Why Marco 4 Is The Absolute Best

## *Marco 3* might just be somewhat overrated to be honest.

Hands down, Anaya Animation's fourth entry to the most beloved and popular animated franchise of all time is indeed, in my own personal opinion, the absolute BEST film in the franchise. As you have already seen, *Marco 4* chases down unorthodox ideas - such as having Marco play Sherlock this time and introducing some teen rapper who rose to world power - while taking plenty of risks in the animation world as the best romantic espionage comedy ever made. No other *Marco* film except for the threequel could tell such a shockingly mature if somewhat dark story with engaging storylines that appeals to everyone of all ages, especially its target audience: teens Marco's age. Here are several reasons why this underrated *Marco* flick deserves your woohoo and love.

### 1. Trey Parker makes this film amazing, seriously.

If Joe can be described as the funniest cartoon bad guy ever created, then Trey Parker's energetic rappy madman would be considered every *Marco* fan's favorite baddie, and he is very good at being bad aside from his rapping skills. He goes by the name of Edgar, he's perfectly voiced by the creator of *South Park* and his rappy movements are as cool as Marco's are. Aside from finding success with energy drink commercials and having his own army of evil sentiment robot clones of himself, Edgar's motivations for getting revenge on "The Pop Music Capital Of The World" with a giant laser-fueled android are solid enough like said android. He also owns flesh hungry alligators below his black pillar with a shiny reddish Rubik's Cube on top; several gang henchmen; and a raptar that can tune anything 80s he likes from Michael Jackson to A-ha to Elton John, and Eminem of course. Although we might criticize his sheer contempt towards Marco, he even goes as far as landing him on state prison and kidnapping both of his girlfriends under some rocket bomb. However, that does not mean that Edgar is someone with no soul as he too landed himself in prison many times and we could tell he was born to be some gangster, much in part thanks to his only mentioned parents. I'm very sure no other *Marco* bad guy can ever top "Edgar The Teenage Rapper" on any Billboard 200 list to come, not even Joe himself.

### 2. David Spade also makes this film great, so also give thanks to Ian.

You know who David Spade is. He's the guy who voiced Emperor Kuzco from *The Emperor's New Groove* (my absolute favorite Disney film of all time) and the voice behind Griffin aka The Invisible Man from Sony's *Hotel Transylvania*, and here he seems to be overly hyped up with Marco's new director Ian. Just like how Edgar carries rappy vibes to amuse his hypnotized fans, Ian brings plenty of charm and wit to his upbeat town Iandonia, which of course was founded by him as the epicenter of pop culture and music in general. Besides being the richest kid in town, the highly exuberant Ian also serves as the Houston Spy Association's chairman, Marco's eloquent mentor, and also the one who joins Marco aboard his cool speedy Superyacht shouting "WOOHOO YEAH!!!" as they head to Edgar's dark fortress in order to save Princess Mikayla. You make deals with him and he accepts them immediately, you order him Cane's chicken and he would bring it for you, and if you tell him one bad joke about him... he would laugh out loud no matter how stupid it is. Thanks to David Spade's eccentric performance, Ian provides most of the film's funniest jokes and memorable quotes even if he mistakes some fridge for Edgar's vault area, and of course he would always be my favorite espionage guru of all time.

### 3. This movie is about overcoming the bad things in life with the good things.

As you might know, the inspirational motivator Ian (voiced by David Spade) quotes what is perhaps the film's core message: "*You can overcome the bad things in life with the good things"* as he conveys Marco to take down Edgar despite his failed attempts at doing so. This revolutionary quote stays throughout the whole film as Marco realizes that the cruel world we live in is indeed hostile, and he faces that with his own sheer knowledge of good and evil. The film makes the point that bad behavior is inherited through Adam & Eve (heck, there's even an image of them shown at the Iandonia dock); but also acquired when you take matters worse such as in Edgar's case, as he committed several misdemeanors and felonies that led him to become some gangster because his "friends" did the same thing and forced him to do wrong. The film even makes us admit all this repeating evil as something always existent, and that the only way we could demolish this evil would be "overcoming the bad things in life with the good things" and gaining that sense of mutual understanding with each other, and of course being faithful to God's word for all my Christian readers. Marco has always seen the bright side before, but here he had to admit the awful truth and live up to today's changing world for the better; and if it weren't for his buddy Ian, then Marco would have given up by now.

