Siblings and Solo-ism One of This Week’s New “StuGo” Episodes on Disney Channel

Two lessons today, all about working together but one from a lone wolf’s group perspective, and another from an unlikely set of siblings in this week’s StuGo on Disney Channel.

No Manhands Is An Island

While attempting to cook hot dogs for weenie night, Chip discovers that maybe he doesn’t know how to start a fire, which in turn means he’s not the outdoor survivalist bad boy that he thinks he is after all. Later, he discovers a stockpile of Nils magazine, written by a lone wolf survivalist who goes by the same name.

Through the stacks and accompanying DVDs, Chip gets a ton of advice, but namely one thing to take away: “Always Never Ask For Help."

Later, as Chip is trying to better himself in the water, a strong wind comes and blows him out to sea. Refusing to be helped by his friends, Chip floats into the open ocean, and must fend for himself. Slowly, we see some of the wildlife encroach on his space before we are left to wonder what has happened to Chip.

We are not the only ones wondering, as Pliny and the rest of the gang set sail to find him, only discovering an island in the distance. As the kids set foot on the island, they soon discover that the island is, in fact, their friend Chip. He has amassed a number of sea creatures and sea treasures (read: trash), that have all become a part of himself as he became the best form of his self-reliant self.

As Chip is showing off his island, he points out a bridge to the mainland that is currently under construction and will be ready in a few months. Then, and only then will Chip be the man that his friends need him to be. That seems a bit ridiculous considering they’re only at their “summer camp" for the summer, so Pliny rounds everyone up to help exude Chip from his island sanctum and take him back to the main island now.

He refuses, and Pliny leaves him a hot dog just in case he gets hungry. This is a substantially better choice than his “power froth" (yuck) and he knows it. You can see the temptation to leave now is already there, but he sticks to it and stays on/in his island.

Shortly after, out of the fog another island/land mass appears and it just happens to be Nils, who (like Chip) has also become an island of self-reliance, though substantially larger and further developed. However, Nils points out that Chip is well on his way to becoming an island of his size and solitude.

At a certain point, Chip mentions he’s only becoming stronger on his own just so he can help his friends. This does not go over well with Nils, who is dead set on the lone wolf mentality. As such, Nils now sets out to absorb Chip’s island as part of his own. The battle ensues, and fortunately for Chip, the rest of the gang is not for away and are able to come back and help him.

However, they too are quickly absorbed into Nils’ island. This works out well for Chip who explains that now Nils has his own pack and isn’t the lone wolf he says he is. The plan works and Nils gets so frustrated that he basically explodes his island into smaller chunks, with all the kids being set free to return back to their island, where the hot dogs await. Yip yip.

Sister Swim

It’s a beautiful morning on Lullah’s island and Merian is leading a sunrise yoga class with the gang on the beach. Nearby, we see a dorsal fin pop up and Chip immediately thinks it's the long extinct ichthyosaur, but Pliny knows better. It’s a dolphin!

Turns out, it’s not just any dolphin, somehow this dolphin knows Merian! It’s her sister, Tara. Thanks to a bit of backstory, we learn that Merian’s mom experimented with this dolphin as a calf (when Merian herself was very young as well) and the two grew up as sisters though Tara got the spotlight becoming the first dolphin to learn human speech (though Merian learned how to speak fluent dolphin, but that went overlooked). In fact, they became known as Tara and the Human Sibling. Pliny knows all about them, but didn’t put together that she had become friends with the human sibling.

They invite Tara to stay for the day, much to Merian’s chagrin. Pliny even has a special contraption that allows a dolphin to hang out on land with them, further frustrating Merian, who has now arranged the daily activities to emphasize those that need hands and fingers. This also includes helping Dr. Lullah for the day, in this instance cleaning out Mr. Okay’s pan flutes, which have been clogged with peanut butter. In the lab, Lullah is also trying to figure out the formula for a tree to grow instantly. She has failed again, but Tara has accidentally(?) knocked the whole setup over and discovered the proper mixture for that instant tree.

Merian is nearly at a breaking point, and the gang is later playing truth or dare, when Tara is asked her favorite memory of her sister. Using her blowhole, she blasts a USB thumb drive into a nearby computer and a home video begins to play showing off the “Sister Swim," a beautiful synchronized moment between the two.

When Pliny dares them to do it again, they both hit the water and Merian gets very frustrated and explains that it can’t happen again because Tara is not Merian’s real sister!

Heartbroken, Tara heads back out to sea. Merian heads back inside and kicks a trophy (that was given to Tara) into the computer and the USB drive videos continue, showing a lifetime of memories including Tara’s first word: “Merian."

Remorseful, Merian runs out and jumps into the water only to discover that the dorsal fin she saw is the apparently-not-extinct Ichthyosaur. Fortunately, Tara is still nearby and is able to save her human sibling and there is a heartfelt moment of apology and love before a SECOND Ichthyosaur arrives and the two must successfully do the Sibling Swim (you knew you were really going to see it, come on) to distract and defeat the beasts.

That they do, and the ichthyosaurs are sent back to extinction while Tara stays on land for a few more games.

This episode of StuGo is now available on Disney Channel and the DisneyNOW website. It will also debut on Disney+ later this spring.