and characters, a brand new character, goofiness, drama, and one of the most (if not the most)

heart-palpitating cliffhangers Adventure Time has pulled. Finn, and the other Finn too,

what’s gonna happen to the both of you!? We might be left contemplating this question

with bated breath for a while. There are no confirmed air dates for future episodes at

the current moment in time; it seems “I Am a Sword” ends the chain of weekly episodes

we’ve been having. Oh, what a devious cliffhanger this is indeed.

But let’s rewind to the beginning of this amazing episode because I am getting ahead

of myself. The wild and emotional ride starts with Finn and Jake on the trail of an unknown

bandit, with Finn being antsy and impatient from the prolonged and unsuccessful pursuit.

Before calling it a day, he decides to do some sweet sword tricks atop a rickety bridge,

despite the stern disapproval of Finn Sword. Finn’s freestyle rap starting off with “It’s

the boy! I’m a boy!” is so apt when he’s engaging in this immature, negligent, and

potentially dangerous behavior, and the result is of course the loss of the Finn Sword. Judging

by the background elements during the search scene, Finn wasn’t the first to foolishly

attempt weapon tricks on the rickety bridge above.

This episode finally explores the relationship between Finn and Finn Sword, and in general,

there’s this running theme throughout the entirety of the episode about the relationship

between people and objects. In fact, it’s alluded to so much, at times it feels like

you’re being banged over the head with it. [BMO: “Talking to inanimate objects – get

a load of this guy.”] Analysis of this subject is too bulky to jam-pack into this review

without smothering the rest of my thoughts, so I will delegate that topic of discussion

to its own video. It’s gonna be a doozy to dissect the many ways this theme manifests!

But now back to discussing the other components of this episode. We got a brand new character!

OK, two new characters technically; Spear Bear has taken over the role of Sword Shark.

But Bandit Princess is the one who I want to discuss in detail! The monster movie-like

perspective used to first introduce her was terrific, and serves a threefold purpose.

The in-universe reason is because Finn sees what Finn Sword is witnessing, which results

in this over-the-shoulder style perspective. In terms of story structure, it retains an

element of mystery while still establishing just how sanguinary this villain is. And figuratively,

Bandit Princess is a monster – her whole deal is getting glee from ruining the lives of others.

Bandit Princess’ design is one of my favorites out of the whole series. She’s mostly humanoid

but with deer-like ears and massive striped horns. Seriously, those horns are awesome!

They might have been inspired by Ankole-Watusi cattle, which are the most badass of all cattle!

Just marvel at these astounding wonders of human domestication! They’re so cool!

Bandit Princess’ attire is not at all what I was expecting though, but I think it still works

really well. The overall design is an amalgam of human, feral beast, and demonic attributes,

and that’s totally my aesthetic!

However, my only gripe with this episode is that I was slightly disappointed with the

personality of BP. Don’t get me wrong, I like her, but I didn’t end up liking her

as much as I wanted to. She felt a tad on that flat side and I didn’t find her charismatic

enough. If she was more menacing, or more flamboyant, or more… something, she could

easily have ended up as one of my favorite characters. I get the point that she’s supposed

to be a supremely shitty person, and making her personality more magnetic would be antithetical

in a way to this trait. You can express pure evil to such a severe degree that it makes

for a fascinating character, case in point, The Lich.

But making a character a shitty asshole

and simultaneously captivating, I have to admit, that’s an extremely difficult

balancing act to pull off. Considering how Bandit Princess scampers away by the episode’s

end, I hope the Adventure Time crew is able to achieve this feat for her eventual reappearance.

Come on Bandit Princess – show up, hopefully, in less than a dozen episodes, please!

While BP’s backstory is grimly comical [Bandit Princess: “I was born with rabies and my

parents didn’t love me because they both had mono!”], I think it works better as

a joke than an actual backstory. BMO asks whether “some people are just pure city-sidewalk

boom-boom from a red donk and that’s all there is to it?”, but if Bandit Princess’

backstory is true, that’s clearly not all there is to it. She is even cognitive enough

of the underlying cause herself that she can admit her rough upbringing shaped her current

identity. [Bandit Princess: “So now I do stuff like this!”] Personally, I’m far

from certain that this is her real backstory though, considering that rabies is almost

always fatal, and if it spreads into the brain causing frantic and frenzied behavior, that’s

already at a stage beyond the point of no return. Also to be born with rabies, you’d

have to be bitten by a carrier of rabies while you’re still in the womb, which is an awkward

scenario to visualize to say the least. Also mono tends to last a few months at the longest,

so that doesn’t fit the narrative either. But yes, the counter-argument is that it’s

a fantasy universe, animal-virus interactions can be fictionalized, and all that junk, I know.

