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Disclaimer: The image is not mine. Eureka is a Disney Junior show from Brown Bag Films.

1. Pepper Power

Writer: Laurie Israel

Director: Maeve Garvan

Date: July 1, 2022

Synopsis: "Eureka tries to help Pepper control her strength."

Let's see how strong you really are with this episode. The episode has Eureka trying to invent something that can make cool drinks. However, Pepper's strength isn't the greatest asset. The episode gives off a strong message on how you should know how to handle your own strength. Let's break this down.

First Half:

We start with Eureka and Pepper just hanging out at the bottom of a cliff. The former is drinking juice from cliff melons, and she's apparently had them multiple times given how excited was to drink them. There is some fun to be had from seeing her act giddy over a refreshing drink given how this taps into euphoria. We then have Pepper throw hers at the mountain really fast so she can open it given how hard it is, but this causes a rock slide to fall down the mountain. She feels bad for causing a mess, and it's not surprising. She's someone who likes to help others however she can. She just gets a bit too excited sometimes that she tends to act with her strength before thinking things through. Eureka then sees that she accidentally discovered an ice cave. At least something good came out of this. We see that, while they do have fun together, Eureka is a little overwhelmed by her strength. They're both shown sliding around on the ice and riding an icy half pipe. Pepper goes much faster since she has more strength and energy, making Eureka a bit tired out. We see she does respect her enough since she steps out to take a break while letting her continue. Eureka drinks a cliff melon when she's on break, for which Pepper accidentally gets ice in it as she leaves. It seems like this would be a problem, for which Pepper immediately apologizes, but it turns out that the drink tastes even better because of how cold it is. Eureka decides to call it a cliff melon slushy. After some thinkering, she and Pepper get the idea to make a slushy musher so that they can have cold drinks every day.

We get some pretty interesting interactions between Eureka and Pepper. She wants to help out since she can crush things, and Eureka is a bit reluctant since she usually does her thinkering alone, but she agrees to let her help out. Her strength is making her second guess how she can help, but it's also made clear that she wants to work with her. She's just getting a bit too invested in her project to not think about what could possibly go wrong. We at least find Pepper endearing because of how she's willing to help despite her messing up. I mean, she grabs some chunks of ice and carries them easily, which impresses Eureka since she has a hard time carrying cliff melons. She at least has the strength, both physical and emotional, to want to help out. Of course, good intentions don't always mean good help, as we'll soon see. Eureka puts on a stone wheel, but Pepper accidentally sends it flying when she spins it too hard. Yeah she just got a bit too excited. Eureka tells her to be more gentle, and she sings "Power Down" as a way to help her out. Obviously, it's about telling her to be more gentle when handling the various parts of the invention. We do see Pepper attempt this a few times even if she's unsuccessful overall. She accidentally spins the lever too fast, but she has more control the second time. Of course, on this second time, she accidentally sends a bowl flying, and later breaks one of the hollow melons. Her eagerness to help is genuine, but she just gets too excited that she doesn't think straight, thus undermining her progress. During the song itself, we have Eureka singing louder when she's closer to her invention and softer when she sings the gentle parts to Pepper. This helps show that she's feeling frustrated, but acts calmer since she knows that Pepper didn't mean to do anything wrong. Of course, Pepper feels bummed out because of how she messes up each and every time.

Second Half:

Naturally, Pepper apologizes for messing things up and wants to keep helping, though Eureka is feeling a bit uncertain. It's not that she doesn't want her help. It's just that she thinks that she hasn't gotten the handle on how to help. Eureka says that she'll fix things up while she gets more supplies from the Think Tank at her father's shop, which is in town. She is mainly saying this so she'll get some concentration in fixing things up, yet also values what she can contribute. She just can't think of how she can contribute without causing a problem. Things get a bit intense after this. Eureka is almost finished making the slushy musher. When Pepper comes with the wheel, she throws it at her with force, causing the invention to fall apart. This understandably gets to Eureka since she tried over and over to fix it, but it always got ruined somehow. That would definitely get to someone who's not exactly all about failing, especially if it happens a lot. However, the next scene is interesting. She decides to just start over again. She's then shocked when Pepper says that she'll just go so that she doesn't ruin anything with her strength again. You can feel bad for both of them. Pepper was genuinely trying to help, and there were hints of progress, but she let her excitement at helping get the better of her. As for Eureka, for as much she was frustrated over things going wrong, she still liked hanging out with Pepper. She never wanted her to be seen as a burden.

