Marco Toons: Worst To Best

## *The Lemonade Stand* or *Party Time?* They're both very funny.

Since the original film debuted in 2005, the *Marco* franchise has expanded greatly from its cinematic achievements to various other forms of media and entertainment: *Marco* videogames, *Marco* television shows such as Nickelodeon's *The Marvelous Misadventures Of Marco,* more Joaquin & Emiliano merchandise, and of course... Marco Toons. With 17 crazy shorts under its belt, this vast collection of Marco Toons surely bring plenty of big laughs from Joaquin & Emiliano and tug your heartstrings even more, and now it's about time to rank them all...

### Worst:

#### 19. The Nightmare At El Paso Street (2015)

Released before *Hotel Cloudylandia 2* (2015)

A rather ghoulish attempt at recreating *The Nightmare On Elm Street,* this Marco Toon might leave younger and older fans scared at seeing Marco and his friends fall prey to the infamous Black Terror, some notorious Al Capone known for child robbing who would later make a dark appearance in *Joaquin & Emiliano: The Rise Of Marco*. As the darkest Marco Toon ever created - yes, even more so than Aileene's own 2017 short film - this is perhaps more traumatizing than its follow up movie *Hotel Cloudylandia 2*, which would bring more genuine laughs and heart than this Marco Toon.

#### 18. A New Kid On The Block (2013)

Released before *Marco 2* (2013)

Guess who's the new kid on the block? No, not another one of Marco's wacky minions. Instead, it's someone who goes by Abel, that same guy who only appears on *Marco 2* just to provide some fatty jokes. When Abel invites his homies over for Marco's nightclub DJ party, chaos ensures as they hammer down things to some terrible dispute that ends with well, burp and fart jokes.

#### 17. Mismatched Bodies (2021)

Released before *Hotel Cloudylandia 3: Traversmania* (2021) in select theaters and Anaya+

What happens if teenage lovey-doveys Marco & Aileene swapped each other's personalities and lives? Nothing really happens as a surprise, which is why some *Marco* fans consider this as one of the worst Marco Toons ever made. Granted, Marco becomes the world's greatest pop singer despite his lack of enthusiasm while Aileene does a great job making movies, but it's rather weird to see Marco wearing some uncomfy pink dress to impress his fans. It could've been better if *Mismatched Bodies* were sort of having the *Traversmania* effect, don't you think?

#### 16. The Last Marco Toon Ever (2021)

Released along with *Marco 5: Epilogue* (2022) exclusively on Anaya+

*The Last Marco Toon Ever* was actually kind of... meh. In case if you haven't seen this yet, it continues Marco's adventures in Hotel Iandonia as he prepares one special party for his friends. But then something happens, Marco presumably dies and everyone gets worried about him, yet our beloved espionage antihero isn't actually dead. He just pretends to be some phantom in order to prank his friends... at the exact same party he made for them. Consider this Marco Toon as dark comedy and something of hope for the COVID-19 pandemic, but also keep in mind the bad jokes and how the script used here for one particular scene in *Marco 3* is really more of the same.

#### 15. Family Staycation (2021)

Released before *Joaquin & Emiliano: The Rise Of Marco* (2021)

I thought this one was gonna be good, but I was kinda wrong when I realized how mediocre Marco's family staycation was. Aside from some funny moments - you've never seen some monster fish scare the chills out of Joaquin & Emiliano at the outdoor dinner table before - and moments such as the "Christmas In July" gift exchange and Marco's impressions towards Aileene, the latter messed things up when she had to leave Marco for no apparent reason, and yet the short has some rather mediocre attempts at comedy. But anyway, who doesn't love to get soaked by Coke and slurp some at the Schiltterbahn Iandonia waterpark?

#### 14. The Adventures Of Joaquin & Emiliano (2006)

Released before *Timmy's Family Reunion* (2007) by Lionsgate Home Entertainment.

Bordered by a simple premise and some sight gags that might seem dated enough for these years, *The Adventures Of Joaquin & Emiliano* delivers Marco's comical duo of cousins to retrieve some missing wallet, escape from a cute but cunning pig, and return Mama's lost chick to her nest before their parents arrive home first. Sounds more like three crazy responsibilities, right kids?

