The Fairly OddParents - Hail to the Chief

Okay, folks, my birthday dinner is over, everything's back to normal, I've got my wishes, and I'm ready to go back to doing a regular review. This one is for President's Day which is today, folks. This is a Fairly OddParents episode called, "Hail to the Chief," which was the only episode to be written by Steven Banks.

Timmy competes against the two popular boys, Tad and Chad to be Student Body President. And this is not just to become Student Body President, no no, it's also to gain attention to the one and only Trixie Tang, because apparently, Trixie is the political reporter for the Dimmsdale Elementary School Newspaper. That's something that unfortunately won't be seen again after this episode. And with a little help from William Shakespeare, not even joking, Wanda summoned him, he writes a speech on the fact that it doesn't matter if we're all losers. A day later, there was nobody at school because the kids got sick from Tad and Chad's cake. And since there was nobody else at school, Timmy won the Student Body President duties. How will this go? Well, just watch and find out.

There's a lot of fun facts I got to mention here. First off I will say this is the first appearance of Sanjay, Timmy's other friend and his only appearance in Season 2, here, he invites Timmy into their book club. And I will address the elephant in the room, the controversy of "Twistory!" That episode (and, indirectly, its sister episode) rarely airs in reruns in the United States due to the controversial stereotypes featured in it and the implications that the world would not advanced socially or technologically had the colonists lost the Revolutionary War. However, both episodes are available on the Nick Picks Vol. 3 DVD and on the season 2 DVD. Due to its obscurity, some people mistakenly thought the Founding Fathers from Escape from Unwish Island were new characters. The last known airings of these episodes was on July 4th, 2017 (the Fourth of July, that is) along with its sister episode on Nicktoons. Sheesh, who ever thought Nickelodeon has something against ethnic stereotypes? What is this the Speedy Gonzales trope all over again?

Okay, okay, okay. All nitpicking aside, this is a pretty funny episode, it's got a good plot, good humor, and even some politician jokes. The one thing that grinds my gears is The Future Phlegmers, because for some reason, one of Timmy's friends, Elmer was in that sort of group. Seriously, how did he get that cold to be in that group? And let me tell you, Principal Waxelplax is frost intolerant, let me tell you, I've looked everywhere for an explanation, but I couldn't find one, I guess that means frost intolerant allergies don't exist. Of course, I will agree with Timmy that I want to be or not to be.......that LOSER!

That's all folks!

Phineas and Ferb - Happy Birthday, Isabella

Well, as you can tell from the title card and the house of Phineas and Ferb's, that's right, today's my Birthday! I am 22 years old as of right now, and I'm going to review Happy Birthday, Isabella, an episode from the fourth season. I will review Hail to the Chief, and a few other projects later. But right now, let's get to the birthday review immediately.

It's Isabella's birthday, and Phineas and the gang celebrate it in a big way, complete with a giant cake and piñatas. To Isabella however, all she really wants is to be alone with Phineas, but she keeps missing by a second. Meanwhile, Doofenshmirtz installs his Bugs Me-Inator onto an evil bug bus and drives around Danville turning all the things that bug him literally into bugs, and Stacy unwittingly sees this and even finds out Perry's agent secret. And once again, Candace tries to bust the boys, but it never works. Two words for Candace, "Give up!" P.S., I still am not fond of Doofenschmirtz, I mean, I have nothing against a platypus being a spy agent, but that Heinz is so stupid!

After watching a few episodes that feature Isabella, I have made an interesting discovery, she has feelings for Phineas. If I didn't know better, I'd say she has a crush on him! I never knew that until now. I can relate to her in this episode because all she wants to do is spend time with Phineas. Also, here comes another question, if Stacy noticed that Perry was a spy agent, how come Phineas and Ferb never seem him as a secret agent? Was it because they're too occupied with their time and summer plans to even notice? Oh, well, I guess we'll never know. All I know is Phineas and Ferb have never met Doofenschmirtz, which I wish the series made them do that.

