As we start to approach the final straight and the end starts to peek its face over the horizon, it comes that time in every season’s life cycle where all the varios threads start to come together. We have the majority of of our players in place with Sam, Elle, Gizmo, Radish and Nüwa all lined up on one side and our antagonists lined up on the other with the evil Riley Green and head Gremlin, Claw, finally making their big push. Obstacles have been routinely placed in the hero’s way (Nüwa has been neutralised by a handy dose of poison) and if they hope to return Gizmo back to his homeland alive and unswallowed, then some selfless shit needs to be pulled out.With three more episodes to go, the pre-climactic action sequence is somewhat tough to pull off as you’d expect everyone to be alive for the final couple of episodes so (the odd twist aside) everyone should be safe, right? Sort of.
When we last left our heroes, they were trapped in a tavern with the poisoned (and noticably alcoholic) God of Creation, Nüwa as Riley Green’s Gremlin footsoldiers broke in, really to deal out their classic brand of vicious mischief. During the seige (what is it with Gremlins and bars?), both Elle and Nüwa trade cutting, verbal barbs about each other as Elle is frustrated that they have a God on their side who doesn’t actually have any power and Nüwa has lost faith in humanity completely due to the fact that we always screw everything up – a fair point considering the snake tailed creator gave life to Mogwai specifically to test mankind.
However, after Radish arrives with new vegetable family, he is able to give the group the diversion they need to make a break for it toward a destination called the Bagua House, a place that can transport Gizmo back to the Valley of Jade before Green gets his hands on his furry little hide. However, Sam, Elle, Giz and the constantly bitching Nüwa army out of the woods yet, because due to the fact that Mogwai are essentially giant-eyed nibbles that grant immortality when ingested, the gang now have to fend off the rest of the Spirit Market who can sniff out Giz a mile away.
While a gang of axe waving Spirit Foxes (whom I’d misidentified in an earlier review as cats – my bad) chases them down, Sam and Gizmo slip away while a still bickering Elle and Nüwa act to draw their many pursuers away. However, the embittered, weakened God still doesn’t trust the street urchin to be anywhere near the Valley Of Jade, assuming Elle only wants to go there to plunder its riches, but thanks to Sam’s inability to tell what is and what isn’t sentient in this realm of wonders, a run in with a huge, hungry river spirit will bring out the self-sacrifice in the most cynical member of the group.
The first thing that clues you in that we’re hearing the end is that Never Squeeze A Fox is the first episode of Secrets Of The Mogwai that hasn’t moved itself to an all-new location as its action steadfastly remains in the ghostly fantasy land of the Spirit Market, an other-dimensional place inhabited by strange creatures – most of whom are eager to send Gizmo in a one way trip through their large intestine. However, while the previous episode allowed us to marvel at the Studio Ghibli-esque surroundings, episode 7 has no time to spare, whipping us from a bar siege, to a madcap chase through the streets, to a final struggle against a gigantic river spirit that unhelpfully disguised itself as a fish cart before revealing its final form… as a fish – but like a really glowy one.
The result is an episode that manages to balance its fast paced nature with a few intimate character beats and even a couple big emotional swings. The main example of this is the constant jibes and back talk that goes on between Elle and a constantly unimpressed Nüwa who proves that her tongue is every bit as poisonous as the concoction coursing through her system that’s stripped her of her powers. In fact, you could argue that Elle’s contant attempts to prove her non-duplicitous intentions to the grumpy deity is not only a case the orphan trying to proving her own, heroic nature to herself, but maybe also seeing Nüwa as something of a mother figure, albeit one with a snake tail. This is paid off after a near-death experience where she’s virtually crushed to death while saving little Giz from the River Spirit’s thawing maw.
It’s a powerful moment and it not only serves to finally take us off the fence when it comes to Elle’s intentions, but it’s a turning point for Nüwa too as the selfless act makes her shift her humans-are-dicks stance that earlier seemed unshakeable. However, as affecting as the moment is, I can’t help but feel that the show pulled the trigger on a fake-out death a little early, even though it finally convinces the God of Creation to finally trust the humans to travel with Gizmo to the Valley of Jade. Ehile the rather brief brush with death isn’t ultimately cheapened by a magical wonder cure at the hands of Bowen Yang’s new character, the pinickety Administrator Bowen Yang (I actually gasped when the fish landed on her), but as an emotional moment, it just seems like its slightly in the wrong place. But then, it was unexpected – so what do I know?
The copious action is nicely fast paced and varied, switching from cart chases, to monster battles and, in yet another nice touch, a brief brawl between the pursuing Spirit Foxes and Claw’s Gremlin horde.
Visually, the show still impressive (the bright yellow River Spirit is a vibrant stand out) and the shock ingestion of Nüwa by Riley Green with his still alarming Pearl magic means that the villain gets an alarming power upgrade going into the final three episodes. But what of the Gremlins themselves? Are the show’s real villains destined to play second fiddle to their super powered boss? Don’t you believe it, as the episode features some blink and you’ll miss them moments that prove that Claw isn’t about to be merely a snarling henchgremlin. Not only are those devious, little green cogs turning, but Noggin’s transformation into a pseudo-intellectual, brain box who stumbles on a magic cancelling ring means that the worm will surely turn at any moment.
In an episode packed with big moments and small details (check out the Gremlin licking Nüwa’s magic shield like a window), I’m predicting that the next episode, which presumably will take place entirely within the Valley of Jade, might be an episode that’ll give the show a much needed chance to catch its breath after a season full of Gremlins, sorcerers, gods, hopping zombies, magic tea and a swarm of giggling, green, psychopaths.
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