Note: This review was scripted before the actual premiere here in America. I was a little fuzzy with the episode, so bear with me. This is what I thought the episode was telling me.
Hello Toonzoners. I'm SweetShop209. Welcome to my first in depth for Littlest Pet Shop. Normally, I would just give my quick thoughts on an episode and give it a score. However, since it's the season 2 finale, I want to go all out. The review format I' m using is inspired by an MLP reviewer on youtube, Voice of Reason. The format is Story, which is the plot of the story , how I feel about the story, and how well developed the characters are in the story; Technicals, which deals with animation and music; Entertainment, which deals with humor, serious moments, and investment; and Moral/Message, which is about the message they're trying to get across and how well it connects to the story. However, before we get to that, I want to do a mini review of the season 1 finale “Summertime Blues” and see how it compares to theseason 2 finale. Let’s go.
Summertime Blues: Blythe is accepted to a summer program at Fashion University North, or FUN, for short, that would have her gone for most of the summer, much to everyone’s shock. However, because it’s something that she loves, everyone else supports her in her dreams.
Before I get to the positives, I want to talk about a few problems I had with the episode. First, there was no build up. That episode just brought up the idea of going to FUN out of nowhere, unlike season 2, which had four episodes to build up to it. While I liked the talent show, I felt it could have been longer, but I guess it was time constraints. This special had a longer song with an encouraging message, unlike season 1, which was shorter. Also, while I like seeing Blythe so sure of herself of attending FUN, I thought she should have thought about it more than in one scene. However, the episode is still great. The characters are in character, as well as level headed, for the most part. Animation and music are very well done. There’s plenty to laugh about in this episode, but there’s also a lot of heart. The moral is really good: “If someone wants to follow their dream, you should let them, even if you might be apart for a long time. You should be supportive of that person.”Overall, despite the flaws, I liked the episode. It gets 9.5/10. Now, time to review “The Expo Factor”.
Story: With the International Pet Fashion Expo coming up, Blythe is very nervous. She has to do a photo shoot for Tres Blasé magazine,get her kiosk to the expo, show her designs and impress the judges, and save Littlest Pet Shop from closing when Largest Ever Pet Shop is expanding. To make things worse, the Biskits sabotage her at every turn.
This story is rather interesting. At first, I thought it would be like “Alligators and Handbags” with Blythe suffering from confidence issues, but this was a different approach. In “Alligators and Handbags”, she learned that you can’t feel down on yourself when others criticize you, and that you should buck up and try again. Here, she learns how friends can help you get through the most stressful moments in life. That’s pretty clever. The characters in this special are written well, whether for good or bad.
Blythe, of course, is written well. She’s really dedicated to her fashion, which I like. I wasn’t too keen at first, but it grew on me, and I like seeing the genius that goes into making fashion clothes and fashion accessories . Fashion is about dedication and persistence to your craft, which she shows. I like seeing someone dedicated to something they love. Plus, it’s nice to look at. We see she still loves and appreciates the pets, as well as the pets do to her. She’s still her same old self in that regard, but she also shows something that really stands out in this particular episode. She’s dealing with confidence issues. With the pressure to make a good first impression for the judges, the pressure to save Littlest Pet Shop, as well as stopping the Biskits, that’s a lot to do. It’s quite admirable to see Blythe suffering from confidence issues and overcoming it. She’s relatable in that sense. She’s also very smart and perceptive, as she was able to think of a way to foil the Biskit twins in the second half.
The pets were also written well. They supported and helped Blythe when she was in doubt, and we see that development in their relationship. We also see Russell going through the same thing Blythe is when he’s asked to model for Tres Blasé magazine since he’s usually a behind the scenes guy. There’s also a guest pet in this episode, a cat named Delilah. She’s certainly an interesting character. She had a great song, great funny moments,and helped out Blythe in the second half, even if it wasn’t that much. Also,Sunil gushing over her was very funny. Sepper shippers will have a field day with this. The interactions among the pets were also great. Once more, we get to see Zoe having to deal with jealousy of not being in the spotlight when someone else is. However, she controlled it better here than in one of my favorite episodes, “What Meme Worry?”, in that she actually tries to help Russell out with the modeling. There were also some funny moments with Minka,like when she went crazy in the secret compartment in the kiosk. Seeing Sunil and Vinnie’s little subplot to find Blythe and tell her what the Biskits did made for some great character moments.
The Biskits were also written well. Despite the fact that they’re trying to bring down Blythe, they actually almost succeed, in that they really planned ahead. They had a carefully crafted plan, stayed one step ahead of Blythe, and were ready to defend. Many things they did, like slashing the tires of the Littlest Pet Shuttle or taking Blythe’s kiosk by scheduling a fake photo shoot was really smart. Their downfall was done well in that theydidn’t know the pets were in the kiosk, and that they were exposed by Blythe and Francois. Although Fisher didn’t appear, he still played a major role by being the one to come up with the threat.
