Review: Tangled: The Series “Big Brothers of Corona”

Flynn and Lance aren’t the only thieves in Corona.

Overview (Spoilers Below)

“So we mentor some cute kids for a day or so, how hard could it be?” 

So begins Big Brothers of Corona, the first new episode of Tangled: The Series since Pascal’s Story aired back in August. Things have changed since we last saw Rapunzel and crew; there’s been a string of robberies around town perpetrated by the so-called ‘Silent Striker’.

When the striker is revealed by Flynn and Lance to be two small children (who they dub  ‘Red’ and ‘Angry’) the men are tasked with guiding them toward a better path. This proves more difficult than Flynn could’ve imagined, as the girls are just as sarcastic and rebellious as he and Lance in their younger days.

After a field trip to the Snuggly Duckling fails to produce reformation (it only results in Hookfoot’s tears), an intervention with the princess is in order. Never underestimate the calming power of cute animal sidekicks! Angry and Red enjoy their time in Rapunzel’s royal room, but bringing the budding thieves into the palace puts them directly into temptation. (Hey, crowns are shiny.)

During their heart to heart later that evening, Angry explains to Flynn that their motives for stealing aren’t simply greed or fame: the girls are trying to get away from something. (Flynn and Lance silently sneaking out of the room is a very sweet moment. Also, can we take a second to give props to the art direction on the show? That aerial view of the room is stunning.)

The episode ends in a thrilling climax in which Flynn (and Lance, technically) sacrifice their own freedom so that the girls can escape from the Baron’s henchmen. No one has ever done something like that for them before, so the girls decide they can’t run away anymore. Using some of their mentor’s methods, they execute a welcome rescue. A heartfelt hug between Flynn and Angry shows us know how much they’ve grown to care about each other. The episode ends with the girls leaving town on a hayride into the sunset. Flynn leaves us with the final line of the episode (and a good summation of the lesson learned): “They’ll be back. When they’re ready.” 

Our Take

The Captain of the Guard won’t accept help from Lance. Cassandra won’t accept help from Rapunzel. And Angry can’t accept Flynn’s help while the Baron is in the picture. Throughout the episode, we’re given different variations of similar situations. People can change, Big Brothers of Corona tells us, but only when they’re ready. That’s a surprisingly meaningful moral.

Not only does the series introduce two intriguing new characters, but their introduction illuminates new aspects of an older character’s personality. Flynn is usually relegated to playing the role of the morally-ambiguous comedy relief. With the arrival of the Strikers, he gets to show off a more mature side of himself that we don’t often see.

This episode delivered plenty of laughs. Whether it was inventive visual gags (Flynn and Lance hide behind a painted portrait of themselves in the opening) or clever one-liners (“We’re trying to make them better people. Not better thieves.”), I was giggling for a lot of the 22 minutes. Flynn and Lance paired with Red and Angry makes for comedy gold. A lot of the humor comes from seeing the experienced former criminals attempting to deal with Angry’s penchant for sarcasm.

Wrapping things up, this episode gave us a thoughtful moral, lots of laughs, and some unique and lovable new characters who I’d love to see return in a future episode. A number of the show’s staff have chimed in on Twitter saying that this Big Brothers of Corona is one of their favorites, and I’ve got to agree that it’s a highlight of the series so far. When Tangled: The Series is firing on all cylinders like this, it’s more than just a worthy follow-up to the original film. It’s a show that can stand on its own merits.