Animation Revelation Forum

"All I Wanted Was a Slushie" is a just really fun episode. REGIS is a hilarious and memorable obstacle to get in Coop's way as he tries to get a slushie. The amount of times he fails and what he has to do in order to beat REGIS and get that sweet slush is a great comedic ride.

"Keeper of the Reaper" is an iconic episode of Billy & Mandy, introducing Fred Fredburger and containing several memorable gags. Re-watching it, I'm not sure if it is actually the best or funniest episode, but the way it reflects on Billy and Mandy as characters and captures everything that makes the show fun still makes it standout.

"Lake Laogai" is an important episode of Avatar, being where Aang finally gets Appa back, where the gang finally realizes the conspiracy in Ba Sing Sei, Jet dies, and Zuko gives up on chasing the avatar (for now). I think the Zuko stuff is really strong and that its very satisfying to see Aang and Appa reunited, but Jet's death is so obscured it leaves little emotional impact for me, and the conspiracy stuff is kinda whatever.

"Christmas in the Car" is an episode I remember really liking, but upon rewatching just found myself annoyed with how obnoxious Lin was, how stubborn Bob was, and how irritating the kids were. This episode reminded me more about what I don't like about the Belchers as characters than what I do. It's a shame, because the premise of a candy cane shaped truck stalking the Belchers on Christmas Eve is great, and I think the reveal about Gary being alone and taking out his frustrations on them had some heart to it, but I just didn't laugh much.

"Escape From L.A." is one of the most emotionally brutal half-hours of television I've watched in recent years. BoJack finally has a chance at happiness, with a family that loves him. But he can't escape who he is, or at least who he fears he is. So he makes bad, impulsive decisions that not only ruin prom night for a bunch of teenagers and traumatizes Penny, it absolutely and permanently destroys the one unsullied relationship he had in his life. He couldn't move on, and because of that he destroyed the only place he could go, and all he can do was return to his trashed, empty home. BoJack fucks up a lot, but this time really hurts because he came so close to happiness, and by his own hands rips it to shreds.

"See Me, Feel Me, Gnomey" is an incredibly fun musical episode that moves at a brisk pace with a variety of memorable songs, great and creepy visuals in regards to the Gnome, and a pretty cool message about there needing to be both bad and good in the world and not giving up your autonomy to let other people solve your problems. Though that last song confuses the message a little bit - I'm pretty sure the intention was "hey, let's coexist in a healthy social environment" and not "hey, let's all be friends and nice to each other all the time," but the phrase "why don't we all get along?" normally implies the later, which I know is the source of contention for a lot of people when it comes to this episode. But even with that flub at the end, all the other songs are really catchy and describe the themes well.

"Last But Not Beast" is a great send-up of classic sentai and kaiju tropes, brings all the recurring characters together for an epic battle, revealing long-held secrets between characters, and underlined with a great message about how family togetherness trumps all. All in all awesome.

"House & Garden" is memorable for being one of the most creepy and fucked up episodes of BTAS. The very idea of Ivy kidnapping a man and using his "genetic material" (heavily implied to be semen) to breed these half-plant/half-human monsters that at behave like her kids, then become her husband, and then a monster is, in Robin's words, "nuts." The imagery of the veggie babies crying out "momma" as they emerge from their incubation bulbs and then of course the clone Ivy decaying in Batman's arms in gruesome detail is pretty nightmarish. The actual story has a lot of holes in it, implying neither Gordon or Batman did a simple background check on Carlile since they didn't know he had daughters instead of sons. The photo at the end implies Ivy had created these clones before the wedding, which begs the question of how none of Carlile's relatives or any of the other attendees of the wedding noticed this before. Maybe they had a private engagement, but surely some relative or his ex and daughters would have heard word of this and come to visit. The ending of the episode also tries to make you feel empathy for Ivy because she apparently grew attachment to her fake family, but her creatures only lived for a few days and basically had no free will. They weren't really her family, but her slaves. Maybe she bought into the idea of being a happy housewife which made her happy in some weird way, but it's really hard for me to sympathize since she was manipulating these creatures to love her to begin with and treated them as if they were disposable. Again, like Robin said, she's "nuts," but I feel the ending of the episode actually wants us to genuinely feel sad for her, which I don't feel is substantiated by what her motivations were and the disposable nature of her children. Nitpicking the narrative logic and failed attempt at an emotional payoff aside, the episode is overall still enjoyable, but I like the idea of its story more than how it actually executes it.

All This and Gargantua-2 is hands down my favorite episode of Venture Bros. An epic hour-long story that involves almost every recurring character and resolves several of the shows long-running subplots and establishes a radical new status quo going forward.

The Wedding Squanchers is a gut-punch of a season finale that shows Rick at one of his most emotionally vulnerable and selfless moments. The payoff for this episode is even more brilliant, but the way this episode lets Rick's and our guard down and deals a huge emotional blow in the murder of Bird-person and Rick turning himself in to the Federation was unprecedented and kept us in suspense for one and a half grueling years.

