Wild
West adventures are typically not what you’d expect from a show like this, but
they’ve seemed to go together well in a few past instances. Such is the case with this episode that also
stands out for being one of the most important weapon quests for the Xiaolin
Warriors.
As part of their new rank as
Wudai Warriors, they’re assigned to track down their own Wudai Weapons as well
as the powerful Treasure of the Blind Swordsman. Now, out of all the episodes that have
utilized the Wild West setup, this does so the best. There’s a distinctive atmosphere to the
adventure that immerses itself in the setting, seen mainly through the
challenges the Warriors face to get their weapons. Speaking of which, the Wudai Weapons
themselves help make the series as a whole stand out. Combined with the aesthetics of the
adventure, finding each one makes for creative scenarios. Raimundo’s weapon is a blue sword called the
Blade of the Nebula obtained from rattlesnakes.
Kimiko’s weapon is a fire based weapon called Arrow Sparrow which she
gets by beating a ghost in a saloon with a spittoon full of ancient spit. Clay’s weapon is a multi-faceted boomerang
known as the Big Bang Meteorang which comes to him during a fight with sentient
cacti. As for Omi, he spends the whole
adventure bragging about how great his Wudai Weapon will be and getting
disappointed with all the others going to his friends. His weapon is ultimately
a seemingly feeble stick called the Shimo Staff.
At first, one might wonder how these Wudai
Weapons aren’t in the same class as typical Shen Gong Wu. One big difference is that instead of the
Warriors just finding the weapons, they instead go to them and only work for
them, so that’s something. I do have to
question how they even know the names of the weapons when nothing gives them
away, yet they’re shouting them like they were obvious during combat. Speaking of combat, it shows that getting
them to work is not very easy. They’re ambushed by Jack and Wuya, their weapons
do nothing, and they lose a lot of Shen Gong Wu.
This steers us to the actual Treasure of the
Blind Swordsman. It’s in a cave, and is
guarded by a wisecracking old blind man.
The Warriors beat him to get to the treasure, but it seems to be
empty. After they lose their Shen Gong
Wu and the old man is captured though, they figure that they could see
something through looking with their minds instead of their eyes. This is wise, but it comes very quickly with
one line and doesn’t leave much impact.
The same is true for the encounter of the actual blind swordsman. It should be grand, but all it takes is one
conversation with him, and the Warriors somehow get their Wudai Weapons to work
including the Shimo Staff.
Lacking convincing build
up to these reveals aside, the Blind Swordsman’s power helps the Warriors reach
their enemies in time for an exciting climax.
It comes with a thrilling Xiaolin Showdown where the old man fights Jack
and Wuya on top of a train in space, and he amazingly wins the stolen Shen Gong
Wu back. After seeing their experiences
as a lesson in looking beyond what they see, the Warriors realize their
terrible mistake of leaving the Treasure of the Blind Swordsman behind. The
episode ends with them losing it, and the audience sees it in the custody of
Hannibal Bean in all his standard one-dimensional villainy.
All I can say is that they lose points for
boneheaded decisions that didn’t need to be made. This and big decisions coming from single
conversations hold the episode back, but the aesthetics and creativity to the
overall quest make the episode a good time in the Wild West.
A-
The Ranking
1.Bird of Paradise
2.The Treasure of the Blind Swordsman
3.Finding Omi
4.Omi Town
5.The Life and Times of Hannibal Roy
Bean
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where a new Shen Gong Wu brings dinosaurs back to life.
If you would like to check out other Xiaolin Showdown reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.
When
you’re on the last season of a show, one of the best things to ask from that is
answers to lingering questions. An
example of this case for this series is the truth about Omi’s parents. He’s an orphan who’s lived at the Xiaolin
Temple all his life, but you can’t help but wonder the truth about his origins. This episode sets out to try and answer that,
but it’s debatable if the results are satisfying.
