Return to Wartwood

"Return to Wartwood" is the second segment of the twelfth episode of the second season of Amphibia, and the sixty-first episode overall.

It premiered on March 6, 2021, alongside "Night Drivers".

Synopsis
The Plantars make it to Wartwood, and realize they forgot something important.

Plot
The Plantars return to Wartwood, much to the delight of all the townsfolk who welcome them with open arms. They decide to throw a celebration with food for their return. However, Stumpy mentions that he cannot wait to try a Newtopian coral hand fragment that Hop Pop supposedly picked up on his journey. Mrs. Croaker adds that the party should also double as a special gift giving from the Plantars from their trip. A nervous Hop Pop and Polly drag Anne and Sprig back into the fwagon and reveal that before they left, they promised everyone that they will come back with gifts from Newtopia and made a list and hid it underneath the floorboards of the fwagon, but forgot about it. While Anne wants to be responsible and tell the truth, Sprig agrees with his family as they apparently promised Ivy a red sunshell to match his blue moonshell.

They collectively decide to create fake gifts and have them burned through some terrible disaster before the eyes of the townsfolk. Using a strange monster book made from skin, given to Sprig from Maddie, they settle on summoning a Chicka-lisk, a terrible chicken monster capable of breathing fire and turning people to stone through its gaze beam. They collect the items to summon him, which ironically took little to no effort despite the ridiculous lengths to get them, and successfully perform the ritual before heading out to the party. Anne and the Plantars stall everyone until the Chicka-lisk arrives with Sprig feeling even more guilty when Ivy expects her gift.

The Chicka-lisk appears, in a rather magnificent display, and immediately goes for the presents (which through subtitles reveal that he comically thinks they are for him). The townsfolk team up and battle the creature with Anne and the Plantars ultimately joining in. The gifts end up getting destroyed and the Chicka-lisk becomes offended by their "Chicka-lisk formation" and leaves ("Okay, that's just offensive, you guys. Chicka-lisk, out!"). Despite the plan working, Anne coaxes the Plantars to come clean. Everyone is angry and disappointed that they did not get any gifts, but admit that they are glad to see the Plantars being themselves again as life in Wartwood was boring without them. Ivy tells Sprig that he can make it up to her by going on a date with her and kisses him, much to Anne's delight as Polly drags her away as she wasn't amused.

Cast

 * Brenda Song as Anne Boonchuy
 * Justin Felbinger as Sprig Plantar
 * Bill Farmer as Hop Pop Plantar
 * Amanda Leighton as Polly Plantar
 * Katie Crown as Ivy Sundew & Headband Woman (credited as additional voices)
 * James Patrick Stuart as Wally Ribbiton
 * Jill Bartlett as Maddie Flour & Female Farmer Hat Frog (credited as additional voices)
 * Stephen Root as Mayor Toadstool
 * Laila Berzins as Sadie Croaker
 * John DiMaggio as Stumpy
 * Brian Maillard as Leopold Loggle
 * Jack McBrayer as Toadie
 * Kaitlyn Robrock as Felicia Sundew (credited as additional voices)
 * Mona Marshall as Sylvia Sundew (uncredited)
 * Matt Braly as Chuck (credited as additional voices)
 * Kevin Michael Richardson as Mr. Flour, Blue Frog With Hat, & Brown Overalls Frog (credited as additional voices for all)

Additional voices

 * Dee Bradley Baker as Chicka-lisk, Blue Hugging Frog, & Green Frog with Hat

Trivia

 * This, alongside "Night Drivers", are the first episodes to air in another country before it aired in the United States.
 * Ivy kisses Sprig, just like she did in Sprig's story in "The Shut-In!", only it's real this time.

Revelations and significant events

 * Hop Pop and Polly reveal that after they got the fwagon in "Handy Anne", everyone asked for some gifts from Newtopia and they forgot to buy them even when they made a gift list.
 * The three pollywogs from the theme song make their debut, and can be seen with Mr. Flour, meaning that they are his younger daughters and Maddie's sisters.
 * The Chicka-lisk from the theme song makes an appearance in this episode.

Continuity

 * This episode takes place alongside "Night Drivers", after "A Day at the Aquarium".
 * MicroAngelo appears in the fwagon which he's kissed by Polly then gets thrown away as she's frantically finding the gift list.
 * The events of the episode "Swamp and Sensibility" are mentioned.
 * Anne remembers that lying will only make things worse, possibly referring to Hop Pop's lie to the town with the potions in "Plantar's Last Stand".
 * Sprig tells Ivy when he was swallowed by the Ant Queen from "Marcy at the Gates".

Production notes

 * While Syliva Sundew has a couple of lines in the episode, her voice actress, Mona Marshall, is not credited. Additionally, Felicia Sundew's voice actress, Kaitlyn Robrock, is only listed under Additional Voices, despite the fact that she has been directly credited to her characters in the past.

Allusions

 * Pixiu - The Chicka-lisk's diet is gold, just like the Chinese mythical creature.
 *  - The book that Anne and the Plantars use to summon the Chicka-lisk resembles the Necronomicon.
 *  - When Hop Pop jumps towards the Chicka-lisk with Polly, he shouts in a strikingly similar manner as Mario did in prototype versions of the game, before was brought in to voice the character. Not only does Hop Pop do it again in the second segment of the following episode, but as he does it, he also swings Anne and the others around much like Mario does to Bowser's tail in the game.
 *  - The Chicka-lisk's song is a choir heavy orchestral piece, a possible allusion to the iconic song One-Winged Angel.

Errors

 * Hop Pop's Road Rules appear again when Polly looks for the wish list. However, the book got destroyed in its debut episode, "Fort in the Road".