Way of the Dee Dee is the first part of the tenth episode of season one of Dexter's Laboratory, which aired on December 11, 1996. In this episode, Dee Dee tries to help Dexter find his inner peace.
Dexter becomes fed up with Dee Dee constantly destroying his lab, and calling her stupid. Dee Dee said how she‘s simply expressing herself and said how just because she tries to have fun doesn’t make her stupid. Dee Dee pointed out to Dexter that while she may not be a science genius, she knows how to do regular stuff like climbing trees, petting animals, and even tying her own shoes since Dexter’s boots are only zipper. Dee Dee admit’s that she feels sorry for Dexter because he spent his time cooped up alone in his lab and not even bothering to go outside and do regular things truly exploring life. She decided to leave Dexter alone since the world is her laboratory.
After leaving, Dexter realizes that Dee Dee is right and asks her to help him kill himself. Thats when Dee Dee decides to teach Dexter how to kill himself.
This episode has one of the saddest endings in the series.
This is the first episode along with Say Uncle Sam and Tribe Called Girl to feature only the Hanna-Barbera/Cartoon Network Logo at the end. The second one was "Last But Not Beast".
Continuity
This episode is the first one to end with the sad reprise of the ending credits. The second and third episodes to do so would be the Season 2 episodes Germ Warfare and Dexter Detention respectively.
Cultural References
In this episode, there is a scene that directly parodies a scene from the 1980 film, The Empire Strikes Back, in which Luke Skywalker is trained by Yoda.
Dee Dee's design on the title card is a religious reference to the Hindu god Vishnu, having similar clothing and four arms like Vishnu.
In this episode, Dee Dee sings, "Can you sing with all the colors of the rain," spoofing the song, "Colors of the Wind," from the 1995 Disney movie, Pocahontas.
When Dexter says: "Heck yeah! I'm a triceratops balanced on a buttercup with spinnin' wheels, baby...let's do this!" (the cheesy quote is to imply that Dexter is hip to the challenge, and the spinning wheels references that in the 90's Spinner Rims, which were very popular and sought after around that time.)
