Hello and welcome back yet again to Multiversity’s coverage of Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K. on Hulu! Twice a week, we’ll E.X.P.L.O.R.E. (Examine X-treme Plots, Lore, Or Ridiculous Exposition) the series about the madcap scientist who can’t find a cap to fit into! In the latest episode, M.O.D.O.K. applies his newly-found teamwork skills towards Monica Rappaccini in an attempt to reignite his passion for supervillainy! As the show hits its halfway point, it’s clear that it has really found its groove. So, without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the fifth episode of the series, “If Bureaucracy Be… Thy Death!”
1. C.R.I.S.I.S.
This episode takes place shortly after “If Saturday Be… For the Boys!” and opens up with M.O.D.O.K. at Melter’s funeral. Through the course of this funeral, M.O.D.O.K. has a mini-life crisis and realizes that amidst the chaos of his crumbling marriage and the corporate nonsense at A.I.M., he hasn’t been able to follow-up on his career ambitions. This revelation (and the subsequent quest for power) gave both M.O.D.O.K. and the series a renewed sense of purpose. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy when this show addresses M.O.D.O.K.’s family too, but at the end of the day this is a cartoon about a supervillain, so it was nice to see it get back to some old fashion scheming.
2. I.N.F.R.A.S.T.R.U.C.T.U.R.E.
On that note of corporate nonsense, this episode dealt heavily with A.I.M. in the wake of the GRUMBL buyout. A.I.M. has slowly been turning into corporate hell, with endless clearances and unnecessary pleasantries. I’ve talked before about how much I love the world of A.I.M., so I it was fun to follow-up with that and see how Austin Van Der Sleet’s team has influenced A.I.M. for the worse. There are still some remnants of the A.I.M. of old, like the ridiculous science experiments and the yellow beekeeper suits (which led to a great gag about diversity in the workplace), but those are becoming increasingly fazed out for bland, consumer-market driven drivel. This enhances the clash between M.O.D.O.K. and A.I.M.’s new overlords, by painting it as an extension of small-businesses vs. corporate America.
3. C.O.N.F.E.R.E.N.C.E.
One of the remarkable things about M.O.D.O.K. so far is that the writing team has found ways to make one of the most ridiculous villains in comics feel more relatable. In “If Bureaucracy Be… Thy Death!”, this relatability was extended to a painful conference call where nobody could have a proper conversation because the delays in the connection kept causing people to talk over one another. If you’ve ever had to sit in on a large conference call, you’ve probably had to put up with this (especially in the last year) and I felt so incredibly uncomfortable watching people fumble over their words struggling to get out an uninterrupted and coherent thought. Peak comedy.
4. M.O.N.I.C.A
As much as this show has been about M.O.D.O.K., it has been about how those around him try to navigate his enormous presence to live their own lives. Last episode, we saw Monica Rappaccini bond with Jodie over their mutual disdain and conflict with M.O.D.O.K. In this episode, we get flashbacks to Monica’s first day working at A.I.M. and how her relationship with M.O.D.O.K. began. This material helped flesh out Monica and was crucial towards exploring her own wants and needs. Previously, Monica had been painted as somebody who was jealous of M.O.D.O.K.’s ability to succeed despite his own incompetence. While that doesn’t change here, there’s a lot more added nuance, not only in how Monica faced the harsh reality of being a subordinate to an egomaniac, but also in how M.O.D.O.K. treated Monica and let her pursue her own scientific goals unobstructed. I hope that M.O.D.O.K. continues to explore this.
5. F.I.G.H.T.
After five episodes of build-up, Monica and M.O.D.O.K. finally fought it out to see who should be guiding A.I.M.’s future. This fight was bolder and more dynamic than anything seen in the series so far, with the two using everything from monkeys to rockets in their attempts to reign supreme. The sequence was imaginative and utilizing the strengths of both the property and the animation style to deliver something that stands out from anything else. In the end, Monica Rappuccini proved her worth and was awarded the title of Scientist Supreme, while M.O.D.O.K. was demoted. I’m curious to see how the fallout from this contributes to the larger story building in the shadows.
