Saagar Kote
‘Crap Happens’ or ‘Kacken an der Havel’ is the tale of an aspiring rapper named Toni Fleischer. He lives a modest life in Berlin, working at a pizza restaurant and finding little professional success in rap and music. Having spent 18 years away from his family, he shockingly learns about his mother’s passing. Despite his reluctance, he returns to his hometown of Schitten, a laid-back and unique place with a small population. As he reunites with his three sisters, he also meets his stepfather, Johnny, who is younger than he is.
On the verge of returning to Berlin, Toni stumbles upon Charly, who claims to be his son. With Charly now a part of the equation, Toni finds it difficult to balance his family life and his professional ambitions. As Toni delves deeper into the insecurities of his soul, he may have to deal with difficult revelations that may change the course of his future and also determine Charly’s fate. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Crap Happens Plot Synopsis
Toni Fleischer is an aspiring rapper who has spent nearly 18 years pursuing his passion. However, he doesn’t find any success and pursues a job at a Berlin pizza place run by Pipo, while living in its basement. He returns to his hometown, Schitten, for his mother Wera’s funeral. His sisters Nancy, Kaia, and Karo welcome him. Nancy is the only police officer in town, known for her dedication to law enforcement. His stepfather is Johnny Carrera, a younger man who married Wera during the final stages of her life. At the funeral, Toni meets Jana, his old crush, and the funeral director. Dalia Müller-Müller, Junior A&R at Cutie Heart Records, lands via helicopter and offers Toni two weeks to write a hit song for her boss after seeing his rap performance in Berlin.
Toni, wanting to return to Berlin, agrees. On his way back, Toni accidentally kills a family of ducks. Out of empathy for the remaining duckling, he takes him and names him Tupac. He then crosses paths with Charly on the way to Berlin. Charly claims to be Toni’s biological son and says his mother left. However, he is actually Toni and Jana’s son and convinced her to let him meet Toni. The latter temporarily stays back in Schitten for Charly, who soon finds out that his crush, Sascha, is Nancy’s daughter and his cousin. Not long after, Köbi, a Swiss student, joins Sascha and Charly’s school band, making him jealous. Mayor Veronica Ferres plans to acquire the Fleischer family land, offering a deal to Johnny, who is now the owner.
Dalia returns, pushing Toni for his song, and Toni fails to impress her. She gives him two more days to write a new song. Veronica’s son, Sergej, teams up with drug dealer Marc Weissman to illegally acquire crops from the Fleischer family’s land. Nancy arrests Marc, not knowing Sergej and Veronica are involved. Veronica fires Nancy for the arrest, leaving her angry and restless. Johnny pretends to kidnap Charly, and Toni rushes to save him. Charly just wants to spend quality time with his father. Toni seeks help from German music producer Rick Schmandtke, who uses unconventional methods, including a tranquilizer, which helps Toni write a hit song. Charly is injured in a paddleboard competition, making Toni’s family criticize his neglectful behavior as a father.
Toni plays the hit song for his family, but remains focused on Dalia’s deadline. Nancy investigates the drug packet she found during Marc’s arrest. At Cutie Heart Records, Dalia loves the hit song, but Toni collapses from exhaustion. After waking, Toni tries to convince Johnny and Charly to participate in a profile for Doctor Dietmar Diggity Drehws, the owner of the music company. Charly, learning Toni is using him, leaves, prompting Toni to realize he should prioritize his son. Later, Toni sees Charly with Jana and understands that the mother and son are close. Drehws still offers Toni the opening act at Pipo’s Berlin concert.
Charly asks Toni to choose between him and rap, and Toni says he probably cannot sacrifice his passion for rap. Toni, traveling in a pink limousine to the concert in Berlin, gets emotional. Pipo warns Toni about the music industry and how it treats singers like machines. Nancy’s husband, Jörg, examines the blue asparagus drug that she found, and it turns out to be a urine-smell canceler. Charly and Jana meet Toni before his performance, and he realizes that he can’t balance family and career. He leaves the concert in the limo with Charly and Jana, saying goodbye to rap forever. Nancy, Johnny, and Jörg discover that Veronica’s true motive is to own the Fleischer family land and control the blue drug. Toni lives in a state of sadness and guilt, imagining scenarios in which people cheer him for his rap performances.
Crap Happens Ending: Does Toni Achieve His Rap Dreams?
Toni gives up his rap dreams and moves back to Schitten to be with Charly. He tries to convince himself that he is happy, even lying to others that he is. But Johnny and Charly realize that Toni can never be happy without rapping. Later, Charly and Paule visit Drehws to convince him to give Toni another chance. However, Drehws refuses, and Paule kidnaps him. The town theater gears up for the “Armageddon” school play directed by Paule. Toni works backstage and also helps with stage control. He still sees the stage with curiosity, imagining the audience cheering for him. Charly and Paule plan a surprise, and with Dalia’s help, forcefully drag Drehws to the theater. It is revealed that Paule beat up Drehws to incapacitate him for a few moments and then gagged him.
