Quick Shot Ed (Ed, Edd N' Eddy Season 1, Episode 10 Review)

Foreword

Ed, Edd N Eddy for the longest time has been my favorite cartoon. Recently, HBOMax has picked up several cartoons from the late 90s and early 2000s. Unsurprisingly, I went on an immediate nostalgia bender and watched the entire series with my lady love. And what better way to celebrate several of my favorite cartoons than by systematically reviewing each episode, starting with the dorks of Peach Creek.

For all of my new readers – Hey, welcome to Patchwork! - Each episode will be reviewed on a 10 point rating scale. I'll be focusing on four aspects of the show and pulling the average to get a final tally. The four categories we'll be measuring are:

The Story - The Plot of the episode, as well as the characters themselves.

The Visuals - Whether they be character, backgrounds or accessories.

The Comedy - This is a “haha” funny show, so it needs decent comedy.

The Scam - The Ploy the Eds concoct to weasel the allowances of the other kids.


With the formalities out of the way, let's dive into episode ten of Ed, Edd N' Eddy:

Quick Shot Ed

Goodness, what a title card. Placed against a red background are two photos, some kind of orange, springy bird toy that resembles those water drinking birds and a Christmas tree light bulb. The two photos are poorly taken close ups. The one in the foreground is an up the nostril close up while the one in the background is a torso shot from the chin down. The orange bird seems to be squawking out into the sky. The title text is stylized, with the “Q” resembling a target, the “i” resembling a camera light flash, and the “S” resembling a gun. What could be taken away from this title card? Perhaps the episode is about paparazzi? Some kind of photography, I feel, is obvious but to what extent you would not be able to grasp with this screen alone. Certainly one of the weirder title cards we've gotten.

Moving on, the episode opens with a shot of Eddy's house. Eddy is showing his two friends his attic, announcing that his folks are pack rats. The kids explore the storage area while the background makes for the perfect game of I Spy. In the opening shot you can clearly make out a broken mirror, a sewing mannequin, a globe, an oar, empty picture frames, a guitar, a car door, a lock chest, a bird cage, a calendar dated 1970 and so on.

Double D walks pass numerous appliances, including a toaster that shoots out some gross, moldy bread. Ed finds a dish drying rack with a record, that he misidentifies as a doughnut, sitting on the end. Double D stumbles upon some magazines and finds a detailed photo of a grasshopper. Some jazzy music plays while Edd comments on how it's a “perfect specimen”. Ed eventually finds his way to a coat rack that has numerous dresses and outfits. He decides to put on a large, fuzzy coat – stealing Eddy's granddad's style way before Macklemore ( I just made a thrift shop joke in the year of our Lord 2023 – sign up for the mailing list – I've earned it ). Eddy finds the camera and the central object of this episode's plot while Ed pretends he's a werewolf.

Eddy calls for their attention before blinding them with a picture. After a few more snaps, the trio decides to have a photoshoot of whatever they can find in the neighborhood. Kevin eventually rides by on his bike, to which Eddy immediately decides to blind him with a photo, causing the boy to crash. Kevin attempts a pounding but is thwarted by a few more blindings, falling into a trash can and rolling away down the hill. Not soon after, Eddy begins thinking of ways they can earn some cash with the camera. He then comes up with the idea to make a calendar, selling the unwanted photos back to the kids.

The Eds sneak around, with Double D treating the whole thing like a nature safari. They come across Johnny sitting on a swing set and reading a story to Plan. Edd breaks into his commentary, saying “See how the wild animals nurture their young?”. Eddy stealthily moves in for a closer shot, while Johnny reads “How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a – Oh my” - which did get a snort out of me. Johnny is blinded and thrown from the swing, causing Plank to launch through the air. Eddy proclaims Plank has gone mad before taking off. The other boys are quick to flee with their friend. Plank lands in a tall hedge as the boys run into a cross fade.

We see the Eds sneaking under the carpet through Ed's upstairs. Sarah and Jimmy are the next victims, as the boys stumble upon them playing with dolls. Double D explains that some animals get confused and adopt another's traits and characteristics. Sarah is playing out a husband and wife story, with the husband being commanded by his wife to leave the car and take the bus to work instead. Jimmy is playing with an army man who has exposed chest hair, stating this is what he wants to be when he grows up. I will add, upon this third viewing, that this may be the start of Jimmy's desire to become an overly masculine icon. We see in later episodes that becoming a strong, athletic, almost jock like person is something he thinks about quite often. This could be a look into Jimmy's psychology, about how he tends to be softer and enjoys traditionally more feminine activities but feels societal pressure to be what he's been shown as the ideal man. These being children during the early 2000s television, it's of course never really touched upon too deeply what Jimmy identifies as or what labels he prefers to use for himself, and I'm awfully curious if we would've gotten anything more explicit concerning Jimmy's sexuality or gender if this show was released in today's social climate. OR. This could just be a one off joke.

