Well...here we are, folks. The final part of the three-episode review that aspired just this week alone. If you haven’t seen The Great North’s mini-review sandwiched in between either of the Bob’s Burgers doubleheaders as it should’ve been in the past few months since the start of the season...well, here we are. Decided to give The Great North its own review because it's the least that I can do since we're going on a three-week break until sometime in April. Mind you that this is the forty-ninth episode overall in this series. The next one in April will be the show's fiftieth episode. Can you believe that? But might as well get this out of the way and it's pretty much the shortest one out of the three for this week. This is my...well, kind of a spoilerific review but it's not even a full breakdown where I review each scene from start to finish. This will go in the way of how the series landed in the Top 12 Countdown at the end of last year...and the year before that. This is my take on this week's episode of The Great North, titled "Great Bus of Choir Adventure".
Now...might as well get this out of the way, originally, “Arranger-ous Minds Adventure” back in January was supposed to be its own episode review. Though that's mostly because...well, January's schedule when it comes to these shows are wonky. Primarily because it was at the end of the regular season of the NFL and transitioning to the playoffs. It was gonna be a full review and breakdown of the episode much like how I did with Bob's Burgers. But that had to be sandwiched into the "Cheaty Cheaty Bang Bang" review the week after the episode's premiere because of a few reasons. One is waiting for the transcript of the episode to come out when working on the episode. Two, the timing. It came out on New Year's Day. I just came out from doing the year-end countdown for the remaining twelve days of December going from series to series with shows like The Owl House, Bleach, Attack on Titan, and Amphibia that kicked my ass when working on the countdown. So your boy needed some time to recover before doing Bob's Burgers. Call me biased all you want; I’m only doing this because I can do whatever. And alright, the third reason being, of course, this was back in the first week of January, being the situation regarding Damar Hamlin collapsing on the field following cardiac arrest. That was a tough scene to watch live. He did recover and is still with us today, just...yeah...sports fan or not, that was a scary scene. So, "Arranger-ous Minds Adventure" was supposed to be its own review but didn’t. And now, it’s “Great Bus of Choir Adventure” that will be taking the solo review label because Bob's Burgers recently had a double billing. So, let's get to the episode and much like with the Top 12 Countdown of 2021 and 2022, it's the main plot that goes first and then the subplot. And we start with, of course, the main plot.
And there are two sides to the coin for the main plot with one half being Wolf and Honeybee attempting to test the waters by trying out their parenting skills when being left alone with Judy and Ham while Moon and Beef are away for the Tobin family's 10-year-old retreat. While housing a choir group when their bus broke down because Wolf forgot to cover the pothole that would pose a hazard to any moving vehicle with two of the members arguing over the choice of song on their way to Death Cliff to attend a funeral. Questioning what kind of parenting skills should they try out if they want to, one day, become parents themselves. While on the other side of the coin, you have Judy and Ham plotting something while Wolf and Honeybee are busy dealing with the choir group while their bus is being repaired thanks in part to, of course, a pothole that Wolf forgot to cover. Might as well tackle Wolf and Honeybee’s side of the episode and uh...
Is it me or is the show really trying to tease the viewers about what is about to come regarding their future? Because you have them wanting to test the waters by trying to be responsible by playing parents. Most notably, when being left to watch over the house and also Judy and Ham while Beef and Moon are away. As well as housing a group of choir folk while waiting for the bus to be repaired to get to their destination. You're getting that feeling on whether or not the topic of if they're planning on getting a kid in the future. The "not" answer might be the way to go because it's too early for them to decide. It's too early for them to decide on whether or not they want to have a child of their own since becoming a married couple and already testing out the waters of being amateur parents when watching over Judy and Ham for the night. And the differences in their parenting skills are shown in the second and third acts of the episode with Wolf being the type of parent that doesn't want to show favoritism towards a kid, let alone a member of the choir group over a heated argument with the choice of song in their playlist. Not to mention, trying to be the "cool dad" when catching what Judy and Ham were doing over at the guest cabin. So Wolf's parenting skills are pretty much letting the kid do whatever the fuck they want and don't want to draw any negative consequences and create tension. Honeybee with her parenting skills shows her as the sort of strict, authoritative kind where the parent has to show who's the boss and cause some tension but only did it because they want to be on the lookout for their wellbeing. So, different styles when it comes to their parenting throughout the episode leading up to the fourth act.
