Come Along With Me: Adventure Time – “His Hero” and “Gut Grinder”

His Hero | S1 E25 | September 20, 2010 | Reviewed by Blip

Synopsis – After dramatically saving a bug queen from a swamp giant, Finn and Jake stumble upon the sword of their adventuring idol, the legendary warrior Billy. Upon shifting the handle, a crack in the nearby cliff opens to reveal Billy’s cave. They eagerly enter, only to be greeted by Billy himself. Although he seems initially happy to have visitors, he becomes agitated as they express their love for his dramatic exploits. He complains that evil monsters never stop popping up, making defeating them a pointless venture. He instead encourages to find nonviolent ways to improve the community, which Finn and Jake immediately – if somewhat reluctantly – take to heart.

Finn and Jake take on various roles (cobbler, gruel distributor, doctor) to try and help people without resorting to violence, but they always end up taking things too far and hurting the people they were assisting. Dejected, Finn admits they suck at nonviolence. At that moment they spot an old woman being attacked by the same swamp giant from the beginning of the episode and, after a few seconds of indecision, Finn decides to do what he does best – kick butt. Saving the old woman, he and Jake – with the old woman in tow – return to Billy’s lair to prove that it is still possible to help people with violence. Billy is so moved that he retracts his earlier advice and declares that Finn and Jake are now his heroes.

My Thoughts – Unfortunately my first review for this collaborative series – ‘When Wedding Bells Thaw’ – was a bit harsh. Luckily this was, in my opinion, a much stronger episode. Part of that is just how quotable and funny it is. Not only does it give us one of the most quoted lines of the show – “Dude, sucking at something is the first step toward being sort of good at something” – but it is filled with all sorts of hilarious moments. The back and forth between Finn and the old woman (“Just like I was born to be an old lady!”) was one such highlight, but even it was eclipsed by the scene for which I most remember this episode: that over-the-top theme for Billy.

Who’s the greatest warrior ever?

A hero of renown!

Who slayed an Evil Ocean

Who cast the Lich King down!

Billy!

And that time the evil Fire Count

Captured a damsel fair.

Who saved her with such bravery

She offered him her hair?

Billy!

Also… he fought a bear!

Billy!

It’s catchy, it’s silly, and most of all it does a great job of introducing us to Billy as he was before pulling the rug out from under us with the reveal of the warrior’s current jaded state. Honestly, I think it was a great idea to have Finn meet his adventurer hero only to discover he’s become a world-weary pacifist. (And Lou Ferrigno does such a great job with both of the character’s modes.) All throughout the series so far (with a few exceptions), Finn has managed to solve his problems or get around obstacles by essentially punching them in the face, so to have his own idol chide him for it presents a unique challenge to his worldview.

This really is a bit of an interesting episode to parse from a philosophical perspective. Billy adamantly pushes Finn and Jake to use nonviolent methods to help people, which seems like an obvious lesson you would see in a typical kid’s show. But the episode turns this concept on its head with the realization that violence just works better for the duo. So, is the show actually advocating for violent solutions to problems? That’s not quite how I see it. Instead, the way it is framed it seems to be focusing more on the idea that it is okay to try new things, even if they don’t work out. Finn saves the old woman with violence, sure, but he and Jake had already spent the bulk of the episode trying out a more peaceful approach. And rather than claim that peace never works, Finn admits that it just doesn’t work for him. The important thing isn’t that he reverted back to his old ways, it is that he at least tried something different even if he couldn’t get a grasp on it. It’s a nice bit of character growth for him.

I also like how Billy ended up by the end the episode. Again, I don’t really take his (small) arc here as specifically advocating for violent solutions to all problems. Billy’s issue at the start of the episode is that he just doesn’t seem to care anymore. He tells Finn and Jake that they need to help out their community in a peaceful manner, but that feels almost like just empty advice given that Billy seems to spend the entire time sitting in his cave staring at the door. He’s spent his whole life fighting evil only to see it keep coming back in different forms, and he’s just tired of it. He’s fallen into a malaise, and it’s only witnessing Finn’s heroism that snaps him out of it and makes him realize that maybe he can still make a difference in the world. It’s kind of sweet, in a way, that Finn started the episode by finally meeting his biggest hero only to end up serving as his hero’s inspiration.

This isn’t a perfect episode by any means (I really feel bad for that cobbler), but it’s a fun one that provides opportunity for a bit of introspection by the characters. There’s not much more I can ask for at this early point in the show’s run.

Trivia/Stray Observations –

• “My inflatable angel.”
• “It’s Billy’s legendary crack!”
• “Man, I’m such a nerd for you.”
• “Do you know where she is now? She’s probably being eaten by a different monster. She’s probably dead.”
• “I love you, Billy! I’ve got a secret crush on you, Billy!”
• “I can’t beat monster butts, but I can beat your hungry guts!”
• “I didn’t throw up. This gruel is very adequate!”
• “So, the village needs the help of a new cobbler, eh?” “What? No –” Smash cut to Finn and Jake in a cobbler shop.
• “You up for some serious plastic surgery?”
• “Huh? A fist raised in righteous anger? Oh no, it’s my fist!”
• “Just like I was born to be an old lady!”
• The Mini Queen was very cute.
• Jake sliding across the ground nose-first and then up Billy’s sword was a hilarious visual.
• In case you were wondering what Billy was shouting at the beginning of his song, it was the name of his sword, Nothung.
• Billy’s song (officially titled ‘Billy!!!!!!!!’) was performed by storyboard artist and eventual showrunner Adam Muto.
• It is impossible for me to hear “Also, he fought a bear!” without breaking down in laughter.
• Does Billy just spend his days staring at the wall?
• I felt kind of bad for LSP there.
• Don’t know where becoming cannibals comes into this, Jake.
• Apparently this is the only Season 1 episode to be banned in Australia and the Philippines. Not sure what is so objectionable about this one compared to others from this season, but oh well.