It’s Chinese New Year, and the gang is
excited to receive great gifts from their families. Omi is sad, not for materialistic reasons,
but because it’s a reminder that he doesn’t have anyone to belong to, i.e. he
has no last name. Since this is clearly
a deep personal issue, Omi is advised go on a quest to find where he belongs
for himself. By chance, he and his
friends come across a town where everyone has very similar round yellow
attributes to Omi. It would make sense
that Omi came from here, and while that appears to be the case, his parents are
far beyond any hopeful expectation.
Apparently, they’re old poor farmers who completely lack the interests
and background Omi has built for himself for all his life. If that’s not enough, Omi’s questions about
his last name is very humiliating, merely standing as Crud. The parents themselves aren’t very pleasing
character-wise either. They claim to
have missed him for all these years, but are nonchalant when they say they
think they sold him off as a grapefruit.
However, when he comes home, rather than being overjoyed for his return,
they have him do all kinds of grueling chores for them and subject him to poor
conditions. There’s also immense lack of
consideration towards him with the father constantly coughing on him and them guilt
tripping him into staying instead of going back to the Temple. Omi, however, chooses to stay merely because
they’re his parents and family sticks together, though you can tell he’s not
happy with what they’re like.
That said,
given the convenience of the town, something clearly seems off. A lot of that connects to Hannibal Bean
already influencing the series’ rogues’ gallery. Now he’s convincing Wuya that Chase Young is
holding her back from regaining her powers and along with Jack, they work
together to steal Shen Gong Wu to make that happen. When Omi decides to stay with his parents,
they feel the path is clear for them to take it all. However, a surprise appearance from Chase
saying what’s happening to his friends convinces Omi to return to the Xiaolin
Temple after all to help.
Just as the
villains are about to get away with Shen Gong Wu, they’re laid out and lead to
a Xiaolin Showdown between Omi, and shockingly, his mother. Omi is understandably shaken by his mother
being evil and brutal with her attacks, but his friends convince him to not see
her as a parent. That’s very telling
that even if someone is a parent, they don’t always act like it and you have
the right to stand up to them when they go too far. It turns out
that Omi’s mother is merely a robot, and she and the rest of that town were
just part of a trick with Jack’s robots and the Moby Morpher. In other words, Omi is left without a clear
answer as to where he came from, having followed a lie. To add insult to injury, along with a huge
Shen Gong Wu loss, this question is never answered or explored again. There is good heart though with Omi coming to
accept that the life of care and acceptance he has now is the family he needs,
which is a meaningful message.
For that,
the episode is certainly a good one, but bringing up a topic that gets no real
development afterwards feels like a waste.
B+
The Ranking
1.Bird of Paradise
2.Finding Omi
3.Omi Town
4.The Life and Times of Hannibal Roy
Bean
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where our heroes set off for the Wild West to find their Wudai Weapons.
If you would like to check out other Xiaolin Showdown reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.
On
the surface, one would not see that strong a connection between this episode
and the previous one, so how well they go together is somewhat impressive. All their events together build up to
introduce a new villain for the season, one who’s said to be the most threatening
force of evil of all. However, it’s
debatable if the ultimate reveal is truly satisfying.
The episode starts off back to the typical
series formula with our established heroes and villains going after a newly
revealed Shen Gong Wu. Rather than
taking up the entire episode, finding it all happens in the first act. There are failed attempts at beating the
humanized Wuya, an exciting Xiaolin Showdown where she and Kimiko evade meteors
to get the Wu, and use of the Ying Yang Yo-Yo.
The latter point continues to boggle about what it means to change
moralities though as if personalities are never complex, a total load of
malarkey.
Anyway, just when it looks
like the Xiaolin Warriors win, a bird comes and steals everyone’s Shen Gong Wu,
and it’s the very parrot Jack obtained in the last episode. You honestly wouldn’t think much of a
smart-talking little bird who doesn’t seem threatening, but he turns out to be
very calculative and seems like a loyal ally to Jack. That’s not even all, as the parrot form isn’t
even the true form. The parrot is
actually a more threatening looking bird who comes from the Ying Yang World and
brings all the Shen Gong Wu there with Jack in tow. This is apparently an omen for the previously
mentioned force of ultimate evil being near, one Hannibal Bean, though this is
the first time he’s ever mentioned.
