Anne or Beast?

“
One minute, I was in my world and the next thing I knew I was here. I don't know how to get home or if I even can go home. So, yup, that's my story.
”

—Anne Boonchuy

**"Anne or Beast?"** is the first segment of the first episode of the first season of *Amphibia*, and the first episode overall, which also serves as the series premiere.

It first premiered online on June 14, 2019, on DisneyNOW and YouTube, and premiered on Disney Channel on June 17, 2019, alongside "Best Fronds".

## Synopsis

*Sprig tries to capture a mysterious beast to prove that he’s responsible.*

## Plot

Late at night, a one-eyed frog named Wally walks out of Stumpy's Diner. He greets some frogs sitting nearby, and trips over some barrels before making his way down the road. As he sings and plays his concertina, he hears some bushes rustle and a twig crack. Feeling scared, he turns back and bumps into something with two wide eyes. He screams as crows fly off in both directions.

The next day, people in Wartwood Swamp are doing their typical work and regular business. Meanwhile, Hop Pop Plantar is in a cart with a slug riding to the town center. He talks about doing some shopping at the Grub & Go and asks his granddaughter Polly to watch the cart, but Sprig (his grandson and Polly's older brother) assumes he will be the one watching it, saying he will defend the cart with his life due to him being older. Hop Pop says that he was talking to Polly and gets into an argument with Sprig, along with a series of flashbacks showing how Sprig is irresponsible, such as not turning off the lights at night, resulting in giant fireflies crashing into their house.

Hop Pop commands Polly to make sure Sprig doesn’t get out of the cart and to watch over him while he enters the shop. All of a sudden, Wally arrives crashing through some brushes and trees and announces that there's a monster in the woods. He then grabs some twigs and rocks to create a model of what he saw and states that it would eat everything. Mayor Toadstool then declares that the creature should be caught and dealt with as that is the 'right' thing to do for his citizens as everyone applauds for him. Sprig sees this as the perfect opportunity to make his grandfather think he's responsible, but Polly knows he can't overpower her, so instead Sprig bribes Polly with candy and runs off to hunt the "beast" as Polly yells "Don't die" after him as he enters the forest.

Sprig then wanders the forest, hiding in bushes and tree stumps and trying to find any trace of the mysterious beast. He finds some footprints and declares that the beast roams these parts. As he continues down a path he steps into a rope trap and gets hung by a tree as something erupts from the bushes right in front of him; a human girl named Anne Boonchuy. Sprig screams "The beast!" as Anne walks over to him and asks him to stop following her. She explains that she was trying to ask directions from Wally, but while she's talking, nearby trees begin to crash down as the real 'beast' approaches. Anne runs away but seeing Sprig trying to free himself arrives back and cuts him loose before grabbing him and hiding in a fallen log as the beast saunters off.

Sprig declares that Anne isn't a beast but a very ugly heroic creature as the two introduce themselves to each other. Anne asks Sprig for something to eat "other than bugs" and Sprig leads her through the woods to find other types of food such as mushrooms.

Back at the town, the citizens want to hunt the "beast". Hop Pop returns from his shopping and realizes that Polly is sick eating candy, and that Sprig is gone. Polly says it wasn't her fault, and explains that Sprig went off to try and hunt the beast down. Wally states that now Sprig would be good as eaten by now if he tried to find the beast, to which Hop Pop yells, "Hold on, boy! Hop Pop's a coming!" while grabbing Polly and dashing into the forest. Shortly after the rest of the angry mob follows him as well, led by Mayor Toadstool.

Back in the forest with Anne and Sprig, Anne eats some twig-like roots and claims that they taste pretty good. Sprig asks who and what she is and Anne answers that she’s a human being from "another world!" Sprig then asks how it happened, but Anne doesn’t know. Her goal now is to get home. After Anne says that’s her story, she asks Sprig why he is in the woods. He responds that he wants to prove to his family that he is responsible by hunting a beast down to which he awkwardly replies.

