Review: Big City Greens “Friend Con; Flimflammed”

Overview
“Friend Con”
The Greens head to Farm Con, where Tilly and Cricket hatch an unconventional plan to help their Dad make a friend. Their attempts to convert former enemy Chip Whistler (Chris Houghton) into a companion turns out to have unexpected consequences.

“Flimflammed”
Cricket finds his way into some money after returning a lost dog to it’s owner. He attempts to double his money by buying into a pyramid scheme, and ends up learning a valuable lesson about scams.

Our Take
Anyone who’s been craving a taste of the cancelled convention scene will find some silly solace in “Friend Con”, while “Flimflammed” is a cautionary tale about another type of con. The thematic similarities between the two and wordplay in the titles is also a nice touch.

“Friend Con” kicks off with Tilly wanting to help her Dad find a friend, after Bill lets it slip to the kids how much he misses his former con buddy, “Good Ol’ Joe”. Once he leaves to enjoy the event before his big VIP speech, starting with the Dirt stand (“Son! C’mere, you gotta smell this dirt!”) Tilly recruits Cricket into her Papa friendship plan. After spotting the CEO of Wholesome Foods Chip Whistler, they ensure he bumps into Bill, and the two hit it off. Meanwhile, Gramma stalks the convention floor to scoop up all the free swag she can carry, which comes in handy later. Although Bill and Chip seem to be enjoying the event together, Chip turns out to have an ulterior motive for feigning friendship, which comes to a head during Bill’s big speech. The episode wraps with Chip getting some satisfying comeuppance, Cricket and Tilly being unsure if they’ve found their Dad a friend or not, and a standing ovation for urban soil and crop rotation.

Cricket finds a lost pug (“Aah! Street goblin!”) and receives a $100 reward from the owner to kick off “Flimflammed”. While walking down the street flaunting his newfound wealth, he’s convinced to attempt to double his money by selling Skull Slimmers. He immediately buys in, and brings the goods home to his family to brag about his future riches, only to be informed by Gramma he’s been played for a fool. After some disastrous attempts to sell the products, he takes a break at Big Coffee, where Gloria commiserates about her money troubles. After Cricket lets it slip he was told he could double his money, Gloria takes his full inventory off his hands, in hopes of being able to afford a concert with her friends. After coming home to brag (again), Tilly and Gramma share their concerns that he’s simply scammed someone else, a fact that Gloria confirms by chasing him down after realizing she’s been sold a dud and might not be able to afford rent as a result (a bit too real here, if I’m being honest.) Ultimately, the two hatch a plan to get their money back by scamming the original scammer. The ending isn’t what you’d expect, but you certainly won’t feel cheated by it.

Overall, these are two quality con-focused episodes for season 2 of Big City Greens. In the words of Tilly herself, they’re “good n’ fun”, and well worth the watch.