We cut to later on where she finishes the invention. She gives some drinks to Murphy and later Roxy at Paleo's, and they both like it. She even thinks they can be sold at her restaurant, though Eureka would have to make more of them. She wishes Pepper was here to enjoy this with her, where we get some interesting reactions. She says that she found Pepper's strength to be a bit overwhelming, but she feels worse for just letting her quit. That's an interesting side to Eureka. She's someone who's all about perseverance. Her just passively letting something bad happen would get to her since she didn't even try to stop her after she left. You still feel bad for her since was obviously conflicted and couldn't think straight because of the repeated failures. Roxy then tells a story about how she thought pepper (the seasoning) was too strong for her dishes. She then tried it out one day, and saw that it helped improve the flavor of her dishes because of its own strength. Bringing up pepper is a good analogy since it can be a hindrance (such as sneezing or making something too potent) but also something great (adding a bit of flare with the right amount). It's with this where Eureka invents the slushy gusher, which is basically a giant version of the slushy musher since it can crush many melons at once. She then asks Pepper to hammer a gear into the ice crusher with her strength, which she does anyway. In this case, she was more successful hammering it in without breaking anything because of how her mind was focused on the task and less about getting it wrong. She's still reluctant to help her out because of how she could make things worse, but Eureka says how her strength is a good thing. She says that she discovered the ice cave, and without that, she couldn't have made the drinks. That's a pretty valid point to bring up. We don't always know our own strength, but it can sometimes lead to unexpected surprises if we're willing to go for it. She then gets the confidence to power up the gusher with her strength, but she's more focused on the job and less about jumping into things. As such, the slushies are made effectively, and everyone loves them. Now that's a success story.

2. Flickerwing Butterflies

Writer: Matt Eddy

Director: Marten Jonmark

Date: July 1, 2022

Synopsis: "Eureka and her mother go out on an adventure."

It's time to go off on a great adventure. The plot is simple. Eureka and Roxy go on a hike to see flickerwings, but things go wrong at every turn. The episode gives a solid message on how a good adventure involves taking things in stride since things don't always go as planned. Let's break this down.

First Half:

We start with Eureka making some star shaped holes into some paper next to a lamp when she's called by Roxy. There's some a pretty sweet moment when she shows her a special photo album.BShe shows her a photo album of how, when she was a girl, she and nana went to Big Echo Cave to see the hatching of the flickerings. They're butterflies that make their cocoons inside the cave, and at sunset on the first day of spring, they all hatch at once and fly off into the sunset. That certainly sounds magical. Since that's happening tomorrow, that's when they go off on the journey, though Roxy says that the hike is long enough for them to be out all day. She brings up what they're going to do, such as looking at the sticky hickory tree and its sap, having a picnic at Tiger Tail Meadow, and hiking up to the cave for a great view. Eureka thinks they can do things as planned, and she excitedly gets ready. We see the next morning that she went a bit overboard in packing. She shows off a special rolling bag with all sorts of inventions she made, such as a feeder that dispenses treats, binoculars, an umbrella (called the drop stopper), and a sleeping bag (a bed made out of moss). This is a fitting development since she's not someone who likes to fail, and would naturally do anything to prevent that. At least the stuff she brought could either being them comfort or get them out of trouble should something happen.

And so it's off on the adventure. In fact, they sing "An Adventure Together" to emphasize how excited they are to go on this trip. Its certainly an energetic and positive song saying how it's great to go on adventure together. They do things like climbing trees and crossing streams, bringing up the photo album, and seeing all sorts of wild and exotic animals. There's certainly a sense of freedom on display, which makes the new minutes more of a surprise. Eureka tries to get sap out of the sticky hickory tree just as Roxy tries to draw her picture, but it comes out slowly. She tries to make it come out faster, but she accidentally breaks the nozzle and the sap flows out on her. Yeah her stubbornness and unwillingness to accept failure did cause this mess. At least she gets some good thinking on. She plugs up the hole with the drop stopper so that opening it up will let the sap flow out while closing it up will stop the flow. That's a good idea. At least how everything flows out can be controlled with the umbrella.

