And with the Morphic Trilogy over, it's back to business as usual with Team Venture and "The High Cost of Loathing". Which means a mix of different plotlines that may or may not come together down the road.
To recap, Dean is off to the same college Sirena is attending. Dean is sick of super-science, but discovers Rusty has signed him up for lots of science classes.
Hank is tired of Rusty showering love and affection on Dean, even though Dean has moved out. When Rusty tells Hank he needs to get a job, Hank rents out his room as an Air B&B. He uses the money to try and take Sirena out, but she's too busy with classes to go with him.
Sirena and Dean end up in the same class, and Sirena starts hitting on Dean.
Dean turns to the college's Dean of Science, Professor Victor Von Helping (Gary Cole? Yes, Gary Cole), to help him with a non-super-science track. Victor convinces him to take one class.
Monarch is trying to get his arch rating re-established with the Guild. First he tries to get a business loan. When that doesn't work, he tries to rob the bank but Brown Widow (Nathan Fillion) intervenes. Monarch presumably escapes and the Guild assigns him to arch (i.e., arch-villain) Victor. Monarch and 21 break into Victor's lab just as he's teaching Dean and Sirena. Dean is so sick of super-villains getting involved in his life that he writes Monarch a check for $1 million if he'll stay away from him. A surprised Monarch accepts.
During all of this, we find out Victor is the son of super-villain Vigo Von Hellfire. When Monarch comes a-calling, Victor burns off his fake skin and becomes a flame-firing villain. Dean tells him not to sink to Monarch's level, and he doesn't.
Rusty demonstrates his new hover belt to the Ven-Tech board. It's actually his brother's invention, and when Rusty leaps through a window and out into the air to demonstrate the building, he cuts himself and has to go for the hospital for treatment. While in a morphine stupor he mistakes Hank for Kate Jackson and says that he loves him.
And Monarch tries to get eyebrow wax.
All and all, another non sequitur week in The Venture Bros. It all makes sense in a weird kind of way if you've watched the series for the last decade. There's a lot that's pretty puzzling if you haven't, like why some guy named Jared with Nathan Fillion's voice is swabbing out his web spinneret when Brock and Dean come in. And why Dr. Nidaba is in Rusty's room, comatose in a second bed with Stars & Garters singing to him to help his healing. And why Pirate Captain is running the Ven-Tech board meeting.
At this point, Venture Bros. is a show that pretty much thrives on its own continuity. Despite that, "The High Coast of Loathing" feels like the creative team is trying to create a new mythology now that they've cleared away last season with The Morphic Trilogy. We get a new character, Victor. We get Dean's college life. We get a possible love triangle as Sirena (Hank's girlfriend) starts coming onto Dean. We get Rusty trying to put Ven-Tech back on the map financially. While Monarch is trying to reestablish his rating with the Guild and succeeds, it also seems like a new chapter in his life even though the whole "get his arching level up" thing was the reason he became Blue Morpho in season 6.
If you aren't familiar with Venture Bros., " Loathing" is probably a good place to come in rather than the last three episodes. Those episodes were more-or-less a holdover from the previous season when it was cut short. "Loathing" is more of an introductory episode, as it sets the stage for whatever is coming next. If you're not familiar with the show's back history, you'll probably still be lost. But at least it's somewhere to start and the back-references are more throwaways than episode-long plots.
If you are a Venture Bros. fan, then "Loathing" is more of the same. It's a little slow in spots, and it tries to add characterization to Hank and Dean.
But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?
Written by Gislef on Aug 27, 2018
No comments yet. Be the first!