Season of Caprice is the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth episode of the first season which was broadcast on July 7, 2001.
Synopsis[]
Ginger, Dodie and Macie take their annual trip to Camp Caprice, an all-girls camp. Only this time, they have some unexpected baggage: Courtney, who is trying to prove that she isn't high maintenance like Miranda said. Ginger meets a boy, Sasha, at the camp and she begins to have extreme feelings for him. Meanwhile, across the lake at a military camp, run by Miranda's father, Miranda and Darren struggle with the exercises. The two form a small bond. Back in Sheltered Shrubs, Carl and Hoodsey start a house-keeping service as a cover-up for their search for the town's mysterious dog-napper. It is revealed that Georgia (Principal Milty's new friend) is the dog-napper. Season of Caprice, was the first 3 part episode of the series, the next being "Far From Home" then after that was then followed by "The Wedding Frame" (which was the last episode in the series).
Plot[]
Part 1[]
Summer vacation has arrived for the town of Sheltered Shrubs. Lucky Jr. High students and staff eagerly leave the building and start their vacations. Ginger, Dodie, and Macie discuss their big plan: spending a few weeks at Camp Caprice as they have for the last few years. Courtney and Miranda approach, and Courtney wonders what the other girls are talking about. Ginger and her friends explains what happens at camp, like eating s'mores and canoeing. Miranda points out that she and Courtney will be going on a cruise to the Virgin Islands. The pair walk away, but Courtney wants to know more about summer camp. Miranda says that while camp is a rite of passage for most kids, Courtney is too high-maintenance for all the hiking and outdoor activity. Courtney is offended and immediately calls her butler, Winston. She tells him to cancel her cruise and sign her up for Camp Caprice. Miranda is shocked and angry, since her parents will not allow her to go on the cruise alone. Courtney is determined to prove Miranda wrong, even if it means ruining Miranda's summer. The girls storm away from each other.
Later, Carl and Hoodsey walk home together, discussing going to camp and the Bishop pig farm for the summer. They notice a flyer for a missing dog. Hoodsey points out that another dog went missing a few nights ago. Carl adds that the Foutley's dog, Monster, went missing the previous summer, and feels there may be a dog-napper on the loose. He decides that he and Hoodsey will search for the dog-napper themselves. But, they must get permission from their parents to stay at home for the summer. Lois refuses (as does Joann) unless Carl and Hoodsey plan on doing something productive with the time.
Ginger packs her trunk in her room. Darren comes by to help out. As he weighs down the trunk lid, he tells Ginger he will be going to Spengler Military Academy, a summer boot camp across the lake from Camp Caprice. Darren says that his father is making him go to toughen him up. Ginger and Darren hug goodbye and wish each other well.
That night, a mysterious figure approaches Dr. Randall's house, waves a sausage link in front of a doggie door, and lures Muffin the Shih Tzu outside before grabbing her. The following morning, Carl and Hoodsey notice Muffin's missing flyer and try to think of another way to stay home from camp and the farm. The pair see a truck for a cleaning company, and get their idea. They pitch their "productive" idea to Lois and Joann: a vampire-themed home cleaning service. The mothers are wary, but agree to have the boys stay home to work on their business.
Meanwhile, Courtney is having her maids and attendants pack for camp. Winston worries a bit, saying that Courtney needs "tending" that she won't get at camp. Claire enters as well, asking if Courtney is positive about going. Courtney insists that she will go to the camp and do what regular campers do, even though she's packing luxuriantly and feels the camp will be more like a spa.
The next day, the bus to camp arrives. Lois hugs Ginger goodbye and tells her to write weekly. Ginger boards and sits with her friends, but just before the bus pulls away, Courtney runs up to reach it. She boards the bus as well, and sits with Ginger. The other girls are pleasantly surprised. The bus then makes its way to the camp, with the girls singing the Camp Caprice song all the while. Ginger writes in her diary that when friends from camp meet friends from home, you see both groups differently.
The bus arrives, and the head camp counselor, Margie, greets everyone. She says that the older girls have the chance to be certified counselors and lifeguards, provided they pass the swimming test in the lake. Margie introduces Jed, the counselor in charge of aquatic activities. Macie can barely conceal her crush on him. A few of Ginger's friends from the previous year greet her, while Courtney asks Margie about the "spa package."
