So... that was quite an eventful two months since I last did these things, apologies for not having the Top 12 Countdown up. But yeah, it's been two months since the last review to close out 2024 and it felt as if the sky is about to, if not, already come crashing down. And that’s just January 2025 in a freaking, fracking nutshell and we still got less than ten months, left in the year. At this point, 2025 might as well be the Squid Game. This year might as well be the literal Squid Game. And the same goes for the next four years. At least we can survive till we get to the release of GTA VI. A challenge that is set to impossible.
In this week’s episode of The Great North, Wolf goes into hiding after getting on a survival reality show and attempts to avoid shame from his family and the town by creating a fake persona leading up to his episode’s premiere in my spoilerific review of the second episode of Season 5 of The Great North, titled “The Prince of Hides Adventure”.
Yeah, I got no introduction to that ties in with the episode and instead, this is me going on a gripe towards the intro. Mostly to talk about the additional modifications that were made in this episode from what we got in “The Lies Aquatic Adventure” back in December. The intro was I guess due for a bit of a change since Season 3 because a lot had happened since then following the events of Seasons 3 and 4 and the intro does deserve a little shakeup. Especially with scenes with the boat and the shot of the Tobins when going through the first 35 seconds of the episode.
In “The Lies Aquatic Adventure”, the few modifications that were made in the intro weren’t too big because the small changes from the version that was used in Seasons 3-4 but also Seasons 1-2 when it comes to the shot of the family on the boat and the scene leading up to the family photo on the stairsteps of the house were the bear when the family said “wow” when looking at the animal and the bear, instead of minding his business and sniff the rock before getting off, it’s him saying “wow” along with the family when looking at the camera. Also, in the part where the family is in the front yard and you have Ham collapsing after being pelted by a snowball and he ran up to join the family for a photo, portions of snow fall off to the steps. So, there are some small changes for only one episode but will be sticking around for now. And that was the last we will ever see The Mighty Kathleen because Beef sold the boat after the episode. So now, going into this week’s episode and beyond...
We got the full introduction of the Canal Breeze (or whatever name will be at the end of the subplot of next week’s episode) and quite the interesting touch when it comes to the transition from the sky where the logo appears to the waters with the camera going through the “O” of the logo and it cuts into Beef controlling the boat and got a peek of the inside. I would give it praise for modifying the intro once more going into this season... if it weren’t for them excluding Dirt, who we want to see aside from the new boat since she’s likely a part of the main cast now following her debut back in Season 4. It was there on the list of what we would expect regarding the changes. But I guess not and I guess that’s what we’re stuck with. Then again, you don’t see the Bob’s Burgers intro being changed by adding Teddy because he’s part of the main cast in the huddle where the Belchers are standing in front of the restaurant. But yeah, a missed opportunity there not to have Dirt in the intro since she’s pretty much a member of the main cast but at least the boat has been updated from here on out. That being said, might as well get to the episode breakdown since it has been nearly three months since the last time I did these, apologies for not having the Top 12 Countdown out, but here we go, this is “The Prince of Hides Adventure”.
The episode starts with a viewing party over at the Tobin household with the Tobins, Jerry, and Cheesecake watching a reality show on TV. A survival reality show that is local access is called “Dropped Off to Die” where a contestant has to survive in the woods alone and, you know, try to survive. Think of various survival reality shows like Survivor or Man vs Wild because that is what I can think of when seeing this when first watch the episode. And for the Tobins watching... well, it’s reality TV, people pretty much eat this shit up. The original brain rot you might say. Loving to see people fail in front of an audience for our amusement like drinking the dirty water or struggling to create a fire like with the family seeing a high school principal attempting to do just that. Also, the prize for survival is $8,000. Yeah, that uh... not is that great of a prize money to give to the winner. But then again, this is a reality show on local access TV, and that’s pretty much their budget in comparison to other survival shows from those major networks. Oh, and also the Tobins think to themselves that they can survive the show with a single brush in the event someone were to throw their hat into the ring.
And the family crest that they have nailed on the wall proves it. A little decor for the family to signify what it meant to be a Tobin living in the state of Alaska and the symbols inside the crest shows it. The fire signifies fire making, the house with the two hammers for shelter making, the dead moose with the arrows attached for hunting, the hand by what appears to be a piece of fruit from its branch for foresting, and the last symbol in the bottom showing a man sitting on top of the mountain, isolation. Clear to say that every member of the Tobin family has had that dog in them since the day they were born. They’re born, bread, breathe, and built for survival and if any of them enter the show, it’s GGs for everyone who would dare to compete against a member of the Tobin family. It is GGs and for Tobins, that’s pride right there. Bringing home the honor, and the $8,000, but mostly honor to the name. And for one Wolf Tobin, once the camera cuts to him before cutting over to everyone watching the show for the rest of the night, that’s exactly what he’s planning on doing.
