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Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Noah's Umbrella is the 34th episode of VeggieTales and the sequel to Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Samson's Hairbrush.

This feature is the parody of Indiana Jones and the Genesis Deluge, the fourth novel in the series of original Indiana Jones stories published by Bantam Books.

Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Noah's Umbrella
Director(s)

Mike Nawrocki
John Wahba

Producer(s)

Chris Wall
Kevin Gamble

Writer(s)

Tim Hodge
Mike Nawrocki

Music by

Kurt Heinecke

Distributor

Genius Products
(Mass market)
Word Entertainment
(Christian market)

Released

August 1, 2009
(Christian market)
August 4, 2009
(Mass market)

Runtime

50 minutes

Previous episode

Abe and the
Amazing Promise

Next episode

Saint Nicholas:
A Story of
Joyful Giving

Plot[]

Opening Countertop[]

Bob introduces the show, but notices that Larry has a paper bag over his head with a frowning face. Larry explains that he was made fun of at Burger Bell for praying to God for his meal, and that he feels embarrassed. Bob decides to forgo the show he had planned in order to tell a story to help cheer Larry up.

Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Noah's Umbrella[]

A young Minnesota Cuke and Marten are playing hide and seek. As Cuke finds a hiding spot, he overhears a group of young scallions talking, as one of them says how he stole the famous Muskie of ‘47 from Farmer Brown. Minnesota chases after them and takes back the Muskie, but stumbles after going back to his hiding spot. Years later, Minnesota chases after the scallions to get the Muskie again, only to once again stumble and make a fool out of himself.

Frustrated, Minnesota returns to the Moose Lake's Children Museum, as Marten introduces him to Humphrey Muffet. He explains that he wants to build a Bible-themed goldfish pond in his backyard, and that he wants the real Noah's Ark as a decoration for the park. He says that he had sent Minnesota's former nemesis, Professor Rattan to find the Ark, but he has been missing. Mr. Muffet gives Minnesota a copy of an ancient instruction book Rattan had followed, stating that the first clue to find the Ark is in the pyramids in Mexico.

Minnesota heads to Mexico and meets with Julia, who has opened a new ice cream stand and performs in musical theater. Julia states that she had recently taken Rattan to see the pyramids. As Minnesota is set to travel to the pyramids, a group of children surround Julia's stand, asking for her to perform. Minnesota tries to perform alongside her, but embarrasses himself as the audience laughs at him. Minnesota and Julia arrive at the pyramids and read the directions in the instruction book, reading they would have to walk backwards up the stairs of the pyramid in order to see the clue. The two do so, but are made fun of by the other tourists. Minnesota storms off, but Julia sees the clue of a checker-patterned umbrella as the sun hits the floors near the pyramids. Julia takes a photo of the clue, but is promptly kidnapped. Minnesota chases after the kidnapper, but is only able to recover Julia's purse. Minnesota calls Marten to tell him what happened, and discovers a postcard from Rattan in Julia's purse, saying that he would be heading to the village of Erzurum, Turkey. As Minnesota finishes his call, he heads to Turkey to find Rattan and Julia.

In a movie theater in Erzurum, Rattan is being held captive by his evil twin brother, Wicker. Wicker is looking for Noah's Umbrella, an umbrella hidden inside the Ark that he believes has the power to change the weather. He asks Rattan about the location of a film that holds another clue to the location of the ark, but Rattan refuses to speak, leading Wicker to throw Julia in the same closet he has locked Rattan in. After Wicker leaves, Julia unlocks the door with her hairpin, allowing her and Rattan to escape. Minnesota arrives in Turkey, but is mocked for carrying Julia's purse. As Minnesota is being laughed at, the man who kidnapped Julia steals the instruction book from Minnesota, who chases after him to get it back. As Minnesota is searching for the book, he runs into Wicker, who he believes to be Rattan. Wicker tricks Minnesota into playing the film Rattan was keeping from him, as it was sent to Minnesota to keep Wicker from finding it. As Wicker attempts to play the film, Minnesota runs into Julia and Rattan, who takes the film back and gives Minnesota the original instruction book. The instructions say to go to the Kuman Inn, an old hotel in Turkey that reveals an entrance to the Ark when a song and dance are performed. As the three head to the inn, they are chased by Wicker and his potato guards, whom Julia locks inside the theater.