Back at Sheltered Shrubs, Carl and Hoodsey stop at their first customer's house, Principal Milty. Hoodsey is nervous since he and Carl spent a lot of time in his office during school. Regardless, Milty opens the door for them, and keeps things professional, but warns them to not "repeat second grade." He then adds that he is heading out for a few appointments, and tells the boys to lock up when they leave. After he drives away, Carl and Hoodsey start looking around for evidence.
At Spengler Academy, Darren gets dropped off by his father. Mr. Patterson insists the camp will be a great experience for Darren, even though no other campers seem to want to be there either. Darren is given his fatigues and ordered to pitch his own tent. Later, the cadets are doing a "teamwork" exercise. They must crawl under barbed wire and pass a baton to another cadet waiting for them. Darren crawls under, but comes face to face with Miranda, whose ponytail gets caught in the barbed wire. He asks what she is doing at Spengler. She explains that since she isn't going on the cruise with Courtney, her father (who is head sergeant of Spengler) forced her to attend. Darren gets her unstuck then passes her the baton. He offers to sit by her in the mess hall, and she accepts, glad to see a familiar face.
At Camp Caprice, Ginger, Dodie, and Macie are sharing the Navajo cabin. Dodie puts a chalkboard on the wall, and says that the three of them should write down what their goals are for the summer. Before they do, Courtney drags in her chest. She asks who will be taking her luggage to the hotel. The girls respond that there is no hotel, and there are no servants at the camp. The other girls then rush off to take in the surroundings, leaving Courtney alone. Ginger heads to the barn to see the horses. She feeds an apple to one, but a boy approaches, telling her that it is against the rules to do so. He relents when he sees how the horse is friendly to Ginger. Ginger introduces herself, but before the boy can, they are interrupted by Courtney asking Ginger about dry cleaning, and treating the boy like waitstaff. He leaves, offended.
Carl and Hoodsey continue cleaning Milty's house. Carl raids the pantry and goofs around downstairs, but notices a squeaky dog toy under the couch cushions. He heads upstairs to show Hoodsey, and points out that there isn't a dog anywhere in or outside of the house. They believe that Milty is the dognapper.
Later that evening, Jed is telling the campers a scary story about the lake. The boy from earlier comes out of the bushes and spooks the girls by accident. He starts handing out graham crackers. Macie tells her friends that she won't be able to take the swimming test out of fear of the lake, but Ginger, Dodie, and Jed reassure her. Courtney joins the group, explaining that she tried using a compass to find her way and got lost. Margie then arrives and everyone starts making s'mores. Dodie, aspiring to be a counselor, offers to help. Margie is impressed with her initiative and offers to make Dodie her "apprentice," even giving her a counselor's whistle. The boy continues passing out the crackers, but tells Ginger to take a specific pack. She does, and sees that he has written his name on the wrapper: Sasha.
Part 2[]
Ginger attempts to sneak out of the cabin before camp reveille, but accidentally lets the door slam and wakes Dodie, Macie, and Courtney up. Courtney is completely miserable at the cabin's conditions, being attacked by mosquitos during the night, and Macie calling her "CG." Dodie tries to get Courtney to show come camp spirit, but Courtney continues to complain. Ginger frolics through a field, musing about the positive summer energy and her newfound crush on Sasha. She bumps into him by mistake, causing him to drop his archery supplies. Ginger helps him pick the items up. Another camper, Melanie, passes by and waves to Sasha. Ginger says the girl is cute. Margie approaches and blows her whistle, telling the two to separate. Before Sasha leaves, Ginger says that Courtney's behavior the previous day was rude, and that she herself isn't like that. Sasha flirtatiously asks what kind of girl Ginger is, but Margie blows her whistle again. Ginger coyly says Sasha will need to find the answer for himself.
Back at Sheltered Shrubs, Carl and Hoodsey chase down an ice cream truck. After getting their ice cream, they walk to the park, discussing why Milty would want to steal dogs. They figure that Milty probably was not acting alone, and need more evidence before going to the police. They decide to sneak out after dark to catch Milty in the act.
