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It Was a Dark and Stormy Night
Season 7, episode 1
It was a dark and stormy night
Air date September 14, 1993
Writer(s) Marc Warren & Dennis Rinsler
Director John Tracy
Previous The House Meets the Mouse (Part 2)
Next The Apartment
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It Was a Dark and Stormy Night is the season seven premiere of Full House. It originally aired on September 14, 1993.

Opening Teaser

Up in the attic, Jesse and Becky are excited about Nicky and Alex's first night in their new beds (see below). So much so, they plan to videotape the whole thing, to which Jesse says, "I can see it now: Nicky and Alex Katsopolis are The Young and the Tired." However, there is just one problem: As soon as the camera rolls, Jesse doesn't realize that he left the lens cover on! So Becky removes it, and surprise, surprise, they are still not there. Next thing Becky and Jesse hear are giggles coming from outside, and it is obviously the twins, who are hiding under the covers of their parents' bed. Their parents do find them and tell them "No 'big bed'". But it is apparent that they will not listen, so they try to hide again, only to get caught again, and this time, Becky and Jesse tackle them.

Synopsis

On the last night of camp, Steve Hale tells a scary story about a "Mud Man" named "Cropsy Maniac" to all the kids, which makes them fall asleep. While it is assumed that the camp is co-ed, only the girls' cabin is seen (see Quotes).

Meanwhile, back at the house, Nicky and Alex are refusing to sleep in their own beds. They have been spending every night in Jesse and Becky's bed. Irritated, the couple buys new race car beds for the twins. The dilemma ends with Jesse and Becky trying to help the boys get to bed by resting with them. Tired, Jesse and Becky fall asleep, and Nicky and Alex ditch their sleeping parents for the nice "big bed."

The next morning, while Joey makes a welcome home meal for the girls, an exhausted Jesse sits at the counter explaining the fiasco. He even reads Michelle's postcard, for about the 101st time.

Suddenly, the door opens, and Michelle, Stephanie, D.J., Steve and Kimmy have returned home from a summer at Camp Lakota, and that has the rest of the family coming out ready to hug and kiss. Michelle tells Jesse that she no longer wants him to call her "Munchkin", which he has affectionately called her for years because everyone at camp gave her the nickname "Trail Mix", and she liked it. In addition, her gifts to the twins are lion masks that she made for arts & crafts, knowing that the lion is their favorite animal. Then Becky decides the "the future kings of the jungle" need a nap in their new race car beds, and again, they insist on the "big bed". Stephanie confirms that the camp is indeed co-ed, as she is anxious to write letters to all the boys whose names appear on the bracelets they gave her. D.J., however, is anxious to call Steve, as she notes that this is the longest that they have been away all summer. Danny feels hurt when his daughters act like they did not miss the family one bit while they were at camp. However, they assure him that they will have time to bond after they unpack, and as they head upstairs to do just that, they sing the Camp Lakota song. Once the singing stops, Danny and Joey remark about their short camp-mate experiences at Camp Metalarc (see Quotes).

Upstairs in Stephanie and Michelle's room, as they unpack and unload their bags, laundry and all, D.J. enters her former room and tells her former roommate that she lent her a pair of plastic slippers prior to their departure for camp, asking if she remembers them and where they are. Stephanie says that she does remember, but they ended up at the bottom of the lake (see Quotes), and it quickly turns into an argument that upsets Stephanie's current roommate, who tells them to stop arguing because they are scaring Gilbert, a rabbit she brought home from camp (see Quotes).

Danny enters the room, collects the laundry, and sees Gilbert. Stephanie explains that Gilbert had a broken leg when they found him at camp. They nursed him back to health, and Michelle was supposed to have released him back into the forest that Camp Lakota is in. Danny explains that she needs to take Gilbert back (see Quotes). Steve arrives, has a brief chat with Danny and the girls, and then takes the girls back to Camp Lakota to release Gilbert, but there is a heavy thunderstorm in the area, and they are forced into the cabin that they occupied while camp was in session (see Quotes). But there is a problem with that: Gilbert is not in the box that they brought with them. In fact, he chewed right through the box to escape, depressing Michelle (see Quotes). Steve's car is also stuck in the mud, and then there is a power outage. Terrified of the "Mud Man"/"Cropsy Maniac", Michelle freaks out, thinking her fantasy then is about to become a reality now, but her sisters still convince her otherwise.

