Enchanting Grom Fright - (The Owl House Season 1 Episode 16) - 'Toon Reviews 42

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Enchanting Grom Fright

Some episodes, more than others, delve deep into potentially creative ideas, but they’re almost always sure to be a great showing of characters.  With this episode, both the character moments and its imagination go hand-in-hand for an unforgettable experience.

From the title, the episode’s background is full of exciting intrigue, centering on a social event called Grom, an obvious spoof on prom.  Thoughts are then set on the fun idea of a big party with many favorite characters, but the creative aspect lies within a dark secret of Grom.  While Luz expects it to be just a party, she soon learns that it isn’t exactly an honor to be named official royalty for the event.  This becomes especially clear after Amity is announced as this year’s Grom queen, and she’s visibly distraught.  Luz soon gets the details behind these feelings as Amity confides in the mythos behind Grom.  The appointed royalty has to go below the dance floor to challenge Grom, which is actually a demon who brings people’s biggest fears to life.  Amity is deathly uneasy about facing her own worst fear, claiming it to be highly embarrassing.  By now, it should be known that dealing with embarrassment is something that really effects Amity, especially since she doesn't feel safe being true to herself around most people. For that, her unease of the situation definitely brings her sympathy, but it’s all the more fortunate that she has Luz in her life to help her through everything.

A lot should be said about the character-driven area of the episode.  Driving much of this story is Luz and Amity’s dynamic and exactly how far they’ve come at this point.  Amity’s respect for Luz has now blossomed into something bigger than anyone could have imagined, more vocal than ever on what’s on her mind around her.  There are even several instances of Luz's ways being a healthy source of levity while Amity’s going through something so stressful.  As for Luz, she’s easily the best friend Amity could ask for with the lengths she goes to help her out.  Sure, wanting to help others is Luz’s general thing, but there’s something extra put into her efforts when it comes to Amity.  Like in other episodes with them together, Luz seems much more sincere than average around her, and is self-conscious of what she thinks.  This definitely holds true in this case when after hearing of Amity’s dread of being chosen as Grom queen, Luz instantly wishes she could take her place, and it feels from the heart.  

At that, Luz follows Amity’s lead in training for the task, preparing herself for any big fears she may face.  When they start out as relatively minor freaky things or gross-outs, Amity pushes her to look into something deeper, more psychological, alluding to how deep her own big fear is.  Luz comes to the conclusion that her big fear is Eda believing that she’s fragile and will never make it as a true witch.  Considering Luz’s main goal since coming to the Boiling Isles, this is a logical assumption. It even has a basis from her getting laughed at by Eda when first suggesting taking Amity’s place as Queen.  On a side note, Eda’s reactions to Luz facing Grom does have a caring atmosphere to it, as she’s visibly worried for Luz’s safety.  Like how the story shows off a lot of layers to Luz and Amity’s dynamic, Eda stands out with her own character study as well.  As for this being Luz’s biggest fear, the final results show that these things are far more complex than one could imagine.

Throughout the episode, there is acknowledgement of one long-standing element that hasn’t been touched upon since the series premiere.  It is the fact that Luz came to this world or witches and demons without her mother knowing, and ditching the summer camp she was supposed to be sent to.  She’s been lying all this time, and now they’re starting to catch up with her as her mother constantly texts her asking about camp, and Luz can barely respond.  There is a lot of merit to this direction as most can expect that she’d never get away with abandoning her assigned camp and hiding from her home dimension forever.  All the while, Luz is visibly concerned about the texts she’s getting, and she knows she’ll have to face her mother about the issue eventually.  The fact that she doesn’t even mention them when grilled about her biggest fears gives big impressions that she’s just as put down by this as Amity is by her fear.  Nevertheless, this all leads to big stakes in the climax as Grom itself arrives.

