User blog:Justsomeordinarydude/Legends Episode Reaction

Legends

This episode was pretty fun and enjoyable. The plot is as standard as they come, as Lincoln and Lynn Sr take on a rival father and son duo (who are essentially just your generic jock stereotypes, similar to Hank and Hawk in The Loudest Yard) in a temple themed game show (apparently, this was a real game show that the Loud House writers are using for this episode). Of course, it’s what the writers decide to do with the plot type that determines the overall quality of the story.

Lincoln and Lynn Sr’s relationship is presented in a positive light. The two show they have great co-operative skills, which is why, despite their unathletic nature and the fact that they are clearly out of their element when partaking in the more physically demanding challenges of the game show, they are still able to successfully complete the majority of tasks they are put against. In fact, it’s only in the middle of the story, when they experience conflict with one another and begin bickering and losing their effective teamwork that they are unable to even finish the challenges. Ultimately, their mentality is a healthy and heart-warming one, as their priority is to finish the game show together and have fun while doing it, not to win and crush their opponents. Of course, despite overcoming their personal conflict and regaining their co-operative mindset, reality ensues by the end of the show, as their opponents, the Stancko’s, are far more athletically competent and ae able to defeat the Loud duo in almost every activity, except for those which require knowledge rather than brawn. As such, honouring a bet that was placed between the competitors, Lincoln and Dad had to wear their underwear at the airport, but their ‘great relationship’ as stated by one member of the airport crowd was enough for the expectation of the final result to be subverted. Instead of being humiliated, satisfying the antagonists, the crowd applauds Lincoln and Lynn Sr, congratulating them on the bond they have and the great sense of love and teamwork they demonstrated on TV, leaving the opponents in an angered and disappointed state. Even the two being taken by security for a cavity search was not enough for the experience to be ruined for our leads. On a side note, though, some of their little moments were slightly cringeworthy, such as Lynn’s ‘jerk chicken’ one liner. I understand they were supposed to be portrayed as the geeky underdogs against their jock counterparts, but some little moments of theirs sounded incredibly lame. Though, that’s probably me just being an unbearable nit-picker, so I won’t complain too much about that.

The challenges of the game show are quite creative and various, but then again, that’s an aspect of the story that was directly taken from the real-life game show, with minor tweaks and differences placed into the episode to fit the purposes of the narrative. The story takes the concepts it borrows and utilises them well, in that respect. Some people may hold a gripe against the ending in a similar way to how some dislike a certain aspect of The Loudest Yard, where the jerk jock antagonists basically get away Scott-free (Karma Houdini is the technical term, as provided by TV Tropes), as the Stancko’s, despite leaving the airport dissatisfied that their humiliation attempt failed, still easily won the game show and never received comeuppance for their hostile behaviour towards the Louds. But then again, this episode was about having fun and ignoring/not minding the antagonistic behaviour of others, so maybe that would have confused the message the story was trying to convey. Besides, these two could always return as recurring antagonists in future stories, just like Hank and Hawk did in Tricked! This is a possibility worth considering, as the show didn’t have any recurring antagonists until that episode, and it certainly would allow for more Loud family bonding experiences as they unite against a common foe (though the show wouldn’t want to rely on this too much, however, as the main focus of the series is about the internal struggle a large family faces, mainly concerning their relationships with each other more than anyone else).

Overall, this was a fun episode that gave Lincoln and his Dad some valuable bonding, and while not a perfect or exceptionally outstanding story by any means, it still has a lot to offer to casual viewers and hardcore fans alike. While I maintain the view that Lynn Sr has already had enough focus episodes for one season and I would prefer the writers to give more days in the limelight to the more underutilised sisters and supporting characters, that won’t skew or manipulate my perception of the content I am given. While I would like to see the good old, likable bumbling dad character take a step back for a while and give other characters a chance for screen time, I won’t deny it when an episode starring him is legitimately good television that presents him, and his relationship with his other family members in a commendable way. Ultimately, this episode was exactly what I anticipated it would be; fun and enjoyable.

'''Final Rating: 8/10. '''