Minnesota, Julia and Rattan arrive at the inn, but Minnesota is shocked when he learns he has to dance and sing in front of a crowd of patrons in order to reveal the entrance of the Ark. Minnesota and Julia perform, but Minnesota quits as he is laughed at by the patrons. Wicker and his guards arrive at the inn, kicking out the patrons and finishing the dance. The entrance to the Ark is revealed, but Wicker captures Minnesota and his friends in a cage, leaving them dangling over a cliff for them to be dropped off of. Rattan asks Minnesota of a plan to escape, but Minnesota is still dwelling on being laughed at so many times. Julia compares Minnesota's actions to the actions of Noah, who were both laughed at for doing the right thing. She says that God's love surrounded Noah so he could ignore the teasing, and that He does the same for Minnesota. Minnesota then uses his whip to get everyone out of the cage and chase after Wicker, using the remains of the cage as sleds to travel in the icy caverns containing the umbrella. However, they are once again captured by Wicker and his guards.

Wicker uses Minnesota to go through the tests in the cavern in order to get the umbrella, with the threat of his friends being buried by an avalanche if he doesn't. and Minnesota goes through the first two tests, including giving change to a statue of an old man and praying before eating a plate of cookies. He's laughed at by Wicker and the potato guards, but he remembers God's love, and passes each test, while Wicker and the guards fall victim to the cavern's traps. Minnesota reaches the final test, having to pick Noah's umbrella from a wall of umbrellas. Minnesota texts Julia about the clue at the pyramids, and she sends him the photo of the clue at the pyramids. Minnesota picks the correct umbrella, as Wicker takes it from him, hoping it will give him power. After realizing it doesn't, his guards start to laugh at him, leading him to scream out loud. Wicker's scream causes an avalanche, leading everyone to flee from the caverns.

As everyone escapes the caverns, Mr. Muffet shows up with the Canadian Mounties, to arrest Wicker and his guards. Somewhat disappointed that they were unable to find Noah's Ark, Mr. Muffet reveals to Minnesota that Noah's umbrella offers a greater treasure, a Bible verse printed on the inside:

"Surely, O Lord, You bless the righteous; You surround them with Your favor as with a shield."

The umbrella is taken to the Children's Museum, where it is put on display. It is later shown that the Kuman Inn has, all along, been the real Noah's Ark.

Closing Countertop[]

Back on the countertop, Bob notices that Larry's paper bag has a smiling face drawn onto it, instead of a frowning face. Larry's bag then keeps changing expressions at whim, scaring Bob and leading him to throw away the bag. Bob and Larry then go over to Qwerty to read the Bible verse:

"Being afraid of people can get you into trouble, but if you trust in the Lord, you will be safe."
— Proverbs 29:25

Bob and Larry recap the moral of the story, as Jimmy comes in wearing Larry's paper bag.

Characters[]

Locations[]

  • The Countertop
  • Moose Lake Children's Museum
  • Mexico
  • El Pez
  • Turkey (Mentioned)

Songs[]

Other Languages[]

  • مينيسوتا كوك والبحث عن مظلة نوح (Arabic) (same translation)
  • Minnesota Luke og jakten på Noas paraply (Norwegian) (same translation not counting Minnesota Cuke's name change)
  • چتر پدربزرگ (Persian) (1st dub) (Grandpa's Umbrella)
    • مینه سوتا کیوک و جستجوی چتر نوح (Persian) (2nd dub) (same translation)

Home Media[]

Main article: Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Noah's Umbrella/Home Video

Features[]

Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Noah's Umbrella/Features

Fun Facts[]

Moral[]

  • Have confidence in yourself and don't let others shoot you down.

Explanations[]

  • Helado (the "h" is silent) is Spanish for ice cream.
  • Wicker telling Minn no cellphones is a rule every theater has because talking on phones disturbs the audiences' attention to the film and/or play they're watching.
  • Beans and franks are hot dogs and cooked beans. This could be either baked or chili.
  • Wicker Furniture is a type of furniture made of woven fibers formed into a rigid material.
  • A cliffhanger is a plot device used in media to give the audience a feel of suspense of what's going to happen next.
  • Minn saying "Between Iraq and a hard place" is a pun on "A rock and a hard place," which means a dilemma.

