"Cheap Show" is the 31st episode of Season 2 and the 89th episode overall of Big City Greens.
Synopsis[]
In this special meta-reference episode, the Green family wants to visit a street fair, but Bill wants to stay home to save money.
Plot[]
The street fair has moved into town and Cricket, Tilly and Alice are excited about attending for the first time ever. When they ask Bill if they can have money to go, he politely declines and suggests that they stay home for the night and save money due to the constant overuse of their "production budget", in other words their budget for produce. He suggests that they reminisce on old adventures such as the events of "Fill Bill". Alice follows up by recalling the events of "Gramma's License", but cannot remember what they all said during that time. Cricket tries to follow it up with one of Weezie's quotes in Cricket's shoes, but cannot recall what it was.
Tilly decides to use a storyboard to help tell the tale about how she was in the city of “Little Tokyo” in Japan, and fights a giant monster resembling Godzilla, in which Tilly fights in a mech suit. Nancy calls the family to tell them that she is at the fair. When Cricket and Tilly desperately ask that she describe it to them, she says that it is "indescribable" and hangs up.
Bill suggests that they simply sit and be with their thoughts, but they all quickly get tired of this idea. Cricket finally decides to watch TV, but discovers that Bill cut the cable to save money and he attacks him. When Bill reveals that they only have ad supported streaming, Tilly attacks him too. To make make matters worse, Bill has become frugal to the point that he has set a timer so that the power goes out at night, which Cricket angrily points out is when they ironically need it. When Bill states that it was supposed to do so when they were asleep, Tilly adds that it is only 6:00. Cricket apparently battles something in the dark, but when Bill finally turns the lights back on, sees that barely anything was actually destroyed, with a hole in the "4th wall".
Bill finally gives in and admits that he messed up, and he was trying to show the three that they've been blowing through their money really fast and they don't need to spend money to have fun. Cricket, Tilly and Alice explain to Bill that they still didn't have any fun. Cricket reveals sometimes the fun things don't have to be expensive and decides that they will save money by making a compromise: they go to the fair, but not buy anything and only take in the sights. Bill is happy about this and suggests that they go without him, but they convince him to come along.
As the Greens leave the house, the camera remains inside the living room as they can be heard reuniting with Nancy and having fun with her; agreeing that the sights are indescribable. They run into actor Tom Hanks who offers that they join him on an adventure and they happily agree.
Cast[]
| Main article: Gabriella's Fella and Cheap Show/Credits |
- Chris Houghton as Cricket Green
- Marieve Herington as Tilly Green
- Bob Joles as Bill Green
- Artemis Pebdani as Alice Green
- Wendi McLendon-Covey as Nancy Green
- Lamar Woods as Weezie
- Tom Hanks as Himself (voice only)
Additional voices[]
- Shane Houghton as Crunchasaurus
- John Early as Sea Fusion Waiter
- Paul Nakauchi as Japanese Man
Title in other languages[]
| Language | Title | Translation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 Spanish (Latin America)
|
Un programa barato | A cheap program | |
 German
|
Teurer Spaß | Expensive fun | |
 Spanish
|
Una serie barata | A cheap series | |
 French
|
Bill fait des économies | Bill makes savings | |
 Japanese
|
節約 | Saving | |
 Portuguese
|
Episódio Forreta | Cheapskate Episode | |
 Vietnamese
|
Chương Trình Không Mất Tiền | No Money-Free Programs |
Videos[]