Now Grom, the event, may look like your typical prom, but that hardly matters because the general atmosphere of such an affair is always a joy to see.  The outfits are snappy and diverse, there’s solid commentary on the affair from Gus and King, and in general, a big party is the ideal setting for a memorable experience.  To enhance the experience though is a good dose of endearment from the story’s main characters and the built-up facing of Grom the creature.  As Luz prepares to go in and fulfill her obligations as queen, she and Amity have a moment that speaks volumes of where their relationship has come to.  Amity is fully upfront with her gratitude for what Luz is doing for her as well as everything she’s seen her accomplish since meeting her, and her words feel at their most genuine.  You can’t help but get fully invested in how intimate they are in this scene, and it grows even more when Luz adds to it with playful banter and an affectionate glance mirroring Amity’s.  After this, Luz is all set to face Grom while Amity is left visibly guilty about having Luz face her battles for her.  That’s only a natural reaction following such intimacy.  Now Luz does manage to handle Grom well at first, only dealing with her minor fears that come her way.  Then everything changes as Grom literally reaches into her head, a genius way to read her deepest thoughts.  To her shock, the fear doesn’t really relate to being seen as fragile, but the one thing Luz has actively tried avoiding, being confronted by her mother.

Even though the sight of Luz’s mother coming through the door to the Demon Realm is just a vision, it feels very real.  Looking back on her feelings about her daughter’s fantasy intrigue, her shock of the place, Luz holding weapons and working magic, and that she’s lied to her feel very authentic.  One might think that won’t be too far off the mark should Luz’s mother actually find out the truth, and coming from Luz’s mind, she may very well be predicting what it will be like.  It’s a thought so monstrous that she puts herself on the run from Grom as it chases after her with that vision of her mother on its head, creepily asking why she’s avoiding her.  Then there’s a big twist to the matter when Amity suddenly appears ready to protect Luz and take Grom’s bullet that was always meant for her.  Yes, she's really willing to put her status, reputation, and even her state of being on the line so Luz won't have to suffer; that's huge devotion right there.  The results end up revealing a lot about Amity as Grom takes the form of her biggest fear.  Given what’s known about her, you’d think that it would be not being good enough for the Emperor’s Coven or facing horrible abuse from her parents.  However, what Amity fears more than anything is apparently being rejected by someone.  It all relates to a note she’s carried around for the whole episode which she described as private.  After Grom rips it in half, representing rejection, everything falls into place.

Luz finds one half of the note revealing that Amity was going to ask someone to Grom, but was too scared to be upfront with it.  Being the good friend she is, Luz offers to go to Grom in place of whoever Amity wanted to ask.  The thing is, while Luz says she’s doing this as a good friend, the potential for something more between her and Amity is very much there as they face Grom together.  How they do so involves a very elaborate dance that seems far too intimate to be written off as simply something between friends.  There’s excessive spins dips and catches, a fair amount of gazes into each other’s eyes, and they both seem perfectly comfortable getting very close to each other.  I’d also like to think that the strong positive emotions of being together enhances each other’s magic. As a result of that, Amity’s abominations and Luz’s glyphs are strong enough to beat Grom by having a big tree grow inside of it.  Said tree feels like the ultimate culmination of all the devotion, compatibility, and importance they’ve developed for each other across all their starring roles together.  Helping its appeal is exactly how the dance is animated, going a lot smoother than the usual visual aesthetic.  This way, it’s a sequence that stands out as a real work of art that easily resonates with the audience once it’s over. 

Going back to the undertones of the dance and Luz and Amity’s chemistry, it’s soon revealed that the person Amity wanted to ask out to Grom was Luz.  In other words, it is explicitly stated that Amity is full-on in love with Luz, a major milestone for their budding chemistry, and we’re only on Season 1.  After all her intrigue she’s had in her, it’s interesting that this turned out to be a milestone for her development, and give several new meanings to her not wanting to face her fear or have it exposed. Also, when you consider that Disney is the one animation company without a lot of strong LGBT representation, outright saying that Amity loves another girl is pretty huge for them.  Since Luz doesn’t see that the letter was for meant her, how she feels for Amity is unclear as of now, but the intimacy of the dance and her seeming to go above and beyond for Amity leaves good hope. 