Soon, Wally appears and shouts out that Sprig found "the beast". The citizens find Anne and tie her up to the ground. Anne accuses Sprig of setting everything up, but he states that he didn't while Hop Pop and Polly congratulate him on capturing the beast and say he maybe is responsible after all. Then an actual beast arrives in the form of a green praying mantis and the Amphibians deal with it quickly by commencing their 'mantis formation' and driving it off, but when a larger and more threatening red one arrives, they scream in fear and scatter as the bigger mantis chases after them. Sprig unties Anne to let her run away while he distracts the monster with his slingshot. However, Anne decides to help Sprig and grabs the mantis' arm just as it's about to crush him, during which her eyes briefly flash blue. She holds its arm while Sprig ties the beast up with some rope. He attempts to pull the rope, but the monster is stronger and is about to pull itself free before Anne slides down and grabbing the other side of the rope, pulls hard enough to cause the creature to come crashing down. Everyone cheers, but Mayor Toadstool decides that the best option would be to run the creature out of town just to be safe. Sprig then defends Anne, stating she's a helpless creature and that they should look after her, to which Wally replies she'll probably wake up in the morning and eat everyone up. Hop Pop intervenes and agrees to look after Anne and tells Sprig that defending the creature was very responsible of him, but also quite dumb. Everyone heads home as the frogs pulls the defeated monster behind them, one stating it would 'taste great in butter'. Sprig feels bad and thinks he's still in trouble. Hop Pop denies that sad comment and tells him that saving the family and the mob from the mantis was brave, responsible, and "dumb". While discussing, Anne realizes that she has her phone with her in the first place, however, she finds out there is no signal and puts it away. She asks Hop Pop for a map to get out of the woods. He shows a map to Anne and reveals that "The Valley" has enclosed mountains which are impassible this time of year. Spring comments that the area might clear up in a few months, but Hop Pop and Polly warn Anne that she will "die" if she tries to cross them before then. Anne asks where she can stay in the meantime.

Back at the Plantar Farm, Hop Pop shows Anne the basement where she'll be staying and Polly arrives with her rolling pin asking whether she should use "Old Doris" on her. As she leaves, Sprig appears at the door and drops some old stuffed toys for Anne, but quickly taking them back one by one saying he still needs them. He looks up and says he's happy she's staying with them before warning her of bed bugs that can drain a body in seconds. Anne sits down on her mattress and pulls out the Calamity Box and closes her eyes before opening it, but to no avail as it doesn't transport her back to Earth. She tries it again a few times before sighing and claiming "Looks like I'm gonna be here for a while".

## Cast

* Brenda Song as Anne Boonchuy
* Justin Felbinger as Sprig Plantar
* Bill Farmer as Hop Pop Plantar
* Amanda Leighton as Polly Plantar
* James Patrick Stuart as Wally
* Stephen Root as Mayor Toadstool, Villagers (credited as additional voices)
* Jack McBrayer as Toadie (uncredited)

### Additional voices

* Dee Bradley Baker as Green Praying mantis, Red Praying mantis
* Liam O'Brien as Top Blue Frog, Villagers
* Eden Riegel as Female Villager
* Amir Talai as Villagers

### Non-speaking cameo

* Sadie Croaker
* Felicia Sundew
* Leopold Loggle
* Mr. Flour

## Trivia

* **Viewership:** This episode was watched by 0.39 million viewers on its premiere.
* A fully animated scene was cut, possibly due to time restraints. It featured Polly appearing in the door after Hop Pop leaves Anne.
* Felicia Sundew, Sadie Croaker, Mr. Flour, Leopold Loggle and most of the amphibians of Wartwood make non-speaking cameos.
* Toadie's voice is noticeably different compared to his current one.
* Despite being the first episode to air, it alongside "Best Fronds" are not the first episodes produced in production order.
* A clip from the episode premiered at the *Amphibia* panel at Disney Channel Fan Fest 2019, on April 27, 2019. It was later uploaded to Disney Channel's YouTube channel that same day.

