Xuvero's movie Reviews on Newgrounds

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #9 - Bad Guys]

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Slublo and Stinky Mustard!"

Poor Katy, life is not kind for her. You know, this episode is quite an ambitious one, it has many things going on: the prank on Katy, the dance battle with the rival mascots and Mr Wubhamer's reaction to what they've done. And all of them need to go together without seeming like they were all just tossed on the same video file.

And in my opinion, it was well done. One event leads to the next in a way that makes sense but leaving enough space for the next one to stay a while on the spotlight. Usually when there's too many things on the story either one of them gets too much attention, or they all get too little attention or they look completely unrelated. But these were avoided by making one event being the cause of the next and all of them being modular enough so that the last doesn't stay on mind during the current (another lesson to be learned).

Aaron-Long responds:

I tried to make it one cohesive story, but it did come from two separate ideas initially-- and maybe you can still tell watching it that the rival mascots don't have much to do with the glued-to-the-table story.

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #8 - Roommate]

"Man, we got Titoed..."

A short and clean episode (maybe except for the fact that Tito is totally high on pills). Talking about him, Tito is a very interesting character, he has many details that help build his personality. His large and unfit jacket, the spot on his pants and the fact that he keeps scratching himself are some to mention. But the best is the way that his habitat also builds up who he is, it is a messy and dirty apartment that makes it look like he stays at home the whole day, but is too slacking to tidy everything up.

I love how there is an evergrowing cast of side characters that have just as much personality as the main ones, all with their little tweeks and unique characteristics.

(TOTALLY OFF-TOPIC: I needed to talk about your response about Katy on my last review. Yes, the show has definitely been mean to her, but I think this makes her more real: life didn't go so good for her, and that makes her grumpy personality make sense. But it definitely would be interesting to see her have a lucky break, it would be nice to see a how "happy Katy" is, and I think it could be really fun writing and developing different sides of the same character).

Aaron-Long responds:

We do see a bit of 'happy Katy' in episode 11, although it's based on a misunderstanding... But yeah I always want to discover and explore different aspects of the characters, hence why I like putting them in new situations.

And Tito will come back every now and then, at least until Sublo gets his act together and finds a better living situation!

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard - Halloween]

"Cool, his nametag is bleeding!"

Ooohh, spooky halloween special! First things first, great work with the theme song, turning it into a "scary-style" song was great. And Booglin, the ghost with the power of making bad puns was a great way to drive the plot into a halloween theme while making it funny as well.

But honestly, the most scary part of this episode was Night-Shift Charlie. He just came in through the window and beated Katy with a bread for no reason at all, then after proceeded to kiss Wubhamer. But he did make for the best ending possible "What's CPR!?", that made me laugh and after gave the weird and disturbing thought of "What was he doing then?"

Katy is really unlucky tho, I even feel bad about her at times. While everyone goes away to enjoy halloween night she has to stay and "get crack-a-lacking on that men's washroom", just to get possessed by a ghost.

Aaron-Long responds:

Yeah I think looking back at the episodes so far, the show is too mean to Katy. I've still got a few episodes already written and recorded left to put out, but when I write more I'm gonna try to go a little easier on her!

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #6 - New Look]

"What's wrong with our costume boy? You got it jazzed up like a christmas tree with dementia!"

It's hard to go through this episode and don't think about body modification. I actually find the way Sublo talks about it as if he was changing sex. But in the end, this episode kind of delivers a message about it, maybe unintentionally, but it can make you think about it.

The jokes on this one were right on the spot, all delivered as simple usual lines. And something to note, is that there is little to no running gags on this series, most of the jokes are 100% fresh. I personally liked a lot the "doorknob" joke, it is of the same flavour of the "thirsty ladies" from Katy's Birthday and I always find it funny.

Also, this episode always makes me feel like the characters are unintentionally turning into friends, they all seemed to worry and care about Sublo. I talk a lot about aspects of character development through this series, and that is because it was very well done. All of the arcs develop in very smooth ways, you can start at the first episode and a few ones later you notice Sublo and Tangy Mustard are best friends, and they've also developed friendships with the rest of the guys at the shop, but you may not notice it happening, much like in real life.

Also, it was at this episode that I noticed the thing behind the shop's name: SUBmarine PARrot. SubPar.

Aaron-Long responds:

This is an episode I kind of regret-- I think there's funny stuff in it but people looking for a message might be offended by Sublo's identity crisis. There is no actual social commentary intended about trans people or anything -- that wasn't in my head at all, I was thinking more of people who turn themselves into parrots or Jessica Rabbit or get hundreds of piercings all over their bodies -- things like that rather than anything related to sex/gender. I just thought it would be funny if Sublo wanted to literally become a submarine, and everybody treated it seriously. But yeah in retrospect it's clunky and maybe insensitive.

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #5 - Opposites]

"*talks backwards*" (OK, this time I can't quote my favourite line).

Just a short one, comes in, delivers the joke and it's over. I like this one a lot, I remember the first time I watched this series, after watching this episode I kept looking for their similarities, and yeah, they are pretty similar.

Actually I find this pretty funny, Sublo and Tangy Mustard are oppositely similar, if that makes any sense. They have some quite different characteristics that in the end can be summarized into the same thing. They are both silly, dumb and foolish but in different ways.