It
feels like in addition to getting back the stolen Shen Gong Wu, our heroes just
have another big threat sprung on them.
Even when Jack comes to Hannibal’s layer, him saying that he’s his evil
hero doesn’t feel too genuine. An
encounter with the good version of him points out he used to say the same about
Chase Young. As for Hannibal’s actual
reveal, it’s perfectly fine and does its part to introduce him as well as
showcase the idea of things not always being as they seem. He’s first seen as a knighted figure who
looks like he used to rule like a tyrant, and seems to know a lot about Jack
just from looking at him. Then it turns
out that Hannibal Bean is actually a tiny sentient bean with an attitude. This leaves a mixed impression as it fits the
main theme well, but it’s still hard to take seriously that this is the force
of all evil. Can you even suspend
disbelief that someone so tiny could even accomplish that many dark
things? His personality isn’t that impressive
either. It’s just a standard mean
demeanor with no real depth or charisma to make it stand out, so he’s not
exactly a ‘love to hate’ character like this show’s other villains.
The fact that he later turns out to be the
one who convinced Chase Young to go evil also doesn’t feel deserved or big
enough to take seriously. All he did was
take advantage of his lust for power, apparent back when Chase was good, and
after he changed him, he was easily overpowered and imprisoned in the Ying Yang
World. He’s only able to get out now
because he has that new Shen Gong Wu, the Moby Morpher, which can allow him to
take the form of anyone. With that, he’s
able to trick his way out of his prison, mess with the Warriors’ to make them
fight each other, and has them keep Chase from ending him. For that, the episode ends with the ultimate
guilt of them unleashing ultimate evil onto the world. This guilt would be a lot more powerful if it
was considered that the one Shen Gong Wu was the source of Hannibal getting
anywhere. However, throughout the
season, no one ever considers that.
On
the whole, this is a good way of introducing a new villain, but his sudden
introduction and inability for the audience to take seriously hold it back.
B+
The Ranking
1.Bird of Paradise
2.Finding Omi
3.The Life and Times of Hannibal Roy
Bean
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode that builds up a lot of promise for claiming to introduce Omi's parents.
If you would like to check out otherXiaolin Showdownreviews on this blog,clickherefor the guide made especially for them.
With
the passing of another world-threatening force of evil, the series is all set
to go back to following the usual formula.
While this featured episode seems to do that through focusing on the
Xiaolin Warriors on a quest, there are a few things to make it stand out from
the norm.
A passing old woman with a
terrible singing voice is a sign of the coming of an all-powerful being known
as the Bird of Paradise. They’re
assigned to find it and gain its gifts of wisdom, and there are a few elements
to it that set it apart from their usual quest.
For one thing, they’re instructed not to bring any Shen Gong Wu, marking
the only time in the series where they’re not present at all. Finding the Bird of Paradise requires each
Warriors’ inner strength, as well as the assistance of a magical leaf that
points towards the bird when placed in water.
As you can tell, this quest has a couple refreshing changes of
pace. Still, there’s familiarity as the
Xiaolin Warriors venture into the Land of Nowhere, where Chase Young rules, to
find the bird. In other words, they have
to face schemes from their usual villains like they would under normal
circumstances. Of course, the wild
antics of Jack Spicer are a burden to deal with as he takes their leaf to find
the bird for himself. Even more
challenging are the powers of Chase Young and Wuya watching over them with a
mystical eye. Being forces of ultimate
evil, they have more elaborate challenges planned for our heroes like monstrous
faces stretching out of rocks, fire-breathing squirrels, and a rock snake.
