Keen on Keane

It's Valentine's Day and you know what that means?  No, not a RRB sequel, you clod!  It's time for some grown up romance between the Professor and Townsville's most eligible Bachelorette.  That's right, he and...what?  No!  Not Ms. Bellum!  Ms. Keane!  Geez!

The pacing of the story was a little slow.  There wasn't a lot of background music to accompany the action (or lack of it).  Also, the use of zoom-ins and zoom-outs was overused.  However, there were some great scenes that made this an entertaining episode overall.  The romantic "tripping sequence" was well done and Ms. Keane's reactions to receiving the Professor's call on the hotline was hilarious!  I also liked the cute reference to the "Cat Man Do" episode:

Ms. Keene: "Don't you like cats?"
Professor: "Well...I had a really bad experience with a cat once."
Ms. Keene: "Well it couldn't have been that bad!"
Professor: "It made me jump off a building!"

Oh yeah...we find out something else: Blossom can't cook.

Not So Awesome Blossom

WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOO!  Buttercup saves the day!!!  Buttercup saves the day!!!  Did you see it?!  Remember when Blossom didn't know what to do?  And then she came diving in, rooooooaaaaarrrrrr!  And then, zoom!  And then, whamo!  And then, pow!  And then...  Oh, sorry.  I got a little carried away.

Blossom looses her...ah...Mojo?  Scratch that.  Blossom's luck turns sour.  She can't seem to do anything right.  I won't get into too much detail about the rest of the plot other than to say the "equilibrium device" Mojo creates was a very clever way of symbolically identifying Blossom's importance to the team.

Some of the highlights:

• Buttercup: "Booga booga booga."
• Mojo's letter to the Professor.
• Mojo's script for the Professor to read.
• Mojo: "I'm starving!  (Blossom throws the two hot dogs at Mojo)  I'm not paying for those!"
• Blossom: "How do you know I won't lie?"  Mojo: "Because you're Blossom."  Blossom: "Shoot!"

I found myself laughing out loud throughout the entire episode!  Good show!

Power-Noia

This has to be the most disappointing episode ever.  Him enters the PPG's dreams and plays on their greatest fears.  A great idea for an episode; too bad it was executed so poorly.  First off, let's examine each of the girls' fears: Blossom is anxious about taking a test she didn't study for.  Awesome.  Bubbles is afraid of the dark.  That's reasonable.  Buttercup is afraid of spiders.  Spiders?!  Okay, fear of spiders is common, but come-on!  Is that the best they can come up with?  Spiders?

Second, the ways in which their fears were exploited was pointless.  The whole schoolhouse scene with Blossom was long and tedious.  "Him" just kept harping on grades.  Why not dig a little deeper into Blossom's psyche?  Maybe she has a profound fear of failure because she's a leader.  If she fails, people get hurt.  Bubbles' sequence looked the most promising.  (The evil looking doll in the corner was an homage to the movie Poltergeist.)  Alas, it too went nowhere.  And Buttercup...the whole spider premise was dumb to begin with, so I don't have much to say about the rest of the debacle.

Geek alert!  Seven doesn't have a square-root because it's prime?!  What the?!  Tell that to my calculator.  What they probably meant was that prime numbers don't have rational square-roots, therefore, it would take an infinite amount of time for her to calculate/answer it.  My point is, just because the square-root of seven is irrational doesn't mean that it doesn't exist.  (Following that logic, "pi" doesn't exist either.)

Nuthin' Special

Well, this is it folks.  We finally find out what Buttercup's special ability is!  All the questions are finally answered.  Is it energy bolts from her fingers?  No.  Apparently, they all can do that.  Is it sonic scream?   No, wait...that was Bubbles' special power.  Besides, they all can do that, too...apparently.  So what is it?

Throughout the majority of the episode, Buttercup tries to find a power that she can do and her sisters can't.  (Let me tell you, there's some really dumb powers the PPGs have.)  But in the end, she discovers her special gift.  It's...it's...

Sorry.  This episode hasn't aired in some places yet, so I'm not going to spoil it.   Let's just say that the title says it all...which is why this episode gets "only" three stars.

You know, I really don't mind that Buttercup's "ability" is to...well, you'll see.  It fits her character to be not as special as her sisters.  I guess it's just the way they did it.  Kind of like the way the writers of South Park aggravated their fans with the "who's Cartman's father?" cliffhanger.  Yeah, funny.  Real funny.

