Andrew Bloom

VIP

9

[8/10] Call me a sucker, but the senseless destruction of a giant ear of corn being turned into a movie snack made me chuckle.

[7/10] Cute mini-subversion with the bumps in the road on the titular “scenic route”, only for Anne to be that much more enthusiastic.

[7/10] “Real life” whack-a-mole is a fun conceit, and the result being a roar from an angry giant mole with smaller moles on its face is an appropriately bonkers Amphibia twist.

[7.1/10] This one’s a little weird, but I don’t mind weird for an already out there show like Amphibia. The Predator homage, with a lion/scorpion chimera was a treat for oldtimers like me. And I don’t know, something about Anne’s interactions with the ethereal version of Sprig who represents a stress-induced mental break worked for me. The tone was just self-aware enough for everything to click, and the absurd, meta gags brought the laughs.

The whole premise of having to become a hunter was a little odd, but I like the juxtaposition of the badass motif Anne thought of when it came to being a hunter, versus the goofier but more effective methods it actually takes. There’s a solid observation there, even if the whole “dance of nature” thing gets a little out there.

Overall, this is definitely one of the odder Amphibia episodes, which is saying something for this show, but the loopiness is part of the episode’s charm.

[7.3/10] A fun, if very didactic episode. There’s nothing especially novel here, between the episode’s focus on teamwork and its basketball shown scenario. (Hello Space Jam fans!) But I like sports movies, and I like goofy romps, and this is both of them. Anne learning not to be a showboat but rather to rely on her teammates to win the day is trite but true, and the various gags on the basketball court and beyond tickled my ribs. (For whatever reason, I got a particular kick out of the guy who says nothing but “I sell Tulips”.)

The script does a good job setting up both how Anne could still manage to play basketball (sorry, “bugball” while blindfolded, and setting up Sprig’s triumph as a kid who never had an opportunity. The shtick is all pretty silly, but in a fun way. The riffs on sports movie happenings were enjoyable. And not for nothing, it’s nice to have the show acknowledge Thanksgiving in its own off-kilter sort of way.

Overall, definitely a lighter episode, but one with plenty of fun to be had despite the triteness of its message.

[7.3/10] A solid enough episode. Of all things, Disney’s Recess did a similar episode, about one of the main characters going to great lengths to get the one kid in school who didn’t like him to, well, like him. He didn’t go to the stalkerish extremes that Sprig does, but still, the point that sometimes you’re just not going to be someone’s cup of tea and that's okay is a good one.

What I really enjoyed though were the things at the margins. Anne giving Sprig advice; Sprig interpreting it in the exact opposite way it’s intended, and Anne raising her arms to the heavens in frustration was very funny. I’m also intrigued by the fact that Mrs. Croaker had a past as some kind of spy/assassin to where she’s still a target of some infamous “Guild”. Seeing her prove herself as a secret badass is neat, and I like her connection to some shadowy but fascinating past conflicts in the Valley.

The twist from “reuniting long lost lovers” to “reuniting old espionage enemies” is a fun one, but otherwise, this episode is respectable but not quite extraordinary.