In the end, they both have a great time at the rest of Grom together, further enhancing their bond, but the fact remains they’ve still yet to face their biggest fears.  Amity got to enjoy the night with Luz, but did so by making her believe she was into someone else, meaning she still has a ways to go before she’s ready to say her true feelings.  Likewise, Luz never actually faced her mother, and feels like she doesn’t deserve the praise she’s gotten.  Fortunately, she’s able to take the first step towards facing her big fear. She texts to her mother, highlighting some specific details of this very night, including that she's glad the friends she’s made helped her through.  It’s positive development for showing that even when you don’t conquer your fears, there are still ways to prepare yourself for the inevitable.  At the same time, we end with a legit reason for why Luz’s mother hasn’t been suspicious of her not being at the camp.  A short shot reveals that someone’s been forging letters in Luz’s name saying how great camp has been, intending to convince her mother that everything’s fine.  This leaves an air of mystery for later on as to who’s writing the letters, and a big way to raise the drama.

This is no doubt another instance where everything going into the episode comes together to craft a satisfying whole.  The premise is big on imagination, the backdrop is lively and fun, the story naturally flows and covers big questions, and the character dynamics are nothing short of pure.  Great, honest LGBT representation certainly helps too.  It’s an iconic experience of the series standing as something special, and possibly allowing the entire show to define a new generation.

A+

Fan Art

The Ranking

1.      Enchanting Grom Fright

2.      Understanding Willow

3.      Lost in Language

4.      Adventures in the Elements

5.      The Intruder

6.      Covention

7.      Escape of the Palisman

8.      The First Day

9.      I Was a Teenage Abomination

10.  Witches Before Wizards

11.  Something Ventured, Someone Framed

12.  A Lying Witch and a Warden

13.  Sense and Insensitivity

14.  Hooty’s Moving Hassle

15.  Really Small Problems

16.  Once Upon a Swap

The next Owl House review turns focus to sports in an episode that's very much a calm before the storm, while also featuring plenty of LGBT representation to add to what we got in this episode.

Next time on MC Toon Reviews is "Family Fishing Trip" and "Bizarre Bazaar" in Amphibia. 

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

A Night at the Inn / Wally and Anne - (Amphibia Season 1 Episode 15) - 'Toon Reviews 43

If you like this review and want to stay updated for what else I have in store, become a follower of this blog, click here to like the official Facebook page, and click here to follow me on Twitter. Now on with today's review:

A Night at the Inn

It’s pretty impressive that much of these cartoons can work in dark atmospheres to their stories but also keep within the principle light-hearted character-driven tone.  This cartoon follows this setup very well, and it comes together to satisfying effect, particularly for the main character followed in this scenario.  

After a long day of traveling to a pass that could potentially help Anne get home, which ends up still being blocked off, the Plantars run into snail trouble out on the road.  In the process, there’s build up to the character getting the most attention this time around.  For the most part, Polly hasn’t really gotten many starring roles or development this season.  This isn’t a huge problem since she’s still very likable and well-defined as a character, being very charismatic and self-aware for just a young tadpole.  However, it’s her status as a little tadpole that makes her feel looked down upon here.  She wants to join Anne and Sprig for adventures, but Hop Pop says that’s not for kids her age.  When the family is stranded on the road, her offer to go under Bessie to find the problem is shot down.  This feels very believable and natural when it comes to things the youngest in a family have to deal with, although it does devalue past events where others feel she has good sense.  

These feelings continue when the Plantars are offered a place to stay for the night at a local inn, the frogs running it appearing warm and inviting.  As another show of a desire for independence, Polly wants her own room, but once again, Hop Pop feels she isn’t old enough for that.  Honestly, Polly seems easier to side with here, as even little kids deserve their own space.  It seems like Polly is about to finally get her chance when she finds another room connected to Hop Pop’s, the experience helped by Hop Pop falling asleep fairly quickly.  This makes Polly free to enjoy her own space for once, her very joy being a particular delight.  

However, she begins noticing frightening things while alone.  This may make a waste of her sympathy earlier, but this turns out to lead to something bigger, i.e. legitimate frights.  She goes to Anne and Sprig and finds that they’ve both mysteriously disappeared.  

Then she finds one of the frogs running the inn about to kill her, which certainly is not a normal occurrence.  Finally, she escapes through the vents and overhears the truth.  The inn is actually a trap where frogs’ vehicles are purposefully broken down and they’re invited in where they’re fed cookies that knock them out, freeing them to be eaten by cannibals.  That’s a major dark turn to this simple setup which certainly provides welcome weight.  

