4 Seasons

Episode

Friends At Play (1999)

Ojo is excited about a visit from her friend, Christine. The two quickly get involved in one of Ojo's imaginative games --- a pillow castle. Tutter arrives and asks if they'd like to play checkers, but Ojo tells him she's in the middle of her game with her "best friend," Christine. Tutter is hurt by the use of the term "best friend." He creates his own friend to play with, "Mr. Cheese," but Bear helps to mend his friendship with Ojo. He also finds Pip and Pop at odds with Treelo out at the Otter Pond. He keeps pretending to be a monster during their Deep-Sea Divers game and they don't like it at all. Bear, however, introduces them to a game called The Treasure of Kalamazoo Bay. In the Shadow segment, Shadow retells the story of "Mary Had a Little Lamb." The lamb in this version drives a car, skies and scuba dives in its efforts to follow Mary everywhere she goes.

Nothing To Fear

When Bear receives a package from "L.L. Bear" in the mail, he's surprised to find that he received a skunk clock rather than the bear clock he order. Rather than returning it, he decides to give it a try and hangs it up in the kitchen. He hears Ojo and Treelo outside and finds Treelo swinging on a swing. He gets off and asks Ojo to try, but finds that she doesn't want to. She admits to being somewhat scared, but finds a compromise in starting out by first taking small swings. As Bear heads off into the living room for a nap, Tutter is disturbed by the "tick-tock" of the skunk clock, mistaking it for a real skunk. He's scared by it, but eventually comes to realize that it's actually alive and is nothing to be afraid of. Out at the Otter Pond, Pip and Pop play a game called "Double D Dare." When their daring starts to get dangerous, Bear suggests that they think of things to do that are silly, but not potentially dangerous. Sometimes, if you're scared to do something, there may be a very good reason for it. Songs What's in the Mail Today? (Shortened Version) Everybody's Afraid of Something (lyrics) Notes There is no Shadow segment in this episode. In this episode, Bear sings that "everyone's afraid of bats" and that "anyone who says they're not is tellin' you a little white lie." Bear would later change his tune in "Bats are People Too" when he befriends a bat and tells the kids that they're nothing to be afraid of. In an unusual move, this episode reuses the exact same theme, "Afraid," from the second season episode "Afraid Not." Allusions Bear receives his skunk clock from a catalog called "L.L. Bear." This is a spoof on the popular L.L. Bean catalog, a mail-order catalog generally known for outdoor equipment and clothing.

Lost And Found

Ojo loses his favorite teddy bear and the members conducted a search party to help search for it, but in vain.In the end, they played hide-and-seek and Ojo found his bear back. Pip and Pop are out playing ball when they find a little duck who seems to be looking for something. He introduces himself as Harry and says that apparently his family got lost while they were flying south. Bear takes the opportunity to remind the viewers about what they should do if they were ever lost and promises to help reunite Harry with his family. Meanwhile, the kids of the Big Blue House get acquainted with Harry the Duck. In the Shadow segment, Shadow tells a story about a dame who's lost her shoe and a master who's lost his fiddle-stick. Songs You Will Find Your Way Notes This episode introduces the character of Harry the Duck. He and his family live at the Duck Pond, which is actually what Pip and Pop know as the Otter Pond. They fly south every winter. Bear invites Harry to come back to visit the Big Blue House when he returns in the spring. In this episode, Harry says that he's been separated from his Mom, brothers and sisters. No reference is made to his brothers and sisters in future episodes and none are present when Hallie is born in "When Harry Met Hallie." The dog in the Shadow Projects logo in the closing credits quacks like Harry.

The Senseless Detectives

Bear is busy doing some cooking --- he's making his annual batch of cookies for everyone in Woodland Valley. As he starts to bake the cookies, he gets a call from Ojo and Tutter. They're pretending to be Big Blue House detectives, but they feel that they've solved all the mysteries in the Big Blue House, or perhaps even the world. Bear gives them a new challenge by using dishtowels to blindfold them so that they can play one of his favorite games --- "What is It?" Using senses other than sight, he first has them identify a flower and then peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Later, they find an actual mystery to solve when Treelo reports that his "banananana" is missing. With Bear's help, the senses of touch and smell are used to track down the stinky, squishy old banana. When the cookies are finally finished, the kids decide to cover up all their senses except taste in an attempt to get Bear to give them some cookies. He quickly ends the game --- he was planning to share the cookies with them anyway. They all end up sharing the cookies together outside, as Pip and Pop express their appreciation for all the wonderful sounds, sights and smells of nature. In the Shadow segment, Shadow retells the story of Little Red Riding Hood. In her twist on the story, the Granny is a doctor. Songs Making Sense of Your World

Halloween Bear (1999)

It's Halloween at the Big Blue House. The house is all decorated and everyone is getting ready. Bear helps his friends to find costumes and helps Tutter with carving a pumpkin. He always helps out Treelo when he's scared by Ojo's bat costume. Later, everyone gets together for some fun trick-or-treating. The kids have all picked out their Halloween costumes, but Bear hasn't been able to find anything to dress up as. The kids go through Bear's box of costumes and come up with an amusing idea. In the Shadow segment, Shadow performs the song "What Do Shadows Do for Halloween?"