Neighbor Hood

A bunch of criminals create an extremely ghey kids' show called the "Wondrous World of Whimsical Willie" with the intention of tricking little kids into sending the criminals all of their parents' money.  Bubbles goes one step further by stealing all the money in Townsville and giving it to Willie.

The inspiration for this episode comes from a very famous incident on a kids' show from the 60's.  Now, if the writers had put any more thought into the plot beyond that little footnote in television history, we could have had a really good story.  So many opportunities for something funny or interesting to happen were squandered.  For example, the scene with the Mayor would have been much funnier if he too, went to the vault with the intention of giving away all the money and found it was gone.  When Bubbles is learning that the show isn't real, I was trying to anticipate what her eventual reaction would be.  Was she going to cry her eyes out?  Would she go catatonic?  Is she gonna freak out and beat the stuffing out of everything in sight?  Nope, none of the above.  She actually takes it rather calmly.  Oh sure, she's miffed at Willie and his crew for deceiving her, but she doles out the beatings with an average amount of intensity.  How exciting.

This could have been a great Bubbles episode.  Darn.

Monstra City

The Mayor discovers he owns Monster Island and evicts all the monsters.  This forces them to move into Townsville and the current residents are none too happy about it.

The best parts of this episode involve the interaction between the humans and monsters.  Lots of funny situations, but a lame ending.  I still don't understand what the Mayor was trying to do with the island.  Something about porcelain dolls of himself, I think.  If there was a little more thought put into that aspect of the episode, I would have rated it higher.

Shut the Pup Up!

The Talking Dog is witness to a crime and enters the FBI's Witness Protection Program.  The FBI places him in the PPG's home so the girls can guard him.  The dog's blunt comments are annoying the heck out of everyone.

The idea of a talking dog that insults people is really funny!  Some of my favorite lines:

• Buttercup's...hair...really...ugly.
• (To the Mayor) That is one amazing mustache.  You can barely see your hideous rotten teeth.
• I've had better chips from a litter box, which puts them right near the top.  You gotta give an old lady for trying.
• (To the Professor) So, your greatest invention was an accident?
• (To Buttercup) You sure don't throw like a girl, which from looking at you makes a lot of sense.
• How was I supposed to know she was such a crybaby?
• (To the Mayor) I'm glad you're not as bad of a tummy rub as you are running the city.
• (To Blossom) Did anyone ever tell you that pink eye is actually a disease?

I would have preferred a little more edge to the insults, but hey, it's a kid's show.  All in all, a really great episode...for me to poop on!

I See a Funny Cartoon in Your Future

This entire episode is an homage to the "Rocky and Bullwinkle" show created many, many years back.  It features one of the most famous female voice actors in history, June Foray, as a crooked psychic.  They even introduced a fake commercial break just to do the trademark "next episode" bumper that was in every RaB episode.

I wish they would have tried to capture more of the feel of the RaB episodes, even if it meant altering the drawing style of the characters.  Yes, I did notice the scene transitions, the classic RaB jokes (e.g., "Faster than you can say..."), the repeating backgrounds, the announcer, the wacky plot twists, and the overall pacing of the story.  However, a better example of this type of episode was the one of Dexter's Lab, "Mock 5," that parodied Speed Racer.

BTW, the Jay Warden reference was not lost on me either.

Octi-Gone

Octi is missing and Bubbles won't rest until he's returned.  This episode was supposed to be some kind of a who-dun-it.  However, the story just meanders around until it reaches it's very dumb ending.  It's a shame because there were some genuinely funny parts to the story.  It would have been better if they had done the episode like a classic murder mystery.  Have Blossom figure out who was the culprit.  Throw in a twist at the end.  Whatever.  Feh.

Toast of the Town

The Mayor needs his toaster fixed, so he bugs the Professor to do it.  While down in the lab, he acts like a baby and pours powdered Chemical X on himself.  This causes him to grow into monstrous proportions.  He continues to act like a baby throughout the rest of the episode.  Doesn't make much sense, does it?  Yes, he's a dunderhead.  But, he's not a baby.  What would have made more sense is if a real baby had gotten into the Professor's Chemical X stash, and then run amok.  I mean, all they had to do is force the Mayor to take the antidote.  Yeah, it would have been a little rough, but he's a grown man.  Now a real baby, I could understand being delicate.  Of course, that still wouldn't explain why he had to ingest the antidote.  Mojo didn't have to eat it in the movie.

Ah well.  At least the animation was good.

