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Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts Season 3 Review

I know I’m beating a dead horse by saying that 2020 stinks, but it’s the truth. This year, for mankind as a whole, has stunk! One of the few silver linings (aside from new video games and consoles) is that this year’s been good to animation. And besides The Owl House, one new show I’ll fondly remember from 2020 has to be Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts. Four months after the release of Season Two, Season Three of Kipo aired in its entirety on Netflix last week. Sadly, this third season is also the show’s final season, bring an end to the show after a run of…nine months?

No, seriously. Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts premiered back in January, 2020, and now its ending. It may not seem like that long a time, but with how this year’s been, it feels like a lifetime. It’s a weird feeling, but it also helps with the pacing for the show as a whole.

Dr. Emillia and Human Supremacy

For those who don’t know, here’s the backstory: two hundred years ago, an unknown disaster forced humanity to live in underground burrows. Meanwhile, the surface became populated by sentient animals called Mutes that hold a grudge against humanity. Enter Kipo, a human girl who gets separated from her people and forced to travel across the surface to find her way home. Along the way, her friendly nature leads her to make friends with most of the humans and Mutes she comes across. While she doesn’t realize it at first, this begins to bridge the gap between humans and mutes alike.

As we learn in Season Two, this is what Kipo’s parents had wanted her to do. They dreamed of a world where humans and mutes could live in peace, so before Kipo was born, they altered her DNA to make her part-mute. The last season ended with Kipo mastering her mute-half and gaining the ability to become a giant, purple jaguar that she uses to protect everyone.

Sadly, Season Two gave Kipo someone who stands in direct opposition to everything she stands for: Dr. Emillia. She’s a xenophobic, sociopathic scientist with the single-minded goal of wiping out mute-kind. And once she develops a “cure” that robs mutes of their sentience, she comes very close to doing so.

The sad thing is the fact that this kind of racist, xenophobic ideology continues to exist in the world. Looking at America in the last few years, it feels like this kind of hatred’s only gotten worse. As a result, Dr. Emillia’s very much a villain influenced by the times we live in.

There Will Always Be Jerks…

I’ve seen several reviews that compare Kipo to Steven Universe, and I can see the parallels. Both are teens with special powers that want everyone to get along and be friends and make peace. For the most part, they succeed, too: Kipo manages to get humans and mutes to give peace a chance. The one person she fails to reach, though, is Dr. Emillia herself. As the madwoman keeps hurting the people Kipo cares about, she brings the heroine close to breaking her pacifistic ideals. She backs down in the end and still offers Emillia a chance to change, which she rejects. A similar thing happened in Steven Universe: Future with Aquamarine and Eyeball Ruby.

Unlike Steven Universe, though, Kipo pushes this concept of people who refuse to change and sticks with it until the end. Thus, it manages to give us the lesson that Steven Universe: Future touched on, but failed to see through. That lesson being that, no matter how hard you try to make peace with others, there will be jerks who refuse to change their ways. People that will insist on trying to hurt others and can’t be reasoned with, and that’s when we have to bust out the fisticuffs to protect those we care about. While I won’t say what happens to Emillia, let’s say she gets her just desserts.

…But There’s Also a Chance To Change

In my review of Season Two of the show, I said that I enjoyed the reveal of Scarlemagne’s backstory. Years of being tortured by Emillia, couple with Kipo’s parents not being able to save him, drove him to become the tyrant we first see. But underneath that maniacal persona lies a troubled and lonely soul. And, Kipo being Kipo, she tried to reach out and help him. She failed in Season Two, but Season Three sees her try once again. But does that mean we should forgive Scarlemagne?

As horrible as Scarlemagne’s past was, it doesn’t change the fact that he hurt a lot of people during his reign of terror. And neither the mutes nor humans are able to forget that. They shouldn’t forget it, either. Scarlemagne has to make up for being such a jerk in the past. While he struggles with it, at first, he manages to succeed by the end of the show’s run.

I’m not telling you guys what happens to him, though. No spoilers!

Watch this Show

If you’re looking for some quality cartoons with important life lessons, then I recommend that you watch Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts. The artwork’s amazing, the characters are great, the story’s awesome, and the soundtrack is lit.

I Give “Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, Season 3” a 4.9/5

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Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts Season 2 Review

So, this weekend forced me to choose between doing one of two things for Saturday. My first option was to livestream some Pokemon Sword/Shield. My second option was to binge-watch the new season of Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts on Netflix.

I think I made the right choice.

If you didn’t read my post on Season 1 all the way back in January, then I urge you to go read it now! If you have (or already watched it), then you know the first season ended with a bang. Kipo made it back to her people and dad, only for Scarlemagne to capture almost everyone. As a result, Kipo goes on a new quest to rescue her people and take down Scarlemagne.

As before, Kipo remains as colorful and vibrant as before, with the music as dope as humanly possible. What changes is the theme: whereas Season One was about Kipo learning about the surface world, Season Two focuses on learning who she is. The first episode confirms what we already knew: she’s part-mute, and can turn into a purple jaguar. It reminds me a little of how Naruto can turn into the Nine-Tailed Fox in Naruto. I’m not making that comparison because of appearances, though. I’m making it because, like Naruto, Kipo struggles with being able to control her wild side. Her trials whilst learning how to control her powers are the big drive for the season, and it pays off in a very emotional way. Long story short: love and friends are the keys to controlling it.

