before we begin I want to mention that I already did a breakdown on the new Incredible intro so check that video out if you missed it as I won't be discussing the opening theme in this video now before episode 3 and four come out let's discuss episode 2 titled Simon petrikov the cold open places us back in time with Simon and Marcy during the aftermath of the Mushroom War Simon jokes about having a squirrel Army to comfort Marcy and trained squirrels to to your every need and I have to wonder if
those squirely sorts of thoughts existing in Simon's head are behind LP's squirrel friends in the first episode or if that was merely coincidence stranger get her boys e her face at two Stanley Simon's flashback with Marcy establishes the question at the center of Simon's existential depression in this titular episode what would I do without you that was something even past science and had difficulty answering when Bean Marcy's Guardian was basically his sole identity as for me i' uh I don't in
the present time this question predominantly harks to Betty's absence who has presumably permanently severed the potential to ever be with Simon forever she will languish while you wallow in anguish beyond the whole left in Simon's Heart by Betty Marceline herself has already grown up hundred and hundreds of years ago and she currently has her own life outside of Simon which Simon doesn't want to infringe too much upon Marcy seems consistently happy for the first time in so long and Simon doesn
't want his troubles to drag her down now that she's finally enjoying life have you talked to Marcy about any of this n i I didn't want to freak her out as a quick tangent the tattoo scene with Marci and bonabelle was unadulterated hilarity B's arm is ging up the machine and it's hilarious gross I couldn't get enough of them unintentionally trolling the tattoo parlor though I did feel bad for that spider wasting his valuable time only to get his tools all gummed up so back to talking about our l
ovable and relatable depressed Nory Simon petrikov well he's at least relatable to anyone who's had to figure out what to do with their life after investing a lot of time in a direction that stops being feasible Simon's main crisis is one of shedding past identities and having no new ones to fill the gaps with something that can cut surprisingly deep at your mental well-being Simon has a few friends and even loved ones but he has not been open about his feelings and thoughts to them up to this e
pisode everything's fine same old same old Simon doesn't feel like he has a community or a place he TR truly belongs Simon doesn't feel at home in the land of Vu the magical world has become mundane and maddening having only cheers on TV while living in a human Zoo will do that to a feller hell if I had to have those grateful and such signs in my home I'd also want to perform an evil ritual for people with depression merely existing often feels like a job it can be hard to find the energy and fo
cus to do simple chores for Simon doing household chores is literally his job the dude has to put on a facade of living a so-called normal life in the 20th century while he desires to have an actual life that he could consider normal by his 20th century standards which was in contrast to Fiona's wish for her life to be more magical I really liked how this aspect of Simon's day-to-day life was portrayed even though I felt really bad that the guy couldn't find a way to incorporate his antiquarian
job of old with the modern land of oo it's interesting that Fiona's routine is actually synced up with Simons between the two episodes they both awake to Cheers go to work where they're expected to put on a mask for the sake of others get a drink and chat with friends and then go into a forest where a friend fails to help them with their problem Fiona and Simon are obviously thematically Linked In Their depression but the structures of their respective episodes also mirror each other which was n
eat so back in part one of my together again rview I had mused about missing the ice cane in the continuations of Adventure Time I can't help but miss the wacky antics of that deranged magical Troublemaker I guess I'm not the only one who was missing the Ice King's Mischief there are dozens of us he used to be a really cool Ice Wizard who wrote my favorite book series but then his girlfriend or fiance or something did something Bonkers and turn him into a boring sad guy you know what good on you
for making that kid cry Simon at least I never liked the Ice King for his Fanfictions turns out pretty much everybody else did though yeah Jake loved [Music] him yeah he's the one who convinced us they were good honestly I like them better than Finn and Dad woof another theme behind Simon's Melancholy is that of artists growing beyond their old work Simon wishes to have no association with his past creative output as Ice King but that work is already out there and Simon can't erase the cultural
footprint it left behind it seems like residents of O who recognize Simon associate him with Fiona in cake first and foremost and secondarily as the former Ice King with his current Identity or lack thereof falling to the Wayside but it turns out that the person who misses Ice King the most might just be Simon himself sometimes I used to dress up like Ice King after I became me again I guess I missed being him in a way Simon misses that naive and magical stuper while the Ice King was often sad
and miserable they definitely was an element of ignorance is bliss to Ice King's personality and he often quickly bounced back from setbacks or just forgot about them why why why oh well G dispose a fence carcass I featured the following joke multiple times in my previous videos because I found it so humorous what this is how I cope but this joke does take on a far more somber layer of context now that we see how much conflict and pain is behind Simon's compulsion to slip back into the blue moom
o in the episode Betty Simon had said the following I don't want to be the Ice King again it's like living with eternal diaper butt I can't do it I guess the grass was greener on the other side because now Simon thinks diaper but may have sometimes been worth it to not be aware of all that he has lost the following is another scene from Betty that might now have new context you're going to be the Ice King Till The Sun blows up this is your one chance maybe Old Death wasn't wrong in his claim but
