"Hopping Mall" is the second segment of the twenty-ninth episode of Amphibia. It aired on September 12, 2020.
Synopsis
Hop Pop takes the kids to a Newtopian shopping mall to buy souvenirs, and Anne will do anything to get the perfect gift for her mom back home.
Plot
Anne and the Plantars are in the shopping district of Newtopia. Hop Pop tells the kids that instead of using King Andrias' card, they will use a small amount of money to buy souvenirs, much to their chagrin. Hop Pop convinces Polly that she can just "haggle" with the shop keepers to get a lower price and she abuses this power; getting more and more ridiculous items. Hop Pop himself grows attached to an expensive vibrator chair and remains seated in it for the majority of the episode. Anne tells Sprig that she wants to get a gift for her mother as she is due to return home in a couple of days while Sprig already buys a staff that he wants to give to Ivy Sundew back in Wartwood. As they search through the shops, Anne spots a sale for a butterfly teapot and immediately settles on wanting that item.
The shopkeeper informs Anne that in order to get it she needs to take part in the Smash n' Mash shopping cart competition. Anne meets a fellow challenger; a large tough newt named Priscilla the Killa and her small daughter Pearl. They claim that they will win the prize and Anne angrily joins in as well. As Anne searches for the best shopping cart to use, she notices that Priscilla has a weakened tail from the previous competition and decides to exploit it. The competition starts and Anne and Sprig knock out several competitors until it is just them and Priscilla and Pearl. The fight takes them outside the ring where they nearly run into Polly. Anne and Sprig evade (with Sprig's staff breaking in the process) while Priscilla is forced to use her tail. Afterwards, Anne tackles Priscilla and wins the teapot.
Priscilla approaches Anne and reveals that the teapot was made by her mother Penny before she passed away. Feeling bad for them, Anne gives the teapot to them. Pearl gives Anne a small butterfly trinket for her to give to her mother in her stead. In the middle of the night at the hotel, Sprig sees Anne standing on the balcony and Anne reveals that she misses her mother. Even though she was strict, she loved her dearly. Sprig reveals that his mother passed away when he and Polly were much younger and do not even remember her. As he wonders if he could miss her despite not knowing her, Anne hugs Sprig as they both cry.
Cast
- Brenda Song as Anne Boonchuy
- Justin Felbinger as Sprig Plantar
- Bill Farmer as Hop Pop Plantar
- Amanda Leighton as Polly Plantar
- Misty Lee as Priscilla "the Killa" Paddock
- Romi Dames as Pearl Paddock
Quotes
- “Sprig: What's she like?
Anne: My mom? Um, kind... in her own way, but strict too. She wanted me to study more. Thought I goofed off too much. We didn't always see eye to eye. She annoyed me sometimes too. Like, in the kitchen, she'd always sing these goofy Thai love songs, and, man, was her singing bad. Woof! That woman was beyond tone-deaf. You know, the funny thing is, right now I would give anything just to hear her singing.” - ―Anne on her mother
Trivia
- The promo poster is a reference to Dragon Ball Z. In fact, Priscilla resembles a member of the Ginyu Force from that series.
- One of the shops is called Hop Topic, a reference to the real life Hot Topic.
- Sprig mentions Ivy Sundew.
- Anne and Sprig knock one of the shoppers to the side in a similar fashion to Super Smash Bros.
- This is the first time Sprig and Polly's mother is mentioned.
- The end credits for this episode depict the skyline of Newtopia and a piano arrangement of the ending theme.
Gallery
External links
- Hopping Mall at the Amphibia Wiki