Still, it wouldn’t be the first time a character with antisocial personality disorder

made up a comical lie about their backstory. [Ice King: “I didn’t steal it! I made

that item! Made it with the magic that I stole!”]

Finn’s nightmarish visions of Bandit Princess’ misdeeds prompt Jake to ask what the dream

was about this time as he casually lists all the things that cause Finn to wake up screaming.

[Jake: “Break up, Lich, me dying, you dying, other break up, growing up, never growing

up… or spiders?”] Extraordinarily hilarious but exceptionally dark in its implications

– that’s my favorite type of humor, and Adventure Time nails it so much this episode.

Jake and BMO’s blasé attitude to the chronic torment their friend experiences demonstrates

that underneath Finn’s brash exterior, he has been deeply traumatized by the many experiences

that have shaped him. Relationships, death, growing up, staying a child – all things

that permeate the nether regions of Finn’s mind.

Also spiders!

Jokes, aside, BMO alludes to this concept of recurrent adversity more seriously at the end of the episode.

[BMO: “Jake, why does this thing happen to Finn?”] All the challenges and tribulations Finn faces

are molding him into a hero, but it’s not as if he’s coming out unscarred from all

these experiences.

Like many episodes before it, “I Am a Sword” was exceedingly grim underneath the non-stop

knee-slapping comedy. Bandit Princess left a trail of destruction in her wake as she

looted and maimed. Finn Sword was forced to experience these abhorrent acts firsthand.

The Finn Sword situation was already tragic enough on its own, and yet it’s taken even

further as he becomes an unwilling accomplice to that which he actively stands against.

Finn has a moment of reflection yet again where he ponders whether he takes those around

him for granted, this being the third time in recent history. But I don’t think Finn

fully internalizes that this instance of it has led to serious and lasting harm, both

for Finn Sword and those on the receiving end of him. Finn declares that he alone will

settle this conflict as he engages Bandit Princess, and refuses Jake’s help even when

he finds himself in a pinch. His actions could be seen as manly or valiant, but I see it

as massive farce. He has turned this confrontation into a matter of misguided honor. Finn thinks

if he can single-handedly regain his Finn Sword and put a stop to Bandit Princess, he

would be fixing this stupid mistake of his, that it somehow would right all the wrongs

that had transpired as a result. It’s a foolish and egotistical outlook, and it ends

in disaster as Finn stabs himself and passes out. Finn still lacks awareness in many respects,

and I have to wonder if this latest traumatic experience will start to change that.

And speaking of wondering, is Finn in an actual coma!? Did he simply faint from the shock

and will wake from his fetal position after his mind and body receive the proper rest?

Or did piercing his duplicate have a tangible effect on his own existence – are the lives

of the two linked together somehow? And that green glow of Finn Sword and the ominous sound!

What is gonna happen to Finn Sword now that a portion of the Grass Sword has crept into

it!? When Finn turned into Finn Sword, his arm was already the Grass Sword, so technically

Grass Sword is already a part of Finn Sword. So what sort of integration or combination

is actually occurring here? My initial feelings upon seeing these enchanted blades of grass

worm their way into the cracked jewel was simple-minded relief: “Finn Sword is going

to be OK!” But what if that’s not it? What if the result actually ends up as a monstrosity?

It might become a weapon – a hybrid of the Grass and Finn Sword together, but knowing

that Finn Sword is actually Finn, it is a person, this sword might transform from a

sword into an actual new character for all we know. And this shade of green, this shade

of green is really haunting. It’s not reminiscent of the grass sword’s color – it is far

more comparable to the green associated with the Lich, and there’s no way such a detail

was merely glossed over. This story arc could continue down the tragic route, one where

the death of Finn Sword may have been the more favorable outcome in the long-term.

I certainly wouldn’t put it past Adventure Time to travel into such dark places. But

the possibilities are countless – so much could happen with this plot point. Please

feel free to provide your personal predictions in the comments. Just what is occurring beneath

this smiling face? I can’t wait to find out.