So, my opinions are this episode are pretty okay. I kind of like the episode being a birthday episode for once, and I kind of like how her wish was to spend time with Phineas, and spoiler alert, m the end, Isabella does get her wish. It's funny, interesting, has birthday related stuff in it, and has a nice song, simply known as "Isabella's Birthday Song," or as I like to call it, "Isabella's Wish."

All in all, you have to watch the episode for yourself and try, and I dare you to TRY to prove to me that Isabella doesn't have a crush on Phineas.

The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh - "Find Her, Keep Her"

Our review today has something to do with the ever popular Disney animated television series from the 80's, "The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh." And today, we're reviewing the ever popular "Find Her, Keep Her" episode, from the first season. Let's see how it plays out, huh?

In the middle of a blustery snowstorm, Rabbit, while talking care of a carrot that needs to be saved, finds a baby bird in danger, and Rabbit while trying to go get a ladder, flies around on the door, carrying Pooh, Piglet, and Tigger all around the storm and catching the bird into Pooh's honey pot. After that little stunt, Rabbit decides to take care of the little bird, who's name is Kessie by the way, voiced by Laura Mooney, who later voiced Katie Ka-Boom on Animaniacs. One day, while playing with Tigger, the tree that Tigger bounces on tips over and carries them near an edge of a cliff. Kessie falls and Owl comes to the rescue and thinks she is meant for flying, but Rabbit on the other hand refuses, mainly because of the fact that most birds fly south for the winter. Will Rabbit keep Kessie, or will he learn that sometimes you have to let things go, even if you love them very much? Well, I think you already know the answer by now, so, go watch it to find out, okay?

A lot of people, including  my mom, have considered this to be one of the most heart-wrenching episodes the show has ever put out. And I can see why. We see Rabbit acting as a father figure to Kessie, worried about what would happen to her if she did went away. This episode has a lot of drama, good laughs, and a nice story. I even like how Pooh pointed out that Rabbit already knows he cared so much for Kessie because it's called, the reason Rabbit already knows is because earlier in the second act, he told Tigger, "I never even told her, I loved her." Probably the saddest scene in the episode has to be when Kessie asks for one more bedtime story and Rabbit says "You don't need me for anything." Now that's what I call a real tearjerker. This probably the most dramatic episode that Disney has ever put out. It feels like as if Lion King producer Don Hahn produced this.

Here's a fun fact for you: This episode won the 1989 Humanitas Prize for Outstanding Children’s Programming. Gee, I can see why they gave that episode the award. But either way, with the comedy in between and Rabbit's feeling for Kessie, this is a really amazing episode, not just for its comedy, but also for its storytelling and its subverting of expectations.

You can find this episode on Winnie the Pooh: Seasons of Giving, or on the video, "Newfound Friends."

I could dedicate this review to the memory of Ken Sansom who voiced Rabbit, but I can't. Instead, I'll just dedicate this to the late Paul Winchell who voiced Tigger.

Rest in peace, Paul. Along with Ken Sansom and John Fiedler.

SpongeBob - Mermaidman and Barnacleboy 5

On SpongeBob, there were a few episodes that centered around SpongeBob and Patrick's interactions with their favorite semi-retired superheroes, Mermaidman and Barnacleboy. Probably the best episode was "Mermaidman and Barnacleboy 5."

This episode starts off with a crime, the crime of hour-long waiting lines! Oh, to be stuck behind someone who had tons of time to make up their mind but can't decide now that they're at the front. As it turns out, Barnacleboy is fed up with being treated like a child, and when the other characters proceed to make fun of him, he decides to join the dark side, literally. Because Mr. Krabs said, "Why should I waste money lighting the whole store?" Soon enough, Barnacle-Man is committing crimes with two of Bikini Bottom's biggest criminals, Man Ray and the Dirty Bubble. Their crimes range from things like shooting lasers, robbing banks to, brace yourselves, everybody, ding-dong ditching!

Desperate, and out of options, SpongeBob and his friends, Patrick, Sandy, and Squidward decide to help Mermaidman his pursuit against EVIL. That is, after they dawn their appropriate superhero costumes. After a clever montage of them acquiring their powers, they learn of the location of the baddies, Make-Out Reef. They quickly go to the scene of the crime. At first, it looks like the odds are stacked up against them, that is, until their mediocrity starts to show. The villains declare victory and Barnacle-Man gives his final demands.

