Recap / Kipo And The Age Of Wonderbeasts S 3 E 02 Code Word Milk Shake

Emilia’s kidnapping her way to a cure. Kipo and her pals must keep their cool as they stake-out the doc’s unexpected hideout. Does K-pop hold the key?

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Tropes:

• Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking:
  • According to Kipo and her friends, among Dr. Emilia's worst actions are not trying Benson's pancakes and "killing Stalky".
  • Out of everything the captured Mutes have been through while being experimented on, they consider Greta talking to them to be worst.
• Bilingual Bonus: The K-pop narwhals mostly speak and sing in Korean, with a few English lines.
• Call-Back:
  • Kipo reminds Dave what happened last time with the sonic emitter from "Benson And The Beast".
  • Kipo, Benson, and Wolf tell Troy about how they learned Emilia was evil and some of the things she's done, including destroying Wolf's Deathstalker staff, trying to pit Kipo against her mother, and refusing to eat the flapjacks Benson made. ^note  Troy is most angered by the last one because how dare someone refuse to eat his boyfriend's pancakes?!?
• Cassandra Truth: Kipo tries to expose Dr. Emilia's true colors to her people (even though her friends told they weren't on the ship to convince anyone). The issue is the truth sounds too random for them, they have no proof to validate it, and the humans hold resentment tolds all mutes because of what Scarlemagne put them through.
• The Cameo: Cappuccino makes a quick non-speaking appearance allowing some mutes into the K-pop narwhal concert.
• Defector from Decadence: Doag, despite not believing Kipo and her friends at first, realizes they're telling the truth when she sees the captive Mutes in Emilia's lab. She agrees to be The Mole for their group from then on, and forms a friendship with Hyun-soo.
• Defiant Captive: At the start of the episode, Jamack is snarking at Emilia when her attempt at a cure has no effect on Hyun-soo. Camille also tells Kipo that Jamack kept their hopes up by insisting help (Kipo) was coming.
• Early-Bird Cameo: The Mega Walrus that shows up in "Hidden Treasures" is briefly seen underwater being driven away by the sonic emitter on the boat.
• Fatal Flaw: Once again, Kipo's insistence on reaching her people results with them viewing her differently than they previously did, giving Emilia an opportunity to manipulate them even more.
• Girl's Night Out Episode: The Gender-Inverted B-Plot of the episode. While Benson and Troy are on a mission, Dave and Lio spend a night out together at the Timbercat's village.
• Instant Sedation: Hyun-soo is hit in the back with a tranquilizer dart at the beginning of the episode that quickly makes him unconscious.
• Insult of Endearment: The Umlaut Snäkes call the Timbercats ‘fuzz nuggets’ while the Timbercats call the Umlaut Snäkes ‘cucumber demons’ while making lyrics for their song.
• Kidnapped for Experimentation: Jamack, Camille, Boom Boom, and Hyun-soo of the K-Pop narwhals.
• Logical Weakness: Kipo's hearing can be affected by the sonic emitter when she uses her shapeshifting abilities.
• My Friends... and Zoidberg: Or in this case, "My friends and Boom Boom". This makes sense considering Camille and Jamack are allies of Kipo’s group while Boom Boom has never directly interacted with Kipo and her friends (and that the Humming Bombers were the ones who helped Scarlemagne capture the Clover Burrow humans back in season 1).
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Rather than flee after freeing the Mute prisoners, Kipo insists on staying to confront Dr. Emilia and even shatters the Sonic Emitter so she can. However, this causes some of her transformed fur to catch on the wreckage, which allows Dr. Emilia to get closer to finding the Mute Cure.
• Non-Fatal Explosions: In a fit of rage, Boom Boom uses her nectar grenades to blow up Dr. Emilia’s lab. Despite still being in the room when it goes off, she flies out completely unscathed.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Even when they manage to free the imprisoned Mutes, Kipo is still angered by Dr. Emilia's actions, to the point of even abandoning their plan.
• Pokémon Speak: Boom Boom repeats her name over and over again after being contained for so long.
• Reused Character Design: Some of the people near the swimming pool reuse the same designs as the people in Benson and Dave’s fantasy world in "Mulholland".
• Shaped Like Itself: Kipo calls Dr. Emilia a “lying liar” at one point.
• Skewed Priorities: When Doag asks why Emilia is so bad, Troy bursts out saying that Benson made pancakes and she didn't eat a single one of them (and then needs a cuddle from Benson to calm down)^note These two are so cute I can't.
• Squee: Benson does this over how impressive Troy's lockpicking and close-up magic skills are, telling the rest of the group that "[his] boyfriend's so cool."
• Title Drop: "Code Word: Milkshake" is a word that Kipo uses to keep herself and her friends cool and focused on their mission.
• Villain with Good Publicity: Emilia has earned the trust of the humans from the Clover Burrow by housing them on a repurposed cruise ship and keeping them safe while she tries to create a cure for mutation. The people have come to trust her so much that, when they find her on the ship, they believe Emilia over Kipo.
• What Does This Button Do?: When Zane tells Greta to push the sonic emitter, she presses a button that plays Zane’s Captain's Log. Then she presses a button that plays some music. She finally presses the sonic emitter button to keep a giant underwater mute away.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: What happened to the two dragonfly mutes affected by the sonic emitter? After they fall into the ocean, only Kipo and her friends are seen climbing out of the water.
• Who Names Their Kid "Dude"?: When Kipo says what Doag's name is, Benson's first reaction is "'Doag'? Seriously?"
• Wingding Eyes: Kipo’s pupils turn star-shaped when she thinks they should name their code word "Milkshake".