The Tale of the Shiny Red Bicycle

The Tale of the Shiny Red Bicycle
	Season 2 , Episode 10
Air date	August 28, 1993
Written by	Cassandra Schafhausen
Directed by	David Winning
	Episode guide
Previous; The Tale of the Full Moon	Next; The Tale of the Magician's Assistant

The Tale of the Shiny Red Bicycle is the Tenth episode of the Second season of Are You Afraid of the Dark?, as well as the Twenty-Third episode in total.

Cast[]

Midnight Society Cast[]

Story Cast[]

Matthew Edison as Mike Buckley
Jamieson Boulanger as Ben Buckley
Benjamin Shirinian as Ricky Hagerty
Mark Camacho as Leonard Buckley
Pauline Little as Ruth Buckley
Joanna Noyes as Mrs. Westwood
Amanda Strawn as Nurse
Jamie Elman (uncredited) as Mike's school friend

Intro[]

That evening four members of The Midnight Society, Frank, Kiki, Betty Ann and Gary are sitting around the campfire roasting marshmallows waiting for David and Kristen to show up. They show up together and Kristen apologizes for them being late. Gary apologizes to David for hearing that his bike got stolen and asks him if he's all right. David says he is and what can one do about it? Kiki says in a disgusted tone how anyone can steal a bike? Gary says yeah it's a like ripping off a part of somebody.

David tells them he's thought about all of that, because he was pretty mad that someone could take from him something that was so important to him. Because once you have the right bike, it's yours forever no matter who has it. Kristen then tells them that it's not a total loss, David has come up with a great story about it.

David explains that his story is about this kid who's bike meant so much to him, he took it with him everywhere he went, including his own grave. When hearing, Kiki, who was about to eat her roasted marshmallow seems a bit intrigued, and so does Frank. David submits his story for the Midnight Society, calling the story "The Tale of the Shiny Red Bicycle" and begins.

Story[]

David tells the story, The story begins with two young boys named Ricky Hagerty and Mike Buckley. They excitingly racing each other on their bikes along a road path, coming close a bridge near a waterfall dam. Just as they're ending their race a water dam employee routinely opens the floodgate to let some more water flow into the river. When they end their race, they stop to talk on a bridge. The bridge has a very poorly built wooden fence and the water has filled up massively into the river. They talk about how excited they are about fishing season coming soon. Also they joke about how they are better than each other.

Suddenly as they were busy talking, Ricky who was standing on his red bicycle against the fence accidentally pushes the single plank off. Then his shiny red bicycle falls into the river. Mike tries to save him by grabbing his hand but his hand slips! Then he tries to pull Ricky up by his backpack but it still doesn't work! Mike tells Ricky hold on hold on I go got you! As Ricky falls into the river Mike then yells " NO!". Then in a dark bedroom a teenager wakes up in a terrified shock yelling " RICKY!".

The teenager is Mike Buckley and it's now been five years later, and he still has nightmares about what happened. Mike's younger brother Ben asks him if he is okay. Then after seeing Mike is sweating and in shock, he can guess that he's had another nightmare. They go back to sleep for the rest of the night.

The next morning at breakfast, Mike's Dad can see that Mike is so tired, that he is about to fall asleep right at the table. His mom asks him if he is all right. Mike tells them he is okay, that he just had a bit of trouble sleeping. Ben then tells their parents that Mike had another nightmare. Their parents seem pretty concerned because it's happened a lot now. Their dad tells him he can stop blaming himself for Ricky's death. Mike tells his dad that he was there and he had a chance to save him but he could not. Their mom tells him they loved Ricky so much almost like he was one of the family. Then his dad tells he's got to stop blaming himself for Ricky's death. Then if he does the nightmares will go away.

Then Mike is seen about to enter school for the day with classmate of his. They were busy talking when suddenly, Mike looks over to one of the school's Bike racks. There he can see Ricky's Shiny Red Bicycle. When Mike sees it he has a traumatizing flashback to when Ricky fell into the river, and his young voice is heard the background saying "Hold on Ricky!". His friend comes back to get him, seeing him standing, staring in complete awe. So he asks him if he's all right. Mike looks again and the bike that was there is now a completely different bike. now he is about to ask his friend if he just saw it, but then tells him to forget it and they head to class.