rather he was talking in a metaphorical sense this internal conflict Simon finds himself struggling with is brilliantly captured by Rebecca Sugar song part of the madness it's a forlorn catchy Melody that captures the loneliness and isolation Simon has been feeling for years another great son under Adventure Time's belt all right I featured him in the review already but I haven't said his name yet so let's finally talk about none other than CHC you belong in the trash with Fiona and Cake I'm ge
tting around but it was such a blast to spot evil Cho goose who survived at the ior of koki in the distant Land Special wizard City it was neat to spot him before Simon actually pulled the sheet off his cage and I loved the development that his rhyming trash mouth is the reason Fiona and Kake could get injected into Simon's ritual but yes let's finally talk about Finn mother pucking Mertens you know how it's stereotypical advice to work out when you're depressed or when you experience grief Finn
took that to a [ __ ] heart at some point after Jake's death dude got jacked I'd claim my boy was on steroids if this wasn't a magical cartoon universe and if Finn wasn't one to get stuck in Non-Stop Loops of grinding Dungeons and dangers when his emotional state is less than stable I love how Finn seems to be taking each of Jake's kids on Adventures with him after the death of his brother though I feel like his rationale for doing so is due to the fear that his nieces and nephews might die bef
ore he ever gets around to spending quality time with them but it's still just so many fun potential dynamics that to think about I'm amazed TV ever agreed to it honestly but older TV seems a lot more chill than before Finn comes off as getting by on the surface but he's a tad rough underneath obviously he's got trauma or perhaps even PTSD at the core of his being despite him trying to keep up a cheerful and carefree exterior and live the best life that he can I'd say the gho go go go attitude i
s one of the ways he's dealing with suppressing his grief about passing but this probably ain't healthy for Finn I mean come on it definitely ain't healthy and it is definitely not helping Simon yeah fin giv Simon some terrible advice in this episode talking about sad stuff gets you nowhere forget about it and he gives himself terrible advice too yeah Finn just keep him busy and everything will be fine Finn also retains his subtle jerk ass component into adulthood because he used Simon to lure o
ut a monster without even telling the guy good job bait feel better yet unsurprisingly all the trip into the forest accomplished was to push Simon further away it'll take you back to where you want to be yeah right what I want to be I mean it also got Simon pretty badly injured the violence was interesting cuz it didn't feel that extrem or shocking to me but it was still something Adventure Time couldn't get away with before so it was fine but also felt kind of unnecessary to me even in season 1
Adventure Time was already achieving comparable levels of violence and how it depicted bruising for example so I don't need the blood but I also don't mind the blood I'll say this the level of violence was substantially below that of infinity train which was rated TV PG compared to tv14 for fion and cake find ways to watch Infinity train y'all because it's great and it was pulled from HBO Max due to a corporate merger that placed new idiotic Executives at the helm go watch Infinity train gettin
g back to Adventure Time though I simply want to stress that I absolutely loved the camping trip Finn and Simon took and the dynamic the two share even though it's not exactly healthy for either of them so that's what cowboy tastes like I adored the call backs to the hall of egis with Finn blindfolding both himself and Simon so that fate can take them where it will I guess dude is taking the lesson he learned way back when far too literally but it was hilarious and of course Finn confirming that
he spends time with huness wizard was also great the whole episode was fraking great I could keep on gushing about this episode and finding topics and details to discuss add INF an item but then this video would never get releas so I'm going to have to end things here folks the episode Simon Petrov was such a spectacular way to follow up on the Fantastic first episode and I'm so glad that even way after the main series had concluded Adventure Time continues to blow me away the next two episodes
are on the horizon and I hope you join me when I review them catch you on the flip
Comments
The fact tho, that Ice King wanted to find love and to be accepted and appreciated ever since he came to be. Only for people to actually start missing him and like his works/personalitty long after he himself ceased to exist, adds several more layers to Simon's depression.
To me, it seems Finn's recklessness stems from his underlying desire to meet with Jake again in the deadworld. Like he said in "Together Again," he was hoping to reunite with Jake the entire time after Jake died. I think he's abandoned any sort of fear of death at this point because he secretly wants it to some degree
My personal Head canon is that Jakes descendants would tag along to make sure that he’s ‘Fine’ cause they realize that he doesn’t handle loss well
Finn’s kinda like a better version of Martin now. Using his past experiences to press his friends and live his life to the fullest , all while trying to bury a traumatic memory or event. I might be off, but Finn’s positivity… its reminding me of Martin’s hustling positivity.
Simon did incorporate his antiquarian knowledge to the land of OOO … he has become the antique 👴🏻
The fact Finn didn’t go back to dungeon train till he died is enough of a win for me
I really enjoy the fact Finn doesn't have all the right answers and is still flawed it makes him feel even more real and like he is still growing even when we aren't watching
Y’know initially after watching this episode I was kinda let down by Finn being kind of oblivious to Simon’s emotional needs, but watching their conversation in the bar again, Finn really is trying his best, and at the very least clearly sympathizes with Simon’s plight.
