This week on Littlest Pet Shop, Roger's sister comes for a visit, triggering a classic case of sibling rivalry.
Speaking of which, why hasn't anyone done fanart of Roger? You're just making my job difficult!
Stream
The Brony Network
On-Demand
HD from Discovery Channel
As always, any additional sources can be sent to me on Twitter @theblackwidower, or by email at theblackwidower@noprestige.com, and I'll post them as soon as I am able.
It was a good episode, better than I thought it would be. I am not a big fan of adult siblings acting like children, but it worked. I have seen it done a lot worse, though it is rare I have seen it done better, for example Legend Of Korra "Civil Wars" part 1 and 2, this wasn't as deep and had as good emotional pay off as it did in "Civil Wars" part 1 and 2, but still it was fine. Better than most.
ReplyDeleteI thought Mo was an okay character, and wouldn't mind seeing her again, perhaps when Blythe's mom finally appears if that ever happens.
Though the lack of pets was disappointing, nice to see more Youngmee, but no more of the "Secret Recipe", when Blythe called a coward I was laughing so much and Jasper they just bring him in just to abuse him, it seems that way.
But we did to get some Sunil and Vinnie bromance greatness, and since they are like putting up against Roger and Mo sibling rivalry, it is saying Sunil and Vinnie are as close as brothers. Which I approve.
I loved the lama, did we get her name, whoever voiced did a great job. And the apple merchant, when the apple cart was destroyed a second time, I was screaming "my apples", maybe that will be recurring thing, I know people will cry rip off, but the best things are ripped of.
Anyway this episode gets 8 / 10. It is was okay.
Well guys, I'll have to rewatch "Sister Story" since I was watching and co-commentating with the League of Petshoppers over Skype today, but my initial thoughts are that I was pleasantly surprised by this episode.
ReplyDeleteI was worried from the synopsis that we would get a cliched sibling rivalry plot that would force Roger to be out of character, but instead we get something that turned out to be really fun. Not only is Roger his usually entertaining self, but we also get some entertainment from his sister, who is practically a female version of Roger so it's like we got two Rogers in this episode. A real treat. We also get plenty of Sunil and Vinnie who always make a great duo.
The guest animal of this episode is a llama with a foreign accent, and it's about time this show had llamas. Roger and his sister's antics eventually lead to a chase scene with Roger riding the llama and everyone else in pursuit. This really added a lot of action to the episode while at the same time allows the Baxters to slowly realize why they're being so competitive to begin with. I usually don't like sibling rivalry plots since they end so predictably, but the resolution here was done right IMO.
A very fun episode but sadly it loses some points due to one big negative I have for this episode: while we get plenty of Sunil and Vinnie, the rest of the pets pretty much take a break from this episode. It would've been nice if this episode had a subplot with the rest of the pets. That was pretty much the only thing missing here. What we did get was done well, though.
Again, I'll have to rewatch this episode, this time with full focus on watching the episode itself, in order for me to give it a fair opinion so I'll hold off on my final thoughts until then.
"How 'bout dem apples?"
Sigh... "The Sister Story". Now, here's one episode I had no confidence in even being remotely good. This type of plot ha been done to death, after all...
ReplyDeleteI feel this episode tried too hard with the crazier moments - I can easily say I felt sorry for Blythe here. Also, the lack of a real pet plot to balance things out only adds to my frustration here... This felt like an 11 - minute plot dragged out to a full episode, which never goes down well (it's one of the major complaints people who aren't fans of this show have with it!) At it's worst, all it convinces me is that Powell should not be writing for this show anymore... She's kinda making it look - unneccessarily crazy, and not in the way that Amazing World of Gumball does it right, IMHO.
Real shame, that chase scene was pretty wicked and all - I just wish something funnier had caused it other than annoying sibling bickering that should have not been present the whole time. That, and it going on for way too long. It's only because of Sunil and Vinnie being the sane ones and pointing out how stupid this all w that kept this episode from outright sucking worse than Episode 9 - Which I hate so damn much I don't care to name it. EVER.
Yeah. This was Mid Tier nonsense at best... I don't see myself repeatedly watching this, even if it is more tolerable and legit entertaining than Powell's "Door - Jammed" ever was, IMHO. Too bad I'm sure Roger is on his way to becoming an easy to hate character now after this - It's a real shame, he isn't a bad father character because he isn't serious or something like that. It's that this show thinks making him look stupid = funny. It just... doesn't work. Trust me.
