by Mark Murton

Starring: Pearl

Original Air Date: April 22, 2001

Directed by: Todd Holland

Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains multiple spoilers for this episode!

Synopsis: Francis (Christopher Masterson) makes Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) and Reese (Justin Berfield) fight each other and suck up to him for wrestling tickets. In the meantime Dewey (Erik Per Sullivan) takes care of Craig’s (David Anthony Higgins) cat “Jellybean” while he is away at a comic book convention.

Featured Feline: At the start of the episode Craig cuddles Jellybean while explaining his exacting food regime to Dewey, as well as reminding him that Jellybean also needs ear drops three times a day as he has an ear infection.

Before leaving, Craig makes kissing noises at a less-than-impressed-looking Jellybean.

Craig even has a picture in his home of himself and Jellybean wearing little sailor’s hats.

At Jellybean’s first feeding time after Craig has left, Dewey fastidiously prepares his food to Craig’s instructions as Jellybean looks on from the arm of a nearby armchair.

But things don’t go so smoothly when it’s time for Jellybean’s ear drops as he quickly disappears under the bed.

Dewey crawls in after him and tries to coax him out.

Jellybean duly comes out and Dewey emerges to find him now sitting near the door which he inadvertently left open.

Attempting to demonstrate to Jellybean that there’s nothing to fear, Dewey applies some drops to his own ear, only to scream in pain which causes Jellybean to run out of the house.

Hal (Bryan Cranston) arrives and suggests to a despondent Dewey that they leave a bowl of cat food on the sill inside the open window to tempt Jellybean back in. When they return the cat food has gone along with many of Craig’s possessions as the house has been burgled and vandalised! The next morning, Hal emerges to collect his morning newspaper from the doorstep and sees Jellybean sitting a few feet away. Look closely and you can see the feet of a man, most likely the cat actor’s trainer, exiting the upper right hand corner of the screen!

Hal tries to creep up on him, but Jellybean takes flight and Hal ends up chasing him all over the neighborhood dressed only in his underwear.

Kitty Cameo: Meanwhile, in an effort to get Malcolm grounded so he can go to the wrestling with Francis, Reese has drawn on the sleeping Dewey’s face with a permanent marker which he shoves into Malcolm’s hand as he shouts for their mother Lois (Jane Kaczmarek), but by the time she gets there Dewey has vanished. On the ground outside the bedroom window Dewey awakes just as Hal arrives holding a cat, proudly proclaiming “Look who I got”. Confused, Dewey responds, “Mrs. Johnson’s cat?” Hal quickly lets the cat go and it runs off.

Cat Cattle Call: Hal then comes up with a new plan, he grinds up some sleeping pills in Jellybean’s food, milk and water so he won’t run off again when he returns home to feed. Only when Hal and Dewey return later they find dozens of sleeping cats (some fake, many real, none Jellybean), plus a possum, sleeping in Craig’s apartment.

They now agree it’s time to bring in Lois but whatever her idea is to get rid of all the cats results in Craig’s house being gutted by fire.

Featured Feline: As Lois wails that they’ve ruined Craig’s life Dewey suddenly spots Jellybean sitting by the charred ruins just inside the door.

Hal rushes to crush up some more sleeping pills while Lois simply walks across to Jellybean and picks him up.

At the end of the episode Malcolm and Resse are seen bringing a sandwich for Craig and a bowl of warm milk for Jellybean as Craig and Jellybean are now staying with the family after the fire.

The final shot is of Craig making more kissing noises at Jellybean.

The cat actors playing Jellybean appear to be the same cat team who worked on such films as Assassins, The Specialist and the remake of That Darn Cat! trained by Larry Madrid. While the most famous of these cats is Elvis, most of the shots in this show appear to feature the cat we refer to as Pearl, the name of the cat’s character in Assassins, notable because of the grey spot on the right muzzle. The doubles without spots also appear in a some shots.

Final Mewsings: As human’s only exist to care for cats you’d have thought they’d have got the hang of it by now.

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