Adaptation Expansion / Watching Amphibia

Being a reaction fic, Watching Amphibia doesn't shy away from expanding on the events of what they're viewing, whether it be what happened in between scenes, or further elaborating on certain scenes and how the characters truly felt. Some details would end up being canonized with the release of "Marcys Journal A Guide To Amphibia", while others would end up being rendered Outdated by Canon.

In General

• The reason for Sprig claiming he had no friends in "Best Fronds" before Anne despite later episodes showing he's known Ivy for years is explained to be because his parents were killed protecting Ivy from the heron attack years ago, which caused Sprig to blame Ivy for his parents' death, and only reconciled with her about a week after he befriended Anne.
• "Breakout Star" reveals more details on the Frog Rebellion in terms of Andrias' involvement. He kept it a secret from Marcy and Lady Olivia, claiming everything was peaceful in Amphibia while the two handled things in the city. General Yunan was sent to quell the rebellions until Andrias sent Grime the order to kill Hop Pop.
• "Dating Season" has Wally reveal that no one really follows the "courtship ritual" anymore, the exception being Hop Pop and Felicia due to the two being more traditionalist.
• "Toad Tax" reveals that the real penalty for not paying taxes is community service or labor at Toad Tower depending on how much they didn’t pay and that Bog, Fens, and Mire stealing everyone's stuff as compensation was against the rules.
• "Croak and Punishment" has Maddie reveal Chef Flour's (her father) apron Sprig threatened to burn in the episode belonged to her late mother.

Exclusive to the Original

• For The Owl House, the origin of Luz’s common mold from "Eclipse Lake" was a side effect of eating Amphibia-Boiling Isles hybrid cuisine.

Exclusive to the Redux

Expansions on Characterization and World Building

• Marcy and Sasha are revealed to have siblings in "Civil Wart" with the former having two sisters and a brother (older than them by over 10 years, explaining why none of them were there when Marcy's parents told them about moving in the "True Colors" flashback) and the latter having a younger 5 year old half-sister from her father's side.
  • Sasha's half-sister, Lexie, she's very close to, with it implied Sasha's fondness for Polly is because she reminds her of Lexie. Lexie is apparently a light sleeper though and doesn't like being woken up, as when Sasha tried waking her up once, Lexie ended up accidentally giving her a black eye.
• Saint James being a private school is largely just a minor detail in canon with no bearing on anything. Here, it's noted that Anne's family couldn't actually afford to send her there, so she needed to get scholarships to attend, which prompted her to take up a lot of sports like tennis and boulder climbing. It's unsaid, but the implication is that Sasha's family was able to afford the tuition, while Marcy got in thanks to their intelligence. Anne actually worries how they'll deal with High School due to her being trans, which could make anything sports related much more complicated for her, something she already developed an eating disorder over when worried eating too much could make her body develop masculine traits.
• In addition to Marcy's own mental conditions, both Anne and Sasha are given looks into their own psyches.
  • Anne is shown to heavily repress her trauma, that she forces herself to be fine so that others don't worry about her, mentioning how, following her confrontation with Sasha in "Reunion", she shut down for three days while everyone else wanted to celebrate Toad Tower's destruction, so she just forced it all down. She even admits to Sasha that she did the same with her feelings on Sasha and Marcy betraying her, Andrias nearly killing Marcy, her having powers, etc., all so she could focus on getting back to Amphibia. These signs would point to the idea that Anne is dissociating as a means of coping.
  • Sasha is shown to have large amounts of self-loathing, both over her actions in Amphibia, and her treatment from her parents. Her letting go of Anne's hand in "Reunion" is all but said to not have been solely to save Anne from falling, but because she was Driven to Suicide over things never being able to go back to normal between the two, Marcy even asking her outright if that was the case. Having to rewatch said events during the viewing ends up sending Sasha into a panic attack, causing her to repeatedly think she should have died as she claws at her neck trying to breath, and cuts her hand punching a mirror. Combined with her manipulative behavior being explained as her being made to believe everyone wants something and needing to know how to manipulate others to get what she wants, while also being desperate to have some form of stability in her life and being distraught at losing it, it not only suggests Sasha suffers from suicidal depression, but also Borderline Personality Disorder.
• Grime's lying about letting the Frogs go if Anne won the duel in "Reunion" despite being characterized as someone who values honor is shown to be a case of O.O.C. Is Serious Business. Toad Culture is one founded on honor and Might Makes Right, with Beatrix chastising her brother for going back on his word and dishonoring himself. Grime however thinks to himself that, while normally a Toad of his word and willing to practice Honor Before Reason, Newtopia, more specifically Andrias, had been pressuring the Toad Towers to put a stop to the Frog Rebellion and kill Hop Pop, causing him to forgo his morals in that instant.
• "Fort in the Road" goes further into detail about the "Ruins of Despair" and sightings of Frobots in Amphibia prior to "True Colors".
  • Before Anne and the Plantars inadvertantly reactivated it, the "Ruins" were largely just that, a set of ruins that no one knew what to make of, akin to Stonehenge. Grime states there were several cults who formed around the Ruins every few decades, but nothing pertaining to the fact they were actually a factory. Olivia likewise notes that she tried looking into their origins occasionally only to come up with nothing, not even in places like Newtopia's extensive archives, the University, or even the castle, all she could find either being heavily revised or flat out destroyed, leading her to believe Andrias did his best to cover up their true purpose, and that he would have hid them if he had found a way to do so.
  • The Frobots are shown to be an In-Universe Urban Legend, older than even the story of Barrel's Hammer. Mrs. Croaker states the stories of the "Croakers" have been around since she was born, with Maddie elaborating how the stories said they were "Frogs that aren’t frogs, hard silvery skin, doesn’t breathe, cold to the touch, glowing red eyes, have to behead it to kill it.", with Sasha noting said description fits the Frobots they had to fight to a T.
• While maps and aerial views of the Amphibia continent were shown, the actual landmass was never given an exact size, with Matt Braly stating its size was whatever was convenient for the plot, saying it would be close to the size of Australia if he had to guess. "Anne Hunter" has Olivia state that the continent itself is 10,463,846 square miles, making it larger than the entirety of North America.

