The Good Shepherd

**The Good Shepherd** is the seventeenth episode of The VeggieTales Show, which teaches a lesson in handling fear.

## Plot

The Veggies are asked to perform for Mr. Nezzer’s mother who is visiting. Performing her favorite story of David and Goliath seems the perfect fit. Mr. Nezzer keeps interfering with the show rehearsal and causes a blackout in the theater. The Veggies are completely in the dark and feeling afraid! Mother Nezzer saves the day with a story of The Good Shepherd and how we can always trust in God’s care.

## Characters

* Bob the Tomato
* Larry the Cucumber
* Junior Asparagus
* Archibald Asparagus
* Pa Grape
* Laura Carrot
* Jimmy and Jerry Gourd
* Mr. Nezzer
* Mr. Lunt
* The French Peas
* Madame Blueberry
* Petunia Rhubarb
* Mother Nezzer
* Goliath
* Jimmy Neutron
* Timmy Turner
* Wubbzy
* Daizy
* Dora
* Boots
* Map
* Swiper
* Fiesta Trio
* Benny
* Isa
* Tico
* Diego
* Baby Jaguar
* Khalil (*non-speaking role*)
* Backpack (*non-speaking role*)
* Bruce Onion (*non-speaking role; theme song only*)

## Songs

* The VeggieTales Show Theme Song
* *Silly Songs with Larry:* Sleep Singing
* Shepherd Polka
* My God is With Me

## Fun Facts

### Trivia

* This is the first episode for several things:
	+ The first episode of The VeggieTales Show to be written by Eric Newman.
		- This also makes it his first writing credit with Big Idea since The Little House That Stood.
	+ The first episode to be written by Sean Gaffney since A ShakeSparagus Play.
	+ The first episode to be written by two people.
	+ The first time John Trauscht worked on a Big Idea production since Saint Nicholas: A Story of Joyful Giving.
	+ The first physical appearance of Mother Nezzer.
	+ The first episode to feature Goliath since A Tale of True Courage.
	+ The first episode to have a Silly Song before the second segment.
		- It is also the first time the line "Tune in next time to hear (character's name) say/sing.." has been spoken since My Golden Egg from Noah's Ark.
		- It is also the first time a Silly Song is used between two segments since The Little House That Stood.
	+ The first episode of The VeggieTales Show to have Bob narrate a story, as well as the first time he narrates overall since Robin Good and His Not-So-Merry Men.
	+ The first episode to introduce a new character since LarryBoy and the Cape-Coat Caper.
	+ The first episode in which Philippe speaks since A Tale of True Courage.
	+ The first episode in which Archibald plays a non-narrating role since The Wonderfulness of Wisdom.
	+ The first episode in which Jean-Claude enters the stage as the verse angel via a different method other than being lowered down from the rafters since Patience Takes Practice. It is also the first time overall where he does not come down from the rafters as the verse angel in any way.
	+ The first time Larry plays an accordion since Schoolhouse Polka.
	+ The first episode where Backpack does not speak since Let's Go to Music School.
	+ The first episode to not feature Sasha Toro as a credited voice actress.
	+ The first episode in which Wubbzy and Daizy have roles in the Bible story.
* This is the second episode of two things:
	+ The second time the story of David and Goliath has been told since Dave and the Giant Pickle.
	+ The second time the story of The Good Shepherd has been told since Pistachio - The Little Boy That Woodn't.

### Remarks

* Even though Archibald acknowledges that he wasn't the narrator in Dave and the Giant Pickle, it is never mentioned that Pa Grape originally didn't play one of David's brothers and Mr. Lunt originally didn't play Jesse.
	+ Furthermore, it is never explained why Bob didn't narrate the Dave segment himself if he was able to narrate the second segment.
* Bob says that Dave's brothers keep knocking over his sheep (which he states was a comic bit). However, in the original episode, Jerry was the only one of Dave's brothers that was actually seen doing this.
* It is never explained how or why Goliath disappeared so quickly.
* Although they could not find sheep for the Dave and the Giant Pickle re-enactment, they show up during the Silly Song.
* The same recordings of the following lines are used twice in this episode:
	+ Jean-Claude: "Cheese!"
	+ Phillipe: "And not ze fragrant kind, but ze stinky cheese!"
	+ Jerry Gourd: "Stinky cheese! Love it!"