When they're in their class, their teacher Mrs. Westwood is discussing John F. Kennedy and Apollo 11, and the first men on the moon. Then the teacher can see Mike is daydreaming and not paying attention. She asks Mike if he is paying attention and if anything is wrong. He tells her he is and she tells him just to pay attention more.

Then suddenly a quiet whispering voice comes into the classroom saying "Mike.. Mike.. Mike..". Then at the classroom door, is the ghost of Ricky Hagerty! Ricky looks soaked and freezing cold, and slighting shinning. Ricky almost walking in to reach for him. Mike freaks out saying " Look it's Ricky! it's Ricky! it's Ricky! Then he begins to stand up, knocking over his desk. He then backs away in the shock. His classmates and teacher, all try to help and he collapses.

Next he is seen being treated by the school nurse. The nurse asks Mike who Ricky is, and he tells her he was a friend. The nurse asks him if they had a fight. Mike tells the nurse he was just a friend. The nurse still asks him why he was a friend, wondering if they had a fight, and if some conflict was going on. He tells the nurse that Ricky is dead because he drowned. Then after thinking for a moment, she remembers it was the Hagerty boy that was in the news.

The nurse gives Mike an Ice pack to rub on his neck. Since he may have hurt himself when he fell down collapsed. Then the nurse asks him if still has a hard time dealing with Ricky's death. Mike says yes because every now and then he keeps having nightmares about Ricky's death, and in the dreams he's always trying to save Ricky's life, but he cannot. So he keeps dreaming that he will have one dream where he'll finally be able to. Then he tells the nurse that nobody ever found Ricky's body. The nurse tells him that even when he does have the good dream, where he saves him, it won't change the fact that he is dead.

Mike then tells her that Ricky isn't gone. because he's saw him that day. The nurse is shocked when he tells her this. Then he tells her he's not feeling well. The nurse gives him permission to go home early, because she thinks these dreams are being brought on from stress and lack of sleep. Then he can hear Ricky calling him in a whispering tone. Mike looks outside and sees Ricky standing with his shiny red bicycle. Then he vanishes and only the bicycle is there.

Mike looks around saying that it's him. Then he seeing Ricky sitting down and he backs away scared. Then suddenly the nurse reappears in place. Then his dad drives him home. First they go too see their family doctor, and he is advised to rest and relax all weekend. So he will miss the first day of fishing season. Mike complains that he never missed the first day of the season before. Not even when Ricky when still alive. Then suddenly he sees what appears to be a kid in gray hooded sweater with blue jeans. The kid is riding right by them on a shiny red bicycle!

Mike insists his dad drive after the person, to prove to his dad that he's not going crazy. And that it's Ricky riding the bike. When they stop the car, Mike is surprised to find out that it's not Ricky on the bike. Then when the hood of the sweater is pulled down it's revealed to be a young girl. She was just coincidentally riding the same kind of bike and wearing the same kind of clothes. Mike's dad is fed up and brings him home right now to get some rest.

Then at home, his mom reveals that he does have a bit of a fever. So he is left at home to rest while they go out to the movies. But and his younger brother stays behind to keep him company. His brother is kind of discouraged that he won't be joining him to go fishing the next day. Mike is upset about it too, he had been going there since he was 10. Ben asks Mike if he really saw Ricky. Mike confines in him that he did, but no one believes him. Now everyone think he is going crazy. Ben says he believes him. Then since Mike isn't really sick, they make a plan to wake him up after their mom and dad go out grocery shopping the next morning.

However that night Mike has another nightmare. During the nightmare he wakes up thinking Ben is up. Then door swings right open and Ricky is there echoing in whispering tone "Mike.. Mike.. Mike.. Mike". Ricky keeps walking closer and closer to the bed to reach him. The Mike wakes up terrified and sleeps in the next day.

Then next morning, their dad finds Ben awake trying to wake Mike up to go fishing while their parents go grocery shopping. Then their dad insists on giving Ben a ride on the way to the grocery store. When Mike wakes up not too soon afterwards, he can hear "Mike Mike it's Ricky come out!". Mike is fed up, so he gets dressed and finally decides to go outside and embrace him, He says that if he want him, then he can have him!

Their dad drops Ben off at the lake where Ben meets up with two of his friends. The two friends aren't too nice and one of them is very rude and mouthy. On the way to the river the rude one points out the bridge. It has now been reinforced and given a danger sign. He asks him if that was where his brother's friend got killed. Ben tells him he doesn't want to hear anything more about Ricky and they go fishing.

