alright y’all, time for a Melissa play-by-play. I have a theory about this episode but it will get it’s own post:
And we dive right into spy time
That statue in the fountain was very upsetting :’)
GODDAMN U LAUNCHPAD, U SEXY BEAST
I like that LP says spiffy because I use the word spiffy
DEW-ble O Duck
“What I Dewey best” God I love Dewey and his love of puns
SONG TIME!!!
Ben is a really good singer
I like how the song was foreshadowing things to come
How is she wearing earrings?
A ham on cheese sandwich sounds really good rn
“I can’t remember when I’m hungry” A man after my own heart
YOU DIED
Ok, that game is WAAAAAY too advanced. It has the whole building mapped out and those glasses are WAAAY to small and lightweight to handle all that. Is it all through wi-fi? Am I overthinking the logic of a video game in a cartoon? Probably
“I had a sassy quip and everything.” He has the makings of a superhero in him
“It’s a little too real.” FORESHADOWING! Or the game was already REALLY immersive. OR BOTH
OH GOD LAUNCHPAD IS ALREADY FEELING BAD ABOUT HIMSELF!
“Haven’t you ever wanted to plug into a high-stakes, thrilling adventure?” He’s already done the spy-thing. Though it would have been cool to see Scrooge in a sexy suit
UNCLE MCDEE! I LOVE IT
Then an Uncle Scrooge from Webby. TOO CUTE!
There is A LOT of winking in this episode ;)
“We’re a team” DEWEY IS SO ADORABLE AND WHOLESOME!
Aw, Launchpad
I didn’t notice it the first time, but I love that Steelbeak is using one of those plastic swords to pick his teeth. It’s the little things
Is the theme song gonna be the short version for every episode this season?
I really dig Jason Mantzoukas’ take on Steelbeak. He’s just so cocky yet insecure at the same time. I like his voice cracking when he gets embarrassed or excited
And I ADORE how UTTERLY STUPID he is. I think he’s dumber than Launchpad because Launchpad is aware that he’s not exactly the smartest guy but Steelbeak GENUINELY thinks he’s smart. Plus he feels the joke. That’s just dumb and unfunny (in-universe at least. out of universe it’s great)
“The Sat-a-Lighthouse. Classic villain lair.” Well we know that’s gonna show up
Bradford’s neck bothers me. It makes my neck hurt looking at it
Intelli-ray. You guys are a bit on the beak nose when it comes to naming things
GADGET!
“Rat’s are dumb, right?” YOU STUPID BEAUTIFUL MAN
THE OTHER RANGERS! And Monterey already has his mustache
Ok how did her hair grow so fast? And did she shave her fur? How did she get a more human-esque figure? I NEED THIS INFORMATION
They Secret of Nimh’ed her!
Heron acts like an annoyed/done mom with Steelbeak and he acts like a snotty kid. It’s great
EVIL LAUGH
“Did that rat make that jumpsuit on a regular sewing machine, or did it build its own tiny sewing machine?” STEELBEAK ASKING THE REAL QUESTIONS HERE
I legit thought she was about to pull off his beak
“I’ll go. Not because you told me.” He’s such a punk-ass kid, I LOVE IT
CHOMP CHOMP
DON’T EXPLAIN THE JOKE, BRO
“I pay for the privilege of doing someone else’s yard-work?” THAT’S WHAT I THOUGHT YOU’D SAY, YOU RICH, PRIVILEGED MAN. Whack-a-Mole is actually about expressing all the rage and fury inside you
Video graphic adventures
SKEE BALL! I FUCKING LOVE SKEE BALL
That kid didn’t even take his tickets
Ticket-rich. I love it
LET’S STRETCH BITCHES
“Can’t let Dewey down. Gotta be smart, gotta win the game.” OH LAUNCHPAD, SWEETHEART
“Calm down, LP. It’s only a game.” Dewey is SUCH a GOOD friend!
“But don’t overthink it.” That’s just good life advice in general
I love how tiny Dewey is when compared to LP. It’s ADORABLE
“THEN WE GET PIZZA.” “Yes, pizza.” I don’t know why, but the way Ben delivers that line is hilarious to me
“Pad. Launchpad. McQuack. My name is Launchpad McQuack.” I love you so much
Ok, was there an actual dude there? How could’ve Steelbeak thrown a digital person?
“Yes, I do as well.” YOU DUMB HOE, I LOVE YOU
That card game was great. Truly a battle of wits. And Dewey just being like...what. Beautiful
“Well played.” “It was?”
“Look’s like you’ve been out-smart guyed.” The dialogue in this episode is top notch
I too do not understand smanzy card games
“But how about a game of 52 pickup...YOUR TEETH!”
“THE PAIN FEELS SO LIFELIKE!”