No matter what the challenge or inconvenience
though, there are good opportunities to emphasize the subject of each Warrior’s
inner strength. That, in turn, is a
telling sign of growth and maturity as protectors of the world, even if it
means drawbacks to their own quest. This
mainly applies to Raimundo who sees that same old woman wanting to cross a river,
and he stops to help her despite this costing the group their leaf. Others demonstrate creative thinking when
overcoming obstacles like Clay taking on the rock snake, and Kimiko beating
back the fire-breathing squirrels. These
two, by the way, are the first sightings of the group’s new powers that come
with their promotion to Wudai Warriors.
Like their earlier Apprentice powers though, they just suddenly appear
without any prior knowledge. Anyway,
gestures that thwart progress come again, this time from Omi who leads an
attack on Chase’s rock creature just as they find what they think is the Bird
of Paradise. While they’re beating the
obstacle, they become distracted which allows Jack to take a small green parrot
for himself, leaving the Warriors empty-handed.
However, their supposed losses turn out to be of great benefit. The Bird of Paradise was not a real bird, but
a spirit who took the form of that old woman.
She reveals her true form, which is very nicely designed, and grants the
Warriors with acknowledgement of their strengths and virtues expressed through
the adventure. These words may not be
anything material, but if you think about it, being told of what you excel at
can be a most valuable and inspiring thing.
That’s what helps make the Warriors’ encounter with the bird honestly
one of the most beautiful scenes of the series.
As an aside, along with being told of their virtues, they also learn
that things are not always what they seem.
This works as an amusing contrast to the ending scene of Jack who thinks
he’s got wisdom from the parrot, but actually gets nothing but rude
wisecracks.
Overall though, this episode
is a worthy series entry with interesting formula changes and inspiring wisdom.
A+
The Ranking
1.Bird of Paradise
2.Finding Omi
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where we meet a new regular villain, Hannibal Roy Bean.
If you would like to check out otherXiaolin Showdownreviews on this blog,clickherefor the guide made especially for them.
The
subject of this review set is yet another one to officially wrap up one of the
main series of this blog. The featured
series is highly unique in the action/adventure category, and now we’ll see how
well everything comes together in the end with:
Xiaolin Showdown (Season 3)
Basic Premise
You
may not hear it discussed as much as other shows, but Xiaolin Showdown to me is very impressive and fascinating in many
ways. Sure, it’s not as deep or
multi-layered as other shows on this blog, but it still leaves very memorable
impressions on those who see it. The premise
itself has a lot of imagination behind it, the chemistry among the distinctive
cast is strong, and it can effectively raise the stakes to dramatic effect at
the right moments. For that, even with
the basic protagonists and obvious morals driving a lot of the episodes, the
experience is ultimately a winner.
On
the subject of rising stakes, the previous two seasons seemed to have made one
thing clear about the series formula. Most episodes may be about a certain Shen
Gong Wu reveal with a kid-friendly moral at the center, but that’s not the case
with how each season begins and ends.
They follow up on big events that happened at the previous season and
really deliver with intense action, drama, and even emotion. This is especially true following the second
season ending with an awesome mission to try and save one of our heroes, and a
major emotional toll when the mission fails.
Along with a few other moments of drama throughout the season, including
the introduction of an actual threatening villain, Chase Young, this one has a
lot to live up to. Some could say that
this rise in seriousness means major tonal whiplash, and that prevents the
series from reaching high standards, but I find it a decent hook. In a few ways, it’s like the nature of the
show is growing up alongside its heroes, somewhat.
However,
does the final season truly deliver? Well the only way to know is to cover the
13 episodes that make up Season 3. So let’s go, Xiaolin Showdown, Gong Yi
Tanpai, and all that sort of thing!
Now on with the reviews:
Finding Omi
Like
the previous season, the third season begins with a break from the usual
formula, setting out to resolve the unresolved conflict of the prior
finale. The world is still in darkness,
Chase Young is still in power, and Omi is trapped as a jungle cat as his
reluctant servant. That’s all there is
to set up the challenges that need to be fixed, and while the execution isn’t
as spectacular as how these conflicts began, the execution is still solid.
