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Animorphs #42
The Journey
Sometimes your worst problems are the ones you can't actually see. Like the Helmacrons. These less-than-an-inch-high aliens are back, and they want the morphing cube more than ever. Obviously, Rachel, the other Animorphs, and Ax can't let them take the cube. But when Rachel tries to stop the Helmacrons from stealing it, Marco gets in the way and ends up with tiny aliens, well, up his nose.
Rachel and the others can't let the Helmacrons stay inside Marco's head. They're armed, and could cause serious damage. So the Animorphs and Ax come up with a plan to evict the Helamcrons from their new residence. But it involves a shrinking ray and the obvious: Marco's nose. . . .
Rachel and the others can't let the Helmacrons stay inside Marco's head. They're armed, and could cause serious damage. So the Animorphs and Ax come up with a plan to evict the Helamcrons from their new residence. But it involves a shrinking ray and the obvious: Marco's nose. . . .
139 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2000
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914 people want to read
About the author
K.A. Applegate
251 books487 followersalso published under the name Katherine Applegate
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 151 reviews
March 25, 2023
The Helmacrons are back. The tiny egomaniacal aliens want the blue box that gave the Animorphs their powers. To put some urgency behind their request they take Marco hostage, but not in the way you’d expect. They make their way up Marco’s nose. And if the Animorphs don’t give up the blue box, Marco’s history. The Animorphs can’t give up something so valuable, but they can’t exactly sacrifice Marco either. So they decide to shrink themselves and travel up Marco’s nose to fight the Helmacrons inside Marco’s body.
Plot-wise, it’s actually a pretty strong story with a lot of action and even some fun educational value. The premise is quite fascinating, inspired by the 1966 movie Fantastic Voyage in all the right ways. The storyline inside Marco’s body is elevated by the other storyline outside of it. It’s also quite hilarious, as you might expect from the returning Helmacrons.
It’s a very fast-paced and fun comic relief story. It’s actually one of the better filler stories of the whole series. It’s still a bit of a shame that there are so many filler stories though, especially as we’re nearing the conclusion of the series. Would have loved to read a story at this point that actually advances the main plot.
Plot-wise, it’s actually a pretty strong story with a lot of action and even some fun educational value. The premise is quite fascinating, inspired by the 1966 movie Fantastic Voyage in all the right ways. The storyline inside Marco’s body is elevated by the other storyline outside of it. It’s also quite hilarious, as you might expect from the returning Helmacrons.
It’s a very fast-paced and fun comic relief story. It’s actually one of the better filler stories of the whole series. It’s still a bit of a shame that there are so many filler stories though, especially as we’re nearing the conclusion of the series. Would have loved to read a story at this point that actually advances the main plot.
November 8, 2015
Started and finished in a single day, because I had an Animorphs dream the night before (!), which I figured was the universe commanding me to pick up this series again. :'] (For those interested, my dream mostly involved Marco grudgingly, reluctantly admitting his unrequited feelings for Rachel, and some dire shit that I blocked out -- I think it had something to do with Jake and being in Jake's shoes and having to make the calls for a mission.)
ANYWAY. This book! It's the return of the Helmacrons, and so accordingly, it is so so so silly. It's ridiculous and fun, a Magic Schoolbus-esque shrinking romp through Marco's body to track down the tiny rogue aliens. It's the sort of throwaway adventure (without much strategising) I would've associated with much earlier in the series; the main indication of this being 40s-era Animorphs is how efficient and matter-of-fact they were in the fight at the start, and how they automatically meet up at Cassie's barn like debriefing from a military mission. Yet once they enter Marco's body, all plans are thrown out the window, and it's just an impetuous flailing around from situation to situation.
I liked the shared narration in this book, breaking the usual stride of single narrators. I also think I liked it more than the initial Helmacron book, but it definitely does seem to be lighter and aimed for a younger audience. Honestly, I think The Journey exists purely to offset the absolute, complete emotional destruction that was #41 The Familiar and Megamorphs #4 (which, in fact, were so destructive that I haven't been able to finish a book in 2 weeks, which if you know me is a really really big deal). And considering the first time the Helmacrons appeared is after the David trilogy and the Hork-Bajir Chronicles, it's like this series only busts them out -- one of their most ridiculous concepts/premises -- when you REALLY need a pick-me-up.
Several of the quotes I highlighted still had to do with compiling evidence for my not-ship hypothesis. Ugh, ignore me.
ANYWAY. This book! It's the return of the Helmacrons, and so accordingly, it is so so so silly. It's ridiculous and fun, a Magic Schoolbus-esque shrinking romp through Marco's body to track down the tiny rogue aliens. It's the sort of throwaway adventure (without much strategising) I would've associated with much earlier in the series; the main indication of this being 40s-era Animorphs is how efficient and matter-of-fact they were in the fight at the start, and how they automatically meet up at Cassie's barn like debriefing from a military mission. Yet once they enter Marco's body, all plans are thrown out the window, and it's just an impetuous flailing around from situation to situation.
