MSB S2E13: Ups and Downs + Season 2 overall

Time to see how Season 2 ends. One where Wanda meets a lake monster, and how things float and sink in liquid. Blog, do your stuff!

26. Ups and Downs.
Topic: Floating and sinking.
Written by: Brian Meehl & George Arthur Bloom.
Guest star: Cindy Williams as Gerri Poveri.
Aired: 31 December 1995.

Talk show reporter Gerri Poveri is reporting that there is a monster in Walker Lake. The class is very eager (especially Wanda) to find it. Phoebe also wants to find the monster so she can feed it. However, the bus's automatic sinking button has broken. They will have to find some other way to get it to sink. They succeed by adding weight and "crumpling" the bus. However, at the bottom, they discover that the monster was a fake; Gerri Poveri made the story up to increase her ratings. Now they will have to make the bus float again, so they can tell the truth to the public.

We now watch a talk show called In Your Face by Gerri Poveri. And she's hear to bring us a story.

It's the Loch Ness Monster, or shall we call it "Walker Lake Monster".

There's something I have to question about Wanda's mum here. Did she have a haircut prior to this episode? I mean in Going Batty, she had her hair in a bun, while in this episode, she's got short hair.

 "Oh no! A banana floats!"
"That's okay. I like banana splits better."
"Carlos!"

Oh, Carlos. A banana pun this time.

Turns out Tim's camera floats too, but only when it's encased in a plastic box like this.

I take it Wanda is just as magical as Ms. Frizzle is. She's wearing the outfit she'd normally wear throughout this series, and once she removes the entire outfit, she's revealed to wear a diving outfit underneath. I find it incredible that Wanda wears flippers inside her Mary Janes.

More proof Valerie Frizzle is magical. She's wearing a diving suit, but as she gets out of it, she's wearing her simple dress and heels, showing the colour and patterns of both randomise depending on the subject.

"And what do you do when there isn't any evidence?"

"Go home?"

Going home is the best thing to do without evidence. Arnold's suggestion was the funniest, especially considering he usually says he "should've stayed home today" in perilous situations, yet he doesn't say it here. 

This is a creative thing for Phoebe to do. Masking tape the banana and rock together to sink it.

"Something about this field trip seems fishy to me."

"Carlos!"

Another one of Carlos' fishiest puns, especially since there's a fish swimming by. 

How did Gerri manage to get that submarine? And she's cutting the ropes from The Magic Busmarine!

Check it out. Phoebe's peanut butter bread floats, causing a fish to pick at it. Showing that Tim's camera does work underwater with rocks.

This is a good idea Phoebe came up with. Crumple up a slice of bread and make it sink.

"Okay, I give up. What's the difference between a bread slice and a bread ball?"

"It's not a joke, Ralphie!"

Ralphie thought it was a joke, when this was a serious thing going on. Good that Dorothy Ann corrected him. 

Uh oh. Wanda's caught by lake weed! She thought it was a monster.

Here's a smart thing for Carlos to do to sink the bus. Fill it with water since water is heavy.

It's the monster! Wanda's found the monster! The Walker Lake Monster!

Wait a minute! It's not a real monster! It's an inflatable one set up by Gerri!

"But I wanted to feed it."

"Phoebe!"

"Just kidding!"

It wouldn't have been funny if the monster really did eat Wanda. 

Another scheme Gerri came up with. Removing the corks to stop the class from telling the true story.

Wanda did it! Get the monster to float up to the surface by untying the rope to get Gerri's helicopter and camera.

Now Gerri's apologetic. All thanks to Wanda for uncovering the truth and Tim for filming it.

We don't have our usual Tim-like producer answering these phone calls. It's Gerri Poveri answering these calls.

I take it Liz wants to kiss those fish Gerri has in her dressing room.

One interesting fact about Gerri Poveri is that she's voiced by Cindy Williams.

This episode might remind some of the Loch Ness Monster discovery. That story also turned out to be fake.

It's possible that Wanda is magical, especially considering her diving outfit underneath her normal outfit.

I can say that this episode was in your face! Especially the way it teaches kids about how things float and sink, especially with Gerri making The Magic Busmarine float, and later make it sink. And it was funny that Phoebe said she wanted to feed the monster, especially since it didn't eat Wanda. And this episode also introduces Wanda's little brother and reveals her surname to be Li. Another interesting thing about this is that in the end, it's not the normal producer, but Gerri hosting the producer segment. Well, an in your face episode at this!

My rating: 10/10.

Season 2 final thoughts:

I have to say that this season is even better than Season 1. The lessons were more interesting and better executed, the voice acting was still brill, and the art style really improved considering this was 1995. One thing I did notice throughout this season were Carlos' voice and Ralphie's voice randomly changing from having voices appropriate for kids who are supposed to be 8 or 9, or being teenager-like, or similar to a 12-16 year old boy having his voice start to deepen. The reason for this was because Daniel DeSanto, who voiced Carlos, and Stuart Stone, who voiced Ralphie, were going through puberty during voice work for this season, especially considering Daniel was 15 when this season premiered, and Stuart was almost 18.

That's all for Season 2! I'll be back next time when I review Season 3. Hmm...what kinds of lessons will Season 3 hold for me?

Season 2 episodes from least favourite to favourite:

8.5/10.
13. Getting Energised.

9/10.
12. In a Pickle.
11. Butterfly and the Bog Beast.

9.5/10.
10. Revving Up.
9. Going Batty.

8. Taking Flight.
7. Wet All Over.

10/10.
6. Ups and Downs.
5. Flexes its Muscles.
4. Blows its Top.
3. Cold Feet.
2. Out of this World.
1. The Busasaurus.

Average Season 2 score: 9.5/10.

Final score: 9.7/10.