Big Hero 6 season 2’s seventh episode saw the return of Ned Ludd, the hermetic anti-technology guardian of the forest from last season’s “Muirahara Woods.” Here, Alistair Krei, seeking to purchase some of the land for a park, went with Go Go and his intern Hiro to negotiate with Ludd, since his meteorite “Bessie” was still disabling technology in the area – and sensing an opportunity to get rid of her rival, Liv Amara turns the man everyone believed was the monstrous Hibagon into a real beast…
1. Chris the Dog
We get in a little more insight in Liv and Chris’s relationship when they subdue and implant Ned with the chip that’ll turn him into a monster – Chris quips he comes from a genetic laboratory before engaging Ned in combat, implying he wasn’t born, but engineered. Then, as they package up Bessie for transport, Chris notes how odd it is Ned named his pet meteorite, only for Amara to respond “Why not? I named you,” before throwing him a cookie that he catches with his mouth in mid-air – further implying Chris is not human. Given Liv’s biological background, it wouldn’t surprise if she pulled a Dr. Moreau and did successfully turn a dog into a human.
2. Krei Knows Stuff
This episode saw Krei demonstrating how to tell a body of water is nearby, advising Hiro and Go Go to cover their scent with mud, and making a brace for Go Go’s injured ankle with twigs – I know, I’m as shocked as you are. We get to know Krei quite a bit in this episode, learning he was a lonely kid who enjoyed learning survival skills at summer camps since no one would talk to him (probably because he’s terrible at remembering at other people’s names, but hey, as this episode reminds us, nobody’s perfect). All in all, it was a pleasant surprise to discover there’s more to him than a bafflingly inept executive – Krei clearly missed his calling to become San Fransokyo’s Bear Grylls.
3. Mochi is Scrappy
The episode has the rest of the team looking after Aunt Cass’s cafe after she gets a new job, only for Fred, Baymax, and Mini-Max to go searching around the city after her darn cat leaves. It’s a baffling subplot, and the only in-universe justification I can think for it is that Fred is too rich and clueless to understand cats like to go out for walks – but if so, why doesn’t our usually reliable scientific guide Baymax inform him? It felt like padding, especially the desperately unfunny part where Felony Carl shows up responding to Fred’s wanted posters, apparently unable to tell the difference between a cat, a dog, and a rat.
The subplot dovetails nicely into the climax, where Mochi has somehow walked onto San Fransokyo’s version of the Golden Gate Bridge, where the suited up trio discover Hiro, Go Go and Krei are being pursued by Ludd. Mochi then saves the day by pouncing at Ludd, scratching off the implant mutating him. Surely there was a smarter way to resolve this episode? Overall, it seemed like they were pandering to the kids who watched the chibi shorts released online after the first season, where Mochi was always responsible for whatever antics were going on.
4. Weird Moral
The episode wraps up with Krei deciding not to buy the part of Muirahara Woods he wanted, explaining he wouldn’t have the opportunity to demonstate his survival skills and impress his intern next time.
What? I was left scratching my head – I hate the idea of billionaires buying public land as much as you do, but that was a bizarre resolution to that storyline. It really does spoil a lovely moment between Hiro and Krei on the bridge where they reflect on their bonding through shared trauma: I’d have honestly preferred they say nothing at all.
5. This Plot Device Was Hanging Around
The episode concludes with Hiro obtaining Liv’s mutating technology, and learning someone has stolen Bessie, all clues setting up with their confrontation down the line. It’s gonna be good to find out what Amara has planned with the meteorite, as her interest in biology means it seems unlikely she’d be so interested in an EMP rock – my guess right now, is that there’s something alive under its shell, so I look forward to seeing what else the show’s artists have cooked up.
Continued belowBonus thoughts:
– Hiro misinterpreting what kind of bugs Krei was asking about was predictable but still funny.
– Ned’s Hibagon state brings to mind apes and werewolves, which just goes to show how primate-like the make-up in movies like the original Wolf Man were.
– We learn Krei and Ludd used to play golf together (and that Krei was a cheat), which makes you wonder if their backstory will factor at all in future.
– Was Mini-Max declaring they’d find Mochi “dead or alive!,” or asking if they should retrieve him “dead or alive?”
– I’d genuinely watch a whole episode of Baymax and Mini-Max strolling the streets on low battery.
Next week, we meet “Something Fluffy.”