Blythe’s friends were okay in this episode. Sue and Jasper didn’t do much other than support Blythe. At least they still supported her. Youngmee and Emma however are a bit different. I have been wanting to see these two interact, and I finally got my wish. They helped move the plot by complimenting Blythe’s designs in her room, and helping to decide which pet would model for the photo shoot. That’s something. Right?
Francois also played an important role in this special. It’s been hinted at times that he doesn’t like working for the Biskits because they are not morally sound, but still puts up with them to live up to the butler code. However, seeing him confess their crime, and his involvementis really bold, since it shows that he will do the right thing when need be. It was kind of sad to see him get fired, but at least he got hired by Mona, I’m assuming.
I can’t say much about Roger. He only appeared at the end of part 2. But, it was still nice to see him take time out to support Blythe.
I can’t say much for Mrs. Twombly either. I thought she was a little pushy in getting Blythe to help save the shop, but it was mostly in the dream. However, she was still written well, considering the circumstances she’s dealing with. She still helps Blythe by giving her a doorknob to act as a trailer hitch when Blythe’s trailer hitch was stolen by the Biskits, and the tires to the Littlest Pet Shuttle were slashed. I kind of wish she was at the expo, but she’s still cool.
Finally, we have Mona Autumn. She’s still the same person she was from “Alligators and Handbags”, but more toned down. While she still takes no guff from anyone, and expects clients to be at their best, she doesn’t freak out and gave Blythe the ribbon when she proved her worth.
Technicals:Like any Littlest Pet Shop episodes, it’s well animated. The lighting and shading effects were done well, mostly in songs and dreams sequences. The outfits were great to look at. The human and pet characters move smoothly and naturally. As for music, it’s top of the crop. The background music was used well from Blythe’s dream sequences to the cliffhanger in part 1 and the happy ending in part 2. As for songs, they’re great too. The first song is “All Around the World”, sung by Delilah. It’s really good. I wasn’t fond of it at first, but it grew on me. It shows what the Expo is like (which is good since the second half is about the conflict at the expo), it’s sung well, and it’s well animated. The second song is “You Can Do Anything” sung by the pets. This is where the moral comes into play. It’s very catchy, uplifting, it has great animation with the moving dresses and the flashbacks. It’s filled with all sorts of continuity, and the moral resonates with people of all ages.
Entertainment:This special is filled with tons of humor and heart. Let’s start with humor. There’s a lot of really good humor. For example, we have Blythe’s first dream where she’s in pajamas and her friends are holding watermelons. Apparently, she’s had that dream for who knows how long. Sunil gushing over Delilah also made for some fun comedy. There was also more subdued humor, like when the pets picked out names from a hat, and it was Russell’s name, or when Youngmee heard Vinnie’s voice on the speaker, but she didn’t know it was him since she heard a chirping gecko. There was also plenty of heart. Over the course of two seasons, we’ve seen Blythe and the pets’ relationship with each other develop. It went from love and friendship to genuine care for each other. I was certainly invested in the episode because of that. We could feel for Blythe and Russell going through similar situations because we’ve done so at some point in our lives. Like “Magical Mystery Cure” from My Little Pony, we feel proud of Blythe for everything she’s accomplished.
Moral/Message:The message for this episode is a really good one. At some point in our lives, we’veall been thrust into some major event where we feel underconfident, or even down on ourselves. However, you are able to overcome it with good friends and family by your side, and Blythe and the pets have shown it well. Whether you’ve been with the show since the beginning or are just starting to get into it, you can’t deny that the relationship presented here was done very well and veryrealistically. Pardon me for being cheesy, but the emotions are real. The interactions are real. The support for one another is real.
Okay, time to recap. The story is well thought, well paced, and well executed. The characters are in character and utilized well.Music and animation remain impressive. The episode had plenty of comedy and heartwarming moments. The moral resonates with everyone very well. There were a few problems, like with Roger’s little screen time, Mrs. Twombly being a little pushy, and the Biskits being bad . But, it didn’t detract from the overall story. That’s why I am proud to award the “Expo Factor” a perfect score of 10/10. Consider this episode to be on the high end of my top 13 favorite episodes of season 2 and in my top 5 episodes of the series. Now, we wait for season 3 in the fall to see what’s in store for the show. I’m positive it will turn out well. I’m Sweet Shop 209, and I will catch you on the flip side.
I'd posted this back in 2016, over ten years ago!