All Fear the Freak is a strong finale to the first season with a big twist that Mayor Jones isn't Fred's father and was using him all his life to keep Brad and Judy away, which destroys his sense of identity and tears the already shaky ties of the group apart. The reveals of Jones' dealings with Pericles and the downfall of the original Mystery Inc. is also pretty interesting. And I love the ending where Scooby swears to Pericles that he'll reunite the gang and they'll come for him ending off with his signature howl is a pretty damn great cliffhanger for a season finale. Rewatching this episode really made me want to rewatch the show as a whole.

Hot Water is a great parody of Little Shop of Horrors and send-up of B-movie monster flicks, with fun musical performances and great guest role by Ceelo Green. It's one of my favorite AD episodes but the other contenders here just have more going on.

I haven't watched the show in a while, so "Clarence's Stormy Sleepover" was a real treat and a great reminder of everything I love about it. A really well done hour-long story following multiple characters and focusing on their relationships and even giving the adults a lot of character development, especially Mr. Reese and Miss Baker. These were charming, hilarious, and heartfelt episodes that capture everything I love about one of the most imaginative and relatable kids cartoons currently airing.

"When OMAC Attacks" is really fun in how it handles the question of balance between good and evil and "eye for an eye" philosophy, with a clever solution on OMAC's part in not fighting Shrapel ultimately being what weakens and defeats him. I really enjoy how the theme of heroism is handled in the contrasts between Batman and the GPA and Buddy Blank and OMAC, and how the episode posits that both Buddy and OMAC are great heroes for different reasons.

"Heart of Ice" is deservedly iconic for its revolutionary characterization of Mr. Freeze. Every line of dialogue he speaks informs us of his character and really cut deep, efficiently selling us on the idea of him being a tragic character without needing to devote too much time depicting his backstory.

"Fish-n-Chumps" is fun for its horror angle in how Rocko and co. go out for fishing but end up being the ones being fished by literal fish fisherman. The recurring gag of Filburt repeatedly pestering Heffer to ask him what time it says on his new watch also pays off in great comedic fashion and is a great example of how to do a strong non-sequitur recurring gag.

"The Rickshank Redemption" is just so memorable for a lot of reasons. Obviously, the thrill of its surprise broadcast on April Fools day this year was such an exciting treat that watching it for the first time not knowing what to expect remains a fun memory. But I've since rewatched this episode several times, and it's among my favorite episodes of the show if not my favorite. A lot of that has to do with how the show pulls a middle finger to its status quo, killing off the Galactic Federation and the Council of Ricks and having Beth and Jerry divorce. Rick's fake backstory and elaborate plan to raid and get the council and federation to destroy each other was action-packed and awesome, and I love the bait-and-switch with Morty arguing and shooting Rick only for it to turn out he's fine. And of course, the schezuan sauce rant was glorious.

"Space Mall" is full of a lot of great character moments for everyone, both funny and dramatic. Just the premise of the Voltron gang getting into shenanigans at a Space Mall is a great concept, and each character gets into their own brand of hijinks that culminates in a hilarious escape at the end. Shiro bonding with the Black Lion, learning its past with Zarkon and dueling him, finally severing his connection was really strong character development for him and the taste of Zarkon's backstory was set up really well (even if the payoff we got in season 3 sucked). I enjoy just about every scene and joke in this episode, and its a great showcase of how entertaining these characters are.

I have to admit, I was never in love with "Starcrossed." Like, the big deal about this three-parter is supposed to be that Shayera was lying to Jon and the League and they think she's betrayed them and the League becomes fugitives, finally reveal their civilian identities to each other, and save the earth from a massive armada of Tharnagarian soldiers. I just never really cared I guess? I like Jon and Shayera's relationship but him acting butthurt the whole three parter over her lying isn't exactly endearing. I sympathize with Shayera because she was conflicted with where her loyalties and love really lie, but how she doesn't see how obviously suspicious and duplicitous Hro is being from the start is a little frustrating. Even more frustrating is how everyone suddenly turns on Shayera and calls her a traitor even though she never knew what Hro's true intentions were and they should know she'd never go along with that. I gotta be honest, I found myself annoyed with how most of the characters behaved during this three-parter, making really dumb decisions like Batman pointlessly trying to sacrifice himself for cheap drama. And I don't care about the Thanagarians. The three-parter tries to portray them as morally grey because they aren't inherently bad people, just soldiers willing to sacrifice the earth in order to save their home. But the characterizations are anything but. Hro is possessive egoist who does not care about anyone but himself and is really just using the excuse of saving Thangar to get his personal vengeance, and his lackeys don't have much characterizations beyond being assholes. I do find Jon and Shayera's fight with him satisfying, mostly for how tough it is and Jon's beat-up face at the end selling it, but overall the action leaves little impression on me. I don't think it's bad, because the premise is at the very least interesting and there are some good moments, my favorites being Alfred reassuring Shayera she's a hero at the end and Flash hugging her when she resigns from the league. There's Justice Leage episodes I enjoy a lot more and have less problems with though.