Expansions on Canon Events

• It's stated regularly that, while the viewing may make it seem like an Extremely Short Timespan, the period of time between episodes is much greater than it appears, several weeks passing in between some episodes, and certain things happening in those periods not covered in the viewings. This is also used to explain certain cases of Aesop Amnesia, since it's a lot easier to forget learning a lesson over a longer period of time.
  • The period between "Plantar's Last Stand" and "Hop Popular" is expanded on in regards to how the Plantar's managed to stay afloat in the time Hop Pop lost his stand. Namely due to Anne working odd jobs around Wartwood, in particular working at Stumpy's again like in "Lily Pad Thai", and that Anne working is the only reason they were able to afford food during Hop Pop's depression.
  • While it wasn't said how long she was gone on her trip in "Wally and Anne", Hop Pop thinks to himself how she was actually gone for roughly three days, but wisely keeps it to himself rather than worry anyone more after they just witnessed her nearly fall off a cliff.
  • The period of time between "Reunion" and "Handy Anne" is expanded on at points, particularly on Grime and Sasha's side. Grime notes that after Sasha fell from Toad Tower and he caught her, the two were largely on the run for the following weeks, Sasha being "warmer" than normal for a week, suggesting she was running a fever, requiring Grime tend to her. While most of that time is a blur for Sasha, during "The Ballad of Hopediah Plantar", Grime confirms that they stopped at numerous villages while on the run, including Bittyburg, looking for anything to help her condition. When Anne tries asking him why he didn't take care of the Hasselback Gang, he notes that they never actually ran into them, the gang likely too scarred of Grime to show themselves, an idea Marcy notes has merit thanks to the hierarchy established by Andrias.
  • During the viewing of "Fort in the Road", Molly Jo points out how she thought Sprig would have already known not to randomly pull levers after the events of "Family Shrub". Sprig points out however that the time between the two episodes was months In-Universe, not helped by his already short attention span.
• The redux further explores Marcy's being on the Autism Spectrum, by noting they suffer from an anxiety disorder and has various coping mechanisms to try and deal with things, such as fidgeting, biting things, tapping their pencil, and a special weighted blanket they were given by Sasha for their birthday. It likewise examines how their parents, due to undergoing Adaptation Personality Change, don't necessarily approve of them being on the spectrum, treating their coping mechanisms as stupid and requiring they hide them. Overall, their behavior is heavily likened to traits of both Asperger's Syndrome and ADHD without being outright said.
• Maddie's baking bread in the shape of Anne and Sprig in "Cursed!" was initially just a creepy moment to sell the Red Herring that Maddie was the one who cursed them. This gets expanded on here with Maddie realizing how, out of context, it does looks creepy, before Marcy correctly deduces and explains that it's "Friendship Bread", a type of protection charm made in the shape of the subject to empower the spell, and that Maddie was making it to be nice to Anne and Sprig.
• How Tritonio managed to escape Toad Tower and form his band of Merry Men is never really explained in canon, just with the implication he escaped during all the chaos caused by Andrias. The viewing of "Combat Camp" reveals that he was indeed locked up in a Toad Tower, but it was Grime's Toad Tower, meaning he managed to escape after it fell. Yunan and Olivia likewise note that while they had received reports about a breakout involving several thieves, Andrias ordered them to ignore it in favor of focusing on the Barbarants, the two realizing Tritonio was the leader amidst the escapees.
• After witnessing the Plantar's run out of food in "Anne Hunter" before mentioning how the expected two-week trip was taking much longer, Yunan asks how they ended up like that, especially when the only jungles outside of Newtopia were weeks away. They explain that they ended up getting lost repeatedly, and had ended up leaving most of their food back at the farm by mistake. Not helping matters was Anne and Hop Pop driving the Fwagon late into the night and repeatedly falling asleep at the wheel.