Going into the overnight hours and applied his skills into an application to the show for him to compete. Wanting to bring pride to the Tobin family that he can survive the wilderness like a true Tobin would do, especially when put on a show to prove how much he can survive the woods alone. Putting in his survival skills onto the application through a form via e-mail, hopefully, that comes with a video audition attached as a file, and with that, the e-mail is sent and for Wolf, so begins the waiting game... in which six weeks have passed and like a kid in the candy store finding a golden ticket hidden inside a wrapper like it’s Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory...
Wolf made the cut. He got the e-mail from the show and he is good to go to join. Jumping for joy and ran off to tell the town that he was officially a contestant on Dropped Off to Die... all while wearing nothing but a robe and underwear across the town when telling the townsfolk the news whether it’s Delmer at Maude’s, Santiago when coming out of a store, Alyson at the grocery store with her telling Wolf to put his junk away because there were some moments where it was accidentally poked out while running. I guess the hoards of eggplants at the produce aisle show it. He continues to run through the town in jubilation over the news of him becoming a contestant of Dropped Off to Die...
Only to get run over by Mrs. Tuntley, who didn’t even see Wolf going across the street and we could go on with the blame game on who is really at fault for all of this, either it’s Wolf not being careful where to cross the street because he was running for joy over the news of him being picked or Dorothy not seeing Wolf running when driving across town, but at least it wasn’t serious enough to injure him to keep him out of the show because he didn’t get hurt. I mean, I wouldn’t rule out a few bruises or some scratches from the concrete, but somehow unscathed as if he has some anime plot armor as he continues to run across town to tell the good word of him becoming a contestant. There was one point where Dorothy attempted to drive off as if she committed a hit-and-run and thought she might have killed Wolf to the point where she might be planning on getting out of town to evade arrest, but it’s all good. It’s all good with no charges being pressed and Wolf with that plot armor as he continues to run across the town in celebratory fashion. However, this won’t be the only time this attempted accidental hit-and-run has happened in this episode between Dorothy and Wolf. So now, once the running has wrapped for Wolf and making it back home...
Hours later, he gets his sendoff with the family and Honeybee in attendance as they wish Wolf the luck he can get as if he’s being shipped off to war, having the camping gear and everything. The Tobins and Honeybee are proud to see Wolf heading off, already feeling pride within the family that one of their own is a contestant on a survival reality show and it would not only, as I mentioned, put some pride within the family, especially when looking back at the family crest that they’re now showoffs when it comes to the wilderness, but it would also put Lone Moose on the map and put Wolf as their local celebrity just for being on the show. Wolf prepares to leave but not before Moon gives him a parting gift to take with him in the form of a wood-carved figure of Wolf to keep him company for the next... days, maybe weeks... a while, a long while but he gonna need it once he heads out the door and make his way to his destination. Especially if he might end up losing all forms of sanity when having to venture into the woods. But beyond all else, the family bids Wolf farewell and wishes him luck as Wolf leaves the house and on his way to the wilderness to have his survival skills put to the test on camera.
The Tobins pretty much all the time with filming and production for Wolf’s episode now underway, so it is only a matter of time to get ready for when the episode drops, which is about a few days, and that’s plenty enough time for the subplot to kick into gear by having Honeybee getting Dirt on the margarita train ahead of the viewing party for Wolf’s episode. Quite surprising that someone like Dirt who drinks a lot of booze and alcohol not once sipped a margarita in her life. The woman is in her late 80s. The margarita was invented in 1942, even though there’s some portion of history where it was invented before or after 1942 like claims that the UK made it in 1937 or that a bar in Tijuana, Mexico in 1938 though the answer I got from Google before asking an AI bot for research was 1942 in Ciudad Juarez by El Paso. All we know is that it was around during Dirt’s lifetime but then again, Dirt went into hiding in 1964 and the margarita became mainstream going into the 1970s and the 80s and 90s. Adding that onto the list of things that Dirt missed out on during her 60 years of hiding. The ultimate hide-and-seek champion right there. Dirt decides to give it a test run by taking a small sip of the drink and lo and behold...
