Let's Watch This - An Episode of "Geronimo Stilton"

When I was younger, while on a trip to the library (if I'm remembering correctly) I was introduced to a book series about a mouse called Geronimo Stilton. I liked it. I got a few more books, and I liked those too. However, I haven't actually READ a Geronimo Stilton book in years. Maybe I should reread them sometime.

Anyhow, at some point years after I stopped reading the books, I discovered that in 2009 they actually made a TV show based on Geronimo Stilton. The show managed to get three seasons before ending in 2017. The show's premise isn't too different from that of the books - Geronimo is a journalist and head of a newspaper called "The Rodent's Gazette" and he has adventures with his sister Thea, their nephew Benjamin, and their cousin Trap. There are some changes, however... I already posted a picture of book Geronimo, but here's TV Geronimo...

As you can see, TV Geronimo is thinner and lacks the glasses. Why they decided to alter the design, I don't know. Today, we're going to watch an episode of the show and see if it's any good. Because that's what we do in "Let's Watch This" - watch obscure animated things and see if they're any good. The episode we'll be watching is the very first one - "Operation Shufongfong".

We begin with Geronimo and Benjamin at the New Mouse City airport. Uh, New Mouse City? That's... that's not even a pun. You just replaced "York" with "Mouse". "York" and "Mouse" don't sound anything alike. Hence, not a pun. That's Family Guy making fun of The Flintstones levels of laziness.

Anyway, Geronimo (voiced by Brian Drummond) and Benjamin (Erin Matthews) are there because the reclusive Prince Nagooda or however you spell his name is making a visit to New Mouse City. Geronimo wants to interview him, despite Benjamin reading on his iPhone or whatever the Geronimo Stilton equivalent of an iPhone is called that Prince Nagooda never does interviews. Alas, when Prince Nagooda gets off the plane his bodyguards immediately pick him up and carry him to a limousine. So much for that interview.

Also, at one point one of the bodyguards punches somebody and sends them flying off-camera. That did get a laugh out of me.

Throughout all of this scene, by the way, stereotypical Indian music is playing in the
background. Y'know, just in case you couldn't tell that this guy was supposed to be Indian.

However, just before he drives off, Prince Nagooda gives Geronimo a note telling him to meet him at his hotel and then he can have that interview. Huzzah!

"Dear Geronimo, I think your book series went downhill after the one where
you went to Transylvania. Also, I liked you better when you were fat and wore
glasses. Oh, and tell Trap to ditch the ponytail."

Then we get the show's intro. The theme song's not half-bad, but it sounds like some sort of spy theme song (a la the ones that Carl Wheezer sings) and I've never really thought of Geronimo as a spy. I think there was ONE book where he was a spy, but the rest of the time he's just a bumbling newspaper company head guy... er, mouse. Also, at one point the song calls him "Cheddariffic". How lame is THAT?

Back at Geronimo's headquarters, Benjamin asks his uncle what sort of questions he's going to ask the prince. "Oh, the usual things," Geronimo replies. "Ask about his country, what he likes, hobbies, his favorite foods, customs..." Benjamin then pulls up a video on his iPhone (which is shaped like a Dorito by the way) of these lizards that Geronimo identifies as the Shufongfong. The Shufongfong are a species of lizard so rare that there are only two left in existence - and those two are currently on display at the New Mouse City Museum! Zhe odds, vhat are zhey?

I suppose I should mention that the voices for Geronimo and Benjamin sound absolutely nothing like the voices that I personally imagined them having while reading the books. I mean, I'm not criticizing the show for it, I know the producers of the show obviously had no way of knowing what I thought the characters sounded like. I just find it really jarring, that's all. Benjamin doesn't even sound that much like a little boy, he sounds like a woman with a sore throat.

Also, I could be wrong about this, but I'm preeeeeeeeeeeetty sure that no, there is no actual species of lizard known as the Shufongfong. I looked it up, and all I could find was stuff about this episode. Apparently they're just a made-up species like Sneetches and Chickeraffes and Zaxes.

They even kind of have Dr. Seuss-ish designs...

Benjamin asks if they can go see the Shufongfong, to which Geronimo says that if they hurry they should have enough time before the interview to do so. "Slammin'!" Benjamin exclaims, because apparently kids were saying that in 2009. But before they can leave, Trap (Richard Ian Cox) barges in and demonstrates that he's the show's wacky comic relief character who gives Geronimo migraines by doing a magic trick that involves tying Geronimo up, making the knot disappear, and then realizing that he doesn't know how to make the knot reappear. Oh, Trap, thou are so humorous with your wacky antics!