Despite the dark setup there’s one major
humorous quip coming from what Omi’s
friends, Raimundo, Kimiko, and Clay, have to put up. Having gone into the Ying Yang World with the
Reversing Mirror Shen Gong Wu, their longtime enemy, Jack Spicer, is now
apologetically good. Just as his usual
self was obsessively evil, he takes to the opposite extreme the same way. His over-the-top performance and contrast
with everyone focusing on the major task at hand makes it work.
Speaking of the task, everyone’s told that
the only way to save Omi is to challenge Chase Young for ownership. That’s something to look forward to, but they
have one other obstacle to face. In the
Season 2 finale, there was an invisible creature that followed them out of the
Ying Yang World without an explanation of its nature. Here, it’s revealed that it’s called the chi
creature and unsurprisingly, its role is to remove chi of anyone it
comes across. With Chase’s intervention,
the chi creature gets to the gang and removes their chi save for Dojo and good
Jack. The victims are reduced to blubbering
simpletons saying nothing but phrases of nonsense. The situation seems crippling, but the
remaining Xiaolin Warriors don’t stay chi-less for long. The fix comes fairly quickly with Jack
willingly going into the Ying Yang World to get their chi and trap the chi
creature in it. Aside from making a duplicate of himself with the Ring of the
Nine Dragons while the real him goes back to being evil, the chi creature
conflict ends as soon as it starts. It
makes the storytelling lack ambition for not really showing off
the effects of that monster to their full potential. It does its job with showing what becomes of
good Jack, but for how fast resolution comes, there’s little impact.
The Xiaolin Warriors are finally able to face
Chase and challenge him for Omi’s freedom as planned, and it’s good to know the
featured showdown delivers. It’s a
soccer game against the Xiaolin Warriors, Omi included, and Chase and his
warriors with Dojo as the ball. It’s
excitingly staged, has some good laughs, and it’s rewarding to see the heroes
win and Omi become free. While that ultimately
makes this like a standard showdown resolution, there is one interesting reveal
after this. Omi laments not stopping the
conflict before it started through revealing the secret to destroy evil, but
Chase says that what he saw was a Reversing Mirror trick. If Omi broke his word, good would have been
destroyed. This is enough for Omi to
believe that there’s good in Chase all along just as Chase believed Omi could
go evil despite forcing him into it. The episode also resolves the Wudai
Warrior element of the previous season finale with not one, but all the
Warriors getting promoted. It’s a
fitting outcome, but given the exact words of one Warrior getting the title, I
agree with Dojo saying that Master Fung makes things up as he goes.
This season premiere isn’t as ambitious as it
could be, but with good comedy, character moments, and actions, it’s still a
commendable start.
A-
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where the Xiaolin Warriors go on a mission to find the Bird of Paradise, and learn deep lessons about themselves.
If you would like to check out other Xiaolin Showdown reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.
This is a review a very recent special mostly made
to capture the nostalgic value of Rocko's Modern Life for this generation. However, in recapturing the past, this
special also proves that the main themes and ideas of the overall series are
truly timeless, outrageous undertones and all.
From Netflix, this is:
Static Cling
(August 9, 2019)
In today’s generation of media, reboots
of old nostalgic properties are very commonplace. It would make sense to show concern over the
clear lack of originality TV and film are designed for, but at the same time,
it always helps to keep an open mind.
For every pointless retelling of the same story in live action or series
with a very deviating tone, there are always reboots that keep the original
style, and be entertaining in their own right.
That’s where this special falls when it comes to reboots as part of a
trend of Nickelodeon to boost its relevance by introducing this new generation
to its nostalgic properties. Heck, Joe
Murray even returned to the creative head’s position to lead the project. This along with the return of the original cast, and a
faithful recreation of the original series’ art style and comedic tone suggest
a worthy follow-up to the true Nickelodeon staples. Ultimately, I’m pleased to say that this is
exactly the case, all following the perfect type of story for this franchise to
tell.
