RETRO-SCRUTINY SRMTHFG EPISODE THIRTY-FIVE: Meet the Wigglenog

Greetings, one and all, to Retro-Scrutiny. My name is Kendall Charleswell and I am your host this evening.

 

(And I am Alexia Erizo, joining in today as Kendall’s co-host. Glad to see you’re back, Kendall.)

Thanks for taking over the last time, Alexia.

 

(Thanks for not leaving footprints on the ceiling anytime this week.)

No problem. Now, the last time we saw the monkey team, they were escaping a mutated monster world after fighting for their freedom. This time around, they’ll be escaping form a different kind of threat. It’s time for everybody to Meet the Wigglenog.

OVERVIEW

The episode begins with Gibson, Otto, and Chiro wearing chest gear and hauling around strange guns while looking for something.

 

(What are they looking for?)

The others, of course. Nova pops out of nowhere to shoot Otto with her own gun and take him out of the game. Yep, they’re playing laser tag. The game ends after Antauri cheats to take out the rest of Chiro’s team.

 

(Apparently, they’ve been playing this game for a while, since Antauri’s team has won a total of 346 times. No wonder Chiro’s bored. He wants some excitement!

 

And that’s when they’re invaded by random gun-toting soldier men.)

Chiro asks all the appropriate questions, such as, “Who are you?” and “What do you want?” and only gets the commander of the squad to say “The question is, ‘What do YOU want, Chiro?’”

 

(The team evades enemy fire and their toy blasters turn real. They still fight with their powers, because those aren’t broken or anything, so why not?)

After defeating the goons, said goons disappear in puffs of smoke. The leader avoids interrogation by turning into a squirrel. Otto chases after it and Antauri and Nova chase after him. The rest get locked in the room, but escape through a vent.

Otto and the others follow the squirrel, who is chewing wires (Bad squirrel! You don’t know what those do!) and get attacked by its exploding acorns. After tossing them around, the squirrel turns into a window, closes the blinds on itself, and disappears.

 

(A lot of things disappear in this episode, don’t they? Meanwhile, the boys have reached the Observation Deck and discover they’re trapped in a vast space anomaly. Sparks, however, gets distracted by a mermaid and ends up following it to the main room. This episode is getting weird…)

The mermaid tells him he can have anything he wants as long as he wishes for it before the rest of the team arrives. The mermaid then transforms into the Wigglenog, the most powerful nog in the galaxy.

It is here to grant the team three wishes- well, two since Chiro unknowingly already used their first wish.

The Wigglenog explains the rules of wishing: They can wish for anything except for more wishes and they cannot wish for the Nog to get hurt.

 

(While they team tries to decide what to do with their wishes, Gibson accidentally wishes that Otto wasn’t ‘such a colossal dunderhead’, causing the green monkey’s brain to grow comically out of his head and making Gibson feel stupid.)

The Wigglenog tries to get to Sparks and Chiro, using their desires against them, only for Antauri to bring them back to reality. The team decide to get rid of the space genie and Sparks breaks the rules by wishing for a giant anti-Wigglenog bazooka. That backfires and the Wigglenog is free to rule the cosmos.

The team attacks, but it doesn’t do a lick of good. Otto ends up deflecting to the Wigglenog’s side and is supersized in order to destroy his ex-teammates in ridiculous ways.

After being granted one free wish to finish the team, Otto wishes that they had never fallen into the space prison in the first place.

 

(GO OTTO! The Wigglenog is forced to grant the wish, rewinding the entire episode back to the end of the laser tag game. Right before Chiro can wish for something exciting to happen, Otto stops him, saying he has a weird feeling something crazy was about to happen.)

The episode ends with a the Wigglenog in his space prison, yelling and complaining at the Super Robot as it flies away in the opposite direction.

NEW CHARACTER(S):

THE WIGGLENOG (John Kassir): A crossbreed between Genie from Aladdin and Norm from the Fairy Oddparents, this…creature is fast paced, a bit annoying, and fun to watch as he spins circles around the team. He’s not very detailed, but he’s good for what we got.

UNANSWERED QUESTION(S):

1.  What other Nogs are there?
2. Why does the Wigglenog want to rule the universe?
3. Who put the Wigglenog in his space prison?
4. Does the Wigglenog remember that his plan was reversed entirely or is he mad because he the team was so close to releasing him again?

FINAL OPINIONS:

This episode is a weird sort of filler episode. The animation and humor are fairly decent, as always. But the plot is ridiculous and it ultimately means nothing in the grand scheme of the season. In fact, this episode basically didn’t happen and works in an alternate reality now.

(Stories with genies and magical wish granters are nothing new, especially since most of them have the same sort of wishing rules. But it’s the wish granter that’s usually the interesting part of the episode and the Wigglenog, as entertaining as he is, isn’t fleshed out outside of ‘this episode’s bad guy’, making him the biggest disappointment of the episode.

