Rugrats (TV Series) Barbecue Story/Waiter, There's a Baby in My Soup (1991) User Reviews

It's My Favorite Toy in the Whole World!!

[e_daneva · 8/10 · 31 January 2024]

Barbecue Story/Waiter, There's a Baby in My Soup was an amazing episode. I have watched 2 other episodes in the series, one was good and one was really good. I gave the first Rugrats episode ever, Tommy's First Birthday, a 7.1 out of 10, so I tried to like it a bit more. I did. I think that Tommy's First Birthday was a bit too long ( unlike Barbecue Story ) and I think that if Tommy's First Birthday was about 10 minutes shorter I would have liked it more. Since there are two,well, I'll call them half episodes, I will give two review down below for both of these half episode and then I will rank this episode as a whole. Ready? Let's go!!

#1, Barbecue Story. I enjoyed Barbecue Story a lot. To me, Barbecue Story was the best little half episode in this episode. But not by that much. Basically Tommy and the other babies go out to get back Tommy favorite toy. And they show so much dedication to finding it, and I love that. Instead of just crying to his parents when he lost the ball, Tommy convinced the other babies to go with him. They did things that most babies don't usually do!! Most people say that Angelica is too mean to the babies, but I thought she was a perfect villain in this!! She certainly wasn't nice, she was more of an obstacle in the babies' way. You know the reason that Angelica is mean to the babies is because she is jealous. Tommy is also a good role model. He works hard and he's a very dedicated person and he shows you that however young you are you can do anything. I felt so bad for Tommy when he lost his favorite toy. Then again, I feel like this adds more depth to this 'half episode' and Tommy's character. I think Barbecue Story was great and I would give it a 8.5 out of 10. There's one thing I didn't like though. That the half episode wasn't longer. I wish that this episode was as long as Tommy's First Birthday and I wish Tommy's First Birthday was as long as this!!

#2, Waiter,There's a Baby in My Soup. In my opinion, this is a great half episode. Even though this is really good, um, half episode, I think that Barbecue Story was a bit better. But still, this was a great episode. Unlike Barbecue Story, Waiter, There's a Baby in My Soup is great as 12 minutes long, and if it was a bit longer it would slightly lose its charm. I liked Tommy's dad's boss. He was very social and friendly. He kind of reminds me of another great TV show boss from another very famous TV show. Remember Hank Scorpio from the Simpsons? Just like Tommy's dad's boss, Scorpio was very friendly and kind to Homer, just like Tommy's dad's boss was friendly and kind to Tommy's dad. Well, Hank Scorpio is an evil villain, but I gotta say that he's the best TV boss ever, but Tommy's dad's boss would get second place. Sorry Mr. Burns. Anyway, let's stop talking about TV bosses and let's start talking about the episode. I think this episode is very fun and creative. You know how there's a Ratatouille ride in Epcot. Well, I never gone on it but I'm pretty sure this episode is what the ride was like. Yay, now I know what is feels like to be on the Ratatouille ride!! And it is fun!! I like seeing how a restaurant kitchen is like in the eyes of a baby, or should I say Tommytouille? To me this episode also added more depth to Tommy's dad, although I still forget his name. Isn't it like Dan or Stu. Anyway the episode was fun and creative, and man I loved the ending. This doesn't beat Barbecue Story but it's really close. For Waiter, There's a Baby in My Soup, I give it a 8.3 out of 10.

I personally think that this is a great episode, and this is the best episode I've seen so far. In all, I give this a 8.4 out of 10. I'm excited to watch the next episode on Netflix soon!!

Wassoup?

[mattiasflgrtll6 · 9/10 · 6 May 2023]

Barbecue Story:

Tommy is playing with his precious ball until Angelica cruelly kicks it over the fence. Now he and his friends have to try and get it back.

There's something about the way the show mixes the mundane with the craziness that is so compelling. Even if its exaggeration it still feels so real since you can imagine babies really blowing all the possible ordeals up to such an extent. Getting a ball back simply isn't a pain in the ass like it would be for an adult. It feels risky, dangerous and frightening. Tommy's friend warns him not to do it, but he confidently tells them (Giving us the first appearance of his catchphrase) "A baby's gotta do what a baby's gotta do." Then his diaper embarrassingly falls down, but nevertheless his bravado over such a seemingly small task is both amusing and strangely admirable.

