#cs weekly

right off the bat this episode is pretty much unlike any other. they try to have a caper setup- the vile drive- but it's not long before we realize that EVERYTHING is gone. even in the last finale the sort of "caper" of the episode was rescuing devineaux. this episode is all about answers.

"all on my own. the only sure way i know." hrnnrgh carmen

their boat is being so nice and stationary in the middle of a raging storm and waves taller than they are

"MY FIST IS GOING TO MAKE YOUR GUTS EXPLODE" ivy never change

its ALLL GONE

rip vile island we hardly knew ye

the cs team is just showing off their background artists 😌

ah would you like some mashed shadowsan with your steak

maelstrom your plan sucked babygirl sorry. should have sic'd brunt on her on the train like a rottweiler

interesting plan though. if shadowsan really had killed dexter, what would carmen have done? beat him up? sent him to acme? just thrown him out? she promises to hunt him down if he runs but like what were you going to do after that? murder for a murder?

malestrom: maybe she'll show up in botswana ✨ carmen who's been out for the count for half a year and has no reason to have even shown up in botswana as early as she did:

the teddy bear <3

in love with cleo's boob straps. that safety harness does not even clip in the front its like if a backpack was securing you to a car

that explosion animation is so good though its so impactful

its a damn good thing devineaux showed up when he did he could have been blown to the gates of hell in one second flat and no one would have been any the wiser

chase drinks so much disrespect women juice the first two seasons that he blames julia for an impression of her that his own mind dreamed up i love him for that

angry carmen is so babygirl to me. go bestie show emotion. get so mad about that shit

mmm and theres the shot i used for our title card! and what a fantastic one it is. shadowsan's motif playing in the background as carmen pauses at the oni, but the show itself telling us that he is still on her side with that gigantic, massive symbol of him framing carmen in a circle of red. if you pay attention and learn the colors the team likes, you don't even have to worry about this ep its all cool

you know what the dominant color in this entire scene of carmen trying to find out the truth is, though? blue. even when she's in the server room or staring at shadowsan's oni, the water isnt tinted green like they easily could have made it. its. all. blue.

obsessed with how zack wakes up he's being exorcised and the demon was the peppers and onions

agree it would have been hilarious if devineaux finally gets rescued and it turns out to be a really, really pissed off carmen sandiego

roundabout has the air of a theater kid who always got the leads but had to act surprised about it

evil ihop

i love how confused roundy looks its so funny

devineaux stabbing himself and the scream makes me cry laughing every single time

devineaux really goes ↘️↗️↘️↘️↘️↘️↘️↘️↘️

i would watch a series about devineaux being left to fend for himself on the island and slowly losing his mind

his supervisor was so excited about firing him

okay here we go it all gets real now

carmens realization going from my dad was a cop -> my dad was literally the exact opposite of a cop and neither of those things being things she is happy about

i love the realization hitting her face (even if it was animated. a touch blandly)

shadowsan's face s just animated fantastically here. his eyebrows are up- he realizes carmen is there, maybe confused about why she isnt saying anything. then his eyebrows drop, his face falls ever so slightly. he knows the jig is up

also. yes. "your silence is like thunder" is just. ough its such a good line

he isn't even surprised by the question he knew it was coming eventually

"if you run, I will find you." its not a threat its a damn promise. for older viewers its easy to draw the connection between the famous i will find you and i will kill you. it doesnt have to be said.

mm and carmen rejecting the offer to sit and be comfortable around him. she just can't

even in the flashbacks your can see so much of carmen in him its so great. its dishonorable, and everything carmen stands against, but she is undeniably her father's daughter

the plot for this flashback is so sophisticated its so so good. they treat the audience really well about it

also young faculty designs <3

the red on the inside of dexter's jacket to symbolize his secret with carmen im sobbing

also the decision to make carmen have his eyes is. hrngh.

already been pointed out but the way the music softens when shadowsan says "you" HURTS

THAT BABY IS A SNITCH. carmen. snitchdiego

the heartbreak when present carmen speaks again gfgrgh

i like the new mask he hangs behind him before carmen confronts him, by the way. its green and white- the shadow of vile and his past looming over his shoulder, maybe- but also the mask of vile he had to put on to lie about what really happened to wolfe

BABY CARMEN CRYING AS DEXTER TRIES TO HIDE HER :(((

the dolls rdhg im not crying you are

anyone have any thoughts on a dexter voice claim btw?

also also i sprang this on rueitae already but "dexter" while referring to dexterity and his skill as a thief can also mean "the one who dyes" which. jesus. it refers to dying cloth but the double meaning is ouchie

he locks her in gay baby jail!!!

