- Ahh. - Anne! Anne! Anne! An…
Anne! Anne! Anne! Look what I found!
- A blue moon shell. - Looks pretty.
Yup! And you know who's gonna love it?
Ivy! Tomorrow's her birthday.
And this is the perfect gift.
Morning, kids! Time to start the chores.
Whoa! Is that a blue moon shell?
Beautiful!
You know, some frogs die never having seen one.
Suckers!
Anyway, enough dilly-dallying.
Chore time! Bessie's waste ain't gonna shovel itself.
Well, don't wanna get this thing dirty.
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
You're just gonna leave that there?
Someone's gonna steal it.
No, they won't. This is Wartwood, Anne, not some den of thieves.
You could at least cover it up or something.
I will do no such thing!
I trust my community.
And frankly, Anne, I pity you for not trusting yours.
OK, OK. Sheesh.
Kids, get your butts over here!
Coming, Hop Pop.
Glad that's over with.
- Well, I'm scarred for life. - Yup! But never mind that.
Look! The blue moon shell. Right where I left it.
Wait. Wait a minute. What? The shell. The shell's not here.
I've been robbed!
Well, I don't wanna tell you, "I told you so."
But…
Ivy's birthday is tomorrow, and I've got nothing.
OK, first, calm down.
Second, maybe we can track this thief down.
Quick. Look for clues.
Well, well, well. What do we have here?
Oh, that's just waxed yarn. They sell it at the Grub and Go.
Well, then, let's grub and go there to catch our thief.
Nice.
Finally, hundreds of hours of watching trash cop shows is gonna pay off.
Cop what?
You know. A cop, po-po, five-oh, doughnut munchers?
Mmm.
Here.
I don't care what it takes!
Bring him to me, dead or alive!
One knife victim without pants.
We've gotta catch this sicko.
So, you're a marathon runner, eh?
Well, maybe this will jog your memory.
Jelly-stained boxers found at the scene of the crime.
How'd you get my phone number?
Easy.
I looked up "guilty" in the phone book.
Justice is watching you.
Whoa! I'm into this.
Who wouldn't be? Now let's go catch that thief.
Ow! Whoops. Why are we wearing these again?
All the best cops have mustaches.
Now, here's how it's gonna go. I'm the good cop.
So I'll butter 'em up and make 'em lower their guard.
Then bam-o!
You come in as the bad cop and get the confession.
Got it.
Hey, buddy. Nice little place you got here.
Business good? Um, actually we're having kind of a rough season.
Good, good.
We're here about a shell that got misplaced.
Recognize any of these?
Huh. Couldn't say. I see a lot of shells.
Psst. Hit him with the "bad cop."
Oh, right.
Your hair looks incredible.
Thanks. I use product.
Sergeant, could I speak to you for a moment?
Sprig, that wasn't bad cop. That was sad cop.
You gotta get mad, man!
Yeah, I'm not generally a mad kid, Anne.
You gotta dig deep, dude.
Think about what that thief took from you.
Your shell. Your gift. Your future with Ivy.
The frog of your dreams!
Yes. Yes, Sprig. Let it flow!
Hey, you little noodle!
This blue shell, you seen it?
Yes! Yes! I remember now! Out there. Late morning!
Great. Now, who buys this string?
Uh, no one except the baker, really.
The baker, huh? You have a nice day, sir.
Keep the change, kid.
- Actually, you're short. - Oh, sorry. Sorry.
All right, same drill. Good cop, bad cop time.
Got it.
Well, howdy there, baker. Nice pile of bricks you got here.
- Listen I wanted to ask you… - Where's my shell?
Whoa, dude. What are you doing?
Shell? What shell?
This string was found at the scene of a crime.
And only you use it.
- Talk! - I wrap my buguettes in that.
So, whoever bought a loaf is a suspect.
Uh-huh.
- Whoa! - I want names, you worm.
Baker's oath. Customer list, confidential.
Your favorite apron, right?
Sure would be a shame if something happened to it.
No, not my favorite apron.
- Sprig! - Oh. Here.
There. Now that wasn't so hard, was it?
Oh! My baby! My baby!
- Uh, sorry about that. He's new to this. - It's OK, baby.
Daddy's here.
So… that was a little too much bad cop.
Well, we got results, didn't we?
- Well, yeah. But… - Then let's stop wasting time
and find who stole my shell already!
Actually, there's nothing in here.
Was it you, Stumpy?
Was it you, Croaker?
- Was it you, Toadstool? - Sir, please help me.
Just let it happen, Toadie.
Dude, there's no one here.
I know! I'm just fired up, Anne.
You were right.
This town is a dirty cesspool of vice.
Disgusting.
Look, I'm glad you're being more cautious.
But I think this whole thing has gotten a little extreme.
Justice is extreme, Anne!
Besides, we only have one name left on our list.
Which means… we've got our guy.
Gunther? Who's that?
He just moved to Wartwood. Lives out in the woods.
Seemed nice. A little too nice.