The sound Steelbeak makes when Dewey pulls on his...hair(?) is great
One day you’ll get to quip Dewey, one day
The cuts between the game reality and actual reality are so great
Is that the Phantom Blot or the normal Funzo? Is there even a normal Funzo?
The neck cracking also made my neck hurt
All the kids gathering around Scrooge is too cute
“Not now lass, I’m on a roll.” SKEE BALL IS A GATEWAY DRUG TO GAMBLING
“I think they just have nachos.” They have pizza too
Steelbeak pecking at Launchpad...brilliant
The little pug/bulldog kid is so cute
The scream when he’s hit with the pizza is gold
That ballpit is terrifying
Yet again Launchpad falls on someone
HE FUCKING PUNCHED A KID! WTF BRO?!
“WE MADE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL!”
Those jumpsuits are pretty nice, ngl
“Nerp”
Launchpad had the right idea, he just fumbled on the execution
Rubix cubes-shorthand for intelligence levels
She is so done with him it’s great
“We can make Scrooge SO HUNGRY, he’ll EAT all the toys!” Solid logic
“Duh, that ain’t smart.” OO, BURN
Whenever anyone/anything grabs Steelbeak’s beak I feel like it’s gonna come off
THE THEME SONG PLAYS! I LOVE IT! IT’S GREAT
How did the others get smart? Where did THEIR clothes come from?! I NEED ANSWERS FRANK!!
Launchpad is always ready to lend a helping hand
HOW DID THE GLOVE FLOAT?! I HAVE SO MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS!!!
“The answer was to build a tiny plane and teach a mouse to fly it?” “Yes, I figured that out.”
Is Gadget a rat or a mouse? She looked more mouse-like before she got smartified but Heron called her a rat. EVEN MORE UNANSWERED QUESTIONS! She’s probably a mouse though because that’s what she was in the original show
I don’t know why but I love when people call Launchpad LP. Maybe it’s because he has nicknames for everyone else so him having a nickname is cute
So Steelbeak was in prison in St. Canard. Perhaps he had a run in with a certain terror that flaps in the night? That would be hilarious if the two had met before but now Steelbeak is more focused on Launchpad. That would be a blow to DW’s ego
I kind of feel bad for Steelbeak. Sure he’s dumb but that was uncalled for. No wonder he snapped
“You bird-brained...” Aren’t you ALL bird-brains though? You are birds and you have brains therefore you have bird-brains. That almost feels like it could be a racist comment in this world
“I’M THE RICHEST DUCK IN THE ARCADE!” You were the richest duck in the arcade the moment you walked in
I love when Scrooge gets obsessed with something and loses his goddamn mind
WEBBY YOU CREATED A MONSTER!
“Ticket bin?” “YES!”
322 DAYS WITHOUT AN ACCIDENT. Good for them
Launchpad just LEEROY JENKENS’ed his way in
His hand is as big as Dewey’s HEAD
LP and Steelbeak have great fight dialogue. It reminds me of Megamind and Metro Man
LAUNCHPAD PUSHES DEWEY TO SAFETY! At that point he didn’t even KNOW what the ray did! But he heroically saved his best friend, not matter what would happen to him! WE STAN!
This episode cemented my headcanon that Chris Evans would be the perfect human LP
“I SHALL AVENGE YOU, MY FRIEND”
This scene, the climax, and the end of the episode gave me a theory, but it will have its own post
British accent=smart?
First thing he does is slick back the hair. Classy
“That cad, Steelbeak” We should call more people cads
How did LP fit into that much smaller man’s uniform? Are they extra stretchy? Because I can totally see that being something FOWL would do. It’s practical
“I don’t know what any of those words mean.” Same
“Heavens, you don’t want them to think you don’t know what you’re doing!” My constant struggle
The supersious guy is adorable
“Well, it’s certainly proving to be bad luck FOR YOU!”
KARATE CHOP ACTION
He still calls him Mr McDee. I just think that’s cute
Dear Dewford. Aww
“I won’t let him down again.” AAAAWWWWWWW
“Can’t go out there looking like this.” You can’t fight crime if you ain’t cute (or sexy in LP’s case)
LAUNCHPAD, YOU SEXY MOTHERFUCKER
That is an old-ass phone you got there, LP
Scrooge is 2 for 2 in missing important calls. Probably should turn his ringtone on
Webby is just so done
“Ah yes, you’d like that wouldn’t you, sonny.” God, Scrooge can get downright FERAL
Blink-and-you’ll-miss-it DW cameo. It looks like Drake’s DW. Does he have merch now? Does he get a cute of the sales? Who makes the merch?