It’s an island paradise in fantasy land for her and Honeybee at the beach. This is Dirt’s first time drinking the mix and already, it’s like she’s in heaven. No negative effects or something, just a simple drink and bam, an experience being unfolded for the 80-something-year-old who had to survive through rations and recyclable water via waste. Envisioning her and Honeybee on the beach and enjoying some glasses of margaritas as if they’re in Spring Break mode and it looks like they’re not alone in the matter because apparently, you have Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus relaxing on the beach and drinking the margarita as well. It’s a wonderful time, even if it’s just a fantasy before shifting back to reality, and yeah, that is the subplot to the episode. That is the subplot that counteracts with the main plot because the family has to get ready for when Wolf’s episode is going to be shown on TV, and trying out new things like margaritas is that one item on the list before the big night.
And speaking of Wolf, going into the next scene, he gets dropped off at the island where the show is set with the host of the show gives Wolf a few ground rules before being dropped off for who knows how long this will last. If Wolf uses the walkie-talkie to tap out, he “dies”, i.e. he’s eliminated from the competition but if he actually dies... he’s pretty much eliminated and instead of going home to the Tobins, it’s a meeting with the big man upstairs. I would say that the Tobins might as well have an attorney ready to sue their asses but I think Wolf had to sign some sort of contract, an NDA, to make sure that if something happened to him while all of this is happening, it’s not the show’s fault. The host also gives Wolf a briefcase with a couple of video cameras to record everything he does and yes, that includes using the bathroom. You almost forgot that in reality shows, 404 Privacy Not Found. And that’s all Wolf has to do once he gets dropped off: record himself on how to survive the wilderness for how long until he decides to tap out. And also being told to not drink the dirty water because that is not a source when trying to find something to hydrate. Looking like something coming out of those places where the color of the water when turning on the faucet shows that icky brown color. So, Galveston water. And I live in Texas, so basically, I can call the shots. Not really, but you have to see the water when it comes to the aerial view. And I’ve been to Galveston Bay.
And so it begins, Wolf’s adventure to survive the wilderness on his lonesome. He creates a camping site by making a tent out of sticks and grass thinking that he’s Abraham Lincoln, catching some fish, and creating a couple of snowmen once dinner rolls around as the sun sets with snowmen versions of Beef, Honeybee, Ham, Judy, and Moon. Though no Dirt, guessing she’s chopped liver into the conversation. Things were going well for Wolf until he heard some snapping in the background that spooked him, his expertise in surviving the woods started to dwindle as the night progressed.
Getting to the point where the wood-craved doll of Wolf that Moon gave to Wolf before heading off starts talking to Wolf and Wolf only. Already getting into some mind games set up since Wolf is the only one in the woods and has to fend for himself. You’d think to yourself when watching that Wolf should at least know about this. He should know how to survive the woods. He should survive anything. I mean, he had his 10-year Tobin retreat a long time ago. He had gone through some stuff but that was with the family. He brought up trips with Beef, Ham, Judy, and Moon. So, having to deal with the trip on his own is pretty much a new experience and an experience that he pretty much wants to get out of anytime soon.
Which is now since we’re already at the end of the first act of the episode with Wolf now descending into madness with his thoughts now playing mind games over the fact that he can’t survive the wilderness on his own. The wood-carved doll of Wolf is one thing when starting to realize he can’t do this shit on his own. But the snowman version of the Tobins badmouthing as if him quitting would bring the family shame rather than pride would be the icing on the cake and that should at least be enough for Wolf to say that he wants out. Stemming from not being able to survive on his own but also the fact that he doesn’t want to let his family down as well as having to deal with isolation. Wolf crashes out as his way of saying that he’s calling it quits, some alright bits with Wolf waving the torch towards the snowmen and you have them yelling why Wolf made them have feelings. Like, what kind of madman does that but then again, it’s mostly to not deal with isolation. The one thing on the list is not falling into the mind games. Get the hand signs and say “Release”, you’re not catching me in this Genjutsu but Wolf ultimately fails to do just that. He picks up the walkie-talkie, tells the host that he’s tapping out, runs through the snowmen like he’s a Saquon Barkley, and accidentally drinks the Galveston water on the ground...
Before getting caught and hanging upside down with a rope on his leg as the host and his intern come out to tell Wolf that he has been eliminated from the competition. Ten hours of being in the wilderness on his lonesome, which according to the host, is pretty much the fastest time a contestant tapped out. Not a good feat for Wolf as the first act of the episode comes to a close and for Wolf... yeah, it’s GGs for him in his attempt to survive through the wilderness on his own but can’t even make it past the first night. I mean, he almost made it through the day, but other than that, so ends Wolf’s time on the show and so does the first act of the episode.
