Review: The Stanley Dynamic “The Stanley Heist”

Spoilers Below

As we continue to roll along with The Stanley Dynamic, we’re really starting to see the direction the show is going. It’s a fun family sit-com with fun character interactions and quick consistent jokes. They throw so much at you in their half-hour, there is bound to be something that will make you smile.

In “The Stanley Heist” Luke glues himself to a painting at an art auction, so Dad and Lori must recue him. Meanwhile, Mom has Chelsea over at the house to help her prepare food for the art auction and Larry takes the opportunity to try and impress her any way possible.

The Stanley Heist is an improvement over last week’s episode. The story felt a little fresher this week, the writing was pretty good. There were some clever jokes I felt may have gone over some of the younger audience’s heads, but when developing a show for families to enjoy, it’s important to not forget the adults, so having jokes that hit different areas of the maturity spectrum can definitely be a good thing. The most successful shows and movies intended for children are the ones that parents can enjoy also. This show seems to have a grasp on that idea, not as I wish it should, but I see the effort.

Something that stood out to be this episode was the variety of costumes and set pieces used. Dad and Lori dress up quite a bit in this episode, and Larry even shows off his inner rock star. They didn’t leave much to the imagination with the personas they were trying to create, and not only can that be visually appealing for younger audiences, but it adds another element of fun to the show.

Where this episode lost me was Doop’s security training. I actually prefer to see him as a security guard, I thought he was really funny this episode, but just the idea that he is in training became an afterthought as the episode went along and when it eventually came full circle, it didn’t seem relevant anymore. The show has an underlying continuity to it, so if Doop continues to be the worst security guard ever in future episodes, I think I’d enjoy. Just seeing how oblivious he could be to certain things was entertaining.

Larry’s story was the more relatable half of the episode. Most of us have been embarrassed by parents, and most of us had crushes when we were teenagers. In such an animated show where even the live action characters can come off as cartoonish, it was a very grounded story. I don’t think it did much to further the story between Larry and Chelsea, but seeing the various antics Larry performs to impress Chelsea was funny. It also had a nice a nice heartwarming moment between mom and son, so that family element was nice to see. The characters can be very goofy a lot of the time, but every so often it’s nice to see them come down to a human level and have a reminder that these are characters that care about one another. It helps us relate to and invest in the characters a little better, which in turn just makes the show better.

Overall, it was an alright episode. A lot of fun costumes, neat stories, and jokes that hit and miss. There wasn’t too much of Luke this episode, he there was the entire episode, but they mostly confined him to the painting that he stuck himself on. We did see him pick up an actual statue, so it’s that sort of stuff that makes the animation of the show worth it. If you have an animated in a live action world, have him interact with that live action world just like any other character. That’s what they’ve been doing with Luke, and I tip my hat to them. They’ve made it work and aren’t afraid to challenge themselves. Other than that, he was on a painting, which is fine because it served the story.

How did you like “The Stanley Heist”? If you’ve been watching the show, feel free to share your thoughts! We’re always curious to read them. Enjoy your weekend!