Mike runs outside, spinning around in circles. He calls out Ricky, saying that he is there and asks him where he is. Suddenly Ricky shows up and telling him he is here. Mike responds in shock as to why he would just show up, and asks him want he wants. He touches Ricky as he tries to talk to him, and he feels freezing cold.

Then back at the river Ben accidentally knocks over his rude friends drink. He apologizes saying that it was an accident. The rude friend then takes one of Ben's lures and throws it into the shallow part of the river. When asked why he did it, the rude friend sarcastically says "oh another accident". So Ben climbs down into the river to get it back.

Back outside the house Mike pleads with Ricky telling him that he was sorry, and that he tried to saved him, but he just couldn't. Ricky then tells Mike he won't hurt him because Mike is his best friend. The reason he came was to warn Mike that something horrible is about to happen to his younger brother Ben. Ricky says he is in danger and he tried to warn him the other day at school. He tells Mike he must go to him before it's too late, and he's at the bridge "his bridge" to be exact.

Then back at the river after Ben climbs down near the waterfall to get his lure, and his foot gets stuck between two rocks and he can't get it out. Ricky lends Mike his Shiny Red Bicycle Mike. He gratefully thanks him and tells Ricky that he misses him. Ricky tells him that he misses Mike too. Also to hurry because it's a long ride and they don't want Ben on their "side" just yet.

Ben calls for help but his two friends don't answer. This because they either can't hear him or because they don't care. Mike rides over to the lake on the bike at full speed. Then just as he gets there, a water dam employee prepares to open the dam to let more water come in.

Mike is about to climb down into the river, then he see's the now reinforced repaired fence. Now he has another brief traumatizing flashback. He can hear his younger self saying "No! Ricky!". Finally he shakes it off and runs down. Mike helps free and save his brother just in time, as the water comes rushing in. It is revealed that Ben has either sprained or broken his ankle. When they climb back out, in a slow surprising shock Mike finds Ricky's shiny red bicycle, but now it is all rusty. Except for the wheels and the pedals, and the back wheel is all bent out of shape.

Ending[]

Then as the story ends, David says that the very next day a fisherman found the remains of Ricky Hagerty. No one could ever figure out why it took so many years to find them. Mike Buckley would tell you because he wasn't even down there. Not until he could pay back an old favor to the one who tried to save his life. Everyone seemed satisfied with David's story and Gary pours the bucket of water onto the fire and declares their meeting officially closed.

A different bicycle was used in each scene, making a total of five.
Mark Camacho had previously appeared in the series before in the episode "The Tale of the Nightly Neighbors" as The Delivery Man.
Pauline Little previously appeared in the series before in the episode "The Tale of the Lonely Ghost" as Aunt Dottie. Then after this episode she appeared again as The Librarian in the episode the "The Tale of Prisoners Past".
Mark Camacho and Pauline Little, who play the parents, are married in real life.
Amanda Strawn who portrayed the nurse in this episode, later reappeared two more times. The second time was in the episode "The Tale of the Chameleons" as Mrs. Robinson. Then the third time was in the series revival's episode "The Tale of the Night Nurse" as Emily's Mother.
Jamie Elman who made an uncredited appearance as a student in "The Tale of the Sorcerer's Apprentice" made his second uncredited appearance as Mike's school friend in this episode.
Four years after this aired, Ross Hull co-starred with Jamie Elman as best friends Chris Sheppard and Cody Miller in the TV show Student Bodies.
Jamieson Boulanger became somewhat better known, a couple of years later for his portrayal of Cousin Eddie in the television series "My Home Town".
Jodie Resther would go on to co-star in the children's show Arthur with Mark Camacho and Joanna Noyes. (Jodie went to go on to voice Francine, Mark would go on to voice Francine’s father “Oliver”, and Joanna voiced Arthur’s Grandma “Thora”.)
Director David Winning has said this was one of favorites to work on, because of the depth of the story.

The Tale of the Shiny Red Bicycle
Season 2 , Episode 10

Air date	August 28, 1993
Written by	Cassandra Schafhausen
Directed by	David Winning
Episode guide
Previous The Tale of the Full Moon	Next The Tale of the Magician's Assistant