Okay, this episode requires a bit of explanation before I summarize it. "When Mother Brain Rules" is a clips episode. It's the sole clips episode of the series, or I should say it's both clips episodes of the series. Confused? Don't worry. You'll be even more confused by the time that you finish reading this review.
There are two versions of "When Mother Brain Rules". They differ from each other in clips used, background music used, the voice of the main narrator, and the narration. Also, version 1 has a completely different narrator than the rest of the series, and the clips don't have vocal tracks. Yeah, it's mostly a speechless episode. Version 2 has the vocal tracks intact.
What both versions have in common is that they're narrated by an omniscient narrator and...Simon.
I have an original air date of Saturday, January 5, 1991, for version 1 of this episode (making it, technically, the first Captain N episode of 1991), and I do remember seeing it on NBC. I have no idea when version 2 originally aired, but I first saw it in syndication on "Captain N & The Video Game Masters".
You'll probably never see this episode anywhere, except on the Internet and fan-made DVDs. DiC has not provided Shout! Factory with a master tape of this episode, meaning either they don't have it, or they didn't want to hand it over. Whatever the case, this episode will not be on the DVD set that will be released on February 13, 2007. I can assure you that it does exist, however. Check YouTube.
Now that the background info's out of the way, let's take a look at the actual episode.
Misc. Tidbits (11:47 AM - 11:50 AM)
The episode does not have any credited writer(s).
Version 1 of the episode originally aired on Saturday, January 5, 1991, as the fourteenth episode of Season 2 and the twenty-seventh episode of the series. The original air date of version 2 is unknown at the time of this writing.
I first saw this episode on NBC, probably not on The Family Channel, and finally on "Captain N & The Video Game Masters".
Interesting Notes (11:51 AM, 4:42 PM)
The title is white with no quotes.
The title is larger in version 1 than in version 2.
Summary (Version 1) (12:00 PM - 2:26 PM)
The summary will go as follows. The title of the episode that the clip comes from will be given, followed by a description of the clip. If narration is given, it will be typed in full, along with the speaker's name, after the description of the clip in which the narration starts. It's possible that not every cut from a scene will be accounted for.
Act 1:
Kevin In Videoland
Metroid flying past the Palace of Power
a view of the Palace of Power in MB's mirror
MB's army marching towards the Palace of Power
Narrator: "It was a dark time for Videoland. The Forces of Chaos, led by the evil Mother Brain, had overrun the Palace of Power and taken Princess Lana and her faithful company of heroes completely by surprise."
Hippo gloating, MB picking him up, Eggy laughing, MB dropping Hippo on him
Lana, Simon, Mega Man, and Kid Icarus in the throne room, the Ultimate Warp Zone starting to speak
Narrator: "Outmanned and outplayed, the little band of defenders known as the N Team was forced to flee and seek a new champion - according to legend, someone skilled in all aspects of video game fare, ready and willing to battle the merciless Mother Brain and her horrible horde."
Metroid Sweet Metroid
Lana turning around and seeing MB enter the Palace of Power with her troops, the troops sieze Lana
Eggy sounding the trumpet in the courtyard, the trial
Narrator: "The legend called for a mighty hero, able to defend the honor of Princess Lana and free Videoland from the slippery, slimey tentacles of tyrrany."
The Trojan Dragon
Kevin leaping in the air and firing his Zapper
Metroid Sweet Metroid
Mega Man, Simon, Lana, and Kid Icarus being freed and fighting MB's minions
The Most Dangerous Game Master
Kevin holstering his Zapper after the holographic call from MB
Kevin walking across the moat and firing at the creature
the huge armored creature throwing a spear at Kevin, Kevin running up the spears and dodging the final spear
Kevin In Videoland
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Simon knocking on Lana's bedroom door to Kevin hopping out of the giant banana
Lana on Metroid, MB sending her through the chute to the tower, Lana seeing the guard and looking out the window
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Mega Man giving Kevin a boost to Kevin trying to fire his Zapper in MB's lair
Simon taking out his bottle of mouth spray and spraying it
Mr. and Mrs. Mother Brain
Lana seeing the Count to Simon defeating the Count and talking with Lana
Simon: "Hold it! Hold it! What's all this about a new hero for Videoland? Forget it! Simon Belmont's here! That's right, the one and only Simon Belmont, vanquisher of vampires, [unknown] of good, protector of Princesses, and the fastest whip in the West...or East...or anywhere. Without my fearless heroics, my uncanny agility, and my charismatic leadership, the N Team would've been nothing. N for nothing. Get it?"
