I can't believe I'm actually holding it.
Commander Canada number 43.
First appearance of his maple syrup blasters!
And it's ours.
So how do we do this?
Is it like a joint custody thing where I get it on weekends?
'Cause obviously, you get it for more time 'cause you paid for it,
but I wanna be a part of its life too, you know?
I'll help you care for it.
It's not a baby, Mason.
Oh, but it is, Sam.
It's our baby.
You're an idiot.
Oh, hey, guys.
Tommy.
What are we up to today?
Give it back!
Commander Canada?
Seriously?
You can't read it, it's mint!
It's mint?
Now it's pave-mint.
No!
Thanks, man.
-Oh.
I wish Commander Canada would send that guy to another dimension.
I'm sorry, man.
I know how much that comic meant to you, and your dad.
Gee, I can't believe it's been almost a year--
Can we not talk about it?
Yeah, sorry, sorry. I didn't--
It's all good.
Sam?
Sorry.
I was at the store with Mason, and we just...
I, I just lost track of time.
Sam, I, I told you I wanted us to start having dinners again.
We need to get back to some kind of normal.
I don't wanna be normal.
Stop trying to make me forget him.
I'm not trying to make you forget.
But I'm, I'm still here.
And, and this, us, moving on?
It's more important than some old comic book.
It was dad's favorite.
Sam...
No, no, no, no, no, I've had enough of wet comics today.
No, no, no.
No, no, no, no.
This is not my room.
Where am I?
I'm in a picture with Tommy Munson?
These aren't my clothes.
What's going on?
You're up.
Oh, honey, are you feeling okay?
That's my boy.
I told 'em you'd bounce right back.
My boy...
The doctor said you might be confused about some things.
Yeah. It's, it's just a minor concussion.
-No big deal. -After you went in for the header.
Header? Like, as in soccer?
Sam, you were All-State last year.
No. No, I, I was in my treehouse, and...
Treehouse?
I don't live here.
-Should we call the doctor?
No, he said it might not come back all at once.
Maybe we should just try to jog his memory.
See, champ?
You shot that birdie on the 18th hole?
I, um...
I think I just need to lay down again.
-Sure. -Oh.
Okay.
Can I help you?
Very funny, Mom.
Hey... hey, excuse me?
Look, I'm sorry for being a jerk yesterday,
but you didn't have to prank me like that.
That really freaked me out.
Do I know you?
Yeah. You're my mom,
this is our house,
our stuff,
our tree...
house.
Jenny? Everything all right?
Dad?
-Dad!
He thinks I'm his mom.
Hey, buddy, if you're lost, we can call your parents.
You are my parents!
I think we should call the police.
Yeah, maybe.
Why are you doing this?
Okay, I'm getting the phone.
What is happening?
What do you want?
Do you know who I am?
-Yeah, you're Sam.
Oh, thank God.
Why are you at my house?
Because we're best friends?
Oh, okay. Funny.
You and Tommy don't punk me enough at school,
-so now you gotta come to my house? -Wait, wait. Tommy?
Yeah, you and your alpha bro Tommy Munson.
What, is he gonna come jumping out of the bushes now?
Mason, listen to me.
I was in my treehouse, and there was this storm, and lightning,
and all of a sudden I'm here... and my dad's alive.
Cool, good luck with that.
Wait! We've been best friends since kindergarten.
-Uh-huh. -We made up our own secret language.
-Let go of the door! -I know about the mayonnaise incident!
Yeah, and you still sleep with your stuffed cat, Saint Jerome.
You gag when you smell licorice,
and you have a weird belly button.
You fart when you're scared.
Mason, I think I'm in an alternate universe.
I really need your help, please.
Maybe the storm caused some kind of interdimensional rift.
There's plenty of examples in comics.
Actually, half of these are about interdimensional rifts.
But why give me another life?
Well, normally, when people wake up in other people's bodies,
it's 'cause they have to learn a lesson.
Like a bully waking up as a weakling.
Mason, we were the weaklings.
It was just an example.
There's something else.
