I Need the Amphibia Soundtrack on ITunes! NOW!

Amphibia Season 2, Episode 19A/19B Review

Okay, I’ve been saying this for close to a year now, but I need the soundtrack for Amphibia on ITunes! And I need it now, because this show’s got some crazy awesome beats to it. But before I go all fanboy, it’s important to note that this is the penultimate episode to the second season of Amphibia. On the surface, it may look like another light-hearted episode. However, when you remember the fact that the season finale will likely see Sasha turn on Anne once more, possibly even Marcy, then it makes this episode all the more heartbreaking. It’s the final moments that Anne, Sasha, and Marcy will likely have as friends for a long time before things get really, really dark. And I think it proves why Amphibia’s one of the best cartoons on TV right now.

The Dinner

The episode starts off on a very optimistic tone. Anne and Marcy are overjoyed that they have Sasha back, and don’t hesitate to invite her to dinner. The Plantars, though, are far less trusting; especially since Sasha’s bringing Grime with her. And they’re right to be worried, as Sasha and Grime still plan to overthrow Andrias. But to do that, they need Anne and Marcy to get them into Newtopia, so they gotta play nice.

To say the dinner party’s fraught with tension is an understatement. Firstly, Hop Pop and Grime unintentionally insult each other with racist comments. It’s first-hand proof of how deeply divided and distrustful Amphibia is of each other. And considering how each of the girls represents the Frogs, Toads, and Newts, it feels like there’s a clash between them coming. Especially considering how Sasha has refused to change, instead doubling-down on her toxic behavior.

Fortunately for the plot, Grime’s (seemingly) innocent dessert of a vol-cake-no, which is a giant cake with chocolate lava (and hornets) ends up bringing everyone together. In addition, it also shows Sasha that Anne’s no longer the meek, nervous girl she could once control. She’s able to stand up for herself, and Sasha has to accept that. She, at least, pretends to accept this, but the tension still remains between the two.

Which brings us to the next episode.

Battle of the Bands

To help ease over everyone’s worries about Sasha and Grime staying in Wartwood, Mayor Toadstool organizes a battle of the bands. And as it turns out, Anne, Sasha, and Marcy all had a garage band back home. “Sasha and the Sharps,” and they’re reuniting for the competition! It’s a musical episode, people!

I will be upfront with you guys: I think the Human Trio’s voice actresses absolutely slayed it with the singing in this episode. I forgot just how great a singer Brenda Song (and how good she is at pretending to be bad,) but this episode reminded me of that. She was one of my favorite Disney Stars back in the day for the reason.

But I think that the real MVP of this episode (besides Troy Baker as Grime) was Anna Akana as Sasha. Just listen to her heavy metal song, Heartstomper! It perfectly sums up how much of a bad girl Sasha is.

Unfortunately, this episode demonstrates that Sasha still has the same problems with controlling others in this episode. When Anne wants to do a song she wrote, Sasha’s first instinct is to control everything to suit her, which leads her to leave the group and join up with Toadie. However, it’s through Toadie, of all people, that Sasha realizes that while she may not always get to do things her way, she should still support her friend’s decisions. Surprisingly, Sasha seems to take this to heart, as she rejoins the group for their song, No Big Deal.

I loved this song. It perfectly sums up the girl’s time in Amphibia, and how they’ve all grown to love this world, and how the world’s come to love them. The girls have really grown since the show started, haven’t they? Too bad they lost to Grime’s tear-jerking harp-playing. Who knew?

Regardless, everyone had fun, and the girl’s reveal that in the morning, they’re returning to Wartwood to have Andrias send them home. Thus, the cast of Wartwood joins together for a group selfie. I almost cried at this point.

The Beginning of the End?

While we still don’t know what Andrias has planned for the Calamity Box, we know that it’s likely not good for anyone. However, we also know that whatever the cast has planned will fail because Anne’s gem is only partially recharged. I’m still unsure of whether this is a good or bad thing, but I’m hoping towards the former. Especially since we know that things are going to go south real fast.

Like I said at the start, this episode is a very bittersweet moment for the show. We can see that things seem to be looking up, but we know that the finale will see everything fall apart. Heck, this may end up destroying the girl’s friendship forever. As some who’s followed the show since the start, this is going to be tough to watch. That said, I won’t lie that I’m looking forward to see what happens next and how this sets us up for the third, and likely final, season of Amphibia. Next Saturday can’t get here soon enough!

Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to go figure out how to get Disney to put those songs on ITunes, because I want them!

I Give “The Dinner” and “Battle of the Bands” a 3.5/5 and a 4.5/5 Each.

Click here to see my other animation stuff.