Summary[]
Sheriff Andy Taylor must decide whether to intervene or let the problem work itself out when a bully demands Opie's milk money at school.
Plot[]
Andy discovers that Opie is getting extra money for school. When he questions Opie and
The Bully Collecting Money
doesn't get a real answer, Barney sees a chance to put his detective skills to use in order to get to the bottom of it. He trails Opie to school one morning and discovers that Opie is being threatened into giving up his nickel every day by a bully named Sheldon. Despite Barney's insistence that he intervene, Andy decides to let Opie handle the situation himself. Andy explains that Opie has to learn to stand up for himself, even if the consequences might be a little painful. Later, Opie and Andy are fishing. Andy tells Opie the story of his encounter with a bully named Hoadie Snitch. It turns out that Hoadie followed Andy, when he was a boy about Opie's age, to his secret fishing spot. He demanded that Andy never fish there again. Andy explains how he stood up for himself, even though the results were painful. This gives Opie the courage to stand up to his own bully.
Notes/Trivia[]
- The picture of Andy and Opie fishing (seen below) is on the DVD cover for Season 1 of The Andy Griffith Show.
- This episode showcases the updated Courthouse/Jail set, which now includes a window, chair, and a heater next to the jail cells. The old side door is gone, as well as the wall candles. The wall near Barney's filing cabinet has also been extended to include a new radio stack.
- When Opie recites to the bully what he will do to him if he tells anyone, the order seems to be reversed of what would happen in reality: “first, you’ll pulverize me, then you’ll knock my block off, then you’ll give me the old one-two, then you’ll jump on me”.
- This episode features one of the most moving examples of the love between father and son in the series. When Opie is talking to Andy before heading to school, and is trying to muster the courage to confront the bully, Andy literally lifts him up, and with just this expression of affection, and without words, does just that.
Goofs[]
Music[]
Quotes[]
Andy: "Aunt Bee, you are a bird in this world."
Opie: "You sure you didn't even feel it?"
Gallery[]
