Freakazoid!/Next Time, Phone Ahead!

Next Time, Phone Ahead!
Season 1, Episode 11
Airdate	February 3, 1996
Production Number	011
Written by	Tom Ruegger, Paul Dini
Directed by	Eric Radomski, Jack Heiter
← 1x10 In Arms Way	1x12 → House of Freakazoid
Freakazoid! — Season One

Next Time, Phone Ahead! is the eleventh episode of the first season of Freakazoid!. It is made up of two parts, the first half "Next Time, Phone Ahead!" and a second half entitled "Nerdator."

Starring The Voices Of: Paul Rugg (Freakazoid), David Kaufman (Dexter Douglas), Tracy Rowe (Steff), Tress MacNeille (Debbie Douglas), John P. McCann (Douglas Douglas), Stan Freberg (Bo-Ron), Stephen Furst (Fan Boy), Frank Welker (Steven), Maurice LaMarche (Captain "K"), Aron Kincaid (The Nerdator), Rob Paulsen (Yakko), Jess Harnell (Wakko), Quinton Flynn (Elliot) Joe Leahy (Our Narrator)

Plot Overview

Mo-Ron's race returns when an alien spaceship lands on Earth for a rest stop but leaves in a haste once some humans show up in Next Time, Phone Ahead! The alien manages to make its way to the Douglas home where it eats Dexter. Fade to black. There's a cut to a boardroom where Spielberg asks what that's all about. One of the writers tells him that Dexter isn't in the episode and that they'd like to end the show early and show some Animaniacs reruns instead. He agrees, part of the Animaniacs introduction airs and Spielberg re-envisions the episode.

Cut back to Dexter in bed, who just had a bad dream about being eaten by an alien. But, he sees some kind of monster in the trash and decides to lead the creature to his room with a trail of hamburgers so that he can hit him with something. The hitting him part fails, but once he realizes that the alien is harmless, he decides to teach Bo-Ron the ways of Earth. After Dexter's family rejects Bo-Ron, Freakazoid attempts to help him get home. After many messages are left on interstellar answering machines, Bo-Ron is finally rescued. After he flies off into the distance, Spielberg decides that the Animaniacs idea was better after all.

Nerdator tells the story of nerds disappearing across the globe, including Fan Boy, Bill Gates and Dexter Douglas. He plots to absorb the knowledge and mental capacity from all of the nerds everywhere so that he can become some kind of ultimate nerd. Freakazoid convinces Nerdator that being a nerd isn't all that's it's cracked up to be, since girls won't want to date him. Instead, Nerdator started kidnapping good-looking idiots so that he could pick up chicks.

Notes

Emmitt Nervend Sightings

1. Theme Song.
2. At the end of the boardroom table, opposite Steven Spielberg.
3. Peaking out behind the Freakmobile in the Freakalair (not to be confused with the Freakazone).
4. In the politician nerd cage with Bill Clinton and Ross Perot.

Trivia

The Show

• Emmitt Nervend Credit: Network Censor
• Post Credits Quote: Bo-Ron makes a sound like he has something important to say but forgets.
• Crazy Credits: During the credits, "And Send Him Home" is listed in the credit for "Find Emmitt Nervend."

Allusions and References

• E.T.: There are several references to E.T., a film about a wayward extraterrestrial who winds up under the care of a little boy named Elliot. References to the movie in this episode include the concept of "phoning home," the appearance of the spaceship and the faux sequel that appears in the Nerdator segment.

• Rat Patrol:

Freakazoid: ...Reflecting on life and watching reruns of Rat Patrol.

• Diane Sawyer:

Diane Sawyer acts sincere, but she's actually faking it.

• Predator: Nerdator is a clear parody of Predator, the antagonist of the various films in the Predator franchise. In the movies, the predator is a Yautja hunter who is naturally skilled at hunting. When one crashlanded in a central American jungle, it used natural abilities like active camouflage to hunt Arnold Schwarzenegger and the rest of his unit.

• Yo-Yo Ma:

Nerd: Hi, Wendy. I have tickets for Yo-Yo Ma. Wanna go?

• Tribbles:

Fan Boy: Look, a tribble!

• Shatner Sings: In 1978, William Shatner performed a spoken word version of Rocket Man by Elton John at the Science Fiction Film Awards. This was one of many songs that he transformed into a spoken word style including Mr. Tambourine Man on The Transformed Man in 1968.

William Shatner: Usually they don't disappear until after I sing Rocketman.

• Kathie Lee Gifford:

Kathie Lee: Anyone want to look at pictures of Cody?

Quotes

• Steven Spielberg: Uh, I don't get this. Uh, what is this; Dexter gets eaten and then we fade out, the end? Where's Freakazoid?
  John P. McCann: Well, he's uh... he's not in the episode.
  Steven Spielberg: Not in it? But, he's the star of the show. What are you thinking?
  Paul Rugg: Well, uh... We were thinking of maybe, ending the episode... early today!
  Jean Macurdy: And showing some more Animaniacs reruns!
  Steven Spielberg: Oh... I like that!
  (Animaniacs intro starts playing on screen)
  Yakko, Wakko & Dot: It's time for Animaniacs, and we’re zany to the max! So just sit back and relax and you'll laugh to the max...
  (Cut back to the writers' room.)
  Steven Spielberg: No, no, no, no! We can't do it.
  Freakazoid Staff: Aww...

• Freakazoid: The Freakazone is also where I have profound thoughts. Here's one now!
  Freakazoid: (inner voice) Take over Switzerland... Get all the chocolate!
  Freakazoid: Off the top of my head. What do you want from me?