"Hey, Geronimo! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!"

We then cut to Geronimo and Benjamin at the museum... with Benjamin's whole class. As they approach the Shufongfong, Geronimo shares some fun facts about them: they're gentle creatures, they eat flowers and plants, and they can change their colors to camouflaged themselves a la chameleons.

Good thing the Shufongfong are vegetarians... some lizards actually eat
mice, which would likely be a problem for the citizens of New Mouse City.

Suddenly, the lights go out, and Geronimo is suddenly beaten up! When the lights come back on, HE'S the one in the display, and the Shufongfong are gone! HORROR OF HORRORS!

Geronimo Stilton - he's so "Cheddariffic", he defies the laws of gravity
and physics!

Geronimo then smells disinfectant, and promptly spots a big fat mouse wearing a black suit and a gas mask and holding the Shufongfong in a cage! Geronimo and Benjamin give chase, but the mouse gets away. And for whatever reason there are no security guards around to nab the guy. Oh, and at one point Geronimo accidentally tears the mouse's sleeve. Remember that, it's very important.

Geronimo realizes that now he's late for his appointment with the prince and heads off to the hotel. Prince Nagooda tells Geronimo that his reputation makes him the one reporter that he trusts and would allow an interview with. Alas, he must leave now because he has been called back to his palace in some far-off jungle. Geronimo says that perhaps he could come to the palace in said far-off jungle and interview him THERE. Benjamin then mentions that said far-off jungle is the most dangerous in the world. There are poisonous snakes, giant insects, and man-eating flowers... that last one shouldn't be a problem for Geronimo since he's a mouse and not a man, but nonetheless, he's still nervous. And as he and Benjamin are leaving, he notices that one of the prince's bodyguards has a torn sleeve.

Coincidence? Geronimo thinks not. Back at his headquarters, he tells Benjamin that he thinks Prince Nagooda and the stolen Shufongfong are connected. He brings up that he smelled disinfectant at the museum after the lizards were stolen, and at the hotel he noticed that the disinfectant the prince's servants were wiping things down with smelled veeeeeeeeeeeeery similar to it. Combine that with the torn sleeve, and there's enough proof to go off of. Just then, Thea enters and says that she's there to fly Geronimo to the jungle.

"Hey, bro, I'm here to fly you to the jungle and turn on all the furries in
the audience!"

And then Trap shows up and announces that HE'S coming along too. Yaaaaaaay, that means more wacky antics from the ever-so-humorous-one known as Trap. He's basically the Pinkie Pie/Joey Gladstone of the show - we're supposed to find him hilarious, but he's not hilarious. Nor is he even remotely funny. Instead, he's just unbelievably obnoxious. You know, just like Pinkie Pie/Joey Gladstone.

Geronimo's expression sums up my thoughts on Trap pretty well.

Soon all four of them are in a helicopter flying over the jungle. Trap continues to be obnoxious. Thea says that they're ready to land, but this is as close as she can get so they'll have to walk through the jungle from there. This makes an already-frazzled Geronimo pretty much wet his pants. Once they're on the ground, he gets hit by a branch and then winds up running into a snake.

And snakes - or at least SOME snakes, don't know if ALL snakes do it - eat mice,
just like some lizards, so I really don't blame Geronimo for being freaked-out.

He makes a run for it, only to meet a giant bug...

Honestly, I'd react that way too if I saw a dragonfly THAT big...

I was expecting him to run into one of those "man-eating plants" next (allowing me to make another Little Shop of Horrors reference), but instead they arrive at Prince Nagooda's palace.

That's not a palace, that's a resort hotel. Or maybe it's actually a Cheesecake Factory,
I don't know...

Geronimo has somehow wound up in the snake's clutches again, but fortunately one of the prince's bodyguards saves him. "I hate the jungle..." he moans.

Really digging the barfing mouse-headed dragon statue. Where'd he get that,
a Chuck E. Cheese?

"You gotta hand it to this prince," Trap says as they look around the palace, "He lives in STYLE!" Prince Nagooda greets Geronimo, then sees Thea and immediately gets all hot for her (just like the furries in the audience). He doesn't give a crap about the interview anymore, instead he wants to give Thea a tour of the palace. That's fine with Geronimo, though. "This will be easy cheese!" he tells Thea. "You can keep the prince occupied." Thea refuses, but Benjamin says that it'll give them the chance to search the palace for the lizards. With a sigh, Thea replies, "Fine..." Turning to Geronimo, she adds, "But after this, YOU OWE ME!"

