I love Adventure Time and I love writing. I hope to write for cartoons one day so I've been doing a lot of practice writing. Last night, I felt compelled to write about one of my favorite episodes. I'd enjoy it if you gave it a read.

"What Have You Done?" This is one of my favorite episodes of adventure time. Now I know it is fairly common for reviewers to overplay the number of things that are their "favorite". But truly, I do like this episode. Its title screen alone inspired me to do something creative. So here I sit, writing about my muse.

To start, and introduce the review in a most cliché manner, the title of the episode grabs my attention instantly. After the familiar jingle of the theme song, "What have you done?" appears on an airborne table tossed by the princess. Already, my interest is peaked. Action has been shown right away and I find myself asking a similar question: What have they done?
The episode starts, revealing the setting to be the ice kingdom. Tiny penguin guards wielding ice spears and axes patrol the mountain. Now, while the thought of tiny arctic guardians protecting your home is both adorable and menacing, they would be horribly ineffective. In fact, their own incompetence is verified by Finn and Jake sneaking in. The two heroes dive past the guards, fist pound each other, and synchronize their plan. The mission is simple: Capture the Ice King. The villain is shown to be laying in his bed, evilly putting together a pink puzzle. A knock on the door catches his notice, and the king heads towards his front door. With false sincerity, the Ice King asks who is visiting him...before opening fire. But his "Zaps" strike no foe, as the only thing in sight is a lone can of peanut brittle. The King laments before forgoing his strict diet. He opens the can to NOT peanut brittle, but rather Jake the Dog! Jake springs from the can, and snatches away the king's crown; the source of all his powers. The Ice King attempts to retaliate, but finds himself unable to use his powers. The heroes pounce on their adversary and tie him up.

Ecstatic, Finn rejoices about their victory. Jake, however, wonders why they even bothered to go after the villain. Finn recalls the princess' explanation, which is a detailed and very specific "Go capture the ice king and bring him to me". Jake still ponders as Finn attempts to reassure him.

Returning to The Candy Kingdom, the two are surprised by the atmosphere. The ground is covered in a thick fog and the streets are deserted. A mysterious plague doctor strolls up speaking German, but reveals itself to be none other than the princess. She briefly greets them, but silences their curiosity. There is no time to explain! Through this secret door! Take him to the dungeon! But his crimes? He has apparently done nothing. The heroes are confused, quite naturally so. Why had they snuck into this bad guy's lair, kidnapped him, and brought him to the kingdom if he had done nothing at all. ...there is no time! I sometimes imagine this show as a role-playing game. This part is where their Dungeon Master wants to keep the story a secret, but is bad at lying. "Uh, can't talk! No time! Quick, throw him in the dungeon! Did I mention that there wasn't any time?" The princess even sweetens the deal by promising the chance to brutally torture their most hated villain. When opportunity knocks, it knocks for thee! Finn and Jake wave as their blissfully stroll into the dungeon. Checking in their prisoner, Finn and Jake hush the Ice King's complaints. They riffle through his inventory and start appraising his possessions. Furious, the Ice King curses them out and threatens to strike menacing poses. His outrage is quickly ended by a high pressure water hose. Commenting on how his cell only has two bars, the king vows to escape. Finn and Jake ignore his perceived idle threat, and enlighten him to the futility of his actions. Attempting to psychologically trick them, the ice king taunts his captors. With great conviction, he attempts to convince them that THEY are the villains and he should be set free. The heroes discuss what to do and decide that he is innocent. They let him go and take his place in jail. The ice king views this gesture as a request for friendship. He giggles, blasts a hole in the wall, and flies out of the dungeon...right as the princess walks in. She sees her two champions in prison and naturally becomes infuriated. In her rage, she flips over a table and says the words that first got me interested: "What have you done!" Both the heroes and I wonder about the actions set in motion by their mistake. The princes reveals that the ice king inadvertently infected the kingdom with a magic ice virus generated by his dandruff. Standard practice, really. The princess wanted the villain captured because the only cure is his wails of pain. The two heroes apologize and promise to get the cure from the old wizard. Returning to the criminal's lair, Finn comes up with a brilliant plan. Using psychological warfare of his own, he attempts to convince the Ice King that because they are best friends, he must howl in pain for them. Because that's what friends do for each other. Not wanting to reveal he has never had a real friend, the king attempts to howl. Unfortunately, he is struck by the giggles and claims he is too excited to cry out in anguish. Like a malicious conscious on his shoulder, Jake suggest simply beating the old man up. Finn vetoes that plan, as it goes against his heroic nature. Taking Jake for a bug, the King smacks Finn and accidentally knocks his down. Seeing his opportunity, Finn fakes his death. Like a real hero.

His best friend dead, Ice King's world falls apart and he cries out into the night sky. The wails of sorrow reach the kingdom and cure the plague victims. The candy citizens rejoice as they spring to life better than ever.

But the next second the moment is over. Ice King has gone through the grieving process rather efficiently and forgoes all emotional ties to the dead child in his lair. He walks away as he orders one of his minions to dispose of the body.

Finn rises to his feet as he feels the cold sting of rejection. Jake reassures him that when Finn dies, his death will be mourned for a century. The two scamper away as Jake practices his own cries of sadness.

Episodes like this one are why I love this show. "What Have You Done" perfectly combines fast-paced humor and traditional adventure scenarios. Witnessing the inner workings of the young hero immerses me in the world, and Adventure Time draws me in again and again. Relationships are established and the characters cease being simple cartoon characters and become treasured friends whose exploits are shown to me. I find myself deeply involved in the story and look forward to each new piece of information presented by this program. However, being in my early 20's I doubt I am the network's intended demographic. Nonetheless, I become excited when I flip through the channels and discover that this show is on. My only fear is when I have recorded too many episodes and subsequently run out of room in my DVR. Hopefully, I handle myself like the cartoon-loving adult that I am.