Masterpiece

Marvin returns to the cupboard wall where his family is worried sick about him. They remind Marvin about Uncle George, who went out one night to retrieve a piece of dry macaroni to use as a tuba and was eaten by a mouse. The beetles say they went looking for Marvin but couldn’t find him. Marvin relays that they couldn’t find him because he was on James’s desk.

Mama asks what Marvin was doing on the desk, and Marvin confesses to drawing the picture for James. The beetles are dismayed by this information, and their dismay turns into panic when Marvin reveals that James knows Marvin is the artist. Despite Marvin’s protests, the beetles decide the best thing to do is to retrieve the artwork and hope James forgets the whole thing. Marvin, his parents, Uncle Albert, Uncle Ted, and Elaine all set off for James’s room, deciding they must act quickly while the Pompadays are still at church.

In James’s room, the beetles marvel at Marvin’s art and agree that it’s a shame they must take it from James. The Pompadays arrive home from church. The beetles try to work quickly to lift and move the page, but it’s too late.