We now enter the second act of the episode and oh boy, things are not looking good for Wolf once he returns home. Remember earlier in the episode where he ran like a lunatic after getting an e-mail from the show that he was selected for Drop Till You Die? Yeah, the town noticed. And the banner that Wolf came across on his way home, hailing to be some sort of hero to the community just for being on the show and for Wolf, the pressure of having to let everyone know what happened and the fear of shame that comes with the eventual announcement before his episode airing in the coming days, six days to be exact, to the townsfolk and, of course, the Tobins and Honeybee once the car reaches the driveway of the Tobin household. But, of course, knowing that we are eight minutes into the episode and already at the beginning stages of the second act of the episode, instead of confronting his family and telling them that he got eliminated early after not being able to survive for one night, and bring shame to the Tobins and not wanting to exiled to Indianapolis, which I can tell any fan of the show from that city had that reaction when watching the episode when the city got name-dropped a few times...
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| Indianapolis to the show.... |
I’m sure it’s a great city in what is already a ruby-red state like Indiana though your football team... yikes. Especially at quarterback as if you might be expected to jump back into the carousel. So, eight minutes into the episode and barely starting the second act of the episode, rather than confronting his family at the doorstep, he decides to get into the woods within the Tobin property and goes into hiding. And dragging one of the show’s interns, Andrew, along for the ride. Mostly because as you saw earlier in the episode when Wolf tapped out after one night, the idea of isolation is what caused him the competition and I know that $8,000 doesn’t seem that much for the prize money, pride is the name of the game and Wolf doesn’t want to bring home the opposite, so he decides to hide in the woods and, of course, drag Andrew with him, who should really start thinking about unionizing in his place of work.
Going into what is pretty much a random scene, or at least to me when watching it, you have the Tobins at the breakfast table just as Wolf prepares to hide in the woods on their own property. Imagine what Wolf is doing on his adventure in the wilderness, not knowing that he dropped out of the show after failing to survive nearly twelve hours in the woods. Feeling the wave of pride that Wolf is about to bring for the family as they eat their breakfast as we prepare to head back to check on Wolf, but not before doing a little drum solo action from the family to pass the time in what is pretty much painted as the “I’m bored, we got pretty much nothing else to do but to serve as filler to move the episode going”. Nothing wrong with this scene. I have no problems with this scene. It’s an enjoyable moment, not gonna lie, but it does feel like this scene was there just to kill time before getting back into Wolf’s side of things. And sure, they want to be supportive towards Wolf, not knowing that he immediately decided to call it quits and might be now hiding from under their noses, but it does feel like it was there to kill some time before shifting back to Wolf now hiding in the forest without having to be seen by his family. And speaking of Wolf...
He built himself a campfire with Andrew in tow because again, can’t stand the idea of being alone in the woods, so he has to keep Andrew busy just to keep him company. Hopefully for... well, God knows when until the episode drops, and hopefully can forget what happened back there so Wolf can go home scot-free. Of course, this little get-together between the contestant and the intern gets interrupted when Wolf notices a sound in the background and a sound that he knows all too well as the two move behind the giant piece of lumber to avoid getting detected.
And that is Beef Tobin with a pick axe as he was about to make his way to collect some wood for the fire when he noticed a little campsite that was built within the Tobin property, not knowing that it was Wolf who did set up the campfire. The pressure is pretty much on for Wolf to have him deal with the options being laid out on the table, either to continue to run and hide to kick start the lie or face the music and confront his family and tell what happened that would bring his fear of bringing shame to the Tobin name. Mini Wolf, of course, got a front-row seat to this whole escapade and has to serve I guess as Wolf’s subconscious but in reality, just wants to see the world burn, Wolf’s world, to be exact. Pretty much telling Wolf, “Hey there hot stuff, I know you want to be very cutesy into wanting to not be seen by your family, but there’s nowhere to hide. You might as well face the music and admit to everyone that you wussed out from the show.” In short, Mini Wolf wants Wolf to come face-to-face with his family he chickened out from the show but knowing that it is still the second act with ten minutes now in the episode, three minutes until halftime, Wolf says, “Fuck it, continue to hide it is.”
That he what he did leading up to Beef meeting a dead end by a cliff but gets the first clue but doesn’t want to jump to conclusions on who it belongs to, starting with the boot print on the snow that Wolf walked when attempting to evade capture. Him saying to himself, “Huh, those footprints in the snow look eerily similar to Wolf’s. Couldn’t be. Coincidence? Who knows?” Not saying that Beef might already be planning on jumping to conclusions that it was indeed Wolf who created the campsite back there and left a footprint or two in the snow, but you could tell that he sort of knows that Wolf went into hiding but doesn’t want to confirm his suspicion just yet until we get to later in the fourth act. So, for now, it’s just a guess but you can already tell that Beef should have known that it was Wolf but again, early in the episode, we don’t want to jump to conclusions.
