Ahhh, now that’s the stuff! What’s not to love about “Dr. Quymn, Medicine Woman”?  There was plenty of action, mystery, and top-notch jokes.  Oh yeah, and my prayers about seeing more Hank and Dean were answered tenfold.  This was vintage Venture Bros. my friends.

Save for a few brief (but extremely relevant) flashbacks into Dr. Venture’s life, this was a completely self-contained episode; the first one of the season.  In it we find Rusty in the Amazon, where he has stolen a native fertility idol, for completely selfish and non-financial reasons.  He is almost overtaken by a local tribe, but is rescued at the last minute by Dr. Tara Quymn.

Thanks to some great flashbacks we learn the pair knew each other as children, when a budding romance was killed by, you guessed it, Rusty’s father (yet another failure Rusty is sure to lay at dad’s doorstep).  I can’t forget to mention the welcome return (in flashback form of course) of Col. Gentleman and Kano, part of the original Team Venture.

Anyway, back in the present, we meet Team Quymn – Tara’s twin daughters Nancy and Drew (if you missed that joke, shame on you) and her “female” bodyguard Virginia (Ginnie).  Virginia is hyper-protective of Dr. Quymn, and kinda sorta takes a shining to Brock.  The twin girls, meanwhile, fall for Dean.  And of course, Hank falls for the girls.  Ah, young love.

Later, Dr. Quymn finally begins to warm up to Rusty after rebuffing him earlier.  This sends Ginnie into a rage, and in retaliation she makes an aborted attempt to seduce Brock (thanks for the cold shower moment, Dean, we all appreciate it).  But the action really heats up when we learn that this part of the rain forest is the hunting ground of the fearsome Wereodile (part man, part crocodile, and covered in awful hair).  Dean is on the case, though, but can’t convince anyone to assist him.

It all comes together brilliantly as Doc and Tara are interrupted in romance once again, and Hank of all people is left to tackle the Wereodile.  Before the episode is over, the only person who’s had any action down below is Hank, and it’s not the kind anyone wants.

I can’t say enough how much I loved this episode, and how glad I am that after some disturbing new trends in the series (namely, too much universe-building and way too much character exploration) raised their heads, Jackson Publick came through with a real gem of an episode.

Final grade: A+

Best lines/moments:

• I loved seeing Dr. Jonas Venture not as a stern scientist and adventurer, but as a carefree party guy and stud.
• “Never let a woman drive your Aston, Jonesey.  This one handles a stick like it’s got herpes.”
• “What is this, polyester?” “Humidity is no excuse for wrinkles, Rusty.”
• “You remind me of my boys.  They get really excited about everything, too.”
• The whole sequence with the orangutan boxing was priceless – “Brock, this is kind of the saddest thing ever.”  “So no more teaching chimps to box, huh?  By the way, thanks for that new personal low.”
• Rusty rolling off the truck after it stopped short.  Awesome.
• “It was as if someone shook up a six-foot can of blood soda and suddenly popped the top.”
• “They’re for the Venture Home News.  Pictures increase circulation.”
• Watching Hank and Dean argue with each other is always great television.
• The villagers mocking Doc’s package (see screen cap) was great.
• “Don’t…smoke…Brock…second-hand…killing me.”
• I loved hearing the classic Dean war cry – “Super run away!”
• “You used to be all ‘Go Team Venture!’ but now…now you’re all Go….Team…Boobies!”
• Bringing the orangutan back at the end was brilliant storytelling.  I did not see that coming.
• “How you holding up there, Broken Arrow?”