The two styles later have to be combined once the party abruptly ended to talk to Judy and Ham over everything that led to the party...a party that included a bit of alcohol being mixed into the equation because...it's a high school party, so of course, alcohol had to be involved that is not suitable for a minor. Pretty much sums up your usual American high school party for those living outside of the US. And also Canada...and the UK...and Australia...and Mexico...okay, everywhere across the world except for countries that are authoritative countries or it's illegal because of religious purposes. But other than that, giving Judy and Ham a fair warning to not pull something like that, and we'll get to their side of the main plot in a bit, as well as getting one of the members of the choir to leave the outhouse and talk things out. Revealing that their destination is a funeral and the person who died was the person with who that member of the choir had a connection. A connection that was severed because she died of a freak car accident on their way to, and their words, a sex party. And it's a Batman-themed sex party. Don't want to know what it is but I'm sure it involved cosplaying and getting into acts. But you have to give Wolf and Honeybee some credit for what they're doing...in the fourth act when coming up with a compromise and trying to talk things out to make sure anything like the party and the argument over the song choice won't happen again.
But besides that, when looking at the synopsis of the episode leading to the airing, it does kinda tease you that if there are signs that we might be getting close to the idea of Wolf and Honeybee having kids of their own would come to fruition. Would hope for the decision-making to happen by the end of the episode. That didn't happen and that's alright. And I'd say that because it's too early to talk about the notion of whether or not Wolf and Honeybee are ready to talk about having a kid. Just give them time. Give them time to think...just for God knows when until they're ready to talk things out. The style of parenting being combined around the fourth act of the episode because Honeybee had gone through that when she and Jerry had gone through while living in Fresno. Her dad was a softy and laxed and her mom was strict. So they had to combine both styles, dress up via Mrs. Doubtfire, and talk things through for a smooth response and not spiral into chaos. So for now, the notion of people thinking that Wolf and Honeybee setting up the domino pieces of the possibility of them having children is going to have to wait. Besides, that's for them to decide. And by them, I mean, the show. They need to decide whether or not they're ready to make the decision.
Now to Judy and Ham with their side story that was shoehorned into the main plot and it has to be inserted into the night Wolf and Honeybee get left being in charge of the two teens. Them telling everyone that they don't need to be watched over as if they're still little kids. So the secret that the two teens have been teasing throughout the episode leading up to the near-end of the second act turns out to be them hosting a late-night party over at the guest cabin for Bethany’s birthday. And yes, it’s at the guest cabin because originally, it was going to be at the house once Wolf and Honeybee go back to their cabin for the night but the pothole that caused the bus that carried the choir derailed their plan...or that is what Ham thought when housing the choir members because Judy reassures that the two adults will be focusing on them and move the location from the house to the guest cabin. Notifying everyone about the change of location to give the birthday girl, which is Bethany, who is turning...if you do math, Ham and Judy are born nine months apart, Judy turned 16 at the start of the series...carry whatever number you throw in...Bethany would be around 16 throughout the series up until this episode, so she would be 17 now if I were to guess. And the average age range for an eleventh grader in the US is 16-17 years of age. Boom, math. Unless they're in tenth grade because Judy in the first episode of the series just turned 16. Tenth, eleventh grade, someone had to do the math on how old these characters are. We knew that they're high schoolers. Hosted the party and things go somewhat smoothly for the high schoolers over everything from the location change to the set-up...too bad that they got caught once Steven and Chrissy arrive, and for some reason...