With another photo, the Eds are spotted and Sarah becomes enraged. She launches a dollhouse that hits Edd square in the face, acting now as a full face helmet. Sarah shouts “eat doll” as she throws an infinite hailstorm of plastic at the boys. They take off running, leaving Double D behind to comment how “Sarah's gone mad”. We then get some really quick, but fun looking animation as the camera changes to an outside shot. The doorbell dings a few times before, again very quickly, the boys flee the home. The scene is over in a few seconds, and I wonder if they upped the frame rate for just a few seconds here, but the way they run and move towards the screen feels very fluid and natural. It's quick and ultimately a minor scene but it certainly feels good to watch.

What doesn't feel good to watch is the three young men spotting Nazz working out in her bedroom. They proceeded to climb a tree outside to get a better look into her room. It's as creepy as it sounds. Before they can ascend the tree, Kevin comes rolling by in the garbage can. He attempts another pounding but is blinded and thwarted once more. As the boys reach their perch, Double D makes the comment “Some put on a display to attract a suitable mate”, making this scene 11 times creepier. Ed, being the wholesome oaf that he is, focuses more on the TV Nazz is using for her exercise, rather than the girl herself. The branch the three boys are sharing proves to not be strong enough to support them and eventually breaks, sending them crashing to the ground with only a self-portrait to show for their efforts.

The boys, thankfully, switch scenes to find Rolf making sausage. Double D remarks that “Some animals resort to cannibalism during drought and famine” and I'm left wondering if Ed is truly the strange one of the group. Ed proclaims that he is famine, meaning to use the word famished. Eddy comments that he's drought, which is an insult towards Ed's intelligence somehow. I'm just not readily seeing it. The boys sneak into Rolf's kitchen, but are spotted as Ed shouts for a hotdog. Rolf orders that they “Get out of here,-” and I swear he said snowflake after the end of that sentence but it is very hard to make it out. The farm boy ends up falling into the sausage maker, declaring “I am a weiner” as his body is transformed into the shape of a hot dog. He calls for Victor – his billy goat (is this our first time seeing him? He becomes a staple of Rolf's farm animals) to take care of the poachers.

The animal charges, and the boys worryingly say “Victor's gone mad.” They make it outside, hiding behind Rolf's kitchen door. Eddy suggest they go take more photos before Victor bursts his horns through the wood, launching the Eds across the neighborhood. A solid joke.

When the boys land they are confronted by Kevin, who is donned in what can only be described as a Terminator outfit. Leather jacket, dark sun glasses to prevent anymore flashes, a bicycle that sounds like a motorcycle. For added security, he's also mounted multiple headlights to his vehicle. He chases after the boys, running them through Johnny's house where he is taking a bath with Plank. Eddy stops to take a picture of the two boys (this episode is creepier than I remember) before Kevin continues his pursuit, leaving Johnny to wonder if they saw anything.

The chase leads to the junk yard, where the Ed boys find themselves lodged into a tire rolling down hill. Kevin would've been able to catch them, but a dump truck rolls by and he lands squarely into it's bucket. The Eds continue into the river, where they flow down through a large sewer pipe. Ed grabs hold of a ladder and the boys climb out through a manhole cover. They end up at the Park n' Flush trailer park and Double D wisely suggests that they get out of there. Stubborn Eddy refuses, knowing they need only one more picture for their calendar. (Johnny twice, Sarah and Jimmy, Kevin twice, Nazz, and Rolf. This does not equal to twelve months but whatever).

As carefully and quietly as possible, the boys sneak up to the all too familiar blue trailer. The Kankers are inside, performing their beauty routines. Hair care, skin care and the like. Lee shouts for May, letting her know that she “is getting crusty” and I begin to regret consuming this media with the degenerate mind that I have. The Eds peer through the window and Eddy lines up a shot. We see Marie and May with hair curlers in place. Lee is wearing some kind of... I don't even know. Pouch? May is seen pouring some kind of fizzy, pink liquid into it. Maybe hair dye? But that would suggest she's an unnatural red head. Unless... all the girls are naturally blonde, but Marie and Lee choose to dye their hair? Those who have done hair care – unlike myself who just shaves his head every time he needs a cut – what is this? Let me know in my comments while I make more wild theories about the Kanker Sisters.

