Animal Neighbors

VHS cover

Animal Neighbors is the seventh episode of the third season of Amazing Animals. The plot revolves around Henry going away to the country to try and get away from both the narrator and animals, but finding that both are at his holiday home. It first aired on the Disney Channel on 26th May 1998.

## Episode

### Episode outline

Click here for the full transcript for Animal Neighbors.

Henry arrives at a small shack at the edge of the woods, and is looking forward to getting away from everything. He claims to have packed light, but a view behind him reveals a huge tower of cases and trunks. When he gets into the shack, the narrator greets Henry. Henry said he knew that getting away from everything was too good to be true. The narrator points out that everyone needs to be able to get along with their neighbours. This can include getting along with neighbours of the same species or with animals of other species.

#### First cartoon

* Gorilla is having a bath but is disturbed by loud music. He goes to both his neighbours and angrily knocks at their doors but both Bat and Bear are not responsible. On the third time Gorilla pulls out the plug and drenches Spider who was listening to loud music on earphones down the plughole. Spider angrily shakes his fist at Gorilla.

Henry is settling down into bed on his first night at the shack, with the narrator telling Henry to sleep tight and to hope the bedbugs don’t bite. Henry is startled a bit by this, but the narrator sarcastically says he is sure there is nothing to worry about. Henry starts to drift off to sleep, but he becomes increasingly afraid and annoyed by the animals calling and moving around both in and around the shack. Henry then shouts for them all to stop, but it doesn’t work for long. Henry says he wishes his neighbours would leave him alone. The narrator shows Henry some animals that also want their neighbours to leave them alone, including a weaverbird defending its nest from a passing chameleon and a garibaldi fish protecting its algae garden from sea urchins.

#### Second cartoon

* A baby Tyrannosaurus is sleeping in his garden when the three Chicks next door tell him to come over and play. Tyrannosaurus’ attempts to play destroy the slide, paddling pool and swings in the Chicks’ garden and upsets them. Tyrannosaurus then has an idea. He holds a swing in his hands and lets the Chicks slide down his back into a new paddling pool.

Henry climbs up a ladder onto the roof and looks at a hole made in it by an animal. He shuffles the ladder into a nearby tree to look for culprits and is startled by an owl. He falls off the ladder and lands in a bush full of hedgehogs. The narrator chides Henry for shooing away the hedgehogs, but Henry says he wants a bit of neighbourhood support. The narrator says that support works both ways, and it can be better to make the first move. A young chimpanzee is shown making friends with a young baboon and playing with it, even though the adults may not always get along.

#### Third cartoon

* Two Gibbon neighbours (one wearing a hat and the other not) get into a contest over who has the best topiary. They both make increasingly elaborate structures until the hat-wearing Gibbon cuts an entire tree into the shape of his own face. The tree topples over and buries both the Gibbons in leaves. The hat-wearing Gibbon smiles sheepishly at his angry neighbour.

Henry now does his News Report. The report is about the grand opening of a new swimming pool for animals, and how all the animals came along for a pool party. The narrator says that Henry didn’t get a single thing right in his report. At a real African waterhole, lots of animals will gather but there is no party as some of the gathering animals are predators ready to make a meal of their neighbours, such as the monitor lizard (which Henry refers to as his cousin Monty) and crocodiles. Back at the shack, Henry is colouring in pictures of animals with masks and ringed tails to identify who broke into his attic. The narrator asks if Henry has simply tried meeting his neighbours, with Henry responding that he hasn’t. They then look at Magellanic penguins, with Henry pretending he is a private detective following a gangster penguin called Poppy as he encounters other penguins and other species such as gulls, guanacos and cavies. The narrator says that Henry’s penguin story is poppycock. Henry now does the Golden Gecko Awards. The bronze medal goes to the garibaldi fish and the silver medal to the hyrax. But the Golden Gecko Award is given to the peregrine falcon, because they do not tolerate predators near to their nests and so red-breasted geese nest right next to them to gain protection.

#### Fourth cartoon

* Squirrel gets back to his house, but finds he has locked his keys inside. The two Eagles see him trying to get in, think he is breaking in and try to catch Squirrel in a net. Just before they pounce, Squirrel gets inside and the Eagles crash into each other. Returning to their base, the Eagles find they have locked their keys inside. The larger Eagle then chases the smaller one.

Henry is sitting up in a tree as part of a neighbourhood watch, looking out with a pair of binocular goggles. He cannot get the other animals to cooperate with him, but manages to spot something crawling through the hole in the roof. He swings in and finds a pair of raccoons in the attic. When Henry starts to berate them, the narrator tells him that raccoons often live in attics and that he should treat them with respect. Henry has a change of heart, saying that if he knew anyone lived upstairs, he would have invited them for dinner. A more successful lookout system involving langur monkeys and chital deer is shown. Back at the shack, Henry has boarded up the hole in the attic and built a special door for the raccoons. At first, the narrator thinks Henry is being sarcastic but apologises when he realises that wasn’t the case. Henry says he has made a whole new set of animal friends out in the wilderness but that this will only be a place to visit, as he can’t get cable in the woods and enjoys his own home too much.

