I'm kicking off a new recurring post series here: Character Spotlight Sundays. Every Sunday, I'll spotlight a different character. This is a feature that I'd love it if others can jump in. If there is a character you'd like to spotlight, do not hesitate to email [email protected] or contact me otherwise. When doing email, please put the title of this series somewhere in the subject or it will be deleted.

First Appearance: "Arthur Plays the Blues"

Most Recent Appearance: "Arthur Unravels"

Occupation: Arthur's piano teacher, substitute chorus teacher, proclaimed knitter


Dr. Frederique Fugue is a very musically talented dog that appears on the Arthur series. He has a wide variety of musical capabilities, including playing and teaching piano, singing, and teaching chorus, along with the added bonus of being pitch perfect. His ear for music is top-notch, to the point where he will not accept any out of tune pitches.

Dr. Fugue pushes each and every one of his students to their utmost capability, and often to even more than that. He "fires" his piano students on a regular basis, by giving up teaching them because they are hopeless.

Though we don't know much about Dr. Fugue's early life, it can be assumed that he was, at some level, a young music prodigy. He participated in a chorus when he was young, one that ended up performing at Carnegie Hall.It can also be assumed, based on his remarks, that he attended Yale University, obviously studying music while there.

Fugue does, however, have some "bad" record, so to speak, considering the fact that he admits that he used to lip-synch while in college. This does really help to show some inspiration for Fugue's strictness, that the reason he is so strict may be because he was not much of a rule-follower during his school career.

Dr. Fugue doesn't seem to have any relatives appearing on the show. He is a single man who seems to live a somewhat solemn life.

On the contrary, Fugue does seem to have some partiality to animals. He has multiple pets, including Fur Elise, his cat named after the song by Ludwig Van Beethoven, and also Tosca, his parrot, also musically named.

The final question to be asked is what exactly Dr. Fugue brings to the Arthur world. Why do we like (or hate) him? For one, Fugue brings a very strict personality to Arthur, though that isn't much different than some of the other teachers on Arthur. The thing that makes Dr. Fugue stick out is that he is a music perfectionist. He is the character that combines that musical capability with that strictness, something that is always fun to watch.

Recently we found the episode names for the remainder of Season 16, with no plots or airdates. In light of this fact, I decided to write my own little plot summaries based on what I think the second half may hold:

PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE EPISODE SUMMARIES ARE NOT OFFICIAL

The Last Tough Customer: The Tough Customers decide that they are in need of a final member to make their club even tougher. But in the huge amount of students at Lakewood, who could they choose that fits the bill?

Brain's Chess Mess: Brain signs up for an Elwood City chess tournament. But under the pressure of facing the top players in town, he begins putting in lots of extra practice, which makes him extremely nervous to the point that he can't even think about anything else.

Baseball Blues: New student Ladonna joins the baseball team, but how can the rest of the team break to her that she's terrible at the sport?

Brain's Biggest Blunder: Brain is faced with the pressure of being the only person qualified to be on the Lakewood Elementary trivia quiz team. But when he doesn't deliver during the winning question, will the team ever forgive him?

Buster's Book Battle: Mr. Ratburn assigns his class a book report on an assigned novel. But which will get the better of Buster - his upcoming project or the TV?

On the Buster Scale: A checkup at the doctor's office reveals that Buster is has gained too much weight since his last visit. Though no one else sees an issue, concerned Mrs. Baxter insists on cutting junk food out of Buster's diet, and putting more exercise in.

Fern and the Case of the Stolen Story: Fern writes a story to be published in the local junior writer's magazine. When she reads the magazine and finds that another person submitted a story with the same plot as hers, she is forced to prove that her story was original, with her clean reputation and future career on the line.

Sue Ellen Vegges Out: When Sue Ellen begins slacking on her homework in favor of writing narratives about her past travels, she must face and explain the situation to Mr. Ratburn, her friends, and worst of all, her parents.

So Funny I Forgot to Laugh: In an attempt to become more popular, Arthur takes up joke telling. He soon finds that his friends begin avoiding him and his terrible jokes.

The Best Day Ever: Field trip day is supposed to be the best day of the year, but when George goes missing, the field trip is delayed...and possibly canceled.

Click here to discuss this article on the Elwood City Central Forum.

As most readers probably know, Season 16 of Arthur will be coming out on October 15. However, there is something extremely unique that we are noticing early on in the previews and summaries of this season, and it is that the Tough Customers could be put back into the larger role they once had.

The immediate thing to notice here is the fact that two Tough Customers are set to appear that haven't appeared in ages, Kieper and the unnamed brown dog. It is really nice to see these characters, as they seem to have been forgotten over time. An interesting thought to bring up is this: might the unnamed brown dog get a name this season? It could be possible. But only time will tell.

Also note the absence of Slink in this scene. Slink has become a Tough Customers staple since around season six, so it's weird to find him not with the gang. However we do have evidence of a possible Slink appearance. On his Facebook page, Bruce Dinsmore (who voices Binky), noted that he recorded a song with Michael Yarmush, who is the original performer of Arthur. Yarmush still voices Slink, so it would make sense that the two might perform some sort of song together, being that they are both Tough Customers.

Now this isn't a lot of proof that the Tough Customers are going to have a major role this season until we look further. One of the future episodes that will be airing later on (after October) is called "The Last Tough Customer." No summary has been released of this episode, but it is obviously involving the Tough Customers. At this point we can only speculate as to the plotline in this episode, but there could even be a slight chance that it involves the reuniting of the entire group, or even a new Tough Customer.

The fact that they actually brought back two original members implies that this might be a big year for the bully group. Only time will tell, but the song, the episode title, and the character bringing back says that they will.

Click here to discuss this article on the Elwood City Central forum.

Hello, Arthur fans! Welcome to Elwood City Central, an Arthur fansite. We are really excited about this site, as it will be a way for all Arthur fans to come together and celebrate the series.

We have multiple sections on this site. The main one is this section, our blog, in which we will detail news, reviews, and all sorts of stuff related to the Arthur series. We would love for the fans to contribute to this section, and you can find out how by visiting the Contact Us section of this site. Posts should be coming in frequently, so be sure to check back often.

Another part of the site is the forum. The forum is a great place to talk about everything Arthur related. Feel free to create an account and talk about the franchise.

We hope that you enjoy this new chapter in the Arthur fandom!