[7.1/10] We’re only two episodes into the new season, so it’s hard to make any grand pronouncements (but I’m going to try anyway). The show is dull and difficult to invest in when it falls headlong into plot, but it’s engaging, and even fleetingly profound, when it leans into character.
The big climax of “Breaking Brad” involves General Dox’s crew “bombing” the extra branches of the timeline that have popped up since Sylvie did her thing with He Who Remains. And I have to tell you, I really struggle to care.
Loki does its best. Hunter B-15 declares “those are people” as she watches the read out, and Wummi Mosaku delivers it well and earnestly, to help give us a perspective character to all of this supposed horror. But to me, they’re not people. They’re just lines on a chart. We don’t know anyone affected. We haven't really seen how and why it matters. And when everything is an apocalyptic event on a weekly basis, nothing really registers anymore. This is supposed to be a big deal, and it just isn’t.
Why do General Dox and her loyalists want to bomb the branches exactly? Presumably it’s to preserve the sacred timeline, but it’s not really fleshed out; it just sort of happens. How are she and her confederates accomplishing this? I think there’s an answer, something involving temp pads or some other technobabble, but because it’s explained super fast in a stage whisper by a bunch of characters about to blow it all up anyway, none of it quite lands. Who are the TVA die-hards taking her in, and why are they on Mobius side and not hers, and where are her people going to go? No one cares to explain, or note loyalties, or anything else. Stuff just sort of happens.
It’s my big problem with this episode. We don’t get any set up for Loki and Mobius hunting X-5, aka “Brad” in the sacred timeline; it just happens. The same goes for the search for Sylvie -- obviously Loki wants to find her because he cares about her, but why are the others so invested in it? And what is the deal with Casey and his ability to recognize what’s going with Brad’s modified device? Is it just to setup his partnership with OB? When your storytelling is sloppy, it’s hard to distinguish between what’s a cryptic tease for something yet-to-be-revealed, and what’s just a frankenstein’ed together episode of random threads and bits without a real structure or soundness to it.
Despite all of those complaints, I actually like a lot of the themes and character work here. For as random as Brad feels as a major character in this one, he does a good job of drawing interesting things out of everyone he’s paired with. He makes a good point -- akin to Cypher in The Matrix. If none of this is real, why play the game? Why not head back into the timeline somewhere and have your fun? Why play the parts assigned to you? His casting off of his hunter responsibilities to be a movie star is silly, and so is Brad’s general vibe, but he ends up having a point about why should they keep up the charade.
HIs recriminations touch a nerve when it comes to Mobius. The interrogation scenes are well-written. There’s a nice subversion with Mobius warning Loki not to let a pro like Brad get under his skin, when it turns out to be Mobius himself who ends up bothered by what the prisoner has to say. I like the idea that Mobius isn’t interested in his “real” life in the timeline, because he likes his life in the TVA. He believes in what they’re doing. He doesn’t care if it’s “real” anymore than Brad does, in his way, because it’s real to him. So being called “Mr. Nowhere Man” (hello Beatles fans!) is an insult because it demeans the life he chooses to live and the work he believes in.
That's a fascinating idea, and it ties into one of the themes the show’s spun from the beginning -- what do you do when you believe you’re “burdened with glorious purpose” only to discover that there is no external purpose? It is the classic existentialist dilemma. And seeing different people find meaning in different places in the wake of the revelations about He Who Remains and the truth of the TVA is the most compelling part of the show.
That includes Sylvie. There’s something wonderful about the idea that without the TVA breathing down her neck, without needing to run constantly anymore, with the entire multiverse as her oyster, she chooses to...work shifts at a fast food restaurant. I dunno, the idea of wanting to live a simple, uncomplicated life after ages of being on the run is kind of beautiful. It makes Loki and company walking in to puncture the pleasant existence she’s scratched out for herself a bit sad, honestly.
And then there’s Loki himself. I appreciate Brad’s recriminations that, again, he’s not a hero; he’s a villain. He’s not a winner; he’s a loser. Loki thinks he’s found new purpose with the TVA, acting as an agent and basically Mobius’ partner. So Brad undermining that, saying that he’s going against type and it’s not working, works on both an in-universe and a meta level.
The fact that Loki turns that around to his advantage is marvelous. The signature scene of this one is Loki “locking” Mobius out of the interrogation room, turning on his villain bona fides, and intimidating Brad with a continually shrinking box. It comes with nice visual flair mixed with Loki playing up to expectations, oyl to reveal that this was part of his and Mobis’ plan all along. Whatever he was before, Loki is a good guy, or at least a better guy now, even if he still has the skills to put on his old persona for effect.
Those are the kinds of things I want from this show. Reinitiating the temporal loom, or finding out how Rendlsayer is in league with He Who Remains, or un-pruning the branches on the timeline is all of pretty mild interest to me at this point. The plot doesn’t really drive the drama here; the characters do. I’d probably rather have great characters than great story at the end of the day, but there’s no reason Loki couldn’t have both, and instead it only has half of the equation.
