Episode 02 - South Pole Joe
Created by Mike Bell
Directed by Mike Bell
Written by Mike Bell
Santa was voiced by Mike Bell
Originally aired on Oh Yeah! Cartoons
Series created by Fred Seibert
Production Companies:
Nationally Distributed by Paramount Domestic Television
Internationally Distributed by Nelvana Limited
Great thing about an anthology series is the desire to keep producing popular material. Thous they make more and more from creators that got a good amount of ratings and/or great pitches for another episode. Honestly you have a good idea and can produce what they need, then you have half of everything right there. After that it's all about presentation and if it's in the budget, also the people that approve. I'm always glad to see a good and fun idea growing and continuing, so Super Santa made his return!
For the next three shorts the backgrounds will all be designed by Miles Thompson, who does an amazing job from going extremely detailed to simplified. One thing I didn't mention in the last review is the theme song, it's a beautiful splash into the weird world of Batman from the 1966 TV series. Fast paced and fun, something about the Nutcracker Suite in this trumpet march that really makes me happy. Anyhow, a giant gingerbread man starts destroying the City, the gingerbread man becomes frustrated by the appearance of Santa and Mrs. Claus that he hurls the bus in hand full of children at the sleigh of eight reindeer.
Tea Steeping gets too into character, while the others enjoy a needed rest and treat.
Santa evades the bus, though the children in the public transit vehicle start falling to Earth, Santa uses his amazing powers to fall straight into a chimney, after jumping out of his sleigh and the sky. Running to the destined decent location of the bus to stop the crying civilians before a calamity continues. Then Emma (Mrs. Claus) suggests the milk truck to take on the criminal cookie crumbling the City. The Claus' start blasting the milk at the monster baked good as it screams in horror and melts away into "ginger bread pudding" (it's poop, it's shaped like poop, it's brown like poop, though it was a gingerbread man so it's poop with frosting), then all the kids on the bus eat the pudding, just really cover themselves in it… Then we see our titular villain, South Pole Joe, at the South Pole complaining about Santa Claus, it seems that South Pole Joe wants to be loved and wants to be the Hero of another holiday. We go through a comparison between South Pole Joe and Santa Claus. How one has the tools and know how and the other just has the passion or the envy of a mad man trying to win the love and hearts of the world. His idea is in the right place, making life better for the people of the Earth, though his excision it's stellar.
There's a penguin milking joke.
(I'm just going to let that settle in)
He wants to take on Valentine's Day as his crusade in the joy of humanity. On his travel from the South Pole to -- City and misses his marked Day. Joe pulls into City on February 15th a day short of Valentine's day and tries to give joy to frustrated tax crunching civilians. All his gifts seem to put a bad taste in the civilians collective mouths, then Joe starts to attack the City in frustration of not being as good as Super Santa.
Emma and Santa put down their taxes and head South to take on the problem of South Pole Joe. After a quick fight between Santa and Joe they realize that the civilians can't get their individual taxes mailed since the fight is at the City's only mail box. Like no one thought about just going to the post office or emailing the IRS. Though it's the 90's so this wasn't really something that happened yet, email was still a thing that wasn't used beyond private connections, also wasn't readily available except if you had dial up, the mail was a lot faster. Anyhow, they stop their fight and the Claus' finish their taxes as Joe grabs the City's mail and delivers it to the mail box before the postman arrives (who never collects the mail in scene). Saving tax day… even though he was part of the problem to start with…
Ending the show with our villain being stopped, though winning the tolerance of the City, then South Pole Joe finds out through Shadowy Government suit wearing men that he has never paid his taxes and was promptly arrested (even though he lives in a part of the world that's a literal desert and off the continent that he's supposed to be paying taxes on, since this is the first time standing on their soil).
Surprisingly there are less mistakes in this short, a feat that doesn't happen often with shorts. Still a lot of problems within the short, but that's only the fault of the mundane problem that is resolved as fast as it is aggressive. This is my favorite in the Life and Times of the Super Santa shorts, a task that shows his humanity and love for all. If you're the type of person that wants a little less action and more about retrospective thinking, then this is the treat for you.
I trust you enjoyed the inspection, thank you for reading.
Support the creator, check out the links and watch the short.
If you want to stay up to date on my reviews, subscribe to this page.
Keep well and Stay well.
No comments:
Post a Comment