#### 13. Kevin's Day Out (2015)

Released along with *Marco 3* (2015) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

This rather strange attempt at making a Marco Toon about Kevin - Marco's calmed down neighbor next door voiced by the late Robin Williams, now the decent Mel Gibson - and his lovely sister Marlene seems the more bizarre as some UFO from Mars approaches the Dallas skyline. Little do we know that Kevin's grandparents get kidnapped by little green aliens before Kevin and his sister launch some soda-and-Mentos fueled rocket to space. Out of this world hysteria ensures.

#### 12. Marco's Great Adventure (2010)

Released before *Hotel Cloudylandia* (2010)

*Marco's Great Adventure* starts when our beloved titular antihero and his friends embark on some hilarious if crazy journey near the Blue Lagoon at Huntsville, where the fate of these buddies depend on some bike hike. It plays out much like *The Amazing Race,* but then it gets *Survivor* mode as Marco desperately attempts to find his missing crew.

#### 11. The Long Road Trip (2017)

Released along with *Joaquin & Emiliano: The Movie* (2018) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

How long does the Zbylots' continuous road trip take? Where is everyone heading to? Are we there yet? These questions abound on this 2017 Marco Toon as Marco and his siblings wonder many things before heading to their final destination: an old town near San Antonio named New Braunfels. Along the way, they see lovely green pastures, mysterious attractive ghost towns, and Wonder World. Between their stop at the nearby Buc-ee's in Katy and the more far away Rudy's Barbecue located in New Braunfels, there's not really enough gags to laugh hard at - due to the lack of Joaquin & Emiliano - yet it's worth the long trip down the road.

#### 10. Josue's New Kart (2013)

Released along with *Marco 2* (2013) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

The race is on... yet Marco lacks one special thing: his newly made go-kart from Josue - the guy who challenges him and his friends for the most ambitious supercharged death race ever - and guess what? Nobody really wins the race... except for Marco Jr himself. How is it possible that Marco's younger self outsmarted his more iconic twin in some kiddie raceway? Who knows, just ask Marco Jr and he would say yes.

#### 9. The Lemonade Stand (2013)

Released along with *Marco 2* (2013) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

One hot summer day in June, Marco's two wacky cousins set up their own lemonade stand. However, when snarky rivals Derek & Brian crush it and set up their Vegas-style buffet of Kool-Aid powdered lemonades, Joaquin & Emiliano soon discover that the only way to attract more customers would be exposing Derek's huge sacks of stolen sugar to the public. Perhaps the most hilarious animated short of 2013 - and one of the funniest Marco Toons ever made - this Joaquin & Emiliano short film is naturally as good as some fresh pink lemonade.

#### 8. Kiddies Ahoy! (2018)

Released along with *Joaquin & Emiliano: The Movie* (2018) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Aaargh! Your favorite wacky cousins and their buddies are now pirates, swashbuckling against other pirates who are literally Bryan's little gangster friends led by the fearsome Sinbad. However, when the other side seems like winning the *Battleship* game, Joaquin & Emiliano's crew trade their swords for guns as Texas cowboys... and yes, of course they win. The idea of cowboys and pirates batting each other - despite not being made as a feature animated film - is excellent, made the more gratifying with two *Popeye* references and Emiliano's candy obsessed parrot.

#### 7. Good Troublemakers (2018)

Released before *Joaquin & Emiliano: The Movie* (2018)

As Marco leaves the underground lair for some spy convention at Dallas, his mischievous minions once again make more nonstop mischief. Although pranking on the neighbors seems like a good idea to them, things are literally taken too far enough when gum lover Esau blows some sticky pink menace out of his mouth. And just like said pink menace, this 2018 Marco Toon starring your favorite wacky cousins and their buddies pops out several monster-sized laughs and unexpected twists along the way. This short also asks the audience to enjoy chewing gum while watching this, and expect them to do so when a CG animated Willy Wonka appears on screen with Hershey's chocolate bars.