### Revelations and significant events

* Many things are revealed about the main and supporting characters in the first episode:
	+ Anne:
		- She's a human.
		- Her last name is Boonchuy.
		- She got transported to Amphibia by the Calamity Box.
		- She is seen as the town monster.
		- She hates bugs.
	+ Sprig:
		- He is irresponsible.
		- He trusts Anne.
		- He is fond of his stuffed animals.
	+ Polly:
		- She is more responsible than her big brother.
		- She is strong.
		- She is a pollywog with no legs.
		- She likes candy, and has candy problems.
	+ Hop Pop:
		- His real name is Hopediah.
		- He cares about his family.
		- He goes shopping for the family, and seems to know the staff relatively well.
		- He owns the Plantar Farm.
	+ Mayor Toadstool:
		- He has a motto, "safety comes first".
		- He and the town have a mantis formation.
	+ Stumpy owns a restaurant named after himself.
	+ Wally plays the concertina (often mistakenly referred to as an "accordion").
* Anne resides with the Plantar family by the end of the episode.
* A lovesick frog gets abducted by a giant dragonfly, setting up a running gag of him being carried by the dragonfly throughout the rest of the series.

### Continuity

* As revealed by the tally marks in Sasha's cell in the following episode, this episode takes place at least two weeks after Anne's teleportation to Amphibia.
* Anne initially has trust issues with Sprig, presumably due to her obedience to Sasha and Marcy prior to her teleportation.
* Anne fears that she would be stuck in Wartwood for two months. This would later be revealed to be an underestimate, as the mountain passes would actually clear up in three months.
	+ The events of "Toad Tax"/"Prison Break" would occur two months later instead.
* Anne still has the Calamity Box in her possession, though it seems to be currently inactive, as the gems on the box appear to be colorless.
* One of Sadie Croaker's cowapillars appears. More of them can be seen later in "Hop Luck".

## Allusions

* **"Man or Beast"**: The title "Anne or Beast" is a play on the phrase "Man or Beast".
* ***Pac-Man***: When Polly eats up the candy Sprig gives her, she makes sounds that sound like they're from a classic Pac Man-esque video game.

## Errors

* When Sprig looks at Anne's footprint, the slingshot he is holding disappears.
* When Anne frees Sprig from her trap, the remaining rope tied around Sprig's foot disappears when he falls on the ground.
* When Anne leaps to start sliding into the log with Sprig, for a frame, her school logo disappears off her shirt.
* When Anne is tied up, the ropes around her keep changing designs in every shot.
* When Mayor Toadstool asks what they are going to do with Anne, Wally's left shoe is the same color as his right one
* When Sprig stops the townsfolk from attacking Anne by talking, a part of shading on his left sleeve disappears for a few frames.
* Anne responds to the Plantars telling her about the mountains with, "Are you telling me I'm stuck here in this crazy place for two months?" However, no one specifically said two months; Sprig only said a couple of months.
* When Sprig peeks around the corner to ask Anne if she is comfortable, the lighter part of the skin on Sprig's face is dark for a frame.
* The Plantars were using a green slug to go to the store, but in the rest of the show, they used Bessie. *It could be possible that the Plantars needed to borrow the slug or something.*

### Edits

* In the Southeast Asia broadcast, the word "heck" was cut.

## Memorable quotes

“
I don't have a candy problem! You have a candy problem!
”

—Polly

“
Mm-hmm. So, first question: What the heck are you, and where did you come from?!
”

—Sprig

“
Okay. Good night. Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite. Seriously, they can drain a body in seconds.
”

—Sprig

## Videos

"Anne or Beast?" and "Best Fronds" 🐸 Full EpisodeAnne or Beast? - Best FrondsSneak Peek Amphibia Disney ChannelAmphibia's First and Last Scene - Disney Channel Animation

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Metcalf, Mitch (June 18, 2019). SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 6.17.2019. *Showbuzz Daily*. Archived from the original on 2019-06-19.
2. ↑ Radical Buster (August 8, 2019). "International Disney Networks Thread Part 4 | Anime Superhero Forum". Anime Superhero Forum. Retrieved on September 5, 2019.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.wdtvpress.com/disneychannel/shows/amphibia/episodes/anne-or-beast-best-fronds/
4. ↑ Matt Braly, Adam Colás, Jack Ferraiolo, Gloria Shen (writers) and Derek Kirk Kim, Kyler Spears, Bert Youn (directors) (July 18, 2019). "Reunion". *Amphibia*. Season 1. Episode 20. Disney Channel.
5. ↑ Matt Braly, Jack Ferraiolo (writers) and Bert Youn (director) (July 2, 2019). "Prison Break". *Amphibia*. Season 1. Episode 10B. Disney Channel.