'Toon Reviews 19: OK K.O.! Let's Be Hereos Season 1 Episode 31: Rad Likes Robots

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Rad Likes Robots

Some of the weakest stories seem like they’re going to bring a big change, but reverts back to the status quo in the end as if it was never suggested at all.  It doesn’t leave room for growth and throws away any chance for solid development, opting to not stay relevant.  While this cartoon isn’t that bad of an example of this concept, it still brings down the quality significantly. 

During a more intense than average fight against the bodega employees and the Boxmore robots, Shannon gets struck by lightning and is reprogrammed to be more romantic.  She saves Rad from getting blasted, claiming she never knew how good he punches stuff, feeling infatuated with him, and that’s enough for Rad to love her back.  It’s a very shallow reason for a potential couple, not to mention it’s completely forced with Shannon getting reprogrammed.  Therefore, the love she and Rad share for each other simply doesn’t feel genuine.  In fact, it’s much easier to side with the opposing forces, Rad’s friends and Shannon’s robot siblings, who all have good reasons why this couple shouldn’t come to be.  It is at least funny to watch them get defensive at the opposition though. 

There is at least one moment to have the couple make sense when there’s acknowledgement that Shannon’s love for Rad is fake.  Darrell and Raymond point out that she got reprogrammed by that lightning.  Even when Shannon hears that she’s been reprogrammed, she claims to like being this way and refuses to change.  Just acknowledging this factor and both people being fond of each other fortunately works in the couple’s favor.  This is especially good since a great and passionate love ballad of how Rad and Shannon are star-crossed lovers follows this scene. 

It still isn't the most justifiable instance of love, mostly on Rad’s simple judgement than Shannon’s reprogramming.  However, there’s at least enough endearment to accept its existence.  The very idea of a hero and villain becoming a couple offers a good chance for character development and a shakeup in the dynamic of the protagonists and antagonists.  It’s a perfect opportunity to keep things fresh especially with Rad and Shannon clearly set on making themselves as a couple official.  

The next day though, genuinely concerned for their sister, Darrel and Raymond plot to destroy Rad to snap Shannon out of her crush when she’s about to run away with him.  This is where the cartoon becomes one to go back on a potential big change. Despite acting like she loved Rad above anything else for the whole cartoon, Shannon gives into her brothers’ demands, and reboots herself to lose her feelings for Rad.  She comes to this decision much too easily and not enough time is devoted to her expressing sorrow for stopping loving Rad.  Even with the reveal that she faked her reboot, she just does it for real after misinterpreting Rad mourning her. For this, why did she have to her fake her reboot at all? 

While it does make sense for the couple to not be a thing anymore, it going nowhere makes having to put up with this dead-end plot pretty frustrating.  In a way, it kind of works as a parody of romantic tragedies, but it’s hard to brush off thinking the cartoon was going to change things up only for it to go nowhere.

C-

The Ranking

1. Face Your Fears
2. You Have to Care
3. T.K.O.
4. No More Pow Cards
5. Legends of Mr. Gar
6. We’ve Got Pests
7. I Am Dendy
8. Let’s Have a Stakeout
9. You Get Me
10. Let’s Be Heroes
11. You’re Everybody’s Sidekick
12. Jethro’s All Yours
13. Know Your Mom
14. Everybody Likes Rad?
15. A Hero’s Fate
16. Plaza Prom
17. We’re Captured
18. My Dad Can Beat up Your Dad
19. Let’s Be Friends
20. We Messed Up
21. Presenting Joe Cuppa
22. Sibling Rivalry
23. Second First Date
24. Stop Attacking the Plaza
25. Just Be a Pebble
26. Do You Have Any More in the Back?
27. You’re Level 100
28. You Are Rad
29. We’ve Got Fleas
30. Rad Likes Robots
31. One Last Score

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode whose subject is good old online videos.

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