With a quick flash, Eddy takes the picture. May worryingly announces they are being abducted. Lee calms her down and points out that it's just Eddy. Taking a moment to once again dive into more Kanker Sister theories- I find it interesting that Lee does not belittle May here. We've seen the sisters be cruel to each other MANY times. But instead of ridiculing or name calling, she eases her sisters fear by pointing out what the real threat is. This can mean a couple of different things. One the the surface level, it could just be that Lee sees Eddy and chooses to not belittle her sister at this time. It could also mean that Lee thinks the threat of abduction is a very real possibility, which is all the more interesting. It tells us that they believe in aliens, which on it's own is not very exciting, many people certainly do. Heck, the boys themselves at least played with the idea of aliens before. What I think could be a more fascinating possibility, that I once again have zero evidence to back up, is that the abduction story is what May was told about her own dad. With Lee being, presumably the oldest – at the very least in a maturity sense – it's not out of the question for her to know that all their dad's were deadbeats. To ease a crying child's fear of her dad abandoning her, it's possible that either Lee or their mother spun a tale of an alien abduction. The shine of a headlights through a window as a car is leaving could be explained away as UFO lights – similar lights to what Eddy's camera flashes. Again – absolutely no proof – but it makes you wonder, doesn't it?

Eddy calmly tells his group “Run, boys” - which is in a deadpan way that I love. The boys take off, and end up getting caught up in a clothesline. They are captured and brought inside as the Kanker's chant “We're gonna make you pretty”. A scene transition leads us to the final scene of the episode, where the boys are at Ed's trying to sneak back to Eddy's place before anyone can notice. Sarah, being the little hellion she is, manages to snap a picture of the boys and add it to their infamous calendar. The calendar is pinned to a tree with the month of June displayed, perhaps proving this shows earlier seasons take place over a single summer's break. The Eds are done up in the hairstyles of the Kankers and the episode comes to a close as they don paper bags that somewhat resemble their faces.


The Story

While I can't complain too much about the premise for this episode, it's plot is not one I revisit very often. The setup is good and there is a natural sense of progression – they find the camera, they take pictures, they bite off more than they can chew, they get their comeuppance. However, there's nothing too noteworthy or exciting that happens. While I strongly relate with the urge to take pictures and videos of everything (although not of my neighbors bathing or working out), this episode I feel can be skipped and nothing would be too terribly lost. While I can't find much to complain about, I also can't find too much to praise – leaving this segment with a

6/10

The Visuals

Everything is up to par, which for this show is pretty high. The same designs and set pieces that we've been loving for nine episodes prior continues. We get a lot of fun background details, like the crap that litters Eddy's attic. And again I have to bring special attention to the escape scene where they are fleeing Sarah's barrage. Just something about the way they move and how fluid it looks caught my attention in a great way. A well earned -

8/10

The Comedy

There were a few decent laughs in this episode but nothing that really sticks out. I loved the quick shot of Victor headbutting the Ed's into oblivion. The running joke of “character's gone mad” was not laugh out loud funny but still appreciated. Johnny reading about the woodchuck and Eddy's “Run boys” were some great line reads that got some chuckles out of me. But overall I didn't find myself laughing too much during this episode. Nonetheless it receives a

5/10

The Scam

Y'know, I promised that his series was full of scams and tricks and faulty inventions and we've yet to see too much of that. While the camera and the calendar idea does fall under the category of a scam, it doesn't hold a candle to the other ploys Eddy hatches. Again, my ideal scam is either an invention or service that promises something that it either “technically” delivers or has no prayer in the world of delivering but the Eds go so hard on the sell that it works. The calendar is just a legit product they are making, albeit against the kids will, but doesn't have any strings attached to it. The scam this time earns only a

4/10

The Final Tally

6/10

Hard Enjoy

I like the concept of this episode because, again, as a kid I would love to do stupid stuff like this. Even as an adult I find myself with an urge to film everything, even if it's not particularly noteworthy. So in that aspect, I like this episode – which I ultimately do. It is by no means a bad episode. It, however, is also nowhere near the top of my must watch list for this series.

But now it's your turn. Let me know your thoughts of this episode. Is it better or worse than what I thought of it? All of my socials are located below, giving you the chance to let me know anywhere on the internet or in the comment section below. Also consider signing up for the free mailing list to get updates to all the content that I produce.

Thanks for reading and I hope to write for you again soon. Happy Reading!


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Score Breakdown:


10) Big Boi Lovings - A perfect score. Any negatives are insignificant.


9) Marvelous - A nearly flawless piece of media. A few gripes prevent it from being perfect.


8) Recommended - An excellent piece of media that should not be skipped, despite a few complaints.


7) P. Good - Above average. Some of the problems are a touch painful.


6) Hard Enjoy - Despite the issues that are present, I want to be a fan of the media - even though it hurts.


5) Aight - Average. The experience is overall hit or miss but does nothing to "wow" or warrant hate.


4) Inoffensive - The media is not an enjoyable experience but also not a painful one.


3) Condemned - Enough problems are present that I regret consuming the media.


2) Poopie Bad Stuff - Terrible. I could hardly find any enjoyment, though it didn't cause an angry rant.


1) Dupid - I hate it. You probably know I hate it because I would not have been quiet about it.