Major:
ReplyDelete-The old-timey cartoon sneaking, done with modern animation. If you don't think about how non-spooky the sound is, it's a well-done bit.
-"Who would we call?" Good question. Who deals with non-issues like this?
-Youngmee turns away from Roger's butt, but still looks at it. Her eyes even follow it.
-Corey Powell and her appreciated effort to turn a b-plot and a joke that warranted far fewer repetitions into a complete episode.
-Sunil outwits Vinnie with emphasis. I can't believe he fell for it, but also, I very easily can.
-Really good camera shaking and blurring effects during the skydiving sequence.
-I gotta admit, I liked the whistle-duel.
-Buttercream...cameo...wasted. But Buttercream herself is still pretty cute.
-Quite a display of crack-avoision, and it reminded me of my own, in my youth. In my day, I could do some fancy footwork without losing my stride.
-Roger didn't describe himself as a "pet-ophile".
-Vinnie being calmly dragged at high-speeds.
-Really great animation during the chase. Seriously, big ups to the animators.
-Blythe's sanity in the face of twin storms of lunacy.
-I don't know if Vinnie and Sunil's part about being bored was meant to be self-awareness or if the plot was thought up by someone else and now Corey Powell is showing that she doesn't care for it either but still ahd to write the episode. Either way, agreed.
-Vinnie's stunt.
-"DAD!" "ROGER!" "SUNIL!" "Llama?" "Donkey!"
Meh:
Delete-Implied diarrhea.
-Blythe and Youngmee take 34 seconds to figure out that the "om"ing in Roger's voice is Roger meditating. Do ghosts say "om" ever?
-"I should have known it was your dad acting weird". Yes, from the voice. Also, when did Youngmee go from finding Roger's antics cute to annoying? Also-also, how is meditation weird?
-"Mm, we have been watching Blythe's father making that strange sound for quite a while now." I just thought I should say that directly to the other pet who has been doing exactly that with me the whole time.
-And with a giggle and wave, Minka vanishes from the episode, never to be seen again. Wouldn't want her being funny and taking time from the plot, would we?
-Seriously, when did Youngmee turn on Roger's eccentricities? What is it about meditation of all things that makes her so irritated? Also, call somebody? And tell them what, "a guy is trying to calm his mind and seems to be doing a decent job if it"?
-"I did not need to see that". And a thousand Rogermee shippers cried out in anguish. Also, 1080p Roger-butt. "Feels like I'm wearing nothin' at all!"
-"Yeah, so my aunt Mo is coming for a visit. And she and dad are pretty competitive." Because Roger yelling that wasn't clear enough.
-Roger and his sister compete. Gotcha. No, really, we under...we understand, you can stop telling us...okay, gotcha!
-I SWEAR I still like Vinnie and Sunil, but the push for them as main pets could be less persistent. I could see Pepper and Minka making those bets, for example, if the betting really had to be in there. I'm just saying, there are five other regulars, plus recurring pets like Buttercream and Sugar Sprinkles and any guest pet the story needs.
-Vinnie's minuscule knowledge of synonyms. Again.
-You know, usually when two characters say they don't do a thing anymore, they try to resist doing it for a few seconds before doing it.
-Russel pointing out how cliche a rabbit from the hat is. I mean, really, who would waste time complaining about tiny little flaws in a generally good show?
-Remember, kids: being overly-competitive is fun and being smart enough not to be is expensive!
-You can't just jump on a llama! Since when are there petting zoos at farmer's markets!? Why wasn't anyone watching them to discourage stuff like this!? What would riding a llama even prove!?
-Blythe didn't bring her scooter to the market. Did she go all the way home for it? And why didn't she drop off Vinnie and Sunil? They're not helping.
-Mo doesn't notice Blythe talking to Vinnie and Sunil. From the sidecar, which is maybe a foot, fourteen inches away.
-Mo watches a gecko do something insane and amazing and says nothing about it.
-Roger and Mo don't learn a g**d**ned thing!! There's a difference between "Ah already knew Ah c'n count on friends'n family" and "Lesson that might stop me and my sister from endangering one another and my daughter pointlessly? Ain't nobody got time for that!". And they drag Blythe down with them.
-"If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!" That's not what that means. Also, you can beat 'em. When Mo says "let's race!", say "you know what? She can have this one". There, you've won and you've grown.
-The llama has no name. So they ARE running out of names for guest pets.
Nice observational skills. Now that you point some things out, I agree there were some things inconsistent about this episode: Youngmee seems to really enjoy Roger when he does something quirky...but when he does something as common as meditating, it's downright disturbing.
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