#this is a story episode like in 'bob's burgers' and 'family guy'! ;D

[britishchick09]

What the Future Holds: A Wadlow Sibling Fic

it's senpai's b-day, which calls for a special fic! this took 3 days to write (february 19th to today, the 22nd) and was a lot of fun since it's something a little different! enjoy! ;D (shoutout to @robert-273-fan, who came up with betty and harold jr's stories!)

what will senpai be doing 5 years in the future? the sibs might have an idea...

 “Happy birthday to you!” a chorus of voices sang.

The Wadlow family clapped as Robert blew out his candles.

“Congrats!” Betty said. “You’re officially eighteen now!”

“He’s been eighteen for hours.” Eugene reminded her.

“Since six-thirty in the morning.” Addie added.

Robert smiled. “I didn’t quite feel eighteen earlier, but I sure do now! The cake looks delicious.”

“I heard it’s your favorite- strawberry shortcake,” Harold said. “But we won’t know for sure until we have a piece!” he added with a wink.

Harold Jr. grinned. “Yay, cake!”

Before long, the cake was distributed. The siblings relaxed in the living room afterwards.

“This has been a great birthday,” Robert said with a smile. “I hope there will be more like it for years to come!”

Betty smiled as she said, “Look at this!”

She held up Thursday’s issue of the Alton Evening Telegraph. On the first page was a photo of Robert standing next to a tree. The siblings were on his other side.

“Hey, there’s me!” Harold Jr. exclaimed, pointing to his pouty little self.

Betty ran a hand through her bangs. “Still a good decision! Although I sort of miss being bangless.”

Helen frowned. “Even all these years later, it’s still so weird to see us in the paper.”

“It’s neat being famous,” Eugene said. “...Or, partially famous. We still have Robbie to deal with.”

“I’d rather you be famous than me,” Robert smiled. “I’m not one for the spotlight. Although I’ve gotten used to it.”

Betty noticed something else in the newspaper. “This says, ‘Five years ago today, Mr. John Wood and Miss Carol James wed. They were high school sweethearts before their marriage.’ Aww, how sweet! I can see that happening to someone…”

Robert tried not to feel her arm nudge or notice the cheeky look she was giving him. He knew exactly what she was hinting at!

Harold Jr. had to get ready for bed, leaving the other siblings to read the paper.

“I can’t imagine what I’ll be doing in five years,” Helen remarked. “What do you think you’ll be doing in that time, Robert?”

“Who knows?” Robert asked. “It’s best to take things one day at a time.”

“I know what he’ll be doing!” Betty exclaimed.

...

 It was a bright summer day in 1941. Robert was at his high school reunion.

...

 “Reunions start at ten years, not five.” Eugene pointed out.

“Well, in the future, they thought otherwise,” Betty said. “As I was saying…”

...

 It was a bright summer day in 1941. Robert was at his high school reunion, which was the very first fifth reunion ever. It was a huge success! Everyone was dancing to the latest song, Love Is In The Air. Robert certainly thought this was true. He went up to Marilyn Stanton, who was chatting with some friends.

“Ahem.” he said with a clearing of his throat.

Marilyn turned around. “Oh! Hello, Robert, my love.”

“Hello, Marilyn, the loveliest of all my loves.”

“Get a room!” an aggravated Eugene called (from in the story or real life, no one knew!).

Robert smiled. “I know of something better than a room,” He got on one knee. “Marilyn Stanton, will you do me the honor of becoming Marilyn Wadlow and becoming my wife?”

Marilyn gasped. Tears came to her eyes as she exclaimed-

...

 “No way,” Robert cut into Betty’s story. “She’s just a friend.”

“Sure, tell that to your yearbook!” Betty said with a smile. “I caught a peek at the Camera Club page. You’re standing right next to her!”

“That was just a picture.”

“I remember walking down the hall before the Yearbook Club’s last meeting before winter break. Marilyn said hello and you sounded awfully shy,” Helen told Robert, her eyes coy. “Not insinuating anything, though! Just reminiscing…”

Robert rolled his eyes. “Marilyn and I are friends and club members. That’s all there is to it.”

“Sure, you say that now, but what about in five years?” Betty asked. “Anything could happen! And that anything is…”

...

 “Yes!” Marilyn exclaimed with a smile. “Yes, I will marry you, Robert!”

The crowd cheered!

Robert and Marilyn kissed, which they’d do again at their wedding a few months later. Eugene was a groomsman, Helen was a bridesmaid, Betty was a flower girl (or flower woman since she was the very mature age of seventeen) and Harold Jr. was the ringbearer.

Robert stood at the front of the aisle with the priest. When the music started, he nervously adjusted his bow tie. Then Marilyn walked into the church with her father. She wore a pretty silk dress that flowed out a little at the bottom and the longest veil! It was hard to see past the tulle fabric, but her smile was clear as day. It took forever for her to get to the front of the aisle, though. And when she did, Helen whipped out her viola and played a solo!

“Do you, Robert, take Marilyn to be your lawfully wedded wife?” the minister asked.

Robert smiled broadly. “Yes, I do.”

“And do you, Marilyn, take Robert to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

“I do.” Marilyn replied.

“You may now kiss the bride!”

Helen played the Here Comes the Bride song as Marilyn raised her veil, revealing her excited flushed face. It grew even more so when Robert raised her up! Now at eye level, they kissed.

Five years later, Robert and Marilyn went to their tenth anniversary reunion… with their kids! There was Charlotte, Tom and little baby June. Everyone thought they were so adorable! (And they thought Betty was the best aunt!)

The Wadlow couple lived in bliss and their family lived happily ever after. The end!

...

 “That was sweet,” Robert said. “Not a particularly realistic one, but it’s nice to think about marrying and starting a family,” He frowned at Betty’s look. “Not with Marilyn.”

“We’d have a minister at a wedding, not a priest. That’s Catholic,” Helen corrected her sister’s story. “I approve of the surprise viola solo, though.”

Eugene scoffed.

“What’s your problem with it, hmm?” Betty asked with a cross of her arms.

“It’s too happy. There needs to be excitement, tension!” Eugene said.

Just then, a pajama-clad Harold Jr. ran into the room.

“I know an exciting story!” he said.

He scrambled to the floor to give his idea of the future.

...

 It was five years from now. Harold Jr. was nearly nine years old, which is very grown up. He was now a Boy Scout just like his big brother!

“Okay, Scouts, we’re going to have a fun day today..” said Scoutmaster Big Brother.

Scoutmaster Big Brother was actually Robert! Harold Jr. thought it was so much fun to have Robert in the Scouts again. And Robert enjoyed being back.

“It’s time for the big swimming contest,” Scoutmaster Robert said. “So put on your swimsuits and meet at the lake.”

It didn’t take long for Harold Jr. to put on his swimsuit. He was the first one at the lake!

“Would you like to go first?” Robert asked.

“Yes, I would!” Harold Jr. said.

He started to put a foot in the water, but Robert stopped him.

“You need to wait for everyone else.” he reminded him.

Harold Jr. tried to wait, but the other Scouts were taking so long! Scoutmaster Robert went off to look for them. While he was gone, Harold Jr. dipped a toe in the water. It was just a toe! But then it became a foot, then an ankle, then a whole leg…

*SPLASH!*

Harold Jr. fell right into the water! He tried to swim up, but his shoe got caught on a rock. He was stuck! Through the water, he heard someone say something. It was a deep voice. He tried to reach up to the voice, but his breath was getting lost. He was getting so tired…

Just then, there was a big splash. Harold Jr. saw a huge hand grab his arm. It was Scoutmaster Robert! Harold Jr. pointed to the rock and his big brother swam down. He was strong enough to get the rock away from Harold Jr’s shoe. Then he grabbed Harold Jr. and took him up. Harold Jr. held on really tight as Robert swam through the water.

Finally, they heard a rushing sound. It was the air. They were free!

“Thank you, Scoutmaster Big Brother!” Harold Jr. said.

“You’re welcome,” Robert set his baby brother on the ground. “You need to remember to wait. See what happens when you don’t?”

“Yes, I do,” Harold Jr. felt all embarrassed because of that. “I’m sorry.”

Robert smiled. “It’s okay. You’re safe now. Are you still up for the race?”

“Yeah!”

Then Harold Jr. jumped in the water with the other Scouts. And this time, he made sure everyone else was ready! He only got fourth place, but that was okay. Harold Jr. knew his big brother’s love was enough.

