Feature: Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (Episode 5: The Astronomers in Turtlenecks) Television 

Five Thoughts on Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts’ “The Astronomers in Turtlenecks”

By | February 15th, 2020
Posted in Television | % Comments

Welcome back to Multiversity Comics’ Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts reviews. This week there’s no snacks (or as Italians say, “Conveenyenché”), no dessert, and the meat’s a little rare (but it’s OK, Benson’s into it).

“The Astronomers in Turtlenecks”
Written by Christopher Amick & Ben Mekler
Directed by Chris Copeland and Bridget Underwood

1. Jamack’s back

It’s good to see the ol’ Mod Frog again. Jamack was one of those characters that clicked with me straight away, plus he moves in interesting ways, giving the show’s creators lots of interesting stuff to play with.

Last time we saw Jamack he was dragged away by Mega Bunny, screaming desperately that it not wrinkle his suit. By the end of the cold open, wrinkles in his suit were the least of his worries. Let’s just say he goes through some crap.

2. EVERYONE SHUT UP AND ENJOY THE JOURNEY!

Or, you know, we could talk a bit about Scarlemagne. This name keeps popping up, so it seems pretty likely he’s Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts’ big bad. He’s got ways to control Mega Mutes and he’s after the Burrow people, though we don’t really have much to go on in terms of his motivations. For now, he just seems like a guy they took advantage of all the fighting between the surface world’s cliques. Anyway, I hope we meet him soon. I want to put a face to the name.

3. Bone Ripper the Alpha

Oh man, Dave’s got a fragile ego. Also, it seems like Mandu’s really been looking for someone to make out with.

Still, Dave alpha-ing gave us Benson pretending to be a robot, so I’ll let it slide this time. I felt bad for Benson though, going through the first half of the episode with low blood sugar and then being served a meal of oil. At the end of the episode, it’s almost like there’s a moment where he thinks he might eat a Newton Wolf, but he’s shaken out of it by his own disgust.

4. Wolf / Jolene

I think it’s interesting that Wolf immediately singled out Kipo as their group’s alpha. I mean, it totally makes sense, but there’s something about saying it out loud that feels like Wolf is being more emotionally vulnerable than usual. And then that alpha element is demonstrated nicely at the end of the scene when Wolf insists she won’t go with them to the Newton Wolves, but a single reassurance from Kipo is all she needs to change her mind.

But the big takeaway here is everything we learn afterward. Wolf was raised by wolves, but something went down and now she wears a wolfskin and had a whole thing where she lived alone instead of in a pack and we’re not supposed to talk about it. This right here is the story I’m the most interested in at the moment. I mean, she’s wearing a wolfskin and now we know this wasn’t just a random creature, this was someone she knew.

Wolf also stresses that wolves are predators, and we see that she is genuinely rattled being around them. This is Wolf we’re talking about, who’s not afraid of anything. It was actually a little unsettling to see her like this.

5. So, Kipo’s a mute…

…Unfortunately this reveal got spoiled for me back in week one. It wasn’t deliberate, but it kind of sucks I didn’t get this reveal organically in the story. Still, I’m glad it’s out of the way now.

I’m pretty sure this is the sort of thing Scarlemagne’d be interested in too. Is this something he already knows about Kipo? Is this part of the reason he’s looking for the Burrow people? Hopefully, we’ll get some more information soon. For these reviews, I’m watching the series weekly, and it’s making one thing abundantly clear to me: I am not a weekly viewing kind of person, I’m a binger at heart. Watching one episode a week is weird and unnatural, and I really, really want to hit the “next episode” button.

Continued below

What did you think of this episode? Let me know in the comments and check back next Saturday for episode six.


//TAGS | Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts

Mark Tweedale

Mark writes Haunted Trails, The Harrow County Observer, The Damned Speakeasy, and a bunch of stuff for Mignolaversity. An animator and an eternal Tintin fan, he spends his free time reading comics, listening to film scores, watching far too many video essays, and consuming the finest dark chocolates. You can find him on BlueSky.

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