To sell the feel of the show being
gone for a long time, the special smartly establishes itself as a direct
continuation of the random ending of the original series finale “Future Schlock.” While that cartoon’s ending
could have just been written off as a gag, it’s a pretty smart and clever move
to have it serve as a basis for the background of Rocko and his friends. It shows awareness to the characters’ roots
as well as the knowledge and memories of the series’ original audience. Speaking of the latter point, Rocko and his
closest companions, Heffer, Filburt, and Spunky the dog, have essential points
of connecting to their original audience.
All of which reach out to their home generation of the 90s. Them being stuck together in Rocko’s house
flying through space is reflective of how social gatherings would work with
them just hanging out with each other directly.
There’s no internet platforms or services; while they’re lost in space,
all they do is converse, watch TV, and in Heffer’s case, pass time with a song. Speaking of watching TV, I personally find it
a very welcome touch that their source of entertainment is a sole VHS of The Fatheads with only a small selection
of episodes. I know that certainly takes
me back to that era. In fact, them doing
this same thing in the void of space for 20 years is the very allegory to
perfectly capture this actual series being away from the air for roughly that
amount of time. Then, in the usual
fashion of Rocko’s Modern Life,
comedy is what drives the story to really take off when the group discovers
they had an easy fix to get out of space all along. By this, I mean that Heffer had been sitting
on the rocket’s remote control for all this time. Once those laughs are had, our main group’s
course is set for their old home of O-Town, and the special’s story officially
unfolds.
On this note, there’s something
constantly standing out about the setup of the special throughout the whole
affair. Although I personally see a lot
of smart commentary and solid entertainment from what’s done with it overall,
I’d like to start with the most glaring issue it has. It all relates to how this special handles
continuity for the events of the original series. I mean, it’s very clear that a lot of effort
is put in to have this modern upgrade be a strong connection to its
predecessor. The reflective capture of
the original art style and bringing back the original voice actors is a good
touch, but there’s one element to have the continuity go the extra mile. Crafting the background of Rocko and his
friends after the events of the final episode of the original series is just
about as direct as you can get. However,
while it gets the basic idea of them being in space for so long right, there
are also a couple of notable inaccuracies and points of confusion in this
department. The O-Town the group lands
in is supposed to be a more modernized version of what it's mainly known as,
except a more futuristic version was already seen in “Future Schlock.” In fact, that cartoon’s version of the main setting
was far more modernized than today’s society.
Then there is the basic matters of the characters’ ages. It’s not too far-fetched that Rocko and his
friends don’t age since it was established in “Future Schlock” that age isn’t
affected by travelling through space.
Despite that, all of the citizens of O-Town are exactly as young as
you’d remember, a much bigger break in continuity. I mean, characters still on Earth were shown
to age, particularly Ed Bighead, so that not being the case here is kind of
glaring. I know Filburt had that
anti-aging cream, but it’s hard to believe that everyone used it to stay
young. Being strong in continuity in
some areas but not going all out sticks out a lot throughout the special.
Nevertheless the important thing is that none of this takes away from the
positive viewing experience.
In addition to appealing to nostalgic
fans of the series, it’s also important for this special to resonate with the
current generation. For that, there’s a
believable explanation for things like the lack of characters aging. With everyone retaining their familiar ages
and appearances, today’s audiences can get a feel of the cast’s true nature,
introducing them to the appeal of the series.
On that note, it also makes the special stand out the best in showcasing
how its theme of depicting the challenges of daily life is one for all
ages.
As soon as Rocko and the gang land
in their old home, they discover that while it looks familiar, many customs have
changed a lot in those 20 years they were away.
Separating societal norms from the 90s to the 2010s, phones are
constantly upgrading; internet videos are all the rage and make stars out of
ordinary people; food trucks are everywhere and prepare all sorts of high-calorie,
radioactive snacks; movies are in lifelike 3D and reach mass audiences by being
dark and gritty; the list goes on.
