Original Airdate: January 16, 2012
Written & Storyboarded by: Kent Osborne & Somvilay Xayaphone
Paper Pete is perhaps one of, if not the most forgettable episode of Adventure Time for me. It’s not a particularly horrendous one, but it poses a premise and characters so bland that it never really has a chance to be significant in any form.
The idea of Jake studying a Rainicornocopia is a pretty cool concept, even before the Rainipups themselves were actually born. I like Jake’s heartfelt interest and compassion for Lady to go out and educate himself on something that’s important for the both of them. It’s also fitting that Jake wouldn’t be able to even get past the first paragraph, and even more logical considering he has no idea how Rainicorn children work when he eventually has five of his own.
As for the plot itself, I think it’s somewhat of a frustrating, yet commonly used story for animated and live-action series alike. I think the idea of Finn “making up adventures” is a bit of a weird argument from Jake, considering it isn’t a common aspect of Finn’s character in general. It works primarily as a plot device for this one, and it’s slightly annoying to watch Jake blatantly ignore what’s right in front of him. Jake vs. Me-Mow had a similar plot, and that episode did it much, much better in my opinion. It’s hard to pull off that story in general without causing some form of frustration for the viewer.
Paper Pete, voiced by Peter Browngardt, makes his first and only appearance in this episode. Usually AT side characters stick out in their own absurd and quirky fashion, but Paper Pete doesn’t really have any strong character traits. He’s not particularly funny, interesting, or even well-designed. It’s a bit odd they got Peter Browngardt for this role. Besides the name, Peter Browngardt is known for his over-the-top and ludicrous characters, namely Uncle Grandpa. It’s a weird pairing for a character who kind of feels like an afterthought, despite having an entire episode named after him.
The two main conflicts are pretty thin, with one being treated as amusingly ineffective, and the other just being quickly resolved in the end without a ton of time devoted to it. Considering they’re both treated as very minor issues, the conflict almost seems somewhat nonexistent. It’s harder to pull through as a competent episode when there’s no compelling struggle to carry onward, whether it be humorous or thrilling. And the episode ends as it does on every rewatch: with me almost entirely forgetting what I just saw.
I know I’m ripping this episode a new one, but honestly, I’m being a bit harsh on it. It’s nothing terrible: the writing isn’t bad, the animation isn’t bad, the characterizations aren’t bad. There’s a few enjoyable aspects, namely the background artwork. The library setting isn’t really visually interesting, but the detailed backgrounds and just how many shelves upon shelves they can squeeze in is pretty dope to look at. There’s a few good jokes in this one, though scarce. I do like Finn’s general uninterest with the pagelings, and how his main goal is really to just shove his proof in Jake’s face. It’s pretty funny to watch him react to the ineffectual environment, and even his mild annoyance with Paper Pete. Also, Turtle Princess seeing Finn with his shirt off was fucking priceless. So, it’s not bad, but it’s one of AT’s most forgettable efforts for me. This is Kent and Somvilay’s last episode for a while together; Kent began exclusively as a story editor for a while up until season five. Although this wasn’t a perfect episode to leave off on, the two would come back stronger than ever a couple seasons later for one of their best episodes yet.
Adventure Time Reviewed 