After her muted debut in Tommy's First Birthday, Angelica gets to demonstrate her mean streak more clearly when she selfishly snatches Tommy's ball from his hands and then kicks it away as far as possible out of spite when he wants it back. She never shows again after this, but they're doing a solid job slowly building her up as a bratagonist. I think as long as it's still funny and she doesn't just get away with everything Caillou-style I could watch her without cooking with intensifying rage that many fans seem to do over her.

I love how rattled and fed up Chuckie gets as he gets his dead stuck inside a tree trunk. He rants like they've been out in the desert for 50 days and is almost infuriated with Tommy for forcing them to come with him. He really is Milhouse in infant form.

That's nothing though compared to when they come across the guard dog who just so happens to be near where the ball landed. The animation plays up the raging threat so convincingly that it's both hilarious and understandable the babies expect to be ground into meat at any moment. Especially with it fiercely ripping the doghouse off from the ground. Even Tommy for all the bravery he showed earlier doesn't know what to do.

But not to worry, as Spike hears the desperate yells from dear companion and comes to the rescue, getting his head inside a decorative Totem Head in the process, which helps scare the wits out of the pitbull. Once again the animation does a great job at getting the highest possible dramatic tension out of the situation.

The adults' screentime is very limited this time around, but the little that's there works well enough. The fish-eye style of writing just makes you enjoy hanging out with them, even when it's something as simple as Stu singing a silly melody while grilling burgers and Grandpa Pickles getting distracted by a bug while in the midst of an extravagant story.

Waiter, There's a Baby In My Soup:

Tommy comes along to an important dinner meeting where Stu has to convince a client his inventions are worth investing in.

This segment is a strange case. Not because I don't like it, I enjoy it the most out of the two stories. The reason I say that is because we learn something about Tommy's character, but I can't quite decide what it is. At home we learn he has often tried to flush Stu's tie down the toilet. And when Didi fails to find a babysitter he makes a giant ruckus in the kitchen. Tommy is known to be a bit clumsy, yet this is the first time we see him making a mess on purpose rather than it happening accidentally as he's on a quest towards something. It being Tomboy he remains feeling innocuous and playful.

This is demonstrated even further once we're introduced to Stu's client Mr. Mucklehoney. And my God, his design is just... something else. It's ugly, though artistically so. It goes together excellently with his immature and boarish demeanor, pulling pranks on people like he's got an addiction and treating Stu like a joke as he presents all his inventions. And whatever you may so about how he looks, all of his movements are so fluid that he's almost at a higher speed than the rest of the characters. Fascinating to behold.

Now what did I mean earlier that I'm not 100% sure what we learn about Tommy? If you thought he was mischievous before, when Mucklehoney enters the picture he goes all-out. He ties Stu and Muckle's shoelaces together, crawls to the kitchen drops a shítload of chili into the soup as well as hides a bunch of cutlery into a pie. I feel sorry for whichever person is gonna have their teeth destroyed receiving that order. Tommy does still do something accidental though as he tries to reach the spaghetti and falls inside it. So in other words the baby isn't in the soup. Suing the writers for flagrant advertising.

Does this mean Tommy is a person who is easily influenced considering he starts pranking left and right after he meets Mucklehoney, or is this just who he is general and Stu's client simply happened to give him more inspiration? I suppose I'll find out in the upcoming episodes, but the fact that I'm even comtemplating what's being presented reveals how nuanced his characterization is.

Stu is on his last legs with the inventions, pulling out the springy eyes in hopes of convincing Mucklehoney to hire him. It goes awry of course and lands in someone's drinks. The chili soup arrives and Muckle is the unfortunate victim. He reacts violently to the strong taste and also trips over the shoelaces that were tied up earlier, tripping and falling over the table. The duck-esque sounds he makes as he struggles breathing made me laugh hysterically. Michael Bell gives a spectacular comedic performance. When he finally recovers he starts laughing harder than ever, mistakenly thinking Stu set up the whole thing speaking to his fondness of pranks. Giving Stuey a victory after it didn't seem to go all that swimmingly at first makes you feel happy for his sake, proving even a troublemaking Tommy can somehow benefit others.

I got a chuckle out of the closing gag where the waiter stretches out his hand for a tip and Tommy hands him the spaghetti from the bowl he fell in. They show such a range of emotions on the waiter too. First reacting with disgust, then a fairly neutral face removing the spaghetti from his fingers, and finally a slight smile, suddenly finding some amusement in the baby's ultimately well-intended action. The attention to detail is extraordinary.

If you're hungry for something entertaining, whether it be overcooked burgers or soup that will leave you in the emergency room, you'll be doing just dandy with this Rugrats outing.