At Camp Caprice, a tug of war match wraps up. Two of Gingers old friends, Sarah and Cinnamon Ann, go to the Navajo cabin, and see if Ginger is there. Courtney greets them instead, but the two girls are put off by the overdressed, haughty blonde. They doubt Ginger associates with people like Courtney, but Courtney insists that she is one of Ginger's closest friends. She then invites herself along on the other girls' hike. Courtney struggles to keep up, but still goes on about her friendship with Ginger. She then mentions she set up Ginger with Ian Richton just as the girls pass by Sasha. Sasha listens in as Courtney goes on about how cute and rich Ginger's "boyfriend" is. The other girls are surprised at how much Ginger has "changed", and Sasha is hurt.
At Spengler, Officer Killgallen is addressing the cadets. He tells them that they will soon be going on a two-day mission with minimal supplies. He then orders the cadets to do push-ups, then berates Chet Zipper on his lack of upper body strength. Darren comments about his harshness to Miranda. Mr. Killgallen yells at Darren to show respect and refer to him as "sir" when addressing him. Darren does so, and sarcastically asks him to continue yelling at Chet, which makes Miranda laugh. Mr. Killgallen then punishes Darren and Miranda by ordering them to clean the barracks. Miranda protests this, but Mr. Killgallen barks at her to address him as "Sir" and not "Dad" while she is at Spengler.
Later, swimming tests are underway at the lake. The Cherokee cabin finishes up, and the Navajo girls are nervous. Ginger volunteers to go first and Jed explains what to do. Ginger must swim from the dock to the island in the middle of the lake while the other girls stand by in the canoe in case she can't make it. He tells her to picture something she wants waiting for her at the other side. Ginger sets off swimming, and starts to lose her pace, but imagines Sasha waiting at the shore, and makes it to the island.
Later, the girls are making friendship bracelets. Ginger finishes hers, but notices Melanie sitting nearby with a guitar. Ginger heads over to Melanie and chats with her about playing the guitar. She ties the friendship bracelet around Melanie's wrist, and offers to show Melanie a song she has been working on. It is a gentle romantic ballad, but Melanie giggles at the lyrics. Courtney approaches the pair, and confronts Ginger about ignoring her, as well as Ginger having a crush. She again brings up Ian, and shoos Melanie away. Before Ginger can stop Melanie, Courtney rants about how much she dislikes Camp Caprice, and the fact that she is being treated the same as everyone else. Ginger says Courtney is like everyone else, but is too high-maintenance for camp. Courtney gets angry and says that she, and Ginger's other friends feel she has "changed." Ginger muses that she has changed.
Carl and Hoodsey are back at Milty's house, cleaning. The midday news comes on, and there is another report of a dognapping. The reporter adds that a sausage dog treat is being used to lure the dogs. Carl takes this as another clue, but Hoodsey gets mad that Carl isn't helping clean. Carl says that Milty likely wants the boys to clean multiple times a week in order to get rid of any evidence that dogs were there. Hoodsey doubts this until he opens a cabinet and finds boxes and boxes of Sausage Snap dog treats.
At Spengler, Darren and Miranda are scraping the old paint from a quonset hut. Miranda is angry at the way she is being treated by her father, and Darren tries cracking jokes to cheer her up. Miranda gripes that she hopes Courtney is as miserable as she is right now. Darren says that he knows she is and shows Miranda a letter he got from Ginger. Miranda reads it, and is horrified to learn that Courtney is having a terrible time and hasn't made any friends at Camp Caprice. Miranda starts to cry and explains that it is partially her fault that Courtney wanted to go to camp in the first place. Darren then gets an idea on how to make both of their lives less miserable.
The Caprice girls are playing field hockey when Dodie walks onto the field. She announces that the camp's cow is in labor, and if anyone wants to watch the birth, they need to go to the barn. A number of the girls go, and see Sasha and the farmer tend to the cow. Sasha needs more hot water and towels and Ginger offers to get it. She hurries with the towels and water, and the girls all watch in awe as Sasha pulls the bull calf from its mother. Jed asks Sasha what the calf will be called. Sasha glares at Ginger, and calls the bull "Ian." Courtney loudly points out Ginger's "boyfriend" shares the same name. Ginger is shocked, but Courtney just winks in response.