...

 “Aww,” Betty said. “What a sweet story!”

“Yeah, that was great, Junior.” Robert agreed.

Harold Jr. gave a proud smile.

Eugene then said, “Here’s what I think will happen…”

...

 February 22nd, 1941 was a day no one would forget. Robert was celebrating his twenty-third birthday in a rather… interesting way.

“I hereby declare Wadlow’s Shoes to be officially opened!” he hereby declared (whatever that means).

Then he cut a comically sized ribbon in front of him. As it fell back, Helen played a celebratory song on her viola. Betty and Harold Jr. applauded, smiles on their faces. Mom and Dad- I mean, Addie and Harold held each other close as they wiped away touched tears. The only family member missing was Eugene.

“I wonder where Gene is.” Robert wondered.

“He’s off getting a college degree,” Helen said. “But who needs him? There are plenty of people here already!”

Before anyone could speculate, a bunch of reporters pushed Helen aside. They pelted Robert with questions.

“Why did you decide to open up a shoe store?” one of them asked. “A fall out with Peter’s?”

“Oh, no, Peter’s and I are on good terms,” Robert said. “They helped fund this store. I’m very thankful for their donations!”

He led the reporters into the store. It was stocked with all kinds of shoes, from sneakers to heels and boots to slippers and even regular old dress shoes.

“Wait,” Harold said. “Where might your shoes be, son?”

“They’re right over here, Dad,” Robert told him. “Right in the display window.”

But when he pointed to the window, he was shocked to discover that one of them was missing!

“Where did it go?” Harold Jr. asked.

“I… I have no idea. It was here this morning,” Robert said, stunned. “Why, it was stolen!”

Gasps and whispers floated through the crowd.

“Oh my!” Addie exclaimed. “Who would do such a thing?”

Betty frowned as she said, “He did!”

She glared at the reporter with a point.

“Why would I do something like that?” the reporter asked. “I’m an honest man!”

“Oh, sure. You’d do anything for a story! Anything to stir up some drama.”

“I swear I didn’t take that shoe. I’ve never even stepped inside here until today!”

Helen started walking away, her viola in hand. She headed towards its case, which was tucked in the corner of the store.

“Wait a second,” Robert said. “I know who it was…”

Just then, Eugene walked in. He saw Helen walking past. The display window was right over her shoulder. His eyes widened.

“It was Eugene!”

“Wha- me?” Eugene asked in surprise. “What did I do?”

“You stole Big Brother’s shoe!” Harold Jr. said.

“I’ve been at college all day. There’s no way I could’ve done it.”

Harold stepped up. “Didn’t I ask you to check the store first since it’s on your route?”

“Yeah, but I just took a peek in. I was nowhere near the window.”

“Wait!” Robert exclaimed. “It’s Saturday. You couldn’t have been at college.”

“It was for one of my classes-”

“That’s it!” Helen yelled. “It wasn’t Gene…” She stepped up. “It was me!”

Everyone gasped.

“You stole my shoe?” Robert asked in shock.

“We should’ve known,” Betty said. “She was always pulling that stunt back in the day.”

Helen lowered her head. “Yes, I did. But Gene suggested it!”

Eugene flushed. “I only did it to distract everyone.”

“Why?” Harold Jr. asked.

“Everyone’s talking about Robert. We wanted reporters to give some attention to the rest of the family. Besides, we need a little excitement.”

Robert chuckled. “I think there’s enough excitement with the store opening! Fess up, Helen.”

After setting her viola in its case, Helen moved it aside. She opened a secret panel… and revealed the shoe!

“We’re sorry for causing all of this.” she apologized to Robert, the shoe in her hands.

“Yeah, we didn’t mean any harm,” Eugene added. “Just buzz.”

Robert smiled. “I understand. But before you put that shoe back…”

He turned to the reporters. Helen, Eugene and Robert all smiled as the camera snapped. They didn’t just capture Robert and his shoes… They captured everyone together.

...

 “What a story!” Betty exclaimed.

“Yeah, it had me on the edge of my seat.” Robert said.

“The plot twist was great,” Helen smiled at Eugene. “Nice job.”

Eugene smiled back. “Now that’s how you tell of the future.”

Just then, Harold Jr. let out a big yawn.

“Looks like it’s time to get to bed.” Robert said with a smile.

“No!” Harold Jr. exclaimed. “I wanna hear the last story.”

Everyone looked at Helen expectantly. She looked down at the paper before giving her vision of the future…

...

 February 22nd, 1941 was a day no one would forget.

A sweet sound floated through the air. It came from Helen’s viola.

“Bravo!” Harold Jr. cheered.

“Brava.” Eugene corrected him.

Helen bowed. “Thank you!”

“That was lovely, Helen,” Robert said. “Just like this birthday. It sure is nice to not be in front of crowds and whatnot!”

“Look, you’re in the paper!” Betty exclaimed.

She showed him the article. All it said was, ‘Robert Wadlow Celebrates Birthday. Robert Wadlow turned 23 years old today. His only wish was to not be bothered by reporters and admirers, which will definitely be respected. He’s spending today in the peaceful presence of family.’

“It’s certainly peaceful,” Robert said. “And I’m glad that it’ll be that way for the rest of time!”

...

 “That certainly sounds like an unforgettable day,” Robert remarked after Helen ended the story. “Although I doubt reporters will stop bugging me forever.”

Helen gave a shrug. “Who knows? Anything can happen.”

“That’s true,” Robert smiled at his siblings. “All of your stories were great. No matter what the future holds, I know it’ll be better with the ones I love.”

[br1ghtestlight]

getting war flashbacks to the bobs burgers fanfic where louise is doing math homework in the restaurant when nobody else is around and then bob has a heart attack </3 that shit was TRAUMATIZING

love linda shouting four whenever there's a math problem or anything related to numbers. best recurring joke. FOUR!!!!

you can do it gene :D also im so bad at math I 100% would not be able to help either. dumbass rep family

bob trying to help gene with his homework is cute. even if he is Not very good at it. he wants to be an involved dad :(

gene im not gonna lie that math question has gotta be fucking with you. rhat is not a real question. i could NEVER do that not if i was given 100 hours that shit is fake

see this is where when I was in math class i would just write a random number and move on bcuz im never gonna figure it out anyway im not gonna waste time. so that's my advice gene. just Give Up

he says "maybe your mom or tina could get you started" because they're older but I genuinely think louise has a better chance of helping bcuz she is so smart. if she'd WANT to help is another question entirely

because I'm stuck in a safe 😐

AND THEN HE BLINDFOLDED ME ON THE WAY HERE??? HE BLINDFOLDED YOU??????

teddy I think his guy is gonna murder you im gonna be so real right now

unfortunately im kinda following teddy's logic now like. it isnt like fischoeder isn't doing this type of shit everyday just for fun. rich guys are just like that BUT getting their money is nice

"gene was doing homework?? that's new"

WE'RE NOT ALL ECONOMICALLY COMFORTABLE LIKE YOU ARE

"Why did you tell me the whole long story about the sandwich in the drawer if you're running out of battery LOCKED IN A SAFE??" "Context!!!!"

also bob and teddy have such great comedic chemistry lmao they bounce off each other so naturally

louise isn't lying she Does have a certain set of skills 😭 if anyone could find him it WOULD be her the lockpicking genius nine year old supervillain

miss you. see you soon. gotta go!!

has he gotten a new cellphone since that MIDDLE OF THE DAY AND YOUR PHONE IS AT 23% argument or is it that same shitty 2008 blackberry phone that dies almost immediately lmfao

bob is a real one for doing this bullshit for teddy he did NOT have to. they're ride or die fr

I'm not entirely unconvinced that gerald isnt a serial killer but thats okay <3 men can have hobbies

also I'm choosing to believe this gerald is the same one from the taxes/weed cookie episode even though it ABSOLUTELY is not bcuz i think that would be funny. by day he's a regular tax agent by night he is a creepy rich kidnapper who pulls mind games on all his handymen

OH I FORGOT THE SUBPLOT FOR THIS EPISODE IS ABOUT SPORTS PEOPLE why did they do the whole thing with gene's homework then.... are they connected. what is the gameplan

