| “ | Exclamation zapped us with a ray gun and took our powers! Now, Hamster is just a regular hamster who can't talk. He can only express himself by trying to eat my hair! | ” |
"Exclamation Strikes Back" is the thirtieth full episode of the first season of Hamster & Gretel, and the fifty-eighth episode overall, serving as the season 1 finale for the series. It is separated in two segments called "Exclamation Strikes Back - Part I" and "Exclamation Strikes Back - Part II", and premiered on Disney Channel on December 9, 2023.[2]
When Hamster and Gretel are to receive the key to the city, Professor Exclamation executes his plan to take over the world. He drains Hamster and Gretel's superpowers using the weird glowing rock from Las Vegas (which he located with help of FistPuncher and The Destructress), which he then uses to power a giant mech suit.
Plot[]
Part I[]
Professor Exclamation recruits FistPuncher and The Destructress to lead him to the superpower-sucking rock from Las Vegas as part of his plan to destroy Hamster and Gretel and take over the world. Meanwhile, Hamster and Gretel are to receive the key to the city in honor of their many instances of saving the city. However, Gretel gets into an argument with Kevin upon learning that he will not be attending the ceremony in favor of attending his date with Hiromi, with Gretel going so far as to vent about it to the audience in lieu of giving a speech. As Kevin arrives to J.J. McWeekend's, he is captured by a robot that resembles Hiromi and taken to the creepy doll factory, unbeknownst to the real Hiromi, who arrives immediately after the incident.
FistPuncher and The Destructres interrupt the key ceremony to relay this information to Hamster and Gretel, after which, Professor Exclamation's robot army terrorizes the citizens. Once Hamster and Gretel arrive, they are captured alongside Kevin, allowing Professor Exclamation to tell the three about his five-step plan to conquer the world. He then removes Hamster and Gretel's powers and uses them to power a giant robot he built out of Unbendium, which he will use to take over the world.
Part II[]
Professor Exclamation arrives at city hall and demands that the citizens dismantle it and rebuild it in his image. Fred and Bailey, who were attending the ceremony, manage to escape and locate Kevin, Hamster, and Gretel. After learning about the situation, Fred finds that Professor Exclamation's device has enough power left to give Gretel one punch, which they plan to use to destroy the rock and restore Hamster and Gretel's powers. They confront Professor Exclamation through their use of confiscated devices from villains, only for Gretel to lose her chance at destroying the rock when a piece of debris gets in her way.
A chase scene leads the group to peril at Cliffside Park, which Bailey manages to evade utilizing CopyCat's mechanical tail. When Kevin discovers that Gretel's key to the city is also made of Unbendium, he orchestrates a plan to propel himself to Professor Exclamation's robot and destroy the rock with the key. He succeeds, after which Gretel is able to rescue Kevin from falling off the cliff after regaining her powers, leading to Hamster and Gretel defeating Professor Exclamation. Kevin then realizes he is late for his date with Hiromi and attempts to explain to her that he was taking care of Gretel. However, she tells him that despite her feelings for him, she does not believe their relationship will work out. The aliens then arrive and reveal that they created villains in order to prepare Hamster and Gretel for a greater evil that will arrive "next season" and that Kevin was never intended to receive superpowers.
