We’re moving full force towards the climax of The Wild Batch now and considering how much press Kung Kung has gotten up until now, it’s well past time that we actually get to meet him face to giant, water God face. However, no self respected element themed deity is simply going to just welcome you in and just dealing out wishes like Oprah, no, you’re going to have to work for it and earn your way in the old fashioned just like Indiana Jones and the Goonies did – you’re going to have to traverse the old booby trap route.
Yep, if Gremlins hasn’t scoured the 80s for movie references enough (and it hasn’t), it’s time for some dependable, Spielbergian death traps to mark the end of an epic journey.
But wait, we’re not done there. You see, we’ve some long standing bad blood between Gizmo and Noggin to sort out – but while Noggin should have the clear advantage thanks to such things as teeth and claws, it seems that Giz’s fits of savagery might make the odds even.
After realising that his personality shifts to evil have gone from inconvenient to downright lethal, Gizmo is now convinced his a monster no more worthy of trust and love than a bloodthirsty Gremlin and he performs the ultimate act of sacrifice to protect his friends when he throws himself off the Train Between Worlds only to land in the middle of a rocky, American dessert. However, he isn’t alone when he discovers that Noggin has followed him in a desperate attempt to gain vengeance after being snubbed by the creature he regards his father/brother (it’s complicated). Thinking he has the clear upper hand, Noggin attacks, but after a brief tumbleweed chase, they fight in earnest, but while the short, stubby Gizmo has no real defence against Noggin, Evil Gizmo has that added chutzpah that scores him the win. But just when he’s about to score the killing blow, Gizmo regains his senses to find Noggin sadly accepting his fate and the good news is that the two reach an accord – the bad news is that they’re now stranded in in the middle of nowhere with the sun on the rise…
Elsewhere, Chang is still in the midst of his traitor phase as he hijacks the mission to save Ellie’s mother in order to score Kung Kung’s wish for himself. However, while the group consisting of Chang, Ellie, Sam and his family pick their way through various booby trap to get to their goal, various rifts begin to form. Firstly, there’s actually some debate concerning what type of God Kung Kung actually is – is he a benevolent being who will actually dole out three wishes like Chang and Margot belive, or does Grandpa Wing have it right when he says that the Water God is actually a big jerk who will only deliver one wish and then turn on them? Whichever it turns out to be, it has Sam and Ellie at odds with one another as both have very different limits to the risks they’re prepared to take.
There’s always a feeling that penultimate episodes always kind of have to sacrifice itself for the season finale. More often than not, it’s all about maneuvering the characters into the correct place at the correct time in order to help the final episode have all the space it needs to do what it has to do. However, a price is paid is that usually means that that episode before it is rarely able to stand on its own and even is denied a proper ending in order to provide a cliffhanger for whatever comes next. While a lot of these aspects are present and correct in Always Or Never Make Wishes, once again The creators of Gremlins have got you covered.
Firstly, who would have thought that a confrontation/heart to heart between embattled creatures Gizmo and Noggin would be so gripping and heartfelt? When I first heard there was going to be a Gremlins animated series, I figured it would be less of an ensemble and more of a Gizmo & Friends sort of deal, but while I wondered how a Gizmo-centric show would work, the moments of comedy, pathos and range the little guys shows here proves that that other approach could have totally worked also. It also helps that George Takei isn’t holding back the good stuff for Noggin and is also delivering quite the stellar performance despite playing a Gremlin with huge abandonment issues. Usually, when bitter enemies become friends, it tends to make me roll my eyes (I know, I’m a cynic), but here, it feels like both characters are at such a low point in their lives, I’d truly buy them suddenly making peace. Still, if nothing else, the look on Gizmo’s face when the branch snaps during his rescue attempt may actually be the best gag in the history of the show.
Moving on the the human characters, we find virtually the rest of the cast united as they advance on Kung Kung’s resting place, but while they’re united physically, they’re anything but united in spirit. You see, Chang has finally shown his true nature and has everyone hostage in order to bogart the first of what he believes are three wishes; but while he’s pulling nefarious deeds thanks to the information that Kung Kung is a pretty cool dude, Grandpa Wing claims that he’s actually a massive piece of crap and will deliver a single wish before trying to lay waste to the earth. This causes something of a issue between Sam and Ellie who have both been on the same page for most of the season, but while they’re now at odds with each other, the show makes it refreshingly grey. As we don’t know who is right or wrong about the temperament about the God they’re about to wake, there’s simply too much at stake for anyone to think clearly. Chang wants his wish and Ellie wants her mother, so they’re clearly on team wake-up, however, Sam and Co. are understandably ever anti end of the world and simply don’t want to take the chance – but after Ellie actively sabotages an attempt to wrest control from Chang, have too many bridges been burnt? Still, I’m impressed that the discussion isn’t delivered through the melodrama of betrayed screaming and watery tear ducts and instead these old friends hold their debate in mature measured arguments and counter points – but that doesn’t help matters much when Kung Kung turns out to be the titanic jerk we hoped he wouldn’t be.
While the episode sounds like it’s quite a serious deal with friends at loggerheads and enemies making peace, obviously the episode moves at the perky, cheerful pace it always does, but it does so without removing any of the drama that builds during it. In fact, even though the group is split, they still have enough respect for one another to work in unison to defuse some of the booby traos that lay in their way and it’s a timely message in this day and age that even if we all have wildly different stances on things, that doesn’t mean we can’t all pull together.
So with one episode to go, I have to say, even though I knew a gargantuan water God was waiting for us at the end, I’m still surprised the show would go the kaiju route two finales in a row after Claw got all building sized back in season one. Still, at this point I’m willing to follow the crew behind Gremlins literally anywhere they want to go, because aside from that lengthy mid-season break, it hasn’t let me down yet.
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