i gotta stop making jokes about the most serious part of the entire series sorry

there's a little bit of a pink panther hint to his theme as he sneaks out the window which is interesting

rue's also already covered it but what WAS this man's plan for just leaving baby carm in there. like shadowsan says desperation i guess

god young chief shooting and killing an unarmed dexter wolfe and presumably orphaning her is the twist. of a fucking lifetime

the despair in the music cue when it reveals it was only his car keys

the matryoshka dolls getting burned in that fire ahrhgfrdshgsghds

love that shadowsan not only sets the house on fire while he and a baby are still in it but gives said baby an object that just got set on fire

also vile protocol dictating that he should have just burned a baby alive?? what the fuck!

bellum's apathy, mael's mild interest/concern, and cleo's disgust towards baby carm shdfjads

little tiny baby carmen shunting her butt at cleo is hilarious

faculty: omg she's a real natural thief she stole that thing without anyone noticing baby carmen in broad daylight five seconds earlier:

btw bb carm is so cute she's so round

carmen finally just sliding to the floor under the weight of all of that information. now that she has at least the idea that shadowsan was not the one who murdered her father, even if she still needs proof

"why would you make me find out on my own?" is one of the most heartbreaking lines in here. she had to go through this realization almost completely alone. her trust in the man she was coming to see as a father was shattered and he could have just told her. he could have just told her

ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh shadowsan crying theyre so family

you can just hear the regret and fear and sadness in his voice paul nakauchi is literally so good

REAL CHIEF!

COMMANDER!!!! oh shittt i missed the one and only canon commander caturday rip...

ivy violently hitting the cash register is a mood

the little reveal even in the music as it pans to ivy in the starbucks uniform

chief nailed the good natured but a little exasperated "hmm" when dealing with people who have no idea what they are doing

ivys little look as she sees carmen walk in. the smile drop off her face as she walks away

carmen's theme ahrugdhjdsg the music in this show is so good

what is her hand doing

oh chief no honey

the deadpan "i wouldnt drink it"

i love the little nod/head bow thing of acknowledgement of carmen's efforts

the sinister music as carmen ever so casually pulls off her little trick is GREAT

i didnt know chief could open doors 🤨

congrats on being gay agent argent you did it again

player hack chief so bad the logo goes off of the screen

"somethings wrong" yeah no shit julia

chiefs oh shit face is so funny shes like aohhhhhhhhhhhh noooooooooooooooooo

little guy

im so mature

we love digging up graves

that dawning apprehension on carm's face as she realizes there's a chance she might be about to see the decayed corpse of her twenty-years-dead mom in there

carlotta being modelled after old carmen was a cool choice. lots of fan theories about old carm being her mom this day 🫡

"are you with me?" "to the end of the line." grgfhgjhsdhjsgds im shaking them violently in my teeth if i ever got a cs quote tattoo or something it would probably be that line

the only thing i dislike about this cliffhanger is that in s3 they kind of try to deliver on this big wide promise that this finale gave us and then give up until the last episode of the entire series. like. isk. i feel like they should have either gone harder on the carlotta mystery or left it alone although they did leave me the opportunity to write a 66 thousand word fic series on the concept so i guess i cant complain

half clean shaven half very unshaved chase is so funny its cursed. he shouldnt have no hair but he shouldnt have that much worst of both worlds

devineaux's theme mixing in with that iconic action/danger soundtrack as he grins devilishly is just fantastic shit

chief waiting for a response as chase just silently smirks into the mirror

Carmen, after the first stealing mission: Should I go rescue Zach and Ivy or keep stealing for VILE?

Me: But I’m having fun...*keeps stealing for VILE*

---

Carmen: Should I take a mission from Dr. Bellum or Countess Cleo?

Me: Cleo will likely include a gala. Carmen will get to wear a pretty dress. I want to see Carmen wear a pretty dress! Decision made!

Later:

Carmen: Should I accept the offer to dance?

Me: WHY IS THIS EVEN A QUESTION YES!!!!

---

Carmen: Should I leave Tigress in the ditch?

And not just for Ivy and Zack! They literally meet Carmen on her first caper and Player is so YOUNG. They’re babies all of them and I love them. Honestly it makes it even more special they met each other on caper 1.

“Player can have his own room” I could literally cry at the sweet sentiment but also my conspiracy mind whirls because so many throwaway lines were foreshadowing WHAT IF THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN TOO

“I thought he lived in the cloud” LOL

Zack: maybe it’s a flying race car?

Let your dreams become reality next week, Zack.

LoL Shadowsan did not ask for a flashback but he’s literally getting one. That’s so funny.