I liked the shared narration in this book, breaking the usual stride of single narrators. I also think I liked it more than the initial Helmacron book, but it definitely does seem to be lighter and aimed for a younger audience. Honestly, I think The Journey exists purely to offset the absolute, complete emotional destruction that was #41 The Familiar and Megamorphs #4 (which, in fact, were so destructive that I haven't been able to finish a book in 2 weeks, which if you know me is a really really big deal). And considering the first time the Helmacrons appeared is after the David trilogy and the Hork-Bajir Chronicles, it's like this series only busts them out -- one of their most ridiculous concepts/premises -- when you REALLY need a pick-me-up.
Several of the quotes I highlighted still had to do with compiling evidence for my not-ship hypothesis. Ugh, ignore me.
May 17, 2024
Honey I shrunk the animorphs! Again!
Or
The Magic School Bus: Inside Marco
This was actually one of the most creepy animorphs yet, something about them being hammerhead sharks INSIDE Marco’s blood vessels or them being digested IN Marco’s stomach acid gave me the heebie jeebies
Or
The Magic School Bus: Inside Marco
This was actually one of the most creepy animorphs yet, something about them being hammerhead sharks INSIDE Marco’s blood vessels or them being digested IN Marco’s stomach acid gave me the heebie jeebies
January 22, 2022
Come check out my 4 hour 35 minute deep dive into reading every single Animorphs book for the first time on YouTube. I recap and review all of the books from the main series: https://youtu.be/H8kUM2q3CIU
October 25, 2017
The Helmacrons, first seen in #24: The Suspicion make their second appearance in Animorphs. This time, the Animorphs voluntarily shrink themselves to extract the Helmacrons from Marco. Hilarity(?) ensues.
My feelings for this book are similar to my feelings for The Suspicion. If I were to make a list of the “essential” Animorphs novels to read, The Journey wouldn’t be on it. The B-story, in which Marco must retrieve a camera that might contain images of the Animorphs de-morphing, is under-developed (no pun intended). The few scenes that ghostwriter Emily Costello deigns to actually give it do little to create any real tension. The plot basically exists to give Marco something “dangerous” to be doing while the other Animorphs cruise through his digestive tract.
The Journey reminds me of that episode of The Magic School Bus where everyone tours Arnold’s digestive system. However, this story lacks some of that show’s charm. The best part is almost certainly just imagining what it would be like to morph into something like a shark in order to swim through a bloodstream rather than an ocean. And while I know that kids often like things adults find annoying (such as the Helmacrons), I have to wonder if at this point in the series many of the readers might be old enough to find these tiny, grating aliens as annoying as I do.
Misgivings about the B-story aside, this book and story are extremely competent in terms of their use of Animorphs tropes. We get into the story fairly quickly after yet another in media res battle opening. But that’s the thing—I feel like everything, from the opening to the Helmacrons to the dilemmas, is something we’ve seen before in other Animorphs books. I don’t mind standalone stories as a general rule, but I at least want them to give me something new. The Journey feels like someone gave Costello a grab bag of “generic Animorphs story elements” and said, “Pick 5 and go to town.”
With no new morphs, though, no real Yeerk threat, and little in the ways of moral dilemma beyond “Marco should avoid morphing because problems”, The Journey lacks any element strong enough to make it impressive.
Next time, fortunately, we have a definite moral dilemma as the Yeerk Peace Movement asks for the Animorphs’ help….
My reviews of Animorphs:
← #41: The Familiar
My feelings for this book are similar to my feelings for The Suspicion. If I were to make a list of the “essential” Animorphs novels to read, The Journey wouldn’t be on it. The B-story, in which Marco must retrieve a camera that might contain images of the Animorphs de-morphing, is under-developed (no pun intended). The few scenes that ghostwriter Emily Costello deigns to actually give it do little to create any real tension. The plot basically exists to give Marco something “dangerous” to be doing while the other Animorphs cruise through his digestive tract.
The Journey reminds me of that episode of The Magic School Bus where everyone tours Arnold’s digestive system. However, this story lacks some of that show’s charm. The best part is almost certainly just imagining what it would be like to morph into something like a shark in order to swim through a bloodstream rather than an ocean. And while I know that kids often like things adults find annoying (such as the Helmacrons), I have to wonder if at this point in the series many of the readers might be old enough to find these tiny, grating aliens as annoying as I do.
