"Downton Abbey" Seasons 3 & 4 Review

Hi, I'm the Whatsoever Critic. I review just about anything.

This semester has not only being busy, but also fast. Lately, I've been working on different projects, as well as schoolwork. However, I'm still following the series Downton Abbey. However, I was supposed to review Seasons 3 & 4, but haven't had the time to because again... BUSY. So, to save time, I've decided to combine Seasons 3 & 4 into one review.

So, sit back and enjoy my take on Seasons 3 & 4 of Downton Abbey.
-Disclaimer: This review may be heavy on the spoilers. So, if you haven't seen the show, then stop reading now.
(pause)
Okay then let's get started!

Season 3:

Good news! Matthew and Mary are finally married!
-About time!
Bad news, though... the estate is in financial trouble. They try to seek help from people that they know, but they don't get the needed money until Matthew Crawley's ex-fiance's father writes that he passes down his inheritance to Matthew.
-BTW, Shirley MacLaine makes an appearance... in the season premiere. (Whoop-dee-do.)
As for the Grantham daughters, Sybil is expecting a child. Edith is subject to work as a columnist. And Mary is... well, just Mary.
-Not much is done about Mary...
Oh, and guess what, after being in prison for a while, Bates is freed.
-Thank you!
So, what kind of tragedies can overshadow the good stuff in this season? Um...
1. Sybil dies while giving birth to her daughter.
2. And who else dies? MATTHEW CRAWLEY! WTF?! Him and Mary were meant to be together, despite Mary's shortcomings! What's the matter with you?!

Season 4:

In this season, I still can't believe that Matthew is dead.
-I mean, come on, guys! Why?
Anyway, things get serious in this season. Just like Five Nights at Freddy's, things get harder and harder as the series progresses. I mean, check it out: there's a rape; Bates is questionably... questionable; and the essence of America creeping into the traditional realms of Downton Abbey. Oh yeah, and someone is murdered.
-Not saying anymore!

So, what was one theme that should out in seasons three and four? Well, it would have to be the theme of change. In the show, you can see that the main character Lord Grantham is trying to keep things the way they were, as if to run away from change and not embrace it. People tell him over and over that he has to accept change, because it's there. This nonacceptance of change is portrayed over and over in books and movies, that you can understand this character's struggle.

So, how were Seasons 3 & 4 for me? They were a lot more intense than the first two seasons. So, what's a girl to do, now that Season 5 is coming to a close, and I'm still trying to catch up to Season 5 before the Christmas special? Well, I've got a lot of work to do.

Whatsoever Critic
Source: Downton Abbey

Courtesy: PBS/Carnival Films

CHARACTER ANALYSIS #3- The Alchemist from "LarryBoy: Leggo My Ego"

Hi, I'm the Whatsoever Critic. I review just about anything.

If you've seen the video already, I had to not say anything, because people were in my friggin' room watching that crappy movie Identity Thief.
-BTW, absolutely NO review on that movie... It's that crappy.

Anyway, I'm here today to give you my third Character Analysis. I dare you to watch the video before reading further on into this blog post.

(pause)

Ready?

It's the Momma's boy himself... the Alchemist from LarryBoy: Leggo My Ego.

To me, this villain is a joke. Why is he a joke? And why do I keep calling him a Momma's boy to this day? Keep reading to find out! This is my Character Analysis on... the Alchemist.
-Just so you know... just like the first two Character Analysis segments, this one is brief.

In the LarryBoy universe, the Alchemist made his appearance in LarryBoy: Leggo My Ego (a.k.a. Episode 2 of the Cartoon Adventure series). At first, at the beginning of the video, you'd think that this villain was bad-ass and promising when he sabotaged the cotton candy machine and wrecked havoc at a town carnival.

-When I first saw this video, I was like: "Wow! Who is this? Look at how cool he looks!"
CHUCK IT! The Alchemist is always assisted by none other than his own mom, who...

1. Enables his villainous sprees
2. Helps him annoy the heck out of LarryBoy
3. Usually speaks for him whenever describing an evil plot

Diagnosis: No guts, no glory.

The only remedy that's in store for this villain... if Big Idea considered... is that if it was just him causing trouble in LarryBoy's world... MINUS HIS MOM... then maybe he would've been a stronger villain. Plus, like Greta von Gruesome, there's not much of a background history for the Alchemist...
-That picture of him as a baby during that powerpoint scene DOES NOT COUNT!
...other than he's evil; he's a Momma's boy... What more can you say about this guy?

I'm mean, seriously, Alchemist! Up your game!

Whatsoever Critic
Source: LarryBoy: Leggo My Ego

Courtesy: Big Idea

CHARACTER ANALYSIS #2: Greta von Gruesome from "LarryBoy and the Yodelnapper"

Hi, I'm the Whatsoever Critic. I review just about anything.

