Season 3 Episode 14a
We start the episode and immediately the Read family are having a crazy night. We see Jane and David frantically cooking in the kitchen, Arthur, DW and Kate are yelling, all while Pal is barking and running around the kitchen. After Arthur and DW walk out of the kitchen, Jane knocks over the milk and David knocks over the batter he was working on, crashing to the floor. This is what makes Arthur’s parents go from frantic, to frustrated. They raise their voices and try to figure out what to do next. DW hears this and understandably becomes scared. She runs up stairs to tell Arthur about it. At first Arthur doesn’t believe her, but then they start to spiral into the conclusion that mom and dad hate each other.
Then we get to the biggest part of the episode. Arthur and D.W. imagine themselves indifferent scenarios. How their lives would change if their parents split up, if they lived with oneparent only, or if they lived on their own. Dad equals great food, and mom equals free taxi service. Arthur imagines that they’ll be orphans like in “Oliver Twist”. Then we get one of the best Arthur visual jokes. “Please sir, may I have some more.” I really like the imagination sequence where they live on their own in a fairy tale type setting. Everything starts off happy but then reality sets in, Arthur can’t cook and they start to miss their parents. Then D.W. hits the audience with a really impactful line. "I never knew you could feel this lonely, even when you’re not alone." With the sad music playing and everything, that quote kinda makes you tear up a bit, even though it’s just in their imaginations. These imagination sequences are hilarious, and they provide a goofy and light hearted tone to the episode, instead of being too serious.
The episode ends with mom dad explaining that they don’t hate each other and it’s normal for adults to argue once in a while like kids do.The episode wraps up well, it doesn’t feel rushed. For such a serious topic like divorce and parents fighting, this episode is really entertaining and funny. Arthur and D.W. blow the situation out of proportion in their heads to get to the end of the episode which hammers homethe main lesson of the episode. We as the audience are looking in and going down the rabbit hole with Arthur and DW. We also know that Arthur’s parents don’t actually hate each other and the scenarios the kids come up with are ludicrous, which makes the episode more entertaining. This is definitely a solid episode and it was fun to come along with the ride with D.W. and Arthur.
By Eddie Castillo
Season 3 Episode 14b
Here we go again, it’s an Arthur clip show episode! Yay! Arthur is wondering why D.W. isn’t excited about her birthday this year. D.W. usually makes sure everyone knows about her birthday but not this year. D.W. was excited about her birthday but Emily ruined it for her. D.W. and Emily are playing Confuse the Goose outside, then out of the blue, Emily gets serious. Emily tells D.W. that she is already five, and makes turning five a bigger deal than it actually is. I guess birthdays are a bigger deal when you’re a kid, because watching this as an adult, it’s funny how Emily makes turning five super serious. D.W. starts to wonder if she wasted her fours. Then Arthur tries to remind D.W. of the great things she’s done over the series. Then we get to see D.W.’s best moments from previous Arthur episodes. We see D.W. meeting the president, meeting Mister Rogers, meeting Walter the deer, ect. We even get a new scene with Mister Rogers which wasn’t in the episode “Arthur Meets Mister Rogers”. It’s a simple scene of Mister Rogers singing a lullaby to D.W. while she sleeps. It's a short scene, but I found it interesting and it was nice to see Mister Rogers again. D.W. thanks Arthur for reminding her of the great things she has done and they go downstairs to eat her normal cake. D.W. struggles to think of a perfect wish, but ends up wishing Arthur face plants into the leftover cake. Although we never get to hear exactly what she wished for.
This episode is nothing special, other than some great lines from D.W. and her family. This is the definition of a filler episode. It’s not even the finale of season 3. “The Long, Dull Winter” is the actual finale of the season and even that episode is a better end to the season. This episode is good for a one time watch, but I bet you’ll find enjoyment out of this episode if you’re a big fan of D.W.. I really want to try that vanilla cake that David made for D.W. though...
“I highly advise you not to waste your wish on a pony” - Jane
“Why don’t you wish for a new pair of sneakers?” - David
“It has to be the perfect wish, you don’t get this kind of power everyday.” - D.W.
“Look, Kate’s starving!” - Arthur
By Eddie Castillo
