04x19 - Halloween Party Panic/The Spruce Sleuths

[bunniefuu]

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Hey, everyone-- it's me, Molly!

♪ Molly of Denali ♪

Let's go!

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

[laughing]: Whoo!

♪ By plane or sled or snowshoe ♪

♪ She is ready to explore ♪

♪ From Kaktovik down to Juneau ♪

♪ Always wanting to learn more ♪

Yeah!

♪ Together with her best friend Tooey ♪

♪ Always by her side And Trini!

♪ Discovering the outdoors

♪ On adventures day and night

♪ Come along with Molly ♪

♪ Molly ♪

♪ Through fields of fireweed ♪

♪ Come along with Molly

♪ Molly

♪ From tundra to the sea ♪

Mahsi'choo-- let's go!

♪ Molly of Denali ♪

Yeah!

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

♪ Come on ♪ Let's go! ♪

♪ Molly of Denali ♪

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

MOLLY: "Halloween Party Panic."

[doorbell chimes]

[button clicks]

[cackling]

There. Just in time for Halloween.

[skeleton laugh winds down]

[sighs] You must need new batteries.

[Molly sighs]

I can't wait for everyone to see my Halloween costume.

Me, too.

It's too bad our class's costume party

isn't until tomorrow.

Uh-huh.

Molly, what's your costume anyway?

If I show you now, it'll spoil the surprise.

Come on, show us.

Please?

Yeah!

Well... I guess I can show you.

But you have to show me your costumes, too.

Yeah. You got it. Okie-dokie.Deal.

[imitating breathing with air tank]

[dramatically]: From the Andromeda galaxy,

here's Molly the astronaut!

Wow. [gasps]Cool!

Love it.

That's one small step for Qyah,

and one giant leap for Qyah-kind.

[giggling]

[imitating air tank]

[laughing] VERA: From the Cretaceous period,

it's the Tyrannosaurus Rex!

[cheering][roars]

Amazing! [giggles]

Jake, what's your costume?

Um, Trini and I are kind of doing a thing together.

Ooh, let us see. Ooh, let us see.

Let us see! Let us see!

[imitating drumroll]

I'm Quannah Chasinghorse,

from the Hän Gwich'in Sicangu Oglala Lakota tribes.

I'm an environmental protector and fashion model.

VERA: Oh yeah, oh yeah. [laughs] Yeah, Trini.

Your turn, Jake.

And I'm the first person to reach the top of Denali,

Koyukon mountain climber,

Walter Harper! Ta-da!

[gasps] Uh...

I'm a mountain climber! See?

Not bad for being made out of paper bags, huh?

I thought you'd be impressed,

but you can't even speak. [chuckles]

I, uh...

...that's not how a mountain climber dresses.

Um, five-strand Dentalium shell necklaces

are something only chiefs or their families wear.

You're not supposed to wear regalia...

Are people supposed to wear regalia as a Halloween costume?

Um... no, they're not.

But Walter Harper was Koyukon, wasn't he?

How can I be him for Halloween if I can't dress like him?

I'm not sure...

But it's really not right to wear regalia as a costume.

[sighs] Great.

Now I don't have a Halloween costume.

Aw, hang on, Jake.

Yeah, maybe we can think of something else you can be.

If I can't be Walter Harper, I don't want to be anybody at all.

I think we hurt his feelings.

Yeah...

Come on.

Let's try to go catch him.

[button clicks]

[cackling]

Now you'll be laughing 'til New Years.

[doorbell chimes] [cackles]

[groans]

Everyone thinks my costume is a joke.

Uh, Jake?

What happened? [doorbell chimes]

[sighs] Missed him.

[cackles]

It's not funny! [cackling continues]

[cackling slows down, shuts off]

What happened?

MOLLY: We were showing off our costumes.

But Jake's costume made me tr'igwidii,

so sad.

[sighs] Me, too.

Me three.

Why, sweetie?

He was dressed like Walter Harper,

but his costume wasn't a costume.

It looked like our regalia.

