'Toon Reviews 1: Hey Arnold Season 1 Episode 12

Das Subway

In most city environments, it’s not uncommon to find yourself among many random people with different lives and personalities.  Since this show has proven itself to be so good at portraying city life, it’s not surprising that we’d get a cartoon like this.  It’s about Arnold and his friends being forced to take the subway home, but during the trip, the train breaks down and they, along with a bunch of random passengers, are stuck without any idea of how long the train will be stalled.  What makes up the appeal of this cartoon are the interactions between the characters trapped in this space.  Of course the kids have a lot of fun moments such as Gerald and Helga freaking out about being trapped, especially coupled with Helga’s fear of the rats outside, Phoebe pointing out the logical fallacies of everyone’s panicky statements, and Harold goofing around and later pathetically hiding the only food in the subway coach, his chocolate bars.  What especially makes the time spent trapped in the subway are the other passengers along for the ride including a blind man who points out the world around him with his other senses, a claustrophobic woman who spends her time on the subway repeating “big open spaces” per her shrink’s orders, and a homeless man who considers the subway his house.  Their moments are pretty fun, even if everyone not getting along while trapped together can get annoying after a while.  Thankfully, their moments lead to a nice climax when everyone scrambles to tend to the blind man’s dog who’s acting sick, and it gives birth to puppies just as the train finally starts moving again. Regarding exactly how the train gets moving again, it’s shown through an amusing subplot where Grandma sets out to rescue Arnold and everyone else trapped on the subway.  In the process, she further shows her appeal by going as a secret agent and lets nothing stand in the way of getting down to the tunnel.  She even awesomely frightens a rat at one point.  Plus, she shows off some impressive electric work when she finally reaches the train.  The fact that her work is done just as everyone starts getting along is kind of symbolic of how anything can be overcome if people show friendship and kindness instead of annoyance and hostility.  It’s only appropriate that the cartoon ends with everyone singing a song about how it’s better to get along with others when you’re stuck together, and it’s a pretty moving song at that.  With an interesting premise, enjoyable character moments, and another realistic look at city life, this cartoon has enough qualities to make it worth a watch.  9/10

Wheezin’ Ed

We’ve got another cartoon about one of this city’s many urban legends, and it’s another entertaining watch with a lot of great moments from the characters involved.  It starts out as a fun day at the pier until Arnold wonders why no one is interested in going to Elk Island which is just a boat ride away.  Then, through a sequence with very impressive drawings, we’re told about the legend of a guy named Wheezin’ Ed, a man said to have a very bad wheeze who breaks the necks of unsuspecting people.  Dark implications aside, the kids really become interested in going to Elk Island anyway because of a Wheezin’ Ed’s treasure that’s said to be buried there, and a sea captain holding what looks like a doubloon only increases their desire to go there.  So for much of the cartoon, we’re treated to the kids setting off for the caves to find the treasure, which includes them splitting up into groups of two, which make for some enjoyable interactions.  We have some amusing gender-related banter between Sid and Rhonda, Gerald and Phoebe have a cute scene of exploring the caves, and of course, scenes of Helga failing to be friendly when she’s teamed with her love, Arnold.  These moments show off the appeal of these characters, which make it more than pleasing to spend an adventure with them.  While we’re on the subject, while he’s not teamed up with anyone, Harold has some enjoyable moments as well.  He may have been portrayed as a mean bully several times prior, but his moments in this cartoon show off another side of him as a frightened, naïve child in a big kid’s body.  He opts to guard the outside of the cave, and when he catches sight of a jelly bean trail Arnold leaves, he just follows it and eats them all.  It’s just some charming stuff.  We also have a pair of crooks using the cave to hide their stash of counterfeit pennies.  Aside from the obvious question that’s never answered as to why they’d invest in making fake pennies in the first place, their stash ends up being seen as the treasure.  The fact that we’re told this ahead of time robs the cartoon of a good mystery value, but it’s great that the kids later point out how stupid the penny plan is when they find them.  Plus, we get an exciting chase out of the caves when the crooks meet up with the kids which leads to their arrest, and the cartoon ending with the question if Wheezin’ Ed actually exists, as most urban legends like this would.  While some plot points may be questionable, the characters involved, and the greatly crafted adventurous atmosphere make this cartoon a great one. 9.5/10

The Rankings

1.      Haunted Train

2.      Stoop Kid

3.      Arnold’s Hat

4.      Wheezin’ Ed

5.      Helga’s Makeover

6.      Mugged

7.      The Baseball

8.      The List

9.      Das Subway

10.  The Vacant Lot

11.  Downtown as Fruits

12.  The Old Building

13.  Field Trip

14.  Roughin’ It

15.  6^th Grade Girls

16.  The Little Pink Book

17.  Arnold as Cupid

18.  Snow

19.  Eugene’s Bike

20.  Door #16

21.  Heat

22.  Benchwarmer

23.  Operation Ruthless

24.  Cool Jerk

 

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the 13th episode of the season: "Tutoring Torvald/Gerald Comes Over."