Sympathy for the Squishy

"Okay, this seems like a quad thing."

- Anne to Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn

 is the fifth episode in Season 4 of Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn and the seventy-third overall. It first aired on February 3, 2018 to 1.08 million viewers.

Synopsis
Nicky's excuse for being tardy starts the Harper Quads down a dangerous road of playing on people's sympathies that threatens to ruin their reputation at school.

Full Plot
It's time for breakfast. Every quad is stressed with their own problems. Dawn can't sleep because she really wants to get a solo at the Glee Club but Ms. Tassinari always gives the solo to Brooklyn. Ricky's big problem is that he didn't score 100% on a test. Dicky doesn't know how to get Taylie to talk to him. He's been trying to talk to her by not talking to her. And Nicky's problem is how to get from second period to third period in time. He calls it the Boulder-Dash: the longest distance between any two points in the school. He never makes it in time and if he's tardy one more time, Mr. Wigglesworth is going to give him detention. His siblings are quick to point out that he might be able to run faster if he didn't always carry a bag of food ingredients and a heavy iron cooking pan. He dismisses them.

After the second period, Nicky runs as fast as he can to get to Mr. Wigglesworth class. Unfortunately, the bell rings when he's just a few steps away from the door. Mr. Wigglesworth is about to give him detention when Nicky gets a text message saying that Squishy Paws had another "accident" (because the quads didn't walk the dog). When Nicky reads that out loud, Mr. Wigglesworth assumes that it's an actual accident and starts feeling bad for Nicky. So, Nicky takes advantage of this and pretends that Squishy broke his legs and his tail and his heads. To help him look more convincing, Nicky looks inside his bag of onions, causing his eyes to start tearing.

When Sadie, Taylie and other girls hear about Squishy Paws, they all come to comfort Nicky. The other quads are shocked to find Nicky surrounded by girls crying about Squishy Paws? What happened to Squishy Paws, they ask. Nicky pulls his siblings around and explains that he made a little lie but it got out of control. They accuse him of sinking so low by using Squishy Paws like that. But he has no regrets because it saved him from detention and it's got girls all over him. So, Dicky decides to go with Nicky's story to finally get Taylie to talk to her. Taylie sympathizes with Dicky. When Ricky's science teacher comes over and gives Ricky his test back with a score of 99%, Ricky asks for a retake and uses the Squishy Paws excuse to convince the teacher to let him retake the test.

Dawn is disappointed in her brothers for using a fake Squishy Paws tragedy to get what they want. She reminds them that whenever they act selfish, she always ends up getting hurt. As a matter of fact, during Glee Club, Ms. Tassinari announces that she was finally going to give the solo to Dawn. However, because of Squishy Paws' tragedy, she doesn't want to put a lot of stress on Dawn. So, she's giving the solo to Brooklyn. Again. Dawn becomes even more upset at her brothers. She tells them how she literally just lost a solo because of their Squishy Paws tragedy. She gives them an ultimatum to tell everyone that Squishy Paws is getting better or else she will expose their lies and get them in more trouble.

Back at the Glee Club, Dawn finds Sadie and Kipper standing by Ms. Tassinari. They are the co-chairs of the Student Boosters Club. They inform her that Principal Noonan was so moved by the Squishy Paws story that she has asked the student boosters club to hold a fundraiser to raise money for Squishy Paws. Dawn is about to tell them to expect good news about Squishy when Ms. Tassinari and Brooklyn reveal that they want Dawn to do a solo during the fundraiser. That's all Dawn has ever wanted. This is her chance to finally get the solo. She can't let this go. So, she runs outside and stops her brothers from telling everyone that Squishy is better. Instead, they tell everyone that Squishy is getting worse.

They even claim that Squishy Paws has now developed a "woofing cough." Everyone knows that's not a thing until Principal Noonan says that her dog had woofing cough too. Mae and Miles quickly figure out that this is a "quad thing" (a big fat lie). They try to warn The Harper Quads against whatever they're planning. But the quads ignore them.

Things start taking the wrong turn when Principal Noonan asks them to bring Squishy Paws to the fundraiser event. So, on the morning before the fundraiser, the quads try to wrap Squishy Paws in bandages to make him look broken and sick. But it's not working. Anne asks them about the fundraiser at their school but they dismiss it as something for a stupid charity. While still trying to figure out how to carry Squishy Paws to school, their dad comes home carrying an electric dog that he had bought earlier to give Squishy Paws company if the quads don't spend time with him. The electric dog looks exactly like Squishy Paws. This gives the quads what they wanted. They bind it in bandages and carry it to school.

At the fundraiser, everyone is sad to see poor "Squishy Paws" all tied up in a full body cast. They bring over money and other valuable belongings to help with the charity event. The quads feel bad for letting it go this far but it's too late to stop now. To make things worse, Principal Noonan brings in a big group of little kids who generously bring money and valuable items to Squishy's cause. Some of the kids are Principal Noonan's children, Josephine and Grayson. This makes the quads feel even more guilty. But they're so close. Sadie and Kipper take over the stage as the co-chairs of the Student Body Boosters Club to introduce Dawn to perform her solo.

Just before Dawn can perform her solo, Tom and Anne enter the auditorium, to help contribute to the charity. Tom is carrying Squishy Paws. The real Squishy Paws. Boom! The quads are busted.

As part of their punishment, Principal Noonan makes the Harper Quads give baths to dogs for anyone who wants their dogs washed. Her kids, Grayson and Josephine bring in their big scary dog for the quads to wash. The quads have clearly learned their lesson.

Main Cast

 * Lizzy Greene as Dawn Harper
 * Casey Simpson as Ricky Harper
 * Mace Coronel as Dicky Harper
 * Aidan Gallagher as Nicky Harper
 * Allison Munn as Anne Harper
 * Brian Stepanek as Tom Harper
 * Kyla Drew Simmons as Mae Valentine

Recurring Cast

 * Theodore Barnes as Miles
 * Sidney Floyd as Brooklyn
 * Ariana Molkara as Sadie
 * Miles Elliot as Kipper

Minor Cast

 * Rena Strober as Ms. Tassinari
 * Zachary Friedman as Snotty Scotty
 * Michael Goodman as Cash

Guest Cast

 * Tessa Bella as Taylie
 * Rose Abdoo as Principal Sarah Noonan
 * Carsyn Rosenbaum as Josephine Noonan
 * Evan Whitten as Grayson Noonan
 * Felice Heather Monteith as Ms. Balboa
 * Paul Vogt as Mr. Wigglesworth

Continuity

 * This was the second episode where Nicky's cooking class is mentioned. The first time is in This Little Piggy Went to the Harpers.
 * Dicky's love for girls is seen for the first time in Season 4.
 * Dawn being in Glee Club is seen and mentioned in this episode. Dawn joined Glee Club in Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & BeyDawncé.
 * This was the first episode since The Buffa-Lowdown where Dicky is seen hitting on girls.
 * This was Kipper's first appearance since the episode, Dude, Where's My School?.

Trivia

 * Dicky and Nicky's pairing is seen in this episode.
 * Kipper returns in this episode.
 * The principal of Boulder Academy is revealed to be a woman named Sarah Noonan. She has a similar name to one of the staff writers, Andrew Newman.
 * The Spring Sing is based off of a Spring Concert.
 * Cash and Snotty Scotty are seen walking but don't have any lines in the episode.