Carl and Hoodsey walk home from Milty's house. Carl wonders where the missing dogs are, then guesses that they are being held in Milty's basement, since that is the only locked room in the house. Hoodsey is unsure about the whole thing, saying that he and Carl may actually be going into a dangerous situation. Carl is adamant that they break into the basement. Carl heads home for supplies, and tells a lounging Lois that he will be sleeping over at the Bishop house that evening. Later, Carl and Hoodsey sneak out, and spy on Milty's house. They notice Milty come up from the basement, lock the door, and put a key into a jar on a table nearby. He leaves the house.
That evening at camp, the girls are having another bonfire. Ginger is pacing around and Melanie asks if Ginger is upset because she misses her boyfriend. Ginger clarifies that Ian isn't her boyfriend, but Melanie says that Sasha doesn't want date someone who is already taken, and reveals that he is her older brother. Sasha then arrives at the fire pit, and Ginger pulls him aside to talk. She tries to explain her side, but Sasha says he knows exactly what type of person Ginger is. He says she is a wannabe, and is only associating with people like Courtney to be cool. Ginger gets angry, and says that Sasha shouldn't be judging people he barely knows, then leaves.
At Spengler, Darren and Miranda sneak out of their tents, and run towards the dock while avoiding searchlights. They remove their boots and fatigues, jump into the lake, and start swimming towards Camp Caprice.
Part 3[]
The Camp Caprice girls watch a scary movie together. As it ends, Dodie blows her whistle and tells the girls to start getting ready for bed. Margie approaches and is proud of Dodie's ability to get the girls in line. She rewards Dodie with a master key to the camp, and tells her to keep it in a safe place.
Using the spare key under the welcome mat, Carl and Hoodsey enter Milty's house and take the basement key from the jar. They open the door and hear a whining dog downstairs. They go to investigate and find a muzzled golden retriever leashed up near the boiler, along with more Sausage Snaps, and the chew toy from earlier. The dog's collar reads "The Duchess." Hoodsey wonders where the rest of the dogs are, and Carl assumes the worst as he looks at the lit boiler. The boys then plan to trap Milty, then call the police.
Dodie orders the Navajo cabin to turn off their lights, but none of the girls are finished with their nightly routines. Dodie turns off the lights anyway, and tells them to use flashlights. The girls are pretty annoyed with Dodie's bossiness. At that moment, Melanie knocks on the cabin door. Ginger returns the guitar she borrowed from Melanie, then offers to walk her back to her cabin. Melanie asks if Ginger will marry Sasha later on. Ginger says that it likely won't happen since she and Sasha are mad at each other. Melanie gets upset, saying that people should say how they feel, otherwise no one will know how they feel. They are interrupted by Margie and Jed patrolling for any campers out of bed. Ginger gives Melanie the guitar and tells her to run, while she makes her way back to her cabin.
Miranda and Darren swim until they reach the island in the middle of the lake. They decide to rest for a while. Miranda tells Darren to start a fire while she catches a fish to eat. Darren is unsure of how, and Miranda comments that he probably should have stayed at the military camp.
At Sheltered Shrubs, Joann calls up Lois to ask her to speak to Hoodsey. Lois is confused because she thinks Hoodsey is already at her house. She realizes that she and Joann were both duped, and tells Joann she will speak to Hoodsey. She sets out to find the boys.
Carl and Hoodsey free The Duchess and set a snare trap up in Milty's house. Milty then arrives back home with his date, Georgia. He invites her inside, but once he steps into the trap, Carl pulls the rope and he gets caught in a net. Georgia is surprised, and Carl tells her to back away from the dangerous criminal. Georgia is even more surprised when The Duchess jumps up and tries to lick her. Milty demands to be let go as police sirens can be heard approaching the house. Georgia starts to panic, and runs from the house. The police enter a moment later, along with Lois. Milty demands an explanation, and one of the cops says Milty is a suspect in the dognapping spree. Carl tells Lois that he has proof that Milty stole the dogs, as well as Monster. The other cop asks Carl and Hoodsey to quickly produce their evidence.