Germ Wars
Simon leaping down and defeating 3 germs
Kevin In Videoland
with the exception of some cuts (such as the live-action footage), everything from Lana, Simon, Mega Man, and Kid Icarus gathered around the pedestal to Duke shaking his head
Simon: "Of course, I didn't ask for Captain N, and battling Mother Brain was bad enough. Now, I have to babysit that upstart, too. Something about that young brat snapped my whip the wrong way."
Nightmare On Mother Brain's Street
Simon hanging up and unveiling his portrait and falling over
Simon: "At the risk of being modest,...I must say...I'm a work of art."
The Trojan Dragon
Gameboy creating enemies and Simon defeating them
Simon: "Check out that form,...that style,...that grace under pressure."
Mega Trouble For Megaland
with the exception of some cuts, a lot of Kevin and Mega Man against Big Eye (first time)
with the exception of some cuts, a lot of Kevin against Big Eye (second time)
Kevin by the edge as Big Eye approaches
Act 2:
Mega Trouble For Megaland
with the exception of some cuts, the rest of Kevin against Big Eye (second time) to Kevin holstering his Zapper
Simon: "A crack shot - and a snappy dresser, too."
Quest For the Potion of Power
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Horsehead appearing to Kevin defeating Horsehead
Ironknuckle riding with Zelda to Kevin, Link, and Zelda defeating Ironknuckle
How's Bayou
Simon telling the fish to stop tickling his toes and the swamp creature coming out of the bayou
Simon: "Simon Belmont bows to no man...except...Simon Belmont."
Simon getting away from the swamp creature and putting a rock in its mouth to the swamp creature closing in on Simon and Lana
Simon: "Take that, you ruffion!"
Kevin going from Billy's truck to the crash star and defeating the swamp creature, the alligators, and the snakes to MB and her minions being dedigitized
Simon: "In the heat of battle and not a hair out of place. How do I do it?"
Gameboy
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Hippo and Eggy initially going after the satellite in their ship to their ship being blown away by the popcorn
Simon: "Evil beware! Don't touch my hair."
The Invasion of the Paper Pedalers
Mr. Lopez chasing Kevin, Simon, Julio, and Duke to the car crashing
Nightmare On Mother Brain's Street
Simon walking on-stage to Simon walking off-stage
Simon: "All right, we need Captain N, but, if the Ultimate Warp Zone had any sense, it would've picked moi."
The Trojan Dragon
Simon running away from the extra enemies that Gameboy created and locking himself in the closet
Simon walking through the woods to Simon being caught in the spider web
Queen of the Apes
Simon fishing to Simon swimming underwater
Simon gasping while underwater
Act 3:
Wishful Thinking
MB swinging her tentacles in the boxing ring to Eggy counting Simon out
Mega Trouble For Megaland
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Simon and Kid Icarus walking by the statues in Medusa's lair, blind, to Simon cracking his bones
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Ice Man running and firing his freeze ray to the Robot Masters being destroyed
Simon: "I gotta be honest. Before, were were a powerful team, but, with Captain N, dare I say,...we're unbeatable."
Mr. and Mrs. Mother Brain
Kevin starting to answer Lana and Simon pushing him out of the way to the inkwells falling on Simon's head
Nightmare On Mother Brain's Street
Simon swinging past Kevin to Kevin defeating the werewolf and the diamond falling
Kevin In Videoland
Kevin, Simon, Kid Icarus, Duke, and Mega Man sneaking past MB's army to the warp to DK slipping and falling
Simon whipping the tree branch and swinging to Mega Man unflattening Simon
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Simon swinging in to join Kevin, Lana, and Duke to Kevin telling everyone to get into the warp and MB spinning around
Gameboy
Gameboy getting his cap placed on his head to Gameboy laughing
Summary (Version 2) (2:30 PM - 4:16 PM)
The summary will go as follows. The title of the episode that the clip comes from will be given, followed by a description of the clip. If narration is given, it will be typed in full, along with the speaker's name, after the description of the clip in which the narration starts. It's possible that not every cut from a scene will be accounted for. This summary will not be divided by act, since I have only a syndicated copy of version 2.