They didn't get the memo about the change of location when arriving at the doorstep of the house and NOT the cabin with Steven holding a pack of beers. Causing Wolf to intervene and about to shut the party down...but ends up joining for a bit before alerting Honeybee about what Judy and Ham were doing. Leading to the birthday party coming to an abrupt end and getting a conversation about the dangers of teens having alcohol in their possession. Especially with them giving them the green light the moment Beef and Moon head out of town for their subplot. No teens have been drunk in the making of this episode but uh...yeah, there's your morals of the episode. Along with the choir group, thanks to Wolf and Honeybee, after getting their bus fixed, and finally head off to Death Cliff after coming into an agreement between the two sides of the choir over the choice of song for the funeral service. Finally being out of their lives to close out the episode for the main plot...
Oh yeah, Ham almost stowed away with the choir group on their way out as we prepare to close out the main plot of the episode. Because of course, we gotta have that to close out the episode of Ham not knowing he was going by adding himself into an outgoing group on their way out of their doorstep. Oh, Ham, never change. So that was the main plot of the episode. Now onto the subplot with Beef and Moon...
On their way to the ten-year Tobin retreat for Moon to encounter...only for the plane to make an “emergency” pit stop in Anchorage and it didn’t take long for Moon to put two and two together to find out that the location of his retreat is at the town. Not in the wilderness as Beef puts it, because Moon already knows his way across the wilderness at a young age like he's a modern-day Davy Crockett, he needs to know how to survive the city life because that too is a wilderness but surviving in the city is a whole different breed for someone who lived in a rural area. Let alone from a small town visiting a populous city like Anchorage. It is the biggest and most populous city in the state of Alaska and this is what Beef is going to help Moon to teach him some urban survival training.
Which fell flat at their faces as the episode progresses when it comes to surviving the big city. Tell that to everyone who wants to move to the big city to pursue a dream to become reality, looking at you New York. We see movies. But looking through the duration of the subplot with Beef and Moon strolling through the city, after making a stop at a motel after noticing that they hit the meter on the taxi, it doesn't look as easy as it looks. Especially from them being "out of city folk" when teaching Moon how to survive. That and also being mugged by a random stranger, and getting their luggage stolen by that guy who thinks that Beef and Moon are Terminators being sent to kill him. But why stop right there? Struggling to find a place to sleep. Trying to find a place to eat, Moon finds a place that hosted a free buffet...which ultimately led them to a strip club of all places, not the place that even a 10-year-old shouldn’t even consider that as a “safe place” after being mugged and being unable to know the rules of the streets of the big city.
Moon even considered going to the zoo, closed for the night, to eat at least one animal to survive for the night. Pretty much boils down to the retreat being a total disaster for Moon to learn how to survive city life. And if being mugged by a guy who accused them of being "Terminators" and not being able to find food or a place to sleep like a herd of wild animals, yeah, I can see why things fell apart at a baseball pitcher's pace. Not saying that the city life isn't Moon's thing, to begin with. Especially when living in a small town like Lone Moose in comparison to visiting a heavily populated city like Anchorage the same way someone who lives in a big city for their entire life one day visits the rural farm area somewhere in the state or the country. Even if you have family living there. This makes you question how Wolf, Ham, and Judy even survived their retreat when they were sent to the wilderness in their retreat. Other than that, Moon thinks that his retreat went into shambles with Beef reassuring him that it's not. Sure, the retreat was a total disaster from the start since making a stop in the city rather than going into the wilderness deep into the state. With Wolf, Ham, and Judy on their retreat, it's them getting a better understanding of the wilderness and how to survive in the event society decides to collapse. With Moon, it's him constructing his life skills when visiting Anchorage with Beef.
Getting to the point where they decided to get some help to either get their stuff back or maybe a place to sleep or maybe get asses back to Lone Moose. Apparently, they somehow didn’t contact Lara, the person who took the two Tobin boys to Anchorage on aviation travel while at the gas station to make a phone call. But luckily for Beef and Moon, Brian resides in town and that's where they'll be heading and they did to close out the subplot of the episode. Though the Terminator Guy who kept on creeping them wherever Beef and Moon are from location to location and threatening to attack them...yeah, that guy might need some help. He might need some help and convince that Terminators aren't coming to kill us. Pretend that AI becoming a staple of our lives doesn't exist and that we're not busy making people-killing cyborgs. Otherwise, we're just giving ammo to the military-industrial complex and the movie from the 1980s would serve nothing more than a documentary. Or a possible dire warning.
