Yay, a Wilhelmina story! She's lamenting that she always loses the ozberry pie eating contest to the Hungry Tiger. (This is actually a big ambition of yours, Wilhelmina?) But Wilhelmina has a plan to get that trophy into her empty trophy case: She has a spell that can transfer the Hungry Tiger's appetito to Lyman for twenty-four hours. As Lyman is a big fan of ozberry pies, this plan really appeals to him! The Hungry Tiger, meanwhile, feels a little guilty about winning every year, but the Scarecrow compares it to him in a thinking contest, so the Hungry Tiger feels better. At least he has enough self-control to not eat everything—and everyone!—in sight. But when Lyman shakes his paw, all of a sudden he's not terribly hungry any more. The contest starts, and Lyman starts eating pies like nobody's business. This includes the other contestants' pies, which gets his closest neighbor, the Cowardly Lion, all upset. So yes, Lyman wins the contest and the trophy, and Wilhelmina does a little victory dance. Unfortunately, Lyman can't stop eating! No more pies? He goes after the ants' crumbs. While Wilhelmina's bragging and Dorothy is observing how Lyman got an appetite at almost the exact time the Hungry Tiger lost his, Lyman is flying around eating just about everything in a nearby food shop—and he's still hungry! He empties an ice cream cart, eats the Munchkin mayor's hoagie, chases away some ducks to get their bread crumbs, and generally makes an even bigger nuisance of himself than usual. Without the Hungry Tiger's conscience, if Lyman isn't stopped, he'll eat all the food in Oz! Sure enough, after clearing out the Emerald City, Lyman heads north to the forest of the sandwich trees, which he rapidly defoliates, Dorothy and the gang arriving just a little too late to stop him. A baked goods factory? Lyman just lets the conveyor belts drop cakes and pastries into his mouth. The Lollipop Gild are soon holding just sticks. Dorothy finally manages to corner him at a Munchkin family's home where Lyman not only goes through the entire salad, he starts eating through the walls! Lyman then eats an entire catch of fish from a group of Munchkin fishermen, and then he finally makes it to Wilhelmina's castle. Dorothy and the guys arrive just in time for Wilhelmina to desperately ask for their help. She's so desperate, in fact, that she confesses to cheating in the ozberry pie eating contest. A cookie jar full of Ozma's lemon witcheroos is enough to lure Lyman into a cupboard, where they hold him long enough for the spell to wear off, and he has had enough food for a long time. Good thing, says Wilhelmina, he didn't find her secret stash of extra special witch treats. At that, the Hungry Tiger bursts in, extra ravenous not having eaten for twenty-four hours, bursts in and eats Wilhelmina's stash.
Yes, Wilhelmina is back and not, for once, being overshadowed by her auntie. (The Wicked Witch doesn't appear at all, in fact.) I actually like Wilhelmina as a character, but her longing for recognition takes some really odd turns once in a while. I mean, why does she want a pie-eating trophy? And if she wants it so bad, why doesn't she just bestow the Hungry Tiger's appetite onto herself? Still, the situation is actually a lot funnier with Lyman getting it, and in the end that's all it needs to be. It's straightforward, it's funny, the good guys win and the bad guys get their comeuppance—although apparently Wilhelmina still gets to keep the trophy!
Next week, another debut of a classic character from the books: Polychrome!
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