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"Sole Brother" | Premiere Order "Mind Over Chatter" |
"A Quackor Cartoon" | 
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"Ego Trip" | Production Order "Mind Over Chatter" |
"A Quackor Cartoon" |
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| Mind Over Chatter | |
| Season 3, Episode 2a | |
| Episode name reference to/pun on: The idiom "Mind over matter". | |
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| Air date | November 16, 2001 (sneak preview) November 18, 2001 (Dexter Goes Global) |
| Production number | 301a |
| Storyboard by | Cindy Morrow |
| Directed by | Robert Alvarez Chris Savino David Smith (Art Direction) |
Mind Over Chatter is the first segment of the second episode in season 3 of Dexter's Laboratory. It first aired on November 16, 2001 as a sneak peek and later on November 18, 2001 as part of Cartoon Network's "Dexter Goes Global" marathon.
In this episode, Dexter becomes fixated on wanting to know what Dad got him for his birthday. He goes to his laboratory to invent a mind reader that allows him to hear other people's thoughts. However, the invention backfires and causes everyone to hear Dexter's thoughts, putting him in a tense dilemma.
Plot
Dexter is curious about what Dad got for his birthday, but after several failed attempts at asking, Dexter retreats to his room. When Dee Dee enters, Dexter explains his situation to her, and she mentions the idea of reading other people's minds, prompting Dexter to race into his laboratory to invent a mind reader. Following its success, Dexter goes to test his new invention out on Dad, who suddenly overhears Dexter's thoughts. At breakfast, Dexter's mind gets him into trouble when it makes a remark about Mom's food and calling Dee Dee a "pig" for the way she's eating.
After breakfast, Dexter storms toward the front door with his mind calling Dad names. Mom and Dad hear the thoughts, and Dexter realizes that his invention has backfired as everyone's reading his mind instead of him reading theirs. He prepares to go to his lab to reverse the effects, but is cut off as Dee Dee grabs him by his hand and races out the front door. On the school bus, Dexter gets caught into a troublesome situation when the kids on the bus hear his mind as it starts to call them names. Later in Mr. Luzinsky's class, as he gives a lecture about George Washington Carver and the various use of peanuts, Dexter's mind repeatedly interrupts the class by parroting everything Mr. Luzinsky says as Dexter himself writes down notes. Mr. Luzinsky then orders Dexter to go see Mrs. Morris, the school counselor, after lunch.
In the cafeteria, Dexter runs into trouble when his mind constantly makes a remark about the lunch lady's noticeable mole as he is in line getting his lunch. Later, Dexter goes to Mrs. Morris office to have to discuss his behavior with her. The meeting goes swell for him, but as Dexter leaves, his mind calls Mrs. Morris a "sucker". As Dexter sits in the boys' bathroom crying, he comes up with the idea of reversing the effects and races back home to do so.
To make sure his changes worked, Dexter again asks Dad what he's getting for his birthday. Dad physically tells his son he won't do it, but his mind tells Dexter that he got him a pair of multi-functional socks. Dexter, now disappointed, walks away.
Characters
- Dexter
- Dad
- Mom
- Dee Dee
- Phillips Luzinsky
- Mrs. Morris
- Kid
- Kid #1
- Kid #2
- Lunch Lady
Trivia
Notes
- This episode showcases Phillips Luzinsky's post second season design.
- Dexter breaks the fourth wall at the end of the episode.
- This episode's plot is similar to the Family Matters episode "A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Read".
Errors
- In this episode, it's revealed that Dexter's birthday is March 24. However, in the episode "A Hard Day's Day", it's revealed that he's a Capricorn, which means he would be born in either late December or early-to-mid January.
Production Notes
- This episode was a first for many things:
- This was the first episode produced and aired after the series' revival.
- This was the first episode produced and aired in 2001, and thus the first episode of the 21st century.
- This was the first episode to use digital ink and paint, which was utilized for the rest of the series.
- This was the first episode with the new character designs and UPA-influenced backgrounds.
- This was the first episode to not have the Hanna Barbera logo at the end, as the company shut down in March 2001 (shortly after the episode passed the storyboard phase, but before the episode was animated overseas and finished.)
- This was the first episode with the new Cartoon Network Studios logo, featuring Dee Dee pressing a button causing Dexter to explode.
- Although this episode premiered in the United States on November 18, 2001, it was produced the same year according to the credits.
- This episode was finished in May of 2001. [1]
Airing
- This episode premiered on Cartoon Network's marathon "Dexter Goes Global" worldwide on November 18, 2001.