Scarlemagne Has One Sad Backstory

We had an entire season to see how cruel and insane Scarlemagne could be as a villain, and man was he a good one! But it turns out that there’s someone out that’s even worse than him. In fact, it’s someone who’s responsible for making Scarlemagne who he is now.

Enter Dr. Emillia, this scientist who worked with Kipo’s parents. She’s got this single-minded obsession with reversing the mutation of all animals on the surface so that humanity can reclaim it. Sounds noble, but then you remember that most of those mutes are sentient with their own societies. And she used Hugo, the future Scarlemagne, as a guinea pig to help learn how to reverse the mutation. The only people who cared about the mandrill were Kipo’s parents, and due to circumstances beyond their control, they couldn’t save Hugo.

I loved the reveal of Scarlemagne’s past. Firstly, it gives him a tangible connection to Kipo (they’re technically foster siblings!). Secondly, it makes him into a foil for Kipo. Kipo was able to make friends on the surface that helped her through what she went through, and she never gave up her positive outlook on life. However, Scarlemagne never had that comfort, and it broke him into what we see today.

Finally, the show sets up Dr. Emillia to be the big bad of Season three, as she’s determined to end all Mutes. Consider how this parallels the problems with racism that people are fighting right now, and one can appreciate how timely a hate sink like this woman is.

A Must Watch for the Summer

Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts remains one of the best new shows on Netflix, and I enjoyed being able to binge the new season. And listen to the soundtrack. If you’re looking for a show that balances heart with story, humor, and topical themes about accepting people of all backgrounds, then go watch this show.

I Give Season Two of “Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts” a 4.9/5

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Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts Season 1 Review

Outside of Adventure Time, I can’t remember the last time I’ve wanted to live in a post-apocalyptic world. I admit, I enjoyed running around Massachusetts in Fallout 4. However, in that game I had advanced power armor and a tommy gun that fired exploding bullets. I wouldn’t last five minutes in a real life Fallout. Then earlier this week, I found Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts on Netflix, and now I want to live through the apocalypse.

Set two hundred years in the future, the show follows Kipo Oak, a 13-year old girl stranded on the surface. She sets out to find her father and people, but having grown up underground, she’s not ready for life of the surface. Especially considering most of that life consists of animals that are either sentient or giant mutants. As luck would have it, she doesn’t have to go it alone and gains a few new friends. With their help, she travels through the ruins of Las Vistas as she tries to find her way home.

The Setting

If there’s one thing post-apocalyptic stories have in common, its their lack of a diverse color palette. From Fallout to The Walking Dead, all these stories take place in worlds that are gray, somber, and reflect the depressing fact that civilization’s ended. Even Adventure Time’s not fully immune to this; while much of Ooo’s bright and full of life, the ruins of the old world can be gray and lifeless.

In stark contrast, Kipo depicts a world that’s bursting to the seams with vibrant colors. The ruins are covered in bright plants and bizarre flowers, the inhabitants are dressed in bright outfits, and the whole thing’s just amazing to look at. Too bad for Kipo that most beings on the surface don’t like humans.

In the two hundred something years since humanity went to live underground a-la Fallout, most of the animals up above mutated into sentience. What’s more, they each developed their own groups and cultures based on humanity. The Mod Frogs act like the old-school mafia, cats live the lumberjack lifestyle, and so on. They don’t trust each other that well, but most share a hatred of humans.

The Characters

Kipo’s group consists of four others, that each fill out an archetype in post-apocalyptic stories. There’s Mandu, the four-eyed pig who serves as Kipo’s loyal friend and pet. Wolf, the anti-social loner and fighter whose name fits her to a tee. Benson, the quick-witted and likable teen scavenger. Rounding out the group’s Dave, a talking bug mutant who goes through a constant molting cycle at the worst possible times; I don’t know what his role really is.

I’ve seen these kind of characters before, but as long as they’re done in an interesting manner, I don’t care. Thankfully, the cast of Kipo’s very interesting. Kipo herself is this wide-eyed optimist who, despite being in an unfamiliar environment, enjoys every minute of it. She provides the surface world with a long overdue dose of kindness that brings out the best in others. Even the ones who start as her enemies.

Speaking of enemies, this show’s got a real good villain in the form of Scarlemagne, a power-mad mandrill bent on world domination. He’s got an undeniable charisma to him: he’s very flamboyant, dresses extravagently, and enjoys classical piano. Barely concealed underneath, though, is a sadistic, evil monster determined to hunt down Kipo. With her, he can find her people and build an army big enough to conquer everything. He’s one bad monkey!

A Binge Worthy Good Time

All in all, Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts is one of the best new cartoons of the year. It’s setting and the “humans underground” backstory evokes the Fallout franchise, the colors and music are vibrant and enjoyable, and the whole thing’s just a treat to watch. It’s like if Fallout and Adventure Time had a kid!

Not to mention, the characters are great. Did you know that Benson nonchalantly admits to being gay to Kipo? That shows how far we’ve come since Korra. In addition, Kipo fits the mold of other strong, female heroines that have been appearing in cartoons in the last few months, like Anne from Amphibia and Luz from The Owl House. If you’ve got some free time this weekend, go binge watch Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts on Netflix. It’s worth your time.

I Give “Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, Season 1” a 4.8/5

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