Beef leaves the site and the coast is clear for Wolf and a cloooose one at that. He nearly got caught by his father of all people in the woods by the family house within the family’s property and because of that, he now decides to that it’s a good time to put on a disguise and create a fake persona as he continues to lay low following what happened just nearly 24 hours ago on the show. And Wolf knows where to go get a disguise and it’s none other than Cheesecake’s RV.
And quite the view from the cliff that Wolf is standing and seeing a mountaintop view of Lone Moose this high from where he is. Though, quite the geography there when noticing where the Tobin household is located and how far from there to downtown is based on the geography of the Lone Moose city limits. It’s quite the freaking drive if you’re the Tobins or for anyone who decides to visit them when going the hill now that you know that the Tobin household is located on top of the hill that Wolf fell but landed on another patch of the hill. Because otherwise, it’s GGs. But good to know about the geography of the Lone Moose... metro? City limits? It’s pretty much the city limits when describing the Lone Moose area, or a corp limit, either one of the two to describe the town. All we know is that the distance between the Tobin household and the city is pretty much the equivalent of a DoorDash order. And luckily for Wolf once he made his way to the RV, Cheesecake doesn’t wake up until 4:00 in the afternoon, and his only source of food is a pack of candy canes... good God, that should be concerning. But that’s more than enough time for Wolf to find a disguise...
And lo and behold, he got one when scrimmaging through the closet and picked up a Daenerys wig (I had to copy and paste the name because I can’t spell for shit since I never even watched Game of Thrones) and decides to go full cowboy. Dressing up in cowboy gear, and yes, he had to shave off the mustache, or at least 4/5 of the facial hair and should be good to go to live his life under a fake persona... before getting caught by Cheesecake thanks to Wolf being unable to keep his mouth shut when looking at himself at the mirror. At least Cheesecake is oblivious and gullible so that Wolf doesn’t need to be worried about being exposed by people who he knows. And it might as well be an impossible challenge for him to not try to expose himself whenever he comes across anyone he knows, and especially, his family.
And so, out goes Wolf Tobin and enter, Rick Drygoods, a cowboy who just appeared out of nowhere and just living his best life while hoping not to get exposed by the general public. Taking a name badge from the manager’s office of the grocery store, still think this is the show’s version of a Dollar General knowing that Lone Moose is a pretty small town in rural Alaska, and trying to make his way to settle in the city by taking up the job, with no interview, just take the nametag and go, and stocking up items on the shelves. At least in the Great North universe, rather, the Bouchard-verse, the price of eggs is cheaper than what we got. We didn’t vote for him, people were just too stupid and gullible to get through their thick skulls.
Going back to the subplot as day turns to night and at Crocodile Rob’s, the journey to enjoy a sip or two of margaritas continues with Dirt and Honeybee getting a bigger glass of the drink being presented to them. Shocking Dirt to see that she has never seen a glass that can take more than the amount when she first took a sip. And it’s not even a full 24 hours and already, Dirt seems to take a liken towards the drink as she takes another sip of the alcoholic beverage and back to fantasy land we go with her and Honeybee at the same beach as earlier, this time with Dirt donning a tuxedo and now, a parrot enters the scene before cutting over to the Clauses once more and this time, with some company featuring the Easter Bunny. Yeah, it almost feels like any of the Tobin family can’t escape the allegations of them being furries. No kink-shaming here, you do you, it’s 2025, this is a no-judgment zone. Especially when seeing Dirt putting a hit on the Easter Bunny. Especially with Easter right around the corner. Aside from that, and now going back to the main plot...
At the end of the first half of the episode with Wolf, as Rick, survived the first day under the fake persona and is ready to get some shuteye after putting on the disguise and getting a job. Living the life of Rick Drygoods but we know where this is going once we get to the second half of the episode. Wolf can live life under the persona all he can want but as Mini Wolf stated before ending the first half of the episode, he’s gonna get exposed sooner or later. He can’t hide forever. He gonna face the music and confront his family and tell them what happened that caused him to quit the show and that’s the thought that is going to haunt him as long as he continues to go through this facade. Especially once his episode airs in the coming days.