I can relate to them a lot, me and my best friends were just like them: similar in different ways. And it's funny that for everyone, we were basically the same, but for us, we were complete opposites. The thing is that we only saw the details, and most people only saw the overall.

Aaron-Long responds:

Yeah you got it, I'm aiming for that kind of classic 'best friends' thing where to a third party like Katy or Wubhamer, Sublo and Tangy Mustard seem to act pretty much the same, but S+TM are very aware of their differences, even if they can't agree on what they are.

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #4 - Katy's Birthday]

"Don't spend it all in one place!"

This episode is perhaps the most "ordinary life" one. Everything about this party feels so familiar (maybe with the exception of the two dudes wearing costumes, depends on the type of parties you go to). The type of jokes this time are different from most other episodes, most will make you laugh because of how familiar they are, instead of being extraordinary.

Again, this episode starts off on the outside, it's snowing and Tangy Mustard is wearing a jacket. And in the end, being a cold day plays only a small part in the plot, being there only makes everything seem more normal and relatable.

In the end this seems like a great episode for Sublo, we thought we knew how much socially awkward he was, but he proves us wrong. Also, Katy proves, as the episodes progress, that she is a much more complex character then she first appears to be.

I had a really good time watching this, reminded me of my own experience with parties like this one. Seeing a hidden side of your co-workers (getting dirty), standing in a corner pretending to be texting, people getting into senseless fights and that stupid guy that always wants everyone to "be cool" by punching them.

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #3 - Inspirational Art]

"Look mama, wee-wees!"

This episode begins with the same thing I enjoyed in the last: the mascot's dancing. By the way, it's nice to see little details like the rain being added, they are a little bit more of work that needs to be put in, but they make it all seem more real, it makes it seem that scenes like these are the usual day-to-day life of this people.

In this episode a new aspect of Katy is revealed, she is an artist. And for some reason her art looks like "wee-wees".

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #2 - Mascot Melee]

"That's the kind of advertisement money can't buy. And that's a metaphor!"

I like how this one starts as a sort of "slice of life" and ends up quite crazy. On that aspect this reminds me a bit of Regular Show, also mabe the two characters that seem to be opposites but are actually pretty similar.

It's interesting how this episode builds up the personality of the characters: Tangy is arrogant and full of wise-cracks, Sublo is scially awkward but tries to be cool, Wubhamer is a stereotypical manager with some strange perceptions of optimism and Katy is a stressed-out unsuccessful artist disapointed with her own life.

My favourite part on this one is how Sublo and Tangy Mustard end the episode doing the exact same dance. For some reason I just find it really funny.

[Sublo & Tangy Mustard #1 - First Day]

"Who's the boss here? Oh, it's Mr DICK Wubhamer, with a capital DICK"

So I decided to review all of these, expect to recieve 11 notifications, sir!

I like how this one starts very suddenly, with the comercial playing. I remember that the first time I watched I got like: "What? This doesn't look like the brochure". I enjoyed seeing Tangy Mustard getting the names wrong all the time as well.

For me, the high point is when they try to atract the costumers, specially the "At SubPar you can bring your own sandwich, we don't care". And it's interesting how it is delivered, there's nothing flashing it out, it's just one line in the middle of the others, even though it is a very funny one. Guess this is one thing I like about this series, the best jokes are delivered without anything to put them on a pedestal for being "a funny line", they are just there, and the only thing that will make you laugh is how funny they actually are. (There is a lesson to be learned there, people, in case you're a writer).

On this episode we also get introduced to Wubhamer's weird way of talking. I have no idea why he does that, but it is funny as hell. Also really liked how it ended with a bad pun and everyone laughing out loud together at the end, good old ironic humour.

Aaron-Long responds:

Wow thanks Xuvero for doing these in-depth reviews! I really enjoy reading them and it actually helps me notice things I didn't even consciously think about at the time, like how in episode 2 the characters' different personalities are demonstrated. I'm glad you like Wubhamer's dialogue, it's a lot of fun to write and act. My big "secret" with Mr. Wubhamer is that his way of talking is inspired by Jackie Gleason in the movie Smokey and the Bandit.

[c/o Flap Jackson]

"Flap, never keep a pen in yoour back pocket. Because when you sit down..."

This is really impressive, he animation is detailed and fluid, so much that it is easy to forget that this was made frame by frame, moving a little bit at a time. Just imagining the amount of work that was put into it makes me apreciate this piece. The choice of music was also really good, goes along very well.

It was also interesting to see how you didn't try to make it shorter. It is not uncommon to see some stop-motion animations get parts of their script cut out, scenes made simpler, etc. Just due to how much work it is to make. But not here, you've added a lot to the plot, scenes made as complex as they were meant to be. A lot of dedication was put here.

The script is also very nice, it is entertaining, captivating, suspenseful but still lightweighted. It is interesting to see the differences between the two characters, Flap is quiet and observant, while his uncle likes to talk and has some strange manners. I enjoyed seeing how the differences between them drove the plot.

Overall, a great piece of hard and dedicated work. One that, as is usual for stop motion animation, is undervalued (but this shines even amongst other stop-motion animations).

JWLustig responds:

Thanks so much for the in-depth review! Glad you enjoyed.
The original cut was even longer!