### 4. The idea of Little James Bond becoming teenage Sherlock Holmes is nothing short of clever.

Of course, I know *Marco 3* did something unique by converting our genius spy into some eccentric yet innovative mad scientist who was willing to use his own "failures" for the greater good, but here is where the minds at Anaya Animation truly came up with something even more unique. That is, making Marco disguise himself as the world's most famous sleuth - in teenage form - and having him solve his most terrifying task yet: gathering plenty of evidence at Edgar's haunted mansion in order to prove him wrong. Despite the short execution, the concept of some spy turning to a detective while also adding elements of mystery and so much suspense into a romantic espionage comedy is marvelous, and the film acknowledges that very well with several references to Sherlock Holmes.

### 5. *Marco 4* manages to be very unpredictable for the most part like its detective subplot.

This movie makes me guess many things that I'm eagerly curious to know about Marco & his friends. Where would Marco's other friends from Decker Hills call home now? And above that, will they appear at the film's happy ending as usual? Would Marco's ultimate girl either be the lovely Mikayla or his longtime girlfriend Aileene? Will Marco & his friends fully retire themselves from espionage or not? Above all, how would this movie end? All these questions and more make me wonder why the previous films are very predictable like most animated features these days, especially the mediocre 2013 sequel. I also had never expected anything like Bom Bin's arrival or Aileene's return when I first saw the trailers for this film, yet I'm very glad to see them once again after several years of absence. Although the film could get somewhat predictable at times, it really does something unexpected that its predecessors hadn't done before this came out.

### 6. This film captures some rather awkward and tragic moments in a very exquisite way.

The original 2005 classic might have told you the advantages and perils of childhood, and its 2015 threequel might have left you in tears after watching Marco's deceased uncle in his funeral bed, but what these two movies didn't do was providing you that sense of weirdom you've might have experienced in teen years. Such is the case with Marco, as he gets confronted with Edgar's snappy gators and sent to state prison where he fights a bunch of criminals bigger than him. Imagine if you were to ask some girlfriend on a date that involves salted crème caramel and lobsters sweetened with honey: that's exactly how Marco & Mikayla's dinner night was at Billie Jean's, home of the world famous Michael Jackson custard sandwich. Also picture this: you and your best friend ride upon the speedy yacht of your dreams on your way to the enemy's fortress, hoping to save "the princess" but then almost falling off to death when you encounter the big wide ocean below kryptonic laser machines; that's how Marco & Ian made their daring attempt at saving Mikayla from Edgar's booby traps. These two examples of pure awkwardness and other crazy moments in the film, such as Marco's charming habit of mispronouncing words to Aileene for some date, bring that sense of weirdom to the *Marco* franchise at some great extent.

### 7. *Marco 4* is arguably the most emotional film in the franchise, even more so than *Marco 3.*

*Marco 3* is indeed by many to be the most emotional film in the franchise - you've already cried hard enough seeing Marco's new friends moving away to another town - but *Marco 4* is for sure the most tearjerking one of them all. This movie is about lost love, taking care of yourself, and how childhood friends change over time. Did you feel sad or something inside you that's touching when Aileene gave up her own anime book to Marco, the same guy who accidentally stole it from her hands? I did. I also felt that same emotion when Marco had to leave Mikayla in favor of his longtime girl Aileene, when Marco ends up in state prison after being interrogated by Edgar for something he didn't commit, and when Marco & Ian almost fall down to their shocking demise. Aside from these sentimental moments, there's even one scene where a calmed down Bom Bin tunes "I Remember You" to a stressed Isabella with his loyal old guitar. The ending is perfect as Marco & Aileene show their kindness by holding hands together while watching a serenade of fireworks in the blue night sky, as it proves the fact that they're more than just friends. If *Marco 3* surpassed Pixar quality when it comes to emotion, *Marco 4* made us care for Marco and his buddies even more.

