Review: THE OWL HOUSE “Thanks to Them”

Overview

Luz and her friends make a daring attempt to return to the Demon Realm…

Our Take

We begin the first of reportedly three 44-minute specials. Along with being the first episode to premiere concurrently on Disney Channel and Disney XD. The entire episode is primarily set in the Human Realm in Luz’s hometown. As Luz returns to high school to restore some sense of normalcy to her life, while Amity, Hunter, Gus, and Willow turn the once abandoned portal cottage in the midst of the forest into a personal hideout. There’s even a fun little montage/Intro of sorts full of “fish out of water” humor as you see some of these characters go through gradual changes as they all adjust to living there while trying to find a way back home.

And later on, we get to see a nightmare sequence of Luz’s mother which gives the audience some insight into the thought process she had when it came to the struggles of trying to raise a unique girl like her daughter in a world that wants to bully their twisted definition of “normal” onto them. However, the major turning point culminates towards its epic & bittersweet yet uncertain ending along with a big reveal of a character nobody saw coming. At least except for Hunter whose bird friend “FlapJack” seems to figure out ahead of everyone else and Damn! With the way this all played out, I can see why this has a respectable fanbase.

This is how you hook your audience! The tone is perfect for the subject matter and the situation Luz finds herself in. The episode looks and sounds great, and my only major issue, unsurprisingly, involves pacing. What has the potential for 20 half-hour episodes was somewhat streamlined into the runtime of a feature film. And with the last two “special” episodes coming later in 2023, we can expect one hell of a conclusion after that massive cliffhanger.