It really was bottomless.
Was it filler? Yes. Did it contain a bunch of mini-stories that I thoroughly enjoyed? Uh-huh.
Nothing particularly eventful happened in this episode. The gang just fell into a bottomless pit and told stories until they stopped falling. It was fun. I especially liked Mabel's tale about Grunkle Stan and those teeth. Man, with hindsight now, I wonder how the series would've proceeded if he started spouting about Stanford and his past.
I wonder what Stan was thinking while he was falling the pit a second time. Also, they should put up some barriers around that hole. Just having a sign just doesn't cut it.
IT'S GOOD.
TECHNICAL SCORE: 7/10
ENJOYMENT SCORE: 8/10
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2022-08-03T03:59:49Z
[7.6/10] I am a sucker for anthology episodes. Maybe it’s just growing up with the treat of The Simpsons’ “Treehouse of Horror” specials, but getting bite-sized chunks of your favorite shows somehow makes them extra special. I’m glad Gravity Falls joined the trend. Each of its tales has a premise that probably wouldn’t stretch to fit a full episode (maybe Soos’), but is just right for a seven-minute adventure.
Dipper’s is the most traditional, representing as standard young man anxiety about your voice changing with a supernatural fix. There’s some good yuks in Dipper taking Old Man McGuckett’s formula and suddenly sounding like an announcer, with both Mabel and Soos reacting with shock and aggression at the weird new sounds coming out of his mouth. The ending is sweet, with Dipper realizing his friends weren’t making fun of his voice cracks, but rather appreciate his sound, and by extension him, because he’s one of a kind.
Soos’ story is the most imaginative. Kids getting trapped in a pinball machine after they cheat to get the high score feels like a Goosebumps book premise, and leaves plenty of room for action and humor. The wild west theme mixed with the miniature Wild West encounter gives the animators lots of room to run. The theme of Soos wanting to leave some kind of achievement behind, and realizing it’s saving the Pines twins, not a high score in pinball, is another warm resolution. Plus, the vocalized gasps/taunts/awe, mixed with Soos admiring a plastic cabaret dancer are some good laughs.
Grunkle Stan’s story is more of a gag, but it’s still funny to see him imagine himself as the star of a 1980s sports movie, replete with field goal kicking robot.
Mabel’s story is my favorite of the bunch. It’s a simple “be careful what you wish for parable” with hilarious results. You can understand why Mabel would have qualms about her great uncle’s lies. But the magic truth-telling teeth she gives him lead to too much brutal honesty and self-defeating volunteering of the truth that threatens to get them all in trouble. As with the last episode, “You have to lie sometimes” isn’t the greatest moral in the world, but Stan’s matter-of-fact truths about other people’s appearance or his own malfeasance creates a very funny sense of chagrin in the rest of the Pines crew.
Otherwise, the visual gags in the bottomless pit itself are a lot of fun (albeit nonsensical) and the idea that it just spits you back out is a good way to wrap things up. Overall, a very fun realization of the form!