I don't really get the title! This episode is my unfavorite out of the whole season!
5.6
"Mediocre"
The ghost of dreams puts Amity Park to sleep, and Danny must wake everyone to stop his new foe. In "Frightmare," Danny awakens from his dreams in The Ghost Zone, and when he comes back to his home, he finds all of Amity Park in slumberland. Nocturn, the ghost of dreams, is out and about, putting the world to bed to enhance his own power!
Hmm...
I was looking forward to this one. The concept intrigued me, and I had seen pictures of Nocturn, who has by far the most original design of any DP ghost introduced since Season 1. I had heard a few non-spoiler-y grumblings about the story that gave me pause, but I went in anyway.
And I'm not really sure what to think.
EfaE aside, this is the only episode of Season 3 that feels like it took its time and paced itself at a slower tempo. I haven't had as many problems with the pacing of this season as some people, but it was nice to get a different rhythm this time around, one more in-line with some of the greats from the past. The non-conventional way of introducing the circumstances and villain, and having Danny on his own piecing things together was very nice, and I enjoyed seeing him go through a mental challenge after so many villains this season that have been easy to understand and the challenge merely being a physical one.
This was also the first episode of the season where Jazz joins the trio, and the first time ever that I really felt like that foursome's potential as a team was exploited to the characters' best advantage. Their plan at the end and their cooperation was wonderful. I loved small moments in that last battle - Jazz and Danny both helping out Sam, Tuck catching Jazz, etc. It's that kind of character work that I love most in any story. And after BUF, it was great to feel like the characters actually had something to go up against.
However, I won't deny the fact that Nocturn isn't too different from Vortex or Undergrowth. He's a standard evil villain with control over a specific thing out for power and world domination. And, with Pandora coming off pretty flat to me, that leaves Amorpho as the only impressive new ghost of the season IMO. But I do think that Nocturn was a slight improvement over his predecessors. He doesn't have much more personality, but his voice is much, much better. Nocturn doesn't shout every single line. He has subtlety. He shows signs of great intellect. He actually sounds like a threat. And again, he has a much more unique design. None of these things can replace an actual personality, but they are welcome additions to this unfortunate formula.
Nocturn could have been more than he was, though. And more could have been done with the idea of dreams.
I love the use of dreams in stories, especially when they're used for great character work. Some of the best episodes of shows like AVATAR use dreams to great dramatic effect. And DP's staff is as talented as AVATAR's. But DP's writers also seem more willing to give up the heart of the characters for various reasons, and that's where I think the dreams in this episode really suffered.
Everyone seemed to be dreaming about their innermost desires, for reasons unsaid - perhaps idyllic dreams give Nocturn more juice than nightmares? But in any event, of the trio, the dream that I bought the most was Tucker's. A techno-mansion and many lovely ladies makes sense for him. But why does he want his best friend to be his janitor? I'm sure that's in there for gag purposes only, but I've never found jokes like that amusing. If those characters are such good friends, they wouldn't treat each other like that or think of each other like that. I know I've been passive a few times when Danny pulls a prank on Tucker - mainly in early episodes like PB, when the characters were all developing and the ghost powers were as new to them as to us - but either way, there's a line, and I felt like it was crossed.
The shared D/S dream...coming at it from Danny's perspective, it sort of made sense to me. Danny has some shallow traits within him, though as the series progresses they seem to fade. I could see him dreaming about being popular. And I could see him dreaming about people knowing he's part-ghost and accepting it. But dreaming about being a football star? Since when is he interested in sports? And since when does he want to be friends with the jerk who's been bullying him for over two and a half seasons? This struck me as the writers finding it easier to conform to the common image of high school success than to craft something that actually fit Danny's personality.
And the dream from Sam's perspective...be prepared for a rant here:
Sam has never cared for what's "popular." She's flat-out stated that she hates sports. She's a fan of things dark, Gothic, and somewhat Victorian in appearance. She doesn't like Dash. She doesn't like Paulina. And, most important of all - she likes Danny just the way he is. She doesn't want him to be anything other than himself. Why in the world is she dreaming about him becoming a jock? This completely goes against the personality she's had for the entire show! This is the kind of dream I'd imagine Paulina would have if she had any thoughts about Danny. Sam (IMO) should have a dream about having a quiet evening alone with Danny in a Gothic castle high on a hill in the middle of a forest - NOT turning Danny into a conglomeration of things that she's supposed to detest!
I can understand the reason for them having the same dream; that love is in the air, that they're connected by great bonds of effection, yadda yadda yadda. But this was a cheap cop-out. There had to be a better way to convey the D/S aspect of this episode. Dreams could still be used - I love the idea of using dreams to connect two people drawn together by romantic feelings, and in some ways I think that may have been the theme of the episode - but they should have been better than this. Oh My Gosh, Sam and Danny need to see this as a sign. Danny and Samantha almost together. That is so awesome. They did not kiss on the lips though. I would have loved to see that. The two are meant for each other. It has been a while since I have seen this episode. I do remember there was something Tucker had that saved the day. Tucker always has a secret weapon that saves the day. Well ether he does or Danny's parents do. As I recall it was a good episode. Nocturne is a relentless ghost. I loved the different dreams that the different people had throughout this episode. Nocturne is a play on Nocturnal, sleeping during the day and being awake at night. In fact, the only dream that I found 100% believeable and fitting to the character was Nocturn's - and given his cardboard personality, that's not saying much.
The animation and music here was gorgeous. Once again, Nocturn's design was wonderful, and the use of dark colours and the look of Nocturn's dream were all very fitting.
Overall, this episode started with great promise and showed some nice touches of originality. But for me, the parts are more impressive than the whole, and some of the key aspects of this story idea could have and should have been better.