Trivia[]

  • This is the first episode for several things:
  • This is also the last episode for several things:
    • The last episode to feature the 1993 original VeggieTales opening theme.
    • The last appearances for the original countertop and the original design for Qwerty.
    • The last episode where Qwerty acts like a television.
    • The last episode to use the VeggieTales intro from 2007 to 2009.
    • The last episode to feature the countertop segments animated in the 2000's.
    • The last episode to be distributed by Genius Products.
    • The last episode where Tom Bancroft worked on.
    • This is the last appearance of Tour Guide
  • According to Mike and Tim, there were major differences between pre-production and the final product:
    • The original bad guys were Norwegians who wanted a cruise ship that was indestructible in any storm, and they were in the hunt for the original Noah's Ark.
    • There was an explanation for why Cuke is afraid of worms.
    • Cuke was supposed to be in a barrel instead of a tire.
    • Cuke had a conversation with Marten after the potato minion took Julia's purse.
    • The license plate on the bus says "Turkey Welcomes You".
    • Originally, the license plate had the modern flag of Turkey. However, this was changed for two reasons. Firstly, they didn't want to offend the Islamic religion, and second was that they wanted to make it more of a clue than to just give it away.
  • Some of the planned attractions for the goldfish pond were:
    • A board with the Roman numbers 1-10 over water (The Story of Moses)
    • A Roman building with two broken supports (Samson)
    • A yellow whale with a opening mouth (Jonah)
    • A mountain with a olive on a stick (Noah)
    • A large tower that resembles a cake (The Tower of Babel)
    • A small cave with a flock of sheep with a star over (The Nativity Scene)
  • The sound of the characters hopping on the ice is Adam Frick tapping his finger on a mirror.
  • The Muskie of 47' and the tour guide in Mexico were both voiced by Mike Nawrocki.
  • This is the only episode besides A Baby, A Quest, and the Wild, Wild West! where the new yellow logo appears in the original VeggieTales opening.

Remarks[]

  • This is the fifth of the 7 episodes where the Silly Song is in the later half in the runtime.
  • When Cuke tells Wicker that you can't trust everything that's on a cartoon, the minions look at the audience.
  • Bob never got to answer Joey's letter after this episode.
  • The DVD cover depicts Minn and Julia driving a jeep. This technically didn't happen as Julia was kidnapped and was on the jeep, while Minn had to rescue her and possibly why Minn didn't brought his jeep on his adventure.
  • Scallion #3's color as a kid is different from when he's an adult, as it's bright green instead of green-teal.
  • It is unknown how long Bob can stand by that tree for years, counting around a million without stopping for a break.
  • When Minn is talking to Marten on the phone and picks up the postcard from Iraq, Marten looks towards the postcard. This doesn't make sense, as the postcard isn't in front of the phone's camera, so Marten is really just looking away from the phone.
  • The episode is rendered in 16:9 aspect ratio. But like Big River Rescue and Saint Nicholas, it's in 4:3 and the frame rate is different. This is noticeable as the quality on the screenshots shown on the back cover of the DVD are brighter than what's shown in the actual episode.
  • The "I" in the Outdoorsman Clown Wigs sign is lowercase than the other letters.
  • Despite Humfrey's plans to place the animals in the ark, there's no entrance for them to get in. Although it might be in the back.
  • As you'll notice in the beginning of the story, Humfrey got the hairbrush out, even though it didn't show up before. Mike stated it was originally meant to be in the glass case, but there were technical issues with the lighting.
  • Minn pulled the can of film and the rope from behind without a bag. Tim joked about this in the commentary.
  • It was never explained what happened to the potato minion with the tourist shirt.
    • He was probably arrested by the Canadian Mounties before arresting the Potato Henchmen.
  • A few fourth wall breaks happened:
    • Mr. Cuke first glances at the audience when he states Rattan is somewhere between Iraq and a hard place.
    • He and the potato minions looked at the screen.
  • The log cabins Minn went through are the same exact models.
  • Julia locks the Theater door with her hairpin, even though there's no lock.
  • The continuity on Gourdon is off. When he first starts entering the pyramid, he was wearing his Larry-Boy shirt. But when he's on the stairs, he's wearing his regular motif. He also appears in Turkey, which would be impossible for him to appear there, unless he took the same plane as Minn.
    • Also, some of Gated Community folks appear both in Mexico and Turkey.
  • The paper bag mask shrinks when Jimmy wore it.
  • The 2015 re-release states this episode is the same lesson as the last Minnesota Cuke adventure.
  • Realistically, Noah's Ark would have indeed rotted away over the years.
  • Joey's letter was never answered after this episode, even after Bob and Larry went back doing letters after the upgrades for the countertop. Judging by how the next episode wasn't on the countertop, his question was probably answered in Saint Nicholas in a different way.