Misgivings about the B-story aside, this book and story are extremely competent in terms of their use of Animorphs tropes. We get into the story fairly quickly after yet another in media res battle opening. But that’s the thing—I feel like everything, from the opening to the Helmacrons to the dilemmas, is something we’ve seen before in other Animorphs books. I don’t mind standalone stories as a general rule, but I at least want them to give me something new. The Journey feels like someone gave Costello a grab bag of “generic Animorphs story elements” and said, “Pick 5 and go to town.”
With no new morphs, though, no real Yeerk threat, and little in the ways of moral dilemma beyond “Marco should avoid morphing because problems”, The Journey lacks any element strong enough to make it impressive.
Next time, fortunately, we have a definite moral dilemma as the Yeerk Peace Movement asks for the Animorphs’ help….
My reviews of Animorphs:
← #41: The Familiar
November 16, 2024
The miniature Helmatrons invade Marko and the rest of the gang decide to take action 😃🙃👍
March 20, 2015
Let the Great Animorphs Re-Read resume!
The Helmacrons were annoying the first time around, but now? Just ridiculous. If I want to learn about the inside version of the human anatomy, I'll watch Magic Schoolbus.
The Helmacrons were annoying the first time around, but now? Just ridiculous. If I want to learn about the inside version of the human anatomy, I'll watch Magic Schoolbus.
January 31, 2023
this one was a trip and a half, omg.
August 28, 2023
Most bearable Helmacron book. Rabies deus ex machina. Very good
August 7, 2014
The Animorphs follow a race of tiny megalomaniacs up Marco's nose. Lovely. The classic "inner space" idea is done--I mean you can't have a sci-fi series without having the episode where people get shrunk and sent into someone's body--but I liked the Animorphs take on it.
Notable moments and inconsistencies:
This book is ghostwritten by Emily Costello.
At one point a Controller shoots Rachel with a Dracon beam while she's in elephant morph. The lowest setting can knock out a human but probably wouldn't do anything but annoy the elephant, which is what happened. Question is, why didn't the Controller have the Dracon beam on a higher setting? They apparently go up high enough to actually vaporize any living thing, but even if the Controller didn't want to kill Rachel (so they could infest her and use her morphing ability), it seems he could have used a stronger setting and would know better than not to.
At one point the Helmacrons wish death on "the air-breathing alien," but no one seems to think this is significant. Then later everyone's mystified as to why they stepped into Marco's bloodstream if they wouldn't be able to breathe in there. Clearly it was a clue that they don't breathe air, but no one picked up on it.
An opening quotation mark was missing when someone was asking how they can go after a bunch of mushrooms.
After Marco has supposedly died in cockroach morph of a Helmacron blast, Rachel suggests tunneling into the lungs, and when they shoot through some air comes out and they acknowledge getting into the lungs. Roaches don't have lungs.
It seems odd that the Animorphs acknowledge the Helmacrons' possibility of aligning with the Yeerks or giving the Yeerks information about them, but then they let these blatantly untrustworthy creatures just charge up their ship and leave.
In a previous book, morphing did not rid any of the Animorphs of their illness, which was plot-relevant because the sickness they suffered from downed everyone on the team except Cassie, requiring her to do missions herself. But in this book, Marco morphing in and out of roach morph cured him of rabies. It could be that because the illness was some kind of alien illness they all caught from Ax, it behaves differently than human illnesses, or because rabies is viral and not bacterial, but this could be an inconsistency.
It's alarming that Marco could get rabies from a domesticated dog that was living as someone's pet.
No attempt was ever made to follow up on the kid who took the Animorphs' picture. Sure the camera was the evidence, but it would have made some sense to look into there being someone who had witnessed their human forms morphing.
Notable moments and inconsistencies:
This book is ghostwritten by Emily Costello.
At one point a Controller shoots Rachel with a Dracon beam while she's in elephant morph. The lowest setting can knock out a human but probably wouldn't do anything but annoy the elephant, which is what happened. Question is, why didn't the Controller have the Dracon beam on a higher setting? They apparently go up high enough to actually vaporize any living thing, but even if the Controller didn't want to kill Rachel (so they could infest her and use her morphing ability), it seems he could have used a stronger setting and would know better than not to.
At one point the Helmacrons wish death on "the air-breathing alien," but no one seems to think this is significant. Then later everyone's mystified as to why they stepped into Marco's bloodstream if they wouldn't be able to breathe in there. Clearly it was a clue that they don't breathe air, but no one picked up on it.
An opening quotation mark was missing when someone was asking how they can go after a bunch of mushrooms.
After Marco has supposedly died in cockroach morph of a Helmacron blast, Rachel suggests tunneling into the lungs, and when they shoot through some air comes out and they acknowledge getting into the lungs. Roaches don't have lungs.
It seems odd that the Animorphs acknowledge the Helmacrons' possibility of aligning with the Yeerks or giving the Yeerks information about them, but then they let these blatantly untrustworthy creatures just charge up their ship and leave.