Before I came over here, I sorta glitched.
What do you mean?
After I ran out,
I was standing on the sidewalk, and then everything got dark for a second.
All the trees were dead, and the houses were all old.
Like the Ontario Zone.
Exactly!
What does it mean?
I...
It means you're pretty much a goner.
What?
Well, if it's like the Zone,
you're gonna glitch more and more until you're stuck there forever.
Unless...
Uh, no. It's too crazy.
Mason, I guarantee you it's not too crazy.
Okay.
If the treehouse brought you in, maybe, just maybe, it can get you out.
But there's no treehouse in this universe.
Then you have to convince them to build one
before it's too late.
Like this, down...
There he is.
What are you doing?
Better vantage point?
Think he's seen us?
I think he saw us.
Where'd he go?
-Um, you wanna split up? -Go.
Can I help you?
How do you know where I work?
Oh, we know a lot of things.
Look, Dad. I, I mean, Andy. Uh...
I know how insane this is gonna sound,
but I come from a alternate universe where you're my dad and I--
Yeah, uh-huh. I really don't have time for this.
-Let's go. -You can't make us leave!
We're customers, we want wood! Lots of it!
Okay, this time, I really am gonna call the police.
You grew up in Grand Rapids!
Your first dog was a Dalmatian named Freckles.
You met mom, Jenny, at an ice cream parlor.
You always get a double scoop of Rocky Road.
And you're, you think golf is ridiculous.
Your favorite comic book is Commander Canada number 43, May 1988.
-Yeah. It's the first appearance... -First appearance...
...of the maple syrup blasters.
I was in the treehouse.
The one that you and me started building together.
And lightning hit the tree, it fell.
When I woke up, I was here.
Only, uh, I wasn't me.
That's... that's not possible.
But what if it was?
-I think that--
We think we need to rebuild it and get me back home.
Look, I gotta go.
Um... I understand if you don't believe me.
Come by the house tomorrow.
We'll talk.
Okay.
So, son, uh... your mom and I think maybe you should
stay home until you're better.
But I, uh...
I couldn't reach you all day.
I was worried sick.
Sorry, I was looking for birthday presents for you.
My birthday was two weeks ago.
Which means only 50 short shopping weeks till next year.
And I talked to Tommy's mom.
She said he hasn't heard from you.
Oh, uh...
Right. Tommy.
Me and Tommy. Buddy-buddy.
I have an idea.
Why don't you invite Tommy to the lake with us this year?
That'd be too much fun.
You remember last summer at the lake with Lolo?
She was so excited to get there, she could barely wait for us to park.
-Mm-hmm.
She headed straight down the pier and jumped right into the water!
Lolo. Uh...
Lolo loves the lake.
-She's been going her whole life.
Of course, dinners are always a little interesting.
I know, right?
Always begging for table scraps.
Crazy Lolo.
Table scraps?
I know I shouldn't feed her under the table.
But she's so cute!
Son, Lolo's your grandmother.
And our dog's a boy.
Obviously!
Everyone's talking about my bad memory.
You guys forgot how funny I am!
That, that was a good one, son.
You think this is all a dream?
Part of me wants to wake up in my own room.
But then, I wouldn't get to see my dad tomorrow.
Seeing you wouldn't be so bad either, I guess.
For the record, you look like a Lolo.
It is a pretty sweet spot for a treehouse.
We finished the last one in two days.
Well, except for the roof.
We didn't finish that part.
Why didn't we finish it?
Um...
I guess we just kinda lost interest.
Hmm.
Andy?
Can I talk to you for a second?
Yeah.
It's fine.
You're not seriously considering building a treehouse?
I mean... you don't believe him, right?
He knew things about me only a, a son would know about his father.
So, yeah, I believe it's possible.
I've read about people who've had these same experience...
Yeah, Andy, in comic books.
Look...
I wanna help this kid too, but this?
This, it's--
Crazy. I know.
Look. The way I see it, if he's right, we're helping a kid get back to his life.
And if he's wrong...
We're helping a lonely kid feel better.