Other than that, we learn that Antauri cheats at games and we rehash some of Otto’s feelings about being ‘the dumb monkey’. That’s it.

No seriously, that’s it for this episode of Retro-Scrutiny.) 

Thank you all for being here today. Its always a pleasure. Tune in next time for more multicolored monkey madness with your favorite duo of Kendall and Alexia.

(Goodnight everybody!)

Retro-Scrutiny SRMTHFG EPISODE Twenty-Nine: SEASON OF THE SKULL

Hello and welcome back to Retro-Scrutiny, the show where we look back on one of our old TV series and see if it still checks out today. I am your host, Kendall.

(And I’m your other host, Alexia. Today, we’re really starting off with Season Three with a special episode. It’s a holiday episode, and from the title, I’m sure you can all tell the holiday. So let’s not waste any more time and start up the Season of the Skull.)

OVERVIEW

The episode begins with the Super Robot chasing the Dark One Worm through space. They hit it with their cannons, but the worm only gets angry (Nah, really?) and hits them with a beam that transports them across the cosmos.

(It looks like a Halloween themed acid trip.)

They end up in the middle of a foggy area. They exit the Robot, not seeing anything, but Antauri senses life as they are surrounded. Imp monsters attack and whoop them before an old man in a cheesy mask scares the imps away.

Suddenly the fog dissipates, revealing a town.

The man explains that they are right outside of Crytptilvania and that he is the Magistrate of the town. As they walk through the town, only Otto seems to be openly fascinated by everything. Sparks isn’t, and Gibson is suspicious of everything.

The Magistrate explains due to a curse, demons from the netherworld come on a nightly basis to steal the children. The only things that ward them off are the masks that are ‘more frightening then they.’

(And there’s the first lie- that mask of his is more silly then than scary. I don’t even know what his is supposed to be.)

They reach the Magistrate’s home and his wife, Severina, appears out of the lightning flashes and says that they call the curse ‘the Season of the Skull’.

(Title drop!)

Sparks refuses to go inside; Gibson states that everything is just a load of superstitious mumbo-jumbo. Antauri says to not condemn their beliefs so quickly.  (Geez, what’s up with Gibson? That’s a real jerk thing to say.) Sparks follows after seeing a spirit-like creature float past his head.

According to Severia, there are only a handful of little ones left and the people need their help. She gives each of the team members their own masks:

• Chiro gets a Frankenstein’s monster mask
• Sparks gets a Devil mask
• Nova gets a Witch mask
• Gibson gets a vampire mask and cape
• Antauri gets a ghost mask
• Otto gets a jackalope mask

The team beats them wearing the masks, but it’s too late- the little ones were taken away. To get them back, they must find the Mystic Flame of Xanatos, which fire is the only thing that can destroy the demons. It’s in a sacred cemetery that’s through the Haunted Forest. As the team leaves, Severina states to stay on the path before she and her husband disappear in the fog and an explosion of magic sparkles.

(The woods are creepy, and Gibson points out that moon’s position hasn’t changed position since they arrived, but that’s because the Hyperforce is just that special.)  

Sparks decides to fly above them, but gets attacked by trees, prompting a rescue.

(New rule: STAY ON THE PATH!)

They continue their journey, Antauri noticing the book of magic Gibson took. Otto uses it to give Gibson a chicken head. They reach the cemetery and grab the flame, only for pumpkin-headed ghosts to attack them.

(Guess what their weak point is?)

They return to the Magistrate and his wife and hand them the flame, which brings the townsfolk and the demons to surround them. The Magistrate and his wife reveal themselves to be demons and the imps are their children.

(Also, the masks don’t really work.)

The town brings the team to a giant wicker skeleton. The Magistrate says they are there to honor their lord Skeleton King, who’s floating above them along with the Worm. Using the Flame of Xanatos, they bring the wicker skeleton to life.

The team can’t activate their weapons, but Nova frees her tail and uses the fan inside of it to cut them free. Their energy attacks are useless, so Antauri distracts the creature while Chiro gets Gibson to use the spell book. When it doesn’t work, Chiro urges him to believe, even if it isn’t logical.

Chiro holds the burning monster off with his Inner Primate while Gibson finally uses the book properly. The monster explodes and Chiro congratulates the blue monkey, who sheepishly grins.

(Okay, that look on his face is kind of adorable…)

The explosion’s flames attack the Worm (I forgot about that!) and send it away. The evil energy in all of the townsfolk dissipates, freeing them, but leaving them with no memory of what transpired. Later, the team uses the book and the Super Robot to leave the planet. The team back on the hunt for the Skeleton King Worm. Sparks notices that they have one of the carved pumpkins with them. Chiro states that they’ll bring it back to Shuggazoom and start their own little spooky holiday. Otto, who has the Grimoire of Necrotus, agrees.

