"Lost in Language" is certainly an interesting one, and to be upfront, is in my opinion up there with "Covention" as one of the best of the series yet.
Just the setup of it predominantly taking place in a library lends itself to a ton of imaginative and fun ideas. Seeing what kind of literature would exist in a magical world, the unique creatures that inhabit various library functions, and especially the Wailing Star causing all the illustrations to manifest into reality (for better and for worse)... There's so much to love on the conceptual end of things alone, to the point where even the scenes that barely have anything of substance going on are a joy to watch. And the only thing more interesting than that is the character insight that results from all this, which is easily where this episode shines the brightest.
This is probably one of Luz's finer displays as a character. None of the traits shown are anything new, but they all seem intermixed in such an ideal way, where her faults are certainly spotlighted but never to a degree that anyone would find overwhelming. She starts out as being plain eager to explore the sights of a magical library and, upon encountering Amity, try in vain to gain her friendship before being taken advantage of by older Blight siblings Emira and Edric. She does goof around a bit more than usual, and she's a bit on the impressionable side just by following them, but it doesn't take too long for her to discover their full intentions and immediately flips back upon finding out. From then on, all she wants is to make things right however she can and be plain true to herself. She may be overeager and mistake-prone, but she isn't stupid. She has a clear moral compass and will stand up for it.
But of course, we gotta talk about Amity Blight's role. Being only her third notable appearance and 7 episodes into the run, it's crazy how much insight we get on her and how naturally it feels. Right at the start, she's very clearly taking joy in reading stories to the kids, already showing a softer side that we hadn't even remotely seen before, showing she does have a good heart in places. In addition, her conflicting feelings toward Luz are strongly emphasized over the course of the story, going from cold, to angry, to a bit cheerful, and then back to ambivalent. She also proves much more active, particularly in the climax where she and Luz have to team up. Also of note is how frequently she has to deal with Emira and Edric constantly teasing and belittling her, and how she refuses to let Luz specifically know of any softness she displays in public, filling many holes as to where her superiority complex displayed in her previous appearances stem from.
Oh yeah, and there's also an Eda and King subplot where they have to take care of some bat-children so they could get handsomely paid by the Bat Queen. It's honestly a pretty simplistic subplot, as it's never explained why the Bat Queen consults Eda in the first place, as well as Eda growing fond of them by the end feeling pretty unearned. That said, it's honestly one of the best executed E&K subplots of the season, with Eda boasting many a fantastic line, as well as it being a nice change of pace for her to reluctantly take on a more motherly role (where Wendie Malick's voice is especially put to great use). That, and they made sure to keep it as unintrusive as possible; apart from the 'bookends' where Luz goes to and returns from the library, it only is around for about 2 minutes, and by the time things start getting exciting in the A-plot, the latter goes completely uninterrupted until the action has wound down.
But because there always has to be a catch, SMIP animated this episode. Much like "The Intruder", they do a great job with the effects and atmosphere, but the characters simply don't fare as well, in fact sometimes it seems like they're outright struggling just to keep them on-model. This especially stands out with Amity, as this would end up being their only time working with the character. The work itself doesn't appear to be any worse than their previous entries, but the fact this episode is much more character-driven than their last outing makes it stand out all the more, which is pretty unfortunate. Granted, the writing and story are too strong for them to hurt the episode too much, but it is still a bit of a distractor from the experience. Only one more episode to go with them, guys...
That is one unsettling Hooty.
Eda being initially reluctant to babysit only to get enamored by the shells she stands to gain is so wonderfully in-character.
Well, this is a freaky design - literally just a head with limbs attached to it. The detail in those claws only makes it more unsettling.
Luz's brief exchange with the librarian, trying to innocently excuse Eda's actions, is pretty fun. I honestly kind of wish we got more of him.
We get a few quick images of Luz exploring the library, which admittedly contains a lot of puns and sight gags, but they still get the job done in establishing the kind of setting we're dealing with. I always get a kick out of Luz hanging onto the trail of books.
Two hilarious things onscreen at once here: the orb here not only has to 'load' but has the freaking AOL dial-up noise (I wonder how many kids get that one), and Luz hides by 'pretending to be a book', as if that's going to help in the slightest.
