, they find a Fire Opal which they all touch. This causes the Opal to give off a flash of light and smoke. After the smoke clears, the group discovers they've been turned into little wooden mobile dolls. Mateo deduces that the Opal is magical and deduces that what has happened to them is a curse which Naomi agrees with by stating "It sure isn't a blessing!" They decide to head back to Mateo's workshop to find a Reversal Spell and climb to the top of the stairs. Unfortunately, when they get there they run into Armando and Higgins who mistake them for the *chanopos*they're hunting for and block their exit in a misguided attempt to protect the Palace. After going back down the stairs, the group finds the way out thanks to the lightning. They slide Mateo outside and he drops a vine so they can climb out. Meanwhile, Isabel goes bored playing all by herself and goes to rejoin the others.

Back outside, the group climbs up another flight of stairs thanks to Gabe making a ramp for them to climb up with and get inside when a servant lets them in. When they come to yet another stairway Naomi shrieks "What is with all the stairways in this place?!" with Elena and Gabe noting nothing is easy when you're the size of a footstool. Meanwhile, Isabel discovers the Maruvian Ruin and the Fire Opal. When she finds the Olaball Ball, she remembers a book warning its readers not to touch a certain Fire Opal and goes to get it. Upon getting the book, Isabel learns what the Opal is and resumes her search for the others out of fear that they touched the Opal. Meanwhile, after a journey of difficulty and being stepped on the others finally arrive in Mateo's workshop. After finding an Enlargement Spell in the Codex Maru, Mateo tries to cure them with it only to have it not work. To make matters worse, Armando and Higgins appear and capture them. Isabel comes in and frees them. Upon discovering their predicament, Isabel explains that the Opal is a magical Maruvian Stone called the Coza Kex. Showing them the book, Isabel explains that the Coza Kex was created by Maruvian Wizards as a punishment for behaving badly and that it inflicts these punishments by unleashing curses that give the victim a taste of their own medicine and that the only way to undo the curse is to undo the bad deed. The others are confused by this since all they did was play Olaball and remind Isabel she was there. Isabel informs them that she in fact wasn't there because she left after they kept ignoring her. Hearing this, the group realize that this was the bad deed they did. After apologizing to Isabel doesn't work, they play Olaball with Isabel, which breaks the curse. The then play Olaball together and when Esteban. Francisco, and Luisa come back, Luisa is angry with what's going on. Elena is aware that she and her friends have explaining to do, and Luisa agrees only to reveal that she's angry that Elena would think of playing Olaball without inviting her, and she joins in the fun.

## Cast

* Aimee Carrero as Princess Elena
* Jorge Diaz as Gabe
* Joseph Haro as Mateo
* Jillian Rose Reed as Naomi Turner
* Jenna Ortega as Princess Isabel
* Joe Nunez as Armando
* Julia Vera as Luisa
* Mikey Kelley as Higgins

## Trivia

* Naomi's remark "Well, it sure isn't a blessing" after being told about the curse is a nod to the Amulet of Avalor and Isabel's revelation that the curse was unleashed to punish a bad deed is a nod to the Amulet's Curse Unleashing ability and how it was activated whenever its wearer did anything bad.
* Moral: Big or Small, Everyone is special.