Cast and characters[]
- Meli Povenmire as Gretel Grant-Gomez
- Michael Cimino as Kevin Grant-Gomez
- Beck Bennett as Hamster
- Joey King as Fred Grant
- Priah Ferguson as Bailey Carter
- Hiromi Dames as Hiromi Tanaka
- Phil LaMarr as Professor Exclamation
- Brock Powell as FistPuncher
- Alyson Stoner as The Destructress
- Chris Diamantopoulos as Crooner
- Brett Dalton as Mayor Meyer
Additional voices[]
- Bob Bowen as Maitre'd
- Chris Diamantopoulos as Bystander
- Dan Povenmire as Male Alien, Exclamation Bots
- Isaac Robinson-Smith as Bystander
- Joanna Hausmann as Female Alien
- Olivia Olson
- Phil LaMarr as Fungus Monster
Songs[]
- Key To The City
- Thimbles
- Creepy Doll Factory (instrumental)
- Gotta Get Away
Running gags[]
Super Punch[]
Gretel: BOX PUNCH! (punches the box, only to injure her fist) Ow! Wait, where were the floating words? |
Gretel: POWER SAPPING ROCK PUNCH! |
Image scene transitions[]
(used to transition back to Kevin and Gretel trapped in the doll factory)
(used to transition back to the ongoing destruction of city hall)
Memorable quotes[]
Kevin: Anyway, you deserve it. You two have saved this town from all kinds of disasters. Gretel: Yeah, crazy supervillains, a giant overgrown lemon... Hamster: Plus, that evil talking fungus. (Cutaway to Hamster and Gretel tied up next to a fungus creature.) Fungus: Since I have you both here, I'll read you my screenplay. "Act One: we open on a quaint restaurant five hundred years in the future." (Cut back to the present.) Hamster: Man, that guy would not shut up. |
Kevin: Are you okay? You seem a little... nervous? Hiromi: Sorry, I'm just... processing. (claps her teeth together.) Kevin: (sighs) Yeah, me too. I just had an argument with Gretel. It's just that, like, our relationship has changed a-and I've changed, and there are things that I want for myself, and I'm entitled to that, right? (Hiromi chows down on her napkins.) Hiromi: This napkin is... underseasoned. |
Fred: I can't believe I'm saying this, but somehow, this is worse than the band. |
Gretel: Dude, give it up! We always win! Professor Exclamation: Not this time, because I came up with a surefire strategy for defeating you... permanently! It was a five-step plan. Hamster: Aaaand here we go. |
Kevin: Ho... Gretel:...ly... Hamster: (squeak) |
Professor Exclamation: Greetings, newly subjugated townsfolk! I am Professor Exclamation, your new master. First order of business, you're all going to help me destroy city hall so I can rebuild it in my own image! (shows a hologram of his proposed city hall) See? It will literally be my face. The audience gasps. Mayor Meyer: You want us to help you destroy city hall? We would never do that! Professor Exclamation snaps his fingers. FistPuncher punches a statue of Mayor Meyer into the night sky. Mayor Meyer: Okay... LET'S TEAR THIS SUCKER DOWN! |
Robot 1: Halt! Where are you two going? Fred: Let me ask you two a question. If a tree falls in the forest and nobody's there to hear it, does it make a sound? Robot 1: Everyone knows the tree does make a sound. Robot 2: Actually, the notion of sound depends on the perception of a third party. Robot 1: Your mom depends on the perception of a third party. Robot 2: Oh, that's it! (they fight) |
After Fred disables Exclamation's robot army. Fred: This is why you never put your password on a sticky note! |
Professor Exclamation: Not so fast! (emerges from the rubble of his robot) You may think you beat me, but I have one more thing up my sleeve. Hamster punches Exclamation into his robot. Hamster: And it's certainly not elbows. |
Female Alien: Look, the reason we created villains was to prepare you for a much, much greater evil that is coming next season! Kevin: Next season? Male Alien: Yeah, you know. Winter, spring, summer... they've got seasons. I-I-I can't believe I'm explaining this! |
Transcript[]
Click here to read the full transcript of "Exclamation Strikes Back".
Gallery[]
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| Click here to view the image gallery for "Exclamation Strikes Back - Part I". |
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| Click here to view the image gallery for "Exclamation Strikes Back - Part II". |
Background information[]
Trivia[]
- The fourth wall is broken twice in this episode–first when Fred pulls a copy of the episode's script out of the minivan's glove compartment during the song "Gotta Get Away" and again when the aliens explain that there will be a greater evil "next season."
- As Professor Exclamation is explaining the parts of his plan, he recaps his events from Two Girls, A Guy and the Council of Düm to I Was a Teenage Mad Scientist
Allusions[]
- If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? - In order to distract Professor Exclamation's robots, Fred asks them this famous philosophical question.
- The Oprah Winfrey Show - When The Destructress throws sledgehammers to the audience while repeatedly saying "You get a sledgehammer," she references a 2004 episode of this talk show, in which the titular talk show host gave everyone in her audience a free car while repeatedly shouting "You get a free car!"
- Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back - The name of the episode could be a reference to the 1980 film.
References[]
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