Kevin In Videoland
Metroid flying past the Palace of Power
a view of the Palace of Power in MB's mirror
Narrator: "Once upon a dark and dangerous time in Videoland, the Forces of Chaos, led by the evil Mother Brain, had overrun the Palace of Power. Princess Lana and her faithful company of heroes were taken completely by surprise."
MB's army marching towards the Palace of Power
Hippo gloating, MB picking him up, Eggy laughing, MB dropping Hippo on him
Lana, Simon, Mega Man, and Kid Icarus in the throne room, the Ultimate Warp Zone starting to speak
Narrator: "Outmanned and outplayed, the little band of defenders known as the N Team was no match for Mother Brain's minions - and fell into her clutches."
Metroid Sweet Metroid
Lana turning around and seeing MB enter the Palace of Power with her troops, the troops sieze Lana
Eggy sounding the trumpet in the courtyard to Eggy saying he'll hold the pickles
The Trojan Dragon
Kevin leaping in the air and firing his Zapper
Narrator: "But Mother Brain didn't count on a bold, new hero, a champion to lead a revolt against her tyrrany and inspire Princess Lana and her friends to free Videoland,...a hero the legends call Captain N."
Metroid Sweet Metroid
Mega Man, Simon, Lana, and Kid Icarus being freed and fighting MB's minions
The Most Dangerous Game Master
Kevin holstering his Zapper after the holographic call from MB
Kevin walking across the moat and firing at the creature
the huge armored creature throwing a spear at Kevin, Kevin running up the spears and dodging the final spear
Narrator: "But Mother Brain doesn't give up easily."
Kevin In Videoland
Simon knocking on Lana's bedroom door to Kevin hopping out of the giant banana
Lana on Metroid, MB sending her through the chute to the tower, Lana seeing the guard and looking out the window
Narrator: "Once again, Princess Lana was captured by Mother Brain. Things were looking grim."
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Mega Man giving Kevin a boost to Kevin trying to fire his Zapper in MB's lair
Narrator: "Luckily, our mighty hero was able to defend the honor of Videoland's princess."
Mr. and Mrs. Mother Brain
Lana seeing the Count to Simon defeating the Count and talking with Lana
Germ Wars
Simon leaping down and defeating 3 germs
Simon: "So...they say they need a new hero for Videoland. Forget it! Simon Belmont's here! That's right, the one and only Simon Belmont, vankcher (?) of vampires, guardian of good, protector of Princesses, and the fastest whip in the West...or East...or anywhere. Without my fearless heroics, my uncanny agility, and my charismatic leadership, the N Team would've been nothing. N for nothing. Get it?"
Kevin In Videoland
with the exception of some cuts (such as the live-action footage), everything from Lana, Simon, Mega Man, and Kid Icarus gathered around the pedestal to Duke shaking his head
Simon: "So what did the Ultimate Warp Zone send us? Ha! A kid!"
Nightmare On Mother Brain's Street
Simon hanging up and unveiling his portrait and falling over
Simon: "That young brat snapped my whip the wrong way. How could she not fall for me? I'm a work of art."
The Trojan Dragon
Gameboy creating enemies and Simon defeating them
Simon: "Check out that form, that style, that grace under pressure, unlike Captain Ninkumpoop."
Mega Trouble For Megaland
with the exception of some cuts, a lot of Kevin and Mega Man against Big Eye (first time)
Simon: "I mean look at him. They didn't call this episode 'When Mother Brain Rules', because they put the kid in charge instead of me. It should've been called 'Simon Belmont Rules' - or, even better, 'Simon Belmont's Greatest Hits'. No, 'Simon Belmont, Wonder Whip'. Sounds good to me. Maybe, if they flatten the kid, we can change the title."
with the exception of some cuts, a lot of Kevin against Big Eye (second time)
Simon: "Uh-oh. Maybe I'll get my wish sooner than I thought."
Kevin by the edge as Big Eye approaches
"Captain N & The Video Game Masters" commercial break:
Mega Trouble For Megaland
with the exception of some cuts, the rest of Kevin against Big Eye (second time) to Lana running up to Kevin
Simon: "When we left off, the kid was about to get smashed,...and there's still time. Will I get lucky?"
