Earthworm Jim 1.8 - The Egg Beater

Plot: Jim and Peter escape Bob's fearsome Robo-Squid thanks to Jim borrowing Mrs. Bleveridge's egg beater. Now she wants it back, which means journeying across the cosmos to La Planeta de Agua (Arriba!). The trip runs into severe trouble, as one arch-foe after another crosses paths with Jim. Evil the Cat and the Henchrat are randomly traveling through space. Bob's had his Robo-Squid rebuilt by Professor Monkey-for-a-Head, who took the egg beater to complete a Hypno-Laser for Queen Sweaty, Pulsating, Bloated, Festering, Pus-filled, Malformed, Slug-for-a-Butt. By the time they get there, Psycrow's already picked it up, and by the time they catch Psycrow, he's already delivered it. And by the time they get to the Queen's lair, she's already used it on Princess What's-Her-Name and the rebels, plus, all the other villains have arrived to help destroy Jim.

Through all this, poor Mrs. Bleveridge, in her slippers and curlers, and whatever the hell that weird yellow onesie she's wearing is, has taken the brunt of the attacks. She's been pretty addled for most of the trip, but pulls it together at the end long enough to confirm the egg beater Jim recovered isn't hers, because the handle is the wrong color. Which means they'll have to venture back into the cosmos and keep searching. A valuable lesson about thinking before you speak.

Quote of the Episode: Bob - 'When you want a job done right, hire a guy with a monkey for a head, that's what I always say.' Jim - 'Oh, you do not always say that.'

Times Peter Turns into a Monster: 1 (8 overall).

Cow? Yes, a brown one this time. Probably mutated from exposure to Insectica's alien sun. Or a joke about the egg beater's handle.

Other: Peter used the "fear is the mind-killer mantra" again this week. Also probably his longest stretch maintaining his monster form.

Jim tried calling on the Space Crickets to save them from Evil the Cat, but they weren't able to arrive until Jim had reached Professor Monkey-for-a-Head. And were promptly stepped on. Homm, the Mighty Hamstinator is still alive, and Johnnydactyl, but between these guys and all those sidekicks from the first episode, do-gooders have a pretty high attrition rate. I'm not sure Psycrow even needs to be doing PSAs about getting people treated for symptoms of do-gooderism.

So Jim defeated pretty much all his enemies at once, but at least it's evident there's no teamwork or cooperation on their part. They all pretty much started blasting (except the Queen, who seemed content to wait and watch, which probably saved Jim), and Jim turned it against them. Also, he ran in terror a lot.

Turns out in addition to being able to use himself like a whip, Jim can also use himself like a boomerang. Like about 15 other functions of the suit we've seen so far (the Swiss Army knife function, the Inflato-Suit) I don't expect we will ever see this again. But the Boomerang is always useful in only one particular dungeon, from what Zelda games have taught me.

Poor Mrs. Bleveridge, she just wanted the egg beater back, which is a perfectly reasonable request. And she got mauled, flash-fried, nearly brain-sucked, frozen, and hit by a cow. Rough day, but this won't be the last time she appears, and things go better for her next time.