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Mala Mala Jong
Despite only being hinted at once before, what
happens in this episode is on one of the biggest moments of the series. It makes for an interesting change of pace
for the plot where the focus is on stopping a monster made of Shen Gong
Wu.
A search for a particular Shen Gong
Wu, the Heart of Jong, builds up to its creation. We get one of the more interesting Xiaolin
Showdowns of Omi and Jack using their respective Shen Gong Wu to gather acorns.
Through a few humorous run-ins with the Lotus Twister-enhanced Jack, Omi
loses.
While losses would normally be
taken lightly, this is a very big deal that the Heart of Jong is in the hands
of evil. The reason why comes when we
learn what the Heart of Jong does. It’s
placed inside an inanimate object and brings it to life. This applies to Shen Gong Wu as Jack and Wuya
lay some out before placing the Heart of Jong inside. This creates Mala Mala Jong
an ancient demon warrior who works any Shen Gong Wu making him up. All throughout the episode, his monstrous
force is huge. He never speaks, only
wants to fight, and proves to be too powerful to deal with.
The Xiaolin Warriors have to leave the temple
to protect the remaining Shen Gong Wu while Master Fung and the elder monks
stay and fight. In the process there’s a rarely seen authoritative side of
Master Fung as he orders the youth to leave and puts up a good fight against
Mala Mala Jong. Since he gets beaten,
it’s appropriate that our young heroes form a defeat plan of their own. While this goes on safely in their cave,
Raimundo, brashly decides to go back to the temple to face Mala Mala Jong himself. It's reckless to go after a dangerous
clearly all-powerful creature, but it’s still clear progression from slacking
off and not taking his role as a warrior seriously in the beginning. He knows what’s at stake and is brave enough
to face the powerful Mala Mala Jong. His
actions have appropriate consequences though when Wuya finds the location of
the Shen Gong Wu through literally going into his mind.
However, what Raimundo does is leverage for
the ensuing final takedown. With things
getting desperate, Omi uses the Serpent’s Tail to go to the center of the Earth
to retrieve the Golden Tiger Claws.
There’s a lot of intense moments of Kimiko and Clay using the Shen Gong
Wu they have to try and beat Mala Mala Jong, but he takes control of what’s
thrown at him. He even does so with Shen Gong Wu that aren’t even supposed to be
with the villains. With nothing beating
back Mala Mala Jong, this climax gets more intense by the minute only broken up
by a few funny failed attempts by Omi to reach the Earth’s core. However, just as Mala Mala Jong is about to
crush our heroes, Omi rips through his chest and takes out the Heart of Jong
with the Golden Tiger Claws. The demon is then turned back into Shen Gong Wu.
This is a great victory, but the episode ends
with significant drama. Defeating Mala
Mala Jong has the warriors move onto the level of Xiaolin Apprentice, but since
Raimundo put everyone in danger, he doesn’t advance. This makes sense, but
Raimundo is understandably upset for not being appreciated for his bravery and
effort even if they didn’t work. It
brings a change of pace with one of the heroes going down a dark brooding path,
and will be further explored in the next and last episode of the season.
This is easily the highlight of Season 1 with
an interesting shake-up to the dynamic allowing for creatively intense
scenarios and shining character moments.
A+
The Ranking
- Mala Mala Jong
- Night of the Sapphire Dragon
- Shen Yi Bu
- Royal Rumble
- Chameleon
- Katnappe
- The Journey of a Thousand Miles
- My Homey Omi
- Like a Rock
- Big as Texas
- Ring of the Nine Dragons
- Tangled Web
Be sure to stay tuned for the review for the last episode of Season 1 as we see where Raimundo's brooding takes him and what direction the series takes as a result.
If you would like to check out other Xiaolin Showdown reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.
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