Adventure Time

Adventure Time

Episode 6: Wizard/Evicted

By: Carlos Uribe

Adventure Time is about the adventures of Finn and his dog Jake

Spoilers Ahoy!

The first segment of this episode begins with Finn and Jake coming across a grimm reaper kind of figure. While the two acknowledge that this figure is probably evil, they decide to take advantage of his desperation and get a bone keychain along with the offer of free magic. This offer leads to them going to a magic school, where they gain powers by doing odd deeds. It's a bit weird that in the world of Adventure Time, one gets magic not by learning it but by doing odd deeds. It also makes perfect sense within the world. A lot of the powers that the show decides to explore are silly ones, such as having unlimited mayonnaise. At the end of the lesson, Finn has a chance to get the final star and get the ultimate wizarding power. He only has to take an oath of responsibility, which is secretly code for having to avert an asteroid from hitting the village for the rest of his life. Finn isn't cool with this and finds a new solution-he merely moves the village away from the asteroid. The village is saved and there is a happy ending.

The question ultimately becomes what does the ending mean. The wizard is shown to be an elder, whose plan has kept the village safe for years. It has, at the same time, required a lot of sacrifice. This sacrifice is often hoodwinked into people who wish to know magic. This idea that adults know what's best is undermined in this episode, where a youth is able to better fix the problem without having to sacrifice as much. He still has to do hard work and he still needs help from older wizards, but his new idea is able to better save the village. The episode's ending is therefore that while our elders are wise, new ideas can be just as good. The whole episode is also about how nothing is really free-the cost of magic may not be in cash, but it is in responsibility. The episode doesn't spell out these lessons-the only one it states is that one shouldn't steal the ideas from others. That lesson only has very little to do with the rest of the episode and only with a specific line. The first segment is funny and a bit weird, but it's theme is more ambitious than the actual episode.

The second segment of the episode is quite the opposite. The theme of the episode is courage and standing up to what you fear. While Finn is a character who is courageous to a fault, Jake has more sense. That's what makes him terrified of vampires. It isn't until Finn is in danger that Jake finally gets the courage to face the vampire. The theme is a safe one, it's one that other kid shows have often explored and a simple one to get. It is a theme that probably goes further than most other shows do. In tis episode, Jake and Finn lose their home because of Jake's fear. They travel across the world to look for a new home. When they finally find one, they lose that one as well. It isn't until Finn is threatened that Jake is finally able to stand up. The theme goes further because this isn't just a character who threatens Finn and is defeated, but is one who has taken away their actual shelter and without any actual opposition.

The theme might be more traditional and simple, but this segment is pretty weird. It introduced a vampire, named Marceline. She's a character who is used to getting her way and has lost her moral code after having lived for a thousand years. It is very known among vampire fiction that they suck blood. This series decides that it's not the blood that they suck, but the color red. This is already turning vampire fiction on it's head. It presents a whole bunch of weird ideas, including some that just made me wonder what the heck just happened. The segment also utilized a song to tell part of the story. The song added to the humor of the show but also to the weirdness. This was a segment with a clear and simple theme, but with more weird elements.