WE PICK A NEW LOVER FOR MOM

i love how bob is apparently the only thing keeping his family from going completely off the fucking rails like. he's the only thing standing between his family and their restaurant burning down with everyone inside fr

your dad never loved that dream :/ because he's a hater :/ AND SO JEALOUS :/

you're not gonna break the world record. another hater. STOP THAT

I might be having a panic attack 💔 I CANT TELL BECAUSE IVE NEVER HAD ONE BEFORE OR IM ALWAYS HAVING ONE soo real teddy

WE LOST HIM 😭😭💔

aww I love them all wearing their lil aprons <3 (crappy photo of my tablet bcuz the app im using to watch this episode doesn't allow screenshots)

SAY SOMETHING SMART LIKE UHH HOW WOULD YOU FLIP A GIANT BURGER. OH GOD THEY DIDNT MAKE THE GIANT BURGER DID THEY. WHO WOULD EVEN AGREE TO EAT THAT. AN OVER FOURTY CO-ED BASKETBALL TEAM. REALLY 😯

sorry this episode has so many good ooc quotes FJDMDJSKSKKM

gene STOP calling him father

bob is being like a whole ass detective meanwhile linda and the kids are currently making The Worst Decisions Ever

h jon benjiman is doing such a good job voicing bob in this episode idk it has so much personality and sounds natural. or it's always like this and im just now appreciating it but either way A+ work

cute bob and teddy moment ❤️❤️

(ignore the awful camera quality. nothing I can do there) also love the fact that teddy can easily lift up and manhandle bob. Good to know

there's so much going on w/ this gerald guy I dont even know WHERE to begin. what a guy. wow

this is so cute and sweet im so happy!!! YOU DOUBLE FAKE WALLED HIM :D YOU SMART SMARTIE. YOURE A GENIUS BOB

"I knew I asked the right person to come help me. Yeah. Mort wouldn't answer."

"What? You called Mort first?"

"No..."

HE ASKED MORT???? LMFAO big win for tedmort shippers. I fucking guess

MORT NEVER DOUBLE FAKE WALLED ANYONE why is bob like genuinely jealous of mort and teddy right now 😭 chill out man you've got a wife at home

"let's just say it's twelve" FINALLY bob follows my very smart advice when it comes to math homework smh

ALSO THIS IS TECHNICALLY THE FIRST TIME WE'VE SEEN THEM EATING BOBS BURGERS FOR DINNER OR IN GENERAL!!! I mean it's a giant hamburger loaf but it technically was served at bob's burgers so it counts

GIANT FRENCH FRIES

aww this episode was so fun and cute!! I love the more adventure-y type episodes where they explore a new location so this episode was great and very stressful lmao. also very funny. I love bob and teddy's dynamic/back and forth throughout the episode and the weird mort mention at the end felt like they were soft launching his and teddy's relationship even though I KNOW they aren't actually. mort could replace kathleen if we believe. very solid 8/10 episode :)

[imliterallyjustablackgirl]

"About the Blogger" meme

Thank u sm for tag @happylikeasadsong

Star Sign(s): Virgo sun, Cancer rising and Aries Moon - * ratata, in the ghettooo*

Favorite Holidays: Christmas and New Years, I just love little lights and the snow in the trees and to be reminded that makeup is just make up by the Canadian wind, while I get bitch slapped like I owes it money, ahhh, canadian's winter. I loveeee Christmas songs, I get so excited when it'ssss timmmee ( Mariah is it you). I dream for the day were I get to put lil socks like in movies with name and everything. Might even stitch them myself uwu. We don't do it, but maybe one day, family on my own.

Last Meal: As like my last meal if I d i e or - I ate a burned sandwich, I did it to myself. Me and myself are not talking right now, the sandwich was the last straw for today. It had two large meatballs in a subway wanna be bread - could have been great- I'm getting emotional all over again.

Current Favorite Musician: Brown noise 10 hrs- no wait - Rap orchestra - that's like the current thing I'm listening to right now. Mostly Metro's concert rap Orchestra. But Tanarelle, forever my love. Sade, for sure.

Last Music Listened To: * sigh - go look at the last edit I watched** 1975- about you, the snippet of Holt singing. Last Movie Watched: Bottoms - Lmao- THEEE GAYYYZZZ

Last TV Show Watched: Craig of the Creek - Rick and Morty, Bob's burgers, I watch Bob's burgers alot.

Last Book/Fic Finished: Now why did you have to do me like dat.

Last Book/Fic Abandoned: W A W Abandoned? I Do Not Abandoned My Kids. They just live inside my head until one day a smell, a sound,or an idea reminds me that they exist, or I write them on a piece of paper and forget about it OR they live inside my notes pads. Let's not speak about myout-of-wedlockk Skyrock- Wattpat and Fanfiction.net, children, they are not mine, you cannot prove it. Where is the paternity test?

Currently Reading: Y'all posts, like it's bedtime stories. Curry's fanfictions - honestly I read most of y'all updated or not fanfiction, I was on A3O Sydcarmy tags when there was barely two pages, so ouf - thank you to y'all my loves :* truly. I would lie if I said now I have too much windows open I'm confusing the timelines and fanfic. - Seasons of Sydney by shewalksoverme I am waiting for them to update. I am not handling it well, sadly *sighs*

Last Thing Researched for Art/Writing/Hyperfixation: Canada's woods, slightly make me sounds like a serial killer but HOW would you write a werewolf Carmy,huh!? I lived there most of my life, thought it would help me get a better writing experience, yet I've been too busy to continue and now I'm alarmeling aware that we have coyotes. Great ;-;

Favorite Online Fandom Memory: I have alot but I watched the last episode of Stranger Things with my friends last year. S8 of TVD, feeling like a last survivor of some sort, trauma lol - The Howl House - the finality, it healed my inner child to see a queer neurodivergent kid being understood by her mom, kick ass and be happy lol.

Favorite Old Fandom You Wish Would Drag You Back In/Have A Resurgence: Amphibia- it's such a cute and layered cartoon. OMG - I ALMOST FORGOT - CENTAURWORLD. It deserves the praise. It deserves to be acknowledged, the bad guy changed my perception of so many things.

Favorite Thing You Enjoy That Never Had an Active or Big "Fandom" but You Wish It Did: I wish (His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass) when I tell you, that this fantasy world has haunted me, because of how good it was for little girl me, argh! I would watch it all over again, I wish it had a bigger fanbase - if you love Christmas-

Tempting Project You're Trying to Rein In/Don't Have Time For:

Listen - Projects are not the issue, it's the follow-through, I'm gonna try writing mini-stories to keep my mind engaged. I'll manipulate myself into work - Also I keep losing password to things so, yeah- My fic started: Under the moon- I will this week updated it- I want to write more one-shots, more smut for sure- I am interested in exploring differents fronts of any characters. Shit, I might even a Bob's Burgers fanfic. You can't stop me, you're not my mom- that I know of :O I would like @currymanganese to do it @angelica4equity You don't have to, but like... an ant somewhere might die cauz of it so, idk- do u wanna be an ant murdereww? Yeah, that's what i thought

[britishsass]

some actor AU thoughts: some of the scenes with the aquatos turn into a race against someone's growth spurt when filming. also, augustus's break into acting was very lucky: his car had broken down, stranding their family circus somewhere where there was a movie studio doing a movie that, like mad max fury road, was basically two straight hours of Let The Stunt Actors Go Wild. they needed more acrobats for the stunts and look! acrobats! right here! oh they're surprisingly good actors too!

Here's some silly interview shenanigans (mostly about the Aquatos) which are partially based on what you're saying and partially just me avoiding my hw.

A. Aquato: We have to film everything for my darling children Queepie and Mirtala early because they're young and likely to hit their growth spurts soon.

Interviewer: What about Razputin?

A. Aquato: ...He's basically carrying the show. I worry so much about him, though-- He's just a child, and it can be very stressful. I've reminded him countless times that he can ask for a break at any time, and we can ask his great-uncles and great-aunts if they can do some scenes if he needs a break.

Interviewer: What's it like to have your whole family in this show?

A. Aquato: I'm so proud of all of them, but I keep feeling terrible for what they have to go through--

D. Aquato: Dad! We're fine! I like flirting with my girlfriend on camera!

A. Aquato: I know, Dionysus, but I worry about how your interactions with Razputin can create some... animosity. Amity? Animosity?

F. Aquato: Animosity.

A. Aquato: Thank you, Frazie. That, and the amount of times Razputin has been hit by those foam acorns. I know, he's wearing a helmet, but--

~

A. Aquato: I love doing the stunts. They've had to specifically ask me to stop doing the stunts. However, I did manage to convince them to let me set something on fire in one of these episodes! Just wait. I'm so excited.