Lana hugging Kevin to Kevin holstering his Zapper
Simon: "Hmm, a crack shot and a snappy dresser, too. He's been taking lessons from me, obviously."
Quest For the Potion of Power
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Horsehead appearing to Kevin defeating Horsehead
Simon: "And here's another time he tried to upstage me."
Ironknuckle riding with Zelda to Kevin, Link, and Zelda defeating Ironknuckle
Simon: "He couldn't have done it without help, unlike moi. My turn now."
How's Bayou
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Simon telling the fish to stop tickling his toes to Lana yelling at Simon
MB watching on her mirror to Simon getting away from the swamp creature and putting a rock in its mouth to the swamp creature closing in on Simon and Lana
Simon: "There's a time to fight and a time to run. Of course, it takes a genius like myself to know the difference. And then there's the art of dealing with alien losers."
Kevin going from Billy's truck to the crash star to the crash star going into the warp after Eggy and Hippo
Simon: "I handled that nicely."
MB and Dr. Wily watching on the mirror to MB and her minions being dedigitized
Simon: "'When Mother Brain Rules', indeed. How could she rule anything with these two overstuffed goofballs on her side?"
Gameboy
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Hippo and Eggy initially going after the satellite in their ship to their ship being blown away by the popcorn
Simon: "Should've let me drive."
The Invasion of the Paper Pedalers
Mr. Lopez chasing Kevin, Simon, Julio, and Duke to the car crashing
Simon: "Now, I'll show you some fancy driving."
Nightmare On Mother Brain's Street
Simon walking on-stage to Simon walking off-stage
Simon: "So much for the fancy driving. Now, check out the bod!"
The Trojan Dragon
Simon running away from the extra enemies that Gameboy created and locking himself in the closet
Simon: "Wait a minute! How did this scene get in here?!"
Simon walking through the woods to Simon being caught in the spider web
Simon: "Stop! Where's the pause button?!"
Queen of the Apes
Simon fishing to Simon swimming underwater
Simon: "No! Not this scene! I've been sabotaged! Stop the picture! Pause! Pause! Oh, well, it always worked for Captain N. My hair's getting wet! Where's my stuntman?! Cut! Cut!"
Wishful Thinking
MB swinging her tentacles in the boxing ring to Simon hitting MB
Simon: "Aaahhh, this is much better."
Simon yelling in pain to Eggy counting Simon out
Simon: "Well, not much."
Mega Trouble For Megaland
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Simon and Kid Icarus walking by the statues in Medusa's lair, blind, to Simon cracking his bones
Simon: "So boxing isn't my strong suit, but, when it comes to charming the ladies, Simon Belmont has no fear."
Ice Man running and firing his freeze ray to the Robot Masters being destroyed
Nightmare On Mother Brain's Street
Simon swinging past Kevin to Kevin defeating the werewolf and the diamond falling
Kevin In Videoland
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Kevin, Simon, Kid Icarus, Duke, and Mega Man sneaking past MB's army to the warp to DK slipping and falling
Simon: "Stopping werewolves is one thing, but, when the chips are down, you need a real leader."
Simon whipping the tree branch and swinging to Mega Man unflattening Simon
Simon: "This will be a snap."
with the exception of some cuts, everything from Simon swinging in to join Kevin, Lana, and Duke to Kevin telling everyone to get into the warp and MB spinning around
Simon: "So we need Captain N, but, if the Ultimate Warp Zone had any sense, it would've picked yours truly."
MB spinning around to Lana clenching her fists
Simon: "Let's be honest. We're all heroes on this team, and now, with Captain N, dare I say, we're unbeatable."
Lana kissing Kevin on the cheek to Kevin firing at the ceiling
Simon: "Captain N is good. He should be. I taught him everything he knows. Mother Brain may rule, but the N Team wins every time!"
Great Lines (4:17 PM)
See the summaries and choose your own.
Dumb Lines (4:18 PM)
See the summaries and choose your own.
Rant (4:30 PM - 6:00 PM)
If this episode was 1 of the 13 main episodes of Season 2, then I'd be a lot madder right now than I actually am (which is not much). Since this episode is basically something extra, I'm going to be more kind and limit my rant to various comments and questions, which, in the spirit of this episode, will be in a completely random order. :P
What the fuck? Seriously. What...the...fuck?