## Animal species filmed for the programme

### Studio footage

* European rabbit, *Oryctolagus cuniculus*
* Eastern grey squirrel, *Sciurus carolinensis*
* Roe deer, *Capreolus capreolus*
* White’s tree frog, *Litoria caerulea*
* Great horned owl, *Bubo virginianus*
* Common raccoon, *Procyon lotor*
* Brown rat, *Rattus norvegicus*
* Madagascar hissing cockroach, *Gromphadorhina portentosa*
* West European hedgehog, *Erinaceus europaeus*
* California sea lion, *Zalophus californianus*

### Stock footage

* Fischer’s lovebird, *Agapornis fischeri*
* Rock hyrax, *Procavia capensis*
* Walrus, *Odobenus rosmarus*
* Masai giraffe, *Giraffa tippelskirchi*
* Yellow-billed oxpecker, *Buphagus africanus*
* Mountain gorilla, *Gorilla beringei beringei*
* East African giant land snail, *Lissachatina fulica*
* Galapagos sea lion, *Zalophus wollebaeki*
* Galapagos centipede, *Scolopendra galapagoensis*
* Giant owl butterfly, *Caligo memnon*
* Margay, *Leopardus wiedii*
* Olive baboon, *Papio anubis*
* Nile monitor lizard, *Varanus niloticus*
* Southern masked weaverbird, *Ploceus velatus*
* Flap-necked chameleon, *Chamaeleo dilepis*
* Nile crocodile, *Crocodylus niloticus*
* African bush elephant, *Loxodonta africana*
* Blue wildebeest, *Connochaetes taurinus*
* Garibaldi damselfish, *Hypsypops rubicundus*
* Purple sea urchin, *Strongylocentrotus purpuratus*
* Hermit crab, Paguroidea
* Chimpanzee, *Pan troglodytes*
* African buffalo, *Syncerus caffer*
* Banded mongoose, *Mungos mungo*
* Southern grey-headed sparrow, *Passer diffusus*
* Yellow-billed stork, *Mycteria ibis*
* Magellanic penguin, *Spheniscus magellanicus*
* Kelp gull, *Larus dominicanus*
* Southern giant petrel, *Macronectes giganteus*
* Guanaco, *Lama guanicoe*
* Southern mountain cavy, *Microcavia australis*
* Peregrine falcon, *Falco peregrinus*
* Red-breasted goose, *Branta ruficollis*
* Arctic fox, *Vulpes lagopus*
* Hanuman langur, *Semnopithecus dussumieri*
* Chital, *Axis axis*
* Tiger, *Panthera tigris*

## Credits

* Henry - Eric Meyers
* Narrator - Tom Clarke-Hill
* Writer - Alastair Swinnerton
* Script Editor - Rob Harvey
* Music - David Poore
* Studio Director - Anne Neale
* Graphic Designer Director - Kate Finding
* Graphic Design Assistant - Chris Wreford
* Researcher - Helen Exton
* Production Co-ordinator - Janelle Backes
* Post-Production Co-ordinator - Esta Porter
* Production Secretary - Mandy Vaughan
* Camera - Graham MacFarlane
* Computer Animation - Ricochet 4, Henry Lutman (director), Daniel Pearson and Matt McKinney
* Cel Animation - A for Animation, Mark Taylor (director)
* Sound Editor - James Burchill
* Dubbing Mixer - Andrew Wilson
* Editors
	+ Offline - David Warner
	+ Graphics - Tony Almond and Sue Land
	+ Online - Sharon Stiles

## Home media releases

The VHS for Amazing Animal Neighbors was released on 22nd February 1999. The cover shows a view of Henry on the top of his ladder, and he is accompanied by a pair of yellow-spotted bush hyraxes, a garibaldi damselfish and a sea urchin.

**Cartoon Characters**: \* Eagles • Tyrannosaurus • Rattlesnake • Tiger • Squirrel • Lizards • Elephant • Bat • Fish • Camel • Gorilla • Caveman • Mole • Bear • Stickman • Chicks • Hen • Rooster • Owl • Chameleon • Tortoise • Crocodile • Frog and Toad •
• Parrot • Porcupine • Mouse • Whale • Rhinoceros • Beavers • Snail • Rabbit • Dog • Skunk • Spider • Octopus • Vulture • Woodpecker • Flea • Dung Beetle • Butterfly • Gibbon • Fly • Mosquito • Bee • Beetles • Crab • Pigeon • Carnivorous Plant • Lamb

**Voice Actors**: Eric Meyers • Tom Clarke-Hill
**Season One**: Tropical Birds • Animal Disguises • Nighttime Animals • Animal Appetites • Animal Survivors • Animal Senses • Animal Weapons • Animal Builders • Armoured Animals • Mini-Beasts • Animal Babies • Poisonous Animals • Animal Journeys
**Season Two**: Birds of Prey • Desert Animals (Amazing Animals) • Scary Animals • Animal Records • Animal Colors • Animal Mothers • Animal Pets • Seashore Animals • Animal Families • Endangered Animals • An Animal Year • Prehistoric Animals • Monkeys and Apes
**Season Three**: Animal Hunters • Animal Talk • Slimy Animals • Rainforest Animals • Animal Acrobats • Underwater Animals • **Animal Neighbors** • Giant Animals - Creepy Crawly Animals • Farm Animals (Amazing Animals) • Animal Changes • Extinct Animals • Animal Eggs
**Season Four**: Around the World • Polar Animals • Clever Animals • Underground Animals • Animal Helpers • Woodland Animals (Amazing Animals) • Mountain Animals • Backyard Animals • Tiny Animals • Animal Partners • Scaly Animals • River Animals • Animal Flight