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"Chameleons on Target" is the fifteenth episode of Season 3 of Wild Kratts, originally airing on PBS Kids on April 20, 2015.[1] Overall it is the 81st episode of the series. The episode was written and directed by Martin Kratt.
In this episode, the Kratt brothers want Aviva to make a Chameleon Creature Power Suit, but Aviva refuses because she is too occupied working on a "ring chip", a tiny electronic component that is supposed to minimize Creature Power Suit malfunctions. They then decide to persuade Aviva into making the Power Suit by showing her the features and abilities of the chameleon.
Plot[]
The episode begins with a live action segment. The Kratt brothers find and enjoy looking at a chameleon moving around in the trees on the island Madagascar. Afterward, they ask their "What if?" question and the show transitions into the cartoon segment.
The Kratt brothers are playing catch in Madagascar as they try to think of a Madagascan animal to adventure with. Chris gives a hard fastball, which misses Martin and bounces between some trees before ending up on the ground. Martin jokes that his brother needs better aim – like a chameleon. Chris then exclaims, "That's exactly the animal we should creature adventure with!"
The Kratt brothers burst into the Tortuga and startle Aviva with the demands of a new Creature Power Suit. Aviva rejects the idea, stating that she is working on a "ring chip", a tiny electronic component for the Creature Power Suit that is supposed to minimize malfunctions. The Kratt brothers take a short look at it before asking Aviva to create a Chameleon Power Suit. Aviva shuts down the brothers' idea and returns to working on the ring chip. Disappointed that she is not planning on making a new Power Suit, the Kratt brothers decide to find a chameleon to change Aviva's mind.
The Kratt brothers find a Parson's chameleon when one catches a Malagasy hoverfly on Martin's nose with its tongue. Martin names the chameleon Target, and after noting other chameleon features, which include the clamp-like feet, prehensile tail, eyes that move independently, climbing style, and ability to camouflage, the Kratt brothers bring Target back to the Tortuga to show to the rest of the crew. They mention that chameleons can turn violet, which is Aviva's favorite color. Aviva is impressed by this fact and wants to learn more about chameleons. However, Target almost swallows the ring chip when he shoots out his tongue to catch another hoverfly. Aviva is not happy and firmly tells the brothers to back away from her workstation until she is done with the ring chip. With her back turned, a mysterious hand comes through the window and scoops up the ring chip. Aviva screams and demands that the Kratt brothers find a way to get it back. The Kratt brothers take advantage of the situation and convince Aviva to make Chameleon Powers. She soon finishes the discs and tosses them to the brothers, and they activate their Creature Power Suits.
However, when Martin opens his mouth, the tongue mechanism shoots out uncontrollably and it hits the drum and the same thing happens to Chris's mouth, it hits the big screen. Aviva yells at the Kratt brothers and tells them that she was inventing the ring chip because of a malfunction like this. The Chameleon Power Suit malfunctioned because every time they open their mouths, the tongue mechanism shoots out. This means that the brothers do not have control of the tongues. The brothers decide to take control of their tongues while they search for the ring chip.
The Kratt brothers search for the ring chip by using their tongues to catch various lemurs and then looking at their fingers. The search lasts until night, where they find the ring chip on a finger of an aye-aye in a tree. They both project their tongues at it and bring it to the ground. Aviva arrives and picks up the aye-aye. However, as the aye-aye eats a fruit, the juice causes the ring chip to short-circuit. At first, enraged at the Kratt brothers, Aviva sighs and is at least glad that she and her teammates have learned more about chameleons. Koki and Jimmy call out for Martin and Chris. She then makes plans to recreate her ring chip.
The show transitions into the concluding live action segment. The Kratt brothers find several more chameleons in the trees and on the ground. Afterwards, they conclude the episode by saying "Keep on creature adventuring; we’ll see you on the creature trail!"
Characters[]
Chris is recording Target with his Creature Pod.
Animals[]
Animation[]
Note: Featured animals are in bold.
- Parson's chameleon: Target
- Nose-horned chameleon
- Brown leaf chameleon (called Brookesia)
- Band-eyed drone fly (called Malagasy hoverfly)
- Peregrine falcon
- Aye-aye
- Golden bamboo lemur
- Milne-Edwards's sifaka (called simpona and sifaka)
- Diademed sifaka
- Beetle grub (called grub)
Flashback[]
Live Action Videos[]
Note: Live action animals are linked to Wikipedia.
- Pygmy mouse lemur (called mouse lemur)
- Northern sportive lemur (called sportive lemur)
- Greater bamboo lemur
Mentioned[]
Note: Mentioned animals are linked to Wikipedia.
Live Action[]
Note: Note: Featured animals are in bold, live action animals are linked to Wikipedia.
- Blue-legged chameleon
- Warty chameleon
- O'Shaughnessy's chameleon
- Side-striped chameleon
- Abracris flavolineata
- Black-sided pygmy grasshopper
- Red-fronted lemur (called lemur)
- Ring-tailed mongoose (called Galidia)
Trivia[]
- Last week, Martin's favorite lizard was a Gila monster; this week, it's a chameleon.
- Aviva's favorite color is violet.
- Throwing a ball gives the bros ideas.
- Chris needs throwing practice.
- Flashbacks from "Creature Power Challenge" and "The Blue and the Gray" are shown.
- In the flashback from "Creature Power Challenge", Martin said Chris's Power Suit malfunctioned, but in the episode, it was one of Zach's Disrupt-o-bots that caused the malfunction, which they were unaware of.
- In the flashback from "The Blue and the Gray", Martin becoming an oak tree was the malfunction; he changed back to normal because Aviva deactivated his Power Suit.
- This is the first time Aviva chooses not to make a Power Disc, that is, until she finishes the ring chip. However, she makes the Chameleon Power Discs after finding out that they can help the Kratt bros retrieve the unfinished ring chip after it got stolen by a lemur.
- This is the first episode that includes internal dialogue, because the Kratt brothers avoided opening their mouths for a period of time.
Key Facts and Creature Moments[]
- Madagascar is home to about half the world's chameleon species (about 80 live in Madagascar).
- Chameleon can move their eyes independently and look at two things at once.
- Chameleon tongues are extremely fast and long. A U-shaped hyoid bone anchors the tongue to the back of the mouth. It has the same musculature in humans, but in humans, it is used to move the tongue in the mouth and swallow. Chameleon evolution has added it to the arsenal of lingual tricks.
- Chameleons can change colour for camouflage and expressing their moods for communication.
- It takes more strength to climb slow like a chameleon does.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ "Chameleons on Target." KET. Retrieved July 22, 2015.