It also makes Polly’s actions stand out more.  As she didn’t eat those cookies, she’s able to save her family before the cannibals have a chance to cook them.  There’s a mad dash out of inn along with Anne beating the cannibals with the good old vinegar and baking soda chemistry experiment.  As for Polly, the conclusion balances perspectives where she proved her independence when saving everyone, but decides to spend the night with Hop Pop for emotional reasons.  She’s fully capable of doing big things, but is willing to stick with her family, which is only enhanced by Anne and Sprig joining her and Hop Pop after the traumatic adventure.  

For a good mix of character charm and dark elements, this cartoon really fits the criteria for something great.

A

Wally and Anne

One of the most appreciative elements of this series’ continuity is how it’s consistent with Anne’s respect amongst the frogs.  She first came as a natural outsider based on her species, but events got her a good reputation amongst the unique community.  Naturally, she would want to do everything she can to maintain this reputation, but here she gets a beneficial lesson through an adventure with the first frog she met, One-Eyed Wally.  

To start the cartoon, she sees a figure walking around simply known as the Moss Man.  However, when she tells of her findings, no one believes her, and this includes the Plantars.  Now, the Plantars not believing her is a particular sore spot for me for this cartoon.  I mean, they’re the ones who understand and respect Anne the most, yet when she tells of the Moss Man, they’re quick to dismiss her.  In fact, at times they feel downright relentless with their teasing which really doesn’t sit well.  Maybe they have a point with Anne focusing too much on little things like Moss Men, but they should still have some understanding of where she comes from.  At least her frustrated reactions are pretty funny.  

As for how Wally fits into this, the Plantars believe that if Anne keeps her Moss Man claims up, she’ll be labeled a total weirdo, like Wally.  Having just gotten respect from the town, Anne refuses this fate, and goes to get photographic evidence of the Moss Man with Wally coming along, claiming he’s seen it too.  

Along the way though, both characters have a healthy bonding experience.  Anne may be focused on her reputation and Wally may be a highly eccentric vagabond, but they do have good chemistry.  Wally is active when saving Anne’s life and phone along dangerous cliffs, and they both have civil conversations about matters of judgement.  Wally’s advice to Anne on that even comes with something meaningful where how he shouldn’t worry so much about what other people think.  I know from experience that can be a hard thing for anyone to do, so even a grown person like myself can find value in his words.  

Then comes the big moment where Anne finally spots the Moss Man and is ready to get a photo of it.  In the process, she lets slip that she’s ready to do this so no one will think she’s anything like Wally.  Understandably, Wally is hurt by these words, but luckily Anne is quick to realize her fault.  She really did enjoy her time with him, and her apology comes from the heart. 

Plus, with a callback to an earlier elaborate handshake, Wally sees that she really meant well.  They still try to photograph the Moss Man, but then Wally is knocked off a cliff.  To seal her development from the adventure, Anne chooses saving Wally’s life over her reputation.  She’s legitimately realized what’s more important, and it’s rewarding to see her befriend Wally as well as she does considering how they first met.  People end up saying she’s odd in the end, but this time, Anne isn’t letting that bother her, which is a good place to come to.  The Plantars egg on the possibility of her just playing brave, but it at least comes with an amusing moment of her faking monstrous rage to get them going.  

Still, it feels like something was gained from this unlikely bond, and one that can benefit everyone watching, presenting this show as universal.

A

The Ranking

1.      Toad Tax

2.      Anne vs Wild

3.      The Domino Effect

4.      Prison Break

5.      Contagi-Anne

6.      Best Fronds

7.      Family Shrub

8.      Hop-Popular

9.      Wally and Anne

10.  A Night at the Inn

11.  Lily Pad Thai

12.  Dating Season

13.  Anne or Beast?

14.  Snow Day

15.  Civil Wart

16.  Stakeout

17.  Croak and Punishment

18.  Taking Charge

19.  Flood, Sweat, and Tears

20.  Trip to the Archives

21.  Anne Theft Auto

22.  Hop Luck

23.  Hop Pop and Lock

24.  Plantar’s Last Stand

25.  Girl Time

26.  Breakout Star

27.  Grubhog Day

28.  Cane Crazy

29.  Sprig vs Hop Pop

30.  Cracking Mrs. Croaker

The next Amphibia review covers a simple family fishing trip that's important to Sprig, and Anne and Sprig attend a bazar that could offer long-awaited answers on Anne's music box.

