Duke and the Great Pie War

Duke and the Great Pie War is the 19th episode in the VeggieTales animated series. It was released on March 8, 2005 in both DVD and VHS format. Subtitled "A Lesson in Loving Your Family", it includes two stories aimed at teaching the value of family and the importance of putting others' needs ahead of your own. It is a prequel to King George and the Ducky.

Both features are based directly on accounts taken from the Bible. The first is retelling of story of the baby Moses and his sister Miriam from the Book of Exodus. The second story is derived from the Book of Ruth. In this account, Ruth and her mother-in-law Naomi seek the protection of a distant relative named Boaz. Ruth and Boaz fall in love, but Boaz must first challenge a closer relative for the rights to the family estate. The story is recast to a medieval setting in this video, also making slight references to Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Plot

Opening on the counter-top, Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber introduce the show with a letter, from Cody Gordan of Evergreen, Colorado who is having difficulty coming to terms with the introduction of a younger sibling. Larry answers by telling her about the stories he was told by his mother when he became an older brother as the video segues into the first segment.

In "Babysitter in De-Nile", Laura Carrot portrays Miriam, who wonders why people in the village refuse to acknowledge that her new baby brother Moses is a boy. She is forced to look after the baby because her parents and elder brother Aaron are working in the brickyards. She finds babysitting tougher than she thought and complains about her plight. But when Aaron is almost run down by a chariot, she learns the value of family. Once she learns that the Egyptians are taking away all the Hebrew baby boys, Miriam decides to hide Baby Moses in the Nile River. After he is plucked out of the river by Pharaoh's daughter (Miss Achmetha), Miriam offers to have her family care for the new prince.

In the Silly Song, "The Blues with Larry", Larry tries to sing the blues (with Blind Lemon Lincoln accompanying on guitar and harmonica). However, Larry is just too happy to sing the blues despite tips from Blind Lemon, who eventually leaves in disgust.

In the main feature, "Duke and the Great Pie War", Larry plays Duke Duke, a knight from the Kingdom of Scone. However, he is terrible at jousting and enrolls in "Ye Old Knight School" for training. When he fails a jousting test, he receives a disapproving look from the school's best royal knight, the arrogant "Otis The Elevated" (Mr. Lunt). While walking with his friend Lucas one day, he comes across the sweet Princess Petunia (Petunia Rhubarb). Petunia is a Rhubarbarian who has been exiled from her own land and has taken refuge with her poor mother-in-law, Nona (Madame Blueberry) who is Duke's cousin. Duke is smitten with the exiled princess, despite her being a foreigner who is hated by the people of Scone, due to her relatives fighting against them in the Great Pie War.

Nona reveals the history of the family to Duke, how Petunia was the wife of the king of Scone, how Duke is related to both Petunia and Otis, and how Otis precipitated the Great Pie War after refusing to take care of his family. Nona then gives Duke half of a key to the vault of the family castle and says that Otis was given the other half of it. In order to have the key made whole and Petunia restored, Duke must challenge Otis to a joust. The next day the joust is set up and the audience arrives to watch. The contest involves multiple challenges, among them an obstacle course and a riddle from the Abbott of Costello. The obstacle course is won by Otis and Duke solves the riddle. With the contest tied, Duke and Otis are required to joust each other using pies to determine the winner. Otis has superior skill, but when the crowd hears Otis' boasting of his selfishness and ruthlessness, the audience starts cheering for Duke which helps him find the motivation he needs to succeed. In the end, Duke marries Petunia and they live happily ever after.

Returning to the counter-top, Larry introduces his brothers, who then sing a three-part harmonized version of the "What Have We Learned" song and promptly leave (Larry previously explained they did not talk much). Then Qwerty gives a Bible verse and the show ends.

Cast of Characters

Babysitter in De-Nile

• Laura Carrot as Miriam
• Carrot Family as Aaron and Moses' parents
• The French Peas as Egyptians Guards
• Miss Achmetha as Pharaoh's daughter
• Jimmy Gourd as the lifeguard

The Blues with Larry

• Larry the Cucumber as himself
• Blind Lemon Lincoln as himself (debut)
• Oscar the Polish Caterer as himself (debut)

Duke and the Great Pie War

• Larry the Cucumber as Duke
• Bob the Tomato as Lucas
• Petunia Rhubarb as Princess Petunia (debut)
• Madame Blueberry as Nona
• Mr. Lunt as Otis the Elevated
• Mr. Nezzer as Novac
• Scallion #1 as the Abbott of Costello
• Pa Grape as Irwin
• Jimmy Gourd as a knight

Music

This episode includes "VeggieTales Theme" and "What We Have Learned", as well as the following songs:

• "What Can a Baby Do?", sung by Miriam
• "The Blues with Larry" (Silly Song), sung by Larry and Blind Lemon

External links

• Duke and the Great Pie War at the Internet Movie Database