The Domino
Effect
Even if you’re not trapped in another world like Anne, if you’ve ever owned a pet, you’re bound to have experienced some emotional toll that comes with it. Perhaps it could have run away and turned out to be better off on its own, or maybe it could have come down to the simple fact that most pets don’t live as long as people. With this in mind, this cartoon turns out to be one of the most relatable. That said, Anne’s added strife of being transported away from her home and everything and everyone close to her makes the situation's emotional element really stand out.
One of her absolute favorite things about home is her cat, Domino, who started out as a stray but was then taken in as her pet. It’s no doubt clear that Anne’s affection for her cat is perfectly genuine from her many photos and videos of Domino on her phone, and how she talks about it to Sprig. This is also apparent when they find a black and white caterpillar-like creature, and Anne is absolutely ecstatic about taking it home to be her pet away from home. She even gives the creature the name, Domino 2.
Keeping it around isn’t easy though as Hop Pop is against anyone bringing in pets as highlighted by a humorous long-winded anecdote about a pet spider the Plantars used to have. There’s also some relatability here as he describes the kids being there for the cuddling and playing, but him doing all the work with it. Speaking of which, as Anne claims to be an expert on cats, it would be easy to make her come off as pretentious and do a subpar job of handling Domino 2. Aside from a few scenes of not considering that the creature’s ‘play-biting’ may be her tasting Sprig, Anne proves to truly know what she’s doing with Domino 2. They’re really close when playing together, Anne is patient and understanding when Domino 2 is feisty or brings her dead things, and she does a good job of keeping it under control. By under control, I mostly mean she does well of keeping Domino 2 a secret from Hop Pop.
As expected though, all her attempts backfire when Domino 2 goes missing, and Hop Pop suspects a pet after all, but how it backfires is executed well. Rather than from some avoidable dumb decision or slip of the tongue, what messes everything up is something that Anne legitimately couldn’t have known beforehand. It turns out that Domino 2 is not just a caterpillar, but a dangerous winged creature known for eating frogs, and it attempts to do just that with the Plantars. With this, Anne has to come to terms that replacing her pet while she’s in this world is really not going to work out, and her sadness and sorrow absolutely makes the scene. Before the creature devours the Plantars, Anne tearfully brings out something she used to attract the creature to begin with, a toy mouse, and throws it in the distance for it to follow.
The ending turns out to be bittersweet with Anne once again without a stand-in for her beloved cat, but she does get some form of comfort. Hop Pop confides in her being separated from her pet by saying he misses the Plantars’ old spider, and Sprig eases her loss with his own homemade cat doll.
How Anne embraces it despite its ugly appearance is one last sign of deep affection for her pet, but her overemotional line delivery comes with a good bit of levity.
This cartoon is very telling of the strengths
of the series where amidst the creative world and creatures, relatable
scenarios bring everything together and get the audience invested.
A+
Taking
Charge
Since I always love sharing some of my favorite things with others, I find it a nice touch that most cartoons show Anne sharing elements of her home with the frogs she’s staying with. For this cartoon, she shares with them my favorite thing to bond with others over, a TV show. The results bring out some interesting ways for the frogs to approach the show, and brings to light layers of the dynamic of this particular family.
Anne discovers that her phone has picked up a new season of her favorite show, Suspicion Island, a reality show of ‘beautiful people doing stupid things while stuff explodes.’ Sprig and Polly are easily won over by the show and are eager to see more of it. Hop Pop, on the other hand who would’ve preferred reading the kids a scene from a play as entertainment, is very adamant of how he ‘despises’ this ‘garbage show.’ Between all these approaches to Suspicion Island, the pieces are in place for major suspicion of their own given what happens next.
The following day, Anne is all set to show the Plantars the rest of the show, but someone has watched all the episodes and ran down all the electrical charge on her phone. Now the whole business with Anne’s phone brings good weight to the series. It addresses the issue of how it can stay charged for Anne’s indefinite stay in this world, and what happens later gives a solid explanation. In addition, the phone is shown to be more than just an accessory to appeal to contemporary youths. It’s the only source of resources and memories Anne has to her home which she needs considering where she’s ended up now. This in turn makes her emotional stress over her dead phone understandable.
However, it starts a chain of aggression and arguing amongst the Plantars. In most situations, incessant arguing would ruin the viewing experience, but there are plenty of measures taken to prevent that. The arguing itself is made mostly entertaining as Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop approach the situation with references to the show, funny one-liners, and over-the-top line deliveries. Plus, focus is kept on solving the problem instead of dwelling on who caused it which is most important.
They do so with an expedition to a mountain pass full of electrical centipedes called zapapedes which have enough charge to fix Anne’s phone. As you can see, even when the Plantars are at odds, they’re still a fun bunch of characters to follow and explore this world with. That said, the fighting can still be a bit much when Sprig and Polly get too aggressive at one point and Anne joins in just because Sprig accidentally hit her. Even then, it’s balanced by someone trying to keep the peace with Hop Pop quickly stepping in. He emphatically settles the matter by flat-out confessing he was the one who ran down the phone, claiming he loved Suspicion Island for all its relatable kids. This outcome could be seen as too obvious, but he could have meant his claims of the show being garbage, but overdramatic tones can suggest something’s hidden. Either way, there’s a fitting conclusion to everything as family love wins out with Hop Pop willingly taking the zapapedes’ shocks to recharge Anne’s phone. It coming to 10,000% is sure to justify her constant use of it that’s undeniably certain for the rest of the series.
While this cartoon might not be that big on mystery, it’s a solid showing of
fun through world-building, insight into details, and fun dynamics of the best
and worst of our protagonists.
A
The Ranking
1. The Domino
Effect
2. Best Fronds
3. Anne or
Beast?
4. Stakeout
5. Taking
Charge
6. Flood,
Sweat, and Tears
7. Hop Luck
8. Cane Crazy
No comments:
Post a Comment