Macie wakes up in the middle of the night. She decides now is as good of a time as any to accomplish her goal of swimming in the lake. She puts on her bathing suit, and sneaks out of the cabin. She accidentally lets the door slam, which wakes up Dodie. Macie goes to the dock and prepares to dive in, but hears a scream. The scream came from Darren on the island, who managed to injure his leg. Miranda checks, and thinks he might have broken or sprained something. She offers to swim the rest of the way to Camp Caprice for help.
Dodie catches Macie at the dock and tries dragging her back to the cabin. Macie tries to get Dodie to listen for the screaming, thinking that it is the ghost in the story Jed was telling on the first night. Just then, Miranda gets a cramp while swimming and yells in pain. Dodie hears the yelling, but still tries taking Macie to the cabin. Macie breaks free and jumps into the lake, yelling that she will help whoever is out there. Dodie tries blowing her whistle to alert Margie, but it fell off before she got to the dock. Dodie runs back to the cabin, wakes Ginger and Courtney, and asks them to help her find the key so they can get a boat and help Macie.
Macie follows the yelling, and eventually reaches Miranda. Miranda explains her situation to Macie, but before she can help, the other girls arrive in a motorboat. They pull the other girls on, and Dodie says they must hurry, since everything they are doing is against the rules. Miranda offers to drive the boat, then turns towards the island to pick up Darren. They bring the boat back to the camp, bandage Darren's leg, and set out extra space in the cabin for Miranda and Darren to sleep.
Back at Sheltered Shrubs, Carl and Hoodsey explain why Milty is the dognapper, from the cabinet full of Sausage Snaps, to The Duchess locked and muzzled in the basement. Milty then explains his side. The Duchess is his dog, and he kept her locked away because his new girlfriend is both allergic to and despises dogs. He adds that Sausage Snaps are The Duchess' favorite treat, and he always keeps a large stock of them. Carl is surprised and upset that he didn't catch the person who took Monster. Lois clarifies that Monster wasn't stolen; he ran away. The police double check, and since there are no other dogs in the house, Milty is cleared as a suspect. They go to leave, but everyone notices The Duchess is now missing. A bit of ways down the road, Georgia is driving her car out of town with The Duchess in the backseat. She tells the dog that she will release her out of town, and hope she doesn't find her way back, just as she had with all the dogs she stole before revealing she is the dognapper.
The following morning, Miranda and Courtney chat about their horrible camp experiences. Courtney says she has been counting down the days until camp ends, but notices that it is their final day at camp. She whoops with joy and says she will not miss the cramped cabin or the annoying camp anthem reveille waking her up in the morning. She then notices the anthem has not played. Dodie points out that the morning reveille doesn't play unless something serious happened. Ginger tries ushering Miranda and Darren out of the cabin, but Margie makes an announcement over the PA. She says that 14 rules of the camp were broken the previous evening, and says she knows there are two runaway Spengler cadets on the campgrounds. She orders everyone to gather at the campfire site.
All the campers, staff, and the two runaway Spengler cadets gather at the campfire site. Officer Killgallen is there as well, looking very unhappy. Margie reads out each rule violation that was broken by the Navajo cabin, including: breaking curfew, swimming unsupervised in the lake, stealing equipment, bringing unregistered people onto the campgrounds, and having a boy spend the night in an all girls cabin. Macie then questions Margie saying that she counted only 13 broken camp rules & Margie angrily responds for chewing gum during an assembly and orders Macie to spit her gum out which she does immediately saying that it was the 14th camp rule broken. Margie then says that the Navajo cabin members are suspended from the camp forever, then tells Dodie to return her whistle and key. Dodie tearfully does, but asks to say something to Margie. Dodie says that Margie is essentially punishing the girls for doing what the camp represents. Ginger and Macie chime in, saying that Darren and Miranda were not only miserable at Spengler, but they were both injured. They ask what the right thing would have been to do. Jed and the other campers agree with the girls, while Margie tries to maintain order. Courtney caps off their speech by declaring that helping their friends was the right thing to do, even though they broke the rules to do it. Margie has no rebuttal and walks off having a lot to reconsider.