### Goofs

* When Larry calls Bob's name in Sleep Singing, his voice isn't pitch-shifted.
* There appears to be a third pea when one of the turkeys runs into one of Larry’s stilts.
* The sheep's lines and baa's in the final verse of Shepherd Polka overlap each other.
	+ Larry's mouth is also shown singing the lyrics during the song, even though he isn't heard singing.
* When the wolf hops toward the lamb, his body twitches.
* Goliath is not shown in Phil Vischer's list of characters in the credits.
* Riley Trauscht's name is misspelled as "Reily" in the credits.

### Inside References

* Mother Nezzer is modeled after Grandma Nezzer from An Easter Carol.
* Mr. Nezzer being called "Nebby" is likely a reference to Mr. Nezzer's full name, Nebby K. Nezzer.
* The helmet that Larry wears at the beginning of the episode is the same as Madame Blueberry's from A ShakeSparagus Play, albeit smaller.
	+ Additionally, the sword that Larry carries in this scene is from A Tale of True Courage, albeit slightly larger.
* The entire first half of the episode is a last minute re-enactment of Dave and the Giant Pickle and makes several references to the episode:
	+ Mother Nezzer has the original VHS tape, the format the episode was first released in.
	+ Junior says his first line as Dave: "Hi. I'm Dave."
	+ Goliath, and later Larry, says some of his lines from the original episode.
	+ Some of the episode's original score can be heard.
	+ Junior, Jimmy, Jerry, and the French Peas still play David, two of his brothers, and the Philistines, respectively.
	+ Dave's brothers still tip the sheep over, although only Jerry was seen doing so in the original episode.
	+ The Israelite and Philistine tents are based off those seen in the original episode, although the Israelite tents are blue with striped roofs instead of white with a gray checkerboard pattern.
	+ After Philippe says that Larry is too short to play Goliath, Larry responds by saying "Little guys can do big things too, Phillipe."
* The live performance of Dave and the Giant Pickle may be a reference to the original VeggieTales Live! show, where the episode was also performed live.
* The backdrop at the beginning of the Dave and the Giant Pickle re-enactment is re-used from The Wonderfulness of Wisdom.
* The truck that the French Peas drive when bringing the turkeys to the stage is modified from one of the vehicles seen in LarryBoy and the Cape-Coat Caper, with the roof and side windows removed.
* One of the exclamations that Larry makes when he is having trouble balancing on his stilts is reused from LarryBoy and the Cape-Coat Caper and A Tale of True Courage.
* Larry smashing the spotlight is similar to how it happened in 'Twas the Night Before Easter
* The accordion Larry plays is a smaller, re-colored version of the one he played in Schoolhouse Polka.
* The fence that the sheep sit on is re-used from When Being Good Means Giving Up.
* The banana-shaped rock that Junior stands on during My God is With Me is reused from The Power of Love.
* Several costumes are re-used from previous episodes:
	+ Goliath's Pizza Angel uniform is re-used from God Wants Us to Make Peace.
	+ Junior's David costume is re-used from several previous episodes.
	+ Jimmy and Jerry's brother costumes are re-used from several different episodes.
	+ Pa Grape's brother costume is re-used from two previous episodes.
	+ Mr. Lunt's Jesse costume is re-used from previous episodes.
	+ Bob's green nightcap is the same as Mr. Lunt's from Samson's Bad Hair Day, albeit slightly bigger to fit the former.
	+ Larry's cheese hat and Laura's sheep costume are both re-used from A ShakeSparagus Play.
	+ Larry's shepherd costume is re-used from Samson's Bad Hair Day.
	+ Timmy's brother costume is re-used from the previous episode.

### Real-World References

* Larry's costume during Sleep Singin' bears a slight resemblance to that of Danny Zuko from the 1978 film, *Grease*.
	+ Jimmy's hair during the song also resembles that of the titular character of the Nickelodeon animated series, *The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius*.
		- Ironically, both characters share the same first name despite being from two different shows.
* Pa Grape shouting "Goodnight, moon!" is a direct reference to the 1947 book of the same name.
* Archibald's line "Ta-ta for now!" likely references part of a catchphrase said by the character Tigger from the *Winnie the Pooh* franchise.