4/10/08 Episode: "Mondo Coco"

[emperor26]

Even though this episode was a bit rush, it was good nevertheless.

Other than that, a job well done to Rob Renzetti.

[Ditchy McAbandonpants]

Hmmm, that was...interesting.

As I said before, it was nice to see Coco finally get a spotlight episode (I don't really count "Cuckoo For Coco Cards", because that was more of a Bloo episode, or "My So-Called Wife", because she acted totally out of character for most of that one); still, I do somewhat question the decision to make the spotlight so...focused. Coco's a great character, but her (practically) mute, inscrutable nature makes her slightly difficult to base any kind of meaningful twenty minute plot around; I guess they could have taken the Wall-E route and attempted to tell a full story through mime and wordless vocalisation, but given the fast-paced needs of kids' TV, I guess they were always going to take the simpler route of just using her journey as a backdrop for random, colourful mayhem. As such, what we got was a lot of fun to look at, but without anything to really anchor or drive it, it felt a little aimless and without any particular progression, which isn't really acceptable in a full-length 22-minute episode. Indeed, Rob Renzetti's script seems to acknowledge this fact, hence the inclusion of the occasional interludes back at Foster's, but amusing though they were ("Can't talk. Too hungry. Must reserve mouth muscles for chewing" is an excellent Bloo line), I don't think they added anything as framing/contextualising devices, so they didn't quite work for me in the way that they should.

Parts of the episode did hit their mark. When you fling that amount of stuff at the wall, some of it is bound to stick; even though I thought the central "Coconut Conquers Japan" section was cliched and therefore a little grating, the episode was still dotted with amusing sequences and funny moments, such as Coco's fling with the yeti (I too did a minor double-take when I saw them actually sleeping together ), the O Brother-esque chain gang sequence, the homicidal chihuahua, and indeed the show-stopping reggae number. It didn't hurt, either, that this was one of the most visually interesting and dynamically directed episodes to date, standing alongside previous highlights like "Challenge of the Superfriends", "Schlock Star" and "Bloo Superdude". Nevertheless, I can't escape the overriding feeling of lightweight inconsequence that this episode gave off, something the predictable ending did little to help; the whole "oh, no-one even noticed" twist can be a cute punchline when attached to a two- or ten-minute short, but here it felt more like an admission of the episode's fluffy superfluousness, and I guess I was hoping for more at this late stage in the Foster's game...

[Lynnie]

Originally Posted by Xroc88

Which scene was that?

Frankie's friend Kathy is believed to be this girl-
http://www.fosters-home.com/screengrabs/4/407-0023.jpg

Seen here in "Bus the Two of Us". In "Mondo Coco" she appears twice in the audience of the "Oprah" parody when Coco is talking about her new book.

[Cassini90125]

The "Oprah" parody was my least favorite part of the episode, mostly because I am definitely not an Oprah fan. She gets far too much exposure as it is.

Ditchy, a tip of my hat to you for another excellent review. TV Guide should give you a big-screen TV and a corner office.

[taranchula]

So given the fact that the Winter Olympics are going on, this episode takes place in either 2006, 2002 or 1998.

With 98 being a strong candidate as that was the last time the Winter Olympics were held in Japan and who would be a better a grand marshal of the Nagano Olympics then the PM of Japan?

Or we've jumped into the future and all of this is playing out in 2010.

So in addition to globe trotting some time travel may have also been in play....Which if that is the case that can only mean one thing.....they must have cut out the scene where Coco sneaks into area 51 and steals a highly classified time machine.

Gentlemen we are through the looking glass here.

(This was another post by Taranchula: He thinks about these things so you don't have to.)

PS: I liked this episode, they won me over when they made fun of "The Secret" (AKA The most overrated self help book ever.) which wouldn't have been as successful as it was were it not featured on Oprah.

[Frankie_4_Prez]

At some point I was afraid they were gonna use that tired, old, "Oh! it was just a dream" plot cop-out (like, the squirrels went nuts on Coco and knocked her out cold, and all her adventures played out in her mind). Because, prime minister of Japan, that's just madness!

[cartman414]

Wild episode. Really could have been titled "Cococo-co Co-coco" given the Oprah part. Or at least, her book could have been given that name.

Loved the sasquatch.

[bloonuggets]

Originally Posted by taranchula

"So given the fact that the Winter Olympics are going on, this episode takes place in either 2006, 2002 or 1998.

"With '98 being a strong candidate as that was the last time the Winter Olympics were held in Japan and who would be a better a grand marshal of the Nagano Olympics then the PM of Japan?"

[Plankton impression from "Band Geeks", and loudly]CORRECT![/Plankton impression from "Band Geeks", and loudly]

You win the interwebs!

[Mac-a-lacka]

I'd like to say something I noticed about this episode but do I need a spoiler tag or have enough people seen it already?

[Cassini90125]

Oh, I'm pretty sure enough people have seen the episode by now. Go for it.