Divide and Conquer

The Amoeba Boys learn how to reproduce!  Unlike humans, amoebas reproduce asexually...meaning they split.  And split.  And split some more.  Eventually, there are thousands of them!  A crime wave of petty larceny sweeps Townsville, and the PPGs use their math skills to wipe out the threat.

This was a cute episode.  I love the Amoeba Boys and their idiotic attempts at crime.  Oh, and one other thing...  Right at the beginning of the episode...RRB wanted posters!  All over the place!  Wanted for being JERKS!  HAHAHAHA!

Burglar Alarmed

I honestly believe that the writers of Season 5 are on crack.  Get this for a story idea...  The Professor is asleep and the girls don't want to wake him.  As fate would have it, a burglar sneaks into PPG's house that very night.  Blossom grabs the burglar by the throat so he can't scream and the other two beat the snot out of him.  The end.  Oh wait!  That would have made sense.  Instead, the girls chase him around the house making as much noise as possible.  Did I mention the part where Bubbles first discovers the burglar in the kitchen?  You know what she does when she realizes he's a burglar?  She goes to bed.  WTF?!  One star for the superb animation.  Zero for the story.

Shotgun Wedding

The professor goes off into the woods in search of Fuzzy Lumkins' origin.  In the process, he somehow gets mistaken for a female lumkin and almost gets married to Fuzzy.  The episode started out promising.  I absolutely loved the way they animated the camcorder scenes.  The obvious homage to the Blair Witch Project was some of the best animation I've ever seen!  And then, the story went to crap.  There were a few chuckles in the last minute or so, but on the whole, the episode made no sense.

If they would have just stuck with the Professor being lost in the forest, finding small clues about the lumkins, getting chased off when he gets close to something...now that would have been cool!  It was like they had ideas for two different episodes, but couldn't think up enough material for either, so they combined them into one.

Save Mojo

The PPGs are prevented from interfering with Mojo's evil plans due to a new law that protects animals' rights.  A group of dirty hippies take this one step further and follow Mojo around to make sure he isn't bothered by the girls.  This is a great idea that's ripe for lots of humor about environazis and other overzealous groups.  Alas, there weren't many humorous parts in this episode.  Where were all the funny verbal exchanges between the hippies and PPGs when they clash?  All I could think about during those scenes was that Family Guy episode when Death dates that girl from the pet store:

Amy: You know, animals never have war.  War is an invention of mankind.

Death: What're you talking about?  Animals fight all the time!

Amy: Not with nuclear arms.  You can't hug your children with nuclear arms.

Death touches her and she dies.

Death: Check please.

Now that's funny.  How about that Simpson's episode with the endangered screaming caterpillar?  I'm giggling just thinking about that one.

To this episode's credit, the PPG's idea to exile Mojo to an island of regular monkeys was good.  However, it would have been funny to see all the trouble he gets into there while trying to adjust.  Goodness knows the other parts of the story could have been shortened to accommodate.

Substitute Creature

Pokey Oaks gets a substitute teacher named, Mr. Green...and he's a monster!  The girls suspect him of doing all sorts of nasty things.  They eventually realize that Mr. Green is really a nice guy...er, monster.

Like the episode before it, this is a cool idea that didn't get properly executed.  Come on guys; try to put a little more effort into the story.  Make up some situations that make the viewer question Mr. Green's motives, too.  The episode could have been written like a mystery.  Don't reveal that any of his motives are benign until the end of the episode.

The manga style scenes were cool, but were overdone and confusing.  And why the heck didn't we get to see the more of the PPGs during those scenes?!  I think only Blossom was featured at all.  Oh, one more thing...I predict this episode will inspire a slew of irritating Mr. Green/Gangrene Gang fanfiction stories.  I can see it now:

Mr. Green: Ace, I am your father!

Ace: Nooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

The Boys are Back in Town

Almost five whole seasons ago, the RRB episode first aired, and thus, the impetus for this website was born.  Fans throughout the years have been asking for the boys return.  We finally got our wish...