Next time on MC Toon Reviews is the iconic episode of The Owl House, "Enchanting Grom Fright." 

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

Understanding Willow - The Owl House Season 1 Episode 15 - ('Toon Reviews 42)

If you like this review and want to stay updated for what else I have in store, become a follower of this blog, click here to like the official Facebook page, and click here to follow me on Twitter. Now on with today's review:

Understanding Willow

Once again, the best parts of the series align to craft an unforgettable experience with this episode.  In fact, it’s a real winner of animated storytelling driven by imagination, character chemistry, and especially emotion.

The characters at the center of this story are Willow and Amity and how much they’ve grown apart.  Willow is content enough with having Luz as a friend, but she’s very much put down by how Amity hangs around that group of mean girls and lets them belittle Willow. This also shows that for all her progress of growing as a character, Amity still has a way to go in coming around. However, there’s also further proof that she doesn’t necessarily enjoy being with this gang.  Then there’s follow-up to how these two used to be friends featuring a lot of key details and background making up for that brief exposition on the subject a few episodes back.  There’s a photo class where students pluck out memories portrayed as photos from other students’ heads.  Among Willow’s memories is a major one about her friendship with Amity which she unsurprisingly does not want to see.  Through this, there’s a bit of a red flag where even though it bothers her, she doesn’t want to think about it, which never leads to anything good.  Wanting to be a good friend by figuring out what happened and bring some comfort, Luz decides to pull a ‘shenanigan’ by making the memory visible after Willow turns it away.  

Afterward, Amity happens to pass by the photo lab and sees that very memory.  Desperate to protect her reputation, she proceeds to burn it, but not before showing remorse for her course of action, demonstrating true morality among her coldness.  The thing is that even Amity can’t truly live up to her perfect standards as her attempts to destroy that one memory leads to a big mistake.  They end up causing a fire that destroys all the other photos, and the repercussions are bigger than one may think.  Since those photos represent actual memories, them being consumed by flames mean the same thing is happening to the real memories inside Willow’s mind.  She starts feeling unnaturally hot, and then acts all senile when talking to people.  What’s more, when Luz and her friends confront Amity about this, Amity reacts with perfectly humane guilt.  This further benefits her character as does the overall story direction.

The only way to save Willow’s mind is to go in and personally fix up all the damage.  Luz is of course ready to help her friend, but in line with the effects of the situation, Amity’s involvement in the resolution is what really stands out.  She’s visibly uneasy and nervous about being reminded of her past as well as guilty of her current actions, in turn revealing more depth to her character, and it already has a lot.  That said, having Luz as a true friend to follow makes the experience easier for Amity, as well as helpful in many ways. Willow's mind itself has an imaginative setup of being portrayed as a single forest of uniquely designed trees, each one holding a framed picture to represent the memories.  They find that one can just enter memories through going through the pictures, and see how they’ve been rendered black and white from the ashes of Amity’s fires.  All it takes to restore the memories and in turn Willow’s mind is to clean up all the damage, thus bringing them back to full color, and allowing them to play out all the way.  

Throughout the process, Amity frequently looks back on and talks about the memories with fondness, as if to show how meaningful her friendship with Willow was.  Truth be told, the memories of everything they did together and the fun they have are nothing short of cute, and perfectly show that they were incredibly close.  It easily feels like Amity never really wanted this friendship to end, and cutting ties with Willow spurred most of her negative qualities.  I’d like to think that with Luz by her side, she seems more open than ever to reveal her true self, getting encouragement, comfort over guilt, and reassurance all the way.  Frequent handholding for a long time and excessive blushing around Luz also says a lot.

Despite all of this, even Luz isn’t enough for Amity to get active in fixing the one memory that started the mess.  Whenever it’s brought up, she wants to avoid it at all costs, the nervous tone in her voice indicating that there’s something she really doesn’t want to relive or talk about.  Like with Willow wanting to avoid thinking about Amity altogether, Luz continues to be a true supportive friend by trying to tell Amity that confronting the memory is the right thing to do.  As Amity only lashes out at Luz’s suggestions, one other thing native to this mind is the only thing to get her to do exactly that.  Within Willow’s mind is a creature made of fire that’s set on destroying not just any memories, but memories that Amity was a part of.  It’s like an extreme version of what Willow was trying to do by putting Amity ‘out of sight; out of mind.’  

