The Book of Rannells: Ridley Jones: Season 3, Episode 3 – “Art of the Steal / Gift of the Mummy” (2022)

Rounding off Andrew Rannells’s latest Ridley Jones appearances with his guest spot from season 3. I’d say by now, based on my limited sample size, the show is firmly in the realm of “good-quality children’s series.” While it definitely remains in a very young demographic, I don’t think the show would bug me if young kids in my life were watching it.

In “Art of the Steal,” Ridley and her friends team up to prevent a legendary painting from being sold away from the museum’s collection, plotting a heist to keep it out of a greedy dealer’s hands. And in “Gift of the Mummy,” Ismat agonizes over what to give her dads for their anniversary. Convinced that her original gift isn’t special enough, she begs Ridley to help her locate a priceless artifact from their past.

I enjoy historical mysteries about creative works, so the story about the painting is fun. The titular Lady from Milan of the painting is played by Rachel Bloom, who brings an amusing energy to the proceedings—“Curse my charisma, flawless brushwork, and mysterious smile that leaves everyone wanting more!” she exclaims when she realizes her fame makes it hard for Ridley and the gang to move her unnoticed. I also like the detail that when Ridley’s grandma was young, her museum friends were the same ones Ridley has now. Since they include such exhibits as mummies, dodos, and dinosaurs, way older than any living human now, it stands to reason that they’d have just been as eager to have a human companion 50+ years ago.

Some enjoyable details in the second story too. Apparently Ridley has a device that can turn the backdrop of an exhibit into a portal to the real thing, which is neat. So when Ismat wants to search her dads’ pyramid for a lost artifact, Ridley activates her device, and they step straight through the wall into Egypt. Even though the lesson in this one—that Ismat doesn’t need a fancy, expensive gift to make her dads happy—is anvilled pretty heavily, it’s still a cute story. I smiled at Ismat telling the other kids that her dads’ anniversary is “the big one: 4,500 years!”

This is certainly the most use the show has gotten out of Andrew Rannells and Chris Colfer so far. Plenty of their dialogue is of course unintentionally laser-focused on making Ismat feel nervous about her gift, since they’re both gaga over all the luxurious presents their subjects have given them, but Rannells delivers the lines without being too hokey, and there are a couple sweet scenes between Ismat and her dads near the end of the episode.

It’s also the first time Rannells and Colfer have sung on the show, which was an oversight that plainly needed to be remedied. Again, it’s an ode to all their fabulous anniversary swag, unknowingly making their daughter feel bad. From the “jewel-encrusted bowls” for the royal cats to “luxury sarcophagi” built for two, they’re basking in all the glamor. Rannells sounds terrific, as per usual, and his voice pairs nicely with Colfer’s.

The Book of Rannells: Ridley Jones: Season 2, Episode 1 – “Bison Ball” / “Dude, Where’s Our Egg?” (2021)

Since I last reviewed Ridley Jones, apparently two more seasons have come out and it looks like Andrew Rannells appeared in an episode of both of them. While it’s still much more of a kids’ show than a family show, I think I enjoyed this one a little than I did either of the season 1 episodes I watched, even though Rannells in only in it briefly.

In “Bison Ball,” the museum exhibits prepare for their annual dance, and Fred the bison is nervous about what to wear. Ismat the mummy volunteers to help out, but she and Fred have very different opinions about their style. And in “Dude, Where’s Our Egg?”, the kids find an unhatched egg in the museum and aren’t sure where it came from. Dudley the dodo and Dante the dinosaur both dream of it being a “little bro” for them and compete over who gets to take care of it.

I’ll start quickly with “Dude, Where’s Our Egg?”, since it’s the story Rannells isn’t in. It’s cute and has some amusing jokes, like the kids warning each other not to look directly into Dudley’s “sad dodo eyes” when he’s trying to get what he wants. And the song Dudley and Dante sing, separately envisioning the fun they’ll have with their new little brother, feels a little stronger to me than any of the songs I heard from season 1. Still not my demographic, obviously, but the show might be hitting its stride a bit more.