Him laments about the PPGs total domination over all the villains in Townsville.  Clips from past episodes fly across his domain showing the PPGs beating up random monsters and bad guys.  He finally discovers the one time the girls were beaten: by the hands of the RowdyRuff Boys!  The boys return with inexplicably long hair.  Don't know why.  Doesn't really look too good on them, either...although Butch does kinda look like Vegita.  Anyway, the boys' personalities are developed a bit more.  Boomer is the dumb one, like Bubbles.  Brick is the leader, like Blossom.  And Butch is...crazy?  He acts kinda like Tweek from South Park...for some reason.  I don't know how that relates to Buttercup.  I think it would have made more sense to make him the dumb one.  He could have been the dumb jock of the group.  Anyway, Him puts a spell on the boys so that they grow bigger whenever they get kissed by the girls.  Ah, there's the Freudian symbolism PuffUncle was talking about.  The boys terrorize the PPGs using classic "tortures" boys have been inflicting on girls and each other throughout the ages.  They first get revenge by grossing them out.  This scene seemed kind of pointless if you don't take into context the way the RRBs were defeated the first time.  Girls can make boys uncomfortable by being "nice" to them.  Similarly, boys can unnerve girls by doing gross stuff in front of them.  I won't go any further into the story other than to say the plot did make sense, the ending was good (although it was tough for me to look at Boomer wearing makeup), and the violence was abundant!  Whoa!  I think they took every ounce of violence from every other episode in season five and saved it for this one.  The PPGs get their butts kicked thoroughly!

There were some great lines from this one:

• Brick: Yeah, well, you can't stop a good thing babe.
• Bubbles: Ooooh Ooooh!  I want the blonde!  I think he's cute!
• Blossom: Well, let's really lay it on them.
• Brick: Your cutie kisses only make us bigger!  Boomer: Stronger!  Butch: And tougher!  (HEY!!!  That's awfully close to "Stronger, Faster, Tougher!"   Cool!)
• Him: Having a little boy trouble?  Or should I say big boy trouble!
• Him: I added a little something extra.  A cootie vaccination.
• Brick: Roller brawl!
• Boomer: And he's goin' for the slap-shot!  Score!
• Boomer: We'll show you stupid!
• Brick: It's time for the awesomest game!  ULTIMATE FIGHT!

But let's not forget the greatest thing about this episode...  The boys can come back again!  The final words spoken by Him and the narrator give every indication that we could very well see another RRB episode in the future!

Congratulations to all RRBs fans out there and to the writers.  They finally listened, and I, for one, am happy they did.

See Me, Feel Me, Gnomey

Note: This review is not finished.  I won't complete it until I get a chance to watch the Who's rock opera, "Tommy" again.  The last time I watched it from beginning to end was over 15 years ago.  However, I will give my thoughts about the episode as someone who isn't sitting back, giggling at all the similarities between this episode and the movie that inspired it.

I was very, very excited about this episode after I read its synopsis: a rock opera about a gnome who makes an offer to eliminate all of Townsville's evil-doers in exchange for the PPGs' superpowers.  Considering the title, I guessed it was going to be based on the Who's "Tommy" and would delve into what it would be like for the girls to lose all of their super abilities.  I has assumed it would be along the lines of the second Superman movie, where he gives up his powers to be with Lois Lane.  I thought about other stories with characters that had unusually strong or extra senses that, for a time, had those senses attenuated or suppressed.  Think what it would be like if you lost your ability to see or hear.  Think about the loss you would feel.  While it's true that someone who was born without sight may not miss it, anyone who has had sight and then loses it knows how devastating it can be.  What a wonderful idea for a story!  The girls lose their ability to fly, lift incredibly heavy objects, speak other languages, roll their tongue, and all of the other standard super hero talents and have to learn to cope without them.

This is NOT what the episode was about.

While disappointing, the writers did choose a theme that was surprisingly mature for the show.  The episode is essentially a representation of the biblical story about "The Garden of Eden," but in reverse.  Instead of being a paradise, Townsville is in chaos.  The gnome, replacing the snake, offers them paradise if they give up what makes them special.  In the bible story, the serpent offers to give Eve the thing that makes God special.  The girls' powers represent "free will" just like the fruit on the "tree of knowledge" did in the bible.  The girls eventually realize that the utopia they're now living in isn't worth its price and cast the gnome out of Townsville.  In the bible story, Adam and Eve are the ones cast out of paradise even though they wanted to remain.

The lyrics to the songs were spectacularly written.  I will say more about the similarities between this episode and the original rock opera when I have the opportunity to see to again.  TBC!

What I didn't like about this episode is that they did not adequately explain why the utopia was so bad.  Other then the Professor's rant about meat, there were no real examples why things shouldn't have remained with the gnome as Townsville's benevolent dictator.  Where were the loss of freedoms to compensate for security?  Also, how the hell did the PPGs get their powers back?  Why was the gnome afraid of the girls when he could have taken their powers away again?  (It would have made sense both symbolically and realistically if the gnome could only take the PPGs' powers if they were offered to him.  Problem is that the writers never explicitly made that stipulation in the episode.)  They definitely needed more than 22 minutes to do this story properly.