• "Truck Stop Polly" has several of the viewers questioning just why Hop Pop was still trying to drive despite being so exhausted and clearly needing rest. Anne laments to herself that it's actually her fault, in that she was pressuring him into getting to Newtopia as fast as possible in the hopes of finding a way home, and that she more than likely would've gotten upset if they stopped for any reason that wasn't strictly "necessary". Hop Pop meanwhile openly admits he didn't want to stop partially out of fear for the kids and their penchant for finding trouble, especially since Anne and Sprig had apparently gotten lost several times and taken days to find their way back.
• "Quarreler's Pass" sees Valeriana explain the Olm's going underground, Andrias' tasking the girls with recharging the Calamity Box, the Olm's prophecy in more straightforward terms, and the nature of the Calamity Trio in more depth.
  • The Olm's were hunted in Amphibia for some time, with Mrs. Croaker even noting having seen an Olm hunt when she was a child. While Anne initially thinks Andrias hunting them is what drove them underground, Valeriana corrects her by stating they're hunted because they went underground. That the majority of them are mad oracles who are so focused on their prophecies, they close in on themselves to the detriment of themselves and others, and have done so since the "Calamity War", the war that took place 6,178 years prior and ended when Valeriana created the Calamity Box. Valeriana actually holds disdain for the Olms due to their behavior.
  • When Anne tries pointing out that they needed to charge the stones so they could go home, Valeriana points out how they didn't consider that despite being on Earth for over a thousand years, the box had lost its power after only one jump. This causes Marcy, and soon everyone else, to realize that it was another of Andrias' manipulations, that the power had gone into them so they could save Amphibia, and their "recharging" the box was his stripping them of their powers so they'd be less of a threat.
  • According to Valeriana, the prophecy states that the Guardian of the Three Stones will call forth three "champions" embodying the traits of "Heart", "Strength", and "Wit" whenever a universe the gems resides in is in trouble, and that the Olms believe these champions will either save the world they are called to, or doom it should they "embrace the fall", as in give into despair and/or reject their duty. Valeriana already considers Sasha and Marcy to have fallen after they gave up their powers to recharge the Calamity Box at the temples, and notes that "Strength" and "Wit" have a pattern of being the first to fall, and initially considered all three The Poorly Chosen One thinking they forsook their duty in favor of going home, only relenting slightly when it was made clear none of them even knew about it in the first place.
• "Toad Catcher":
  • Yunan explains that, as detailed in Marcys Journal A Guide To Amphibia, she was supposed to pick up Marcy from Dawnblood Island after she caught Grime, but after failing to do so, she forgot and ran back to Newtopia to report to Andrias. This led to Marcy meeting Joe Sparrow and getting him to take them and their team back to Newtopia, something Olivia is still upset with Yunan about. Said adventure was also unauthorized, which is what prompted Andrias to keep Marcy in Newtopia from then on.
  • When Marcy notes Yunan met Sasha and yet didn't tell them about it, Yunan notes she wasn't actually sure if Sasha was one of Marcy's friends, due to the rumors only saying that Grime was travelling with a "warm blooded Newt sized creature", something Grime had reported himself while still at Toad Tower, and that when she told Andrias, he told her that he'd tell Marcy, which he obviously never did.
  • When Sasha is hit hard enough by Yunan to break a rock, Terri points out that the amount of force needed to break a rock like that would be more than enough to break bones in a human, so Sasha realizes that she's Made of Iron because of the power from her Calamity Stone.
  • When Yunan had Sasha at blade point, Olivia chastises her and says only Grime had a bounty on his head. Yunan reveals thats only the official record though. Off the record, Andrias had put bounties on Sasha and Anne's heads under the excuse of their actions in the Valley, with Yunan Just Following Orders. She didn't tell this to Marcy either out of fear that, even if Marcy was Andrias' royal advisor, he wouldn't hesitate to order Yunan to go after them too if Marcy tried countermanding his orders, prompting Yunan to do what she felt would keep Marcy safest. beckettlovescastlealways admitted via reply to a comment that it was less a "kill" order from Andrias, and more his means at attempting to keep Anne and Sasha "under control", and that he didn't tell Marcy anything because he didn't want Marcy to know her friends had a "semi-kill" order on them.