We even get a nice treehouse out of the deal.
All right, well, what are we standing around here for?
-Let's go to the lumberyard.
All right, if we're gonna be building a treehouse,
we're probably gonna need to fuel up.
-Anybody hungry? -Oh, ooh!
There's this great diner we used to go to, uh, by the lumberyard.
Hot Betty's?
Yeah, they have the best...
...chocolate chip pancakes.
-Yeah, look at that. -Yeah.
Sam?
-I've been trying to call you, man. -Oh, Tommy.
-Thought we were gonna go golfing. -Yeah, um...
I'm not really into golfing anymore.
Comic books are way cooler.
But, uh, have fun!
Anybody like ice cream?
-I do. -Yeah! I knew it, come on.
See if we have enough.
Okay...
-Six, yeah. Perfect. -Okay.
Thirsty?
Yes.
-He's having the time of his life.
He never had another big kid to play with in this universe.
How come you guys never had kids?
We talked about it.
Something we always wanted to do, you know, one day.
So, in this other universe, what kind of mom am I?
I mean, you're a great mom.
The best.
I don't tell you enough.
Or her, I guess.
I'm sure we both know, even if you don't remember to tell us.
Well, I'm obviously the world's greatest dad.
Yeah, actually.
-Oh!
-Okay. -Okay, here come the dad move.
Old-school, shimmy, yes.
-The shimmy shimmy.
-Oh, my God. -Oh, guys,
-we still got a little work to do.
-Sam...
Sam, wake up. Can you hear me?
Sam...
Sam, wake up!
-Sam, are you okay? -What happened?
I touched you and you just fell.
I've been having these... glitches.
Glitches?
It's like I'm in the same spot, but...
everything around me is...
Is what?
Dead.
Mason thinks...
the longer I'm here, the worse it'd get.
And he said if I don't get back in time,
I could stay in this dead place forever.
Well, then we'd better get an early start tomorrow.
Are you okay?
You might wanna bring those umbrellas to work today.
We are in for some weather.
The forecast calls for severe thunderstorms
starting this evening and continuing through the night.
-Can I do that? -Yeah, here we go.
Try yourself.
Mm-hmm.
There's a storm coming.
What if it's the same storm that knocked my treehouse down?
Then, we'll be ready.
Sam, Sam...
Sam, wake up. Can you hear me?
Sam.
Sam, are you okay?
Hey, hey, it's all right.
We're almost done.
It's here.
Guess we finished just in time.
Actually, there's one more thing.
Come on.
Sorry for leaving an empty treehouse in your yard.
Well, actually, I'm hoping it won't be empty for too long.
-Yeah?
Yeah.
I mean, this parenting thing's been kinda fun.
Lookin' good.
I figure, the more I can make it look like the other treehouse,
the better chance this has of working.
I hope you're right.
A vintage Commander Canada figure.
I don't have to tell you how rare this is.
You're sure that was in the other treehouse?
I'm sure.
If something happens to it,
I'm gonna track you down in the other dimension and kill you.
Thank you, Mason.
Well... see you in another life.
Don't leave.
Sam?
I don't wanna go back.
But you'll have your life back.
But I won't have you.
What?
Where I'm from, you're...
A year ago, you...
Don't tell me how.
That's why you acted so surprised to see me.
Being with you again...
I don't want it to end.
I wanna stay here.
Forever.
I miss you so much, Dad.
Sam...
your mother is still there.
And if she is anything like she is here,
her heart would break in two if she didn't have you.
If I was anything like I am here, then I'd want you to be there.
For her.
Stay with me.
Just a little longer, please?
Yeah. Yeah, yeah, of course. I'll stay.
I love you, Dad.
I love you.
Sam?
Mom.
Oh, you're awake!
He's awake!
I was so worried about you.
I saw Dad.
-He helped me find my way back.
So did you.
I love you so much.
I love you too, Mom.
-Ow.
Oh, I'm sorry.
You scared me.
What do you think?
Wanna rebuild this thing with me?
Also, what do you think about getting a dog?