Stuck in a Tree / Rhonda Goes Broke (Hey Arnold Season 5 Episode 5) - 'Toon Reviews 34

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Stuck in a Tree

Some characters in this show are aggressively paranoid and over the top.  Others are aggressively one-dimensional.  Then you have those who are aggressively optimistic.  I have absolutely nothing against optimists; I always try to look on the bright side myself.  However, it can get very overbearing to deal with someone who’s so optimistic that he or she becomes ignorant of how bad a situation really is.  This cartoon stars such a character, not making for the most appealing setup. 

It starts with Arnold in the park as he comes across Eugene stuck in a tree.  He claims to have been up in that tree for hours, which is an even bigger deal considering that it’s later said that the tree is in a part of the park that not a lot of people come to.  Adding insult to injury, as Arnold climbs up to get Eugene, a branch breaks and he becomes stuck too.  The dynamic grows as Harold shows up initially mocking Arnold and Eugene for their situation, but changes his mood when he ends up stuck. 

Of all the characters, Eugene is the most active.  By that I mean his traits are shown the most prominently.  Because of this, it’s frustrating that he constantly gets everyone’s hopes up with inaccurate optimistic remarks.  He says that someone will save them ‘any minute now’ but hours pass and they never do.  Someone on a tractor comes by, but he’s ignorant of what’s thrown at him and gets knocked out by a branch.  He claims that Chocolate Boy will bring the fire department to save them after Arnold tells him to go there, but is oblivious to how unconvincing his promise to do so was.  There’s looking on the bright side, and then there’s not considering all the facts.  Maybe if Eugene had one moment of reflection of the problem’s true magnitude like when he and Arnold were stuck on a roller coaster, things would be a lot better.  Without a moment like that, the atmosphere is overly and ignorantly cheery and cheesy where the only sympathetic ones are Arnold and Harold. 

Harold is understandably paranoid and frustrated with Eugene building up false hope and is vocal about how hopeless the situation seems.  Arnold clearly feels the same way, he’s just apathetic over one kid who’s overly optimistic of the situation and another who’s scared for his life.  Only a fantasy sequence of them all remaining in the tree 70 years into the future where all their friends are too deaf to hear they need help reflects his turmoil.  That said, wouldn’t people start looking for them long before then? 

Then as a totally cheesy measure, Eugene sings a very sappy song about having hope which just doesn’t sit right.  Maybe it’s because the show isn’t a musical so a song like this feels out of place, or maybe it’s because of how childish it sounds.  Even when it brings a reason for drama as Arnold gets knocked off the tree as Harold tries to beat Eugene, it ruins the stakes as Arnold is saved as they finish singing. 

To its credit, it seems to have merit when Chocolate Boy does come with the fire department after all. Then all accomplishments are compromised when their cherry picker breaks down as the cartoon ends setting the frustration in motion again.  This whole carton turns out to be overly basic and ends up going nowhere.  In fact, it’s so basic, a montage of Helga’s love for Arnold (which includes clips from the series pilot) fills up the last minute, and it’s more entertaining than the actual cartoon. The true story isn’t bad thanks to some instances of varying perspectives, but with one perspective being overbearing, it’s no series highlight.

C+

Rhonda Goes Broke

When it comes to cartoons about Rhonda, some can argue that they constantly have her learn the same lessons of humbleness.  While that’s easy to believe, in my mind, her over bloated ego and stuck-up attitude allows for different variations on her realizing she’s not so above it all as she seems.  So far, she’s gotten major karma for judging people for their appearances, unjustly saying who’s cool and who’s a geek, and realizing she really doesn’t have good manners.  This cartoon is probably her ultimate form of karma by going after the source of her worst traits, her wealth. 

After bragging about her riches and showing no consideration for her friends not being able to afford what she can, her world suddenly comes crashing down.  Once Rhonda returns home, she’s met with a major shock that her family has lost all their money in the stock market.  It’s so bad that their home has to be repossessed immediately and everything Rhonda showed pride in having is gone without a moment’s notice.  As an interesting story direction, her family’s best option for a new place to live is Arnold’s boarding house.  Although this means being closer to the star of the show, relating to Rhonda’s perspective on things, living here is just as difficult as it is humiliating.  Through inabilities to put up with the eccentric boarders and having a room with a drab bed and wallpaper, her materialistic worldview certainly doesn’t fit this setup. 

In fact, as the cartoon goes on, Rhonda practically falls apart due to her inability to adjust to the new social status.  Her nice clothes get all beaten up, she has to make up feeble excuses for why her phone service isn’t working, and even has to resort to digging in dumpsters for coins.  It makes for an interesting concept brought to life of a pampered rich person needing to face all challenges of poverty which is especially meaningful for someone like Rhonda.  Once she can’t hide what has happened from her peers any longer, her inability to adjust is perfectly reflected by locking herself in her boarding house room.  Having her old life taken away is like the biggest form of torture to her and all she can do is hide herself from the outside world and complain over everything.  Really, you don’t even have to be rich to feel this way too should you somehow lose everything in your own life.

It’s times like this when Arnold’s firmer moments are what it takes to get Rhonda to realize she can still make a good life for herself without money, otherwise she’s just pathetic.  After that comes a healthy and inspiring way for Rhonda to finally make the most of being poor.  Through making her own clothes, finding good food around the boarding house, and using alternate and potentially better modes of transport, her change in mindset is impressive. 

Then the status quo is retained when her family’s stocks bounce back up and they’re rich again, causing her to disregard all the changes in life she made.  Personally, I don’t get why this had to be the conclusion, and just when Rhonda was healthily adjusted to not having money too.  Had her family stayed poor, her development in this cartoon surely would have stuck which would have been beneficial for her character.  At least her thanking Arnold for getting her through her poor period and to better understand people not as wealthy as her sounds very genuine. 

Still, if things didn’t go back to normal, this would have been Rhonda’s absolute best performance.  As it stands though, it’s still a strong instance of ultimately bringing down her materialistic worldview.

A

The Ranking

1.      Rhonda Goes Broke

2.      Phoebe Breaks a Leg

3.      Principal Simmons

4.      Fishing Trip

5.      Sid the Vampire Slayer

6.      Gerald’s Game

7.      Stuck in a Tree

8.      Big Sis

9.      New Bully on the Block

10.  Bag of Money

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode of another hijinks-fueled escapade of Helga breaking into Arnold's house to protect her secret, and Sid's paranoia making him a germaphobe.

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