And welcome to part two my Character Analysis segment. And seeing my reaction to this time's pick in the previous video post...
-(pause)
...it wasn't what I expected. So this Character Analysis will be on the greedy villain of the LarryBoy universe herself... Greta von Gruesome.

Can you really blame me for saying that this analysis should be a breeze like the first one? I didn't expect to pull this name out of the hat.
-Maybe next time will be a better pick.
Anyway, here it is: the Character Analysis for Greta von Gruesome.

Like all the villains in the Cartoon Adventures, Greta von Gruesome is underrated. But by far, she's like the most decent villain in the franchise:
1. She doesn't have an inanimate object as a henchman (like Awful Alvin)
2. She isn't a Momma's boy (like the Alchemist)

Not much is known about Greta, except in the book version of The Yodelnapper.

According to Book #4 of the Cartoon Adventures Books, she was known as "Greedy Greta" until they changed it to "Greta von Gruesome" in Book #5 of the series. She lives in a castle that was given to her by her rich uncle. Despite being wealthy as heck, she bought anything that she wanted. However, when buying didn't seem fun for her, she turned to stealing. This was the start of her villain career, because greed revolved around the choices that she made. She's looking to attain happiness, but her greed isn't doing her favors; and yet, she keeps feeding into her greed.

One perfect example of her out-of-controllable greed is when she decides to kidnap a bunch of yodelers to yodel for her whenever she wants them to.
-Talk about an obsessed fan!
-Besides, most of our sitcoms and comedy shows are like this... I'm just saying.

Now that I'm thinking about this character more, I'm beginning to theorize that she's like the reincarnation of the 1920s, where people in America were buying and spending everywhere, which were fueled by greed and temptations. You think that the Roaring Twenties were full of greed, then Greta is the queen of greed!

Can this character be diagnosed? Actually, yes!

She is a greedy piece of work. She doesn't learn from her mistakes.
-Well, duh. She's a villain.

She steals and doesn't care if she hurts anyone by doing it or not. She's dead serious with her villain career, unlike Awful Alvin, who mainly runs around and talks like a jackass. Again, she's like the most decent villain in the Cartoon Adventures series, despite some of her story and background never being explained.

Whatsoever Critic
Source:
LarryBoy and the Yodelnapper (both movie and book)
LarryBoy in the Good, the Bad, and the Eggly

Courtesy: Big Idea

1st CHARACTER ANALYSIS Ever!!!: Rico from "Penguins of Madagascar"

Hi, I'm the Whatsoever Critic. I review just about anything.

And welcome to my first Character Analysis segment, where I analyze a character that I pick out of a hat. If you haven't seen the video for Character Analysis, check it out in the November 2014 archive of this blog. If you have, then here it is.

Today, we'll be looking at the character Rico from Penguins of Madagascar.

It was a bit of a surprise to analyze this character first. I mean, he's not the main main character of the show. However, he still has some good qualities that make him as memorable as his conrads. So, sit back and enjoy my first-ever Character Analysis.

Making his first appearance in the first Madagascar movie, Rico was one of the team members of the lovable paramilitary-like quartet. As the Madagascar movies got more and more successful, the DreamWorks franchise spawned a spin-off show, starting the team of penguins.

Now, in the movie franchise, Rico is seen to be the team's weapon expert, not saying a word, but only speaking in grunts and gags. Sure, he pukes out needed weapons every once in a while, but not as often as in the TV series.

Now, on the show, Rico's puking is strongly used and emphasized. Heck, there was even an episode where he couldn't puke up anything because he was drugged with a Pepto-Bismol (or something similar), and there was a frantic race against time to get him to puke again before a bomb inside him went off! (Refer to the episode: "All Choked Up.")

Plus, unlike the movie franchise, Rico has a bigger personality on the show.

He hits on Barbie dolls; he's protective of his stern leader;

and he can be a little of a psychopath in some of the episodes, but he still possesses a good heart...

...as well as comical out of the bunch.
His character works out great with the other Penguins, because they make up the usual quartet/team formula: the stern leader, the muscle, the geeky/smart one, and the softie. In this case, Rico is definitely the muscle part.

The only question I have for Rico is the scar on the side of his beak. That's never explained in the movies or in the show. If we were to ask in person, Skipper would probably say that that's classified.
-Understandably so.
I don't know. Since the Penguins of Madagascar movie is set to come out in theaters soon, maybe... just maybe... something like that would be explained in the upcoming movie, because the movie is supposed to be about their origins, right?

And that was my first Character Analysis segment. I hope you all enjoyed it. And, like I said before, this one would be a breeze. Stay tuned, for I'll have another Character Analysis video filmed and uploaded onto my Youtube channel, as well as onto my blog. In my next video, I will draw another name out of a hat and tell you what character I will analyze next.

Whatsoever Critic
Source: Penguins of Madagascar

Courtesy: DreamWorks Animation