Season One: Exploring ADVENTURE IN CHINA
Britrock website copyright EA Woolley
ADVENTURE IN CHINA
This is one of the early episodes of Jem and it's fairly formulaic - Jem
vs Misfits, Jem wins in the end thanks to help of a local girl. This formula
does appear again in the series (Hot Time in Hawaii is one that springs to
mind) yet somehow each episode has it's own twist. This time we're in China
- so we're expected to believe, Jem and the Holograms have a big following
there - and the battle is on for who will play the concert at the Great Wall.
Character-wise, Aja and Roxy are in many ways more significant in this episode
than they maybe are in other episodes - Roxy has a real lead role in this
one and Aja's Chinese roots are made plain to all.
SOMETHING IS MISSING...BUT WHAT?
Well. We could start with Jerrica's ethics, but no. The earrings. This is
a very weird episode really as regards the Holograms. Jerrica sings "Something
Is Missing" about the earrings that Roxy stole, but in truth it isn't the
earrings that she's mourning at all. If anything it's Synergy - without the
computer's holograms she is unable to transform to Jem, but the realisation
must have sunk in that without the earrings, there is no way to communicate
with Synergy outside of the room at the Starlight Mansion. Synergy has already
proven herself a valuable ally, giving good advice and often getting them
out of jams. Though they are not happy about missing the concert at the Great
Wall, I think the bigger picture is also there, too. Jerrica knows that no
earrings means no Jem and no Synergy. But even additional to that, it means
no Holograms, no Starlight Music and no funding for the Starlight Foundation.
And, even though at a later point Jerrica chooses to give up the Jem hologram
for a while (Glitter and Gold), this is entirely out of her control. Since
it's clear control is important to Jerrica right from the off, this is perhaps
the biggest blow of all. Having said all of that, her desperation and anger
does not justify her jumping to conclusions and attempting to steal a pair
of earrings from a Chinese museum. The earrings turn out to be fake, but why
they could not just have gone and spoken with the curator is beyond me. Jerrica
just grabs them out of the case - setting a terrible example to kids everywhere.
That is one of those "dodgy" heroine moments that Jerrica could do well to
lose ;) Since a big part of this episode is about not stealing someone else's
property like the Misfits do, it's rather a large faux pas.
But then, this episode DOES have a few weird moments. Jem refuses to remove
her jemstar earrings to go through the metal detector - yet there is no reason
to suppose Synergy's ray will be switched off if she does, since Jem takes
them off when she goes into the Chinese Spa Bath, leaving them on the side.
And here is another weird moment, since when the earrings are stolen, Jem
morphs to Jerrica, revealing that she is wearing her kimono IN THE SPA BATH!.
And why (why why WHY?) doesn't Jerrica tell Rio that Jem is missing, rather
than "I don't want to talk about it"?
AJA'S HERITAGE
In case it's not obvious to anyone already, Aja is Chinese-American, and
in this episode we get to see how much a part of her it is. She's is excited
about playing in China that when they think they won't get to do their show,
she is actually in tears (something very foreign to Aja throughout the series.
Equally, when the earrings are missing, Aja proves she has another ability
- she both reads and understands Chinese characters, telling us that her heritage
before she was a Starlight girl maintained a good part of Chinese culture
and custom. You can only imagine, therefore, how thrilled she is to be a
part of this tour. In fact, it is Aja who takes the Holograms to the museum,
wanting to look at Ancient Chinese Art. Yep, she's well into her culture
all right, though this is probably the only time it is really touched on!
ROXY, LEAD MISFIT?
This episode is a weird one from the point of view of the Misfits. Though
usually Pizzazz is at the helm of what the band do, this episode casts Roxy
far more into the lead role. It's Roxy who orders Stormer to throw the earrings
from the train - an order immediately obeyed. It's Roxy who seems to be sitting
talking to Eric about how to handle the Holograms on the plane. (Why Roxy
is sitting by Eric and Pizzazz is across the aisle is very strange considering
the usual setup!). When Eric tells her it wasn't easy to get into China,
Roxy comes over all thoughtful and says that "we'll just have to see what
we can do about changing their minds." It's Roxy who notices something funny
about the earrings and, being Roxy, she trots on over and swipes them herself!
And of course, it's Roxy who sends the cable car mad!! But the key scene
is when the Misfits are doing Kung Fu - Pizzazz says "guess we'll have to
brush up on our Kung Fu" while it's Roxy who says "Come on!", while it's
Roxy who decides Aja will be okay climbing up the rock face and decides that
it's time for the Misfits to go. All the usual Pizzazz roles!
Yet the strange thing here for me is that Roxy does not notice anything unusual
about them once she has them in her hands. Throughout the series we often
see Roxy tinkering with machinery or electronics or something gadget-like
in order to make it cause as much chaos as possible. It seems odd, therefore,
that she does not notice the wiring and realise that these earrings are holographic
projectors (or at least some mechanised part of Jem's act.) Instead they
simply clone the earrings many times in order to cause as much confusion
as possible. You might agree with me that it's also weird that, even after
causing all this chaos, the Misfits do not realise that the earrings are
the key to Jem's act, because they never again make an attempt to steal them.
No, I don't think they're that stupid, either - Stormer even makes it clear
that she knows Jem always wears the earrings when she performs. So why they
didn't is a mystery to me!
Roxy's two main weaknesses are also on show in this episode, if you're quick
enough to look for them. Firstly, when they are on the aeroplane, Eric asks
Roxy if she wants to see the view. Roxy's response is "who cares about a
big wall?", as if she's really not interested. But we discover in a later
episode (Music Awards) that Roxy is petrified of heights. This is the first
indication in the series, therefore, about her phobia.
The second weakness is her illiteracy. When the band get off the plane, there
are fans waiting to greet them with a banner reading "Misfats." Roxy is absolutely
oblivious to the fact there is the wrong name on the banner - she simply
points out that they have supporters too, and it takes Pizzazz to notice
the spelling mistake.
And there is Roxy's bond with Stormer, too. It's Stormer she tells to throw
away the earrings. Stormer she sits next to on the plane. If you watch closely
in most episodes, the Misfits have a 2 - 1 formation, with Pizzazz usually
left with Eric or out on her own. In most episodes it doesn't matter because
she's lead Misfit. But in this one it's slightly different, with Roxy as
central figure and Pizzazz and Stormer alternately "with" her.
LIN
Well, it has to be there. The token native girl who saves the day. The writers
get a lot into a short space of time with Lin, the chinese girl whose father
finds Jem's real earrings. Firstly, there is the scene where Lin defends
herself from the bullies, and this is the covert "anti-bullying" message
that the episode conveys (not quite as flawed as the anti-theft one!). Then
there is the touching scene where Lin offers her precious earrings to Jem
to help her, and they turn out to be the real earrings. This is the "giving
is good" message, but I find it an amazing amount of coincidences that Lin
manages to find the EXACT earrings. Oh well. It's quite sweet really, how
this little devoted fan from a poor background manages to save the day.
CONCLUSION
First off, I must give Jerrica an award for most dodgy line - "Follow that
rickshaw!" Aside from that, it's a fairly straightforward episode with a
few veiled messages. For me the most interesting part is Roxy's changing
role in the Misfits - but I bet you guessed that, huh?
Episode rating: 7/10.
Original site concept c. 2001
This version c.2014
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