These two episodes are so interesting. Zack, up until now, we have only known as a ray of sunshine, a golden retriever. But Trey is about the only person EVER to get under his skin. Even Dash Haber, who actively tried to do so, only succeeded in making him nervous or mildly annoyed and generally clueless in a stressful situation. But as far as I can see, Trey is not insulting Zack. He’s insulting the car, which Ivy built from scratch with her talent and skill. Zack doesn’t get mad over himself. He gets mad over people knocking his family. Only once they do that does Trey get Zack mad by insulting him personally.

Okay counting the cars, Zack comes in fifth, so they DO qualify. They just don’t have a car for the actual money races.

Shark Head Eddie is peak character design.

Urgh the sibling conversation in the car breaks my heart. They are such good kids. They don’t want to do this but they will psych themselves up to do what they have to. Contrast that to when they’re stealing to help Carmen. It’s a mission they can put their hearts into.

Okay this is the best way to tell the backstory. Shadowsan’s even half invested. And Carmens just. Nah I’m not letting you get off the hook for this one. You two started the story I’ll finish. And now we get Carmen’s side!

“A few months” my butt. More like a few months had to be closer to a year to 1. Grow in height 2. Grow the hair

And honestly changing the plan because Zack and Ivy are there and stressing Player out just becomes the norm. Also that’s great Ivy could sneak in specifically because Player cut the security cams. They’re unintentionally helping each other already.

Carmen not used to driving a vehicle. Boats in the middle of the ocean have no traffic.

I DONT EVEN HAVE MY LEARNERS PERMIT.

Please someone write the fic where Zack shows up in Canada to help Player pass his driving exam. PLEASE

I am endeared that Zack and Ivy give the first geography brief. Literally everything about them endeared them to Carmen.

Carmen Sandiego, kidnapped by two siblings from Boston for a history lesson. The comedy That her hat just lingers for a minute in the air.

Reminder for next fic to have Zack attempt to create a baseball rivalry with Player or Carmen over the BlueJays or Padres.

Player literally fact checking them from Canada lol he’s so chill they’re family already.

Also, Player has changed into his regular series outfit. No more white hat. He’s “red hat” with Carmen now. Let me talk about his layers of clothing color theory now, Even if it’s a fashion disaster it has meaning. Blue shorts are for his white hat days, as blue is ACME/the “good guys” so to speak. He wears a red T-shirt to show his loyalty to Carmen, but because he’s a secret he keeps it covered by the grey hoodie. Lastly, the yellow zipper on his hoodie matches the yellow zipper on Carmen’s stealth suit. Usually yellow is for team red Allies. Sonia, comes to mind later. Players outfit is literally inverse of Carmen’s. As she wears black underneath the red, and wears blue gloves.

You can literally see Carmen’s disappointment forming as the sibs start talking about the money.

I FORGOT it was Brunt who called it Beantown lol

I also forget how soft the classmates were on Black Sheep. Le Chevre wants her to get away. He knows how angry the Faculty are and what an egregious move she’s made by running away. He understands what that means. He still cares about her safety right now. It’s such a good scene. Because Carmen might have been fond of them, but she acknowledges they all joined VILE and knew what they were getting into. She’s not holding back and she’s not going to show much emotion over it. She knew this was going to happen one day.

If I had a nickel for every time Le Chevre and El Topo got pushed into the water I’d have like four nickels by now.

The WAY IVY RESPONDS to Carmen needing muscles I’m dying every time.

Ivy and Zack are so chaotic they’re helping Carmen without even realizing it yet. Just solidifies they’re made for each other. Also!!! I love how curious and inquisitive Ivy is!!! They haven’t even joined Carmen but she’s already thinking about making a grappling hook!!!! What a little scientist!! Bellum would love her.

Their team up fits so perfectly. Ivy and Zack need out of town, and Carmen has found out she very much needs some ground assistance. AND FRIENDS MORE FRIENDS. It’s just been her and Player it has to be lonely.

And to round it off, Shadowsan’s pov on the Faculty reaction. That’s so neat that because he’s there we get all of the pov. That was really cool because sometimes we’ll get that insight into the third party reaction for no reason in other shows, but here it’s because Shadowsan remembers and he’s there! So they all participate in reminiscing.

There! Series ending explained. Ivy and Zack love what they do. And they love Carmen. Despite their fear sometimes, they get a huge rise out of being able to thwart the bad guys. They love racing yes, but they still get to do so in a way now. They tried something different and they love it.

I knew this logically, but seeing all four of them get into the car has my mind racing with joy over the many trips to the airport and road trips the four of them have taken.

Also Player is so endeared to them too. He specifically uses the term flying car teasingly. I love. This family.