Thinking of Carl’s crashout in Where’s Perry? vs. his crashout in more than an intern.
In where’s Perry he’s not himself—or rather, an evil version of himself, but his villainy is born from real grievances—as befits an “evil” version of the same version. He gets angry and agitated quickly, there’s a confidence in his own skills and intellect that he doesn’t typically have—at least not to that level. He’s cruel to everyone, but Monogram received the brunt of his ire. (He also sings and dances very well, something we have yet to see regular Carl do, at least to that degree.) We’ve experienced hints of Carl’s unhappiness with his lack of appreciation from Monogram and OWCA before this, but never to this degree. And after it’s all over and Carl’s regoodinated, Monogram gives him a promotion. It doesn’t lead to any tangible change other than his acknowledgment of his appreciation really, but at least at the time, it’s enough for Carl.
There’s more crumbs of Carl’s unhappiness sprinkled throughout the rest of the show’s original run—more, I feel like, than before. Monogram grows crueler. (From a watsonian lens, I like to imagine it’s in part because of this incident—a part of him fears Carl now, too). Carl grows more desperate for his affection while he also gets a bit snarkier. We have ‘Thanks But No Thanks’ and ‘Phineas and Ferb Save Summer.’ His character development with Monty is a vital part of his growth imo, but that’s a whole other post. But regardless, these two episodes are vital for Carl’s confidence and development.
And then we come back a year later, and we have ‘More Than an Intern.’ Things are worse for Carl than before—personally, logistically, I don’t think he was paying rent last season. I don’t think he had all these jobs until this year. I have my own headcanons as to why this now is, but with as much time as Carl and Monogram spend together, and as much overtime as he put in last season, I think it makes more sense for this to be a this-summer thing, that he’s finally moved out or at least moved out of the dorms and has his own place.
And I think this, ultimately, coupled with the upping of Monogram’s mistreatment is what ultimately makes him explode in “More Than An Intern.” That much is obvious. It’s more the difference in reactions that I’m interested in. How he reacts here vs. how he reacts in Where’s Perry.
The heart and misery of how Carl as himself reacts to when he finally breaks down. He’s allowed to get angry, he’s allowed to be sad. He’s not evil. He’s himself. But I don’t know if he would have gotten here without his arc in Where’s Perry. The hypercompetence he showed, the willingness to stand up for himself, the desire to drop OWCA. It feels like a natural progression for who he has become. His evil self revealed so much about him lurking underneath the surface, and now we get to see him express it as himself. As fun as Evil Carl is, Carl himself is the character we love.
Even if Monogram’s response is ultimately meaningless both times, it’s so important to see him express his frustration. I hope we see more of this. I hope we get to see his journey towards OWCA Commander and his potential repair of the organization.