"Popeye Meets Sinbad the Sailor" is a really fun short, but a little lopsided in enjoyment. I love the first five minutes where Sinbad is singing about how great he is and beating up his pets/slaves like an asshole, but when Popeye shows up the story becomes him fighting a bunch of Sinbad's pets/slaves before he eat spinach and beats him up, which is okay but nothing that interesting. There are a lot of great visual gags here and the animation is incredible, so I was struggling where I should rank this. Ultimately, though I have a lot of frustrations with "Starcrossed," I do think there was more things I enjoyed in it than this short, though I do really love those first five minutes.

"I Remember You" is a heart-breakingly uncomfortable exploration of Ice King and Marceline's relationship, and really resonant if you've dealt with a family member with alzheimers. The ending where Marceline and Ice King sing Simon's apologies to Marceline for his slipping memory and how it segues into a flashback showing how they first met always gets me.

"Bravo Dooby Doo" is one of the best and funniest parodies of Scooby Doo tropes and cliches and it's a lot of fun seeing Johnny interact with the cast.

"History" is a classic for the Starboy stuff, which is all gold. The evil versions of George Washington, Picasso, and Annie Oakley are always hilarious and the Mr. Katz song is classic. The parallels between Brendon's lack of historical knowledge in the film and real life is strong stuff too, and the conversations he has with McGurick about Area 51 and Nixon are funny. But really, the Starboy bits are what make this episode so memorable.

"Mister Rogers' Revenge" is a fun action-packed BD with a really fun parody of Mr. Rogers that makes him a deranged ex-soldier so obsessed with protecting children from violence he's willing to make them complicit in his violent rampage against adultkind. Hearing Mr. Rogers say "BAM BAM BAM BAM BITCH I'M BUSTING AT IM!" is unforgettable. It just speaks to how memorable the other episodes in this match are that I have to put and episode like this last by default.

"Beware the Gray Ghost" - One of my favorite episodes of BTAS. A great homage to the Adam West Batman cartoon and the power of the shows and heroes that inspired us as children.

"Jack vs. Aku" is Aku at some of his funniest and the fight between him and Jack is a riot, especially Jack's bait-and-switch with the sword at the end. And of course - EXTRA THICK!

"A-Firefightin' We Will Go" has a lot of great gags, especially everyone's retelling of events and particularly Boomhauer's. Chet Elderson is also a really great meme of short-lived character who contributes to the humor even after he dies with how they screw up his funeral and blame the fire on him in the end.

"Ed-n-Seek" has a lot of fun gags, but nothing that made it stand out to me in comparison with the other episodes. 

Fish Out of Water - This is one of the most comedically dense episodes of anything I've ever seen. Almost every second there's a creative and clever visual gag and it's astonishing to think at just how finely-tuned the comedy in this episode is for everything to flow so seamlessly and hit its marks so well. The underwater world is beautiful visually too, especially the sequence in the abyss with the glowing anemone. The story itself is a really poignant one of Bojack not knowing how to talk to Chelsea (literally and figuratively) and going on an adventure where he connects with the little seahorse kid and does a good deed, but after it's done he's left kind of empty inside. Seriously, this is by far the best written episode of BoJack because of how dense the comedy is and how it supports the story.

Tearjerker - One of the best AD episodes for how tightly-paced and dense with jokes it is. A great send-up of Bond films. And Oscar Gold always makes me laugh out loud HARD. Such an ingenious joke, and solidifies an already strong episode as one of the series' all-time best.

Game Over for Owlman! - I love the show's version of the Joker - great voice, unpredictably hilarious, and pure chaotic fun. This was a great compliment to the previous episode where Batman teamed up with Joker's AU-counterpart, know giving the clown prince of crime a chance and, until the very end - Joker proves to be a good teammate for the dark knight. But the ending when Joker betrays Batman is so good too, and I love how he just runs around with a bomb while everyone else is funny laughing with that silly expression on his face until he finally throws it at Batman. That fight between the AU-Batmen and heroes with the villains is so well-choreographed too with a lot of clever gags and pacing with one thing leading to a next freeing the captured heroes getting in on the action. And Plastic Man is such an MVP in this series - not only is his "how does he do that" running gag great, but he's also the only one of the captured heroes who manages to free himself without help from the Batman. Seriously, Plastic Man is so underrated. Definitely one of BTBTB's best.