Yeah. Sprig, I don't think we should… Sprig!
Gunther, open up! Sprig!
Come on! Help me break the door down!
Nope.
- Yep! - No!
Bad frog.
Oh, can I help you, children?
We'll be the ones asking questions.
Hey. We're just a couple of curious kiddos knocking on doors and saying hello.
- Well, isn't that nice? - Yeah.
Just wondering, what brings you here to Wartwood?
Well, I'm from down South.
But I had to leave due to an unfortunate misunderstanding.
Oh. Was it because you're a criminal?
Excuse me? Don't play dumb with us!
We know that shell's in here somewhere!
Shell?
- Is it here? - Hey!
Or maybe here?
Stop that!
Where are you hiding it?
Get out of my house!
Uh, Sprig, why is he changing color?
I don't know. The only frogs who can do that are southern tusk frogs.
But Gunther doesn't have any tusks.
Oh, there they are.
Think we touched a nerve there.
- I kill you! - Run!
We gotta hide somewhere.
Stumpy! Stumpy! Stumpy! Stumpy!
What do you want?
- We're being chased. - There's a big monster.
He's gonna kill us!
You think I'm gonna let you in here after you called me a thief?
Maybe.
- He's crazy. You gotta let us in. - He's gonna kill us.
- He's after us. You've gotta help. - Please let us in.
Toadie, buddy.
Anne, I think I did too much bad cop.
You think?
Then maybe it's time this bad cop goes good.
Oh, that really hurts.
Huh? Gunther, wait.
I shouldn't have accused you like that.
I don't really know you.
And you've never given me any reason not to trust you.
I guess I just hopped to conclusions.
Hopped.
Yeah. 'Cause I'm a frog.
Well, anyways,
- I wanted you to have these. - Aw!
We ate most of them. But there's, like, three left.
Thank you, child.
Rage problems. You know how it is.
People misjudge me all the time since I can turn into a hulking beast.
And it's super annoying, hmm.
Well, hey, I promise I won't judge you anymore.
Yeah, dude. Sorry about that.
Ooh, chocolate.
Actually, that's licorice.
I hate licorice!
Man, that guy was hard to lose.
I don't believe this. Went through all that
and we still haven't found the…
Shell!
Hey, Sprig. Ivy?
I came by earlier, but I couldn't find you.
But I did find this sweet blue moon shell.
And you… took it?
Yeah. It was a little dirty. But I took it home and polished it up.
Here's it back.
Uh, thanks.
- Go get her. - Oh, right.
Happy early birthday, Ivy.
Whoa. Thanks, Sprig. It's beautiful.
But I kinda like it here.
When I see it sparkle, I know I'm getting close to your place.
Wow!
OK.
- Aw! - Cut it out!
- Well, see you dorks later. - See you, Ivy!
Well, looks like we found our thief.
Yes, Anne. But she didn't just steal the shell.
She stole my heart.
Too much?
- Little bit, yeah. - Got it.
Now, remember, gang.
The mountain pass will clear up in one week.
Meaning, it's almost time
to leave this valley and find Anne a way home.
Whoo! Love that!
- Excitement! - Sights.
And you know the best way to start a quest?
- Danger? - Weapons?
Research!
Oh, come on, gang. We'll never get Anne home
if we get bitten to death by a venomous snake fly.
Or eaten to death by a camouflaged sod skink.
Or crushed to death by a sand liger.
OK, OK, OK. Enough death already.
Sheesh. I'm beginning to think you guys are obsessed.
The town archives?
This place is dustier than Dusty's dustbin.
Who? Come on. You know Dusty. Local dust merchant.
Friendly, always smiling, sells dust.
Oh, yeah, yeah. Right.
I get this place. It's like a library from my world.
Zoo books and manga, here I come!
Enough chatter, you three. Time to hit the books.
Wait! Wouldn't we be better off
preparing by diving headfirst into deadly situations?
Huh. Yeah. Maybe Sprig's right, Hop Pop.
Research is overrated.
Overrated, eh?
How's diving into adventure been working out so far?
No, no, no, no, no!
I can still smell that skunk juice.
Yeah. Fair enough.
- Research it is. - What?
You're siding with Hop Pop?
This trip is gonna take us beyond the valley, Sprig.
Who knows what we'll run into out there?
Ow.
The archives.
This place seems pretty cool to me.
Sure, it seems cool, until you realize all you do here
is read other people's cool adventures.
OK, enough prattle.
We gotta get a move on before we're locked in here.
Uh, come again?
The door to this place is set on a sunlight timer.
It opens when the sun rises and deadlocks when the sun sets.
That is some steampunky nonsense right there.
Boring old books smelling like dumb old words.
Hmm,
Mycroft Newtback, archives founder.
This structure, originally Newtback's home,
was turned into the public archives after he died violently
"attempting to travel beyond the valley."
- I'm gonna go hit those books. - Uh, reading time.
Get my hands on those books.
"Only nature facts."
Fair.