Oh...

I see why that would upset you.

You know, our regalia is an important part of our culture.

But people who aren't from Alaska Native cultures

might not understand our customs,

our rules around who can wear regalia and when.

It's fun to dress up.

But someone's culture

and the things they wear for sacred occasions

aren't a costume.

Does... that mean Jake shouldn't dress like Walter Harper?

And I shouldn't dress like Quannah Chasinghorse?

[chuckles]

Of course you can.

And Jake can dress like Walter Harper, too.

He just might need help finding the right way to do it.

What's the right way?

By dressing like the person.

Finding out who they are and what they like to do

outside of their cultural identity,

and dressing like that.

[gasps]

Trini did that!

I did?

Aaha'.

You didn't wear regalia.

You wore stuff that was about

things Quannah Chasinghorse likes to do.

Yeah, like taking care of the environment

and protecting animals.

Halloween is tomorrow.

If we're going to help Jake find a better costume,

we have to do it fast.

So... what do we search for?

How about "Walter Harper"? [keys clacking]

VERA: Ooh, click on that one.

Mrs. Marsh says that's a website we can trust.

Oh, yeah.

You're right.

The caption says, "When he wasn't climbing,

"Walter Harper favored the modern fashion of the day

and wore three-piece suits."

Whoa.

It would take a lot of grocery bags to make that.

And a lot of time.

What else does it say?

MOLLY: Uh... hmm.

This says, "In addition to being a skilled mountaineer,

"Walter Harper was also very strong.

"When visiting an amusement park,

"Walter Harper hit

"a test-your-strength bell

"with such force, the needle

"spun around twice

"before breaking from the strength

of Harper's mighty blow!"

Ooh, do they have a picture of that?

[sighing]: Akwaa.

Scroll down and see if there are other pictures.

MOLLY: This caption says,

"Walter Harper and fellow explorer climbing Denali."

The picture's so dark,

you can't tell which one is Walter Harper,

or what he's wearing.

MOLLY: Ooh. This caption says,

"The Walter Harper monument entitled A Hand Up,

which shows Walter Harper climbing Denali."

Looks like we found Jake's costume.

♪ ♪

Got everything!

[doorbell chimes]

Found Jake's costume!

Be back in a bit!

[cackles]

I said, it's not funny!

[cackling slows down, turns off]

Good luck. See you later.

Good luck. See you later.

Look. There's Jake.

[Molly panting]

We were just going to your house.

We're sorry we made you feel bad about your costume.

[sighs] I still don't understand what I did wrong.

It was the regalia.

To us, it isn't a costume.

It's something really special.

It's sacred.

And we only wear it on special occasions.

We have customs about when we can wear it.

It feels disrespectful to wear it as a costume.

I didn't mean to be disrespectful.

I really like Walter Harper and was trying to...

...honor him.

You still can.

Molly's mom says the trick is to dress like the person,

not like the culture.

But the Halloween Parade is tomorrow.

I don't have time to make a new costume.

We've got you covered. Literally.

Okay, let's get this Halloween Parade started.

First up, we have Oscar as an eagle.

Next up, we have Tooey Ookami as... a salmon.

[Mrs. Marsh laughs]

Very impressive luk choocostume, Tooey.

Next up, Qyah's very own astronaut,

Molly Mabray, who's taking a trip through time

with Vera the T-Rex.

[roaring]

MRS. MARSH: Oh!

A Tyranno-Vera-Rex.[laughs]

I love it. [kids laughing]

And Astronaut Molly going on an adventure.

So clever, you two.

And next, we have Trini

as Alaska's own Quannah Chasinghorse.

Defend the sacred!

Protect the caribou!

MRS. MARSH: And Jake as Walter Harper.

[exclaims]

I'm off to Denali.

I'll send you a picture of me at the top.

[cheering]Amazing!

[radio switches on, playing dance music]

♪ ♪

[Molly making space noises, grunting, Vera roars]

[grunting, sighs]

Silly little T-Rex arms.

