[7.3/10] Color me fairly puzzled by this one. I am a big fan of The Scotsman, so getting another dose of him toward the end of the show’s original run is a big win in my book. But the premise of this one is really strange. I like that The Scotsman is the protagonist of this one, more or less. In line with the bounty hunter episode, it’s interesting to see others in the world of the series given the spotlight. But I don’t know how I felt about some sort of strange Prince and the Pauper and/or amnesia situation to where Jack (or his doppelganger) is a southern californian cruise ship flunky.
There’s also, strangely, a lot of Star Wars references here. From bounty hunters who resemble Greedo and Boba Fett on the ship at the beginning of the episode, to Scotsman dropping phrases like “I have a bad feeling about this” and “hive of scum and villainy,” the show seems to be paying deliberate homage to the Galaxy Far Far away, and it’s a strange fit with the mistaken identity story it seems to want to tell.
More than that, the episode tries to meld the beats of A New Hope with this mixed up personage tale. Scotsman is the Obi Wan to “Jack”’s Luke Skywalker, taking him from his humdrum existence, ferrying him through strange lands and incomprehensible locals, getting into a scrap at a nearby bar, and eventually chartering a ship out of there. One can only imagine that Scotsman will run into Aku’s “empire” and disable some sort of superweapon in part two.
The episode’s not without its charms. I like Scotsman’s inability to believe this lookalike isn't the real Jack, and his devotion to either jogging this guy’s memory or finding the real deal. Hearing from the fish people and the tango beast that Jack helped them and they owe him is a nice way to show the good that Jack does in the world. And Scotsman’s insult heavy, larger than life presence is always pleasant.
But this one just feels weird, in a way that doesn't necessarily work. It has a few good fight scenes. (Scotsman slashing toughs in the cantina is particularly good.) But it feels more jumbled and garbled than most Samurai Jack episodes.
Overall, the show’s earned my trust to see where part two goes, both in the continuing Star Wars homages and the answer to this Valley Girl accent duplicate’s true origins, but this wasn’t the best start to bringing back such a fun character.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-04-06T23:59:29Z
[7.3/10] Color me fairly puzzled by this one. I am a big fan of The Scotsman, so getting another dose of him toward the end of the show’s original run is a big win in my book. But the premise of this one is really strange. I like that The Scotsman is the protagonist of this one, more or less. In line with the bounty hunter episode, it’s interesting to see others in the world of the series given the spotlight. But I don’t know how I felt about some sort of strange Prince and the Pauper and/or amnesia situation to where Jack (or his doppelganger) is a southern californian cruise ship flunky.
There’s also, strangely, a lot of Star Wars references here. From bounty hunters who resemble Greedo and Boba Fett on the ship at the beginning of the episode, to Scotsman dropping phrases like “I have a bad feeling about this” and “hive of scum and villainy,” the show seems to be paying deliberate homage to the Galaxy Far Far away, and it’s a strange fit with the mistaken identity story it seems to want to tell.
More than that, the episode tries to meld the beats of A New Hope with this mixed up personage tale. Scotsman is the Obi Wan to “Jack”’s Luke Skywalker, taking him from his humdrum existence, ferrying him through strange lands and incomprehensible locals, getting into a scrap at a nearby bar, and eventually chartering a ship out of there. One can only imagine that Scotsman will run into Aku’s “empire” and disable some sort of superweapon in part two.
The episode’s not without its charms. I like Scotsman’s inability to believe this lookalike isn't the real Jack, and his devotion to either jogging this guy’s memory or finding the real deal. Hearing from the fish people and the tango beast that Jack helped them and they owe him is a nice way to show the good that Jack does in the world. And Scotsman’s insult heavy, larger than life presence is always pleasant.
But this one just feels weird, in a way that doesn't necessarily work. It has a few good fight scenes. (Scotsman slashing toughs in the cantina is particularly good.) But it feels more jumbled and garbled than most Samurai Jack episodes.
Overall, the show’s earned my trust to see where part two goes, both in the continuing Star Wars homages and the answer to this Valley Girl accent duplicate’s true origins, but this wasn’t the best start to bringing back such a fun character.