Back at the house, despite their parents' pleas, Nicky and Alex still dislike new race car beds are "bad" and "nasty", so to alleviate the pain, Becky and Jesse help them get through the night (See Quotes).

Back at Camp Lakota, while the younger girls wait for their older sister and her boyfriend to return from getting his car out of the mud, Michelle again worries who they'll encounter. Stephanie again convinces her otherwise (see Quotes).

Later, Danny and Joey show up, all muddy, causing Steve to try to beat up Joey and mistake him for the "Mud Man"/"Cropsy Maniac". Danny and Joey have brought Gilbert with them, and Michelle hugs him. It turns out that Gilbert was still back at the house, and then it all becomes clear as to the main reason why the girls wanted to take a trip back to Camp Lakota – it is a place they love. When they saw how empty it now is, they felt let down. Danny compares it to going to the movies, and when the film ends and the theater lights turn back on, all that is left is an empty room (see Quotes). As the power is turned back on and the rain lets up, Michelle gives one final hug to Gilbert before he is released back into the forest, saying that it is time for him to go home. In fact, it is time for all of them to go home. And Danny was right on point: The cabin they were in when they went back is empty, the magic is gone, and now, so are they. They sadly take one last look at the place, turn the lights off, and close the door.

That night at home, while everyone is enjoying s'mores from the fireplace, the girls admit that they did miss everyone a lot. This makes Danny feel a lot better, and Michelle tells Jesse that she would not mind if he starts calling her "Munchkin" again, and he does, topping it off with a kiss. And to add to the fun, after Danny hands Michelle her plate of s'mores, she finds it hot, so she puts it on the couch.

What nobody knows is, after he brings some drinks over for everyone, Joey walks over and unknowingly sits on the hot s'mores plate and it sticks to his pants, causing everyone to laugh out loud at him. And to add even more humor, the family tops it all off with whipped cream and a cherry. Even Comet gets in on the s'mores fun licking the mess off of Joey's pants as he runs upstairs to escape the dog, remarking that he has not had a good day, as the family laughs at his humor some more.

Quotes

[At Camp Lakota...]
Michelle: Don't forget this. Goodbye, Danielle.
Danielle: Goodbye, Michelle.
Michelle: I can't believe camp is over tomorrow. Thanks for teaching me how to para-spit.
[They shake hands and Michelle walks to Denise...]
Michelle: Goodbye, Denise, I'm gonna miss you so much.
Denise: But I live right down the block.
Michelle: I know, but now we can't scratch each other's mosquito bites.
[Denise starts scratching Michelle's back, as Stephanie walks in...]
Stephanie: Hey guys. Hey Michelle, have you said goodbye to all of your chickerdee bunk mates?
Michelle: Not yet, there is still one more. [She takes a cage with a rabbit.] Goodbye, Gilbert. I'd write you every day, but you'd just eat the paper.
Stephanie: I know how you feel, kid, I made a few good friends myself this summer. [She starts counting friendship bracelets of all the boys she made friends with.] David, Billy, Sean, Gregg. Good thing I played hard to get.
[D.J. and Kimmy walk in...]
D.J.: [claps her hands] Okay, girls. Attention, attention. Lights out in five minutes. It's really important to get plenty of sleep on the last night of camp.
Denise: So we won't be tired tomorrow?
D.J.: So us counselors can party tonight.
D.J. & Kimmy: [as they slap high-fives] Watch out!
Kimmy: All right! [She blows a whistle.] Speed it up, you little twerp-sickles. [to Stephanie] Better get back to your cabin, blondie. Isn't it past your bedtime, too?
Stephanie: You know, Kimmy, you could use a little beauty rest yourself. About a year should bring you up to a 'yuck'.


[The girls take their stuff and head upstairs to unpack.]
Girls: [singing] We love Camp Lakota, Lakota, Lakota! The camp that we love is Lakota, Lakota! Did we mention that we love Lakota!
[The singing stops.]
Danny: I don't get it. When I was a kid and I came back from Camp Metalarc, I couldn't wait to be home. I was so happy. I kissed my parents, I kissed my bed, I kissed the floor.
Joey: Danny, it was a day camp [confirming he was Danny's camp-mate.]
Danny: Yeah, but it was a very long day.


