'Toon Reviews 13: The Loud House Season 2 Episode 7: Lock n Loud/The Whole Picture

Lock n Loud

One of the highlights of the style of this show is how it takes a simple occurrence in life, and with the ever dynamic characters in the cast, portray it as something big and creatively constructed.  This cartoon is an example of this idea and one of the best ones at that.  Everything goes down when Dad expresses frustration that the kids never lock the door when he and Mom go out at night.  The kids don’t see a big deal at first, but through thinking about Dad’s warning about a burglar report in the area, they soon see his point and strive to increase security in their home in the name of protecting their valuables.  Much of what we get from here features many over-the-top examples of home security. They include many of the siblings from storing their valuables in the bathroom, Lincoln listening for radio distress calls like a cop, Lynn training some of the siblings to fight the burglar featuring a funny bit of the ever naïve Leni falling for the burglar mannequin, and Lana struggling to train Charles, the family dog, to act as a guard dog.  These intense measures are especially fun to watch because they’re for a greater good which everyone can benefit from, overbearing as they may seem. Plus, we not only get the siblings working together to protect their home which provides more of examples of them all being better as a team than in the previous season, but also bring in side characters like Bobby, Clyde, and even Lynn’s roller derby team for the action.  As fun as the ways everyone approaches home security, Dad still isn’t pleased that the kids don’t bother to simply lock the door in favor of their ridiculous practices.  Even when he stages a fake robbery with Mr. Grouse, which nicely follows up the Louds being friendlier with him despite his still apparent crabbiness, he’s complaining about how the kids aren’t getting what he’s going for.  It at first seems hard to get behind Dad since even though the kids aren’t locking the doors, they’re still greatly protecting their home and their valuables which should matter.  However, following an exciting climax where Dad gets locked out when Leni of all people remembers to lock the door and everyone rushes to catch him due to thinking he’s a burglar, he’s given a strong reason for feeling the way he does.  He just wanted to protect his family, the best valuables of all.  Not only is this moment heartfelt, but it’s also an effective way of showing that sometimes, even when people act extreme, they can still have good intentions, giving everything from the kids’ overprotective strategies to Dad’s locked door obsession more credibility beyond humorous aspects.  So, with effective humor, creativity, and heart, this is one of the best structured cartoons this show has offered. 10/10

The Whole Picture

Childhood memories can be nice to look back on to a simpler time in your life and bring you some pleasure in the present, at least in my way of thinking.  This is why I find it interesting that Lincoln is revealed to have a file on the computer where he can look back on all his childhood memories, which by the way feature adorable shots of him and his sisters when they were younger.  This is also why it’s easy to feel for him when he accidentally deletes his memory pictures and has no way of getting them back.  Out of this big mistake does come a fascinating way Lincoln attempts to fix everything which is recreating his childhood memories through acting them out and taking hard photocopies of them.  As a result, most of the cartoon is just Lincoln going around using whatever he has to recreate what he remembers along with anyone he comes across, namely Clyde who’s established to have an apparent talent for roleplaying.  A good number of the recreations have their own humorous feel to them, though considering that most of them turn out embarrassing with things crashing down or some characters not being able to play their parts well enough, you have to wonder how they can possibly be satisfied with what they get.  So not to make what we see repetitive, there is a slight point of tension when Lincoln’s memories start to fade as he struggles to remember what he did for his 7^th birthday party.  This is the comedic highlight of the cartoon with all the times Lincoln changes his mind on what was done leading to several comedic outcomes for Clyde that generate laughs as well as sympathy.  It’s also followed up by a fun fast-paced montage of the boys rushing through many memory recreations which serve as nice visual clues about what Lincoln’s moments with his sisters throughout his life must’ve been like.  Speaking of them, one point of concern is that the sisters seem more interested in going to the mall despite showing that helping Lincoln when he needs it is a big priority before and also after this cartoon.  At least we have some reasons as to why sisters we normally wouldn’t expect to be excited about the mall like Luna, Lana, and Lucy would want to go.  Plus, they do come to their senses and are there for Lincoln when his attempts prove all for naught overall.  They help Lincoln recall all the memories he wants to look back on and more and while some are embarrassing for him, others have a strong cuteness you’d expect from childhood memories.  What really sells this scene though is Lincoln laughing along with the girls at the past and a group embrace with them that signals the start of a new digital memory collection.  After so much comic energy from the attempted recreations, we end with a scene big on family love.  As a result, we’re left with a fun cute cartoon which is great for anyone who loves to look back on their childhood. 9/10

The Ranking

1. 11 Louds a Leapin’
2. Lock n Loud
3. Baby Steps
4. Suite and Sour
5. Back in Black
6. Patching Things Up
7. The Whole Picture
8. The Old and the Restless
9. Intern for the Worse
10. Cheater by the Dozen
11. Making the Grade
12. Vantastic Voyage
13. Brawl in the Family

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where we experience another big dud for this season, "No Such Luck," but also one of the best sibling bond cartoons as Lincoln and Lana go all "Frog Wild."

If you would like to check out other Loud House reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.