We then cut to Prince Nagooda screaming at his servants to "find it, NOW!" After that, he heads off with Thea, allowing Geronimo, Benjamin, and Trap to search for the lizards. But how will they get past the bodyguards? Answer: with that magic trick of Trap's from before... which he promptly screws up.

Trap, you had ONE JOB!

Geronimo and Benjamin do some snooping around and eventually spot one of the Shufongfong. They give chase, and then the bodyguards (who were still laughing over Trap being an idiot) hear an alarm going off. They immediately find Prince Nagooda and whisper something in his ear. "Something urgent has come up," he tells Thea, just before telling his bodyguards, "Stay with her!"

Geronimo and Benjamin manage to nab the lizard, and discover a large painting with an opening behind it, allowing them to hide from the approaching prince. Speaking of the prince, he tells his bodyguards to "find them" and "dispose of them". "But, don't make a mess," he adds.

Mr. Ratburn was evil the whole time?! I'll never be able to watch Arthur the
same way again...

In the secret room, Geronimo and Benjamin find the other Shufongfong - plus hundreds of other animals stuck in cages. As it turns out, Prince Nagooda is a regular Percival McLeach!

Calling it - it's gonna turn out that Prince Nagooda isn't even a prince at all,
he's an infamous animal smuggler who was disguised as a prince so as to
not raise any suspicion.

"These are some of the rarest animals from all over the world!" Geronimo exclaims. And wouldn't you know it, Prince Nagooda shows up just as Geronimo is listing all of the different animals that he's stolen. "I see that you have found my little collection!" he snarls. "And now YOU will become a part of it!" Before Geronimo knows it, he and Benjamin are trapped in a giant birdcage. And for those of you who were wondering about Trap, he's still tied up. Prince Nagooda admits that the Shufongfong being in New Mouse City were the whole reason why he came there in the first place - he loves unique and rare things, and by stealing them and locking them up in a secret room he can keep them all clean. "Since you are also one of a kind, then you and your family will also be fine additions!" he snaps. Then, just as he and his bodyguards are leaving, Trap finally manages to escape... only for Prince Nagooda to push a button that causes a large cage to fall on top of him, too. Wah wah wah wah waaaaaaaaah...

Oh, and then Prince Nagooda reveals that he's going to marry Thea. In fact, she's being readied now... or so he thinks. Actually, Thea is throwing things at one of his servants. But eventually she agrees to it when Prince Nagooda tells her that he'll hurt her family if she doesn't. Fortunately, when Prince Nagooda returns to show Thea that he has her brother, nephew and cousin locked up, Geronimo comes up with a plan to snatch the keys from him. The plan involves sneezing a lot and telling the prince that they all have some sort of disease, which makes him freak out, and as he's freaking out Geronimo swipes the keys. One thing leads to another, and soon all the animals are free. How pathetic of a villain do you have to be to be defeated by SNEEZING?

They all manage to escape the palace, but on their way to the plane that pesky snake shows up and traps Geronimo in his coils.

I really hope that snake starts singing "Trust in Me"...

Fortunately, he's saved by one of the Shufongfong and manage to get to the helicopter... where Prince Nagooda is waiting for them. How did he get there before them? I don't know, but who cares, the episode's almost over.

"GIMME DOZE LIZARDS!"

Geronimo tells Trap that perhaps the prince would like to see his magic trick. Trap ties Prince Nagooda and his bodyguards up, the Shufongfong are returned to the museum safe and sound, and Geronimo tells the audience that "What started out as an interview with the mysterious Prince Nagooda ended up being an even bigger story... one that his highness won't soon forget! And that's today's hot scoop from Geronimo Stilton! Question, investigate, and learn!" Oh, wait, that was actually just a news report on TV... wait, I thought Geronimo ran a newspaper company, not a news show on TV. Oh, and Prince Nagooda is in Alcatraz. Or, since this is a show where all the characters are mice and they live in a place called "New Mouse City", perhaps he's actually in Alcatratz.

That sounded much funnier in my head.

The end.

That was... okay. Not good. Not bad. Just okay. The animation's good. The jokes are somewhat funny. However, it doesn't have the same charm to it as the books. Trap can also get really grating. Still, I think fans of the books would probably like it. If you haven't read the books, I'd recommend reading them first, and if you like 'em, give the show a try. As for me, I'll just stick with the books.

P.S. Nagooda's a prince, right? Then who's running his country while he's in prison? Then again, his palace is in the middle of a dense jungle so maybe he doesn't actually "run" the country he's from after all...