Breaking the Ice

"**Breaking the Ice**" is the 24th episode of the third season and the 104th episode overall of *Craig of the Creek*.

## Synopsis

While searching a once unreachable part of the creek, Craig get stranded with his longtime rival, Wildernessa!

## Plot

The episode starts with Craig finding an old deserted playhouse on an island. Craig is alone as Kelsey is coat shopping and JP is hanging with his mom. As Craig is about to walk on the frozen lake to get to the playhouse he hears noises behind him, gets scared and runs to the island. When Craig gets to the island the noise had stopped and Craig is glad to have found the playhouse. He finds a rope winder that says 'Roses Are Red Violets Are Blue'. Craig says he thought violets were purple and tries to turn the handle but it is stuck. He decides to put it on his map and he hears the noises again of which he says he won't fall for it this time.

As the noise comes closer and startles Craig it is revealed to be Wildernessa and Cheesesticks. Craig isn't happy to see them because Wildernessa always says Craig doesn't know a thing about animals. She tells him she thought she was tracking a dinosaur that fell from the ice age but it turned out to be Craig and his 'doofy' slippers. Craig gets offended and says his mommy got him those, he is wearing them cause it's cold, and she's the one looking for dinosaurs in the creek. Wildernessa responds by saying Craig doesn't know a thing about dinosaurs. Craig tells Wildernessa to leave since he isn't a dinosaur. Wildernessa (a little sad) says she has better things she'd rather be doing anyway and she and Cheesesticks leap onto the ice which begins to break under them so they run back to the island. All 3 of them are now stuck. Craig begins to panic but gains hope since he has Wildernessa with him. Wildernessa tells him she only knows about animals, not survival tactics and asks him to just call someone. Craig thinks of who to call: JP and Kelsey are busy, his parents would get lost in the creek and Bernard would just laugh at him so he asks Wildernessa to call someone. Much to Craigs shock, Wildernessa does a funny dance and questions why no birds are responding to her 'romantic overtures'. Craig facepalms and tells her to use her phone only for her to tell him that she doesn't bring her phone to the creek in case she loses it. Craig questions how kids got on and off the island and shows Wildernnessa the rope winder. She asks him why can't he just build something since he is always building stuff. Craig asks how does she know that and she says everyone knows he builds stuff and that he doesn't know anything about himself. Craig decides to build a raft out wood and Wildernnessa tells him to use dead wood instead of tree branches. The raft is built and Craig offers to go first and send the raft back for Wildernessa and Cheesesticks. Wildernessa says Craig weighs more than her and that he has a big head. Craig lets out an outburst of rage but quickly cools down. Wildernessa offers Cheesesticks to go first. Craig argues but gives up and Cheesesticks breaks the raft. Craig gets mad and says that Cheesesticks also broke the ice. Wildernessa responds by saying he doesn't know a thing about animals or building. Cheesesticks relaxes on the snow for a bit and Craig and Wildernessa decide to go into the playhouse.

The playhouse is old and weeds have grown inside. There is a calendar from 1980 on the floor and Craig looks at a drawing that says fort Sammy and \_\_\_\_\_ on it. The other name is hidden from the viewer. Wildernessa looks at the stump in the middle of the playhouse with a heart carving and S + S in the middle. Wildernessa looks at Craig and turns away in embarrassment when he looks at her. Craig asks if they should build a fire to stay warm and she sarcastically replies about the tropical rainforest being burned down in Brazil. Craig puts some fire app on his phone instead. Wildernessa blows her dog whistle and Cheesesticks barely fits in much to Craig's dismay. Craig offers Wildernessa one of his choco rolls and she accepts it but won't give Cheesesticks a bit since he is a dog. Craig wonders what happened to the kids who practically lived in here. Wildernessa says nature probably drove them away since they built their dwelling where it didn't belong. Craig tells her that people are animals too and that they need food and shelter and Wildernessa says yes they are similar but animals are easier to understand and that's why she admires them. She says people are more complicated. Animals don't pretend to be nice and ask you to sit with them at lunch so you can share hamster care tips only for them to pull the chair from under you and watch you spill food all over yourself, and then you get called into the principles office because you had to maul them only for you to come back and have everyone call you Molly and you're like my name isn't Molly it's VANESSA! Craig is surprised at this. Wildernessa's hands are cold so Craig offers her his mittens. When Craig puts a mitten on her hand she blushes and imagines Craig as a very handsome man but quickly snaps out of it and yells NO! She is about to explain how he doesn't know about her but he gets mad and says yeah he doesn't know anything but he doesn't get her at all. He says she acts like she is better than everyone else but she is just human and she goes home when the tuba sounds. He tells her than she and baloney are phony and he leaves. Before he exits the playhouse he says maybe she does care about animals but that doesn't mean she has to tear down the people around her.

