Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake Season 2 Episode 1 Review: The Hare and the Sprout

If Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake Season 1 was a multiversal adventure, then Season 2 hits closer to home. As someone who’s loved the original Adventure Time and its spinoff, Distant Lands, the return to the Ooo we know and love was a long time coming.

Still, though, given how this is still Fionna and Cake’s story, we’re given ample time to return to their world while still building on some important aspects from Season 1. Particularly, there’s a stronger focus on something that fans heavily dismissed from Season 1 Episode 2 “Simon Petrikov.”

However, to get to that point, we’re thrown back into Fionna-world with a colorful doodled recap of Season 1 and her taking up more responsibilities and jobs that lead her back around.

It’s the usual shenanigans that were present previously on Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake Season 1 Episode 1 “Fionna Campbell”. However, unlike in that episode, Fionna’s status as her universe’s “hero” provides both its upsides and downsides. Yet, in the midst of it all, seeing Fionna keep her head held high is pretty cute.

You can tell that, even though she’s matured since Season 1, Fionna hasn’t really progressed in terms of maintaining a stable life, but that seems to be okay. Her optimism is a bright spot of this series, and just getting her to support what Gary and Marshall have together really adds that charm to her.

However, not everything in Fionna’s life is as shiny as it is because, surprisingly, she’s still reeling from her break-up with her ex, DJ Flame. Another detail of her character that was briefly mentioned back in Season 1, it might prove interesting to see how Fionna actually deals with this.

In Adventure Time, the way that this played out was heavily reliant upon Finn’s shoulders and, given that long developing arc that saw the two have this respite, Finn always had the worst moves possible. However, with the alteration made here, it suggests that this relationship relies on Flame.

Since Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake recognizes the fact that it’s for its old audience, it has the opportunity to dig into the complexities of that gaslighting and inner toxicity that’s plagued both of these characters. I have hope that the show will explore this even deeper, as it feels like one of many focal points for Fionna’s character.

On the other hand of things, “The Hare and the Sprout” also establishes this notion that Cake doesn’t want to be perceived as a cat. Though teased briefly through her flirtatious interactions with M-Cron and her “human” form, Cake’s little side quest could also prove compelling later on.

However, the thing that’s most compelling about Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake Season 2 Episode 1 is the follow-up in Ooo, where it’s revealed that Finn’s wounds have left him in a near-death state. Additionally, Huntress Wizard takes on a more prominent role.

Since previous times, we’d only assumed that the relationship between Huntress Wizard and Finn was situational. Yet, watching her legitimately care for Finn ever since their previous meeting actually feels satisfying. It does feel like Adam Muto and the team recognize that their shared admiration needed to be further permeated and, fortunately, we get that.

For now, it feels like it’s kept as brief as possible as to lay the stakes through a returning Simon Petrikov. He’s also made a good life for himself since Season 1, now living with Princess Bubblegum and Marceline and becoming an actual teacher. 

At this point in time, it does feel like Simon’s arc from Season 1 was resolved, so he’s place in a somewhat “side” position. While it may feel somewhat unusual, there’s also a certain feeling that the series will have a particular character from Ooo to focus on in recurring seasons.

With Season 2, that character is Huntress Wizard and, from the way that the series puts her, it does feel like she’ll be in a “true love” situation where she’ll be the one to save Finn in the end. That does make you wonder what the grander multiversal stakes are and what else is at play, but we must await what’s coming (for now.)

Overall, Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake Season 2 Episode 1 is a satisfying return for this fun and lively series, gradually establishing new ground while picking up some surprisingly forgotten beats. Though it may feel like it’s a slow start for some fans, it does certainly have that potential to go bigger as it marches forward.

Stray Thoughts:

• The whole Queenie thing with her taking over Gary and Marshall’s old space feels like it’s connected to Marshall’s mom since she is a real estate agent. The pieces are there to be put together later on!
• I’m so happy that the show remembers that Distant Lands existed and we got young Peppermint Butler back! Also, I love the older versions of Cadebra and Blaine so much.

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New episodes of Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake Season 2 release Thursdays on HBO Max.

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