'Toon Reviews 19: OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes Season 1 Episode 29: A Hero's Fate

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A Hero’s Fate

One message I’ve been surprised to find in a lot of what I’ve reviewed is the importance of leaving room for leisure as well as hard work.  That’s something I’m a big advocate for since it’s really important to have a balanced life.  In the case of this show, with K.O. having big heroic aspirations, this feels like a good lesson for him to learn. 

To be fair, he seems to have good reason to put all his attention on becoming a great hero when his Pow card still won’t level up past .1.  Then, a hero literally named Hero shows up to offer K.O. to train with him in hopes of leveling up.   With K.O.'s lack of progress in mind, it’s worth going along with his decision to train instead of hang out with Rad and Enid on their self-proclaimed day off in a kiddie pool. 

As a character, Hero is as standard fighter character as you get.  He looks like a basic fighter and his primary weapon is a standard sword used to use against monsters.  Also, through expressing excitement of his heroic quest, his positivity sounds stoic and phoned in.  It doesn’t make for the most enjoyable character to follow. 

However, as K.O. does what he can to keep up with him and level up, there are some interesting things about Hero and his self-proclaimed quest.  He’s constantly fighting the exact same monster which reappears right after he defeats it.  There’s also a specific routine Hero and K.O. have to follow whenever they fight.  In addition, whenever they get hurt, they get better from drinking bottles of a potion that Hero purchased at Gar’s Bodega.  When they’ve battled enough monsters, their work still isn’t done when they have to go up a huge flight of stairs filled with insane obstacles.  At the top is the final boss, another warrior named Galgarion which Hero humorously can’t say straight. 

By now, it's clear that the aesthetic of this whole quest is like a video game.  I mean, the exact same monsters regenerating on the way to the final boss, injuries getting healed, random castle obstacles, and a staged final battle ring very true for video games' nature.  At the same time, K.O. constantly lags behind and realizes how focusing all his attention on training is not good on his state of well-being.  This is a believable look of an actual person living through a video game.  In fact, leveling up this much is the very reason why it’s hard for him and Hero to beat Galgarion at first since the final boss leveled up a lot too. 

Eventually, K.O. snaps at the prospect of doing the quest a bunch more times and admits that he needs a break.  As I mentioned before, breaks from action are more necessary than some people may think.  They get you feeling happy enough so that when you do go back to being productive, you’re in an appropriate state of mind.  Also, Hero and Galgarion, despite seeming to be part of a living video game, get the value of taking a break too, walking away from the fight seeming to be on good terms all along. 

The conclusion is also very satisfying with K.O. being welcomed to the fun of the kiddie pool by Rad and Enid. As for Hero, he returns to the realm of a comic strip which is a bit of a shocking change of pace, but I can’t really fault a creative way of delivering a message.  With an interesting message to get behind and unique aesthetics, this is a cartoon sure to enlighten you in many ways.

A

The Ranking

1. Face Your Fears
2. You Have to Care
3. T.K.O.
4. No More Pow Cards
5. Legends of Mr. Gar
6. We’ve Got Pests
7. I Am Dendy
8. You Get Me
9. Let’s Be Heroes
10. You’re Everybody’s Sidekick
11. Jethro’s All Yours
12. Know Your Mom
13. Everybody Likes Rad?
14. A Hero’s Fate
15. Plaza Prom
16. We’re Captured
17. My Dad Can Beat up Your Dad
18. Let’s Be Friends
19. We Messed Up
20. Presenting Joe Cuppa
21. Sibling Rivalry
22. Second First Date
23. Stop Attacking the Plaza
24. Just Be a Pebble
25. Do You Have Any More in the Back?
26. You’re Level 100
27. You Are Rad
28. We’ve Got Fleas
29. One Last Score

The next OK K.O. review features K.O. bond with his idol, Mr. Gar, and encounter Shadowy Figure all in the same stakeout.

Next time on MC Toon Reviews are lesser Star vs the Forces of Evil episodes "Heinous" and "All Belts are Off."

If you would like to check out other OK K.O.! reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.

'Toon Reviews 16: Hey Arnold Season 3 Episode 4: Crabby Author/Rich Kid

Crabby Author

This is a cartoon with an unusual premise that shows Arnold’s strengths of reading into anyone, even the most difficult people, as well as another instance of the idea that people who make great art are not always good people.  As a result, we get a great show of character amidst a harsh yet honest look at the real world. 

When the class is assigned to do a report on their favorite author, Arnold sets his sights on the author of some of the most popular children’s stories, Agatha Caulfield.  Unfortunately, there are no recorded references on her background, which is strange for such an apparently profound writer.  Even if this seems like a lost cause, Arnold simply won’t give up on doing his report on who truly is his favorite author which is actually inspirational to people to make the best work they can. 