So now, we enter the second half of the episode, and despite the guilty conscience slowly consuming him as the week drags on, Wolf continues his life as Rick leading up to the day of his episode’s premiere. Even though he is currently putting on the act, he continues to live his best life as the fake persona that he created. Strolling through town and getting to know the folks that he, as Wolf, knew like Alyson and Santiago as the montage drags on. Continuing his work as a retail worker and putting the items on the shelves with one item from whatever item he is told to put away takes home with him quietly by putting the item in question into his hat. Don’t know if you want to call it shoplifting if you’re an employee doing it... wait, actually, it is. That looked like shoplifting. But aside from that, Wolf takes the Rick persona, he is living his best life in disguise while, of course, he only did it because he doesn’t want to deal with the problems he is facing.
The closest I could think of would be the Adventure Time episode from 2013 called “Davey” where Finn, like Wolf, would have to put on an alter-ego and decided to lay low by creating a new life. But unlike Wolf regarding Finn when talking about laying low by creating a fake persona, Finn only did it because you have a group of candy people obsessing over him just to save their lives, and while it was good to enjoy some fame, privacy is more important and Finn had to create his alter-ego named Davey and hoping for everything to simmer down. But unlike Wolf again regarding Finn, that persona doesn’t result in having the alter-ego taking over and putting his normal self to the side until the end of that episode. Not saying that it would happen, we all saw the episode unless you somehow made it here without even watching it, but I had to put it out there. At least with Finn when putting up the double life in that episode, it was mostly because he can get some privacy after gaining some fans after saving them from becoming dragon food. Whereas Wolf in this episode, it’s mostly to not face his family after he wussed out from the show and not wanting to bring shame to the Tobin name. He nearly got exposed by Cheesecake after putting up the disguise but just be lucky that he is gullible to know that it’s Wolf putting on the costume.
The massive close call would be at Crocodile Rob’s during the montage where the two plots intertwine with each other for a bit with Wolf almost being spotted by Honeybee as she and Dirt were going through multiple rounds of margaritas for Dirt to try out. Nearly got exposed there when your wife almost spotted you in disguise in the same building. Super close call for Wolf with that scene in the montage. Super close. The person closest to Wolf in trying to piece everything together—without jumping to conclusions—is Beef. It was a near miss for Wolf when Honeybee almost spotted him at Crocodile Rob's. Meanwhile, Dirt has drifted back into her fantasy world after taking a sip of her margarita. In this fantasy, she, Honeybee, the Clauses, the Easter Bunny, and a leprechaun are riding on a banana float across the water in a speedboat. And I can already guess the next time she was to take a sip leading up to the night of Wolf’s episode, I would probably expect a cameo from Jack Skellington playing a round of beach volleyball.
And yep, y’all thought it was a one-time thing but here we go again. Dorothy accidentally ran over Wolf for the second time in this episode. Once again, going into the question of who is at fault for this. Either Wolf, now as Rick, not minding his business and not looking both ways before crossing, or Dorothy not seeing Wolf, as Rick, crossing the road. But like last time, Wolf is unharmed because he has that plot armor built into him. The fact that Wolf can survive two accidental attempted hit-and-runs without getting fractured bones but only getting some scratches or bruises... I dunno, man. I dunno. Crazy anime ass plot armor that Wolf got when surviving something like getting ran over by a car. But yeah, other than that, despite the close call after being nearly seen by Honeybee, it looks like everything seems to be going great for Wolf in his alter ego state and things should be going well for the guy...
Up until the montage ends with him stocking up items on the shelf and here comes Ham entering the aisle where he is to tell him where the sparkling cider is since we have now reached judgment day for Wolf. The day his episode is set to air on TV. Wolf tells Ham to go to aisle six where the sparkling cider is located and that’s where Ham is heading before being stopped after Wolf accidentally calls Ham by his name. Oh boy, you’d thought that nearly gotten exposed by Honeybee at Crocodile Rob’s when getting a drink and Cheesecake when putting on the costume. Nearly exposed himself to Ham before running off when seeing Beef coming into the aisle and again, you can tell, you can hardly tell that Beef almost knew right away that it was Wolf because he now noticed that Rick, Wolf’s alter-ego, used the same deodorant aside from the same boot size when seeing the footprint in the snow. But, of course, we’re in the third act of the episode, still too early but come on, Beef could pretty much tell right away that it’s his eldest son in disguise.
