User blog:Scrooge200/Season 7 Review

Season 6 was completely down the middle, with amazing episodes and terrible episodes. Now it's time for Season 7.

I will rate each episode on a scale from Vomitrocious, Bad, Okay, Good, Great. At the end of my review, I'll count up how many of each rating there are in the season, and give it a rating as a whole, alongside ranking every episode in the season from best to worst.

Cast Away
The problem with this episode is that I don't like Arthur or D.W. in the beginning. I get that Arthur is unhappy, but he's still being a jerk. We're meant to think that D.W. is being selfish about wanting a week-long vacation with David like what Arthur gets, but this is completely understandable, especially since David suggested the idea first. But the rest of the episode is dedicated just to annoying Arthur. He has to listen to Mary Moo Cow in the car, doesn't catch anything while fly fishing, slips in the lake and sprains his ankle, D.W. fishes better than him... And David congratulates him for being nice? Not to mention the annoying commercialization morals and unrealistic jokes (fish with umbrellas, seriously?). This confused mess of an episode is vomitrocious and I seriously hope the rest of the season is better. If it weren't for the ending where Arthur, David, and D.W. do end up seeing the whale, this would likely be in my bottom 10 of the show.

The Great Sock Mystery
I had no idea what this episode meant as a kid. Watching it now, I enjoy it more; jokes like the "fur masons" and the "sock market" (Amigo even tells Pal to "always buy low and sell high") are great analogies that I understood over time. There's even a reference to The Wind in the Willows and a double-meaning joke at the end ("dog-eat-dog world" is a common phrase, but in this case it's "canine eating hot dog"). Besides those, this episode is kind of boring and the plot remains unresolved. I'll give it an okay.

Francine's Split Decision
Francine is being a little selfish here. I like Brain explaining the plan and the multiple interruptions. The plot of this episode is pretty cliche and I wasn't very invested in what happened. And the weirdest thing about this episode is the ending, where Francine actually gets punished for her behavior and learns her lesson. It's a nice change from season 1. Besides that, I still find this episode okay and a little unmemorable.

Muffy Goes Metropolitan
The highlight of this episode is definitely the song in the opening. Also, Muffy wants to go to the opera here but not in season 9? I like just how disappointed Muffy is at Crown City, and this leads to some funny misunderstandings, like how Muffy's rant about Crown City is interpreted as poetry. The ending to this episode feels a little cheap, like the moral is "not everything will meet your expectations, unless it actually will." I'll give this episode a good rating.

Ants in Arthur's Pants
The opening to this episode is really odd. I like the old science film shown in class. Besides that, this is pretty much just "Hide and Snake 2". Just pointless gross-out and the plot isn't even resolved in the end. It's a light bad episode.

Don't Ask Muffy
I like the idea of this episode. Muffy answering questions in an advice column could be really funny. But Muffy only answers one question and it's from herself, so this concept hardly goes anywhere. Muffy acting like Molly is just out of nowhere and not needed for this plot. If Molly doesn't even like giving advice, why does she do it? This episode has a good concept but quickly loses track of it. I'm not sure whether to give it a high bad or a low okay, but I feel that it's more okay.

To Tibble the Truth
This is one of the funniest episodes in a while, with lines like "I'm 13, you really think I want to play with a plastic cow?" and "Your house smells like dog!" I also like how the plot progresses from the Tibbles lying to them telling the truth and being mean; both parts are really funny, and I like how Alberto tells the Tibbles that what they're doing is wrong. There's a nice wraparound with Buster, too. This is a great episode.

Waiting to Go
It was Brain's fault for breaking his watch. He wasn't looking where he was going. I also like how there would've been an easy solution to the problem if Binky and Brain hadn't been mad at each other. After that, this episode gets better. Even though it's an episode about waiting, it's really funny and never gets boring because of how much that happens. I used to think this episode was great, but now it's just good because the pacing is a little slow.

Elwood City Turns 100!
We've already had a play episode. And boy, is this episode annoying. Arthur's bad singing, Buster and Brain arguing over whether the play should be realistic, and Francine being unhappy with her small role. Why would a play even happen without adult supervision? Mr. Ratburn hardly advises anyone on how the play should go. Thankfully, this episode does pick up in the second half. I enjoyed the songs and the conflict matters more when it has to be resolved quickly. There are still some really cringeworthy moments, like when Buster dresses as an alien and sings about dental hygiene, but this part of the special is better. I would give this special a bad, but I liked the call-backs and the songs are catchy, so I'll just give it an okay.

Pick a Car, Any Car
An episode about cars? Well, at least we haven't had that before. I don't get why this episode is trying to portray the mechanic and Mr. Crosswire as villains. Who I really consider the antagonist of this episode is Arthur. He dislikes every car he's offered just because he doesn't want to give up his old one. Muffy being involved in this episode is pointless. Overall, this episode is a confusing mess with some of the weirdest guest stars of the show; it's bad.

