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The Riddle of Alan is the 24th episode of the animated series. It introduces another tribe of Manjis that behave differently from Tribal Bob's tribe and are never seen again.

Plot[]

In "Jumanji" Peter tries to retrieve a jewel from a plant, but Alan doesn't let him as he thinks its too dangerous. Later, in Brantford, Peter is disgruntled as he feels Alan was treating him like a baby and he doesn't want to see him again, or play "Jumanji", but Judy drags him upstairs and rolls getting the clue "find the truth so long concealed, when the hidden face has been revealed" and the two get sucked into "Jumanji".

There they encounter a giant armadillo and a Grizzly Bear that attacks them but is distracted by the giant armadillo which allows them to escape, leaving Peter wondering where Alan is, since they usually find him as soon as they enter "Jumanji". When the kids search for Alan, no matter where they look they can't find him anywhere including his treehouse, Judy starts to believe that perhaps something happened to him as "Jumanji" is such a dangerous place.

Judy decides that perhaps their clue indicates the Ruins of the Faceless Statue and the two head for the ruins. Along the way Peter breaks down, thinking as he said he never wanted to see Alan again, "Jumanji" took him up on his words and now they might never see him again. They get attacked by Van Pelt and are forced to jump into a nearby river and are swept over a waterfall.

A Snake tries to attack them, but when Judy yells at it, it gets scared and leaves and the two find themselves near the ruins. Apparently the faceless statue is that of "Jumanji" itself, but before they can investigate, the Manjis and Tribal Bob show up. The Manjis consider it sacred ground and trespassing has earned Judy and Peter a terrible fate. Peter tries to convince the Manjis not to kill them and they agree only to take off their fingernails when lightning suddenly strikes and a mysterious creature appears, causing the Manjis to retreat with fright, leaving only their spears. Judy and Peter find that the stage beast is actually Alan, but while he's wearing metal claws and an animal head and seems to have no memory of who he is. The two have to save him from a Pod and teach him to swing on vines again.

Back at his treehouse, Alan has a bad dream about being a monster and the next day he doesn't seem to be getting any better so Judy decides that they have to go to where Alan was before he lost his memory and find out what happened. Heading back to the ruins, they find an old steamship, the "Jumanji" Queen and decide to use it to go upriver. On the way, a little of Alan's memory returns and he recognizes some of the shore a bit, but all he knows is that he was doing something connected to his clue. He also seems to regain at least a few memories of being a kid as when he's reminded of Brantford, he remembers he was a kid growing up there. An animal apparently gets into the boat and eats their food, so they're forced to go ashore.

Questioning Alan some more, he remembers some Manjis, but one of the ropes they're using to pull the boat breaks and it starts to go down-river, dragging Alan with it, but Judy manages to stop it and secure the boat by tying the rope to a tree. Peter wakes up in the middle of the night suddenly having to go to the bathroom and finds Alan untying the boat which sends it downriver again. The boat goes over some rocks and is destroyed, but the three make it safely ashore and Alan has no memories of his actions.

Judy figures Alan was likely sleep-walking as he was so scared he's unconsciously trying to sabotage the trip. Another of Alan's memories is triggered and he reveals that he came up the river as an old Manji legend says there's a spot at the head of the river where the truth can be found and he was hoping the truth he'd find would be his clue, but his memory of what he found doesn't return. At the head of the river, they get caught by Manjis and taken to a place where the faceless statue has a face: Alan Parish. It appears Alan himself created "Jumanji" but Alan's memories are still gone and he doesn't know how. The Manjis believe to end the game they must kill Alan, saying he escaped once before but they have him this time. The three manage to escape and climb up the cliff where the monument is. Doing so causes Alan's memory of him telling Peter he it was too dangerous for him to come back and he apologizes.

Investigating the face, they find machinery inside and Peter detaches the parts attached to the eyes. The two realize that the machinery is some kind of hypnotic device that made Alan think he was "Jumanji" and its just another one of the game's tricks. They realize the machinery is the real hidden face and their clue is solved. Judy and Peter return home leaving Alan, who confirms his memories are coming back, behind, still not remembering who they are.

Continuity[]

  • Even though Van Pelt appears in this episode, he says nothing, making it the only time in the animated series he appears without saying a word.
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