There’s a balanced perspective to all of these modern changes too. Eccentric characters like Heffer and Filburt
adjust well to the changes, making for little effective gags serving as the
bulk of the special’s comedy mainly with phones and internet videos. Rocko, typically being the one to endure the
hardship of life’s challenges a lot, is put down by all the changes. Like I’d imagine that like most audience members when
it comes to dealing with so many changes , he’s overwhelmed, putting his frustrations at their most understandable. After an extensive sequence of said
challenges pushing him around so much, the main plot for the special unfolds.
Relating to the earlier scene of Rocko
and his friends preparing to watch that Fatheads
VHS, Rocko feels that what he needs to deal with the changes is a viewing of
the show. Think of it as the relatable
concept of using favorite pieces of media as escapism; I certainly know what
that’s like. The only problem is that The Fatheads have been off the air for
years without any reruns even. I guess
when it came to depicting life’s challenges, no one ever considered the
existence of streaming services or DVD box sets to keep the legacy of older
shows alive. Now what would normally be
seen as a minor challenge gains weight when we look into what Ed Bighead has
gotten up to while Rocko was away. The
usual curmudgeon neighbor has actually been living a good life for all these
years, happily working as an executive at the huge business facility for
O-Town, Conglom-O. However, as if by
fate, he really fudges things up as soon as Rocko returns. A simple mathematical mistake puts the stocks
of Conglom-O through the floor, and given its vital service to O-Town, that’s
enough to threaten the town’s way of life.
Of course, it’s ridiculous to think that all of this happens because of
a typo, but it’s very in line with the tone the main series has built for
itself. With legit stakes, Rocko feels
that the best way to make back the money by having Conglom-O fund a new revival
special for The Fatheads. You can also sense a lot of self-awareness to
what nostalgic fans might express when convincing favorite shows to come back,
saying there’s a big fan base and whatnot.
Word spreads quickly about that and production begins, but there’s a
catch. Playing to the idea that network
executives prioritizing money over quality, the initial Fatheads special is full of cheapness and mainstream fixes. Funded by the suspiciously business-savvy
Chameleon Brothers, it’s nothing more than a poorly made mess with only CGI to
make it look cool. Even considering
crowd-pleasing features to media, it’s easy to tell this would not be the right
thing to make the money O-Town needs. To
Rocko, there’s only one person who can do the Fatheads special justice.
Rocko and his friends go on a trip
around the world to track down the creator of The Fatheads, the Bigheads’ son Ralph. After all, the best people to reboot a show
for a new generation are usually the original creators, at least most of the
time. In the original series, Ralph
Bighead was always a fascinating character, breaking free from his business-oriented job to follow his creative passions, and later reflect the creative process. Plus, he feels especially authentic being
voiced by this series’ creator, Joe Murray himself. This special even goes the extra mile with an
especially broad reflection on society changes which Ralph himself is part of. Following several treks around the world,
Rocko and his friends ultimately find Ralph in the desert selling Fatheads ice
pops. Not only do they ultimately
convince him to make the special properly, but Ralph reveals something even
bigger. During these past 20 years,
Ralph changed his gender, and is now Rachel, revealing herself to be trans. Personally, I’d like to know what inspired
the change, but I have a feeling that the outcome of a major art project, i.e.
Ralph’s last appearance, inspired it.
The real takeaway here is that this is one of the broadest
representations of not-so-often respectfully represented people in media. Though it takes time to reveal Rachel, the
special does so without any huge bravado or anything to make it come off as an
anomaly. Truthfully, trans people are
not anomalies, and have the right to be represented just like anyone else. In fact, it’s simply endearing that Rachel is
accepted by Rocko and the others, but then the special goes the extra mile when
it comes to the subject.
Now, Ed Bighead has always been a
major grouch, but the events of this special are legit blows to his pride,
making any negative trait somewhat understandable. He’s the one who did the accounting error
that caused the situation, and he’s losing his job and house as a result,
giving gravity to how all of this affects him.