The episode ends with Otto accidentally turning Sparks into a giant rat, who attempts to eat Nova, much to the team’s amusement.

(Well, Nova’s not very amused… but that was it for the episode! I personally don’t think the townsfolk were all that interesting, so let’s skip over them and ask ourselves some…)

UNANSWERED QUESTION(S):

1. If the Skeleton King Worm has the power to transport them anywhere in the cosmos, what other powers does it have?
2. Why is Gibson so degrading towards magic?
3. Why does the Skeleton King Worm even arrive at the town?
4. Why doesn’t the team use the Grimoire of Necrotus more in the episode? And will they use it again?
5. How long were the townsfolk possessed? And where are their actual children? Do they have children?

FINAL OPINIONS:

This episode is harmless fun. The animation and story hold up and make this a good one-shot episode, but not much else. It doesn’t add to the main plot of the show, but it does have its merits.

(The episode is more about the team members themselves and giving a few of them some character development. First off is Otto and Nova, because they are my favorites. It’s not much, but Nova is pretty okay with all of the weird and creepy things- but I think it’s mostly due Sparks’ apprehension to it all. And Otto gets to show off his childish wonder as he’s the only one who openly enjoys the new setting they’ve arrived at. He’s honestly excited up until the trees try to kill him.)

On the other side of the scale, there’s the rest of the team. Chiro and Antauri don’t seem too bothered by it all- just sort of quietly accepting of it. Sparks has an obvious dislike of the supernatural creepy atmosphere for obvious reasons.

But Gibson is the one with the most development of the group. He first waves away the ideas of magic and spirits- which makes sense, since he’s a hardcore science nerd. Over the course of the episode, he encounters magic, but still refuses to believe until he’s somewhat forced to do so. At the end of the episode, he keeps the book, and I think that signifies his newfound belief in magic…

(…but it shouldn’t have been a newfound belief! The biggest problem is that Gibson should already know about magic! His creator made him and his teammates using science and magic, and his main enemy utilized the same things. Magic shouldn’t be beyond his suspension of disbelief- he’s a blue cyborg monkey created by an alchemist to fight the evils of the universe and protect it from a giant evil worm with a smaller robotic skull attached to an umbilical cord on its head. If he’s encountered so much magic beforehand, why is he so disbelieving?)

Besides the characters, this episode is full of fun little horror references:

• The spell the monkey team uses to leave the planet comes from the third “Evil Dead: Army of Darkness” movie
• The Grimoire of Necrotus literally means ‘giant book of the dead’
• Xanatos is the name of the main villain of the show “Gargoyles”
• The town has little touches such as the lighting, jack-o-lanterns, black cats, etc.
• The town itself sounds similar to the game series “Castlevania”

And with that, we must end our episode. The next time we meet however, we’ll be leaving the realm of the supernatural and heading into more technological realms of adventure. Until then, I’m Kendall and she is Alexia. Have a wonderful day.

(And please, do two things for me. One, enjoy your Halloween-in-August episode. And two, wish for an episode based around everyone’s other favorite- Arbor Day.)

RETRO-SCRUTINY: SRMTHFG Episode 15: World of Giants

Okay, we fibbed a bit. The being show is being titled “Retro-Scrutiny” since it sounds better. We just came up with the name last night. 

With that said, welcome back to the show! We’re starting a brand new season with this episode, which means it has a lot to do!

(So, the biggest question is: Does it do what the first season didn’t? Let’s find out when we travel to the World of Giants.)

OVERVIEW

The episode begins with the Super Robot headed towards the planet of Tolomac 3, “another boring rock in the middle of nowhere”, according to Sparks. Antauri tries warning him that they haven’t finished the threat analysis, but the pilot just steers then down towards the planet.

(And they get hit out of the sky with a big rock. Nice going, Sparks!)

When they turn on the outside cameras, they find a pair of strangers staring at them. The two ogres can’t decide whether or not the Robot is a flying treasure chest or a demon that fell out of the sky. So their best plan is to bust it open- guts or gold!

The Robot stands up… and the two run away.

(Punks!)

It turns out that a dragon is behind them. It blasts them with its fire, so they go on the defensive with the Lasatron Fury. Unfortunately, the Neutron Generator was damaged in the crash, so the attack barely charges. Their missiles are barely doing any damage, and the fire is overheating the energy shields. Chiro decides to attack one last time, using the discarded boulder from before to force it away.

(When in doubt, grab the biggest rock! But seriously, that was quick on his part. I applaud Chiro’s battle tactics.)