TOOEY: Whoa.

Oh! Good moves.

Mahsi'.

Thanks for helping me dress like my hero in the right way.

Happy to help.

And mahsi',Jake, for respecting our traditions.

It means so much.

Now, want to moonwalk with me?

Sure!

[Mrs. Marsh and class exclaiming]

Everyone dance!

Hey, everyone, Molly here

to answer your questions about life in Alaska.

Nicole from Tulsa, Oklahoma asks,

"What's a qaspeq?"

Qaspeqsare traditional hoodies, like the one I wear.

My friends can tell you more.

Hi, Molly.

I'm in Anchorage today on Dena'ina land.

Today I'm gonna call Nikki

and learn how to sew a qaspeq.

Waqaa, hello, hi.

My name is Nikki Corbett.

I've been sewing qaspeq since I was about nine,

I made my first one.

Traditionally, Yup'ik qaspeqs

were made using your handprints.

So you would measure how tall you are,

so hand measurements going down,

hand measurements here.

The first step, cut out your body.

Once you have all your pieces cut out,

you're gonna iron everything in the fold.

And then once you've got all those,

you're ready to start piecing it together.

Are you ready to sew your own?

Mm-hmm.

The first thing I need to do is

take measurements for my qaspeq.

My chest measurement is two and a fingertip.

This is how big I'm gonna make my neck hole.

Next, I'm gonna cut out the fabric.

The fabric I picked is, like,

a orange-ish yellow,

and a golden, and it's really pretty.

♪ ♪

Now I'm pinning the ribbon to the sleeve.

I'm ironing the sleeve so I can match up

the seams when I'm sewing.

Now I'm ready to start sewing.

I'm starting by sewing the sleeves.

I'm Inupiaq.

Instead of qaspeq, we call it atikuk.

Many areas in Alaska have their own styles.

This is my last stitch.

♪ ♪

Thank you, Nikki, for showing me how

to make my first qaspeq.

Bye, Molly.

MOLLY: Mahsi'choo!

Thanks for asking, and see you next time!

MOLLY: "The Spruce Sleuths."

MOLLY: "The Spruce Sleuths."

MOLLY: Wow.

Everything is so sparkly today.

Shroonch'yaa!

I love Qyah when it's all green like this.

Me, too.

Hmm...

Look at those trees down there.

Oh, wow.

They don't look very good, do they?

No.

I wonder why they're so rusty looking.

LAYLA: No idea.

But I have a feeling you're gonna figure it out.

[chuckles]

[giggles] Me, too.

Hup! h*!

Hup! h*!

Whoa. [door opens]

Looks like Molly's on a mission.

Hey, Trini.

What do you got on spruce trees?

[chuckles]

Looking for Christmas trees already?

[giggles] No.

My mom and I flew over a bunch of spruce trees nearby,

and the needles were all rusty.

Ah...

And you want to figure out why.

Yes.

Ooh, a mystery.

I love mysteries.

Mm-hmm.

Right this way, spruce sleuths.

Ooh, spruce sleuths.

I like it.

This books has information

on various trees and plants in Alaska

and their pests and diseases.

Thanks, Dad. [giggles]

♪ Spruce sleuths, we're spruce sleuths ♪

♪ We'll keep on looking 'til we find the-- ♪

uh... truths!

[laughing]

Huh. Sleuths is a hard word to rhyme.

We can use the index to find stuff about spruce trees faster.

Mmm...

Hmm. Here it is.

"Spruce Trees [Common Problems],

pages through ."

Sounds like what we need.

"Problem: purple needles and white resin."

Hmm. That's not it.

"Yellow Needles..."

[sighs] "Leader Branch Death..."

"Needles Eaten..."

ooh, "Rusty Needles"!

[gasps] That's the problem we're looking for!

"Rusty needles are caused by spruce beetles."

TRINI: That little bitty bug is hurting those great big tress?

It's as tiny as a pencil eraser.

Yeah. What else does it say?

MOLLY: "Alaska's hotter temperatures

"are creating problems for our spruce.

