ARTHUR GETS A SEIZURE

By Zak

DISCLAIMER: Arthur and all related characters are created by Marc Brown, and the TV series is owned by PBS Distribution. This is simply a work of fanfiction and is loosely based off the "Pokémon Shock" incident of 1997. This takes place before the events of the Season 3 episode "Attack of the Turbo Tibbles."

It was a sunny day in Elwood City. At the Lakewood Elementary School playground, the third graders were enjoying recess. Arthur Read and Buster Baxter were riding on the swings and talking…

"So, ever since Turtles, Turtles, Turtles got canceled," Buster was saying, "I found another cool show to take its' place: Terrific Turbo-Trooper Toy T-Bot Team!"

"What's that?" Arthur asked.

"It's this really great science-fiction show," Buster explained, "about these two combination superhero robots, T-Bot Crimson and T-Bot Emerald, saving the world and fighting these mobster whales and other alien beings!"

"Oh," Arthur said, not sounding that interested. "I may have seen commercials for that show and its' toys, but I never really watched it."

"You should check it out," Buster told him, just as Francine was approaching. "You might like it!"

"Wait a minute," Francine said. "Are you two talking about that Terrific Turbo-Trooper Toy T-Bot Team show? I haven't heard very good things about it. It's really violent, and there's so much fast-paced flashing imagery. My sister Catherine said someone she knew nearly got a seizure while watching an episode!"

Buster let out a soft gasp. But then he realized, "Wait a minute, I watch that show every day, and I've never had any seizures!"

"Well, this kid had photosensitive epilepsy," Francine explained, "a condition in his brain that makes his eyes somewhat more sensitive to bright lights, and if it's rapidly flashing lights, then that can really hurt his brain. Even if it's just a malfunctioning fluorescent light bulb, like the one in the music classroom!"

"Oh yeah," Buster realized. "That light can get pretty distracting, but it's never given me or anyone else I know seizures."

"Well, apparently none of you have epilepsy," Francine said.

"So, that means we're just fine, and can all watch the show!" Buster said with a smile.

"Not me," Francine firmly said as she shook her head. "I don't want to take any chances."

"The Brain" added, "I'm not really into the T-Bot Team show, either."

"That show's just vomitrocious!" Muffy complained.

"Doesn't anybody here watch the Terrific Turbo-Trooper Toy T-Bot Team?!" Buster loudly asked.

"I do!" Binky said as he leaped off the jungle gym. "Boy, is it cool! Though a couple of times, my eyes did hurt a little from it."

"See, Arthur?" Buster asked his friend. "So, we're safe to watch it!"

Arthur gave an uncertain look.

Later that afternoon, Arthur had just finished his tough math homework. He glanced at his clock-radio and saw that it was almost 4:00 PM, the time Terrific Turbo-Trooper Toy T-Bot Team was supposed to start. So, he got up and headed down the stairs and waited outside the den for D.W. to finish watching The Mary Moo-Cow Show. "If Buster says it's so great," Arthur said to himself out loud, "maybe I'll give it a shot. Maybe it really is a good show."

On the TV, Mary Moo-Cow was wrapping up her show with a cheery "Good-byyyyye!"

"Wow," D.W. commented when she saw Arthur. "Is it almost your TV time already? I thought 'Bubonic Bunny' wasn't on for a while."

"It's Bionic Bunny," Arthur corrected. "And I'm going to be watching a different show that starts right after your program." As he spoke, he took his seat on the couch. As the closing credits finished rolling and it showed Mary Moo-Cow riding off on a horse, D.W. gathered up a couple of her toys and left the room.

Arthur then changed the channel and sat back in the couch to watch Terrific Turbo-Trooper Toy T-Bot Team. The opening sequence along was very bright, fast-paced and violent, showing the Crimson and Emerald Bots fighting the two gangster whales. Arthur's eyes felt just a little exhausted by the time the opening ended with the series title.

21 minutes later, as the episode continued, Arthur was still watching the show, getting a little engrossed in the story. It wasn't anything special, but he admittedly wanted to find out how the plot would be resolved. But after some more really bright flashing imagery from an action-packed fight sequence between the T-Bots and the whales, Arthur began to feel dizzy and his head started to hurt. What happened next was not pretty; Arthur's eye pupils widened behind his glasses and he collapsed on the den rug, going into convulsions and making gibberish noises!

Arthur's mother Jane Read was coming out of the kitchen to get something from the den, and she heard Arthur's noises and called, "Arthur, what are you doing?" Among not getting a clear response, she entered the den, saw Arthur in his convulsions, and gasped in shock. "Honey!" she called out in fear. "Come quick! Arthur's having a seizure!"

As the father David Read ran from the kitchen to help, Mrs. Read noticed the show on the TV, quickly deduced that it caused Arthur's seizure, and turned it off. As she did, Arthur vomited right onto the den rug.

Mr. Read gasped in horror and said, "We have to get Arthur to the hospital! You get D.W., Kate and the car keys." He grabbed the twitching and convulsing Arthur from under his shoulders and got him on his feet, starting to walk him to their station wagon.

Mrs. Read began jogging up the stairs and called out, "D.W.! Come on, we have to take Arthur to the hospital! He's having a seizure!"

Among hearing that, D.W. let out a horrified gasp. Usually, she thought it was amusing when something bad would happen to her older brother, but nothing THIS bad. She was genuinely scared for Arthur. She clutched to her mother's legs in fear, who had just entered the room to take baby Kate out of her crib and fetch her baby bag.