Expansions on the original fic

• In the original, Hop Pop's rant about roommates only garners a reaction about him getting a tad personal, and who said roommate was is left unspecified. Here, it was explicitly in relation to his late wife/Sprig and Polly's grandmother, with Polly asking if they actually fought like that. Hop Pop elaborates that the two had a loving marriage and was patient with him with everything... except when it came to him dealing with his "web crusties" in the bedroom.
• In the original fic, Sasha's feelings regarding her parents being divorced are underplayed, the one time she really has a reaction to it being when Maggie uses it to taunt her prompting Sasha to start wailing on her, but the topic is quickly dropped once they pull her off Maggie. Here, it's Marcy who starts wailing on Maggie for what she said to Sasha, and without the catharsis of letting her anger out on Maggie, Sasha breaks down crying thinking about her family, prompting Grime, Anne, and Marcy to comfort her once Marcy is pulled off Maggie.
• In the original fic, Anne being outed as transgender is treated like a normal jerk move for Maggie, only lasted long enough for the remainder of "Girl Time", and was quickly dropped afterward. Here:
  • Anne immediately runs off to her room in shame once the episode ends, and needs Sasha and Marcy to console and reassure her that no one thought of her differently, with everyone else, even Mr. X, giving Maggie heat for doing something that horrible.
  • Anne is revealed to have some issues about how people treat her gender identity that she bottles up, and that she ultimately liked being in Amphibia because people there only knew her as "Anne", and didn't accuse her of just "playing pretend", before that quickly spans into her ranting about how much she hates the fact people are watching their time in Amphibia, seeing how horrible she considered herself at the time, and saying how none of this was fair to any of them.
    • She later implies she suffers body dysmorphia issues as a result of Trans Tribulations, developing an eating disorder due to playing girl sports but biologically being male still, constantly worried her body will develop more masculine traits and prevent her from doing the one thing that lets her attend St. James on a scholarship. As a result, she was largely able to deal with the irregular portion sizes in Amphibia, having already gotten used to not eating too much.
  • Anne's circumstances behind her coming out are also elaborated. Specifically, she was born "Andrew Boonchuy", and came out to Sasha and Marcy when they were 11 after nearly breaking down when they kept calling her Andrew, the two quickly accepting her and reassured her that they'd be friends no matter what, and would call her whatever she wanted, even helping her look through dozens of names before the three decided on "Anne".
• In the original, Yunan seeing the Grubhog spit acid during "Grubhog Day" just has her fear that could have happened when she was a kid. Here, Olivia calms her down while bringing up that Newts have a Healing Factor that lets them regrow limbs, meaning even if she did get hit with acid, she'd have been fine.
• The redux builds off the Adaptation Personality Change for the Waybright and Wu parents by showing they are all, in different ways, abusive.
  • Even outside of their divorce arguments, the Waybright parents are rather neglectful of Sasha, with Sasha believing they'd say her going missing was her own fault, not helped by her having repeatedly tried to run away from home as a kid, only for them to yell at her when she was brought back for not thinking about what the neighbors would think.
    • Her father is implied to be a workaholic to the point Sasha has to talk to his assistant just to hear from him sometimes, and has Parental Favoritism for her little half-sister, outright giving Sasha unrestricted use of his money just so he doesn't have to acknowledge her existence. And while he doesn't outwardly agree with Cynthia's berating of Sasha, it's left ambiguous if this is him being A Darker Shade of Grey or if he's merely holding his tongue for the sake of appearances, not helped by his telling Lexie Sasha "didn't want to see them", since Anne notes they were thought to be dead back on Earth and couldn't exactly tell that to the young Lexie, but still notices the implication of Blaming the Victim.
    • Her mother, Cynthia, is The Alcoholic, as Sasha offhandedly mentions that 95% of her mom's kitchen is comprised of alcohol, and laments how she enabled said condition just so her mother would leave her alone. Said treatment in turn caused Sasha to believe everyone always wants something, but that the trick was using it to get what she wants, causing her to become manipulative and controlling later. When she finally sees Sasha for the first time in months, she's more focused on berating her for making the family look bad and criticizing her scars, all under the thinly veiled guise of "concern", only dropping the pretenses after Sasha lops off her own hair and they get into a shouting match, culminating in her openly yelling how she wished Sasha had died, Sasha later noting that outbursts like that were common from her during her drunken rants.
  • The Wu parents are very controlling of Marcy and care little for the fact that their child suffers from anxiety or uses coping mechanisms implying they have ASD. Marcy is afraid of even showing them a bad grade, implying they're education fanatics too, the ninth break even implying they may have even been physically abusive to them too. Anne even notes to herself how horribly they even took the implication Marcy was queer, suggesting they're homophobic, with Marcy in turn too scared to tell them that they see themselves as nonbinary. Anne likewise notes that while Marcy has two older sisters and an older brother, they all moved out of the house the first chance they got, implying they were that desperate to get away from their parents, Marcy later stating they pretty much never heard from their siblings again, suggesting they cut all ties with their parents and, by proxy, Marcy.

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