Save the
Tree
From the title, it’s easy to get the impression that this is
nothing more than a preachy environmental story existing solely to explain why
trees are important and shouldn’t be cut down.
However, the actual cartoon works because of what the environmental
issue means for the characters involved, which makes it easy to care for the
tree needing saving. Right at the
beginning, we get a feel of what the tree, called Mighty Pete, means to
Arnold and his friends mostly for how it holds their very own treehouse and its
historic significance as the oldest tree in the neighborhood. Though why they claim it to be the only one
when there’s clearly other trees, I really don’t know. Anyway, because of the kids’ attachment to
the tree and their apparent care for it, their concerns of it doomed to be
knocked down by Helga’s dad, Big Bob, and his assistant Nick, to make room for
a new beeper store are easy to get behind.
What follows mostly consists of the kids trying to do what they can to
save Mighty Pete, despite most of them feeling powerless against a rich and
powerful store owner like Big Bob. The
most entertaining bits come from Arnold’s Grandma who really demonstrates her appeal
as a character by showing the most passion for the cause. She even has the gang take matters into their
own hands when they can’t get help from city hall, and even when Big Bob
retaliates as they all protest in front of his house in ridiculous costumes,
she makes it clear that their cause isn’t over.
However, even with Grandma’s great charismatic and determined demeanor,
the kids grow depressed that they can’t save their famed tree, and its
especially felt when they all wake up in the middle of the night to spend time
in their treehouse one last time.
However, that’s when we get an exciting climax when the bulldozer set to
knock down Mighty Pete approaches. All
the kids can do is throw everything, INCLUDING the kitchen sink, to stop the
bulldozer but to no avail. At the same
time, we get a great moment from Big Bob, who’s known to be very neglectful of
Helga. When he sees that she’s up in the
tree, he protests Nick to stop the bulldozer, giving the impression that while
he’s not a good parent, his flaws aren’t intentional. What does succeed to stop the bulldozer is
easily the high point of the climax.
Grandma, in all her versatility, shows up in a Tarzan suit, swings from
the tree, and takes control of the bulldozer, driving it out of the way at the
last minute. In the end, it’s the lack
of a bulldozer as well as the fact the kids risked their lives to protect the
tree that gets Big Bob to decide against knocking it down. That’s the appeal of this whole plot; the characters’
devotion to a piece of nature leading to solid comedy, tensions, and heart. 9.5/10
New Teacher
At the start of these reviews, I mentioned that there’s a
game-changing element included here which causes continuity errors if you
follow the airing order. That element is
introduced in this cartoon. As the title
shows, Arnold’s class gets a new teacher called Mr. Simmons. Compared to their previous teacher, Ms. Slovak,
he’s way more fleshed out. He always has
a positive demeanor and shows genuine care for who he’s teaching unlike the
other who just did her job and not much else.
As a result, he’s a much more pleasing teacher to have around for the
rest of the series. In his debut, things
with him start off on the wrong foot as his teaching methods such as putting
the desks in a circle, getting the kids to share personal feelings on other
students, which almost gets Helga to reveal her love for Arnold, and pushing sappy
subjects like poetry don’t get the kids to think well of him. They devise a plan to overwhelm him to
quit. As they drop pencils, swap names,
and protest the teachings, topped with Harold eating his lunch I might add,
it’s easy to feel for Mr. Simmons. He’s
easily the nicest, most caring teacher anyone could ask for, and it never feels
like he deserves this treatment. It
makes it all the more concerning that all the students, including the nice,
smart, and considerate ones like Arnold himself, go along with the mistreatment
for no real reason. However, the
consequences to their mistreatment are both grueling and fun to watch. They get a drill sergeant of a teacher, Lt.
Major Goose, and his military mannerisms make for an interesting approach in
teaching the class especially with something as simple as multiplication tables,
though they clearly don’t belong in a classroom setting. It’s too much for the kids to take,
and who can blame them? Having a literal
drill sergeant for a teacher makes school worse than it is. They may have brought Lt. Major Goose in, but
it’s great that they take it upon themselves to get Mr. Simmons back. They actually go to his house and prove that
they’re open to his teachings in several nice moments where they not only prove
to be teachable for him, but also befriend him which is something we hardly see
in shows. I can really relate to this
based on the friendly terms I’ve been on with many of my teachers. So, after a hilarious scene of the kids
overwhelming Lt. Major Goose to quit with everything Mr. Simmons taught,
classes resume with Mr. Simmons at the lead, and everyone advancing in
knowledge greatly, and this is only the beginning. Overall, even if it has to disregard the good
nature of some characters to make the plot work, this is a great start to a
great change to the show’s dynamic. 9/10
The Ranking
- Harold’s Kitty
- Save the Tree
- New Teacher
- The Big Scoop
- Hooky
- Arnold Saves Sid
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where Gerald's little sister finds a way to spend time with him through a "Ransom," and we're introduced to another prominent character named Lila, a.k.a. "Ms. Perfect."
If you would like to check out other Hey Arnold reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.
