- This page is about the episode. For the type of black bear, see Spirit Bear. For the animal character, see Spirit. For her cub, see Spirit Jr..
Previous episode | Next episode |
---|---|
"Red Panda Rescue" | "The Colors of China" |
"Spirit Bear" is the 15th episode of Season 4 of the PBS Kids show Wild Kratts. It is the 107th episode of the series overall. It premiered on April 29, 2016.
Plot[]
The episode begins with a live-action segment, in which the Kratt brothers are hanging out with a 13-year-old black bear named Adrian. Afterward, they ask their "What if?" question, and the show transitions into the cartoon segment.
It's the break of dawn and as a pod of orcas is moving through the water, the bros and Aviva are kayaking to the British Columbian island of "Bear Island". Aviva is apprehensive, but Chris reminds her that she was the one who wanted to see what bears do when they're not hibernating. Although, Aviva sounds like she's starting to have second thoughts. Pretty soon, Chris sees a mother black bear and her cub along the shore. However, Martin isn't buying it because he thinks Chris is playing a trick to gain an advantage in a race between the two of them. Just as he convinces him, the bears are gone. Once Aviva and the bros reach the shore, they go looking for the bears, only to get flattened by a rolling rock. They soon find the bears on top of a ridge licking bugs from underneath it, which inspires Martin to name the mom Paw Flip and her cub Bellyful.
Meanwhile, in the bay Koki and Jimmy Z are in Tortuga, Koki asks Jimmy to stay alert in case any villains like Zach, Donita and Gourmand appear, Jimmy assures that he will do it but falls asleep and then Paisley Paver appears, a new villain and the CEO of Pave Nature Inc., Paisley comes to the island with her henchman, Rex and has plans to pave over the entire island and build a mega storage facility there.
Meanwhile, the bros and Aviva are spying on the bears with the Flycam and watching as they eat berries. Aviva sees a white bear in the shade, but just before the bros have a chance to see it, it vanishes. Aviva tries to convince them, but the bros inform her that there are no polar bears where they are.
They approach a river, where the bears are catching salmon. Aviva finishes the Black Bear Power Discs and the Kratt brothers activate their suits in trying to catch fish. Then, the white bear appears, which is actually a rare spirit bear (aka Kermode bear). Wondering why they're white, Chris decides to conduct a Kratt Brother experiment using the Miniaturizer and the Fishmobile. Suddenly, they hear the troubling sound of trees being cut down so Martin goes to investigate while Chris and Aviva work on the experiment. The experiment in question is a contest between black bears and spirit bears to prove who is a more successful fish hunter.
Martin sees Paisley's machines about to run over a spirit bear cub in the bushes and tells Paisley to halt and asks what she's doing. She informs him that she's making progress and that he and the cub are just getting in the way, so she detains both of them and continues paving.
Back at the river, Chris and Aviva conclude that spirit bears have developed white fur to aid them in catching fish in broad daylight. Just then, Martin informs Chris that Paisley Paver is flattening the island. Chris uses Black Bear Powers to stop Paisley's plans. With the help of Spirit, he uses brute strength to crush the pavers, while Aviva sneaks onto the platform and frees Martin and Spirit Jr. Then, Martin reactivates Black Bear Power and helps detain Paisley and Rex, while Chris and Spirit destroy the remaining pavers. Aviva puts the main paver in reverse and she and Martin (who is holding Spirit Jr.) jump off as Paisley and Rex are sent rolling right back into their ship and sail away claiming that they'll just find more animal homes to pave. As they leave, Martin states that Paisley Paver is another villain they'll have to keep an eye on. At that moment they see that Spirit has a black cub too and Aviva asks how she can have one black cub and one white one. Chris explains that its genetics, like how he and Martin have different colored eyes. Just as they begin to smash the concrete on the island the episode ends and they return to live-action.
Characters[]
Animals[]
Animation[]
Note: Featured animals are in bold.
- American Black Bear: Paw Flip, Bellyful
- Spirit Bear: Spirit, Spirit Jr.
- Orca
- Earthworm
- Slug
- Black-brown Lift-bellied Ant
- Dusky Darkling Beetle
- Sockeye Salmon
Computer Images[]
- Bottlenose Dolphin
- Geoffroy's Spider Monkey
- Chinese Pangolin
- Ring-tailed Lemur
- Pileated Woodpecker
- Globe Skimmer
- Red Panda
- Longlure Frogfish
- Bornean Orangutan
- Tasmanian Tiger
Live Action Videos[]
Note: Live action animals are linked to Wikipedia.
Mentioned[]
Note: Mentioned animals are linked to Wikipedia.
Trivia[]
- This episode marks the introduction of new villains, Paisley Paver and her henchman, Rex.
- To answer Rex's question as to why Paisley wanted to build a storage unit in the middle of nowhere, the latter replied with "If we build it, they will come." This is a reference to the famous line from the film Field of Dreams.
Key Facts and Creature Moments[]
- A small percentage of black bears on islands along the coast of British Columbia can have white fur. These individuals are known as spirit bears.
- Although spirit bears are pure white, they aren't albino.
- Having white fur makes it easier for spirit bears to catch fish, as it makes it harder for fish to see their shadow above the surface of the water.
- Spirit bears can have cubs that are white or black.