The Fate of Equinox - Honestly, I was really underwhelmed rewatching this episode. The concept of Equinox is good, but they tell more than show his emotional imbalance and relationship with the Gods. It would've been better if they showed his backstory and we saw when it was that he became disillusioned with the Gods of Order and Chaos. They do a good job setting up Batman is a great agent of order and chaos in his fight with Two Face at the beginning, when he punches out Two Face before he's finished flipping his coin. That was clever foreshadowing and I'm glad they didn't feel the need to point that out. Best part of the episode. But the resolution - the actual fight between Batman and Equinox - is really uninteresting. Dinosaurs appearing in the present is all they could think of to represent the world in chaos? Lame. And then they become giants and Batman has everyone's powers and that's supposed to represent him embodying order and chaos I guess? If they had Batman take on some villains' powers as well it would made stronger thematic sense. And Batman just tells Equinox he's out of order and that's enough to break his mind and beat him? Again, lame. Also, the animation in this episode was really weak for the show's standards, especially coming off of Game Over For Owlman which has some excellent movement and expressions. The animation in this episode is really stiff and flat, and it bugs me how expressionless the characters are. Like, the sequence where Dr. Fate is teleporting all the heroes - no one reacts at all, not one bit! Like, no one is confused or surprised at being whisked away from where they were? They all come in and greet Batman in their stock poses and with no questions as to what's going on? Small things like that also broke this episode for me. I dunno, I definitely enjoyed this episode when I first saw it years ago, but rewatching it I was left really unsatisfied and honestly bored. Not one of BTBTB's best, imo.

"The Sweaters" - My favorite Gumball episode and one that always makes me laugh at every joke. I love the satire of edgy 90's kids sports movies and the visual gags like the ending where the blonde guy is taking off all his sweaters, and the dialogue is really sharp and witty. Gumball and Darwin make some scathing jabs throughout the episode and their self-awareness of the situation they're in and attempts to not get involved any further is really refreshing.

"Two-Face" - A great origin for Two-Face and I absolutely love how menacing they make his Big Bad Harv persona and contrast it with regular Harvey. They really sell his split-personality disorder, and a lot of it comes down to how they animate him. There's a level of detail in his character acting in this episode that is rare even by the show's regular standards, and there are just so many great moments of expressive animation.

"Band Geeks" - Another really funny episode chock full of great visual gags and the most cathartic ending of any Spongebob episode ever.

"Intervention" - This is a really good character study of Peter's guilt and him realizing he's been a jerk and shouldn't push people away, but having not seen the show in a while, I'm struck by how fast this episode moved. It felt like nothing had any breathing room and we just went from one scene to the next, leaving little time to dwell on the emotional moments. That, and this was not the best animated episode and I could really tell how much they cut corners with it. It's a shame, because the narrative foundation is really strong, but the execution really needed more time for the emotional arcs to sink in and let us dwell on Peter's decisions and feelings.

"Good Times with Weapons" is a classic South Park, a great over-the-top parody of hyperviolent anime like Ninja Scroll and how we're so desensitized to violence we let kids easily get ahold of dangerous weapons and don't bat an eye, finding nudity and profanity more appalling even in the face of the consequences of violence. This is also just one of the funniest uses of Butters and his Professor Chaos persona too as well as the rivalry the gang has with Craig. Not to mention "LET'S FIGHTING LOVE" is an awesomely and unforgettably catchy and goofy song. 

"Last Exit to Springfield" is one of the funniest episodes of The Simpsons, and that's saying something. But there's just so many memorable and quotable moments in the entire half-hour, with the Dentist character being a classic one-off and the braces gags being brilliant, and every joke revolving around Mr. Burns attempting to thwart Homer being some of most classic and best uses of his character.

"Jurassic Bark" is a really moving episode about Fry's relationship with his dog Seymour that has a heartbreaking conclusion when you see how he waited for Fry to return every day for 13 years until he passed away. One of the most saddening and tearjerking moments in the show for sure.

"Back to the Klondike" - I like the flashback and Goldie, but the misunderstanding between her and Scrooge and Dangerous Dan as a villain is just super lame. It's also not really that funny of an episode, with its biggest strength being in the relationship between Scrooge and Goldie and showing the former's softer side, which is really good, but the stuff with the Bear is a bit boring and goes on too long and the climax with Dangerous Dan trying to rob Scrooge at the end is really underwhelming. It's a memorable episode for Goldie, but it's not one of my favorites.

"Dammit, Hollywood" is the first episode of Duckman I've ever seen, and it definitely makes me want to watch more. This was an hilarious satire of Hollywood culture with tons of clever wordplay and visual humor. Laughed a lot while watching it, especially when the parodies of Stallone, Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis come in and try to take out Duckman.

"Revelations" - A great episode for Matt uncovering a lead to the Illuminati and being brought in to the Gargoyle's secret. The trick house Goliath has to escape from is really inventive and a fun setting as well.

"Meeseeks and Destroy" - Mr. Meeseeks is one of the best gag characters the show has created, and their existential crises is hilarious to watch as is Jerry's pure ineptitude playing golf. The episode also shows Rick's softer side when he decides to help make Morty's day better after he was raped and traumatized by the jellybean guy and then kills the guy in revenge.

