The Insects

## Episode guide

**"The Insects"** is the fifth episode of the first season of *Nate Is Late*.

## Synopsis

Professor Toybos, an eccentric inventor, is putting his latest invention, a shrink ray, on the sidewalk to be picked up by the garbage truck. When Nate and Malika are accidently hit with it, but must make their way through Toybos' yard to get back to it and get back to normal before the garbage truck picks it up, Finding unlikely aid with some bugs who aren't fond of humans.

## Plot

It’s trash day around the city as Nate and Malika head on to school. Nate enjoys it due to finding interesting objects thrown out, but Malika doesn’t due to finding it too dirty. When Nates teases her for being a princess, Malika points out a cockroach on his nose causing him to panic, to Malika’s amusement before he manages to flick it off. They notice their inventor friend, Professor Toybos and his pet iguana, George, throwing out a machine which he states is a shrinking ray that he claims doesn’t work. When he notices George missing, he asks the duo to push the machine to the curb while he searches for his pet. The duo reluctantly does so, though Nate can’t help but fiddle with it a little, causing the machine to fall on its side. The duo continues to head on to school, but the machine suddenly activates and hits them with it's beam, shrinking them.

Now bug size, the duo finds everything too big, Malika chastises Nate for messing with the machine, but Nate points out they just have to reach the machine and reactivate it to get back to normal.

Before they can, a car passes by, and the duo are swept up in its passing gust. They manage to grab hold of a leaf and glide down to safety but are now in the middle of Toybos’ yard. They marvel at the sights around then for a bit with Malika spotting the shrinking machine in the distance.

However, Nate suddenly runs back and into her in a panic, knocking the two to the ground. Nate points out he was running from a cockroach who is now much bigger than him. When he grabs a reed to defend himself, he finds a flea snacking on it. Malika runs into a stinkbug while backing up. It then the bugs reveal they can talk to the two’s surprise, not only that but the roach finds the duo familiar. Malika realizes it’s the same one that Nate flicked off earlier. The cockroach isn’t amused by this, stating he hates humans because all they do is squash bugs. When Nate tries to counter that bugs are pests to humans, the bugs are set to attack them. This is interrupted when they feel shaking near them, which the bugs state is “Tugasarus” and runs, the stinkbug advising the duo to do the same. They do so but are too slow at their current size. The flea gives them a lift on his back and bounds forward, however the duo gets thrown off with Nate landing in a spider-web while Malika lands on the stinkbug. He chastises her for judging them for their appearance when they look alien from their perspective which Malika comes to realize. Nate is rescued from the web by the spider who turns out to be friendly.

As everyone regroups, “Tugasarus” finds them, who is revealed to be George. The group continue to run, finding a water facet and start climbing It but George manages to catch the cockroach. Nate directs the group to the facet’s lever, and they work together to turn it on, hitting George and saving the cockroach before he can be eaten.

Nate tries to help him up, but the Cockroach refuses, still having a grudge against humans and storms off. The other bugs agree to help Nate and Malika get back to normal. They reach the machine, but George is still roaming the area. Malika comes up with a plan, she has the flea get George’s attention, the spider web his tongue to the ground, and the stinkbug spray its fumes in it’s mouth, knocking it out. The path to the machine is clear but Nate notices the garbage truck arriving into the area. The stinkbug offers to watch George while Spider and Flea help the duo up to the machine. They reach the top and all four try to push the button to activate it, but their mass doesn’t look to be enough. Just when it looks like all is lost, the Cockroach comes to help, repaying his debt to Nate earlier. With the extra weight, they manage to push the button and turn on the machine. Nate thanks the roach before Malika and he runs into the machine’s beam and grow back to normal size. Just in time to stop George, who woke up, from eating the bugs.

Nate thinks Toybos will be happy that his invention works, but the garbage truck arrives and collect the machine to his disappointment. Regardless, the duo realizes they’re late and rush to school. They arrive and tell Principal Prudence what transpired, but naturally she doesn’t believe them. She notes the stinkbug on his backpack and nearly flicks it off. But he prevents her from doing so by claiming him and the other bugs are his friends. Prudence becomes disgusted when she notes what type of bug it is and lets the duo pass for their school day while the bugs cheer as they head on.

## Characters

* Nate
* Malika
* Professor Toybos (Introduction)
* George
* Cockroach
* Flea
* Stinkbug
* Spider
* Principal Prudence

## Trivia

* This is the first episode to feature Professor Toybos, who would become a recurring character in later episodes.

### Allusions

* The plot is a reference to the 1989 film, *Honey I Shrunk The Kids*
* Roach's line "Run, you fools!" is a reference to Gandalf's line "Fly, you fools!" from the film *The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring*.

## Gallery

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## Transcript

Click here to view the transcript for this episode.

## Names in other languages

* **Basque:** Xomorro jendea
* **French:** Les insectes
* **German:** Die Insekten
* **Mandarin (China):** 一群好虫
* **Spanish (Spain):** Los insectos

 Season 2 | 1. "The Lady of the Lake" • 2. "The Thunderbird" • 3. "The Crocodile Man" • 4. "The Golem" • 5. "The Hairdresser" • 6. "The Mood Enhancer" • 7. "The Chess Game" • 8. "The Drone" • 9. "The Astronaut" • 10. "The Gorgon" • 11. "The Dimensional Rift" • 12. "The Reptilians" • 13. "The Enchanted Bracelet" • 14. "The Ink Thief" • 15. "The Tiki" • 16. "The Puppet" • 17. "The Mandrake" • 18. "The Vampires" • 19. "The Sphinx" • 20. "The Pendulum" • 21. "The Giant Fish" • 22. "The Wedding Dress" • 23. "The Home Spirit" • 24. "The Great Pili-Pala" • 25. "The Endless Recess" • 26. "The Chicken Cop" • 27. "The Kitsune" • 28. "The Collector" • 29. "The Kappa" • 30. "The Beanstalk" • 31. "The Demigod's Test" • 32. "The Glitch" • 33. "The Tiny Tops" • 34. "The Magician's Top Hat" • 35. "The Chromapix" • 36. "The Gingerbread Family" • 37. "The Alphabet Agency" • 38. "The Wild Beasts" • 39. "The Return of the Cuddly Toys" • 40. "The Race Car" • 41. "Inside Professor Toybos" • 42. "The Asteroid" • 43. "The Time Travellers" • 44. "The Nebulons" • 45. "The Witches' Convention" • 46. "The Kobolds" • 47. "The Superstars" • 48. "The Goblin's Cousin" • 49. "The Golden Crown" • 50. "The Scarecrow" • 51. "The Banana Peel Part I" • 52. "The Banana Peel Part II"