~

A. Aquato: I wish they wouldn't villainize my aunt that much.

L. Mux: I like playing the villain.

A. Aquato: Also, if I wasn't supposed to be off-screen during some of these scenes, I would hug her.

L. Mux: Aw, Augie, you can hug me anytime!

~

Interviewer: What is your biggest wish for this show?

F. Cruller: ...I wish they'd stop villainizing Lucy and making me out to be a hero.

B. Zanotto-Fullbear: I wish I could get more scenes with my honeybear. At least you two get to hold each other. And have an actual kiss. Even if it's in younger makeup.

H. Fullbear-Zanotto: I want to hug my Bobbybear too, hon.

B. Zanotto-Fullbear: [Unintelligable as he buries his head in his hands]

C. O'Pia: I wish that I could help Booley during his panic attack scenes. Or that I could have more of a say in the more story-driven side of this show...

C. Boole: I wish I could have a nice scene of bowling with the others in the Seven. When we were younger, we did that a lot, so it would be nice to see something soft like that.

O. Mentallis: I wish I had a burger.

F. Cruller: Otto.

O. Mentallis: What? I mean, it'd be cool if I got a song.

F. Cruller: OTTO.

H. Fullbear-Zanotto: Ooh, a song! What kind?

O. Mentallis: A villain song, obviously. But not actually being a villain. Just that sort of show-stopping number. It's a stylistic choice.

~

Interviewer: What are your thoughts on the rest of the cast?

N. Johnnsmith: I've not had much time with a lot of them overall-- Except Bob, and the Aquatos, really. Oh, and Helmut! We had to work together a lot on how the one bit would work. The Aquatos are lovely people, really. I like them a lot-- Tala and Queepie think I'm a bad guy, but... They're young, so that's fine. Uhm... Bob's a nice enough fellow too. I keep worrying I'm bothering him by trying to ask him if he wants to hang out. You wouldn't believe how uncomfortable it gets on set sometimes. I've tried to ask him if he wants to play cards with me a lot, but he always makes excuses... Helmut's a great guy, of course. Everyone knows that, though. He's told me Bob likes me, just that he's bad with people, so I thought I might be overdoing it, but he told me that Bob likes that I still invite him, even if he says no, so...

Interviewer: You seem nervous. Is there a reason why?

N. Johnsmith: I've not actually done much acting before. I'm shocked I got a callback for this, let alone a role with so many incredible actors and people. And the fact that I'm playing a villain is... Wow. It sure is something, hah--

Interviewer: Do you like your role?

N. Johnsmith: I like to imagine they're customers. After years of working in retail, it makes sense to me. You wouldn't believe the endorphins I get from imagining that I finally got to yell at some of these terrible customers. I've got plenty of stories about them. There was this one who wouldn't stop asking me to look in the back--

[wazafam]

Disenchantment has returned for a third season and its amazing ensemble of veteran voice actors has returned with it. The new season also boasts some impressive guest stars, who only appear for an episode or two, but have a major impact upon the story and setting.

Set in a fantasy realm that may also be the same reality as Futurama, Disenchantment centers around Princess Tabeanie, or Bean for short. A hard-drinking rebel who has little use for her father's ideas about marrying her off to secure an alliance with a neighboring nation, Bean feels that there's some great destiny awaiting her somewhere outside the gates of Dreamland. She's right, but she's also not too crazy about fulfilling that destiny, which involves paying a debt her mother's family owes Hell and having a crown screwed into her head.

Related: Netflix: The Best New TV Shows & Movies This Weekend (January 15)

Season 3 picks up right where season 2 ended, with Bean having escaped being burned at the stake as a witch by a mob of Dreamlanders only to find herself surrounded by an entirely different mob of Trogs: a race of stunted, sub-terrain cave dwellers, who are in league with Bean's treacherous mother, Queen Dagmar. Here's a rundown of all the returning cast of Disenchantment and the roles that they play, as well as all the guest stars with major roles in season 3.

The lead heroine of Disenchantment, Bean is not your typical tomboy princess who wants adventure in the great wide somewhere. She'd be much happier if she just had the freedom to get wasted and pick up whatever cute guys she could find at the tavern, but fate (and the rest of the world, it seems) have other plans for her. She is voiced by Abbi Jacobson, who is best known as the creator and star of Broad City. She can also be heard in Bojack Horseman as the voice of Todd's ex-girlfriend, Emily.

Luci is Bean's own personal demon, bonded to her for all eternity to push her to the path of wickedness. This proved to be a much easier job than Luci's masters in Hell had anticipated, and he soon began to slack off on his demonic duties to run a bar and contribute to the general wickedness of Dreamland as a whole. Luci is voiced by Eric André, who is perhaps most famous as the creator and host of The Eric André Show. He also voiced the hyena Azizi in The Lion King remake.

Too cynical for the world of elves and too naïve for the world of man, Elfo is a half-elf who isn't entirely sure where he belongs. He has found a place at Bean's side, but his crush on her is unrequited and the only other love he seems to find is in all the wrong places (very wrong, incredibly sick and filthy wrong places). Elfo is voiced by writer/actor Nat Faxon, who is probably best known for his collaborations with Jim Rash, such as The Descendants and The Way, Way Back. He also played a lead in the FX show Married and the Netflix comedy series Friends From College. More recently, he's provided the voice for Captain Underpants in The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants in Space and will be playing Han Solo in the upcoming Star Wars: Detours series.

Related: Netflix: Every Movie and TV Show Releasing In January 2021

  Absolute ruler of Dreamland and Bean's beloved (if begrudging) father, King Zøg starts season 3 in ill health and on the verge of losing his life along with his crown. Naturally Zøg being Zøg, he's more concerned about the hat than his health. He is voiced by animation legend John DiMaggio, who is well known to Futurama fans as the voice of Bender. He also provided the voice for Jake the Dog in Adventure Time, Dr. Drakken on Kim Possible, and even Marcus Fenix in the Gears of War video game series. Recently, he voiced Heidegger in the English dub of the Final Fantasy VII remake. He also voiced both King Shark and the demon Trigon in Justice League Dark: Apokolips War.

The second wife of Zøg, who abandoned him and Dreamland to seek a new life as Queen of the Pirates, Oona returns to Dreamland in Disenchantment season 3. She is voiced by Tress MacNeille, who has voiced multiple characters on both The Simpsons and Futurama, including Agnes Skinner and Mom (of Mom's Friendly Robot Corp.). MacNeille also provides the voices for Prince Derek and the Archdruidess who leads Dreamland's state religion. She is also beloved as the voice of Dot Warner from Animaniacs.

Heir to the throne of the neighboring kingdom of Bentwood, Prince Merkimer was intended to be Bean's second fiancée after the untimely impalement of his older brother. While the wedding was called off after he was turned into a talking pig, Merkimer continued to hang around the palace of Dreamland being sad and/or drunk. He is voiced by British comedian Matt Berry, who is famous for his appearances on The IT Crowd, Toast of London, and What We Do In The Shadows. He can currently be heard in The Watch, lending his voice to a magic sword named Wayne.

A torturer and executioner by trade, Stan is still a jovial man who does his job with a kind word and a craftsman's eye. He is voiced by British comedy legend Noel Fielding, who is well-known as one half of The Mighty Boosh and for playing Richmond in The IT Crowd. Viewers may recognize him as a co-presenter for The Great British Bake-Off. He also lent his voice to Balthazar in The LEGO Movie 2.

Related: Disenchantment Season 2 Has Some Weird Game Of Thrones References

Still best known for playing the role of Michael Bolton in Office Space, David Herman went on to become one of the most prolific voice actors in Hollywood. He voices several characters in Disenchantment, the most notable being the Herald of Dreamland. He also provides the voices for Bean's uncle Jerry and the snarky spa attendant Chazz. He can also be heard as Mr. Frond in Bob's Burgers and Dmitry in Central Park.