"Beard to be Feared" - A classic and quotable Dexter's with great visual gags and a great Shaft reference. Dexter and Action Hank fusing their beards to fight the bearded bad guys is a hilarious action scene. One of my favorite Dexter's eps, but the other eps in this round have a bit more meat to them.

"Two Face (Part 2)" - Fascinating exploration of Harvey's and Bruce's psyches, particularly Harvey's obsession with order and certainty born out of losing control over his life and Bruce's guilt over not being able to help his friend just like his inability to save his parents. Harvey's mental illness is really disturbing in how believable it is, and it's heartbreaking to see how far he's fallen, though the episode shows he still has a little bit of humanity left in him.

"Riley Wux Here" - A really sweet episode with a hilarious parody of Bob Ross helping Riley become a more constructive artist, leading to an emotional ending where he proves to Grandad he was the graffiti artist by painting a mural of his parents on their house. Huey's BET binge to see if black television can wreck you is hilarious too, though the ending of that subplot could've been funnier.

"The Thanksgiving Special" - Hilarious parody of Trump and a bunch of pop stars and overall a lot of fun shenanigans with a heartfelt message about family and togetherness being the most important thing about Thanksgiving. Also, spoonboning always makes me laugh. That became a meme between me and VLord after the first time we watched this episode.

"King Ramses Curse" - This was one of my favorite Courage episodes as a kid because Ramses was so creepy and that song he tries to torture them with is kinda catchy. Rewatching it now, though, it's not that funny and its certainly not as content-filled as the other episodes in this round. Though Eustace's "what's yer offer" remark is a great recurring gag that should definitely be a meme.

An hilarious jab at the ridiculous lengths parents will go to avoid talking to their children about important issues, keeping up increasingly unbelievable lies instead of simply having an honest conversation, even though that would be a whole lot easier.

A powerful and compelling start to the final season that explored Jack's guilt and paranoia in an intriguing way and the fight with Scaramouche was really fun to boot.

A classic and iconic Tex Avery short with ingenious visual gags and crazy character animation that has been homaged and imitated to this day.

Honestly, the Braniac twist doesn't do much for me. It feels unnecessary and convoluted, and the alliance formed between Luthor and Braniac is a great idea that is kinda wasted by being introduced in the last episode of the arc. Of course, there are some great scenes here, like when the Flash risks his life and defeats the Luthor/Braniac fusion by running so fast he blows the armor right off him is great, Superman being tempted to kill Luthor and follow in the footsteps of his Justice Lords counterpart but relenting, and Green Arrow and the other Leaguers protesting Superman's decision to disband the Justice League, but as awesome as those scenes are my lack of interest in the Luthor/Brainiac fight, which is 90% of the episode, really drags it down for me.

One of my favorite episodes of The Simpsons, where pretty much every scene is hilarious and memorable, from Speedway Squad to Dr. Colossus to Tito Puente's song to Moe's lie detector test to the Twin Peaks parody, the list goes on! And of course, the iconic reveal that Maggie shot Mr. Burns which has, for better or worse, defined her character ever since.

A hilarious concept executed as perfectly as any prime Looney Tunes. I'm also shocked this was the only Looney Tunes nominated for this tournament, but it's a great entry to represent it.

This is definitely the episode where Cheryl/Carol really came into her own with the revelation that she's a Tunt heiress, though I honestly find Pam and Cyril's material in this episode even funnier, especially when Cyril's pretending to be the kidnapper when he's on the phone with Mallory but then tries to play it off like he's having phone sex when Lana questions him, and Pam's righteous indignation and readiness to beat the shit out of Mallory at the end of the episode.

The Ed boys trying to make it big in a big city of their own creation and learning the hard way how unforgiving it is was a lot of fun. Johnny was definitely the highlight of this episode in his paranoia about city life and desperation to find Plank.

This is perhaps the best gun control episode in a kids cartoon, with the Static Shock episode on the subject being a close rival. I love how the show bluntly depicts the consequences of gun violence and horrifically describes the consequences one accidental gun shot has on Eliza, and the trauma it inflicts on Broadway, who is basically a stand-in for a naive child not realizing guns aren't a toy. And it's so great how the show critiques portrayals of gun violence as badass in the movie Broadway is watching, and the damaging influence it has on him, making him emulate the behaviors he's seen without realizing what they mean, and playing with Eliza's gun without realizing what guns are meant for. I also appreciate that Eliza takes responsibility for not stowing away the gun when she returned home, which is on her as a gun owner to make sure it's kept out of the reach of people who could play with it. But it's also good that Broadway isn't simply forgiven, and this guilt and lesson he's learned is something that'll stick with him for the rest of the series. A smartly written and incredibly well-conceived episode all around.

