Sunday, May 19, 2019

Episode 12 - Identity Crisis Part 1



So here we are, at the two part season finale for the first season of ReBoot. I'll get more into my thoughts on this season as a whole next week, but so far, I've enjoyed this season a lot more than I was expecting to asides from a few episodes which I haven't really enjoyed. Asides from not having the most interesting and engaging plots, the season has been able to shine through with it's charm and humour. However, it's from this point onwards that the show's storytelling improves drastically, giving us much bigger and more engaging stories.

Much like in Enzo the Smart and The Great Brain Robbery, this episode begins with a Game in progress. We are in a peaceful field, and Bob is wearing a military outfit (complete with flat top crew cut) and relaxing by a lake with a fishing rod. He’s soon disturbed by some planes flying overhead and a tank coming right for him. Bob grabs a grenade from his torso, expecting the User to pop out, but it turns out the tank's pilot is Enzo. It turns out that Bob is relaxing in order for Enzo to learn how to take games seriously. He tells Enzo about a game called 'The Funhouse',  a legendary game that very few have entered and survived. We then see the User is struggling to drive his tank, and after a stealth plane piloted by two British binomes manages to blow itself up accidentally, Bob gets fed up and pulls out a bazooka, blowing up the tank and ending the game. Enzo asks Bob why he did that, and Bob says that it’s Dot's big day, and they can’t afford to be late before they head off.



At the Diner, Dot is going over some files when suddenly she gets a brief warped vision where Cecil is a faceless robot with claws, the binomes are all viral and Megabyte's tanks are patrolling outside. Phong narrates over this, saying that Dot is currently experiencing a temporary distortion of reality. This quickly passes, and Dot brushes this off as a side effect of overworking herself. Enzo and Bob enter soon after, and Dot panicky as Enzo's icon is missing. Luckily, Bob has his icon and gives it back to him. Dot goes on to explain that his Icon contains his personal identity information, and that anyone could get him to do as they wish if they ever got a hold of that information. Dot changes into more formal business attire and she and Bob set off.

We then cut to black and hear a knocking. An unruly binome opens part of a door, asking Bob and Dot to identify themselves. The binome then let’s them in after Dot confirms who they are, and he leads them through a corridor with Megabyte's viral skull on the wall alongside some graffiti. Bob let’s Phong know that they’re in. Eventually, the binome opens the door to a stage overlooking a massive theatre area. A binome with an Afro named Cyrus welcomes the two, and Dot asks that they’re ready. There’s a little hesitation, and Cyrus explains that Megabyte owns everything in this sector, and their PID's are all that they have. Dot gives a speech about how she plans to use their PID's to register the binomes with the Principle Office, freeing them from Megabyte's control and allowing them to build an Energy Park within this sector. One by one, the binomes register their PID's. Bob contacts Phong, who points out that this is the first time they’ve freed a sector from Megabyte's control, and then says he’ll prepare the operating system for the initial PID's. However, overhead we see that Hack and Slash are observing the situation.



As the final PID is collected, Dot tells Cyrus that they won’t regret it. She checks back at her stand and finds her organiser with the PID's is gone. Luckily, Cyrus has it, handing it back to her while making it clear how important these PID's are. Dot declares that they are now all free, but they are interrupted by legions of Megabyte's troops showing up. In the commotion, Cyrus leads Bob and Dot to a trap door. Bob goes through after Cyrus and Dot just as Hack and Slash show up.



The trap door leads into the sewers. Bob, Dot and Cyrus head off while Viral binomes pursue them. Back at the theatre, the virals are rounding up prisoners and transferring them into their tanks. Megabyte then shows up on a vid window to enquire what’s going on. Hack and Slash inform him that this is Dot's doing. Megabyte vows to break her spirit, and orders his lieutenant to prevent her from escaping.



During the chase, Phong contacts Bob to ask what’s happening. Bob says that they’re doomed, and Phong suggests Dot self destructing her organiser, something she wouldn’t consider doing. Eventually, Cyrus leads them to an exit to the surface. As they’re proceeding up, they’re spotted by some virals, and Cyrus allows himself to get captured so that Bob and Dot can escape.

On the surface, Bob points out that the whole sector's on alert, but soon notices that Dot isn’t with him. Not long after, Dot joins him in a hijacked Viral tank. As they head off, they’re pursued by more tanks, and Dot briefly experiences another reality distortion, this one featuring a darkened sky and a strange looking robot.

Eventually, they make it to the border, but not long after, Megabyte pops up on a vid window. He declares to the sector that their struggle for independence is over, thanking Dot for delivering the PIDs to him personally. Bob thinks Megabyte is bluffing, but Dot is shocked to find that the file with the PIDs has been removed from her organiser. Dot is very quick to blame herself for this, saying it’s all her fault that these binomes have lost their chance at freedom.

Megabyte signs off, revealing that he needs to encrypt the file first. He then thanks Cyrus for handing over the PIDs, promoting him to 'Lieutenant Cyrus'. Dot has another reality distortion moment, this one of a viral binome prison camp. Phong tells Bob that with the PIDs in Megabyte's pocession , all the binomes will become viral, asking them to come to the Principle Office. Dot, however, seems to have lost all hope. She is incredibly defeated, and says that everyone would be better off without her. Bob tries to perk her up, but a Game lands on top of them. Not just any game, though. They find themselves in a creepy looking circus, which Bob recognises as 'The Funhouse', ending the episode with the show’s first 'To Be Continued'.



While it’s harder to talk about this episode without talking about the next one as well, as the first part of a story, it's a great start with a lot of intrigue and mystery setting up the next half. This is the first real insight we get about how much power Megabyte holds over Mainframe and it’s inhabitants. Phong states that they’ve never reclaimed a sector from him before, meaning that those he has managed to infect have been that way for a while.

The temporary distortions of reality showing a more dystopian Mainframe that Dot experiences manages to raise some questions. Are these visions of the future? Why is Dot experiencing these? What's causing them? We'll find out why next week, but for now, it serves as an interesting glimpse into what might happen if Megabyte had complete control over Mainframe.

Speaking of Dot, this episode has been great for her. While she definitely hasn’t been on the sidelines up until this point, she hasn’t really been the primary focus of her own episode yet. Making up for her under utilisation in The Great Brain Robbery, here she’s the star of the show. It’s her plan to reclaim Megabyte's sector, so therefore, we follow her. We also get to see that, while she’s definitely a capable character, she’s very quick to give up and doubt herself when her plans don’t turn out as expected. This is something else that gets developed more next week.

This is the first real attempt from Blair, Pearson and Mitchell to tell larger scale stories following the more simplistic stories we’ve had for most of this season so far, and it pays off pretty well within this first part. We get some foreshadowing at the start for The Funhouse, some high stakes with the notion of Megabyte controlling the lives of several binomes, some questions in the form of Dot's visions, and a glimpse of The Funhouse at the very end. We'll see if this pays off at all in next week's episode.

Next week: Potential hints at things to come in 'Identity Crisis Part 2'

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