Second Half:

Eureka is still covered in sap, but she doesn't mind it since at least it smells good and isn't too sticky. Of course, the creatures in the area (mainly the ones that look like hamsters with tusks) cause a bit of a problem. While they make it to Tiger Tail Meadow, they get cornered by the creatures, who are very hungry. The solution would be to just give the food and not get caught in the crossfire. Though they make it to the top of the mountain, they don't have any more snacks. We then have Eureka making both a smart and not so smart decision. She has emergency "brake" fruit that was used to hold up the roller. Having some extra snacks is good in an emergency. Unfortunately, the roller rolls away, which is a problem since it has the bed and the flickerwing treats. At least this leads to a fun ride for both of them, but they end up at a flower meadow back at the bottom of the mountain. If this says anything about Eureka, it's that she's very prepared for anything, but can make some mistakes if she feels stressed out in some way.

The day may not be going as planned, but as Roxy puts it, at least they had a great time. Of course, she's then mistaken a few minutes later when the sun turns into rain. Eureka doesn't have the drop stopper to protect them since it's still on the tree, though at least the sap is washing off. Look for positives in any situation. She thinks they should go home, but Roxy says that a little rain can't keep them away from the flickerwings. Of course, we run into more problems when the suitcase becomes heavier. Apparently, the dry moss bed absorbed the rain, basically making it a sponge now. The biggest disappointment comes at Big Echo Cave, where they make it, but the flickerwings aren't there. Roxy sees their cocoon skins, and thinks that they left after hatching. Eureka feels bad, unsurprisingly, but this gets an extra layer when she feels bad for not being able to recreate the same experience that her mother had when she was a kid. She was focused on trying to recreate a specific feeling, which fits with how she's incredibly driven to make sure things go as planned. Roxy says that she's not disappointed since the great thing about adventure is that anything can happen, and that each and every one of them is unique. She's not wrong considering how plans don't always pan out as such, and it's all about embracing the little moments where things do work out. Talk about words of the wise. At least they both admit to having a great time, and we get some fun stuff from Eureka. She cuts some flickering shaped holes in her lamp so that it looks like they're there when light shines on it. She brought a little bit of home with her, with the experience being enhanced because of how they can see more in a cave. They have a great time, which Roxy captures in a picture. This is definitely a flickering good time.

Description
Disclaimer: The image is not mine. Eureka is a Disney Junior show from Brown Bag Films.

1. Pepper Power

Writer: Laurie Israel

Director: Maeve Garvan

Date: July 1, 2022

Synopsis: "Eureka tries to help Pepper control her strength."

Let's see how strong you really are with this episode. The episode has Eureka trying to invent something that can make cool drinks. However, Pepper's strength isn't the greatest asset. The episode gives off a strong message on how you should know how to handle your own strength. Let's break this down.

First Half:

We start with Eureka and Pepper just hanging out at the bottom of a cliff. The former is drinking juice from cliff melons, and she's apparently had them multiple times given how excited was to drink them. There is some fun to be had from seeing her act giddy over a refreshing drink given how this taps into euphoria. We then have Pepper throw hers at the mountain really fast so she can open it given how hard it is, but this causes a rock slide to fall down the mountain. She feels bad for causing a mess, and it's not surprising. She's someone who likes to help others however she can. She just gets a bit too excited sometimes that she tends to act with her strength before thinking things through. Eureka then sees that she accidentally discovered an ice cave. At least something good came out of this. We see that, while they do have fun together, Eureka is a little overwhelmed by her strength. They're both shown sliding around on the ice and riding an icy half pipe. Pepper goes much faster since she has more strength and energy, making Eureka a bit tired out. We see she does respect her enough since she steps out to take a break while letting her continue. Eureka drinks a cliff melon when she's on break, for which Pepper accidentally gets ice in it as she leaves. It seems like this would be a problem, for which Pepper immediately apologizes, but it turns out that the drink tastes even better because of how cold it is. Eureka decides to call it a cliff melon slushy. After some thinkering, she and Pepper get the idea to make a slushy musher so that they can have cold drinks every day.