#### 6. Joaquin & Emiliano Go To The Movies! (2021)

Released before *Animated* (2021)

In case if you thought Joaquin & Emiliano have their very own movie in 2018, here's a quick synopsis of this Marco Toon: Joaquin & Emiliano get hired as Hollywood celebs for their upcoming film - that is of course, *The Rise Of Marco -* but later things get a crazy turn after the new stars in town, the elusive 80s singer duo known as The Bad Guys, seek to make Tinseltown some Vegas-style crime hub. That's why Joaquin & Emiliano become superheroes as they save our beloved Hollywood, and the sheer expertise of such concept relies on witty jokes and the fact of having Marco's two cousins as the main stars. This Marco Toon, unlike any other seen before, even dares to completely break the fourth wall. How marvelous!

#### 5. Party Time! (2005)

Released along with *Marco* (2005) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

"Ladies and gentlemen of Monstrosity... get ready for this... cause *you will all* suffer the inevitable wrath of.... *PARTY TIME!"* This iconic opening scene reminds me of how Marco used to be: this one kid with big ambitions as the world's greatest spy who later changed heart thanks to emotional support from his family and friends. Here, the party isn't over yet but then two robbers come and Marco's momentum has approached so high that he smacks them both with a huge cake. Despite it being a retread of the original film, I personally really enjoyed the first Marco Toon ever created. Heck, I even put this one on every single birthday party.

#### 4. Tan Is The New Black (2017)

Released along with *Marco 4* (2017) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Despite it being deemed as controversial due to its sort of racist title, tan is actually the new black in this criminally underrated Marco Toon as Joaquin & Emiliano land among a society of racist bad guys. Inspired by the legends of Al Capone and Martin Luther King Jr, this short film plays things at risk when Marco's silly cousins make a sly deal with yet another criminal - Hal McKenzie, who goes by "The Coolest Madman" - in order to escape from juvenile jail. Sure, this is an obvious reference to the 2013 Netflix original series that explores deep themes such as racism and our legal system with these little guys in the most amusing way.

#### 3. Little Cousins (2015)

Released before *Marco 3* (2015)

This Marco Toon is obviously about Joaquin & Emiliano as implied by the title, and of course it's their absolute best. If *Tan Is The New Black* handled the harsh realities of being a young child prisoner very well, then *Little Cousins* knows best how to take good care of the elders and infants we should owe respect. What can be more satisfying for the heart than seeing Joaquin & Emiliano's attempts at saving some baby girl in order to return her to Grandma & Grandpa?

#### 2. Where In The World Is Aileene? (2017)

Released along with *Marco 4* (2017) by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

I've had never seen a Marco Toon be this touching when Marco becomes desperate about searching for the one girl he loves very much. At the beginning, Marco & Aileene spend time together at yellow paradise - where everything is made up of Marco's favorite color - but then something terrible happens to shock: Aileene gets kidnapped by the monstrous Edgar while Marco must face several challenges as teenage Sherlock Holmes, once again. After a series of unfortunate events, Marco and his siblings encounter Hayley (aka Meleene, Aileene's little sister) and together they save Marco's girlfriend from domestic abuse. Just like Aileene's sad backstory, this Marco Toon solely dedicated to Aileene has the right amount of dark sentimentality and lighthearted moments while also having diverting references to *E.T The Extraterrestrial, Inspector Gadget, Shrek,* and *The Nightmare Before Christmas.*

### Best

#### 1. Memories (2017)

Released before *Marco 4* (2017)

Ah... the *Memories* when Marco and his friends used to be together playing party games, enjoying delicious ice cream cakes, and having lots of fun pillow fighting and popping each other's balloons. Whenever I think of this short film, the nostalgic charm of the 2005 CG modern classic that started it all strikes me real hard like thunder and lightning. Sure, we saw the good old times on the silver screen - in the form of black and white - in *Marco 3,* but this Marco Toon captures the most endearing moments we spent with Marco and his gang. It's about growing up and the fact that we must let go of our past, yet it also delivers strong connections to our inner child and how nostalgia can be a good thing. We grew up with these lovable characters, just like how Americans grew up with Woody's gang ever since *Toy Story,* and this short defines their strong lasting friendship which makes *Memories* the absolute best Marco Toon of all time, much like its follow-up feature on my list.