“Hamster & Gretel” Is Back With Eco-Lessons and Heartwarming Pet Tales

Hamster & Gretel is back to conclude its first season ahead of the debut of the second season starting real soon. That said, don’t expect any massive cliffhangers or anything, but rather some fun adventures with these fun heroes.

Let’s Sea What You’ve Got

Kevin is taking the girls and Hamster to the beach for a fun day in the sun. On the way there, we are treated to a reminder that Bailey knows of Gretel’s powers and today she wants to put them to the test and see if there any other powers that the aliens gave her that she hasn’t realized yet.

However, Kevin tells the girls that the powers they have are to be used responsibly and not for fun or frivolous needs. Ironically, Kevin can’t find a parking spot, and the only one he has seen is a car that has taken up two spots, something that Hamster or Gretel can easily take care of just by moving the car a few inches, but alas, that would be a frivolous need.

The girls are dropped off while Kevin goes to find a place to park, and a musical number begins about Gretel finding and trying new powers that may have yet to be discovered. Yes, Hamster & Gretel is a musical show, but even for this show this song is a bit strange.

It seems that no powers have yet to be discovered, which could have been handy considering Kevin and Hamster are still searching for parking. Guess we know the B storyline at this point.

Out in the lagoon, the water is freezing. Though the girls have been told to use their powers responsibly, what could it hurt if Gretel uses her heat vision to warm up the water and make it more comfortable for everyone. However, almost like Kevin warned them about using their powers – the water heats up and creates a rancid moss that overpowers the lagoon.

Gary the lifeguard tells the girls about this moss because they have to evacuate the water, and their beach day is seemingly ruined. Thanks to a book that Bailey has brought with her, they know how to alleviate the moss – moss eating slugs from New Zealand.

In the blink of an eye, Gretel retrieves a number of these slugs and dumps them into the lagoon. It seems the day is saved….until the lagoon is now overrun by these slugs. Once again, the lagoon has to be evacuated. This whole time Gary is calling his boss to keep him updated on the situation, though his boss has no idea who Gary is. Bailey and Gretel take it upon themselves once again to take care of the slugs, this time with sea urchins from Japan.

Same thing as before, but now the urchins are becoming overgrown, and they too are taking over the lagoon after eating all the slugs.

At this point, Kevin and Hamster have given up on searching for a parking spot and just park behind the news van that just approached. Clearly something is going on and Kevin knows that it has something to do with the girls. While all chaos is breaking out, Hamsters says he knows someone … .and the giant otter from earlier in the season (Summer is a season, right?) is called back and takes care of the overgrown urchins. For now all is solved, but I can’t help but think with the emphasis on Gary the lifeguard, the forgetful boss is more than just a running gag. I wouldn’t be surprised if this is another ridiculous villain origin story we got to see embedded in an episode.

Churro’s Day Out

It’s family portrait day, and the whole family is going to Raul’s photo studio. However, two members of the family are staying behind. Hamster and Churro. Yes, they are family and more than just pets, but the studio does not allow pets and animals.

As such, the rodent and the canine stay behind as the Grant-Gomez clan leaves the house. Churro the dog waits by the door expectantly, while Hamster enjoys the time alone, kicking himself basically into party mode and firing up a sound and lighting system built into secret spots in the house. While the rest of the family is putting up with rules and regulations at Raul’s photo studio, Hamster has decided to order himself a pizza.

Once the pizza is delivered, Hamster disguises himself in order to claim it. The entire time he’s doing this, the front door is open. You know where this is going.

Churro gets out and runs about town. Fortunately, it doesn’t take too long for Hamster to realize this but still needs help. He calls Fred who knows that there is a GPS tracker in the dog’s collar. Using a special app, they are able to find the dog very quickly, and they track him to a hardware store nearby.

While there, Churro plays with anything he can get his paws on, and Hamster chases him down, simultaneous destroying and restoring the store.

While all this is going on, the rest of the family is at the photo studio going through different themes for their photo shoots, none of them really sticking out and working for the family.

Hamster continues to track Churro through the city with the help of Fred, but now Churro is at the docks. Hamster goes over there, and Churro gets away once again, this time going to the nearby park. There, Churro is sniffing around the tree that Bailey and Gretel like so much before Hamsters tries to bait the pup with a hot dog. However, Churro sees another family with even more food nearby and goes there instead. As Hamster chases the dog down, the dog escapes into nearby bushes which snag and rip off the dog collar. Now the dog can no longer be tracked.

Hamster again calls Fred, who advises that he begin to think like Churro. What does Churro want? He knows. To be part of the family.

Together, they head to the photo studio and make an appearance, where it is decided that they are in fact part of the family, and can stay in the family photo.

This episode of Hamster & Gretel is now available on Disney Channel and the DisneyNOW app. You can catch up with earlier episodes on Disney+.

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Tony_Betti
Tony Betti
Originally from California where he studied a dying artform (hand-drawn animation), Tony has spent most of his adult life in the theme parks of Orlando. When he’s not writing for LP, he’s usually watching and studying something animated or arguing about “the good ole’ days” at the parks.