Bean's mother and King Zøg's first wife, Dagmar is a wicked witch who has big plans for Bean involving some sort of prophecy. Season 3 will find her once again manipulating her daughter for her own sinister designs. Dagmar is voiced by Sharon Horgan, a comedian and voice actor who has appeared in several British sitcoms including Catastrophe and This Way Up. She provides the voices for Courtney Portnoy in Bojack Horseman and Kathleen in Bob's Burgers and also appeared in the movie Game Night

One of the most prolific voice actors in the business, Maurice LaMarche is perhaps most famous for his impression of Orson Welles, whom he played on both The Simpsons and Futurama. His voice was also dubbed over Vincent D'Onofrio's performance as Orson Wells in Tim Burton's biographical film Ed Wood. LaMarche's chief role on Disenchantment is the treacherous, three-eyed minister Odval, but he voices a number of supporting roles as well, such as the legendary demon hunter Big Jo.

Bunty is Bean's simple-minded, ever-pregnant maid. She is voiced by Lucy Montgomery, who will be familiar to many fans of British comedy. She appeared in the 2011 revival of Absolutely Fabulous, The Armstrong and Miller Show, Bellamy's People of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Tracy Breaks the Internet. She can also be heard on a number of children's programs, having lent her voice to both Thomas the Tank-Engine and Bob the Builder.

Related: All The Simpsons & Futurama Easter Eggs In Disenchantment Season 2 

The chief wizard of Dreamland ever since he was allowed to put stars on his dunce cap, Sorcerio is perhaps the most incompetent member of Dreamland's ruling council — a low bar to jump over. He is voiced by legendary voice actor Billy West, who is instantly recognizable to fans of Futurama as the voice of Fry, Zoidberg, Zapp Brannigan and Professor Farnsworth. West has provided several iconic voices over his long career, including the title characters from The Ren & Stimpy Show and Doug. West pulls quadruple-duty on Disenchantment as well, also providing the voices for the Jester, Sir Mertz, and the Elf King Rulo.

Season 3 of Disenchantment briefly finds Elfo confined to a freak show, where he befriends a sarcastic mermaid named Mora who has dreams of being an actress. Mora is voiced by Meredith Hagner, who might be recognized as Portia Davenport from Search Party. She also voiced Madison on Bob's Burgers.

Rich Fulcher as Sir Turbish - Best known for his work with Noel Fielding and Matt Berry on various projects, Rich Fulcher returns to voice the awkward but well meaning Sir Turbish.

Lauren Tom as Trixy - Well known to Futurama fans as the voice of Amy Wong, Lauren Tom lends her voice to Trixy: a female Torg who develops a truly disturbing attraction to Elfo.

Richard Ayoade as Alva - Best known as Maurice Moss from The IT Crowd, Richard Ayodae plays Alva, the mysterious man who essentially rules Steamland.

Phil LaMarr as God - Best known to Futurama fans as the voice of Hermes Conrad, Phil LaMarr returns as the voice of God, the chief deity of Disenchantment's cosmology.

More: Disenchantment: The Biggest Unanswered Questions After Season 2's Ending

Disenchantment Season 3 Cast & Character Guide: What The Voice Actors Look Like from https://ift.tt/3ikobqy

[gffa]

Scattered Star Wars Thoughts: - I’m about two thirds of the way through Empire’s End and I’m once again sad that we haven’t gotten anything like this in awhile--stuff happens in these books, the huge, big, galactic-level stuff happens!  The Battle of Jakku!  Rae Sloane vs Gallius Rax!  The bombing of the New Republic ceremony!  Mon Mothma’s struggles to keep the New Republic afloat and her political enemies trying to take her down! Sure, I love the books for the ragtag team I came to know and love, it’s still one of the top tier groups of new characters, but it’s also that stuff happens in this book, I get a good, strong look at the events that shape the galaxy in this era.  I suspect (even though I have no proof) that SW deliberately moved away from this kind of thing, because they were filling up the space too quickly, there soon wasn’t going to be much room left for any kind of big events, between this and Bloodline, especially if they ever wanted to set a show or movie in that era. I sometimes half-wonder if we’re heading for another reboot after awhile, because they’ll want to free up some space or if we’re just going to get more “away from the main action” stories.  Which I wouldn’t mind, if they were more like Spark of the Resistance because that was one of my favorite books of recent times, where it didn’t have to have a big impact, it could be a cute space adventure, but it was about characters I desperately wanted to have more interaction with. I guess that’s what was missing from Alphabet Squadron for me, that the new character stuff was SO GOOD, but Hera’s role really could have been filled by anyone.  Empire’s End is giving us Han and Leia and Mon character moments, but a lot of them don’t have to be about the big galactic stuff, they can be little mini-adventures set between the bigger ones. On the other hand, the comics seem to be filling that niche more than the novels, and the comics are so good that I’m kind of fine with the priority seeming to be on them--even if I don’t think that’s intentional.  (Or maybe it’s just me vastly preferring the comics over the novels, it seems like that’s where the good stuff is happening, imo.) Anyway. Empire’s End.  I really do love this trilogy in a way that, looking back, is a lot sharper than a lot of what I’ve been feeling re: current SW.  I wish Wendig would get another crack at writing SW, whether for these characters or someone else.  And that the Bens would come back and write more, too.  I was skimming over their From a Certain Point of View story and thinking about Join the Resistance! and I MISS THOSE STORIES. - I am doing pretty good at keeping up with my rewatch getting finished before the new season of TCW happens, I’m down to 1.8 episodes per day to reach my goal!  :D Between that and the way I’ve been booking it through other stuff (it’s been so cold out lately that I don’t go out much, so I have more time to watch stuff) that I’m already a quarter of the way through my 2020 Resolutions list! - I just saw Ryan Bergara, Shane Madej, and Steven Lim launched Watcher and have a handful of videos up, so I’ll have those to watch, I also have a bunch of shows (Barry and Patriot mostly) waiting in the wings for when I finish with TCW, and of course more of The Untamed, and, well, THANK GOD SW IS QUIET RIGHT NOW, because it’s getting to be a bit Much.  In a good way, but still!  /wanted to grump - I finished the current season of Grace & Frankie and I really liked the first 3-4 episodes, I got a bunch of IRL LOLs out of them, but about halfway through the season it lost steam for me and the ending just felt weird, like, “Why are we going down this same path again?  What was the point of that sub-plot?” and it just felt unfocused to me. I feel like, by this point, we’re six seasons in, Grace and Frankie lying about stuff from each other feels very, very retread, especially when Grace and Nick have talked about this before, that sometimes she has to choose him, not just Frankie all the time, and this storyline sort of ended up in a place that seemed to contradict that, and it does help to view this through the lens of Grace still has decades of lying and secrets as routine to recover from, she’s going to backslide, and I’m down for that, but I feel like this just didn’t quite acknowledge that it was part of a pattern she’s still working on, rather than ignoring that it comes with context of stuff that’s already happened in the show. I’m also losing my patience with a lot of the romantic partners drama on the show, like, I think they’ve been on a slow drive towards Coyote/Mallory for awhile and I hate it, I really don’t get any kind of spark between Frankie and Jack, Joan-Margaret and the guy she picked to marry didn’t have enough of a spark to make that storyline all that fun, Principal Dan being weird by the end was just *SIGH* (all the more so because I want Mallory to be with someone who Is Not Coyote).  I do very much still love Barry/Brianna, I feel like the show does better at Brianna Is An Onion You Have To Peel Her Back In Layers, so going over similar ground makes sense.  And I actually enjoyed Coyote/Jessica, they’re adorable, but it’s hard to get invested when I don’t think it’ll last.  I actually really enjoy Bud/Allison and their mutual failboating conversation about their first times was delightful to watch.  But I also sort of feel like I’m getting exhausted on Robert/Sol, it didn’t feel like there was any idea what to do with them this season, so they just sort of threw a bunch of things at the wall to see what would stick.  Robert being like, “NO THIS IS A BAD IDEA” while Sol and Allison researched Bud’s family history was hilarious, MORE LIKE THAT, less of them keeping secrets from each other like that entire local theater storyline.  Or even Sol’s health thing, which brought out different approaches to quality vs length of life at their age, that was a much more interesting story. I guess I wouldn’t mind retreading the same ground quite so much, if it felt like they were aware of it being part of a bigger whole, rather than just doing the same thing again, or if it felt like it was going somewhere (I think this is why I liked the Brianna/Barry stuff, it feels like it’s going somewhere), but that doesn’t mean the cast isn’t still delightful and the show isn’t still an absolute delight.  It never feels flat or like they’re Flanderizing the characters, the human moments are still there and very genuine.  (Grace and the other young wives was one of my favorite moments of the season!  It was such a lovely, warm, human resolution.)  The cast still delivers everything beautifully and they’re retreading these stories for a reason--though, I can’t lie, I’m curious to see what the final season has, in the way of a shake-up of the usual dynamics, as well as some more permanent resolution, one assumes. It still remains one of my favorite shows whenever it comes back! Scattered Star Wars Thoughts/2020 Resolutions Update: - Star Wars: The Clone Wars s3e02-20 Current total:  41/260 Scattered Everything Else Thoughts/ 2020 Resolutions Update: - Watchmen s01e01-09 - Bob’s Burgers s10e11 - The Good Place s04e11 - Grace & Frankie s06e01-13 Current total:  86/260 Star Wars Fic Recs 2020 Resolutions Update Current total written:  81/520

[fly-pow-bye]

DuckTales 2017 - “GlomTales!”