The night of the hour is knocking on the door for Wolf as he continues to write down his thoughts in his journal with Cheesecake putting on a shirt since, of course, it is the night Wolf’s episode of Dropped Till You Die premieres on TV. Of course, Cheesecake’s TV can’t work because the satellite that is attached is busted, and is unable to get it to work for him to watch the show. Yeah, can’t ignore the fact that Cheesecake has a very old TV that anyone born before Gen Z should know. The type of TV you would find at your grandparents’ place. Cheesecake’s TV doesn’t work because the satellite dish is unable to work and that, of course, gives Wolf an idea to make sure the family doesn’t see the episode on the screen. Crossing everything out in the journal before writing down “destroy satellite dish” as his ultimate goal to avoid humiliation. Even though it’s 2025 and you know streaming is a thing, right? Just putting it out there. But still, streaming is a thing and they can watch that shit on their mobile devices.
But yeah, destroying the family’s satellite seems to be the way to go for Wolf as he makes his way to the house and knowing that everyone is at the house, thinking that the viewing party will be in the living room, he decides to sneak in by getting into the basement and going through the house to get to the roof through the air ducts. Nice to see how the ducts work across the house and see every room and see what the other Tobins are doing whenever they’re not on camera as Wolf climbs his way up to the roof. You have Beef having his tea, in which Wolf for a quick moment glazes his father, glaze as in overpraising, learn your lingo, y’all. Catch up with the times. You have Moon putting on his coat, showing that he’s pretty much ready to go for something that would include the family later on, but we’ll get to that in a bit. Avoiding one path of the ducts because of a shit ton of webs and a lot of spiders to get through, resulting in Wolf having to take another route.
Ultimately causing Wolf to lose his footing and fall into Judy’s closet but luckily doesn’t get spotted as Judy goes into her closet to grab a scarf for her to wear to take a selfie with. One of the scarves to be exact as you noticed another scarf at her bedpost when Judy entered her closet. He continues to walk through the air ducts, nearly the attention from Ham but ends up ignoring it, thinking that it’s nothing and probably just the wind or something. Other than that, Wolf finally made it to the roof and finally disconnected the cable so the family couldn’t watch TV and the episode altogether. That has to be the end of this, right?
He forgot to notice that the town is hosting a viewing party where everyone can see the episode. Oh yeah, did I mention that there was a viewing party? Of course, I didn’t because it wasn’t brought up until just now. It would only make sense that the whole town would throw a viewing party because one of their residents is going to be on TV and Wolf did go through the town telling news at the start of the episode after getting the e-mail. Plus, having one of their own on TV would put the town on the map and would treat Wolf like he’s some sort of celebrity, even if it’s only for one episode. And for a small town like Lone Moose, but for right now for Wolf, he now decides to take drastic measures by now planning to cut the town’s power grid to cause a citywide blackout so that he doesn’t want the town to watch his performance on primetime TV.
Especially once we get to the middle of the town as we prepare to close out the third act of the episode with the Tobins arriving and getting front row seats, getting the VIP treatment, because Wolf is one of the contestants on the show for the town to see once the episode starts airing. That would be the right time for Wolf to come into the picture in the back planning to cut the power supply with a pair of hedges in his hands and the snowmobile that Wolf had to ride for transport and that should be enough for Beef to finally put the pieces together and say that it’s Wolf in disguise. Took him that long to figure it out until we get to this point in the episode with nearly four episodes left in the episode. Talking to himself when seeing Wolf and says, “Huh, there’s that guy again and he’s holding a pair of hedges that I own and rode on Wolf’s snowmob- oh... okay, I see what’s going on here. That is clearly Wolf in disguise”. And ending the third act and going into the fourth and final act of the episode...
The jig is up for Wolf just as he is about to cut the wires of the town’s power grid with some hesitation before the attempted hedging with him saying sorry to the local hospitals across the area because they would be affected the most, but other than that, the jig is up for Wolf once Beef caught him preparing to do the deed. And rather than telling Wolf to his face and saying, “Okay Wolf, I know it’s you under the disguise. Just cut the crap and tell us why you’ve been avoiding us?” and instead, even though he is talking to Wolf in disguise, he is talking through the disguise by telling him that he would know right away that Wolf would be going into hiding in shame, like what he is doing, and that regardless of the outcome, going for the typical sitcom trope when nearing the end of the episode, that the family would show their love and support for him. And as for the crest that Wolf had to bring up because the crest shows how tough the Tobins can be and what Wolf did earlier in the episode shows the opposite... according to Beef, that shit needs some serious updating since it was made in the 1800s. Times have changed since its creation and for Wolf... yeah, all that hiding is all for naught. I mean, it’s a good message that there shouldn’t be shame over the outcome but knew right away that the lie game would have to come to an end at some point.