Goofs[]

  • The tire swing that Minn got stuck in vanishes in one shot.
  • Professor Rattan was missing his top teeth in the photograph.
  • When Julia reunites with Minn, she was in her Mexican dress but in the next shot she was in her coat.
  • As you'll notice on Jimmy, his mouth doesn't move if you look closely.
  • Minnesota was missing his tooth in one shot after Julia winked.
  • When Minn says "Four steps up," Mike briefly breaks character by laughing slightly.
  • Wicker suddenly vanished after his guards were arrested, even though his voice was heard.

Inside References[]

  • Larry mentions Burger Bell, which was first heard in His Cheeseburger. And the music notes in the instruction book are the music notes from said song.
  • Larry-Boy appears on young Minnesota's lunchbox.
  • One of the children requested Cuke and Julia to sing Dance of the Cucumber.
  • The lumberjacks from Dooley's Lumber Camp appear in the Kuman Inn.
  • Wicker's lop-sided mustache hearkens back to how Mr. Lunt had his mustache like that in his debut episode.
  • Because it's a sequel to Samson's Hairbrush, some references and nods were in the episode:
    • Minn stating both he and Rattan became friends, as well as Rattan mentioning he's reformed.
    • Jimmy and Jerry as the Mounties.
    • Some of the music recycled from that episode.
    • The treehouse from Bully Trouble was reused, and the pictures were also kept.
    • Young Minnesota Cuke has gummy worms in his lunchbox.
  • Humfrey calling Minnesota "Kook" might be a production reference on one of the names Phil suggested for Larry.
  • One of the posters in the theater advertises "Tales From the Crisper."
  • The heroes and villains use ice chunks as snowboards just as LarryBoy did in A Polar Pickle!.
  • The SUV the spy drives is a recolored right-hand drive version of those from Sport Utility Vehicle.
  • The way Bob ushered Larry to Qwerty after throwing the bag away would be similar to what Dr. Jiggle did to Poole and Butterburn in The Strange Case of Dr. Jiggle and Mr. Sly.

Real-World References[]

  • Like Minnesota Cuke's last big adventure, various references from the Indiana Jones series were used here.
    • The episode starts and ends on a mountain, like the Paramount Pictures logo, similar how the films did.
    • The story parallels to the third film, such as Young Indiana's outfit, him trying to get an artifact back from robbers, learning tricks that he'll use in later life, and the hidden cave collapses.
    • Minn swinging on vines is similar what happened in the fourth film.
  • Pier 1 was a retailer store known for selling furniture. Stores closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it remains open online.
  • The poem Mr. Muffet is referring to Minn is Little Miss Muffet.
  • Craigslist is a online site for classified advertisements with sections devoted to jobs, housing, personals, items or houses for sale, and community service.
  • The phrase "I scream, you scream" is a reference to the 1920s song by Howard Johnson, Billy Moll, and Robert King. This phrase was also used for the first television episode of 3-2-1 Penguins!.
  • As Minnesota Cuke catches up to the spy, he lets out Tarzan's jungle call.
  • The song the Muskie of '47 sings sounds like a parody of "U Can't Touch This" by M.C. Hammer.

Fast Forward[]

  • The upcoming movie that's on the billboard is the next episode.
  • The forest background would be used again in It's a Meaningful Life.
  • Julia's fascination for theater would show up again for a later Easter episode.
  • The posters in Wicker's movie studio would appear in two episodes from 2014
  • Noah's Umbrella is seen again in quite a new episodes in the 2010s.
  • Rise and Shine would later be sung again for 25 Favorite Action Songs.
  • Larry would later say "Fine" in the Netflix Series
  • Mr. Lunt would later mistake Larry for a pickle more than a Decade later.

Transcript[]

  • Transcript

Credits[]

  • Credits

Gallery[]

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