Well, now. Hold on. "Older than the old ways."
Now this I gotta read.
Hot mama.
Ew.
Hi, Anne. What ya doing?
- Get out of here, man. - Oh, come on.
- Anne. - Yeah, Sprig?
Wouldn't it be better if we found some plants to fight?
Nope. Here, see if you can find a way to survive a tiger viper attack.
Stupid books. Stupid learning.
Don't they want a real adventure?
Yes!
All right, kids. Time for a lunch break.
I'm actually glad you suggested this, Hop Pop.
I'm learning a ton about your terrifying world.
Did you guys know that there are
60 weapons in the Morningstar family?
The door is shut. That's not right.
The lens is missing!
What? Who would trap us in here?
Maybe somebody is trying to prepare us
by forcing us to dive in.
Me! I did it.
Dude, have you lost your frog marbles?
Put that piece back!
Guys, reading these moldy, old books ain't gonna prepare us for squat.
What we need is a daring escape from an old, underground library!
What we need is you putting that piece back.
Yeah. Hand it over.
Fine. Party poopers.
Uh, mmm. I know I have it, somewhere.
Well, that's not good.
Sprig!
Uh, maybe I can fix it.
Aha! Good as new!
- Dude! - Ah, come on!
- Seriously? - All of you, stop!
Yelling at each other ain't fixing any of this.
So, what do we do?
Well, we wait for someone to visit the archives.
Oh, OK.
Well, when was the last time someone came down here?
Well, I checked the logs, and it says… three years ago.
Help! Get us out of here!
Help! Get us out of here! Help! Help!
Enough of this negativity!
Come on, guys.
This is our call to frog-venture right here.
Did you forget who we are?
This gang has been through a lot. And we're gonna make it through this too!
I mean, we better. 'Cause if we don't, we'll be trapped here for weeks.
No food, no water
until they find our dehydrated, mummified bodies clawing at the door.
Yeah, I probably could have ended that speech earlier.
Let's just find a way out.
That's the spirit!
Hey, I should have thought of this sooner.
Holy smokes!
So…
Not good.
Why did they have to put the door on a stupid sunlight timer?
That's it! Light timer.
Timer, sunlight, light, skylight!
I bet we can get out through the skylight!
Yeah! That's a great idea, Anne.
Ha!
You're almost there! Don't fall!
I won't catch you!
It's totally OK. You're a baby!
Almost got it!
Yes!
Oh, yeah. No. Definitely can't fit through, though.
Hey, I see Bessie.
Bessie! Bessie, hey girl!
Bessie, get help!
Get help! Come on, girl!
No!
No. No, Bessie. Get… No!
Oh, come on. Never mind.
Good news, guys. I can see the road from here.
One of you can go for help!
All right!
See guys? How do you feel about diving in now?
Now, I suppose, if I'm honest, I do feel somewhat of a rush.
- We can do anything! - Um, guys?
I'm stuck!
What?
I'm seriously stuck!
Do something!
I got this! Whoa!
Whoa! Abandon ship! Whoa!
Uh, what just happened?
Uh, nothing. Everything's fine.
Sprig?
OK. The books fell, and you're stuck and blocking our only way out.
- What? - Don't worry.
We'll rebuild the tower of books and get you down.
What's that sound?
Uh, it's cicadas coming out to graze.
Which is totally fine.
If you just stay super quiet, they should go away.
Oh, cicadas, like little cute cicadas?
Or like… Oh, my God! That's huge!
No!
Too late.
I'm not food! I'm not food! I'm not food!
Get me the heck out of here!
Hang in there, Anne!
I can't believe this.
I tried to do things the right way!
And now I'm gonna die stuck in this stupid hole and I'll never get back home!
That's it!
This building used to be someone's home, which means, there was a bathroom.
Ah, good thinking, Sprig.
Bathroom? Now? Can't you just hold it?
There was a bathroom. That also means there were…
Pipes!
Aha! Here it is!
- The blueprints! - And look here.
This is where the bathroom used to be, behind that bookcase.
We just need to break it down!
- War cry! - Yes!
Don't worry, Anne! I'm on my way!
Sprig! Hurry up and help me!
Sorry, sorry, sorry.
Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry.
Yahoo!
Sprig? Wait. How did you get out?
I don't wanna talk about it.
Yeah!
Whoo-hoo!
See you later, cicadas!
Thanks, Sprig. That was a close one.
I'm just glad you're OK.
- Yeah, so am I. - Me too.
We couldn't wait. So we took the pipes too.
I seen things.
So… we did it!
We dove into another adventure and escaped!
I told you it would work.
We didn't dive in. You pushed us.
- Yeah, but… - No, Sprig. Listen.
This trip out of the valley,
it's more than just another adventure.
It's my chance to get home. I can't mess this up.
So if that means doing a few things I don't like
to help me get ready, well, then…
Then that's what we'll do, together.
Oh. Thanks, buddy.
We're OK! We landed on books.
Knowledge hurts.