Especially once Wolf takes to the stage right as Mayor Peppers addresses to the town about the screening of the episode. Deciding to come clean to everyone and to his family by taking off the wig and shocking everyone like it’s that one episode of Hannah Montana. And you can thank Beef for telling Wolf, even if it’s him (Wolf) in disguise that he talked to, that he has nothing to be ashamed of regarding what everyone is going to see and also apologizing to everyone and, of course, his family for lying by taking up a fake persona for the week. At least we know that the Tobins are loving and trusting and as Beef said just moments ago, they would show their support. But that was just the Tobins; so that now leaves the whole town on what they think once the episode is put on the screen.
And yeah, no surprise there since we’re talking about an American small town, the residents of Lone Moose treat Wolf like a celebrity because him being on TV despite being unable to survive a full night should be enough. That should be enough to treat him like he’s some sort of hero because just him being on TV is more than enough to put Lone Moose on the map, regardless of the result, and nothing to be ashamed of. Once again, all that hiding is all for naught. All boils down to what ifs during the whole escapade throughout the week. Though 22 years old for Wolf? Only 22 as seen on the screen next to his name? We know that Beef had Wolf he was only 19 but Wolf at 22 and if you do the math, that would make Beef 41 years of age. And Wolf (and Honeybee) being in the early 20s range would make the most sense but that is quite the fact we got from this episode. Also, can’t escape the fact that Wolf and Honeybee got married at that exact age and the average age to get married would be around the late 20s or early 30s. Treating it as if the show wasn’t going to get a second season to begin with.
So yeah, the final scene of the episode with the Tobins present in the living room with Wolf now feeling better from what just transpired throughout the entire episode going into hiding. Once again, all the hiding is all for naught when finding out just moments ago back there that the family would support Wolf regardless of the result of what happened on the show like they just saw earlier in the night. It's the end of the episode and it’s only right to put away Mini Wolf once and for all... by having Wolf tell Moon to sawdust the figure’s ass out of existence. He’s pretty much a one-trick pony to serve as Wolf’s conscience during the whole lie game. Besides, we only had one episode from one show in this past weekend’s slate where dolls played a role, so we don’t want to go for two.
Reaction/Thoughts:
So all and all, what do I think about this week’s episode of The Great North? An alright episode if I say so myself. Predictable that the lie game would have to come to an end at some point because it’s a sitcom and we got 21 minutes for this episode. But worth the wait after two months since the season premiere back in December and adding in an additional week due to Daytona but at least we got the episode, so there’s that.
The main plot, of course, stole the show since it was the only highlight of this week’s episode with Wolf going into hiding after chickening out of Dropped Off to Die by failing to survive a full night in the wilderness, pretty much solidifying him not being able to camp on his own, not wanting to deal with the idea of being isolated while being filmed on camera. As well as, of course, having to reel in the shame that he would bring to the family in the event he were to come across face-to-face but instead, chose to go into hiding and attempt to participate in the Carmen Sandiego Challenge. Takes up the name Rick Drygoods and tries to live a new life but nearly gets exposed along the way by Cheesecake, Honeybee, and Ham before Beef finally puts the pieces together that it is indeed Wolf under the disguise.
To positive tidbits from the episode aside from we finally got an episode after waiting for two months and an additional week, we know a bit of geography regarding Lone Moose know how high when it comes to the distance between the Tobin household and the city of Lone Moose once Wolf fell from one cliff and land on another. As well as how the house was structured when seeing Wolf crawling through the ducts on his way to the roof to cut the wires of the satellite dish. And also the minor changes to the intro but I’mma say it again, missed opportunity for not placing Dirt somewhere in the intro since she’s likely a part of the main cast since Season 4. Other than that, an alright episode with the main plot. And I guess the subplot as well with Dirt trying out margaritas even though it was filler but it was alright, especially when going into the fantasy sequence after taking a sip. So I’ll give “The Prince of Hides Adventure”...
A 7 out of 10. But that’s my opinion and I wanna hear yours in the comments below. And we got a new episode this upcoming Sunday and once again, any member of the Tobin family isn’t beating the allegations of possibly being furries. Or machinery in that matter where in the next episode, you have Ham becoming a performer and somehow developing feelings with one of the animatronic performers, and yes, can mess things up with his relationship with Crispin as the rest of the family fight over the possibility of having to change the name of the new boat in the third episode of Season 5, “Bots on the Side Adventure”.
Follow me on Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon, BlueSky, and Threads for updates and behind-the-scenes stuff. The 2025 Battle of the Week Voting Tournament is right around the corner with the first match of the new season on Sunday between the defending champions The Great North and Moon Tobin taking on Central Park and Cole Tillerman in a rematch of last year’s group stage match. And y’all should know the drill by now with the reviews now back and running...
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