His first demand is he wants to be treated like a superhero, not a sidekick, number two, he wants to be called Barnacle-Man, and number three, he just wants an adult-sized Krabby Patty. Yep, Barnacleboy decides to give in to his own instincts and go back to being a superhero, and Mermaidman decides to call him Barnacle-Man. The episode ends with Barnacle-Man enjoying his adult-sized Krabby Patty and everyone having a good laugh. This episode is a great example of what makes for good humor. Constantly coming at you with great quality, this episode will start you off laughing and will not stop until it's over. It's especially funny to see the contrast personalities between Mermaidman and Barnacleboy and to see all the superhero tropes parodied. It was hard for me to find a highlight, but I decided to pick two. One, where we see what SpongeBob and the other characters alter egos are, and the IJLSA defeating themselves in a comedic fashion, but other than that, there are just too many. But in my opinion, Squidward was and will always be........

Captain Magma! Get him angry and he's bound to erupt!

Hey Arnold! - "Helga Sleepwalks"

Once upon a midnight dreary, I woke up running out of ideas weak and weary until I realized, now is the perfect time to get back into the reviewing community. And tonight, we're reviewing "Helga Sleepwalks."

The story is that Helga Pataki, still on her love for Arnold frenzies, is starting to sleepwalk all over the city. Know why? Must have something to do with her dad's pork rinds. How can she get out of this? Watch to find out. But first, let me explain what are pork rinds, Pork rind is the culinary term for the skin of a pig. They could be confused to be potato chips if you ask me. And sleepwalking is something that happens when while you are asleep, your body loses complete control and you walk in your sleep, It is classified as a sleep disorder. And take it from me, I never sleepwalked ever.

This episode is pretty interesting. There are several episodes that had cartoon characters sleepwalking that I'll review in the future. I sympathize with Helga as usual, she's too nervous to confess her love as usual. It's pretty funny when Gertrude, Arnold's grandmother, mistakes her for some old childhood friend of hers. And yet again, Miriam lost the purse on the top of the car, again, like in "Road Trip." I also like the minor reference to William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. But anyway, Helga is just so scared and trembling with fear that she may never be able to sleep ever again. But the thing is sleep is important.

One more thing, don't eat too much pork rinds, otherwise you'll end up in sleepwalk mode like Helga did. I do have one burning question. How, and I do mean HOW on Earth did Helga end up in the boarding house shower?! That came totally out of nowhere, ladies and gentleman. That's just crazy. And worse than that. THAT'S JUST.............weird. But overall, I thought the episode was okay, it didn't blow my mind or anything but it wasn't that bad.

Oh yeah, there's a Quick Draw McGraw reference in this episode, please, PLEASE, look for it.

Hey Arnold! - "Helga's Love Potion"

To love, or not to love, that is the question for Helga G. Pataki in our next review. I know it's super bowl night, but I'm more focused on this, okay? This episode was directed by Dan Povenmire with storyboards done by Dan and Sherm Cohen, the storyboard supervisor for SpongeBob.

Helga gets tired of her love for Arnold making her feel mad and mixed up all the time. After considering it, she goes in to a "gypsies" store, asking her for a potion that will make her fall out of love. Out of her sight, the gypsy gives her a "potion" that would erase Helga's feelings  After drinking that "potion." Upon waking, Helga feels unusually bland. Know how I know? Because she acts more like a civilized person more than a bully with a passion for love. She moves quietly about the day, not responding to any aggression. This doesn't feel like her at all if you ask me. Can she get out of this blandness? Well, just watch and yourself.

This is a pretty weird episode, but in a good way. It has a lot of good laughs, for example, Brainy beating the heck out of himself since Helga was under the "spell." And I say all of this with air-quotes because the twist is that the potion is actually grape juice, boy did Helga get ripped off by a con person? Probably the weirdest part of the episode is that by the time Helga drinks the "potion," she goes through a extremely upside-down dream sequence! Which has her breaking the locket, her sinking into ice cream, and landing flat onto her bed, and it's not mentioned again! It's definitely a Big-Lipped Alligator Moment! Also, this is one of the few episodes where Helga uses the word "crap." I wonder why they got away with that in a cartoon like this. If I didn't know better, Francesca Marie Smith probably ad-libbed that line unscripted without Nickelodeon even noticing, either that, or she just says that by herself whenever she gets frustrated in real life, but that's just me.

