Recap / Bowser's Koopalings S 6 E 2 Bowser Jr's Journey

Original release date: 3/7/2022

After Bowser Jr.'s biological mother threatens to take full custody of him, Bowser has the Koopalings spend the day with Junior in order to proof to his ex-wife that Junior is in good hands. Unfortunately for the Koopalings, Junior has a different idea of fun.

Tropes:

• Blended Family Drama: Just like Bowser Jr., Karen hates the Koopalings because they are adopted and tried to get them kicked out of the castle.
  Karen: They're not your children, they're your underlings.
• Cutaway Gag:
  Karen: [Junior]'s being really depressed recently!
  (Cue to a shot of Junior in the bathroom, with a computer stuffed into the toilet)
  Bowser Jr.: Goodbye, Larry's gaming PC (breathes fire at it).
• Bait-and-Switch,: It seems like Lemmy is going to reveal that he found out he was interested in men by reading a hair salon magazine, but instead he says that the hairdresser hit him with one after he realized Lemmy was checking him out.
• Brother–Sister Incest: Bowser Jr. seems to be interested in having this with Wendy if him demanding that she kisses him is any indication. That said, just like with the other Koopalings, Junior doesn't consider Wendy a sibling, so it's probably downplayed from his perspective.
• Department of Redundancy Department: Travis suggests separating and searching the valley for Junior, but Ludwig tells him to shut up and let him take the decisions, only for him to repeat the same thing Travis suggested.
• Disproportionate Retribution: Junior beats up Kawasaki because Goomburger doesn't serve the meal that he wants without cheese.
• Everyone Has Standards: The Chargin' Chucks are appalled at Bowser Jr. stealing coins out of the wishing fountain.
• Fantastic Racism: Karen calls Ludwig a "damn beanie" due to him being half-Bohnenkraut.
• Fingore: Junior threatens to cut off Cowabunga's fingers for staring at him.
• Hate Sink: Karen does nothing but demean others and think about herself. You can definitely tell where Bowser Jr. gets his personality from.
• Intentional Mess Making: Before leaving through the Goomburger's restroom's window, Bowser Jr. makes a mess out of it, and if Kawasaki's words are anything to go by, it wasn't just with trash.
  Kawasaki: Brown... there's brown everywhere...
  • In addition to that, Junior also urinates on Sir Lemcelot's statue and steals coins from a Wishing Fountain.
• Kids Driving Cars: In retalation for kicking him, Bowser Jr. steals the Charging Chucks' car and crashes it.
• Kissing Cousins: Bowser and Karen, though they're actually second-cousins, so it's not considered incest.
• Large Ham: Karen's speech pattern is full of this.
• Laser-Guided Amnesia: Eddie gives Bowser Jr. amnesia by hitting him on the head with a wooden plank.
• LGBT Awakening: Eddie reveals to Lemmy that he found out that he was gay at a Summer Camp when he was 12 years old. Lemmy tells Eddie that he found out when a hairdresser hit him with a magazine for checking him out.
• Never My Fault: Junior blames his siblings for not taking care of him when he is the one who ran away in the first place.
• Not Helping Your Case: In spite of being warned that Karen will take him away if he says anything bad about the Koopalings, Bowser Jr. continues to threaten with telling Bowser that the Koopalings have been mistreating him, absolutely convinced that his father will just kick them out and that his mother won't take him away.
• Not What It Looks Like: Travis walks into Wendy about to kiss Junior. Judging by the next scene, he has been explained everything.
• Oh, Crap!: The Koopalings when they realize Junior has left Goomburger without their supervision.
  Wendy: Aw, s**t...
• Obnoxious Entitled Housewife: Outside of the fake abuse claims Bowser Jr. has given her, Karen's major motivation for wanting to take full custody of Bowser Jr. is because Ludwig was declared second-in-line to the throne after him. Even though it's been stated multiple times that it is only until Junior has kids of his own. In addition to that, it's revealed that she tried to get rid of everything that could remind Bowser of Peach when they were married, including the Koopalings.
• The Pig-Pen: Drake's house is unclean and filled with rotten food.
• Parental Favoritism: Karen loves her biological son, but tried to make Bowser kick the Koopalings out of the castle when they were married. She did not succeed.