WEBBY WILL FUCKING END YOU
Dewey is SO precious this episode. His cute little bounces
“I’m actually afraid and a little dehydrated, this game is AWESOME” GET THAT BOY SOME JUICE STAT
I love when shows realistically portray sound
“No time for a...crash course” YEEEEEAAAAAAAH
How’d he get a grappling hook?
“THAT’S MY PARTNER!” DEWEY LOVES LP SO MUCH!!
“How is he doing this?” The power of sexy? I don’t know either, bro
“There goes your pal LURCH-POUND! HA! You know, because he just got lurched into that POND OVER THERE?!” “That’s technically a bay.” “I’M NOT STUPID!”
“Classic villain lair!” I can appreciate a man who knows what he’s about
Why do villains alway jump INSTANTLY to the world? You gotta take baby steps. Start with a city, then a state, then the tri-state area a country, THEN the world. Gotta pace yourself
“And Uncle Scrooge only gives us like a nickel each week.” Do they do chores to earn that allowance? I mean, probably. Do Donald and Della have to do chores as well? Give them at least a dime, Scrooge!
MORE SEXY LAUNCHPAD! DAMN YOU, YOU BEAUTIFUL MAN!
“Waaaaiiiit a minute, is that my suit?!” “It suits me better.” DAMN STRAIGHT IT DOES! LP fills the jacket out
I like Steelbeak adding on his fingers
“Your fancy speak won’t work on me, Dummy-O-Duck. Ha-ha, classic.”
“That was totally my plan the whole time” Sweetie, just...no
“I guess you’re not as smart as *voice crack* ME.” “Not as smart as I.” NOW IS NOT THE TIME FOR CORRECTING GRAMMAR!
THEY’RE BACK! AND THE THEME SONG! SO BEAUTIFUL!
Again, I thought Steelbeak’s beak was coming off
I like that Steelbeak went into pray position while being shocked
I’m gonna pretend the Rangers were off on their own adventure the whole time’
“Thanks for the...rescue.” AND GADGET SALUTES BACK AND WINKS! BEAUTIFUL!
“No person could survive being that stupid”
Launchpad, always willing to take one for the team
“There’s so much more I could accomplish! Stop the evil conspiracy out to get us! Solve world hunger! Land a plane!” No matter how smart he is, Launchpad still can’t stick the landing
“Launchpad, why are you overthinking this?” “Because I want to be good enough for you!” SOB
“Of course you’re good enough for me. You’re my best friend.” SOOOOOOOOOOB
“For Dewey, and Duckburg.” He put Dewey first, daaaaawwwww
HIM CATCHING DEWEY AND HOLDING HIM TIGHT TO HIS CHEST?! SO WHOLESOME!!
First thing LP does after things go back to normal? Fix his hair. Hair is very important to your state of mind, I guess
“Was it all a game?” Life is just a game
“Wait until I tell Huey I...YOU beat the game.” AAAAWWWWWW
“I’m not playing with anyone but you.” MY HEART!!!!
Scrooge is so broken. And the ticket to prize ratio, too true
“How much money did you spend to get those tickets?” Don’t play skee ball, kids. It will ruin your life
“I don’t think we should bring you here anymore.” Donald should probably be the one picking you up because Della would TOTALLY get hooked on a game/get too aggressive and I could see Beakley falling into the same trap
The comb just sticks there
The subtitles call him Suave-Pad, I LOVE IT!
“I like purple. A lot. Ha! Man, I’m glad I got that off my chest.” A DW reference or a CODEWORD?
“WARM THEM, YOU OLD FOOL! WAAAAARN THEEEEEM! Oh, dash it all, I’m going for a soak.”
“Restoring your ‘intelligence’ as it were.” BURN
She’s on a first-name basis with him...interesting
“OR ANY KINDS OF RAYS!” No mad sciencing here
“Who’s stupid now?” Gloating is very unbecoming
There are...certain people I wish I could force to shut up like that
His muffled screaming is great
Again, Rubix cube solving proves intelligence
How did he not notice it was wet when he picked it up?
I NEED THE SONG IN FULL SOMEWHERE TO DOWNLOAD
This one was super fun and emotional. I was not expecting this to be the episode that the Rescue Rangers would make their debut in but I’m glad they were here. Dewey and Launchpad’s friendship is so pure and adorable. I almost wish there hadn’t been a b-plot but it was fun. I know other people are upset over Steelbeak/the Rescue Rangers being different but I like them. This show is different from those shows. Steelbeak was repurposed into being Launchpad’s nemesis so he needed to match him. Plus we already have a bunch of smarties in FOWL. And this Steelbeak seems younger and less experienced so it would make sense that he’s not as clever. The Rangers didn’t really change that much from their show, just got a new origin that helps them fit into the world that has already been set up. I think this episode is going in the top 5.