Gut Grinder | S1 E26 | September 27, 2010 | Reviewed by W.C. Higgenbobber

The episode begins with Finn and Jake emerging from the bushes. We previously saw Marceline do the same in Henchman right before she pranked Finn and Jake. Marceline of course is older and confident in her identity whereas the boys still represent adolescence (despite Jake being older than Finn and maybe “adult” age). Now allow me to introduce some nonsense: It’s the end of season one with this episode and we’ve seen some growth in Finn, but Jake the Dog has been largely the same. We see Finn emerge from the bushes with newfound maturity and a willingness to try new things like playing the viola (summarized by Blip above). Jake comes out of the bush freaking out and rolling around on the ground with misplaced rage. Oof, what’s wrong Jake? Just who are you? The cute one? The hot one? The Gut Grinder? The Groucho Marx? Seems like you’re getting an episode centered on moving to the next phase of your life.

The Hot Jake life that is

Throughout the episode we see Jake literally proclaiming who he is. The very first of which is addressed to the residents of Soft Village. Actually whenever he does this it always comes with some kind of animated flourish. Jake the “Gut Grinder” is a jokester with a scary detailed face who makes people wee-wee out of their armpits while they twirl in place (at least as he thinks now).

Next we got “Jake the Dog”, a mid-sized dog who likes to have a good time and plays the viola. He’s also apparently very skilled at smoothly putting his viola away mid-transformation in Finn’s backpack! What a good boy! A lot of people can roll with this version of Jake. The soft people think he’s cute/”kawaii”, the cube people think he’s cute, but the spiky people think “his face is weird”. Jake does not like being cute, and when one emerges from the bushes they’re supposed to come out mature and hot. Its no wonder he’s rolling around on the ground at the intro of the episode– dawg got self-esteem issues. Will Jake come out of this episode as the hot one or remain a cute dog for babies?

Okay apparently I did not finish this review. What the crap am I talking about? Oh Glob, I have to commit to this. What a (hot) mess. The next Jake we see is Jake the “I’m Finn the Human”. This version of Jake is an abomination. I’m going to have to rate this one a crappy 8/10. He’s mean to his best bro (Finn does not appreciate it), but more importantly his human feet look tiny and gross on his body. It’s also the version of Jake who gets the most defensive about the interesting smells of poop.

UPDATE: Perhaps I’m being too harsh on this form. He accurately describes Finn’s poor viola abilities and also gives some introspective thought on the possibility of being the Gut Grinder. In addition to his appraisal of poop, maybe this is the most honest version of Jake. I give Jake the “I’m Finn the Human” a solid 8/10.

Next up we got “I am NOT the Gut Grinder” Jake. Much like Jake the Dog, this form loves to dance and have a good time. The main difference however, is that this Jake is slightly higher on the hotness scale. This is illustrated with the more clearly defined ass. It’s not enough to get him over the top however, as the cube people still find him cute.

This is a huge blow to Jake, especially since it comes from the cubic individuals with their very hot edged forms as opposed to the round, squishy, wee-wee bodies of Soft Village. Jake breaks out his “I’m Hot!” form, which is really just Jake pointing at his mouth. It’s also a vengeful form as Jake promises to mess up anyone who calls him cute.

Finn and Jake proceed to adopt a new persona for Jake as they tire of him being recognized as the Gut Grinder. This beautiful form consists of “groo cho” glasses for Jake and TWO faces. Much like the hottest individuals in their respective villages, this form has a moustache as well as eyebrows that can compete with the people in Spiky Village. It’s no surprise then that we see Jake kiss himself in adoration before confidently strutting towards the distressed villagers. He’s even got a defined ass!

Sadly this confidence does not last as Jake gets convinced he actually is the Gut Grinder and gets thrown in a jail. The real Gut Grinder reveals themselves thanks to Finn’s plan, but Jake is already too far gone. Having completely given up on being hot and resigning to his belly rubs on the basis of his cuteness, he transforms into what I’m gonna call “Jake Grinder” for simplicity.

Jake Grinder kind of resembles a super-villain with an origin story of not being hot enough and having to make up for it through crime and spectacle. Ironically he is hot in many senses. He’s very large, knows what he wants (gold), and he got a nice butt.
It’s revealed that the Gut Grinder is actually the mayor’s wife, Sharon. Buy why did she do it?

Because I like to buy things, Cameron! I like to shop! And I dressed up like Jake because I think he’s hot!

– Sharon

Turns out, there are people who genuinely do find Jake as one hot dog. The mayor’s wife was so obsessed on maintaining her hotness she had to live a secret life of crime to support her shopping. What does Jake think of all this? I dunno but Jake admits he went nuts. Maybe he learned not to be so concerned about his hotness. Hopefully the next time he emerges from a bush his face will be beaming with hot confidence.

And so we come to the end of season one. The episode didn’t feel like a season finale but that wasn’t really expected since literally the second season premiered two weeks later. If you were watching Adventure Time as it initially aired then you might remember how frustrating Cartoon Network’s broadcasting schedule was for this programme.

Thank you Blip for organizing this collaborative review series. I honestly have not written anything since college and I ended up having a lot of fun working on these as well as reading and participating in the discussion comments below.

AAAAAAAADVENTURE TIME!