I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: sometimes there’s nothing more satisfying than when a bunch of complicated subplots finally converge to not only reveal a bunch of long held back revelations, but to somehow raise the stakes even higher. It’s a delicate trick to pull off that requires sometimes sacrificing character beats and arc in order to play the long game, but when it’s pulled off right, there’s nothing quite like it.
This brings us to Never Try The Cider, the seventh installment of Gremlins’ second animated season which – as you’ve probably guessed by my gushing opener – manages to pull off an impressive task of paying off a season full of questions (which started back in October of 2024, remember), laying down new ones and continuing that extensive world building to deliver the season’s – nay, the show’s – strongest offerings. Prepare for twists, turns, large amounts of American history and possibly the most shocking villain turn since pro-wrestling.
After making peace with ghostly, over-zealous Marshall Bass Reeves, the group of Gizmo, Sam, Elle and Chang are finally on the right track to locate and board the legendary Train Between Worlds; however, it now seems that not everyone in the group now has the same aims. While Sam and Elle are on their way to awaken the God Kung Kung in order to be granted a wish to cure Ellie’s mother from the curse that’s turning her to water, Chang has finally shown his true colours, has secretly captured the rapidly moistening matriarch in a magic flask and wants to claim Kung Kung’s wish for himself.
As the group reach the station, they find that they’ve got five hours to kill before the train arrives, but located nearby is a huge, ethereal casino that’s owned by the spirit of Johnny Appleseed that runs the establishment to host the other legendary spirits that reside in America. But aside from spending time with an understandably disgruntled Geronimo, or playing cards with John Henry or Calamity Jane, we find that the other trickster creatures that inhabit the place can sense Gizmo’s rapidly emerging dark side and convince it to come out in a night of debauchery and violence.
Meanwhile, we find Sam’s family being held hostage by Noggin on the Train Between Worlds, but after a spot of tricksy quick thinking by Grandpa Wing, he not only charms the intellectual Gremlin into giving up some info, but he also succeeds in drugging the vengeful little monster and freeing his daughter and son-in-law. However, back at Johnny Appleseed’s joint, everyone awakes to find themselves in a bit of a fix. It seems that Chang and Sam have been tied to a set of train tracks with Calamity Jane’s unbreakable whip and with the Train Between Worlds due very soon, Gizmo has to try and find a way to save them. However, while we think the situation has arisen due to Chang cheating at cards, the truth shakes a stunned Gizmo to his little, furry core.
Usually, the Gremlins animated show is at it best when it lets it’s ferocious little title characters off the chain in a way that defiantly pushes the boundaries of what a show aimed at children should be able to get away with, however, seeing as The Wild Batch already played that card mid-season when we were presented with the Gremlins acting like a deranged crime syndicate and ruling an entire city, the season has had to switch things up a little bit. However, it’s paid off big time as episode 8 manages to not only continue the ever-more intriguing thread of visiting America’s past via various supernatural encounters, but it finally infuses some of it’s more neglected plot threads with some bold, new juice.
If I’m going to be brutally honest, I was beginning to think that Gizmo’s attacks of frenzied mischief was a sign that Gremlins’ writers had uncharacteristically dropped the ball, after all having the franchise’s most enduring character suddenly start having fits that had him acting worryingly like a Gremlin is something of a major twist the throw at a show, but even though Giz has freaked out at least one time during an episode, nothing much has really been made of it other than mild concern – however, this finally changes thanks to two massive revelations that legitimately hits like an adorable bombshell. Firstly, we discover that the other trickster creatures inhabiting the casino recognise Gizmo as one of their own despite the Gremlin half of the Mogwai species being the one that traditionally causes all the damage. This causes Gizmo to have his biggest, most antisocial rampage yet and while his spiteful antics manages to kick off a massive barfight, we discover what actually happens when Gizmo awakes and pieces together what actually happened. Long story short, it turns out that Gizmo’s Gremlin-like mood swings are far more malevolent than we thought and it was actually he who tied Sam and Chang to the train tracks after knocking them both cold during the brawl.
As game changing as this is for us, Gizmo takes it doubly hard, now believing that he’s every bit the monster that the Gremlins are and that one moment of realisation instantly makes up for every episode of season 2 where it seemed that Giz was getting sidelined. While we’re on the subject of diminutive creatures getting character arcs, Noggin’s admission that he wants revenge on Gizmo for turning his tiny back on him is clarified when he confesses to Grandpa Wing that he sees the Mogwai as some sort of father/brother figure. While that might possibly explain why all Gremlins instantly have a love/hate relationship with the big-eared, lil’ fella, it also succeeds in making Noggin an even more fascinating villain as he seems to be getting more tragic and bitter by the episode. Add to this a cliff hanger that sees Gizmo throw himself off of the Train Between Worlds and into the void beyond to ensure that he can never hurt his friends again and you have something that’s deceptively powerful.
However, the true reason this episode scores to highly is that it manages to do all this (plus an additional villain turn from Chang) while still continuing to devote itself to its balls out exploration of history and legends. This time we get a huckster Johnny Appleseed (voiced by Timothy Olyphant, no less) brushing off accusations from Geronimo about the theft of Native American land, John Henry bickering with Calamity Jane over a game of Blackjack and trickster beasts like the jackalope chug cider and cause mischief. It’s visually impressive, genuinely amusing and it’s fairly informative too and even though I was getting slightly impatient about finally reaching Kung Kung, I’m actually going to miss this aspect of the show now that the majority of major players are finally aboard the Train Between Worlds.
Proof (if any were needed) that Gremlins doesn’t actually need a rampaging horde of its title creatures to turn in an exemplary episode, Never Try The Cider pays off plot threads like a flush gambler pays off debts. With everything primed for a presumably huge finale involving evil Mogwai and a possible meeting with a Water God, the job of the next two episodes has been made exceptionally easier. Ciders all round, then.
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