This is a great exploration of Bruce trying to avenge his parents by seeking out who murdered them, and there's some incredible moments in the episode, from him confronting the gang boss who sicked Joe Chill on Thomas in the hospital, teaming up with Thomas, voiced by Adam West, and dressed in an Adam-West style Bat costume in the past, and of course, the face reveal of Bruce Waye, the first time we ever see him unmasked in the show. It's also awesome how the Spectre and Phantom Stranger are voiced by Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy, which makes their bet on whether Batman will kill Joe Chill a meta BTAS Joker vs Batman moral battle. I love this episode as a poignant, serious story about the trauma that drives Bruce as Batman and also the moral questions he deals with and what he ultimately stands for. I do think it's a bit cheap that Spectre kills Joe Chill, as it undermines Batman's choice to spare his life, and just isn't a satisfying resolution. Which really sucks since everything else the episode does is so excellent, but it's still great overall.

Such a great idea for a sports parody, the twist being that the boys are playing to lose and so all the tropes are inverted, and meanwhile Randy is going through his own Rocky-esque arc for a typically foolish endeavor - fighting dads at children's sports games. Hillarious all around, especially as someone who can empathize with the boys' frustration with sports and desperation to escape an activity they don't want to do.

A funny and surprisingly emotional exploration of Fry and Yancy's relationship, what they meant to each other, and how Yancy dealt with Fry's disappearance and what he truly felt about his brother, leading to the poignant revelation that he named his son after him who would go on to fulfill Fry's childhood dream. The Fry/Yancy flashback stuff is generally more engaging to me than the stuff in the present (or technically future, lol), but that stuff is some of the show's best material and the emotional payoff makes this episode one of the most memorable.

Before rewatching these episodes my thinking on the episode was the same as Dr. E-k's, in that I thought it didn't hold up because the retcons it makes to the lore makes the origins of the Avatar less about balance and more about good vs. evil. But after rewatching them...man, the story and execution is just so damn good I don't even care. Especially since the franchise has run with this retcon to the Avatar's origins ever since, so eh. But the story of Wan and how he changes as a person and bridges the two worlds of humans and spirits, and the implicit tragedy of the story in that even with the literal spirit of evil incarcerated the Avatar's battle against evil is neverending, is really poignant. It's such a simple story, but it's written so damn well that it never feels hokey. But what really puts the episode over the top is the brilliant art direction. The backgrounds are so otherworldly and feel like art out of a storybook and folk tales. The spirit designs are definitely Ghibli-inspired, very Spirited Away-esque, but still unique and distinctive and above all else incredibly expressive, especially the lemur spirit. And the animation in general is just top-notch, like the knew that this was a special two-parter so they put extra care into it. Man, I was cynical going in to it, but after rewatching it the artistry and craft won me over, so I'll show it love here.

I really appreciate how they convince the Earth King through unavoidable proof and talking to him honestly when he's been lied to all his life. There are a lot of good scenes in this episode with the Earth King, he's pretty fun and easy to like, and avoids cliche tropes about sheltered and spoiled monarchs you'd normally see in a show like this. The gang fighting the Dai Li at the beginning of the episode was also great, as was Zuko dealing with the aftermath of his decision to let Appa free and the identity crises he goes through. I also love how the episode seems to be heading towards an optimistic ending at first, with the gang splitting off bittersweetly but ultimately for happy ventures, but then hits you with a triple whammy of "oh shit" bad omens like Toph being kidnapped, the Dai Li staying loyal to Long, and Azula and co. infiltrating the city disguised as the Kyoshi Warriors. I forgot how much happens in this episode, and it left me really impressed.

"Stronger Than You" and the Ruby/Sapphire reveal are defining moments for the show and two of my favorites. This episode payed off on the series' potential and cemented it as something special. The ending where Jasper forces Lapis to fuse with her and Lapis turns the tables by dragging them down to the ocean floor together still gives me chills. What a "holy shit" moment, goddamn. This episode has somewhat less impact now that the show has had even bigger episodes than this, but it's still fantastic. Surprised I'm putting it third to last, but those Avatar and Korra episodes are just that much more dense with good stuff to love.

I thought I'd be ranking this as #1. This is a great episode, one of the show's most iconic. But while it's really fun and always funny, I just found so much more to appreciate narratively and emotionally in the other three episodes in this match, which forces me to rank this last by default. Don't get me wrong, the crew's attention to detail in animating Warcraft scenes and the whole idea of the episode is great, but the craft behind the other episodes in this match was just that much more impressive to me.

#Relatable. A great satire of the struggles of being an animator and the conflict between the art you want to create and what people expect/force you to make.

The funniest South Park christmas special, spoofing sanitary christmas specials with a satanic twist.

A little sexist, but Fred and Barney's antics trying to buy a piano for Wilma is full of inspired skits and gags. I love Barney's piano duet with the piano shop owner and the policeman singing the anniversary song way past Fred wants them too especially, but the physical gags with them trying to lift the piano into the Flintstone house without Wilma noticing are classic too.