He goes for the next best thing, which is also a very unique approach, by tracking the author down and interviewing her personally.  Through doing so, he’s met with a shock.  Agatha Caulfield’s work being all about happiness and cute fantasy creatures suggests that she’s a gentile loving woman who cares about children.  The truth is, she’s the complete opposite.  She lives in a secluded house on Elk Island and whenever anyone comes by, she yells at them and is completely unfriendly.  It’s certainly not a pretty sight, but it’s a believable scenario. 

It also enhances the plot by putting Arnold’s talents of seeing the good in people and helping them overcome their problems to the test.  He persists in getting Agatha to talk by going to her house everyday and waiting for her to give in.  It’s clear to see the difficulty in just standing out in the cold waiting for her, but it’s remarkable to see Arnold be patient enough to go this far to write a good report.  Sure enough, Agatha does get tired of Arnold always standing there and finally answers his questions.  Sadly, the answers Arnold gets are mostly disturbing ones, especially for how she wrote what she did because she felt like lying to kids about how miracles can happen when life is really miserable.  This seems to seal the deal that Agatha Caulfield really is no good, but for all her unruliness, she’s shown to have a bit of decency inside when Arnold claims to still believe in her stories’ positive messages, and that she may too because of their quality, and as he leaves, she’s left with something to ponder.  Also, the fact that Arnold still calls Agatha her favorite writer leaves another impactful message on the importance of focusing on the art and not the artist. 

The message is further shown in the ending montage of everyone reading Agatha’s first book in many years inspired by her experience.  This implies that she has softened up on life a bit, but we still see that she’s still pretty crabby which to me makes more sense than her completely changing on a whim.  So, while she’s still typically unfriendly, but it’s nice that no one is too dense to enjoy a good story when they see one. 

That leaves us with a great cartoon shining with great character moments and timeless, believable themes. 10/10

Rich Kid

A common thing most cartoons try to teach is the importance of fulfilling responsibilities and being productive in life.  However, there doesn’t seem to be much material out there that stresses the importance of leisure and leaving time to chill and unwind given how stressful doing work all the time can be.  At least, that’s how I view leisure and fun time from personal experience.  This cartoon is one of the few to teach how fun is just as important as productivity. 

It introduces a rich kid named Lorenzo, who may look impressive with his luxurious limo and being able to afford expensive accessories, but there’s something holding him back from getting anywhere sociable with other kids.  He has an incredibly tight schedule of intellectual activities pertaining to business and high-arts, and is constantly talking to his mom and other higher-ups on his electronic devices, even in class.  He may be productive and, but he doesn’t allow himself for any downtime, and it shows when he looks clearly overworked from everything he does and is unable to get close with the other kids. 

Now when the kids take notice of Lorenzo’s mannerisms, they show pity for him and strive to show him what it’s like to have fun and just be a kid.  However, there’s a bit of a conflict with their actions.  I stand by my belief in the need for leisure and Lorenzo does look like he could use it from his stressed attitude leading him to think about what the other kids said about him being too big of a workaholic on his own at night, but it can feel like they’re trying to conform him into being like them instead of being true to himself.  It would be a lot better if they let Lorenzo try to get a grasp on having fun in his own way.  There’s a few unfortunate implications in them actively trying to make Lorenzo like the type of kids they are instead of considering individuality and that not everyone thinks the same way as they do. 

There’s not enough harm to the cartoon though since there is still a lot of good from their attempts to get Lorenzo to lighten up a little on work matters, which is still beneficial for everyone to do for a healthy balanced life.  Also, as they introduce Lorenzo to many things to do for fun, it’s entertaining to see an intellectual kid struggle to get a grasp on common kid activities.  He ducks out of catching a fly ball, names clouds by their scientific name instead of using his imagination to say what they look like, and reads the ingredients of ice cream and commenting on how unhealthy they are instead of enjoying it. 

Going back to my comment on how the other kids don’t seem to consider Lorenzo’s individuality, in the end, he kind of does express that when discovering his own way of having fun.  He ends up sliding down a rapid of mud, the fast pace and background music enhancing the excitement of the scene, and when it’s over, he actually enjoys himself.  This finally gives him a strong sense of leisure to break from his huge workload, and while he does go back to it in the end, there’s some promise to building on the newfound sense of fun for the future.  However, aside from one other role this season, as well as a non-speaking appearance in the following season, Lorenzo does not become a prominent member of the cast.  At least he’s more social with others in his few other appearances, but that’s for future reviews. 

For now, while not a perfect way of showing it, this is a strong cartoon advocating for the rare message on the importance of goofing off a bit. 9/10

The Ranking

1. Crabby Author
2. Curly Snaps
3. The Aptitude Test
4. Pre-Teen Scream
5. Olga Gets Engaged
6. Oskar Gets a Job
7. Rich Kid
8. Stinky Goes Hollywood

The next Hey Arnold review covers two particularly great cartoons.  One features Helga go to insane lengths to snag a tape of her love confession to Arnold she recorded under the influence of laughing gas.  The other is about Harold discovering a possible path in life while facing punishment for shoplifting a ham.

Next time on MC Toon Reviews is a Steven Universe review on "Reformed."

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.

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