Let’s Talk About The Greatest Father And Son Dynamic In The Show That Is Thunder-bandit And Spider-cat.

Let’s talk about the greatest father and son dynamic in the show that is Thunder-bandit and Spider-cat. Here’s a brief recap of Gary and Lil Cato’s journey of their relationship.

Gary promised Avocato that they would find and rescue his son, and once they finally did, he made one last promise to his best friend: to look after him.

It was rocky at first. Gary and Lil Cato were grieving over the loss of a loved one. Being the young, rebellious teenager he was, Lil Cato avoided everyone while dealing with his grief. And Gary, who grew up without any parents, had no confidence in fulfilling the role of parent.

What’s most important, though, is that he tried his best, and him simply trying was all it took.

When Gary asked Lil Cato what he could do to cheer him up, he took up the request of killing the Lord Commander to avenge Avocato. To Lil Cato’s surprise, he didn’t expect an adult to allow him to do something so dangerous and reckless. This establishes respect in their relationship. Gary manages to reach out to Lil Cato because he doesn’t treat him like kid like any normal adult would do. A responsible adult would try to give him advice that he’s being emotional and not thinking straight, or “let the adults handle this.” Nah, instead Gary forms a murdering team with him. Gary has never, not once, belittled Lil Cato because of his age. Instead, he listens to and supports Little Cato on equal level.

In the end of that same episode, Lil Cato cries, admitting that he feels alone. Gary assures him that he’s not alone. “We’ll get through it together as a team. As a squad. As a team-squad.” When Gary’s prison sentence was complete, he had no idea what to do. This is where Gary finds his new purpose in life, which is being Lil Cato’s care-taker. At his lowest, Lil Cato also found something in life: a new family and place to call home.

Soon after, the crew enters Bolo’s mind to find the answer to closing the breach in space. Gary travels back in time to get the answer from his dad, who soon dies right before Gary again. Here, they establish empathy. Lil Cato sees a reflection of himself in Gary, understanding that they share the same pain.

In the final showdown between the crew and the Lord Commander’s fleet, Lil Cato volunteers to handle a dangerous task to cover Quinn, but she argues that it’s not something a child should do. Gary, in the other hand, trusts Lil Cato. Putting the life of the woman he loves and the fate of his planet in the paws of this young Ventrexian takes a lot of faith, and Gary does not think twice.

Throughout season two, we see more interactions and bonding between Gary and Lil Cato as those two grow closer. They establish nicknames, have handshakes, good off, and even think alike. I won’t get into too much detail about their subtle parallels, but I mention this one scene in S2E2. When Gary was feeling down about losing the Earth, Lil Cato repeated the same words Gary told him when he was at his lowest. “We’ll get through it together as a team.” Gary has influenced Lil Cato and made huge impacts in his life in so many ways, and Lil Cato brings out the best of Gary. Gary doesn’t just rub off his personality on Lil Cato, but also his optimism. Imagine where Lil Cato would be if Gary was never around from the beginning.

Now, after the events of S2E9 and hints of the next episode, it all comes down to loyalty and how far that loyalty will go.

(Spoiler alert for S2E8&9)

I’m not gonna day too much into the matter about how Avocato got possessed by Invictus and shot Gary, and then Lil Cato has to choose between protecting Gary or sparing his father. Enough has already been said this past week. I mean, he barely had a choice. Evil Avocato was going to kill both of them. He had to be stopped. Like, seriously. It was so emotionally messed up. However, in the next episode, Lil Cato leaves the Crimson Light Crew for what appears to be a bounty hunting gang. I’m very curious to see what he’s up to. What was his reason for leaving? Will he end up fighting Gary? Will he return to his real family or stay away for good?