"The warming trend means more spruce beetles survive winter.

"The more that survive, the more damage they do

when they lay eggs inside the spruce's bark."

[sighs] That doesn't sound good.

"To make matters worse, Alaska is getting less rain,

making it even harder for the trees to feed themselves."

Poor hungry trees.

What does it say to do about it?

MOLLY: Ooh.

This says, "Solution.

"Cut up and burn dead tress to keep beetles

"from spreading to other trees.

"Water trees that show signs of spruce beetle damage

to help the trees stay healthy."

Only two things.

Great!

Oh.

Only we're kids.

We can't use chainsaws.

No, but we know people who can.

The stand of spruce are on the other side of the river,

just past Big Rock Bend.

We could use the Nalbaey Bridge to get across the river.

[grunts] Who's ready to save trees?

We are! We are!

We are!We are!

Let's go!

Yeah!

[whistles] Trini!

This way!

[footsteps running back]

Oh.

Sorry.

Yeah!

[sighs]

[everyone laughs] DANIEL: Come on, Trini.

Wait up, Trini!

[laughs] All right, let's go.

[camera shutter clicks]

There's the Nalbaey Bridge!

Yay! Woo-hoo!

[panting]: Those spruce are gonna be so happy to see us.

Whoa! Gotcha!

That was close.

Look.

MOLLY: [gasps] Oh, no.

The bridge is washed out.

[Layla groans] AUNTIE MIDGE: Oh, no.

Aw, how are we gonna help the trees

if we can't get to the other side?

Could we use a boat?

It's way too rocky for a boat.

With all this equipment,

we definitely can't cross through that water.

It's way too fast.

[sighs] Sorry, trees.

Guess we can't help you after all.

Actually, I think we can.

How?

[chuckles] Ta-da!

[gasps]

MOLLY: A zip line!?

[voice trembling]: Uh...

[gulps] How?

What?

Why?

Well, ordered too much cable.

Hated to see it go to waste.

This is... ♪ amazing! ♪

Hang on. I haven't used it in a while.

Let me do a test run first.

I'll let you know when I'm on the other side.

[grunts]

Wahoo!

I didn't hear a crash.

Works great!

[all laughing and cheering] Way to go, Rowley!

WALTER: All right, Mr. Rowley!

[whoops]

Now send over my tools!

Okay, the last of the tools are on the way!

I guess I'm next.

Wish me luck.

[chuckles, kisses cheek] Good luck.

[cheering and whooping]

Yippee!

[whooping]

[Auntie Midge whooping]

Beetles have fear, Midge is here!

[laughing]

Ooh, no, no, no, no.

Whoa.

[whoops] Yeah!

DANIEL: They didn't train me for this in library school!

Okay, we're here.

Let's cut these dead trees, and then we'll water the rest.

All right, folks, start your engines!

[chainsaws buzzing]

[chainsaws revving]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[chainsaw buzzing]

[chainsaw stops] [sighs]

All right, that's all of them.

Mahsi'choo,everybody, for helping.

We'll snow machine over in winter

and pick up all this firewood.

Whoo! Sure will.

[sighs]I'm so proud of you girls.

I'm proud of us, too.

[gasps] I just realized something really exciting.

What?

We get to ride the zip line back!

[gasps]

Yay!

Let's go!

Yeah!

[whistles] Trini.

This way!

Oh. Sorry.

Yeah! MOLLY: Woo-hoo!

[laughter]

[Molly grunting]

I sure hope our hard work helps the spruce trees.

LAYLA: [sighs] Well, we should know in a few weeks.

Hopefully we'll see lots of new little green spruce tips.

I hope so.

LAYLA: Molly! Look!

[gasps]

We did it, Mom!

The trees are green again.

Way to go, Mollydoodle.

They look so good.

But you know, just to be sure,

we should probably get a closer look.

You mean ride the zip line again?

I sure do.

[Molly and Layla laugh]

MOLLY: Woo-hoo! LAYLA: Yee-haw.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