We get some pretty interesting interactions between Eureka and Pepper. She wants to help out since she can crush things, and Eureka is a bit reluctant since she usually does her thinkering alone, but she agrees to let her help out. Her strength is making her second guess how she can help, but it's also made clear that she wants to work with her. She's just getting a bit too invested in her project to not think about what could possibly go wrong. We at least find Pepper endearing because of how she's willing to help despite her messing up. I mean, she grabs some chunks of ice and carries them easily, which impresses Eureka since she has a hard time carrying cliff melons. She at least has the strength, both physical and emotional, to want to help out. Of course, good intentions don't always mean good help, as we'll soon see. Eureka puts on a stone wheel, but Pepper accidentally sends it flying when she spins it too hard. Yeah she just got a bit too excited. Eureka tells her to be more gentle, and she sings "Power Down" as a way to help her out. Obviously, it's about telling her to be more gentle when handling the various parts of the invention. We do see Pepper attempt this a few times even if she's unsuccessful overall. She accidentally spins the lever too fast, but she has more control the second time. Of course, on this second time, she accidentally sends a bowl flying, and later breaks one of the hollow melons. Her eagerness to help is genuine, but she just gets too excited that she doesn't think straight, thus undermining her progress. During the song itself, we have Eureka singing louder when she's closer to her invention and softer when she sings the gentle parts to Pepper. This helps show that she's feeling frustrated, but acts calmer since she knows that Pepper didn't mean to do anything wrong. Of course, Pepper feels bummed out because of how she messes up each and every time.

Second Half:

Naturally, Pepper apologizes for messing things up and wants to keep helping, though Eureka is feeling a bit uncertain. It's not that she doesn't want her help. It's just that she thinks that she hasn't gotten the handle on how to help. Eureka says that she'll fix things up while she gets more supplies from the Think Tank at her father's shop, which is in town. She is mainly saying this so she'll get some concentration in fixing things up, yet also values what she can contribute. She just can't think of how she can contribute without causing a problem. Things get a bit intense after this. Eureka is almost finished making the slushy musher. When Pepper comes with the wheel, she throws it at her with force, causing the invention to fall apart. This understandably gets to Eureka since she tried over and over to fix it, but it always got ruined somehow. That would definitely get to someone who's not exactly all about failing, especially if it happens a lot. However, the next scene is interesting. She decides to just start over again. She's then shocked when Pepper says that she'll just go so that she doesn't ruin anything with her strength again. You can feel bad for both of them. Pepper was genuinely trying to help, and there were hints of progress, but she let her excitement at helping get the better of her. As for Eureka, for as much she was frustrated over things going wrong, she still liked hanging out with Pepper. She never wanted her to be seen as a burden.

We cut to later on where she finishes the invention. She gives some drinks to Murphy and later Roxy at Paleo's, and they both like it. She even thinks they can be sold at her restaurant, though Eureka would have to make more of them. She wishes Pepper was here to enjoy this with her, where we get some interesting reactions. She says that she found Pepper's strength to be a bit overwhelming, but she feels worse for just letting her quit. That's an interesting side to Eureka. She's someone who's all about perseverance. Her just passively letting something bad happen would get to her since she didn't even try to stop her after she left. You still feel bad for her since was obviously conflicted and couldn't think straight because of the repeated failures. Roxy then tells a story about how she thought pepper (the seasoning) was too strong for her dishes. She then tried it out one day, and saw that it helped improve the flavor of her dishes because of its own strength. Bringing up pepper is a good analogy since it can be a hindrance (such as sneezing or making something too potent) but also something great (adding a bit of flare with the right amount). It's with this where Eureka invents the slushy gusher, which is basically a giant version of the slushy musher since it can crush many melons at once. She then asks Pepper to hammer a gear into the ice crusher with her strength, which she does anyway. In this case, she was more successful hammering it in without breaking anything because of how her mind was focused on the task and less about getting it wrong. She's still reluctant to help her out because of how she could make things worse, but Eureka says how her strength is a good thing. She says that she discovered the ice cave, and without that, she couldn't have made the drinks. That's a pretty valid point to bring up. We don't always know our own strength, but it can sometimes lead to unexpected surprises if we're willing to go for it. She then gets the confidence to power up the gusher with her strength, but she's more focused on the job and less about jumping into things. As such, the slushies are made effectively, and everyone loves them. Now that's a success story.

2. Flickerwing Butterflies

Writer: Matt Eddy

Director: Marten Jonmark

Date: July 1, 2022

Synopsis: "Eureka and her mother go out on an adventure."

It's time to go off on a great adventure. The plot is simple. Eureka and Roxy go on a hike to see flickerwings, but things go wrong at every turn. The episode gives a solid message on how a good adventure involves taking things in stride since things don't always go as planned. Let's break this down.