Story by: Francisco Angones, Madison Bateman, Colleen Evanson, Christian Magalhaes, Bob Snow

Written by: Colleen Evanson

Storyboard by: Vince Aparo, Emmy Cicierega, Ben Holm

Directed by: Tanner Johnson

Scheme-worthy!

The episode begins with Louie looking out the window in the room he has been grounded in in the last episode. Yes, he managed to get a grounding that actually lasts more than an ending of an episode, what a concept. He sees Scrooge and the rest of the family preparing for another adventure that is pretty much 100% out of Scrooge's unwillingness to lose the big bet that he made with Glomgold.

Louie tells himself that while he's grounded, at least he wouldn't be dragged into another dangerous adventure. He then notices the hobo bindles and cans of beans, and realizes exactly what they're going to adventure to a place where there's cherry Pep springs, where the con men sing, where the geysers spit out gold for everyone, and the Hobo King has a Ruby Bindle with Scrooge's name on it. In a reference to the old folk song, they're going to the Big Rock Candy Mountain, and Louie jumps out of the door and says he has to go.

Of course, Louie's mom is not going to let Louie go on the adventure of his dreams, because he's still grounded. Della's not going to be a pushover like she was in the last episode, oh no, she's not everything covered for him as we'll soon see.

Della: You can come out when you learn that no good ever came from cockamamie schemes!

In a masterful transition, we cut to the A plot of the episode, where Glomgold is using a slingshot to try to get into the Junkyard where Ma Beagle and her Beagle Boys live. While he ends up succeeding, he does end up in the hands of Bouncer Beagle.

Glomgold tries to defend his trespassing of the junkyard by saying that he's here because he has a plan to defeat Scrooge and his family. In his words, he's only here to recruit, not as workers, but as family, and family is the greatest scheme of all, according to him. With an evil laugh, we cut to a not-so-familiar title sequence.

Instead of the usual DuckTales theme song, we get his Theme Song Takeover instead. Honestly, I would have been disappointed if they didn't use it; it's great! It starts with him following the blueprint, we get "amazing CGI" that makes him look like some sort of muscleman, and lyrics that can only come from the masterful schemer, like "Scrooge stinks, Scrooge stinks, Scrooge stinks, Scrooge stinks!"

After that, we see that Ma Beagle is not exactly thrilled with working with Glomgold. She thinks he's a moron, and he can never beat Scrooge because he's smarter than the smarties. She also correctly accuses him of only doing this because he wants to win the bet. Kind of an interesting comparison between the two combatants of the bet: both Scrooge and Glomgold only have that on the mind. Of course, Scrooge is just getting more treasure, while Glomgold just wants to wipe out the other guy and his family.

The usual three Beagle Boys chime in to this offer, saying that they need a powerful male figure in their lives, and eventually Ma Beagle accepts the offer. No, not because she feels sorry for Glomgold, but because if Scrooge is defeated, she can get what she wants out of it: the deed to Duckburg. This is going to be a theme.

Meanwhile, Louie tries to sneak out, only to find his new babysitter...

Schedulebot: Punishment time! Punishment time!

Oh no, not Schedulebot! Get back in your own cartoon! Okay, it's actually DT-87, the security robot that also doubles as a video player that has Della trying to teach Louie ethics. Gotta say, Della using a robot that doesn't have a good track record of not becoming evil may not be her best idea. Granted, she wasn't around when this robot was attempting to shoot the kids with steel cutting lasers all those episodes ago, so I cannot exactly blame her for not knowing about it.

Or, maybe she did know, and she doesn't care, as we see that one of the ways DT-87 is keeping Louie into his room is with that said steel cutting laser. Granted, those lasers are different-looking here; they could be just set to stun, but we never find out if that's actually the case.

The next stop is Waddle, where Mark Beaks is busy looking up if he's still the "hottest" and "tallest" of the billionaires. He scoffs at Glomgold's offer to take down Scrooge while being a part of his family because he's too busy raising his rep with his inventions, like his very own cryptocurrency named Beakcoin! Surprisingly, Bitcoin is still relevant, at least from my research. Big Time wants to know where this magical coin is, and Beaks says it's in the cloud.

While the joke this leads to is predictable, I do like the execution, as Bouncer decides to throw Burger out the window to the clouds. Needless to say, he won't be successful, and Beakscoin isn't really the point of this episode anyway.

While Glomgold couldn't get Mark Beaks on his family, Ma Beagle decides to do her own plan based on her manipulation skills. She talks about how Mark Beaks is a loser, anyway, and there's no reason to use technology against Scrooge. Mark Beaks, out of offense for both of those, decides to join in as the Gyro Gearloose of the family.

Oh yeah, Glomgold is trying to get equivalents to all the people in the Manor, or at least the people that are in a photo he is putting faces onto. He has himself as the Scrooge, Ma Beagle as his Mrs. Beakley, the Beagle Boys as his Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and, as mentioned before, Mark Beaks as his Gyro Gearloose. It's neat to know Burger is supposed to be the Huey. I couldn't really tell what Burger's character is supposed to be even now.

Glomgold has to find his Launchpad McQuack, and that turns out to be the legendary Don Karnage. He is completely fine with going after Scrooge's family...or at least just the one member of it that defeated him. He also wants to sing, but I'd imagine they'd want to save the money they would put into such a musical number for the Moonvasion.

Finally, his family is complete, at least according to Glomgold. Unfortunately for him, Don Karnage and Big Time Beagle point out that he’s missing someone: he needs a Webby. Glomgold knows what person that needs to be, and he’s none too happy to get her.

Oh yeah, I kind of forgot to mention what happened to Magica De Spell in her last appearance. I would talk about that, but I'd say the way this episode introduces her is good enough.

We see Magica do this majestic boasting that she is the one that will make the world tremble, while in a void of purple dust clouds. If Dragon Ball Z has taught me anything, if there's dust clouds, that means it's probably not what it seems...

...and it turns out that the times after The Shadow War have not been kind to the wicked not-so-witch, as she's now a birthday magician for Funso’s Fun Zone. Her willingness to take over the world is only mitigated by her manager telling her not to do that.

Glomgold tries his best to not get Magica in his family, not because she would definitely overshadow him in every way...at least, that’s what he wants people to think.

To make a long story short, she agrees to become Glomgold's Webby, all so she can prove that she's Scrooge's worst enemy. Glomgold reluctantly agrees, and they begin the Glomgold-vasion. Also, yes, I like all everyone is dressed for the occasion. One can't see it here, but Mark Beaks's disguise is just a shirt that says "I am 10 years old". Mentally, yes.

Meanwhile, oh no, Louie used his master scheming to get Huey into his room, somehow! At least, that's what Louie wants DT-87 to think, as he tries to do the sibling switcheroo. We never find out if Della could tell the difference between the boys like Donald could in the comics; I’d think she would.

We don’t find out because of one one problem with this scheme: DT-87 knows fully well that Huey is on the adventure of Louie's dreams, as it shows that it's getting a video call from Huey.

Of course, the other kids are having this unbelievably amazing adventure at the Big Rock Candy Mountain's river made entirely of cherry Pep. Emphasis on unbelievable, it's just like that cliche plot where the kids decide to skip school, and the school happened to be doing something cool that day. It's almost like Della is rubbing it in by even allowing Huey to do this.

Eventually, one of Della's videos on ethics leads to her saying that Louie just needs to learn that his schemes are harming his family, and he should just stop. Louie tells himself that those schemes are the only thing he's good at.

Speaking of schemes, the newly formed Glomgold family all show up, using all of their abilities to infiltrate the manor. The manor has cannons, but they're all stopped by Don Karnage's ship. DT-87 tries to stop them, but his lasers are not set to "can do anything to Bouncer before he bashes his head in". Duckworth tries to use his ghostly demon form to scare them off, but Magica uses her ghost-capturing gem to capture him. Wait, I thought she lost her magic! Also, this never gets undone.