Craig stand outside and says to himself that Wildernessa thinks she knows everything but he knows stuff too. Cheese Sticks sneaks up on him and startles him. Wildernessa tells him to come but he refuses and Wildernessa gets mad that he's on Craig's side. They bark argue to Craig's confusion. Wildernessa tells Craig she has something to tell him and she does the romantic overtures dance for him. She grabs his hand and they dance together but Craig falls over another rope winder. It says 'you can make a bridge when you have 2'. Craig and Wildernessa realize they have to work together and turn both rope winders. When they do, it creates a bridge that they have to quickly get across before it goes back under water. Wildernessa gives Craig a ride on Cheese Sticks and they make it across back to safety. Craig is super excited at how awesome that was. Wildernessa smiles at him and apologizes for tearing him down. She gives him her dog whistle in case he is ever alone or in danger again. When Craig asks her about that dance she smiles, says he doesn't know a thing about animals and rides off on Cheese Sticks. Craig looks at the whistle and smiles, ending the episode.

## Characters

### Main

* Craig
* Wildernessa
* Cheese Sticks

### Supporting/Minor

* Kelsey (mentioned)
* J.P. (mentioned)
* Nicole (mentioned)
* Duane (mentioned)
* Bernard (mentioned)
* Paula (mentioned)

## Videos

Craig and Wildernessa Are Stranded - Craig of the Creek - Cartoon Network
## Trivia

* This is the third episode where Kelsey and J.P. don't make a physical appearance. They appeared only in flashbacks in "Jessica's Trail" and were completely absent in "King of Camping", making this episode the second episode where Kelsey and J.P. are completely absent. However, they are mentioned by Craig.
	+ This is the sixth episode where Mortimor doesn't physically appear; the first being "Sparkle Cadet", the second being "Craig of the Beach", the third being "I Don't Need a Hat", the fourth being "Winter Break" and the fifth being “Snow Place Like Home”.
* This is the first time Wildernessa is seen wearing shoes.
* It's heavily implied that the fort may have belonged to Sammy Ballou and Sarah from the letter in "The End Was Here" due to Sammy mentioning their fort in his love letter to Sarah, an old calendar from the 80's being found inside their fort (which was when the Capture the Flag War took place), one of the drawings inside has a picture of a boy and a girl holding hands with Sammy's name on it, and the heart carving on the stump inside the playhouse has the initials "S+S".
* This episode features the fewest number of characters so far, with Craig, Wildernessa, and Cheese Sticks being the only characters to physically appear.
* In the Brazilian Portuguese dub, the nickname Mau-ly is changed to "Zuleika", and the poem Roses are Red is replaced by "Batatinha Quando Nasce".

### Errors

* Despite the ice being broken, it is depicted as being intact in a few scenes.

## References

1. ↑ Metcalf, M. (2021, February 17). SHOWBUZZDAILY’s Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.13.2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021, from http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/articles/showbuzzdailys-top-150-saturday-cable-originals-network-finals-2-13-2021.html