Welcome back to Multiversity Comics’ Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts reviews. This week there’s a family reunited, a lost cat, dancing for bees, and cheering for science!
“Song Remix”
Written by Joanna Lewis & Kristine Songco
Directed by Matt Ahrens
1. Asher and Dahlia
I’ve said it a few times over the course of these reviews that I’ve wanted Troy, Asher, and Dahlia in the mix more. I love the main five leads, but these three characters have been a part of Kipo’s life since she was a baby—they should be a major part of her life now too.
With Troy, I feel like the writers struck a good balance pretty much immediately this season. Meanwhile, Asher and Dahlia have been in the background more. And I’m actually OK with that, because I appreciate the purpose they’re serving. Due to their close relationship with the Timbercats, they’ve become storytelling proxies for measuring how the burrow humans are going as they adapt to living among mutes.
So as they’ve been carrying around axes, bonding with Yumyan, and even capturing Zane together, we get the sense that the barriers between them are dissolving. They’re not just acting as a community not, but friends as well.
Which is why I’m glad the opening of this episode took the time to show Asher and Dahlia’s reactions to Yumyan’s fate. It’s a quick moment, but it could’ve easily been skipped, starting the episode instead with Kipo telling H.M.U.F.A. what happened. But this tiny beat was important, showing that Yumyan didn’t just mean something to Kipo or the Timbercats—he was someone that meant a lot to a lot of people, even the burrow humans.
2. The return of Song Oak
The first time I watched this season through, this moment legitimately caught me by surprise. Not because it was designed to be a surprise, but just because I’d been so intensely focused on the negatives of Dr. Emilia’s concoction. It simply never crossed my mind that it could be used to bring back Song.
This was one of those moments that made me appreciate the time jump between seasons two and three, because there’s a sequence in season two when Mulholland chatted with Song, and we saw just how far gone she was, unable to even speak. Mulholland gave her a helping hand, but she still wasn’t fully herself afterward. The time gap makes it reasonable for Song to improve as much as she has in this episode, while still struggling. I felt like it struck a nice balance between acknowledging her struggles without it overwhelming her character.
Also, minor note here, but Kipo cheering on her mom while she does science is the most Kipo thing ever.
3. “What would scare the humans?”
C’mon, this line deserved its own point. Well played, Joanna and Kristine. Well played.
4. Dave and Benson just being together
This isn’t a big thing, but given how often Dave and Benson have been apart so far this season, it was great to have the two together again. Dave berating Benson for stepping on a bug and then demanding that he gets to squish a small, tiny human to make up for it was just the best.
5. Dance off
In trying to distill each episode to only five thoughts, a lot of stuff ends up flying under the radar. In particular, I don’t really talk about how goofy Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts can be because I’m too busy talking about character arcs and the darker aspects of the show.
So I just want to say how great the dance off was, especially the way the montage played up this epic dancing, then the music stops and we see how weak it really was. Sometimes it’s just fun spending time with these characters.
Clearly, the next episode is going to bring on more heavy stuff, so taking these breaks with the characters is a welcome respite. This is the final season, so obviously the stakes are going to get bigger, but it’s important to have fun along the way too. Moments like this. . .
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So, what did you think of this episode? Let me know in the comments.
