Regular Show Presents: The Real Thomas (An Intern Special)
The name is Intern, Thomas Intern
B
Only the eighth episode of the sixth season and we get another special. The story entails that our favorite and only intern at the park may be more than he seems. Directed by the series creator JG Quintel, we finally understand that the bland but well meaning Thomas had a secretive agenda at the park the whole time. A 30 minute farewell that provides closure to a character who really had no objective in the park but to be the punchline every now and then. How you feel about Thomas going into this episode, will be the deciding factor of how you feel about the special.
In my opinion, I liked Thomas being the average joe intern. He never become an official member of the team. He never went on all the adventures with Mordecai and Rigby or buddied up with Muscle Man but he had this great presence everytime he was written in. Sometimes those one liners are all you need from a character and Thomas's timing was pitch perfect for humor. I love the scene from "I Like You Hi", when Mord asks Thomas for advice on CJ, and he had the best response, "Well my first girlfriend was into hip hop but my ex was into dancing..so try, try that". Throughout his run, Thomas was a character that could be easily in or not in an episode. It was effective, funny, and a great take on internships themselves.
So that is why I am not too ecstatic of the reveal of what Thomas turned out to be the whole time. On Thomas's last day at the park Benson wants to surprise him on a full time job at the park. However, Rigby figures out that Thomas is more than your ordinary intern. Turns out he is part of the MOM program. A spy russian operative that involving United States parks. The whole time when Thomas was used for background humor, was actually him reporting on the park employees. A very clever way to use these little moments and give it more meaning. Which is basically what Thomas was. A character whose main purpose was to be provide little moments of humor but in the end was part of something greater than what was realized. In the end, Thomas or Nicolai comes around by remembering that with every humiliating moment the park team gave him there was a genuine bond of friendship that was formed. Thomas then leaves on the run with the park members fondly looking on.
The animation in the episode is fantastic and the action is well fast paced. It is creative on bringing up past episodes to give Thomas a epic finale. It depends if you wanted to see Thomas as a more complex developed character on the show. For me, I like Thomas being what he was. A character who you could give or take. The finale given is great fun on the espionage thriller but I could of been totally content on Thomas being a typical college kid just trying to get some credit for a class. As Rigby says at the end. "Nicolai, you'll always be Thomas to us." Ditto Rigby.
Cool Things Noticed:
1.) Benson and Audry broke up. Were they even dating?? I would of wanted to see some of that. I do love how no one remember them. That's great wink to the audience.
2.) This episode had a real 'Merica feel to it. Do mess with US civilians! Especially our park employees!
3.) General Romanoff..so they survived after all.
4.) Farewell, Thomas. You were an inspiration to all of the unpaid interns out there.
So that is why I am not too ecstatic of the reveal of what Thomas turned out to be the whole time. On Thomas's last day at the park Benson wants to surprise him on a full time job at the park. However, Rigby figures out that Thomas is more than your ordinary intern. Turns out he is part of the MOM program. A spy russian operative that involving United States parks. The whole time when Thomas was used for background humor, was actually him reporting on the park employees. A very clever way to use these little moments and give it more meaning. Which is basically what Thomas was. A character whose main purpose was to be provide little moments of humor but in the end was part of something greater than what was realized. In the end, Thomas or Nicolai comes around by remembering that with every humiliating moment the park team gave him there was a genuine bond of friendship that was formed. Thomas then leaves on the run with the park members fondly looking on.
The animation in the episode is fantastic and the action is well fast paced. It is creative on bringing up past episodes to give Thomas a epic finale. It depends if you wanted to see Thomas as a more complex developed character on the show. For me, I like Thomas being what he was. A character who you could give or take. The finale given is great fun on the espionage thriller but I could of been totally content on Thomas being a typical college kid just trying to get some credit for a class. As Rigby says at the end. "Nicolai, you'll always be Thomas to us." Ditto Rigby.
Cool Things Noticed:
1.) Benson and Audry broke up. Were they even dating?? I would of wanted to see some of that. I do love how no one remember them. That's great wink to the audience.
2.) This episode had a real 'Merica feel to it. Do mess with US civilians! Especially our park employees!
3.) General Romanoff..so they survived after all.
4.) Farewell, Thomas. You were an inspiration to all of the unpaid interns out there.
Loved this episode probably the most political. Thomas was great I am sure he will back. Also
ReplyDelete"Natalie NOOOOOOO!!!"
"Benson she tried to kill us!"
"..........I think we could have worked it out"
The decision to write Thomas off the show does seem a bit arbitrary, but what a way to go out. They definitely struggled to come up with a niche for Thomas to fill. First he was the put upon loser that everyone inexplicably blamed for everything, ala Meg Griffin. That line of humor very much goes against the general tone of Regular Show though, so fortunately it didn't last long. He had his best success as the background player who is completely not up for participating in the park's inevitable weirdness. My favorite Thomas moment is still from "Benson's Car", when he enters a room, sees futuristic bounty hunter trying to kill Mordecai and Rigby, promptly turns around and walks in the other direction. Half a second of screen time, huge laughs. He had some other great moments, though I have noticed that he's been pretty sparsely seen since Mordecai and CJ became official. Perhaps the writers recognized that Thomas' joke only had so much staying power and decided to retire the character while he was on top.
ReplyDeleteLoved the episode, a great send-up of the kind of USSR invades America kind of movies you would see in the 80s (Red Dawn, Invasion America, etc). Laura Bailey as a Russian spy being eaten by a whale, the ludicrous Russian plot to blow up America piece by piece, the President and not-Hillary Clinton childishly taunting him when it inevitably failed. I was enjoying seeing Benson and Audrey's relationship develop in the margins of the show and didn't necessarily like them ending it, though the idea of Benson essentially going through the exact same character arc as Mordecai did with Margaret and no one remembering it is a great joke.
Poor Benson. I liked him and Audrey.
ReplyDeleteThis episode continued the highly agreeable trend of Rigby being capable/heroic. I was glad it didn't take too long for him to be vindicated in his suspicions. He knows what he saw!
The power-of-friendship ending was a little predictable, but really, I'm guessing no one would want Thomas/Nicolai to remain an antagonist. And his real name (and martial arts and undercover skills) was nicely foreshadowed in "Thomas Fights Back."
Tons of great jokes here, too. Muscle Man and Fives stalling the agents at the door might be my favorite.
Almost forgot about Rigby's displays of competence in this episode. Can't forget him using the sprinkler spy device to saw through the ropes as well. Year of the Rigby rolls on.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a skillful episode and it made me laugh out loud more than once, and yet I'm left saddened by Thomas' departure. It would have been unrealistic for him to stay, but I wish they'd left in more of a window for him to return -- not that he can't, so I'll keep my fingers crossed they have something up their sleeves for his character. It would also be hilarious if we saw him hiding in the background of other, future episodes like a land based hidey thing!
ReplyDelete