Unfortunately, all of this leads to their disappointment when they only see the grounded green one. They get angry at Glomgold for not checking if the others were on vacation, and that his scheme is worthless. I mean, that's what the adventure pretty much was, so I can't exactly say that's wrong. As Glomgold mopes about how his schemes are the only thing he feels he's good at, Louie gets an idea. Oh no, don’t be inspired by him!

We cut to Scrooge's premature celebration of winning the bet, and Zan Owlson congratulates Scrooge, and she can't hide that she would love to not work for that dreadful schemer.

Sadly for her, that dreadful schemer arrives with his family, and we get a shot that is worthy of the promos. This makes this look like the big battle we have all been waiting for. Well, except for that other one that involved those Moon people.

We get that big battle, actually, though it’s a bit late in the episode for it to pay off that much! One highlight is Glomgold and Magica eventually fighting each other, as they both want to beat up Scrooge. Of course, all of these mixed motives aren’t exactly making Glomgold win, much of the chagrin of the one that planned this invasion of Scrooge’s party.

Louie shows up, acting as if he's the big planner of this. His family is none too pleased, especially not Della, who was ready to give Louie a souvenir from the Big Rock Candy Mountain because she felt so sorry for him. Because of course.

Louie tells his plan: he was going to have each of the family members combine their fortunes, and, thanks to that contractual agreement, Glomgold gets to have a combined fortune.

With that combined fortune, this gives Glomgold more money than Scrooge, making him win the bet at the last minute! Oh no, say it ain't so!

Of course, this isn't how it ends. However, in a twist, it doesn't end in the other way either. This is all due to a technicality that goes into Glomgold's history. See, the deal Louie made is that the money is supposed to go to Flintheart Glomgold. However, there's one problem: there's no Flintheart Glomgold. There's a scheming guy who likes to call himself that, but his name is actually Duke Baloney!

Because of the contract they signed, all the money also goes to his partner, and since the partner actually exists, that means the money goes to one Llewellyn Duck. Wait, what?

In the end, Della pretty much instantly forgives Louie at this point due to the plan saving Scrooge McDuck from losing...as long as that money is transferred right back to Scrooge. Yeah, I'm not getting the vibe that he'll actually do that.

How does it stack up?

I liked this episode. Louie's schemes to get out of his time-out were pretty clever, including one I left out of the review. The big star of this episode is Glomgold. While it may not be the big battle, that's because we got another big battle coming up. Yeah, it's good.

Next, we get to see what happens when one becomes the richest duck in the world.

← TimePhoon! 🦆 The Richest Duck In The World! →

[verziehenone]

It’s that time again.  That time for TV shows to bow out for a few months, go into hibernation, and then feverishly work to convince to return to their worlds for more.

Having watched a number of shows hit their finales in recent months, here is my subjective and biased ranking:

Agents of SHIELD

The 100

Z Nation

The Good Place

Arrow

Legion

Supergirl

The Flash

Supernatural

The Legends of Tomorrow

The Vampire Diaries

Superstore

Last Man on Earth

The Walking Dead

Suits

Star Wars: Rebels

Channel Zero

This isn’t a ranking from Good to Bad, but rather in order of ‘I liked it a lot!’ to ‘I could have liked it more’ to ‘It was a finale’.  I don’t think I watched any shows in recent days that I really thought were awful finales, but some were definitely better than others. 

SHIELD was fantastic this season and I can’t even really think of a true ‘lull’ in the action.  First Ghost Rider, then LMDs, then the Framework (’Hydra’) stuff.  Excellent way of divvying up a 23-24 episode season and keeping it fresh and exciting.  Other shows would do well to learn from this example.

The 100 was terrific.  That show keeps blowing me away.  The stories are interesting, the acting and sets and effects are really great, and it’s full of great moments!  The last two seasons have been up and down, but man, those ‘ups’ are really up! 

Z Nation is an oddball to see on here but this show is so ridiculously fun that I have to mention it.  Every episode has some insane ridiculous stupid zombie moment where insane ridiculously stupid things happen to zombies, and then a bad guy says something dumb and then probably dies an episode later and then more stupid ridiculously fun zombie action happens.  So many fun and enjoyable moments of over the top action and effects. 

Odd to see a comedy like this so high?  The Good Place snuck up on me for being a very well written comedy with clever and laugh out loud moments, good acting and special effects, and a very very good finale.  If you haven’t given it a shot, I really really think you should, it’s so surprisingly entertaining.

Arrow did a great job of concluding the present storyline in a BIG way, and also the flashback storyline.  Very interested to see what will happen next season, as the finale left the writers with basically a blank slate regarding ... well ... everything.

Legion.  Wow.  I mean, Noah Hawley is just in a world of his own with directing.  Fargo was instantly a classic (especially season 1) and Legion just proves it wasn’t a fluke.  I loved seeing Dan Stevens break out of his Downton Abbey role in a big way, and obviously Aubrey Plaza was a treat (like always).  The visuals, the music, everything.  And obvs I loved seeing Jemaine Clement.  Because I love seeing him in basically everything.

Supergirl did a great job of being the finale everyone kind of expected and hoped for at the same time.  Big effects, big fights, conclusions to stories, teases for the next season, all of it.  It had more ambition in it than some movies, and did a great job with maximizing the TV budget it had.  And honestly, it’s crazy that this is a TV show.  A decade ago, many of these episodes would have been a movie, for their budget and characters.  And Melissa Benoist is just a treat.

Flash ... well, I love the Flash, but this season wasn’t great, and last wasn’t either.  This was better, but still up and down, very uneven.  The finale was fine, but it had a few things that could have made it much better.  And naturally Barry did a Barry thing in the finale, and despite it actually making sense this time around, it still feels like a pointless cliffhanger.  One of those: Is the main character really dead?  Well, all signs point to Maybe!  (Unless the show got renewed and isn’t Game of Thrones).

Supernatural was pretty solid considering it is in season 10,000.  Sad that Mark Sheppard (Crowley) said he’s not coming back for next year, but maybe it’s a cop out like Ian Somerhalder (Damien) on Vampire Diaries, where it’s really just to ‘sell’ a finale.  I really have enjoyed the last 4 seasons quite a lot and have every intention of tuning in again and again to watch the boys raise havoc and save people (and hunt things) as long as the CW will renew it.

Legends added dinosaurs in the finale, in a city, doing dinosaur things.  This covers a lot of ‘meh’ parts in the finale, though it was pretty solid overall.  I mean, when a season is about getting the Spear of Destiny and then needing to use the Blood of Christ that is buried in a battlefield (that you retrieve during a battle) so that 3 baddies don’t destroy all the things ... well, it’s an insane premise that was well delivered, just not incredibly well.  More Captain Cold is always a good thing though!

Vampire Diaries finally ended, and it ended in (some) ways that people expected, and others that were still (somewhat) surprising.  It smartly left teases to storylines unexplored that will likely payoff in The Originals, and allow us to continue visiting some characters again, but it didn’t feel like a cheap finale for a show that over and over surprised me with how fun and insane it was. 

Both Superstore and Last Man on Earth had finales that reset the status quo and will get me back.  Partly because they’re both terrific in different ways, and partly because both could use a bit of a shakeup in ‘the formula’.  They were fine finales but not ‘OH MY GOSH HAVE YOU SEEN’ finales. 

A simple summary of The Walking Dead finale: from literally the first 2 minutes I could have told you how at least part of it would end.  But some parts were still very entertaining, while other were ... predictably dumb.  This was a very up and down season with a lot of flaws that hopefully will be corrected and some story problems that seemed so simple to resolve.

Suits teased a change that seemed like it took an eternity to get here, despite being eminently enjoyable to watch it come to fruition, still took a thousand years to happen.  It was renewed, so it will be neat to see how it changes things going forward.  And, considering the upcoming spinoff, I wonder if Suits is coming to a close?

Rebels ... next season is your last.  I have mixed feelings about this.  Where was Ahsoka this last season?  I guess that was the answer to season 2′s finale... but come on.  That better not be the answer.  I’m excited for some of the teases for next season, hopeful Thrawn keeps being menacing, and intrigued about how they end it.  And mostly I’m interested to see when Disney will announce the next animated show, hopefully set in another interesting era where we can see big names do big stuff (ala Clone Wars).  Still hopeful that Ezra goes darkside.  We’ll see.

