[8.4/10] What a warm, but melancholy episode this is. I love that the show took time out of all the hacking and slashing to do something a little more emotional and reflective, and I love how quiet this one is. There’s only maybe five lines of dialogue in this whole thing, which is a little nuts.
But I like how the episode fills that aural space. The first act spends a lot of time with Jack roaming the world, and the way we hear a cold wind blow, or hear a dripping spring, really helps convey the differences in these locales and the sense that Jack is traveling through the ends of the Earth.
At the same time, I like the fantastic, evocative score we get in the flashbacks. The bouncy tune that plays as young Jack and a childhood crush pounce after grasshoppers through the grass is infectious. In the same way, the stark drums that accent the scene as young Jack watches a Samurai do battle on a bridge help sell the impressive solemnity and almost holiness of the event. This is an episode that focuses more on emotion than action, and the sounds and music it uses definitely help that.
I also just enjoy how slow this one is. We spend so much time with Jack just walking places, measured in confirming that this spot he’s stumbled across was really once his home. It lets the show revel in the impact of this moment, of reaching the place he grew up after traveling so far and for so long. That choice allows the import and holiness of this place to wash over the audience at the same time it’s washing over Jack.
In the same way, I love the cuts between past and present in the second half of the episode. Despite the amazing first episode of the series, we didn’t really get to see much of Jack’s life before Aku struck. Seeing all these instructive and fond moments from his childhood give us a sense both of what Jack has lost by being flung into the future, but also what he’s fighting to regain. It adds color to the mythic quest that motivates the series.
It’s a treat to see him hunt for bugs with a fellow kid, and shows a human, affectionate side of Jack. I got a real kick out of seeing him observe a Lone Wolf and Cub-style duo, implied to be the root of his desire to become a Samurai. And while a little more underlined, I also enjoyed the last flashback, where Jack learns the power of cleverness over raw strength to get his toy back from some bullies.
He learns that lesson after instruction from his father, and that’s the strongest image and impact “Jack Remembers the Past” delivers. Just seeing this place transports him to a time when he could be in his parents’ arms. It is warm as all get out to see him recall their love, but also sad beyond words when we cut to the present and see how their realm has been reduced to ruins. And yet, Jack has no time to linger on it. There’s more danger to be quelled, more people to be helped, and so he is off again. But it’s so nice that this show stops for one installment and takes time to reflect and to remember.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-02-07T17:52:54Z
[8.4/10] What a warm, but melancholy episode this is. I love that the show took time out of all the hacking and slashing to do something a little more emotional and reflective, and I love how quiet this one is. There’s only maybe five lines of dialogue in this whole thing, which is a little nuts.
But I like how the episode fills that aural space. The first act spends a lot of time with Jack roaming the world, and the way we hear a cold wind blow, or hear a dripping spring, really helps convey the differences in these locales and the sense that Jack is traveling through the ends of the Earth.
At the same time, I like the fantastic, evocative score we get in the flashbacks. The bouncy tune that plays as young Jack and a childhood crush pounce after grasshoppers through the grass is infectious. In the same way, the stark drums that accent the scene as young Jack watches a Samurai do battle on a bridge help sell the impressive solemnity and almost holiness of the event. This is an episode that focuses more on emotion than action, and the sounds and music it uses definitely help that.
I also just enjoy how slow this one is. We spend so much time with Jack just walking places, measured in confirming that this spot he’s stumbled across was really once his home. It lets the show revel in the impact of this moment, of reaching the place he grew up after traveling so far and for so long. That choice allows the import and holiness of this place to wash over the audience at the same time it’s washing over Jack.
In the same way, I love the cuts between past and present in the second half of the episode. Despite the amazing first episode of the series, we didn’t really get to see much of Jack’s life before Aku struck. Seeing all these instructive and fond moments from his childhood give us a sense both of what Jack has lost by being flung into the future, but also what he’s fighting to regain. It adds color to the mythic quest that motivates the series.
It’s a treat to see him hunt for bugs with a fellow kid, and shows a human, affectionate side of Jack. I got a real kick out of seeing him observe a Lone Wolf and Cub-style duo, implied to be the root of his desire to become a Samurai. And while a little more underlined, I also enjoyed the last flashback, where Jack learns the power of cleverness over raw strength to get his toy back from some bullies.
He learns that lesson after instruction from his father, and that’s the strongest image and impact “Jack Remembers the Past” delivers. Just seeing this place transports him to a time when he could be in his parents’ arms. It is warm as all get out to see him recall their love, but also sad beyond words when we cut to the present and see how their realm has been reduced to ruins. And yet, Jack has no time to linger on it. There’s more danger to be quelled, more people to be helped, and so he is off again. But it’s so nice that this show stops for one installment and takes time to reflect and to remember.