• Pet the Dog: The Koopalings absolutely loathe Junior and would be really happy if his mother were to take him away forever, but they're willing to not let that happen because they know Bowser would be very upset about it.
• Punny Name: Karen is an entitled woman who makes everyone around her feel miserable.
• Tap on the Head: Eddie hits Junior on the head with a wooden plank just so he doesn't have to hear him whining anymore. It ends up making Junior forget everything that happened after he left Goomburguer and saving the day.
• The Reveal: Peach is not Bowser Jr.'s mother. Instead Bowser remarried to Karen some time after Peach went missing in the airship crash and together they had Junior. Unlike his marriage with Peach however, things didn't work out between Bowser and Karen and they ended up getting divorced, with Bowser getting the custody as Junior is heir to the kingdom's throne.
• Say My Name: Bowser Jr. yells their name.
  Bowser Jr.: Koopalings!!
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
  Ludwig: Alright, who wants the honors of being my partner?
  (Wendy, Morton, Travis and Lemmy run away, with only Larry remaining)
• Spoiled Brat: As per usual, Bowser Jr. behaves like a complete brat throughout the whole trip. Standouts include making a fuss over getting a toy he didn't like at Goomburger and throwing away the hamburger he's given for having cheese, and beats up Kawasaki when he tells them that they can't take away the cheese. Even when he's kidnapped by Drake, he's more angry at being lied about going shooting than the kidnapping itself.
• Suspiciously Specific Denial: Eddie definitely didn't enjoy playing Princesses with Lauren when they were kids.
• Tantrum Throwing: Junior throws a lamp at Drake after he reveals that he never had any Bill Blasters.
• Too Smart for Strangers: Drake Francis tries to kidnap Bowser Jr. in order to become a member of The Shadows. He fills all the boxes associated with child molesters (a suspicious and creepy appearance, drives a black van, claims to be a friend of Bowser, lives in a dirty and run-down house etc.). Junior initially refuses to get in his van, but accepts after Drake confirms that he'll teach him how to use a Bill Blaster. When Drake reveals his true intentions and that the high-ranking members of the Shadows don't trust him with weapons however, Junior throws a tantrum and destroys his house, killing him in the process.
• Troubling Unchildlike Behavior: Junior is playing with a family of dolls in his room... and then he "murders" the parents.
• Unreliable Expositor: Junior tells his mother about all the horrible things the Koopalings have done to him. In reality everything he tells her consists of things he has done to the Koopalings. Later on in the episode he states that he was abducted by the Charging Chucks, that Lucy and Courtney were stealing from the Fountain of Dreams and that they set him on fire when he standed up to them, when in reality he rightfully pissed of the Charging Chucks by stealing their car, Lucy and Courtney were the ones calling him out for stealing the fountain's coins and he himself caused a fire by destroying a house and murdering someone. He also threatens to tell Bowser about the horrible things he's done through the episode as if it were the Koopalings' fault.
• Verbal Backspace: In an attempt to rebuttal Karen's complaints about the Koopalings, Kamek tells her that they're a huge pain in the ass- erm, wonderful children.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: Iggy and Roy are never seen again after the rest of the Koopalings and Travis leave Goomburguer in order to look for Junior. Though it's implied both of them stayed there because they didn't want to contribute to the search
  Iggy: (In a sarcatsic tone) No... wait... please come back.
• Wicked Stepmother: Junior's biological mother Karen was this to the Koopalings. She didn't even try to sugar-coat how much she dislikes them while she was living with them. Wendy also states that Karen tried to get rid of everything related to Peach that there was at the castle. She also tried to make Morton eat vegetables for dinner.
• Wishing Well: More like a Wishing Fountain. Junior tries to steal coins from it, only to get called out by Lucy, Cortney and the Charging Chucks.

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