Reaction/Thoughts:
So all and all, it's an alright episode for The Great North. Yeah, there are some moments that aren't memorable from this episode but there were some okay bits when glossing through this. Mind you that this is the first time the show has gotten a solo review since its first episode, I am trying here. Especially when having this outside of a Bob's Burgers review that is sandwiched between the two halves of an episode. But besides that, it's not that bad, but it's average, to say the least.
Sure, the thought of Wolf and Honeybee muddy the waters by playing parents while having the cabin to themselves, well, watching over Judy and Ham, going to have some people having a false notion because some may think that the show is prepping on planting the seeds in the event on whether or not they want to have a child of their own. Mostly from reading the synopsis alone before the episode aired. And give the show some time on whether or not they're ready to push the notion of Wolf and Honeybee ready to have a kid of their own. Right now, it's way too early to bring up. Give them some time. But for this episode, it's pretty much them wanting to be the responsible adults that they are when watching over Judy and Ham for the weekend while Beef and Moon are away. Showcasing the two types of parenting skills Wolf and Honeybee showcase when housing a choir group after their bus broke down outside and have to play mediator to two of the members arguing over the song choice for the funeral service. And you have to give Wolf and Honeybee some credit for being responsible adults once we get to the fourth act of the episode by coming to terms and combining the two styles of parenting, Wolf's style as a lax and soft parent that doesn't want to create conflict by showing favoritism and Honeybee being the strict and authoritative figure by going full Mrs. Doubtfire and reason with both parties, being Judy and Ham with the party at the guest cabin and reason with one of the members of the choir group who locked himself in the outhouse.
And I guess the subplot wasn't too bad also. Yeah, the retreat in the city was gonna fall apart the moment finding out that surviving in the city isn't all that easy for someone who has no survival skills or life skills to get through a big town like what Moon had to endure. But then again, pretty sure no one can survive through the big city without having any street smarts or at least something to defend themselves. There are some moments from that. Mostly with Moon trying to find something to eat and that led both him and Beef to a place that ended up being a strip club. He even mentioned that he can eat the food there with his eyes closed if he were to go inside. Eat the food there while using his father as a ticket in. I know that didn't happen because...well, S&P practices if I were to guess. And I guess them being chased around by the guy who accuses them of being "Terminators" and stole their stuff and kept on coming in their direction each time they were in a different location across Anchorage. I mean, they could've gotten their stuff back but we don't know if that guy is considered dangerous and whether or not he's armed. And again, I feel like he might need some help and maybe not chase after the two members of the Tobin family. Let alone a child and his father. But other than that, an average episode. Some moments in the episode I found okay like Moon attempting to go into a strip club just to get him and Beef something to survive while in town and I guess Ham attempted to stow away with the choir group because everyone was heading to the bus and he ended up tagging along with them for a bit before being told to get out of the bus. And for that, I'll give "Great Bus of Choir Adventure"...
A 6 out of 10. But that's my opinion and I wanna hear yours in the comments below. And with that, that's three-episode reviews in one week from this past Sunday in the books. Thank God and with a three-week break, I need some time to recover because by now, my brain is pretty much fried from working on three articles in the span of 3-5 days. So there's that. We'll see about that little discussion piece I mentioned in my "These Boots Are Made for Stalking" review about the friend situation for Tina throughout the next three weeks as we wait for the next episode sometime on April 16.
Follow me on Tumblr, Twitter, Mastodon, and Instagram for updates and behind-the-scenes stuff. The first match of the Group B stages of the 2023 Battle of the Week Voting Tournament between the former Alpha Party Nominee from the 2021 season, Feliciano Vargas/Italy from Hetalia taking on Piccolo from Dragon Ball with the polls closing on Saturday. And then next week, Group C with Quinn Ergon (Final Space) and Reagan Ridley (Inside Job). The week after that with Group A between Riko (Made in Abyss) and Momo Yaoyorozu (My Hero Academia). And the week after that with Group B between Ichigo Kurosaki (Bleach) and Shikamaru Nara (Naruto). Y’all should know the drill by now...
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