Maid of Honor
Episode #33 & 34 - Maid of Honor Part 1 & 2
Original Airdate - October 18th 2003
After Wonder Woman befriends a jet-setting Kasnian princess, she finds
herself enmeshed in a complex plot of intrigue and betrayal masterminded
by the Justice League's old enemy, Vandal Savage.
Media by Bird Boy
Review by wonderfly |
Credits:
Written by Dwayne McDuffie
Directed by Dan Riba
Music by Kristopher Carter
Animation by Koko Enterprise CO., LTD.
Voices:
Kevin Conroy as Batman / Bruce Wayne
Susan Eisenberg as Wonder Woman
Carl Lumby as J'onn J'onzz
Phil LaMarr as Green Lantern
Michael Rosenbaum as The Flash
Dorie Barton as Princess Audrey
Phil Morris as Vandal Savage
Larry Drake as Vox
Dan Castellaneta as Minister
Corey Burton as Page
Jennifer Hale as Chambermaid
Richard Doyle as Doctor
Chuck Howarton as Armed Man
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Screen Grabs, Part 1
Pans
Sound Clips, Part 1
"People in Kasnia don't like Kasnia..." (MP3, 205kb)
"Several...if it can be arranged" (MP3, 167kb)
Screen Grabs, Part 2
Pans
Sound Clips, Part 2
"I'll grab the two John's..." (MP3, 156kb)
"Yeah, but we'd come anyway" (MP3, 156kb)
"You know, we never did finish our dance" (MP3, 136kb) |
Review
A very good episode, one which I enjoyed very much. As for how I would
rate it compared to the other episodes this season, I'm not sure: we've
had 4 very different episodes from 4 very different genres. You really
can't compare them.
"Twilight" was a 'Star Wars' style Space Opera.
"Tabula Rasa" is a Frankenstien monster story.
"Only a Dream" is typical superhero/supervillain tale, (pulled off very
well though).
And here we have "Maid of Honor" the James Bond episode!
All of those different style genres have their own strengths and
weaknesses, but I'll reiterate: as far as this episode goes, it was
worthy of our praise, and then some!
Unlike certain moments in the last few episodes, the dialogue here was
very sharp, crisp, funny and exciting! There was not a single dull line
spoken between Wonder Woman and Audrey. Most powerful perhaps was the
line when Audrey said, "And you just crossed a line," as she walked out
on WW who was in chains. Another strong moment was WW apologizing,
saying she didn't mean to offend Vandal, and Audrey said, "Didn't you?"
Vandal Savage's return was a surprise. And while he slipped into
standard Bond villain style rants in the 2nd half, this was perfectly
fine by me, as he backed up his words with some powerful moments, such
as when Audrey clawed his face, and it healed right back up. Also, his
'resurrection' at the end was particularly creepy, as we watched in
horror as his bones snapped back into place. It's times like that when
you just know being immortal isn't all it's cracked up to be.
The fighter pilots all ejecting out of their jets was a tad GI Joe-ish,
(that really can't be helped) but I felt that the destruction of the
fleet of ships was handled spot on. I was like, "Oh, the meteor missed!
They're gonna be okay!" And then the tidal wave formed, breaking the
ship in two! Yeah, we saw some people swimming to the surface, but does
anyone doubt that there were plenty more people still trapped inside the
ship?
And the marriage scene: brilliant use of contrast between a peaceful
ceremony and a war being fought just outside the castle. In real life,
what would have been heard above the ceremony would've been the warfare
sounds just outside, but here, I guess it's symbolic that the sounds
from the wedding inside drown out the war sounds. If Vandal's wedding
plans comes to pass, then the whole world will soon know it, and live to
regret hearing of it. This church's rendition of "Here Comes the Bride"
surpasses all other sounds, including the sounds of war.
And furthermore, I was surprised that they allowed the wedding to be
complete! And we even cut to later, after Audrey wakes up in bed after
the 'honeymoon'! Scenes like this are the little tidbits which show this
isn't just a children's cartoon we're watching. This, and other sexual
tidbits (such as Audrey grabbing that man's tush in the beginning of the
episode) more than make up for the VERY minor complaint of too many
parachutes from the fighter jets.
4 stars!
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