I understand the purpose of doing a clips episode. It's to save money and/or (as apparently was the case here) recap what's happened on the series so far. If you're going to do a clips episode, though, then it should at least make some sense. The clips and order of them are almost completely random.
Who wrote this episode? Why is no writing credit given?
Who supervised the editor and/or checked the final product?
Contrary to popular belief, the vocal track is not removed in version 1. If you turn the volume all of the way up and listen carefully during one of the "Kevin In Videoland" clips, you can clearly hear Lana yelling "Kevin! Look out!" The vocal track seems to have been turned down but not all of the way down - at least not in that clip. Also, the final clip, with Simon giving his mirror to Gameboy, has the full vocals from "Gameboy".
Some of the vocals from version 2 seem to have been removed, and I don't just mean when the narrator or Simon are talking. Examples include Lana's "No!" in a clip from "Mr. and Mrs. Mother Brain" and Kevin's "Simon! What's going on up there?!" in a clip from "Nightmare On Mother Brain's Street".
The score in version 1 seems to be the same as used in the episodes that the clips come from (as evidenced by the score being choppy at points). The clips in version 2, for whatever reason, have a different score (maybe to make the music flow better).
Who was the narrator in version 1? Was Matt Hill unavailable? Could Andrew Kavadas have done it?
The narrator just seems to disappear after a few minutes in both versions. Why'd they bother with him then? Why not just let Simon narrate the whole thing?
This episode is almost "The Simon Belmont Show" but not quite. If Simon had come in earlier, then it would be.
The title of the episode, and a lot of Simon's narration, makes no sense. Mother Brain doesn't rule anything (except Metroid). Lana rules. Mother Brain is trying to conquer Videoland.
I have an original air date of Saturday, January 5, 1991, listed for version 1 of this episode. If that's true, then it aired 5 weeks after the last story episode of Season 2. Why then?
Which Captain N rerun did this episode knock from the schedule?
Which SMB3 episodes did this episode air with?
What's the episode teaser like?
Did version 2 air on NBC? If so, then is there any additional footage?
Did either version air in syndication other than VGM?
The clips in version 2 seem to have less cuts in them and go on longer.
Why were some clips omitted from version 2? Or were they? I have only a syndicated airing.
Number of episodes featured: 14
Number of Season 1 episodes featured: 8
Number of Season 2 episodes featured: 6
Number of new episodes introduced in Act 1: 8
Number of new episodes introduced in Act 2: 5
Number of new episodes introduced in Act 3: 1
This episode features a little over half of the 26 episodes that had been made before it. There are slightly more Season 1 episodes than Season 2 episodes featured, but Season 1 clips dominate the episode - with Season 2 clips being shorter and less frequent.
I don't consider this episode canon, since Simon is aware that he's on a TV series. Therefore, I don't consider any information given, such as the N Team being called the N Team before Kevin's arrival, to be hard facts either.
Both versions of this episode give us a name for Mother Brain's group: the Forces of Chaos. It's not canon, of course.
Whose idea was it to make this episode?
I watched a series called "Neon Genesis Evangelion" earlier this year. This episode...still makes more sense than that, but that doesn't mean it's good, just less bad.
Version 2 makes more sense, since it has the vocal tracks and additional narration by Simon.
Why are there hardly any vocals in version 1 - and why only in the final clip?
Ideas for better clips episodes:
1) all of the scenes on Castlevania
2) all of the scenes on Megaland
3) all of the scenes on Mount Icarus
4) all of the scenes on Hyrule
5) all of the scenes on Metroid
6) focus on an N Team member
7) focus on Mother Brain
8) Dr. Wily's evil inventions
9) The King Hippo - Eggplant Wizard Comedy Show
10) a summary of what happened in the first 2 seasons in chronological order
Any of those would have made a better clips episode.
This episode in one word: afterthought.
Why did they bother?
Does Simon exclaim something in the clip when Horsehead knocks Link back?
Lesson: Clips episodes suck.
Except for some funny lines of Simon boasting/complaining, "When Mother Brain Rules" sucks.
That's the end of my review of "When Mother Brain Rules".
Well, I've reviewed all 14 Season 2 episodes and the Season 2 theme song, but we're not through with Season 2 yet! Next, we'll revisit every episode when I review Season 2 as a whole! See ya then!