So, the moral of the story is never trust a gypsy who want your money, second, don't drink any sort of love potion made out of grape juice, otherwise, you'll end up having weird dream sequences. Also, you can't escape your obsession no matter what you do. You are who you are and you can't change that. And Helga had to learn that out the hard way.

Overall, this episode is pretty weird, but funny, and good, funny and good. Yep, those are the three words I can describe this episode, folks.

CatDog - "Dem Bones"

Your neck bones connected to your knee bones. Dem bones, dem bones and dry bones now they're the working the lord. Now, let's review "Dem Bones," from CatDog.

While visiting the Nearburg Museum, Dog stumbles upon the Tyrannosaurus Rex statue, and as usual, it was made entirely out of bones. The security guard warns them not to touch the statue, otherwise, they'll end up in Museum Jail. Once they leave, Cat has a dream about Dog stealing all the bones from the museum and they must return them before the museum opens.

Will they get that fixed in their own dream? Or will they face the consequences? Well, I'm not telling, because you just have to watch and see for yourself.

I think Steven Banks is my favorite television writer, even if his time on SpongeBob had it's ups and downs. I even like the episodes he writes for CatDog like for example, "The Lady is a Shriek," "The Cat Club," and of course, "CatDog Divided." I also like the episode of Jimmy Neutron he wrote called "Sleepless in Retroville." He also wrote one episode for the Fairly OddParents, being "Hail to the Chief," and yes, I'll review that episode on Presidents' Day. I even like how Jim Cummings deepens his voice a bit for Cat as the voice of the T-Rex to scare away the security guard. I knew it was a dream all along? Didn't you?

For all those dinosaurs out there, you have to see it to understand it. And for all of you humans, this episode, much like "Winslow's Home Videos," this is a go-to episode. But don't take it from me, take it from my friend, the T-Rex Skeleton.

"It is I, T-Rex, rawr, King of Dinosaurs, you must leave this museum at once puny human! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

I'm just kidding, did I scare you? Well I hope not.

Rugrats - "Wash/Dry Story"

From the people who brought you the episode, "Music," comes another musical episode for "Rugrats," called "Wash/Dry Story," inspired from the ever popular musical "West Side Story." Let's start the review, shall we?

When Stu inadvertently turns off the neighborhood water supply, the gang goes to the laundromat to do the laundry, but the problem is, The McNultys are there too, and Teddy McNulty sees Cynthia, and he wants to play with the Cynthia doll. The thing is Jonathan had taken Cynthia alongside with Charlotte's laundry because apparently, Charlotte doesn't do laundry, Jonathan does it for her. That seems kind of lazy. Kimi wants to return Cynthia to Angelica, but Teddy wants to keep her all to himself. That said, two groups of kids get into a standoff. Will they never cease? Stay tuned to find out!

The reason I like this episode is because it's a good satire on a classic musical. I mean you have Timmy McNulty as Riff Lorton, Kimi being Rita Moreno, Teddy being of course Richard Beymer as Tony Wyzek, and of course the music has a lot of good spoofs like for example, "Stray Cat Strut" by the Stray Cats, "Maria," and "There's a Place For Us." Clever parodies, clever plot. Too bad there's no parody of "I Feel Pretty." Come on, guys, Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim would be proud. Also, I should point out that this is the last appearance of the McNultys, good riddance if you ask me.

The only other parody of West Side Story was perhaps the Animatiacs episode with the Goodfeathers, and that episode featured the voice of Ivy Austin from Sesame Street.

Just remember, the moral of the story is always keep your eyes on your prized possessions, if not, they end up in a laundry basket on the way to the laundromat.

Just remember, someplace, there's always a place for all of us to play, it's just not at the laundromat, and that's the moral, folks. Hope you enjoyed my first review on February.