Channel Zero surprised me with how incredibly slow burning the entire show was, taking its sweet old time to add in the scares and the dread.  I enjoyed every episode and thought the finale ended it sufficiently, but it wasn’t as good as the prior episodes.  Here’s hoping that season 2 ends up with a similar slow burn feel.

And the following are ones that have aired but I haven’t yet watched:

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Modern Family

Jane the Virgin

Bobs Burgers

Elementary

Samurai Jack

12 Monkeys

The Expanse

Into the Badlands

Yeah, I’ll get there.  I watch a few of these with my wife, so it’s a ‘when we get to it’ kind of thing (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Modern Family, Jane the Virgin, Bobs Burgers), and a few (Samurai Jack, 12 Monkeys) I haven’t watched any of this season.  And Elementary, while I really really enjoy it, I am at least 2-3 seasons out.  The Expanse is the sci-fi show everyone should be watching but not enough are and I think it’s going to end up cancelled before it really hits its stride (and as far as I understand, it got terrifically better in season 2 after a very strong season 1).  Into the Badlands is the show (frankly) that Iron Fist wishes it was and I really need to watch season 2, but its one of those shows you have to watch without doing other things (which tends to be what I do).

And there’s ones that are a still a ways out:

The Originals

The Leftovers

Better Call Saul

Doctor Who

Steven Universe

Adventure Time

Gotham

Fargo

American Gods

Prison Break

Twin Peaks

So much excellent TV in this!  The Originals has been good, The Leftovers is on its way out (and seems to be maintaining its quality and momentum), and what I say that hasn’t been said about Better Call Saul?  Doctor Who has been completely amazing this season, easily the best Capaldi season, and up there with the best ‘Nu Who’ seasons, in my opinion (and many others’).  Steven Universe is so much fun and I know Adventure Time is on the way out ... sad sad sad.  Can’t wait to share that with my son when he’s older.  Gotham is insane and campy and stupid and I’ll absolutely tune in in the fall.  Fargo has been good this season after a kind of ‘meh’ season 2.  American Gods is a great adaptation of the book, and a great show really in every respect.  Blown away by the quality!  And I haven’t actually started Prison Break but I fully expect to enjoy it (and be sad since apparently it isn’t getting renewed again).  Um and Twin Peaks is a show that I don’t understand but am watching season 2 so I can watch season 3. 

And ones that are about to start:

Dark Matter

Killjoys

Fear the Walking Dead

Rick and Morty

Orphan Black

Preacher

Dark Matter isn’t amazing but it’s serviceable, while Killjoys is so so so much fun.  Fear is still figuring itself out but season 2 was much better than season 1 (where they totally abandoned their premise about 2 episodes in).  Rick and frickin’ Morty.  When are we getting more, Dan Harmon??!??!  And lastly, Orphan Black, I can’t believe it’s almost time to say goodbye.  Tatiana Maslany better get some killer roles after this because she is a stellar actress and this show is so good, I hope the finale does it justice.  And Preacher is just insane in the best way.

That’s all for my TV thoughts for now.  I didn’t include Netflix-type binge shows but I watched a lot of those too (Iron Fist, 3%, The OA, Between, Travelers, Santa Clarita Diet, The Crown).  Or shows I might want to watch but haven’t yet (Riverdale, Underground).  And I probably forgot other shows too.  And I probably watch too much TV, but if it’s any consolation or explanation, it heavily influences and inspires my writing.  (And most of it I watch while video gaming anyway).

[dineshgilfoyle]

My 100 Favorite Animated TV Episodes Ever

The Simpsons: Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy

2. Bob’s Burgers: Bad Tina

3. Batman: The Brave and the Bold: Mite-Fall!

4. Rick and Morty: The Wedding Squanchers

5. Rick and Morty: A Rickle in Time

6. The Simpsons: Bart Sells His Soul

7. The Simpsons: Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington

8. The Simpsons: El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer

9. Adventure Time: What Was Missing

10. King of the Hill: I Don’t Want to Wait...

11. South Park: Stanley’s Cup

12. BoJack Horseman: The Telescope

13. Clone High: Homecoming: A Shot in D’Arc

14. Hey Arnold!: Helga on the Couch

15. Steven Universe: Alone Together

16. BoJack Horseman: Hank After Dark

17. Adventure Time: Memory of a Memory

18. The Fairly OddParents: School’s Out!: The Musical

19. Bob’s Burgers: Tina-rannosaurus Wrecks

20. The Simpsons: Selma’s Choice

21. The Simpsons: You Only Move Twice

22. Phineas and Ferb: Phineas and Ferb Get Busted

23. The Simpsons: Stark Raving Dad

24. Bob’s Burgers: Ear-Sy Rider

25. The Simpsons: I Love Lisa

26. Bob’s Burgers: The Unbearable Like-Likeness of Gene

27. Gravity Falls: The Last Mabelcorn

28. Bob’s Burgers: Mutiny on the Windbreaker

29. Clone High: Changes: The Big Prom: The Sex Romp: The Season Finale

30. BoJack Horseman: One Trick Pony

31. Archer: Double Indecency

32. Clone High: Film Fest: Tears of a Clone

33. Clone High: Sleep of Faith: La Rue D’Awakening

34. The Simpsons: Homer vs. the 18th Amendment

35. The Simpsons: Like Father, Like Clown

36. Justice League Unlimited: The Greatest Story Never Told

37. The Simpsons: A Streetcar Named Marge

38. The Simpsons: A Fish Called Selma

39. Clone HIgh: ADD: The Last D is for Disorder

40. The Simpsons: Homer’s Phobia

41. Clone High: Snowflake Day: A Very Special Holiday Episode

42. The Simpsons: Burns’ Heir

43. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic: Party of One

44. The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror IV

45. The Simpsons: New Kid on the Block

46. The Boondocks: A Date with the Health Inspector

47. The Simpsons: A Star is Burns

48. The Simpsons: Life on the Fast Lane

49. The Simpsons: Homer the Great

50. The Simpsons: Lemon of Troy

51. Archer: Deadly Velvet: Parts 1 & 2

52. The Simpsons: $pringfield

53. The Simpsons: Rosebud

54. The Simpsons: Homie the Clown

55. Star vs. the Forces of Evil: Mewberty

56. The Simpsons: Who Shot Mr. Burns, Parts 1 & 2

57. The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror V

58. The Simpsons: Cape Feare

59. The Simpsons: Last Exit to Springfield

60. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic: Best Night Ever

61. The Simpsons: Marge vs. the Monorail

62. The Simpsons: Homer the Heretic

63. The Simpsons: Homer the Smithers

64. We Bare Bears: Mature Party

65. The Simpsons: 22 Short Films About Springfield

66. The Simpsons: Deep Space Homer

67. The Simpsons: Mr. Plow

68. The Simpsons: Flaming Moe’s

69. The Simpsons: Homer’s Triple Bypass

70. BoJack Horseman: Downer Ending

71. Regular Show: The Postcard

72. Rick and Morty: Total Rickall

73. Batman: the Animated Series: Harley & Ivy

74. Gravity Falls: Not What He Seems

75. The Simpsons: Homer’s Enemy

76. The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes: Alone Against A.I.M.

77. Teen Titans Go!: Girls’ Night Out

78. Teen Titans Go!: You’re Fired

79. Teen Titans Go!: Super Robin

80. Superman: the Animated Series: Little Big Head Man

81. South Park: Make Love, Not Warcraft

82. Haikyuu!!: The Former Coward’s Fight

83. Adventure Time: Simon & Marcy

84. DuckTales: Don’t Give Up the Ship

85. Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir: Animan

86. Erased: Flashing Before My Eyes

87. Erased: Accomplishment

88. The Venture Bros.: Tanks for Nuthin’

89. Futurama: Leela’s Homeworld

90. Dragons: Race to the Edge: Snotlout Gets the Axe

91. BoJack Horseman: Fish Out of Water

92. Steven Universe: Bismuth

93. Invader Zim: Lice

94. Family Guy: Back to the Pilot

95. Family Guy: Road to the Multiverse

96. Frisky Dingo: Meet Killface

97. Bob’s Burgers: Glued, Where’s My Bob?

98. SpongeBob SquarePants: Band Geeks

99. The Amazing World of Gumball: The Dress

100. Daria: Boxing Daria