Mrs. Read, D.W. and Kate hurried down the stairs and out the back door, through the back yard and to the driveway, just in time for Mrs. Read to help her husband lift Arthur into the station wagon, still twitching but not as badly as he was earlier, and he wasn't making any more noises.

"We'll call Grandma Thora once we reach the hospital," Mrs. Read said as she strapped D.W. and Kate into their car seats and buckled up the twitching Arthur. "She can get started on cleaning up the vomit in the den and check on how Pal's doing."

Dad started the car, and they backed out of the driveway and headed off to the Elwood City Hospital. By the time they started driving, Arthur had gone unconscious. But halfway through the drive, Arthur regained consciousness and was no longer suffering. He moaned a bit and asked, "Where am I? What's going on?"

D.W. gasped in delight among seeing Arthur stir. "Arthur!" she gleefully cried. "You're alive!"

"D.W…" Mrs. Read scoldingly said, not pleased with the word choice D.W. made. Then she sighed with relief and told Mr. Read, "Arthur's recovering. I think he'll be all right."

"What?" Arthur asked, noticeably out of it." "What's happening? Where are we going?"

Mrs. Read turned to Arthur and said, "You had a seizure, honey. We're going to the hospital."

Arthur let out his distinctive wheezy gasp. "HuUUUUUuuuuuuh!"

"Don't worry, Arthur," Mrs. Read reassured him. "You're going to be OK."

"Since you just recovered in the car," Mr. Read added, "the hospital visit shouldn't take very long at all."

"I don't remember having a seizure," Arthur said. "I know I was watching TV, and there were these really fast flashing things, and my head started to hurt… next thing I know, I'm here in the car."

"That's how it is with seizures," Mrs. Read explained. "You must've gotten it from watching that TV show."

Arthur let out a groan and glumly said, "Francine was right! The Terrific Turbo-Trooper Toy T-Bot Team show really IS dangerous!"

D.W. stuck out her tongue and said, "Blech! That show's even worse than 'Bubonic Bunny!'"

"You mean Bionic Bunny," Mr. Read corrected her.

"But why are we still heading to the hospital?" Arthur asked, still a little out of it. "I think I'm fine now."

"You're still a little out of it after your seizure," Mrs. Read explained. "But if all goes well, you should be all right in a while. We still want to have a doctor check on you."

Arthur moaned a bit at the prospect of that.

The Read family arrived at the Elwood City Hospital. Since Arthur had mostly recovered, they went to the main receptionists' desk instead of the emergency wing. When the receptionist at the desk saw Arthur, she asked, "Is everything all right? This boy looks pretty healthy to me."

"He just had a seizure," Mr. Read explained. "He recovered while we were driving him here, but we just want to make sure."

"You can all take a seat," the receptionist said. "A doctor shall meet with you all in a while."

After a bit of waiting, Arthur and his family were in a doctor's office, speaking with a female neurologist that had just performed a minor checkup on Arthur, concluding with testing his reflexes. Among seeing that Arthur's right leg instantly reacted to the reflex hammer, the neurologist nodded and spoke to all of them, "Well, it looks like Arthur is going to be just fine. There doesn't appear to be any lasting damage from his seizure. Even though he was able to recover quickly, you did the right thing in bringing him here."

Arthur remembered something Francine had said and pointed out, "But I thought I didn't have epilepsy. So why did I have the seizure?"

"Sometimes people and kids that don't have epileptic conditions can still be suspect to seizures," the doctor explained. "I've had to see two more kids that had seizures from watching that Terrific Turbo-Trooper Toy T-Bot Team show, as it does contain a lot of fast-paced flashing effects that can have a negative effect on the eyes and brain."

"Wow," D.W. said in shock and awe. "I hope Mary Moo-Cow doesn't have any of that. I'd hate to give up watching that show!"

With a chuckle, the neurologist said, "No, D.W. Mary Moo-Cow does not feature anything like that, and is a much safer show to watch than the T-Bot Team."

D.W. glanced at Arthur and teasingly said, "Maybe Arthur should start watching Mary Moo-Cow. It'd be a lot safer!"

Arthur, Mr. and Mrs. Read all scoldingly said "D.W.!" in unison, while the doctor just chuckled a bit.

"I would suggest not sitting too close to the TV," the doctor advised, "and make sure there is plenty of light."

"I was sitting on the couch," Arthur said, "and it was still light out, but no lights were on in the den."

"Well," the doctor suggested, "you could move the couch back a bit, and have a few extra lights on in the room when watching television."

Arthur smiled a bit. After the horrors of his experience, it felt good to get some helpful advice to prevent another seizure.

A little later, the Read family was driving home from the hospital. Mrs. Read turned towards Arthur and said, "I've thought it over, and from now on you are forbidden from watching that T-Bot Team show. D.W., you're also not allowed to watch it."

"That's OK, mom," Arthur said. "I didn't think I would really become a fan of that show. I'm sure Buster will understand."

"Mommy," D.W. asked, "are you and daddy gonna punish Arthur?"

Mrs. Read chuckled and replied, "No, D.W. What he did wasn't bad behavior or anything. People can't help it if they get seizures. But we do have to be careful and make sure Arthur doesn't have another seizure."

"Don't worry, mom," Arthur said. "At the rate I'm going, I doubt I'll ever have another seizure for a long time."

Mr. and Mrs. Read smiled at each other as they continued driving back to their home…

END