I Am Jethro
Back in the early days of the show, there was a cartoon suggesting that there was more to the simplistic Boxmore robot, Jethro. Upon further investigation, it seemed like all it was capable of doing was moving forward and simply saying “I am Jethro,” and nothing more. With this cartoon, interesting ideas are brought up when one Jethro robot gets a glitch and is able to do more than its basic capabilities suggest. It even ends up with its own share of arms and legs and can even talk in audible sentences. While it goes against the original plan for all Jethros, this unforeseen upgrade convinces Lord Boxman to let him go along on another attack on the plaza.
The thing is that with a more developed intellect, Jethro is open to more than just all of this. In fact, with its showy voice and personality, it’s fitting that it would much rather dance and live it up. This is further shown during a fight with the heroes of Gar’s Bodega where he forms a real bond with K.O., who’s also out of it in terms of fighting and trash-talking. In a way, this can be seen as a culmination to the idea of K.O. bonding with Jethro way back in his Season 1 appearance. As Jethro explains that he doesn’t feel like he can attack the plaza, K.O. suggests that he can find his true calling by going around to help others around the plaza. Serving as another continuation to an earlier Season 1 cartoon, like how K.O. proved himself to be a helpful boy on his first day at the plaza, Jethro acts as a helpful robot. All the little ways he offers help at the frame store, the coffee shop, the fitness dojo, and as a side dancer are remarkable examples of his versatility based off that glitch of his.
With the broader personality in his inner workings, Jethro comes to the conclusion that the best way to show his capabilities is to overthrow Lord Boxman. It’s drastic, yes, but given that he’s one of the antagonists, it’s not worth getting too worried over, at least not as much as K.O. does. Jethro really gets off to a good start as he uses his newfound sense of rebellion to brush off any admonishment from Darrell and Shannon for not helping with their plaza attack. He gives a passionate speech to all the other Jethros on how they’re more than what they seem to start the rebellion, although he has to dance to get their simple minds to understand.
Still, they have some sense when Lord Boxman notices what’s going on and rushes down to find the Jethro who led the other Jethros astray. They distract him and make him completely frustrated while the one Jethro makes the ultimate sacrifice of ripping off his arms and legs. Even with its effectiveness, Jethro’s rebellion turns out to go nowhere. However, he still has his wits and with the help he received, something seems to have been gained. If only it was explored upon more in future cartoons.
Despite all that, this is an
intriguing concept brought to life highlighting what happens when usually
simple-minded creations really get a chance to be something more.
A
Season 2
Rankings
1. Your World is an Illusion
2. T.K.O.’s House
3. Final Exams
4. CarolQuest
5. All in the Villainy
6. Dendy’s Power
7. Crossover Nexus
8. Lord Cowboy Darrell
9. Bittersweet Rivals
10. Red Action to the Future
11. My Fair Carol
12. Are You Ready for Some Megafootball?!
13. Boxman Crashes
14. Wisdom Strength and Charisma
15. I Am Jethro
16. Mystery Sleepover
17. Super Black Friday
18. Point to the Plaza
19. Project Ray Way
20. Special Delivery
21. Seasons Change
22. The So-Bad-Ical
23. Monster Party
24. Sidekick Scouts
25. Whacky Jaxxyz
26. Plaza Film Festival
27. Let’s Watch the Boxmore Show
28. Be a Team
29. Plaza Alone
30. Soda Genie
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