Legends
There are many cartoons in this series that show the
relationship between two or more of the Loud siblings, but very few show one of
the kids’ relationship with their parents.
That’s the value of this cartoon which focuses on the relationship
between Lincoln and Dad. It also helps
that this cartoon has the added benefit of paying homage to the classic
Nickelodeon game show, Legends of the
Hidden Temple. My experience with
that show was watching reruns of it back when the channel, Nickelodeon GaS, was
a thing. It was a nicely constructed
physical challenge and knowledge-based show with an interesting premise of
teams of kids taking on challenges related to a certain legend which would lead
up to the always exciting temple runs where the teams would attempt to navigate
through different rooms to find a treasure while avoiding the temple
guards. It’s a game show concept so
appealing that it even worked well in movie form as a live-action TV movie from
2016 proved. As for this Loud House cartoon, it’s utilized well
here as something Lincoln and his dad, both trying hard to find something to
bond over, get on the actual game show since the show itself is something they
both enjoy. The game show’s environment
is filled with references to the source material like the names of the teams,
the Orange Iguanas and Silver Snakes, the host, Kirk Fogg, voiced by the real
actor, the usage of the talking stone head Olmec, and the temple challenges
feeling like they’re lifted straight from the original game show. It’s a fun environment that not only will
surely appease to nostalgic Nickelodeon fans, but also help invest anyone in
Lincoln and Dad’s bonding. Their shared
love for the show is easy to feel when they start out the show with great
enthusiasm in the first few challenges, even if they don’t always win. However, their rivals in the game, Stand and
Steak Stanko, don’t make what we see as enjoyable as everything else sets it up
to be. They’re one-dimensional
antagonists who delight in mocking their opponents for no good reason at all
and only care about the fame of winning.
The worst part about it is when they challenge the Orange Iguanas to a
bet at the end of the game, Lincoln and Dad buy into their petty torments and
fail to cooperate as well as before. Such
a grating father and son team shouldn’t be worth Lincoln and Dad's concerns, and the fact that they get on each other’s nerves during the
following temple challenges is frustrating considering how much their bonding
was working before. Fortunately, just
when Lincoln and Dad’s tensions get really bad, they come to their senses
and decide that being on the show together is more important than beating the
Stankos. As a result, their temple run
to retrieve the assigned treasure is a solid high point for their bonding, and
is a fun, fast-paced sequence filled with respect for its source material to
boot. The Stankos end up winning with
the fastest time anyway, but this outcome leads to an even stronger moment in
the cartoon. Lincoln and Dad have to go
through the airport in their underwear as part of the bet, but despite how
embarrassing this is, everyone at the airport who saw them on TV claps for
their great bond, showing that even to random bystanders, good relationships
are more important than winning a game.
Too bad the security guards don’t as the moment is followed by Lincoln
and Dad getting arrested. Overall,
despite that ending sting and the one-dimensional antagonists, this cartoon
wins for its nice father-son bonding moments, and the interesting backdrop
they’re set against. 9/10
Mall of
Duty
Looking after younger siblings can be a big challenge,
especially if you’re Lincoln’s age.
However, out of a story set against this challenge can come something
really entertaining, and that’s what we get here. Lincoln is assigned to watch his younger
sisters while his parents and older sisters are out. However he develops responsibility issues
when he wants to get an autograph from another favorite TV figure of his, Rip
Hardcore and goes to the mall where it’s happening, taking his little sisters
with him. Lincoln, the man in charge, makes
the younger sisters wait around in an endless line, and they all constantly
complain about being bored, forcing Lincoln to try and entertain them. While his attempts do ease the fact that he
forced the young ones into doing something they didn’t want to do which does lead to humorous antics and comeback lines, Lincoln’s responsibility
issues grow even more when he puts them all on a kiddie train, expecting them
to stay put which can be neglectful.
Considering that Lincoln has been a good, loving big brother before,
it’s really hard to imagine him as neglectful.
Well, Lincoln ultimately gets his Rip Hardcore autograph, but then the
cartoon really starts picking up with the challenging part of caretaking afterwards
when the kiddie train goes off the rails due to Lincoln jacking up the quarter
power, and lands the younger sisters in various places of the mall. Lincoln then proves that he truly can be a
good brother after all as he sets all his priorities into finding them. In the process, he puts everything we saw of
Rip Hardcore at the beginning to good use giving him more value than just being
part of one of Lincoln’s favorite shows.
Because of Rip’s methods, Lincoln tracks his sisters down to stores that
fits their interests. He follows a trail
of chemicals to find Lisa at an appliance store, tracks Lucy based on a
disturbance of the severed head of a clothes mannequin, finds Lola in her
natural habitat, a princess-themed toy store, and deduces a chewed bone at a
toy store as a clue to Lana in a pet store.
Not only are these scenes of Lincoln’s methods of finding his sisters
successful in making Lincoln’s interests credible to the story, but they also
lead to some entertaining, and even cute, bits from the younger sisters,
particularly one that further enhances Lana’s endearment when she hatches baby
ducklings who follow her around.
Then Lincoln has to retrieve Lily from the kiddie train still
speeding through the mall which is a challenge since her infant mindset made
her the only one to actually enjoy the train.
There’s a lot of great action as Lincoln uses his yo-yo to get to the
engine and holds Lily tight as it crashes through various obstacles, and also
heart when he gives up his autograph, his reason for coming to the mall, away
for her sake. The heart even continues
through to the end when the younger sisters show sympathy for Lincoln losing
his autograph and even keep what he did a secret from Mom and Dad. It’s a cute way of showing that even if they
get on each other’s nerves that will never stop the love between them. This, along with its use of little things
leading to something big, and everything taking place in an interesting
environment of the mall make this cartoon a fun and heartfelt adventure in
looking after younger siblings. 9.5/10
The Ranking
- 11 Louds a Leapin’
- L is for Love
- Pulp Friction
- Frog Wild
- Yes-Man
- Party Down
- Friend or Faux
- Room with a Feud
- Lock n Loud
- Fool’s Paradise
- Fed Up
- Out of the Picture
- Job Insecurity
- Potty Mouth
- Mall of Duty
- The Loudest Mission: Relative Chaos
- Spell it Out
- Baby Steps
- Shell Shock
- Suite and Sour
- Back in Black
- Legends
- Future Tense
- Patching Things Up
- No Spoilers
- The Whole Picture
- No Laughing Matter
- Health Kicked
- Garage Banned
- Back Out There
- The Old and the Restless
- Kick the Bucket List
- Intern for the Worse
- Lynner Takes All
- Cheater by the Dozen
- Pets Peeved
- Making the Grade
- Vantastic Voyage
- Change of Heart
- ARGGH! You for Real?
- No Such Luck
- Brawl in the Family
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode with more development for Lola's character, even if it does break continuity a bit, in "Read Aloud," and Lincoln's crazy birth story in "Not a Loud."
If you want to stay updated for more reviews, become a follower of this blog, click here to like the official Facebook page, and click here to follow me on Twitter.