Ranking this last because I laughed the least at it, but it definitely has the strongest emotional core of the bunch, crafting a story around how Bob and Louise bond over the Hawk & Chick films and the revelation that Louise is desperate to reunite the two because she fears she'll become estranged from her dad when she grows older too. Really good ep digging into the relationship between them, and any episode that references Lone Wolf & Cub is a winner in my book.

A great take-down of people's obsession with social media while contrasting it with a sympathetic and compelling story of a boy who doesn't have friends in his real life finding comfort and joy in being able to connect with Kyle as a friend online, showing that social media can have a positive effect on people's lives as well.

I have mixed feelings about the way the show tries to portray Cotton as sympathetic in this scenario and Junichiro forgiving him, but there's still a lot of great jokes between these two episodes and fun subplots like Peggy's attempts to trick her boss into giving her a family vacation, Luann dogsitting Ladybird, Bobby playing Dance Dance Revolution with the japanese girl, and Hank and Junichiro's brotherly bonding in their attempt to stop Cotton from spitting on the emperor. Not sure if I'd still consider it one of my favorites, but it's got a lot of memorable moments for sure.

Great flashback exploring Billy's character, his relationship with Pete, and the connection he has to Phantom Limb literally getting phantom limbs.

A solidly funny episode of Regular Show with a pretty fun basketball game between Mordecai and Rigby against Muscle Man and the Basketball Guru. This episode's got a lot of good Muscleman gags in particular which I quite enjoyed.

Baffler Meal - I just love the entire concept of this episode as a take-down of both product placement and backdoor pilots. It's even funnier that they only made this episode after ATHF was already made into a show, but still retained the original character designs and different voices for Shake and Frylock. 

Time Machine - This is my favorite episode of The Brak Show for having a lot of quotable lines and musical moments, and a really simple story that spins out of control in the best way, leading to some great visual gags.

Once Upon an Ed - I love how the way the Eds tell their stories reflects their personalities/worldview in really funny ways. The series' comedy is incredibly sharp in terms of both written and visual gags and I'm always impressed whenever I come back to it.

Gangland - I found the motif of setting the fight against the opera is great in concept but I'm not sure I was terribly invested in it in execution. I still think it's pretty great, especially as the culmination of the gang wars between Silvermane, Doc Ock, and Tombstone, but I do think the fight kind of drags in parts and there's a lot of misdirects that feel kinda unnecessary, like Doc Ock trying to kill Spider-Man right before the act break only for Tombstone to intervene immediately when we resume. I also found the subplot of Peter being a bad boyfriend kind of annoying. Not that it wasn't well written, but it's frustrating to watch him be so douchey to Liz and flirty with Gwen, making everyone uncomfortable without any self-awareness.

Arnold's Christmas - An emotional and memorably mature story about sacrifice, selflessness, and giving that really tugs at the heartstrings and truly encapsulates the Christmas spirit.

Future Tense - This episode is one big 20-minute homage to 80s post-apocalyptic and sci-fi action tropes and cliches and it's an awesome thrill ride of madness from beginning to end. "Well yeah, but he died in the Clone Wars" is all you need to know to what kind of insanity you're in for.  :lol:

Glued, Where's My Bob - Really great encapsulation of Bob's Burgers, point out the kind of absurd situations that befall the Belcher family but also the heart that keeps them together, with tons of fun jokes and a memorable musical number to boot.

Live and Let Dine - A pretty good parody of cooking shows staring cruel, narcissistic hosts, which is a very appropriate setting to place the likes of Sterling Archer in. I wouldn't say this is one of the show's best or funniest episodes, but it's still a really fun one that makes good use of the characters for fun gags and great character-based humor.

China, IL the Musical - A great series finale that shows off the characters at their best by, funnily enough, showing them at their worst. Frank's pathetically horny, Steve and Pony are spitefully competing to prove their moral superiority over each other in a way that shows off how egotistical and sociopathic they are, and Baby Cakes' selfishness and delusions are on full display. And yet, everything these characters do in this episode is hillarious and endearing to me. I think Frank comes off the best - his horniness turning him into a hairy monster, but at the end of the day he stands up for what is right, convincing Baby Cakes to get over himself and appreciate that the people around him are magical in their own right, to help the Gorilla escape and return home. But I also love how the other character threads end up resolving in a really sweet way showing off the love Leonard has for his high-maintence manchild and the friendship between Steve and Pony. I also think the songs in this episode are absolutley hillarious from beginning to end, and really help give this episode a grandoise feel that makes it a bittersweet but fitting finale for the show.

Bye Bye Greasy - Tied with History as my favorite episode of the show - I really flip flop between the two. Brendan having to direct a play is an interesting idea outside his wheelhouse and it's fun to see it fall apart, especially with all the shenanigans outside his control like Shanon's suspension and Melissa's kiwi allergy. McGurick is also a riot in this episode, and the scene where he performs the Racer song in the locked car always has me in stitches. This is also another pretty memorable musical episode - Shanon's singing "Me alone in a letter" always sticks in my mind for some reason. This is honestly a good episode for that character, displaying more sides to the typical bully by showing that he really does have a theatrical side to him. But this episode uses all the characters really well, which helps make it one of the show's best.

