The Wartwood Resistance Now Stronger than Ever

Amphibia Season 3, Episode 15A/B Review

There are only three weeks left of Amphibia, and the show is coming down to the wire. Matt Braly and his team are using the remaining episodes to tie up any plot threads. Most important of all, though, they’re drawing on the show’s substantial wellspring of one-off characters who can come together for the final battle. In what Matt dubs the final “fun” episode, the Wartwood Resistance gains an ally that I knew would be back…as well as one I didn’t know.

Newts in Tights

While out on a recon mission, Anne and Sprig are dismayed to discover there’s still Amphibians willingly serving King Andrias. However, that dismay turns to shock when the King’s men get ambushed by a group of merry men…in tights. In what’s meant to be a clear send up to the legendary Robin Hood, the two stumbled upon a group of outlaws, led by none other that Tritonio Espada. AKA, the duo’s former sword-instructor from Season One.

For the record, I saw Tritonio’s return coming a mile away. The title for the episode made it pretty obvious, and I just had a feeling he’d be too good a character to be forgotten about. In a reversal of their previous roles, Anne spends the episode encouraging Tritonio to live up to the potential to be better that she sees in him. However, old habits die hard, especially when one’s had to grow up in an environment where it’s everyone for themselves. Thankfully, Anne ends up getting through to the salamander, and after bailing on his crew when they get captured, Tritonio agrees to join the Wartwood Resistance .

This was a very fun segment, and I think Matt’s team had fun doing this parody of Robin Hood. They even had one of the kids from Jojo Rabbit guest-star as Jojo Potato, an orphaned Newt that idolizes Tritonio. He’s like the Deku to Tritonio’s All Might!

Fight or Flight

So it turns out that sometimes, you can befriend a wild animal and have it all work out. When Anne, Sprig, and Soggy Joe stake out for an animal raiding their food supplies, Anne’s gets the surprise of her life. It turns out, that animal is none other than Domino 2, now a mother with a litter of kittens. When the giant moth gets captured by Andrias’ army, though, Anne’s determined to rescue her.

One would think that after seeing how she tried to eat the Plantar’s, Anne would know better. Everyone in the Wartwood Rebellion thinks what Anne’s doing is dumb, no matter how cute the Kill-a-Pillar’s are. However, Anne decides to trust her heart, which has always been her greatest strength, and think she can get through to Domino 2. Turns out, the Kill-a-Moth remembers Anne and is very happy to see her again. More importantly, her care for Anne overrides her instinctual need to eat Amphibians. As a result, she saves Sprig from the other captured Kill-a-Moth’s and gets them to follow her lead.

As for the Wartwood Resistance, they get won over by the cuteness of the kill-a-pillar’s. It’s a very touching scene that reminds us of how our ancestor’s could’ve domesticated wild felines and canines, and I couldn’t help but gush over it.

The Wartwood Resistance Grows

Let’s recap all the people who’ve joined the Wartwood Resistance. Firstly, Wally’s Dad is backing them. Then we have Beatrix and her Toad Army. Apothecary Gary and his followers agreed to join. Now we have Tritonio and the Kill-a-Moth’s to help out. Not counting any other side characters (*cough* Braddock and Percy *cough) that may join, that’s a lot of the people we’ve met throughout Amphibia. The Wartwood Resistance may stand a real chance of stopping Andrias and the Core from their plans to conquer the universe.

So, why does it still not feel like enough?

The short answer is, because it’s not. While the Resistance and all these groups are each powerful, we’ve seen what Andrias has serving him. An army of robots likely numbering in the tens of thousands, far more than what the Wartwood Resistance can muster. If they go into battle, they’re still going to be outnumbered. In addition, this episode also proves that there are still Amphibian’s willing to serve Andrias despite the harm he’s causing. It’s not going to be enough. If Anne and the others want any chance, they need to unite everyone together to save Amphibia and all of reality. There’s still hope, though.

Leif is a Plantar, Confirmed

Let there be no doubt that Leif, Andrias and Barrel’s old friend, is the ancestor of the Plantar family. In the first segments final moments, Sasha and Hop Pop reveal that they discovered a hidden room in the Plantar family caverns, one that can only be opened by the book that Hop Pop showed the kids. It’s revealed to be none other than Leif’s personal room, with all her possessions, as well as a blank letter. Despite being overlooked by all, the last episode showed us that it’s likely written in invisible ink.

What could Leif have left in the letter, though? She clearly meant for her descendants to find it. Could it be instructions on her to stop the Calamity Box should it ever return? Whatever’s in the letter will likely come back into play in the final battle.

May It Be Epic

As of now, almost all the pieces are in place. From here on out, Amphibia will be going at full speed towards it’s series finale. Given everything that Matt Braly and his team have done, then it’s likely that they mean for it to be as big as possible. Spanning three weeks, including one hour-long special episode, and an almost 30 minute final episode? They don’t seem to be holding anything back. If it’s as epic as they make it out to be, Amphibia could have the biggest finale Disney’s seen since Gravity Falls. I’m hoping that it ends up being Sozin’s Comet levels of awesome, myself. I know that’s a high standard, given how Avatar: the Last Airbender was one of the best shows of all time, but I think that Amphibia can measure up.

From here on out, I’m going to be totally dedicated to seeing Amphibia through. Speaking of which, tonight marks the start of the Amphibia artwork exhibition at the Gallery Nucleus in California. For those who couldn’t get tickets, they’re doing a livestream starting at 6 PM EST on Twitch, moderated by AweStruck Vox. He’s one of the biggest fans of the show and covers it on his channel every week. Go subscribe to him if you haven’t. Link to the stream below.

I Give “Newts in Tights” and “Fight or Flight” a 4/5, Each

Gallery Nucleus Twitch Link

Click here to see my other animation stuff