Jenna's Bedtime Blues
This episode makes me mildly uncomfortable. There are a few amusing moments, but Jenna worrying about peeing the bed wasn't entertaining at all. Overall, I'll just give this an okay.

D.W.'s Time Trouble
This is a surprisingly wholesome episode. I don't like Arthur at the beginning, but he is really nice at the end. I like the moral that it's good to have older siblings, even if I can tell you firsthand that isn't true (and come to think of it, why is D.W. the one that learns this moral when Arthur has constantly said that he wishes he never had a sister?). I'd call this a good episode.

Buster's Amish Mismatch
While I did enjoy this episode's story, I really don't get the point of it. Why does Buster think the Amish are cool? It's implied that he just likes the idea of making stuff himself, but he didn't have to go that far with it. And what's the moral of this episode? The message I got was "being Amish is stupid, not feasible in the modern day, and makes you miserable." I like how Mrs. MacGrady tells Buster that what he's doing isn't Amish at all and that he's going overboard with it, but I still find this kind of confusing. She says "it's no use cooking dinner for six if you end up eating alone," which is a phrase I do understand, but doesn't actually have anything to do with this episode's plot or moral. Besides that, this episode has some good humor. Buster making butter, Bitzi telling him to "be Amish in his room" and "be just a little Amish," Buster eating fudge, and his daydreams about aliens. I'll give this episode a light good.

The World of Tomorrow
I find this episode very interesting. We haven't really had an episode focusing on Binky being held back, so this is something new. I like how bored Binky is at the museum, George stealing the car, all the lookalikes that attended the museum visit the previous year, and Binky calling himself "Engelbert Humperdinck." The plot of Binky sneaking into a museum exhibit and then waking up 200 years in the future to see his entire class as robots is very well-done and the atmosphere during these parts is great. I feel like the moral is a little strange, but this episode is still good.

Is There a Doctor in the House?
This episode is nothing but pointlessly depressing. I don't like any of the characters here and it's just very stressful and sad. I like the part near the ending where Arthur and D.W. do the chores correctly and then Thora arrives, but the episode also ends with Arthur getting sick, so nothing is really improved or resolved in the end; in fact, it's just made worse. There isn't even any humor in this episode. Bad episode.

Prunella Sees the Light
I'm not sure about this episode. Prunella is kind of annoying, but I don't think Marina is entirely right either. I like Buster in this episode and how he tells Prunella how she's being annoying. Otherwise, I'll just give this one an okay since the moral is fine and the plot is decently interesting.

Return of the Snowball
I don't actually like anybody in this episode. The snowball isn't even the real one, just a fake that Arthur bought (which easily caused more stress for her than it would've to just not bring it up again), so what was the point of this? The alien ending is kinda stupid, too. Overall, a bad episode.

April 9th
Great episode. This is by far one of my favorites of the series because of its story. This episode doesn't have any stupid unrealism. It doesn't cheapen moments with screaming or backhanded apologies. It doesn't have humor where it doesn't belong. This episode is completely serious about its topic. There's a fire in Lakewood Elementary, and everyone deals with it different. Arthur fears that his dad could be hurt, Sue Ellen's journal is burnt and Muffy tries to help her get another, Buster feels bad about missing the fire, and Binky is worried after seeing the smoke. Nobody just forgets about it or gets over with it in a day. It's completely realistic and accurate. I was expecting some ending where everything is suddenly back to normal, but surprisingly, it just ends with Sue Ellen writing in her new journal about how great her friends are. Her old journal is still burned and Mr. Morris has now moved away. This episode has great messages and it's a must-watch for the series.

Season Notes

 * Is this season trying to make Jane unlikable? Return of the Snowball, Pick a Car, Any Car, Is There a Doctor in the House?...
 * Binky is a really good character this season, in episodes like April 9th, Waiting to Go, and The World of Tomorrow.

Rating Counts

 * Great: 2
 * Good: 5
 * Okay: 6
 * Bad: 4
 * Vomitrocious: 1

Season Ranking

 * 1) April 9th
 * 2) To Tibble the Truth
 * 3) The World of Tomorrow
 * 4) Waiting to Go
 * 5) D.W.'s Time Trouble
 * 6) Muffy Goes Metropolitan
 * 7) Buster's Amish Mismatch
 * 8) The Great Sock Mystery
 * 9) Elwood City Turns 100!
 * 10) Francine's Split Decision
 * 11) Prunella Sees the Light
 * 12) Jenna's Bedtime Blues
 * 13) Don't Ask Muffy
 * 14) Return of the Snowball
 * 15) Ants in Arthur's Pants
 * 16) Pick a Car, Any Car
 * 17) Is There a Doctor in the House?
 * 18) Cast Away

Final Thoughts
Well, this show has been improving. There are some bad episodes, but even more good episodes. April 9th, To Tibble the Truth, and The World of Tomorrow are some of my favorites of the season and maybe even the show. The stories this season aim to be more realistic, and even if some of them don't succeed, it's setting up for the handling of realistic issues that Arthur is known for. I'll give this season a high okay.

Season 8's up next. Will anything beat April 9th?