[In Stephanie and Michelle's room, both girls are unloading their laundry, as D.J. enters.]
D.J.: Hey, Steph, do you have those plastic sandals I lent you?
Stephanie: No. But I know where they are.
D.J.: Great. Where are they?
Stephanie: At the bottom of the lake.
D.J.: [scoffs] I told you they wouldn't fit!
Stephanie: It's not my fault you have big feet!
D.J.: Well, I'm not gonna lend you any more stuff!
[Both Stephanie and her former roommate begin arguing, but all that does is upset her current roommate.]
Michelle: Quiet! You're scaring Gilbert!
D.J.: Sorry, Michelle. We didn't mean to scare... [pauses & with Stephanie] "Gilbert?" [by herself] Floppy-eared, sniffle-nosed, carrot-breath Gilbert?
Michelle: Easy. He's very sensitive about his breath.
D.J.: Michelle, you were supposed to let him go at the camp.
Michelle: I tried, but he didn't want to. It was his decision.
Stephanie: [as she rolls her eyes in disgust] Oh, come on.
Michelle: It's true. I asked him if he wanted to go back into the woods, and he went... [imitates a rabbit]


[When Danny says that Gilbert needs to be with his friends, Michelle says that she is his friend.]
Danny: No, I mean his forest friends. You know, the ones with fur and four legs, who breed indiscriminately. Honey, you know where he belongs, and it's not in a gym bag [in which she brought him home].


[The girls head back to Camp Lakota on this dark and stormy night. They then find a cabin – one that may look familiar to them. D.J. turns on the lights.]
D.J.: Well we're wet, but we're back. It looks so weird in here.
Michelle: Everything looks so different.
Stephanie: Well, that's because we're not here anymore.
Michelle: Sure feels like we're here.
Stephanie: Fine, we're here. Let's just dump the bunny and split.
[Michelle goes to get Gilbert out of his box.]
Michelle: Uh, guys, somebody is missing.
D.J.: Gilbert chewed right through the box. Boy, isn't that just like a rabbit.
Michelle: [sadly, as she throws down his chewed carrot] I never got a chance to say goodbye.


[In the twins' bedroom...]
Jesse: [lying on Nicky's bed] Okay, come on now. Now, let's uh, let's get the boys to s-l-e-e-p, so we can get the h-e-c-k o-u-t.
Becky: [lying on Alex's bed] Okay, f-i-r-s-t w-e s-h-o-u-l-d...
Jesse: Hold on, let me get a crayon.
Becky: Honey, never mind, let's just get on with this, I'm exhausted. [She closes her eyes.]
Jesse: Okay, come on. Let's go to sleep, go a sleep in our race car beds, okay, and we're gonna race on to sleep. Vroom, vroom, vroom, vroom.


Alex: Bad bed.
Nicky: Yucky bed.
Jesse: No, no, no, son. It's not a yucky bed. It's nice bed, comfy bed, expensive bed.


[Michelle is worried that a character from a scary story may be outside.]
Stephanie: [regarding the "Mud Man"] Michelle, there is no 'Cropsy Maniac'. That's just a story that counselors tell kids to shut them up so they can make out.


[The girls and Steve hear footsteps in the mud and look scared...]
D.J.: What was that?
Steve: It was probably just the wind.
Stephanie: Just the wind? Just the wind? It's never just the wind!


[The girls grab a broom to fight off the "Mud Man/Cropsy Maniac" outside, when Steve has another idea.]
Steve: Don't worry girls, I was on the wrestling team for two years. [The door starts to open.] Uh, three years would've been better. [The door opens and the girls scream. Steve starts to wrestle the "Mud Man/Cropsy Maniac", but it just turns out to be Joey covered in mud.]


Danny: It’s like when you go to the movies. When the show is over, you know the magic’s all gone. All that’s left is just a big empty room with a sticky floor.

Trivia

  • The episode title is a well-known phrase originally from the opening sentence of English writer Edward Bulwer-Lytton's 1830 novel Paul Clifford (More recently it is known for being a recurring phrase used by Snoopy from the Peanuts comic strip)
  • Jesse saying "The Young and the Tired" to describe the twins is a take on the soap opera The Young and the Restless
  • Song played as Jesse and Becky toss and turn in bed – appropriately: "Tossin' and Turnin'" (1961)
  • The only known episode to feature a time-lapse from night to day
  • The sub-plot involving the twins' new beds is similar to the main plot of "Granny Tanny" (season 3)
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