Toni is shocked when Paule asks him to rap in the middle of the play. He doesn’t expect such an opportunity and also expresses disbelief when he spots Dalia and Drehws in the audience. Dalia tells Toni to rap like his life depends on it, and that Charly arranged it all. Toni hesitates to perform, fearing that Charly would go away from him again. However, when he sees Charly playing the keyboard, he cheers up. Paule sings on stage to inspire Toni to rap, and Toni succeeds. After years of struggles, Toni finally gets the opportunity to give his dreams a real shot, with Dalia and Drehws listening keenly. Charly and Toni communicate telepathically, and the latter gets ready for the performance. Charly assures Toni that he does not need to choose between family and career.
Toni walks onto the stage with great confidence and thrills the audience. He raps about his connection to Schitten and his family, impressing viewers. Jana, Johnny, Nancy, Kaia, and Karo also enjoy the performance. At the end of the rap, Drehws gives Toni a standing ovation, and the rest of the audience joins him in giving Toni the recognition and support he deserves. Later, Drehws also tells Toni to visit the Cutie Heart Records studio. Thus, after years of struggle and hustle, Toni finally achieves his dream and becomes a signed rap artist. Towards the end of the narrative, Tupac the Duckling’s voice-over confirms that Toni lived a happy and successful life. All in all, Toni’s journey is one of struggle, passion, absurdities, hope, and triumph.
Why Does Tupac the Duckling Attack Toni? Does Toni Survive?
Tupac, Toni’s pet duckling, stays with him during some of the most consequential moments in his life. Towards the end of the story, a shocking scene unfolds, which changes the very nature of Tupac and Toni’s relationship. Tupac usually stays calm and happy, but his mood changes during Toni’s rap performance. Earlier in the story, Toni inadvertently killed Tupac’s duck family members by running them over with his tow truck. Tupac stays at Toni’s house, but also misses his dead family. To avenge the death of his parents, he drops the stage prop asteroid on Toni, shocking the audience.
Toni wakes up in distress and on top of a stretcher. He survives due to the quick thinking of those around. Though his injuries may take more time to heal, Toni will have the chance to lead a better life. Tupac’s action comes at a time when Toni least predicts it. It can also be presumed that Tupac just wanted to injure Toni and never wanted to kill him. Had Tupac dropped anything heavier or intended to fatally harm his friend, Toni would have had a different and darker fate.
What Happens to Toni and Charly? Do Toni and Jana Get Back Together?
Toni and Charly’s bond goes beyond the pranks they play on each other or the disagreements they face over the course of the narrative. Toni worries about balancing family and his rapping career. Towards the end of the story, the two of them face a difficult choice after Toni’s successful performance in the school play. Once Toni recovers from the accident, Johnny and Charly drive him away from the theater. It is at this point that Tupac paints a picture of the future between the father and the son. Tupac reveals that Toni and Charly lived together for more than three decades and found happiness and family in the process.
The father and son are able to get over their differences and insecurities and focus on love and respect. On the other hand, Toni also has complex feelings for Jana. However, Jana seems to like her life without Toni in it. She lives for her own dreams and has her own way of doing things. Toni is just a memory from her past, not someone she sees as a future partner. It can be presumed that Toni and Jana will enjoy a cordial relationship as they take care of their son, but they will never get back together as a couple.
Do Toni and Tupac the Duckling Part Ways?
Toni and Tupac share a complex relationship as they become part of each other’s lives through a tragic accident. Unbeknownst to Toni, Tupac tries to injure him after the Armageddon show. Though the narrative doesn’t offer a clear picture of the future of the rapper’s relationship with his pet duckling, there are clues that point to possible outcomes. Towards the very end of the story, Tupac narrates Toni’s rap achievements and reveals that he happily lived with Charly for more than three decades. Tupac wouldn’t have been able to talk about this had he not spent more time with Toni.
The duckling also becomes the president of the Toni Fleischer Foundation for Waterbirds and the German Rap Monuments. This points to the strong possibility that Tupac and Toni will be together for many more years to come. After the accident, the differences that they had have been resolved. Tupac has no more reasons to harm Toni, and vice versa. Thus, Toni and Tupac most likely spent more years together and built a happier bond.
Does Veronica Escape? What Happens to the Fleischer Land?
Veronica eyes the Fleischer land for the blue asparagus drug that it produces. She recognizes the economic benefits of owning this strip of land, which would allow her to continue her drug trade and capture markets in Berlin. Veronica nearly achieves this goal through the actions of her son Sergej. He captures Johnny and Nancy but is unable to defeat them. Nancy delivers a stunning blow to him, and he is incapacitated. When Veronica rushes to the spot, she notices that her son has been defeated.
She uses her tricks and her presence of mind to escape before Nancy and Johnny catch her. Veronica throws a smoke grenade-like object on the ground and vanishes. She says that she will not be taken alive. Thus, she disappears, almost magically. Given the fact that Veronica has been driven away, the Fleischer family can breathe a sigh of relief. Their land, and everything that grows on it, will belong to them for the foreseeable future.
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