Courtney apologizes to Ginger, Macie, and Dodie for her behavior, while the other girls apologize for not making Courtney feel welcome. Courtney points out that she treats them the same way during the school year, and will continue to do so. She and Miranda leave together. Ginger gets in front of the microphone again, and says that she would like to follow Melanie's prior advice. She asks to borrow the guitar one more time, and dedicates her "Copper Colored Ponies" song to Sasha. She sings for the crowd, and Sasha is flattered.
Some time later, Ginger is back home. She is glad to be back, and reveals that Margie decided not to permanently kick out the Navajo cabin girls. Ginger feels she might go to Camp Caprice next summer as long as she can see Sasha again. She opens up her new locket to reveal a picture of Sasha kissing her on the cheek. On the back is an engraved message, "See you next summer?"
Appearances[]
- Ginger Foutley
- Dodie Bishop
- Macie Lightfoot
- Darren Patterson
- Courtney Gripling
- Miranda Killgallen
- Sasha
- Ian Richton (cameo)
- Mipsy Mipson (cameo)
- Lonnie (cameo)
- Ms. Zorski (cameo)
- Mr. Patterson
- Carl Foutley
- Hoodsey Bishop
- Blake Gripling
- Lois Foutley
- Winston
- Joann Bishop
- Claire Gripling
- Officer Killgallen
- Chet Zipper
- Principal Milty
- Archie Chang
- Melanie (Sasha's sister)
- Margie (the head counselor)
- Policemen
- Girl In Movie
- Field Hockey Player
- Georgia (Principal Milty's date)
- Courtney's Seamstress
- Boy In Movie
- Jed (the swimming counselor)
- Farmhand (at the cow birthing)
- Matilda (the Camp Caprice cow)
- Sarah (Ginger's past camp friend with darker hair)
- Carmen (soap opera character)
- Cinnamon Ann (Ginger's past camp friend with lighter hair)
- Giselle (Courtney's maid)
- Doctor In Soap Opera
- Sergeant (in the teamwork exercise)
- Jarhead (the Camp Spengler staffer)
Quotes[]
Ginger: (opening line of part 1) At some moments, it seems like time actually stands still. I mean, when you're waiting for something really cool to happen, one lousy minute can last an eternity. (bell rings) And then, there's summer vacation. The long awaited freedom from routine. It kind of does strange things to people.
Courtney: As in the American Virgin Islands. You know, Saint Croix, Saint Thomas and, uh, the rest of the saints.
Carl: I smell pay back, Hoodsey. And as you may or may not know, that's my favorite smell in the whole wide world.
Hoodsey: Mine is ribs.
Darren: (asking Ginger for help) Need a hand? Or a rump?
Ginger: (giggles) My hero.
Ginger: (her first lines of part 2) You know how you can feel one way in your regular life back home, but then as soon as summer comes, it's almost like your a totally different person. I never thought I would become infatuated with a boy I hardly even know.
Ginger: (referring to Dodie) She's probably exhausted from ordering people around all day.
Courtney: It can be very tiring.
Officer: If that's all, we're gonna have to let Principal Milty go home, Carl.
Principal Milty: I am home!
Miranda: (talking about Ginger, Dodie and Macie) Could they be more 12?
Continuity[]
- In part 3, Miranda refers to Macie as "the little seal girl". A callback to the episode "Come Back Little Seal Girl".
Trivia[]
- The alternate title for this episode is Summer at Camp Caprice.
- In part 2, it is revealed that Courtney doesn't like to be called by her initials CG. Even though in episodes such as "Sleep On It", she uses a napkin with her CG initials stitched on it. She also uses other products that will occasionally have her initials on them mainly due to her rich and wealthy upbringing.
- The list of summer goals on the Navajo cabin chalkboard:
- "Survive remainder of summer at Camp Caprice". C.G.
- "Be more hands on". D.B.
- "Write a song". G.F.
- "Conquer fear of lake". M.L.
- This is one of the few times Miranda shows her caring side when she goes for help when Darren hurts his ankle at the military camp.
- Despite the fact that this word was used in a different context the word "sex" was used for the second time. The first time was in Dare I, Darren?
Promo[]
Video[]
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