This episode will go down in history as one of the most memorable.  I just wish it would have been long enough to do it right.

Pee Pee G's

The girls wake up one morning to find their bed wet!  Who-dun-it?  Now, now; don't jump to any conclusions.  It could be anyone.  The PPGs get distracted so much that it's affecting their crime-fighting.

The episode starts out great!  Some of the best moments were:

• Blossom: We were all pee-occupied.
• The Professor turning up the TV volume to block out the girls' arguing.
• Ms. Keene: Man I sure could use a...Blossom!
• The Professor's long-winded talk with Buttercup.
• The Mayor wears diapers!!!
• Old lady: You-re-in a lot of trouble, sonny!

HAHAHAHA!  "Urine" a lot of trouble, sonny!  That's funny!  (montage begins)  Oh, and the water balloons hitting the girl with big ears!  Haw, haw!  (montage keeps going)  Okay...that's enough.  (montage keeps going)  Hey, I get it.  (montage keeps going)  Oh God, it's still going.  (montage keeps going)  And going.  (montage keeps going)  That's enough now.  (montage keeps going)  Will you please...  (montage keeps going)  STOP!  For the love of God!  Please stop!  (montage keeps going only faster)  STOP THIS @^%&#* MONTAGE!

Finally!  Anyway, one more great line before it ends:

• Mojo Jojo: No, I just don't like you.

HAHAHAHAHA!  That's good.  I guess that's the end.  Oh, he's laughing.  Heh, that's good.  Oh, he stopped.  Oh wait, now he's laughing again and...  WTF?!  Oh fer cry-not-loud.  Was that really necessary?  "Oooh, how can we come up with a way for Mojo to get his comeuppance in the next 10 seconds?"  "Maybe we can cut that montage down a bit and write in a proper ending?"  "BLASPHEMY!  We'll just extend the laughing sequence and have him piss himself."  "Genius!"  Why not go the extra yard and fit in some scatological joke about monkeys flinging their you-know-what around?  I'm serious.  At least that would be funny in a sick sort of way...instead of just being dumb.

Boy Toys

Can you believe it?  After all this time, the RRBs make their return, and BOOM!  Another episode!  This time they cross paths with Princess.  Princess offers to help the boys destroy the PPGs.  However, the RRBs dismiss her offer and, in doing so, drive Princess to create an alliance with the PPGs.

This was a good RRB episode...except for the fact they get knocked down so easy twice within the span of one minute.  Then again, we come in the middle of the fight...which could have been going on for a while, but we don't see any of it because of the long @^%&#* montage in the previous episode eating up precious time!  Stupid @^%&#* montage gets me so angry!  I just want to...!  (takes a deep breath)  Okay, I'm calm!  I'm calm!  Anyway, this is an even better Princess episode.  We get to see every part of her personality.  The bratty, spoiled rich kid.  The eager-to-be-your-friend kid.  Her vulnerable side.  Her sneaky, conniving, and manipulative side.  Her bossy, take-charge attitude.  Her naivety.  It's all here.  What's best is the way the writers flow from one emotion to the next.  Every shift has a logical progression.

There were loads of cool moments and quotes in this episode.  A few that stood out:

• Princess: (Long string of insults given to person on other end of her car phone, then hangs up.)  Man my mom can be such a pain in the butt!
• The green tank looks like the ones from the movie "Tron."  The plane looks like the one the Justice League fly.  Don't know about the boat.
• Boomer: The plane!  The plane!

Now, the PPG's plan is kinda dumb, but I can live with it.  Why?  Because, it's pretty consistent with the way the PPGs solve problems.  The issue I have with the story is that we have a perfect opportunity to examine a ridiculous aspect of cartoon/comic book heroism, and it's missed completely.  The girls manage to destroy the weapons and incapacitate the RRBs.  Incapacitate.  What happens when the boys stop laughing?  I'm not singling out this episode, or the even the PPG show in general.  Lots of other shows have similar gaping holes in their premise.  For example, why doesn't Batman just kill the Joker?  You KNOW the Joker going to eventually escape from Arkam and kill innocent people, over and over.  So why not just end it?  Batman is a vigilante for cry-not-loud!  It's not like he's operating within the law.  For what it's worth, there's been some thought put into explaining Batman's strange behavior.  However, there's nothing mentioned in this episode about Blossom's overly complicated plans.  Instead of making Princess look like she didn't understand the PPG's plan, the writers should have had Princess point out the obvious flaw in Blossom's "perfect" plan and then maybe explore a little why the PPGs (as heroes) couldn't just kill the RRBs.  Something like this:

Blossom: Well girls, the plan worked.  We outwitted the dimwits once again.