So, this turned out to be a live-action which kind of tries to imitate the anime/manga, after all. To be honest, I was skeptical beforehand that this can work out, but I think given that’s where they go for this is a pretty good and fun attempt. It’s kind of dumb fun similar to the anime/manga, although some things definitely work better than the others (I started to actually enjoy it once Nami appeared).
Things in the first half were rather rough, given that Alvida and Koby didn’t impress, and the actor of Luffy was also pretty stiff, but it got definitely better once Nami and Zorro appeared and they could play off of each other. The group dynamic so far definitely works, Luffy and Nami’s antics were a definite highlight. The fights are also well-made, the direction is dynamic and while they do try to capture the vibe of the source they take more liberties in how to execute plot events which makes it kinda fresh and fun. The characters also aren’t exactly the same as the source, either.
I will definitely watch more and see how this goes, but so far, I enjoy this. Good dumb fun, they also have some good gags. First half was kinda eh, but the second half was much better (the final score for the episode is kinda in-between the two).
This show is an epilogue to Steven Universe and it's amazing. If you have seen sequel series like Naruto Shippuden then you have a small idea of how this will be. The biggest difference is that this is a very finite and emotional end. It's take on childhood trauma is therapeutic. It's wrap ups for each character is fitting. It's hard to end a show right but this definitely satisfies an impossible expectation to somehow love saying goodbye to beloved characters.
Beware, beyond here there be glimpses of the future.
The original series has whimsey, action, silly, and impactful and groundbreaking moments, a lot for a kids show. This epilogue takes you through the aftershocks of facing life with a smile. Stevens loss of self control and descent into madness results in him watching himself become the biggest baddy yet. To start it delves into growing up and coming to terms with having the world resting on this child's shoulders. Toiling to control the growing resentment towards his family, Steven has to also juggle new powers and learn how to be a normal person with normal friends. Seeing the once loving, obnoxiously happy Steven Universe struggle to realize that his father lived in a van down by the river, neglecting him, to see his surrogate mother figures realize they used Steven as a therapist, to see him distance himself everyone he hold dear is hauntingly entertaining. This much depth of character is hard to see in a kids show but it definitely handles moderate adult themes in ways a child can understand and a parent can appreciate while watching together. I love this series and never did I expect this show to be what it is.
I thought I'd finally see what all the fuss is about, and so far I'm pretty glad I have. It's true that it doesn't get off to the strongest start with some pretty basic storytelling and episodes which feel a bit too much on the childish side, but it continues to build a world that becomes fascinating and extremely well thought out. The characters become more interesting and complex as it goes on and start dealing with themes that are far above the "kids show" roots. It's also pretty funny.
Prince Zuko may be the most compelling character, with the first impressions of him being an extremely vanilla bad guy who is evil just because. Episodes reveal more about what's going on with him and I actually began rooting for him to have some luck. I also love his Uncle Iroh who walks the line between comic relief and genuinely important mentor.
Aang isn't the best protagonist at times due to his immature nature and the fact that he keeps repeating a lot of the same mistakes before learning from them. Katara stands out as the one to watch, with her brother Sokka being unfortunately relegated to the "idiot" role most of the time, but when he has something important to do it makes it have all the more impact.
I'm not in love with the anime-inspired visual style and jerky frame rate (I really struggle with Japanese style animation, it's always been a massive turn off for me), but later episodes have some striking art. Looking forward to seeing where it goes next.
Going into the season, I had one concern above all others; would one more season be enough to wrap everything up, or would it feel rushed! The answer is: kinda! The season hit every beat it needed to- heck, it even hits most of them well- but I couldn't help but think it'd be boosted if everything had a little more room to breathe, if we got just a little more time with Catra and Glimmer bonding, a little more time on Catra and Scorpia reuniting, a little more time on Adora and Catra's reconciliation... well, okay, it sounds like most of these are about Catra, and for good reason! Her redemption arc is one of the cornerstones of the show, and they pulled it off. It's just I was hoping they would knock it out of the park. But it's not just her. Adora's and Glimmer's conflict was the driving force of Season 3, and here, it's resolved in about one conversation. Bow and Glimmer get an entire episode devoted to it, and they should have! It's just that an episode should've been devoted to them as well.
I sound overly harsh- it's just that everything that is here is so great. The amount of things they did squeeze in for secondary characters like Entrapta, Mermista, and Scorpia was impressive, and even more minor characters like Double Trouble get fun send offs. It's just the curse of 13 episodes a season- everything has to be economical and serving of the arc. 'Filler' is a derogatory term, but I think it's used too harshly. Filler fills in the gaps. I wanted to see more of Adora and Catra as friends before dating. I wanted to see more of Catra and Glimmer leaning on each other and learning about each other in a hostile environment instead of it lasting a mere two episodes. What's there is great; I just want more. And really, is that even a criticism?
If there's one real criticism I have, it's that Shadow Weaver's arc feels particularly unearned, like they only decided how it would end near the last second. But other than that, the season hits its marks. The themes resonate with a precise clarity, the characters are fully drawn, and the level of representation it has is unmatched. I'll always want more of this show, and if Season 5 isn't the best season it's ever had, it's at least a damn good send-off.