It was disturbing but really profound to take the direction that Simon being the ice king was a bit like being high. He essentially was in a drugged out fugue state for thousands of years so that he never had to really feel biting existential misery. It really mirrored the struggle a lot of people have in sobriety, where they’re no longer a part of the madness, and yet relapsing offers a tantalizing rescue from the drudgery of the daily grind and the boring person they are now.
Tom Kenny deserves all the awards for his performance as Simon. He's able to perfectly capture the existential malaise of being trapped in a world he doesn't belong in, and the agony of constantly being reminded of a former life you can't relate to anymore. Also, it seems like Finn inherited the best and worst traits of his dad whether he's aware of it or not. He's got confidence for days and the brains/brawn to back it up, but it seems like he's really leaned into the toxic psychological state of "If I don't think about them, my problems will just go away!" Granted, he's way nicer than Martin ever was and genuinely cares about other people's trauma, but it also feels like he's not able to relate to anyone else's position secondary to his own, so his idea of helping is to just make people go through the same coping mechanisms HE would go through. Empathetic to a fault, but a sort of narcissistic form of empathy when you think about it. You can tell this is a Finn who's still processing the grief of losing his brother and his best friend, and has gone all in on escapist adventures that stop him from feeling sad but also don't really give him the emotional support he desperately needs. At least we've seen Together Again at this point, so we know that he turns out alright eventually, but the guy's had it pretty rough. Side note, but one of the reasons I've loved/missed this show so much is that it treats its characters as real people with all the baggage that comes with that. A lesser show would just make them funny cartoon people again for some kind of nostalgic cash grab, but not Fionna and Cake. This is a show that picks up RIGHT where the finale left off and proudly portrays what people are like at a more mature stage of their life, not simply catering to fanservice but continuing informed, logical character arcs that audiences have been invested in up to this point. This is how you properly revive a franchise, and I hope other studios take note of that.
You know simon's like that scholar main character of a Lovecraft novel who we stick with AFTER they've peered through the veil of our flimsy reality into the abyss of madness, monsters, gumballs, and naked babies.
I love the duality of Simon being an insane man in an insane world chasing mundane while Fionna is a mundane woman in a mundane world chasing insanity. I am so excited for the upcoming episodes seeing them talk out each other's problems while having wacky adventures with the two, and well, Cake. I sort of didn't expect the crew to give Simon some believable quarrels. It makes total sense that the man who lost everything he loved and got stuck in a world far from what he's used to by adventuring, wouldn't wanna continue adventuring. It also makes total sense that Simon doesn't wanna talk about his problems, he doesn't want to hurt other's feelings. Him opening up to pretty much only Finn also makes so much sense. Finn is the closest thing to what Simon thinks of as "human" as "normal" as "mundane". Making Fionna said mundane woman was such a good conscious decision, it leaves for SO much writing potential and it means that them eventually teaming up makes so much sense. EDIT: I think the repeated mention of people liking the Fionna and Cake books more is purposeful sub-text that people like Ice King more than Simon. It's supposed to hammer home just HOW alienated he truly is in the Land of OOO. Noone even wants him around, which feeds his depression EVEN further.
God I missed this. Watching adventure time, then hopping over to Uncivilized Elk for the breakdown. It's good to be back! 😁❤️❤️❤️
I feel like Finn was subconsciously doing a "Martin voice" when he said that thinking about sad stuff gets you nowhere" and then he winks. He then looks really uncomfortable and later has to reassure himself that he is doing the right thing by Simon by keeping him busy.
Simon’s major problem is that since shedding his persona as the ice king, he unintentionally dropped far too much of what made him himself. Even before the ice crown drove him completely insane, Simon was a lovable weirdo. Now he associates that charm with someone else and as a result has reverted to “a normal human” as a personality. He isn’t caged in that human exhibit, he literally has the keys, but chooses to shut himself out the moment someone reminds him of who he used to be. Simon’s story here will likely revolve around embracing his stranger side and learning to love all of himself.
The depiction of Ooo ~12 years after the finale is just so rich and filled with character. I’ve always believed that one of Adventure Time’s best aspects is its sense of setting and the fact that Ooo is such a fully realized world with so much detail. The worldbuilding allowed the show to be as creative as possible with its plots. I’m so glad that sense of setting has carried over to the spin-offs and sequels.
I really loved Finn's new spiritual approach to live. It felt like influence from Huntress Wizard and specially Jake. I hope we get to see more of him
Something I haven’t seen anyone else mention is that Finn’s whole philosophy about the universe guiding him can also be from The Comet. When Finn is lost in space and sings a song to the universe for help then Martin & the Space Moth showed up
I always liked to think of the ice king as a metaphor for addiction, and I think Simon's situation and the way he talks about it in his episode kinda mirrors the feeling of getting sober after years of being someone else
I love how the song is about "Madness and Sadness." It's like while he was the Ice King, Simon was suffering through magic-induced madness and sadness but now that he's a human again he's having to deal with his own madness and sadness.