In a creative maneuver of Luz getting the fire creature to land in water, there’s a major twist to this setup.  You’d think that the fire was a manifestation of the fire Amity caused, but it’s actually the Inner Willow, fueled by nothing but anger at Amity and driven to destruction.  For that, it makes sense that she’d want to finish what the real Willow started by destroying all traces of her ex-friend.  By going this route though, the story goes on to reveal exactly how these two former friends fell out so badly.

Having no say, everyone is dragged into the memory that ended Willow and Amity’s friendship, and it’s easily the emotional center on all fronts.  From Willow’s perspective, all of her and Amity’s good times were about to mean nothing when Amity suddenly declared she didn’t want to be friends with a weak witch like her.  That’s evidently a heartbreaking moment Willow could never have prepared herself for, and even current Amity shows genuine regret.  As current Willow is about to get particularly destructive after reliving this memory, Amity finally comes clean about another side of it.  By doing so, it reveals what has got to be the biggest source of her worst traits.  There’s a scene of what happened prior with Amity being confronted by her parents, both portrayed as mysterious silhouettes displaying dominance.  They berated Amity for having Willow around when members of this family should only associate with strong witches.  Whenever Amity tried to show heart by still declaring Willow her best friend, they had none of that and insisted Amity choose a new friend, the mean girls she’s with now.  If that’s not enough, Amity’s always known they were mean, confirming that she was never really their friend.  The real kicker is that her parents were going to severe her ties with Willow, probably through something horrible Amity wouldn’t do it herself. In that sense, really Amity ultimately shut Willow out in desperation.  Further regarding the parents, given being hidden in shadows, their abusive ways of caring more of status than their daughter’s happiness, and Amity’s reaction to them , you get the threat.  In fact, this might only just be a small part of their authority and menace, and it feels just as tragic for Amity as it was for Willow.

After living through this painful memory again, Amity proceeds to take the biggest step in self-improvement for this episode.  Though her actions come from an understandable place, she takes responsibility, saying she herself was too weak to stand up to her parents and keep Willow’s friendship.  Now, however, she’s ready to take full steps to truly make amends, promising to never let anyone make fun of Willow.  At the same time, Willow decides that it would be better for her to keep all her memories of Amity, even the bad ones, because they’re still a part of her.  Just to demonstrate the health of this move, her mind becomes more vibrant than ever when all the work is done.  In addition, when Amity and Luz return to the real world, there’s a positive effect on matters.  Willow is officially back to normal, but also has awareness of what went on in the mind.  Realistically, she and Amity aren't friends again, but as she puts it, what happened now can be considered a start towards that.  This is the best Amity can ask for, and her silently leaving the Owl House with clear fondness over her time with Luz and her friends today says a lot about the peace she’s come to.  It’s like she’s getting an idea of where to find true friendship, and her letting a live butterfly party invitation from her fake friends go is further symbolic.  Sure, she’ll have to prove this later on, but it’s still rewarding development on her part, and, as I said previously, she already has great development to begin with.

This series knows how to bring together what it does best for grand experiences, and this episode is no exception.  The creative concept is used to great effect, the featured characters astound with chemistry and development, and the emotional aspects are at a high point.  It’s a fully praise-worthy work that inspires the imagination and self-reflection.

A+

Fan Art

The Ranking

1.      Understanding Willow

2.      Lost in Language

3.      Adventures in the Elements

4.      The Intruder

5.      Covention

6.      Escape of the Palisman

7.      The First Day

8.      I Was a Teenage Abomination

9.       Witches Before Wizards

10. Something Ventured, Someone Framed

11.  A Lying Witch and a Warden

12.  Sense and Insensitivity

13.  Hooty’s Moving Hassle

14.  Really Small Problems

15.  Once Upon a Swap

The next Owl House review covers a grand event of an episode analyzing the nature of one's deepest fears, and presenting great heart to some of the series' most endearing relationships, all within the setup of prom Grom. 

Next time on MC Toon Reviews in Amphibia, spend "A Night at the Inn" and spend time with "Wally and Anne."

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