First Half:

We start with Eureka making some star shaped holes into some paper next to a lamp when she's called by Roxy. There's some a pretty sweet moment when she shows her a special photo album.BShe shows her a photo album of how, when she was a girl, she and nana went to Big Echo Cave to see the hatching of the flickerings. They're butterflies that make their cocoons inside the cave, and at sunset on the first day of spring, they all hatch at once and fly off into the sunset. That certainly sounds magical. Since that's happening tomorrow, that's when they go off on the journey, though Roxy says that the hike is long enough for them to be out all day. She brings up what they're going to do, such as looking at the sticky hickory tree and its sap, having a picnic at Tiger Tail Meadow, and hiking up to the cave for a great view. Eureka thinks they can do things as planned, and she excitedly gets ready. We see the next morning that she went a bit overboard in packing. She shows off a special rolling bag with all sorts of inventions she made, such as a feeder that dispenses treats, binoculars, an umbrella (called the drop stopper), and a sleeping bag (a bed made out of moss). This is a fitting development since she's not someone who likes to fail, and would naturally do anything to prevent that. At least the stuff she brought could either being them comfort or get them out of trouble should something happen.

And so it's off on the adventure. In fact, they sing "An Adventure Together" to emphasize how excited they are to go on this trip. Its certainly an energetic and positive song saying how it's great to go on adventure together. They do things like climbing trees and crossing streams, bringing up the photo album, and seeing all sorts of wild and exotic animals. There's certainly a sense of freedom on display, which makes the new minutes more of a surprise. Eureka tries to get sap out of the sticky hickory tree just as Roxy tries to draw her picture, but it comes out slowly. She tries to make it come out faster, but she accidentally breaks the nozzle and the sap flows out on her. Yeah her stubbornness and unwillingness to accept failure did cause this mess. At least she gets some good thinking on. She plugs up the hole with the drop stopper so that opening it up will let the sap flow out while closing it up will stop the flow. That's a good idea. At least how everything flows out can be controlled with the umbrella.

Second Half:

Eureka is still covered in sap, but she doesn't mind it since at least it smells good and isn't too sticky. Of course, the creatures in the area (mainly the ones that look like hamsters with tusks) cause a bit of a problem. While they make it to Tiger Tail Meadow, they get cornered by the creatures, who are very hungry. The solution would be to just give the food and not get caught in the crossfire. Though they make it to the top of the mountain, they don't have any more snacks. We then have Eureka making both a smart and not so smart decision. She has emergency "brake" fruit that was used to hold up the roller. Having some extra snacks is good in an emergency. Unfortunately, the roller rolls away, which is a problem since it has the bed and the flickerwing treats. At least this leads to a fun ride for both of them, but they end up at a flower meadow back at the bottom of the mountain. If this says anything about Eureka, it's that she's very prepared for anything, but can make some mistakes if she feels stressed out in some way.

The day may not be going as planned, but as Roxy puts it, at least they had a great time. Of course, she's then mistaken a few minutes later when the sun turns into rain. Eureka doesn't have the drop stopper to protect them since it's still on the tree, though at least the sap is washing off. Look for positives in any situation. She thinks they should go home, but Roxy says that a little rain can't keep them away from the flickerwings. Of course, we run into more problems when the suitcase becomes heavier. Apparently, the dry moss bed absorbed the rain, basically making it a sponge now. The biggest disappointment comes at Big Echo Cave, where they make it, but the flickerwings aren't there. Roxy sees their cocoon skins, and thinks that they left after hatching. Eureka feels bad, unsurprisingly, but this gets an extra layer when she feels bad for not being able to recreate the same experience that her mother had when she was a kid. She was focused on trying to recreate a specific feeling, which fits with how she's incredibly driven to make sure things go as planned. Roxy says that she's not disappointed since the great thing about adventure is that anything can happen, and that each and every one of them is unique. She's not wrong considering how plans don't always pan out as such, and it's all about embracing the little moments where things do work out. Talk about words of the wise. At least they both admit to having a great time, and we get some fun stuff from Eureka. She cuts some flickering shaped holes in her lamp so that it looks like they're there when light shines on it. She brought a little bit of home with her, with the experience being enhanced because of how they can see more in a cave. They have a great time, which Roxy captures in a picture. This is definitely a flickering good time.