Amphibia Spoiler Review: Froggy Little Christmas
We wrap up the first half of Amphibia season three with a fitting holiday episode “Froggy Little Christmas!” Get a cup of hot cocoa and let’s get into it!
I’m actually really glad this episode didn’t end the way I thought it would. When I saw the summary about King Andrias preparing “a deadly surprise,” I speculated that maybe Anne or Sasha would find out about Marcy now being Darcy. Instead, this was more of a delightful holiday romp fitting for any cheesy Christmas special. While it wasn’t intended to be the midseason finale, I’m glad we’re going to have a few months without any cliffhangers that destroy us emotionally.
I’m a sucker for a good old fashion cheesy Christmas special too. And “Froggy Little Christmas” was SUPER CHEESY! I adored the newts wearing little elf costumes. Andrias, while still evil, had a bit of extra goofiness to him. The Boonchuys were such a delight! Mrs. Boonchuy is me. My house was decorated on November 1st for Christmas because I am a Christmas-loving fool! Mr. Boonchuy’s quest to get the perfect family picture was an adorable gag throughout the episode. And of course, no Christmas episode is complete without someone searching for the meaning of Christmas. The Plantars filled this role hilariously trying to figure out the purpose of the holiday.
It had all the fun of a classic Christmas special. This episode will easily enter my holiday rotation of my favorite animated shows that I love to watch this time of year.
I really enjoyed seeing some of the faces we’ve met throughout season three come back this week. The I.T. Gals are always a joy. It was heartwarming to see the folks at the Thai Temple help Anne put a float together for the Boonchuys. Dr. Jan is always a delight, spilling so much information on the Plantars. If I had any gripes (unless I missed them in background shots), it would have been cool to see cameos of the other Earth characters. Maybe Otto and his granddaughter were watching the parade. Maybe when Santa Andrias attacked, Mr. X and Jenny saw it and were like, “It’s a federal holiday! We’re not working today!” That would have been a cute gag. Though I do understand it could have been a time issue so I’m not too nitpicky over it.
It was also great to see Rebecca Sugar in the episode. While it does have its own issues, Steven Universe will forever be one of the most important shows in my life. It came at a time I needed it. Despite its flaws, it is a historic show changing the face of animation with queer rep. I love the soundtrack, probably listening to a song here or there probably once a month. Heck, I’m working on a Star Wars fanfic and both “Escapism” and “Love Like You” are on my writing playlist for one of the couples. It’s great to see someone so influential in animation be featured in “Froggy Little Christmas.” I hope we get the full song released at some point because it must go on my holiday playlist!
I am very curious about Bartley, Branson, and Blair, the three newts serving Andrias. They seem like they’re totally on board for Andrias taking over the world, and they don’t share Olivia and Yunan’s feelings from a few episodes ago. Which on the surface works in the story, because Andrias probably had internal supporters to help do his dirty deeds. What got me was the trio dressing up for Christmas because Marcy shared this holiday with them. They’ve always had a good relationship with her. Did Darcy make them dress up? Are they just Yes-Men who follow blindly? Are they secretly acting loyally when they actually disagree with Andrias? Or is this just some Christmas fun that I’m reading into too much? There’s still half a season to see what happens with these three.
Also, Andrias says he remembers Christmas meaning this isn’t his first exposure to it before. It makes that urn back in “Fight of the Museum” more interesting if he crossed over into Earth a few hundred years prior.
Finally, I must address the ending scene where Anne is writing a letter to Sasha and Marcy’s parents. I’ve been screaming all season long wondering where they were because that was a big hole in the show for me. We finally got an acknowledgment of them this week. But one very important detail stuck out to me:
There are two letters to Sasha’s parents, which probably means they are divorced.
As someone whose parents are divorced, this hits really hard. It says a ton about Sasha and there are a lot of routes for her story to go. It also shines a beacon for her journey thus far. If her parents divorced when she was young, then the story could be she’s not close with one of her parents. I would assume her dad because Grime has filled a father figure role for her. But if the divorce is recent which from the text I assume it is, it really showcases a lot of Sasha’s pent-up feelings, especially towards Anne. If a parent just left her home, then Anne choosing the Plantars over her in the season one finale hits those fresh wounds hard.
My parents divorced when I was in college, so I was older than Sasha. But it still was one of the hardest times in my life. I came home for a visit and one of my parents was just not there anymore. I had to rethink all holidays of how to balance time between my now two families. There’s a real worry of not wanting to show “favoritism” towards a parent. It hurts knowing that the only time in my life my parents will ever be in the same room again will be at my wedding and that’s it. The first Christmas was the worst, watching my parents split up our Christmas tree ornaments. Items I grew up with my whole life weren’t there anymore. Like Sasha, I had a ton of anger to work through. I lashed out at people I loved, friends included, because I was processing everything.
If Sasha’s experience is anything like mine, there is probably a piece of her wondering what she did wrong. The answer is… nothing. Sasha didn’t do anything wrong. People don’t always stay together; her parents apparently are in that scenario. But those thoughts creep in, dear reader. I wracked my brain at night thinking over everything I ever did, wondering if I drove my parents apart. It’s a natural feeling. So in Sasha’s eyes when Anne chooses the Plantars and Marcy betrays her, that has to be so isolating with those little whispers coming in that it’s her [Sasha’s] fault.
It really gives the events of “Turning Point” a lot more perspective as well as Sasha’s relationship with Grime as a mentor/father figure has so much more importance now.
Some random thoughts to round out Froggy Little Christmas:
-I love these Amphibia specials when they have special opening and closing credits. Especially the end one because Anne finally got to give her mom the butterfly from “Hopping Mall!”
-So, Darcy walked out holding a D20. Marcy’s Theme Song Takeover was just a slew of trolling foreshadowing, wasn’t it Matt Braly and crew?
-Raging gamer Andrias is just the best!
-DOMINO IN HIS LITTLE SANTA OUTFIT!
-I want the love that Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy have.
-The Frog-Bot making a snowman just proves they’re all sweet metal babies like Frobo and have done nothing wrong.
-Polly’s new disguise with the green Christmas bow is super cute!
-Sprig’s gift of making Anne one of his action figures is the best! His figures back home mean so much to him, something that Anne knows all about. It’s a really touching moment!
-I love that Dr. Jan just lets Anne raid a museum full of probably expensive mannequins.
-TJ Hill’s score is once again fantastic! I particularly love when Andrias is taking over the Santa Claus, the minor key rock version of “Good King Wenceslas" is particularly great!
-Ally and Jess are the sweetest girlfriends!
And now, my friend, Amphibia moves into its final hiatus. This show has become such a comfort for me for the last two years. I binged the first season in 2020 giving me some much-needed reprieve from everything happening in the world. Amphibia quickly became one of my favorite series. With only half a season left, I’m proud of what this little frog show has accomplished in its short time. I can’t wait to see how it all wraps up when it comes back.
Until then, happy holidays to you and the people you love in your life.