It works, impressing the two ogres from before that are hiding in the bushes. The Robot’s generator is leaking quantum fluid, so they don’t have enough power for escape velocity, meaning they’re stranded. Luckily, Gibson detects an alternate power source located in what looks to be a castle.

The giants pop out again, hailing the “Square Headed Knight” hero sent from above. Sparks opens his microphone and starts playing along, much to his teammates’ outrage. However, Chiro thinks it’s a worthy idea and let’s Sparks continue his charade.

The robot is taken to the castle of King- um, I can’t pronounce his name. Alexia?

(Don’t look at me. I just call him Steve.)  

Yeah, King Steve knights them. The king’s sorcerer, mad about his position of protector being given away, challenges the Robot.

The fight is one-sided, since the robot is weakened, so Sparks decides to change tactics. Using the holographic projector, he impresses the royal family and the people.

(And this is where everything just starts going wrong. First, the princess removes her veil and I learn that veils can not only hide someone’s face, but hide about a thousand pounds of body weight! It also hides the horn of a nose she has and four o clock shadows.

Second, the Dread Magician is instantly jealous over the Robot’s easy win of Princess Fugly, which can only mean one thing- FORESHADOWING! Third, the princess drags them to the Forbidden Tower, where all of the kingdom’s treasure is being held and tells him that now that he knows where it is, he must MARRY her! Great job Sparks! See everybody, lying will get you everywhere. Everywhere you DON’T WANT TO BE!)

Sparks tries to convince her to change her mind by pointing out the obvious- they only met a few minutes ago and there has to be others who want to marry her. But they’ve all been taken care of by the dragon. She basically traps them in the room as the Team decides on a course of action. Antauri has a suggestion.

(Yes, please, just anyone but Sparks!)

Otto, Chiro and Gibson venture out to find the power source while Sparks, Nova and Antauri stay behind to distract the princess.

As Chiro and the others find the power source, they manage to listen in on the Dread Magician’s self-monologue. Gibson is watching extra closely. (Yes, more foreshadowing.)  They call the other three and warn them before they are attacked by a magical … booger.

Meanwhile with the others, they’re still keeping the princess busy. They manage to tire her out with some ballroom dancing. Then Sparks has another idea.

(Is it a good one?)

It involves drag.

(So no, it’s a bad idea.)

They get caught by the King and Dread. Dread makes it seem as though they are trying to steal from him and the Robot is sentenced to the Block Basher. It’s like a guillotine, but with less blood. 

(And the Robot’s reserves decide that now is the time to fail. Obviously, it has had enough of this.)

They call Chiro and the others, who finish fighting the magical glob of ick. Sparks is trying to con his way out of trouble, but he leaves the microphone on as he tells Nova and Antauri his real feelings about the giants.

(Smart move, Sparks.)

Just as the Robot’s head is going to be flattened, the other three arrive and refuel the generator. The brain scrambler flies off, scaring the crowd.

Dread tries to get everyone to destroy the Headless Robot, but Sparks calls him out about his control of the dragon, helped by Gibson’s footage from earlier. Dread decides that transform into the beast to destroy them.

The Robot disengages to fight the Dread Dragon, but that fails, so they reengage and, with the help of the King’s sword, destroy the dragon.

 (And it looks just like the final battle in Wind Waker. But less pretty.)

Steve is so happy that the day is saved that he offers his daughter’s hand in marriage to the Robot. Sparks tries to convince his team of the good that they’ve done, but they force him to finally tell the truth. The giants freak out at the sight of armor haunted by ‘tiny folk’ and the Hyper Force escapes the planet. The episode ends with King Steve talking about how he will miss the ‘Square Headed Knight” and vowing to not forget his ways. An ogre next to him agrees while dressed in the princess’s dress from earlier.

(Okay, so I don’t have a single question to ask. Nor do I care about these giants- not in the slightest! So let’s get down to the opinions.)

FINAL THOUGHTS

I’m going first. Oh my word, this was just bad! While the idea of going back to the Middle Ages and fighting mystical monsters like dragons is always interesting, this managed to fail on so many levels. The most glaring of the problems with this episode is Sparks, as he is portrayed as a proficiently bad liar and makes it seem as though he has no problem taking advantage of others. The giants themselves are pretty unremarkable and the whole thing is just BAD!)

Now, allow me to try and play devil’s advocate. I can see this as a way to make Sparks look good, by showing how he can be quick on his feet and somewhat smart with planning. But the episode itself is still pretty bad. I can see what they were going for, trying to make this a comedic episode, but that’s the problem. It’s not funny. And looking back on it, my barely-teenaged self must have realized that as well, because I don’t remember feeling anything from this episode.

All in all, the episode fails because it’s not entertaining enough to memorable and not bad enough to be anger inducing. It’s just boring.

(Let’s just hope the next episode is better. Until then, she’s Kendall and I’m Alexia. And this episode sucks!)