Bubbles: Silly boys.

Princess: What...was that?!  I cannot believe what just happened!  I mean seriously, what a pathetic display of super-heroism!  I mean, it wasn't like I bragged about you guys before, but you really stink!  Duh!

---- EDIT IN ----

Buttercup: What are you talking about?  We destroyed your stupid weapons!

Bubbles: Yeah!  And we stopped the RowdyRuff Boys, too!

Blossom: All in a neat little package.  A perfect plan, if I do say so myself.

Princess: NEAT?!  PERFECT?!  You call this neat and perfect?!

(Camera shifts to far away shot of boardwalk.  We can see the level of destruction due to the PPGs deliberate misfires and the RRBs shots.  Camera goes back to Princess.)

Princess: And what about the next time?!  Huh?!  I mean, how are you going to defeat them then?!

(Camera shifts to the RRBs still laughing.  Camera goes back to Princess.)

Princess: Now that I think about it, after you destroyed them, you could have destroyed me with my own weapons!  What was I thinking?!

Blossom: Uh, Princess...

Princess: Lucky for me, you three don't have the brains I have when it comes to making up plans!  You all should be ashamed!

---  EDIT OUT ----

Princess: That is not PowerPuff material, girls!  I am very disappointed and concerned for the future of this team...

(Princess continues while the girls stare blankly at her.)

---- EDIT IN ----

(The episode ends.  Cue Narrator.)

---  EDIT OUT ----

The stars of this episode were the villains.  People who were annoyed by the RRBs in "TBABIT" liked them more in this episode.  Their personalities are gaining more definition and their presence on the show is getting more comfortable.  Who says there's no logical way for them to come back?!  Ha!  Huh?  What do you mean how did they come back this time?  I dunno.  Um, HIM brought them back...for some reason.  Yeah, that's it.  What?  Where did they go after they blew off Princess?  Um, somewhere, I guess.  And don't ask me what happened to them after the episode ended!  Everything is fine!  It all makes sense!  This review is over!

Seed No Evil

Here's the plot for this episode: a seed-stealing caveman frozen in ice comes back to life and terrorizes the Mayor.  Hmmm, sounds kinda lame.  Besides why does the Mayor have seeds?  He eats pickles.  And isn't that going to involve an extremely dumb villain?  Can't the cops handle this one?  Those are the kinds of observations I would have been writing in this review.  However, I can't...thankfully.  Why?  Because the writers got it right this time and turn the tables on picky viewers like me!  They make sure to include those observations into the storyline.  Of course that still doesn't explain how everyone knows that a frozen caveman on a wooly mammoth holding a bag of seeds is a crook.  Feh.

Some highlights of this episode:

• The Flintstones reference about "wooly mammoths as dishwashers" and "pterodactyls as record players."
• The security guard sounds a little like Barney Fife.
• Sunflower seeds are the new pickles!  Not.

WTF was up with the cave-PPGs?  That was unnecessary.  Like we need to see cave-PPG/PPG crossover fanfics now.

It was a short and silly episode, but it did have it's charm.

City of Clipsville

Oh no!  Not one of those dumb flashback episodes where they play clips of old episodes!  PSYCH!  The girls begin to remember a bunch of stuff that we've never seen.  Kind of like that South Park episode, but instead of remembering the events a little differently, we get treated to whole new visions.  All the stuff that, if made into full length episodes, would cause the PPGs to jump the shark were served to us in little bite-size pieces.  Some of the jokes in between the flashbacks were drawn out a bit, but on the whole, it was a hilarious episode!

Highlights?  You got em!

• PPGs as babies.  Blossom poops!
• Mojo with a briefcase that says, "Top Secret Government Stuff."
• PPGs as airhead teenagers.
• Buttercup: I gotta get on the treadmill.  I totally pigged-out on a doughnut.  If they only had like candy flavored salad or something.
• Butch looking at the centerfold of a "FHN" magazine.
• XTREME softdrink.
• Bubbles: We shouldn't talk to them.  They're bad.  Blossom and Buttercup: I know!
• Fish monster eating shopper in the background while Bubbles and Boomer chit-chat.
• Blossom: I have to study for an algebra test for my English class.
• Buttercup: How 'bout you Blossom?  Wanna take a ride on Butch's "escalader?"
• The Professor's wedding to Miss Bellum.
• Blossom: After all this time, we finally get to see her face!
• Mojo Jojo: I have always loved you.
• Buttercup: Remember that time we were all remembering stuff?

The PPG/RRB flashback sequence totally floored me and Mojo's "I have always loved you" line has to go down in history as one of the greatest ever uttered on any PPG episode, ever.

Lying Around the House

Everyone in the Utonium household has been telling little white lies.  For some reason that's not explained in the episode, all of their little lies are causing a tiny white imp to grow in size whenever someone tells a fib.  There were some bits of this episode that were inspired by Bil Keene's Family Circus.  In particular, the imp was somewhat reminiscent of the ghostly "Not Me" and "Ida Know" characters, and the dashed line the creature made as it traveled about the house is used in those comics, periodically.  I think the use of circles for scene changes was also a clue.

The story was just too dumb for my tastes.  The solution to the problem was painfully obvious, and was conceivably not the only one.  I mean, you've got three little girls with super-powers that didn't even attempt to stop the monster from his trifling "rampage" around the house.  Gimme a break.  The key to a good story of this ilk is to ensure that overwhelming brute force can't solve the problem at hand.  Previous episodes like "Paste Makes Waste" and "All Chalked Up" do a much better job of accounting for the PPGs' special abilities.

In contrast to the dumb story, there were some genuinely funny scenes from this episode.  They were:

• Bubbles screaming out an ultrasonic call to the neighborhood dogs.
• Blossom: *gasp* Professor!  Are you calling me a liar?!  Professor: Well, your pants are on fire and hanging from a telephone wire.
• Buttercup: ...and I'm the one who left the toilet seat up!
• Mayor: Well, eh, I just gave my reelection speech, and uh, and well, I need a little help.

I also enjoyed the manner in which this episode was animated.  The expressions of all the characters were very detailed and well-thought-out.  That been said, who liked this episode?  Not me.

Bubble Boy

The RRBs are back yet again this season for some more hijinks!  This time, Boomer is sent on lone a mission to steal some candy for his brothers.  The PPGs take advantage of the situation and capture him.  Bubbles goes undercover dressed as Boomer to ease the boys' suspicions while the girls come up with a plan.

This was one of the funnier episodes this season.  There were so many great lines and totally gross situations.  Here are a bunch of them:

• Blossom: Gee Professor, you sure outdid yourself this time with that containment ray.  Professor: I'll say!  Once again, I have no idea what I did!
• Boomer (referring to Bubbles dressed exactly like him): Boy, do you look dumb!
• The Professor gives Bubbles a communication device that fits in her ear.  Ordinarily, it would have made sense to use a different kind of communication device since she doesn't have any ears.  However, the communication device does work as a plot device in this situation since the communication device was tucked under her hair, thus hiding the communication device.  The communication device is an important plot point, because the communication device is how the rest of the team can keep in contact with her by using a big microphone in the Professor's lab.  This was an audio-only communication device with no visual displays since it just involved an earpiece on the communication device.
• Brick: Hey, I got it! Let's play "Punch each other in the face until someone says, 'stop punching me in the face.'"  You first, Boomer!  (Brick punches Bubbles in the eye.  Bubbles struggles not to cry.)  Bubbles: Heh, heh.  Funny.  Okay, now it's my turn.  Brick: Nah, I'm sick of that game.
• The boys go to paint graffiti.  Brick writes "BRICK WUZ HER" in big red letters.  The reason he writes HER in big red letters is because he was interrupted when he noticed what Bubbles was writing.  He doesn't continue adding the "e" so the last word that was written on the wall is HER in big red letters.  We continue to see the word HER written in big red letters in these scenes since Brick never finishes.   Even as Brick and Butch leave the scene, all we ever see above Brick's head is HER written in big red letters.
• The loogie scenes have to be one of the grossest experiences I've ever had to endure.  Especially Buttercup's detailed instructions on how to "hock up."  I swear, I was dry heaving!  Good job, writers!
• Brick and Butch's loogies hit part of a damaged satellite in outer space.  The damaged satellite in outer space was being repaired.  However, the RRBs attempt to hit a plane, but missing and instead hitting the damaged satellite in outer space, caused the damaged satellite in outer space to stop being repaired.  The damaged satellite in outer space did not begin to fall to Earth when struck.  However, the damaged satellite in outer space remained in space, damaged.
• Bubbles' loogie bouncing all over Townsville.
• Bubbles' pupils constricting when Brick tells her to eat the cockroach.
• Brick: This is no time to be foolin' around!  Butch: Yeah, and why did ya take all your clothes off?  Boomer: Huh? Whaddya mean?  Brick: Whaddya mean, "whaddya mean?"  We're not here to have a party!  We're here to capture the girls!  Put your clothes back on!
• A giant laser in the lab fires a high intensity beam of light that hits the RRBs.  When the high intensity beam of light from the giant laser in the lab hits the RRBs, they cannot break free from its grasp.  The high intensity beam of light shot from the giant laser in the lab traps the boys in one spot until the high intensity beam of light from the giant laser in the lab is disrupted.  The high intensity beam of light from the giant laser in the lab doesn't seem to cause any harm to them, though.  The RRBs just can't move away from the high intensity beam of light from the giant laser in the lab when it's being fired intentionally at them.
• Bubbles: (Referring to the cockroach she ate.)  That's okay; it tasted like chicken!

There were some extremely large plot holes, too:

• How the heck did Bubbles know Brick and Butch would be at Fuzzy's house?!
• Why didn't Brick and Butch notice "Boomer's" eye color (and eyelid color) was the same as Bubbles?  (Eh, on second thought, men never remember the color of a woman's eyes.)
• The Professor, Blossom, and Buttercup look at the security monitor, see the RRBs walking up to their front door, and immediately assume Boomer escaped.  WTF?!  How about doing the one thing that human nature and common sense dictate and turn your head to check?

The RRBs' personalities were expanded upon, especially Brick and Boomer.  We get to see Brick in the role of the gang's leader once again.  Boomer is not only the dumbest, but is usually the one at the receiving end of any pranks or jokes made by his brothers.  We find in this episode that the RRBs as a group are portrayed, in general, as dumb.  I suppose that I can't fault the writers for doing this since the PPGs are going to need some kind of an edge over the RRBs.  Otherwise, the entire premise that the PPGs and RRBs can coexistence as heroes and villains will become untenable.  That's a shame, because one of the more exciting parts of this episode is when the viewer begins to believe that Brick has had strong suspicions all along that it wasn't Boomer.  All of the "tortures" inflicted on Bubbles would have been intentional.  Brick challenging Bubbles with the cockroach would simply be the coup de grâce to all but guarantee the imposter would reveal him/herself.  Nope.  Didn't happen.  The other thing we see is a reaffirmation that the RRBs do not "play nicely" with the other villains of Townsville.  We saw in "Boy Toys," the RRBs reject the help of Princess.  In this episode, we find them terrorizing Fuzzy in his home.

It's true that I don't agree 100% with the direction the writers have taken the RRBs since their return (so far), but I must confess that they are still enjoyable characters that have enhanced the show tremendously.  Every time they made a significant appearance this season, the episode was a hit.  Let's hope this trend continues next season.

Documentary

An independent filmmaker makes a documentary about the PPGs.  Well, actually, he makes a documentary about making a documentary about the PPGs.  He never actually interviews any of the girls, nor does he ever interview any of the villains.  In fact, with the exception of Ms. Keane, we get "treated" to a never ending string of boring interviews with uninteresting people interspersed with even worse dialog by the filmmaker who is even more boring to listen to.  Our boredom comes to a head in the climatic fight scene between the PPGs and Mojo; everyone stands around for long periods of time while the filmmaker narrates the events in painful detail.  The only bright spot to this episode was the cool "camcorder" video effect used in "Shotgun Wedding."

Girls Gone Mild

Stan and Sandra Practice (a play on "standards and practices") want to "censor" the PPGs from performing super-heroism because other children will imitate the PPG's violent behavior.  Ah, what a great idea for an episode.  So many ways to do this well.  Apparently, none of them were chosen.

The scene with the girls trying their best to foil the plans of a car thief without their powers was really funny and the "Dukes of Doom" characters based on Ed "Big Daddy" Roth's, Rat Fink, were pretty interesting.  However, the second half of the episode was just too dumb.  I feel that an opportunity for a really great story based on the well-meaning intentions of a couple of overprotective parents was squandered.