This week’s Big Hero 6 saw Hiro and Fred teaming up to uncover the mystery of where Go Go goes (ahem) whenever she decides to be alone, and getting stranded in the titular redwood forest for being so nosy.
1. We are family
Six episodes in, we’re starting to see a surrogate family dynamic develop among Big Hero 6. Wasabi and Honey Lemon have basically settled into the role of the group’s weary mom and dad, having to explain to the (14-year old) Hiro and (man-child) Fred why spying on Go Go is a bad idea. That basically makes Baymax their babysitter, and Go Go the cool older sister that’s bothered by their siblings because a) they want her toys as well or b) they really want to spend time with her.
Of course, there’s way to interpret the underlying reason Hiro and Fred want to find out what Go Go’s up to, and I think the episode does a good job of reinforcing the message that people need and deserve privacy (with one notable exception, that I’ll come to later).
2. Nature and technology
The episode sets up the mystery of the Hibagon, a hairy woodland beast that – unlike last week’s Yeti cameo – quickly turns out to be Ned Ludd, a missing real estate developer who became stranded in the forest after a mysterious meterorite permanently disabled his car. Ludd, true to his name, despises all technology and conspires to destroy the similarly damaged Baymax. I have to say, I did not know Ned Ludd was actually the bloke the Luddites got their name from, so kudos to Disney cartoons for still teaching me something in my twenties. Ludd’s a really entertaining antagonist: he resembles Alan Moore, if Moore really had gone crazy and started living like an Ewok. (He even has a “story snake.”)
The episode dwells a lot on the conflict over whether technology is good, but really doesn’t say anything to its target audience about why someone may see technology as a threat to the environment, and how they may fix that. Really, the EMP plot device is just there to demonstrate Big Hero 6 can still be smart and resourceful without their tech. It’s only the older members who can come across like that though, as my big question after watching the episode was why didn’t Hiro make Baymax waterproof?! (And that Fred somehow doesn’t have a waterproof phone?!)
3. Did Groot steal Hiro’s lunch money?
Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised by the huge oversight in Baymax’s design: Hiro reacts with such disdain when he learns where Go Go goes, that you’d think a tree killed his parents. I think it’s meant to emphasize how alien the wider world is to Hiro, and to set up a strong contrast with the anti-technology Ned, but it’s not an idea that pays off, as it’s the older half of the team who get in touch with the inner Ewoks to save Baymax. (For the record, I absolutely loved Go Go, Wasabi and Honey Lemon’s wooden armor, and their booby traps strongly evoked memories of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.)
4. Bessie
Bessie is what Ned christened the green, glowing meteorite that renders all technology in Muirahara Woods useless. Its appearance and abilities strongly bring to mind Granville’s paperweight from “Baymax Returns,” clear making it another seed being planted for the season’s endgame. I imagine we’ll see Bessie and Ned again, and learn more of its secrets.
5. So about that thing…
Before the episode’s climax, Go Go and Hiro promise to have a conversation about her privacy. Sadly, they never do, instead we get a fun moment where the team decide not to bother Heathcliff when they find him napping in a limo jacuzzi. I imagine they may have felt an end conversation would’ve been a bit cliched, but it’s a missed opportunity to emphasize another message, which is that it’s ok to like feminine things. I once worked at a school, and remember when one boy had a tantrum over an art lesson in flower arrangements, and that’s why I feel the episode could’ve gone more into how someone as masculine as Go Go can still enjoy something like birdwatching. I bet Wasabi, who is a walking subversion of the stereotypical big black guy, could’ve interjected that he likes knitting.
Continued belowBonus thoughts:
– Baymax has added one curse to his repertoire – “oopsy daisy.”
– The animals in this episode have beautifully expressive faces.