### 8. This film clearly knows much about teen culture and teen love, and how insecurities can be a good thing.

The *Marco* movies appeal very much to everyone of all ages and not just the younger set, but *Marco 4* mostly appeals to the teen demographic and proves that animated movies can tell an engaging if shockingly mature story towards this generation. It highly respects teen culture while also not portraying them as lazy stereotypical teens unlike Hollywood's point of view, and the film also shows teen love as something natural rather than cheesy through Marco & Mikayla's relationship and his love affair with Aileene. And speaking of these relationships, Marco & Mikayla's chemistry might be pretty enough but what's more surprising would be Marco & Aileene's romantic bond. Aileene did not despise Marco in the first film, but she was reluctant towards him as she found out that Marco lied to her about being the world's greatest spy. However, here it seems so that Aileene was being harsh on him and decided to become friends with Marco again much to his utter surprise, despite his love for Mikayla being even more. Of course, this new friendship becomes a lovely relationship when Marco falls for her even if Aileene knows that he's sort of weird when it comes to romance. The end result is what you'd never expect: Marco & Aileene become a couple in the end while Mikayla stays with Ian. The last thing I would explain on this part would be Marco's insecurities and doubts: as we surely know, he has many of them. Soon, he realizes that his own insecurities are some call to action in which he must overcome them, thus making him a stronger person inside. Is there any other animated film that deals with your own insecurities and not just bringing that generic "be yourself" catchphrase all over again? Well, some animated films do have this message, but I surely doubt it.

### 9. While this franchise might be better known for its wry jokes, the dark absurdist humor found here is even more hysterical.

The *Marco* movies are very funny that they're hysterical from start to finish, as they deliver the biggest laughs when it comes to absurd jokes and crazy impossible situations, especially Joaquin & Emiliano's 2018 spinoff and their signature wry gags. However, *Marco 4* has its own special trait of absurdity by having elements of black comedy that are perhaps more hysterical, unlike the three previous films. Sure, watching Marco escape from mall security cops in the form of some granny and his failed attempts at defeating Joe seem funny enough, but these innocent jokes can't defy the fact that Hayley's fish got swallowed by her dog and Edgar's vault actually being a fridge of dead people... well, skeletons to be honest. I know the *Marco* franchise has never done this before to its audience considering dark comedy as taboo, but *Marco 4* takes a fun play with this type of comedy in the best possible way without being that unsuitable for children. There's also this one running gag about Marco being chased down by crows, including one scene where they attempt to eat some skull. And of course this gem... if this doesn't seem funny enough to you, then you might get some misguided understanding of this film and the world today:

*[Marco launches Edgar's henchmen towards jail with rockets, causing an explosion there and one lucky criminal to escape]*

**Criminal (aka Robby):** "*YEAH! WE'RE FINALLY FREE!!!"* *[gets hit by some police car]* "Ow, dang it!"

**Police:** "We found him! Quick, call the other cops and see... the state prison is destroyed?! Eh, whatever. Take him out." *[The police arrest him and leave]*

### 10. This film had an even more troubled production than the original... yet it managed to be four times better.

You know how *Marco* was made... yeah, as the most troubled animated production in the history of humankind. However, *Marco 4* proves to be even more troublesome due to the film's stolen hard drives, the fact that Anaya Animation was more focused on the production of three animated features (ironically, one of them is Joaquin & Emiliano's own 2018 spinoff), Sony's mass promotion of *The Emoji Movie,* and in part the Sony Pictures hack of 2014. Despite several failed attempts at script and Bill Hader's refusal to voice Marco due to the critical failure of *Food Wars,* Anaya Animation recruited Hugh Jackman - who gives an even better performance as the lovable genius spy we know as Marco - and made the final result awesome thanks to an amazing rap soundtrack, hysterical elements of dark comedy, and lots of suspense with a great espionage story about lost love.

### 11. The script, quotes, and memes for this film... oh my God, they're amazing.

The script for this film is perhaps the best one Anaya Animation has ever made. Make no mistake, the *Marco* movies have wonderful scripts and loads of memorable funny quotes, but *Marco 4* is packed up with the best screenplay thanks to some amazing quotes and clever-one liners that everyone outside of the kid demographic would most likely understand. No other *Marco* film could make such delectable wordplay like this:

**Marco:** *[laughing maniacally]* "Oh, so you dare to challenge me? Now that you can see *MY HUGE FACE* right in front of your very own eyes."

**Edgar:** "Let's just continue this fight, shall we?"

**Marco:** "Not until you tell me something back. You're the bad guy, aren't you?"

**Edgar:** "I am not the bad guy anymore!"

**Marco:** "Oh, really? I need your... DEMONSTRATION!"

Whoa. Now that's what I call delectable worldplay, isn't it? You see, the whole point of movie scripts is coming up with the most intriguing or creative ideas to engage the audience, and *Marco 4* excels at deep storytelling because of this. If it weren't for Marco's top notch lines, Ian's ridiculous catchprashes, or even Edgar's rap lyrics; then this film would've been bad compared to the previous films.