Plus, he’s known for having a difficult relationship with his kid, so
when he learns that the gender’s been changed and Ralph is now Rachel, he’s
unable to accept that. In other words,
while this special is showing that there is acceptance for trans people, there
are always going to be people who won’t feel the same way. This sadly can include family, and it stands
out all the more here with the theme of finding it difficult to accept
change. In fact, Ed’s lack of acceptance
is so big, it pushes Rachel not to go through with headlining the Fatheads special. For coming from a series so well-known for
being totally off-the-wall bizarre, it’s amazing that when it comes to reaching
out to a certain group, this special can be totally respectable. Plus, the fact that it got people from the
GLADD organization to help write this part of the special clearly pays off and
shows the authenticity.
In the context of the story though,
this major disagreement means no special, and no hope for O-Town to recover
financially. Amidst the ensuing panic,
there’s a nice scene of Rocko and Ed reflecting on how difficult it’s been for
both of them to accept the many changes that have occurred. The hardships they’ve caused for Ed speak for
themselves, but Rocko felt that he could make them work if he just had his
favorite show back to ease all difficulties.
There’s just something nice about the idea of two polar opposites
forgetting their differences and finding some sort of common ground. Again, it’s endearing that such a crazy and
weird series can get this wholesome when making a universal point. It’s during this conversation of contrasting
personalities where an epiphany is reached as Rocko and Ed grow open to the
changes in their lives. They clearly
don’t need an obvious lesson on change from a literal ‘winds of change’, but
that still makes the special feel right at home with the original series. As for the Fatheads special, it may seem like a quick resolve, but with
convincing staging, you can buy Rachel being moved to make it anyway when
looking back on her family.
So the Fatheads special is completed with everyone in O-Town gathered to
check it out and fund it to save Conglom-O.
Ultimately, if you find the Fatheads
scenes from the series proper funny, you’ll probably have a good time with
what the new special has to offer. There
is a difference of the Fathead couple getting a new baby, but nothing’s changed
about the overall tone, humor, and quality.
It really makes sense that the town finds a lot to love with the
special. In fact, it’s downright
off-putting that Rocko is the one to show major disdain over that little
change, as if it’s enough to disrespect the legacy of The Fatheads which is not the case.
It also doesn’t make sense for Rocko’s character since he’s not known
for getting worked up over little things like this. Could it be that he needed the show to be
exactly how he remembers it to deal with all the changes of his new home? I guess, but the heart of that matter really
doesn’t show. Plus, the winds of change
show up to get him to accept the special and like it for what it is, but then
what was the point of its earlier scene?
This is just an uncalled scene to drive home the theme of change that
the special could have benefitted without.
Other than that, the conclusion is still very solid. Rocko does grow to adapt to the changes in
his life despite that outburst, Ed accepts Rachel who starts reconnecting with
her family, and O-Town is financially stable again. With a touch of the trademark wacky humor
driving anything, in spite of one last gross-out gag of Ed’s boss
booger-flicking, it leaves the special worthy of the series it’s part of.
It may not be perfect, but there’s a
lot to admire about Static Cling. It looks and feels like Rocko’s Modern Life, it makes the point clear that its aesthetic
and points are still relevant 20 years later, it’s endearing when it needs to be,
and it’s a story everyone can relate to no matter what their generation. In an age of endless reboots where more
originality is needed, this special is an example of a reboot big on passion
and universal appeal. Also, if this is
the last there is of Rocko’s Modern Life,
I say it went out strong.
Highly Recommended
I may not be into Nickelodeon as much
as I used to be, but I’m pleased to say that Rocko’s Modern Life is one of the network’s shows I can enjoy for
life. For four seasons and one reboot
special, it has thrived with a universal point on life’s challenges, and
brought them to life in a style all its own.
It will always be remembered for its striking personalities,
envelope-pushing humor, extreme gags, and animated spirit. With its faithful reboot special, it’s even
clearer that all generations can get great enjoyment out of it. So be sure to check it out for nostalgia
purposes, of if you’ve never seen it before, it’s no secret that you’re in for
a hoot.
Next time, we'll be wrapping up this blog's reviewing of Xiaolin Showdown. Until then:
