Penguin Town (2021) s01e08 Episode Script

[penguins braying]
[ominous music playing]
[narrator] At Burghers' Walk…
Mr. Bougainvillea has no idea
that trouble
is on his tail.
The caracal closes in.
[brays]
[sudden music sting]
Wait, why'd she stop?
There's something
out of the corner of her eye.
[braying]
A second penguin.
Use the distraction, Mr. B.
[intense music playing]
Mr. Bougainvillea…
is safe.
For now.
The caracal
is just getting started.
She's got a whole colony to choose from.
[opening theme song playing]
Yeah! ♪
Yeah, yeah ♪
Till my breath's all gone
I'll be pushing on so strong ♪
I'll keep pushing on ♪
Till the river runs dry
I've got to try, try, try ♪
I'll keep pushing on ♪
When my soul's burnt through
I won't be feeling blue ♪
I'll keep pushing on ♪
Pushing on ♪
Till my dying day
I won't give it all away ♪
I keep pushing on ♪
Yeah! ♪
[penguins braying]
[braying]
[peaceful music playing]
[narrator] June in South Africa…
means winter.
[birds chirping]
And the beginning of the end
for penguin breeding season.
[braying]
As fledglings leave home…
parents are cut loose.
More than ready for some me time
in the deep blue sea.
Why stay on land if you don't have to?
[whimsical music playing]
Here, they'll have months to fatten up
at the seafood buffet…
before the breeding cycle begins again.
But right now…
this June feels different.
It's quiet.
Too quiet.
Everyone feels it.
[birds chirping]
No paparazzi gawking on the beach.
For weeks now, no giants anywhere.
While they're all on lockdown…
[chittering]
…nature reclaims the town.
[spirited music playing]
[seagull squawking]
[duck quacking]
[barking]
Not everyone is penguin-friendly.
With no giants keeping predators at bay,
surviving to the end of the season
just got even harder.
[penguins braying]
[birds chirping]
[whimsical music playing]
Up the hill…
the Courtyards' oldest chick
has already flown the coop.
Little sister Rosemary
will waddle off to the ocean any day now.
She's thirsty for adventure.
Unsupervised?
[brays]
Don't worry, Ma,
she'll be home before dark.
Right?
So much to see in the front garden.
But right away…
she strays from the path.
[water flowing]
That sound…
it's like rain, but…
splashier.
Her first-ever body of water.
And…
a new friend.
[braying]
Oh.
Make that… foe.
[water splashes]
Rosemary did not sign up for swim lessons.
[screeching]
Her feathers are ready
for swimming, but her mind…
is not.
[chirps]
Calm down, Rosemary.
[screeching]
Try to remember.
You're a penguin.
Oh, so much better
when you don't fight it.
Actually, it's kind of awesome.
[chirps]
And climbing out isn't so hard…
when you're not in a blind panic.
Go on now.
Back to Mom.
Near-death experiences
are downright befuddling.
[ominous music playing]
She's officially…
lost.
No shelter.
No parents.
No clue what to do next.
[squawking]
Night falls over the ghost town.
[crickets chirping]
[meows]
[chicks screeching]
The Wheelbarrows are up late
with the babies.
The super-parents' second batch of chicks
is always hungry.
[screeching]
Keep it down.
Someone will hear you.
[braying]
Oh, no.
The Car Park Gang.
[tense music playing]
A whole season of celibacy
has only made their attitudes…
badder.
-[chirping]
-[braying]
They home in on the crying chicks.
[braying]
[chirping]
The last easy targets in the neighborhood.
[braying]
It's a standoff.
The Wheelbarrows have a nest like a tank.
The gang has the numbers…
and can take it in shifts.
Bullies beware.
Tonight…
every penguin is a target.
[ominous music playing]
The rookie caracal
still hasn't managed to kill.
No judgment.
Penguins are tricky.
But the more she watches…
the more she learns.
[intense music playing]
[braying]
She singles one out.
But her victim has a head start.
Too late. Again.
Penguins know hedges are pounce-proof.
The Wheelbarrows lucked out.
Rescued from killer penguins
by a would-be penguin killer.
[squawking]
In their hilltop castle…
Lord and Lady Courtyard
wait
for their missing daughter, Rosemary.
The odds of her return
go down with every passing hour.
Time to form a search party.
Starting…
close to home.
[whimsical music playing]
[water flowing]
Okay, she's not inside. Fan out.
[water flowing]
They're on the right track.
But they're almost a day behind her.
By now, Rosemary could be anywhere.
And there's too much ground
for two penguins to cover.
[tense music playing]
Whether she's safe…
lost…
or worse…
it's out of their hands.
And standing around…
won't help anyone.
[light upbeat music playing]
They're empty nesters now.
They must move on.
[chirping]
Time and tide wait for no penguin.
Good hunting, you two.
Just six months until it all begins again.
[quacking]
[panting]
Down the shoreline,
the caracal has only grown hungrier.
She can smell that this car park
is a penguin hot spot.
A stakeout is in order.
[sinister music playing]
Right across the street…
from the Bougainvilleas.
[chirping]
Today of all days!
Petal is fully fledged
and finally able to leave.
Led by a proud dad.
Mr. B's eldest
is already grown and gone.
He has just one parenting task left.
[chirping]
Get Petal to the beach…
in one piece.
[growls]
With a caracal on the prowl,
cover is a must.
But Petal doesn't really get it.
Hurry it up!
[chirping]
[suspenseful music playing]
Oh-for-three, Huntress.
These birds are wilier than they look.
[chirping]
Into the brush now, Petal.
Dad's baby girl.
The last of Mrs. B's offspring…
leaves her childhood behind.
[chirping]
[uplifting music playing]
[braying]
The sea is Petal's future.
But it'll take some getting used to.
Good thing there are other blues
in the same boat.
Because this
is where Mr. B leaves her.
He's overdue for a break.
2020 dealt him a horrible hand.
Heat.
Gangs.
Predators.
The loss of his wife.
But he crushed it.
[braying]
His kids are healthy.
They're not really kids anymore.
Time to bid farewell.
The youngsters will soon be off to sea
on a swim about lasting up to two years.
But someone has yet to arrive.
Up the hill,
little Lady Courtyard, Rosemary…
is about to miss the launch party.
She's had a rough couple days…
and is still lost on the streets.
Without a guide…
she could starve
before she ever finds the sea.
Pro tip, kid.
The ocean is always downhill.
[light suspenseful music playing]
To a penguin, this is a big town.
Easy to take a wrong turn.
Or several.
Hard to say where she is exactly.
With all these walls in the way…
it's not looking good.
[penguins braying]
Wait.
What was that?
[penguins braying]
[triumphant music playing]
Grownups!
-[chirping]
-Finally!
And they know exactly where to go.
The graduating class is convened.
[chirping]
They're all first-timers…
with one burning question.
Where do they keep the food around here?
[light upbeat music playing]
Deep down, they know…
the ocean is their only option.
But it's so wet.
And scary.
To survive…
they must summon their courage.
Bravely dive into the unknown.
No, no, no. Down there. Down there.
Everything…
since before they were eggs…
[screeching]
…has built towards this moment.
[triumphant music playing]
Destiny rushes towards them
as they…
[sighs]
Uh…
Okay. Uh…
Can you…
Guys… Just…
Never mind.
[braying]
Clearly, instinct isn't enough.
Nature…
needs one last dose of nurture.
This is how it's done, kids.
[uplifting music playing]
[braying]
Keep your head down,
flippers out…
and your eyes on the future.
And we keep our dreams alive ♪
And we keep our dreams alive ♪
Goodbye, Penguin Town.
The blues will split up.
Earn their stripes alone.
The grownups stick together.
Over hundreds of miles…
and countless fish.
Not everyone will make it back.
But freed from the chains of the shore…
here,
they can finally…
fly.
[seagulls squawking]
And we keep our dreams alive ♪
And we keep our dreams alive ♪