This scene of Amity reading to the young ones is so sweet, not just in the surprise factor in terms of the character but also the passionate delivery from Mae Whitman. I would legitimately love to hear her read audiobooks.
The fact these two enter the scene by calling themselves well-wishers only to immediately patronizing Amity by calling her "Mittens" is a good way to foreshadow the Blights' relationship before Luz starts to suspect things, especially since Luz isn't able to see the red face.
What follows is a little running gag of Edric and Emira making mischief at the expense of this librarian, who overreacts each time. Not much, but I like his existential crisis when the "non" is erased. "Is our world but fiction? Then what in my life is real anymore?"
This nod the two give before they start scheming with Luz is simple, but communicates so much. They are in complete sync with each other, and from what is said before and after it makes it pretty clear they're about to use Luz as a little pawn.
"Rock. Rock. Maternal gesture." If the way this line is written doesn't make you laugh, it'll be the unbelievably flat read from Malick.
A very rare use of a smear frame in this show. Freaky.
The quick imagery of the Wailing Star pass through is probably where SMIP shines the best, with the attractive rainbow shining through the window and the dim lights across the rest of the room. It's not even a complicated image, I'm probably overhyping this, but it really is so nice to look at in my opinion. Plus it actually letting out a wailing noise is good for a giggle.
I enjoy how chill this scene is, where they just kind of mess around with the enchanted books. These are some of the better gags we get out of it.
I wish that Eda reading the Otabin book had more to it, but the buildup to it is pretty funny and the way it transitions to Luz reading it herself is really freaking seamless.
I like how Luz knew better than to mess with Otabin, and was instead forced into it by Edric. I don't know what's up with her misshaped eyes though.
Yeah, you just know the series had to get a Twilight reference in there at some point.
Aww, Amity has a self-persona of Azura on the cover of her diary. The simplistic nature of the drawing only makes it more charming.
The concept of mini-recordings emerging from the diary pages may not be that inventive, but I still enjoy how it plays out, especially with the varied looks we get from Amity. The bits of dialogue are a little on-the-nose, but a look at her insecurities is still pretty appreciated.
This face Amity gives upon declaring Luz a bully leaves a little to be desired (why is her head so big?), but I think it still works fine given that it's meant to be a more subtle scene anyway. The line read is low and flat, suggesting that Amity is disappointed, but not too surprised with how much things have gone against her.
This blush comes from Emira calling her 'cutie'. Interpret it however you want.
The redrawn Otabin scheming to stitch his "friends" in the book is a pretty solid conflict, and a good way to turn something cute to menacing. The glow around the teeth, eyes, and eyebrows (the modified parts) is a clever touch too.
Luz trying to save the day as "The Good Witch Luzura" is such a fun idea. Just a shame this episode wasn't given to Rough Draft or Sugarcube, as they would've truly made this design pop to life. That, and this dramatic buildup is all for her getting stopped in about 5 seconds, which is certainly in-character but pretty underwhelming for what could've been really cool.
Amity's first positive interaction around Luz occurs here, in response to the latter admitting she wasn't thinking. In-context, it's just a little break from the action, but the fact she gets even a little enjoyment out of being around who she hated for most of this episode is a great way to sow the seeds for what's to come.
Plus, you have to admit it's only fitting for her to play a major role in saving the day, both untying Luz and summoning an eraser for Luz to "right a wrong". She may've been angry at the human, but as shown at the beginning of the episode, she has too much of a heart deep down to let anything bad happen to her.
And she goes right back to sweet as she comforts the reverted Otabin. Cute.
Amity's line here isn't the best written: "Maybe you aren't a bully. I haven't exactly been the friendliest witch either. I'll think on that." But her turn to ambivalence upon Luz's gesture of kindness is still satisfying, especially given it directly ties to Luz trying to befriend her earlier.
The Bat Queen's design isn't that much different from the babies, but something about the extremely human-like face and narrow eyes adds a lot to the uncanny factor.
Like I said, I don't entirely buy Eda missing the babies, but it does allow for this witty bookend (no pun intended).
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