Okay, so let’s circle back to “Bison Ball.” I remembered Fred as a character from Rannells’s season 1 episodes, but I didn’t realize at the time that they were nonbinary. So I did a bit of a double-take when I heard Ridley and Ismat casually using they/them pronouns. But that’s cool, and it’s nice to see the gentle lesson of Fred gaining the confidence to express themselves through the outfit they want to wear to the dance, not the ones Ismat picks out for them. This is a good line: “Fashion is about feeling good, and feeling good is about feeling like yourself.” Also, fun fact! Fred is voiced by Iris Menas, a nonbinary performer who played Anybodys in the new West Side Story. Again, the song in this story feels like an improvement on the season 1 offerings.

The only real ding against “Bison Ball” is that it’s woefully short on Andrew Rannells. Ismat’s dads appear briefly to help with Fred’s makeover, so Rannells (and Chris Colfer) are only in one short scene. Rannells’s most noteworthy line here comes when Ridley and Ismat urge Fred to try dancing in their new getup, and Aten exclaims, “It a good thing we got the disco pyramid polished!” At which point, a ceiling panel in the Egyptian exhibit slides back and a miniature “disco pyramid,” held by an upside-down mummy servant who apparently just hangs out in the ceiling waiting to be needed(??), descends and starts twirling.

The Book of Rannells: Ridley Jones: Season 1, Episode 3 – “Un-Fit for a Queen” / “Peaches, We Have a Problem” (2021)

This is Andrew Rannells’s other episode of Ridley Jones. Like episode 2, it’s cute but more than a little flimsy, but this one features less Rannells, so there’s less to interest me.

In “Un-Fit for a Queen,” Ismat the mummy spends the night with Ridley when the Egyptian wing gets flooded, which winds up being a much taller order than Ridley expected. And in “Peaches, We Have a Problem,” the museum installs a new high-tech security that threatens to expose the living exhibits.

Once again, the big theme of each story is painted in very broad strokes, telegraphed so there’s no way to miss it, and in this case, both stories have pretty much the same theme. Watching shows like this for actor reviews make me appreciate stuff like Disney, Pixar, or the recent Maya and the Three even more. Apart from the excellent animation, topnotch writing, hard-hitting emotion, and (in Disney’s case) fantastic music, these are stories that don’t talk down to kids. There’s no assumption that the only way for them to learn is to spell the lesson out in an “are you paying attention, kids?” way. Instead, movies like Moana or Inside Out let their lessons get drawn naturally out of their stories. Now, obviously, something like Ridley Jones is probably made with way less time/money, but it still stands out to me.

One bit of casting to note: Jane Lynch appears in a comedic-opponent role as an employee at the museum, one who doesn’t know the exhibits get up and hang around at night, and Ridley plans on keeping it that way. IMDd tells me it’s a recurring role—even if I’m not overly impressed with the show, it definitely draws some good voice talent.

Like I said, not as much Andrew Rannells in this episode. Again sharing the (animated) screen with Chris Colfer, Ismat’s dads offer a few comic cutaways in “Un-Fit for a Queen.” With their exhibit flooded, Ismat gets to have a sleepover with Ridley, but her dads have to bunk in the dodo exhibit. Dudley the dodo is a very welcoming host but not exactly an ideal roommate. Anyone who’s familiar with Rannells knows he can play exasperation/annoyance well – and for that matter, so does Colfer – although, with this being a friendly kids’ show, it’s very polite, restrained annoyance.

That’s it for Ridley Jones! Season 2 was recently released, but IMDb doesn’t really have any casting info up for the individual episodes. It’s possible that Rannells is in one or more season 2 episodes, but I’m not tenacious enough to watch more without the promise of Rannells—if IMDb gets updated later, I’ll swing back around to it.

Parting thoughts:

Recommend?

In General – Maybe for kids. I do think the setup/premise is fun, even if the show itself seems like it could be better. Maybe season 2 is an improvement?

Andrew Rannells – Not a must. If you’re curious, check out episode 2, which features him a bit more.

Warnings

Nothing, really.