The Red Ball - The rivalry between Huey and Ming and the sheer violence of the kickball game are really great. Lots of great moments in here, like Grandad bailing on running the bases only to be hit in the head with the ball anyway, Riley calling a home run only to embarrassingly miss every kick, and Huey revealing he knows chinese to the two shitalkers on the other team and proceeded to knock their asses out of the game. Great stuff.

Little Ed Blue - This is a great episode showing the normally chipper Ed in an unusally sour mood that the other Eds have to figure out. I think my favorite moment is when Sarah angrily yells that he can't kick her out of the house because she lives there too, and in a rare moment of defiance he shouts back at her - "SO MOVE!" which freaks even her out and causes her to back off and flee. Really funny character-based gags all throughout, making it a really memorable one.

I thought I was burned out on Avatar just because it's been so talked up in recent years, but rewatching these episodes and I'm floored all over again at how damn good the show is. These episodes have pitch-perfect writing; stories with strong focus on character development that simultaneously provide worldbuilding and backstory, expertly paced and delivered with brilliant dialogue rooted in characterization and making the best out of every interaction and moment. It definitely helps that these were both Zuko episodes and he's the show's best written character, but the reason I'm edging Boiling Rock over Zuko Alone is because it accomplishes so much in its runtime and delivers a really novel story with really satisfying resolutions to mulitple conflicts between characters. Both are just so excellent though and remind me there's good reason for this show to be considered one of the best television shows of all time.

The Dabba Don ranking third is one of the reasons I'm suprised at my rankings this round, because this was one of my nominations and I consider it one of my favorite cartoon episodes of all time. Exploiting Fred's money-making schemes and penchant for disguises to characterize him as a Godfather-esque mob boss is brilliant, and I love every joke in this episode, as well as the resolution.

I'm also surpised that I'm ranking I Am the Night last, because I remembered really enjoying this episode, and...I still sorta do, but it leaves me with a lot of mixed feelings. Most of the reasons why I like it is just because the show is so well-directed and animated that it can sell the emotions of the story its telling really well. But rewatching this alongside the Avatar episodes highlighted my biggest problems with it - while the ATLA eps have really naturalistic dialogue that feels true to the characters, this episode feels like philosophizing from a writer's perspective spoken through the mouths of the characters, and its a big difference. I don't know if I'd call it pretentious, per say, but I do think there's such a thing as something being overwritten and written too perfect, or just on the nose. Every beat in this episode feels too well-thought out in a way that doesn't pay attention to how the characters are actually feeling. Batman is the only character with actual angst - he starts the episode mourning his parents and is the only one who feels distressed about Gordon being shot, whereas everyone else just sucks his dick and tells him how great and important he is with the exception of Bullock who is kinda just angry at him for the same old reasons that don't really match Batman's own guiltly feelings. Batman overeacts in odd ways to things like a mook crushing the roses he laid on the spot his parents were shot on and his overly horrified face when he sees Gordon shot. And he really doesn't give up on being Batman for long until one speech from Dick manages to get back to it in minutes. I think the bones of this story are good, but it wasn't convincingly written in a way that made me buy into the scenario and forget that these characters are puppets on a writer's strings like the best episode of cartoons will and do.

Bad Seed - Major Lazer was such an awesome show, I'm so bummed it only lasted a season. This episode is still one of my favorites - an awesome psychedelic musical ride through a girl's quest for weed, getting high, and experiencing a bad trip, all backed up with retro-futuristic visuals with an rastafarian aesthetic and Major Lazer's great soundtrack. Like a good high, this show was an ephemeral adventure that is dearly missed. 

The Fundraiser - The concept of Riley becoming a gang leader by selling candy bars is hilarious on its own but this episode takes great jabs at institutional corruption and the exploitative forms of child labor that have been normalized to boot, alongside a ton of great character-jabs and a prominent appearance by one of my favorite supporting characters in the series, Cindy. It escalates in the way you'd expect, but the jokes all land with hilarious precision and the ending is just perfect.

Summer of 4 Ft 2 - A heartfelt episode of Lisa trying to be someone else in order to make friends, but learning to embrace who she is instead and that people do like her for who she is. Homer's subplot buying illegal fireworks also leads to a ton of hillarious gags. This episode is also really quotable too "Lisa...with people?" Lots of sweet and funny moments worty of a season finale during the show's golden years.

It Came From Outer Ed - A hillarious comedy of errors as Eddy and Edd try to and fail to follow Ed's confusing scam scheme. Lots of great jokes and just another great Ed-focused episode that shows off what makes his character so enjoyable in his inscrutable logic and unpredictability.