In a previous book, morphing did not rid any of the Animorphs of their illness, which was plot-relevant because the sickness they suffered from downed everyone on the team except Cassie, requiring her to do missions herself. But in this book, Marco morphing in and out of roach morph cured him of rabies. It could be that because the illness was some kind of alien illness they all caught from Ax, it behaves differently than human illnesses, or because rabies is viral and not bacterial, but this could be an inconsistency.
It's alarming that Marco could get rabies from a domesticated dog that was living as someone's pet.
No attempt was ever made to follow up on the kid who took the Animorphs' picture. Sure the camera was the evidence, but it would have made some sense to look into there being someone who had witnessed their human forms morphing.
November 20, 2015
So I have to admit that I pretty much hate the Helmacrons and every book they're in, which biases me from the start about this book because it's dealing with Helmacrons. I just feel like any and all rules of the Animorphs universe go out the window when they show up, which is frustrating.
I am glad that all necessary Magic School Bus references were made *within* the book itself, because if there had been an Animorphs book where they go inside a human and there hadn't been those references, I would have called the writers and complained for days at the obviously missed connection. Also, Marco-style, it saved me from having to make the references myself (to myself) while reading.
All that said, I did like the split narrative here so we could get the larger "mission" as well as the main storyline going. I appreciated the voices being written such that you could tell they were two different characters, too, because by this point in the series THEY TOTALLY ARE. I was worried that we were going to have another David on our hands in the sense that the "have to get evidence back from somebody" thing was developing, but fortunately that story went down a different path and didn't feel too repetitious. (Really appreciated the throwback reference to Marco's living situation at the beginning of the series; one of the strengths of the Animorphs books is it showcasing the problems we humans have just dealing with ourselves without any help from aliens.)
Ax is growing SO MUCH zomg and his ability to joke with the rest of the team as well as have their backs every time is such a great part of his character evolution. It's also horrendously painful to watch considering the series is winding down and I just know that his being the alien outsider is going to be A Thing.
I must admit that I got super grossed out a couple of times, which I did not expect. Maybe I was empathizing a bit too much with Marco and how all of this must be totally messing him up--or maybe I just have a weaker stomach than I thought.
I am glad that all necessary Magic School Bus references were made *within* the book itself, because if there had been an Animorphs book where they go inside a human and there hadn't been those references, I would have called the writers and complained for days at the obviously missed connection. Also, Marco-style, it saved me from having to make the references myself (to myself) while reading.
All that said, I did like the split narrative here so we could get the larger "mission" as well as the main storyline going. I appreciated the voices being written such that you could tell they were two different characters, too, because by this point in the series THEY TOTALLY ARE. I was worried that we were going to have another David on our hands in the sense that the "have to get evidence back from somebody" thing was developing, but fortunately that story went down a different path and didn't feel too repetitious. (Really appreciated the throwback reference to Marco's living situation at the beginning of the series; one of the strengths of the Animorphs books is it showcasing the problems we humans have just dealing with ourselves without any help from aliens.)
Ax is growing SO MUCH zomg and his ability to joke with the rest of the team as well as have their backs every time is such a great part of his character evolution. It's also horrendously painful to watch considering the series is winding down and I just know that his being the alien outsider is going to be A Thing.
I must admit that I got super grossed out a couple of times, which I did not expect. Maybe I was empathizing a bit too much with Marco and how all of this must be totally messing him up--or maybe I just have a weaker stomach than I thought.
August 6, 2019
Disclaimer: I'm reading this series for the first time as an adult. (Unfortunately) I have no fond memories coloring my reading.
This may have been the worst "filler ep" book in the entire series.
Anytime the Helmacron aliens (tiny aliens, under an inch tall but ultra violent and ever-insulting) show up, you know the story is going to be bad. This one was even worse than usual.
For no real reason at all, the Animorphs had to shrink down to the size of the Helmacron to fight them. But something went wrong and they all became even smaller.
Then they had a battle inside Marco.
During this time, Marco was bitten by a dog.
A pitbull.
A rabid pitbull.
Sigh.
The writing was even worse than usual. For example:
Tseeew!
"l have been hit!" Ax.
KER-SPLASH!
Tseeew!
"Cassie, watch out!" Tobias called.
KER-SPLASH!
Tseeew!
KER-SPLASH!
"Aaaaahhhhh!" Cassie yelled.
"Aaaaahhhhh!" Jake yelled.
"Aaaaahhhhh!" Tobias yelled.
The sound effects and yells weren't even rewritten, just copy/pasted. The story was AWFUL. The writing was no better. This late in the series, it feels like such a waste to have a filler book. Nothing happened in this one, nothing lasting or important. It wasn't even entertaining to read.
This may have been the worst "filler ep" book in the entire series.
Anytime the Helmacron aliens (tiny aliens, under an inch tall but ultra violent and ever-insulting) show up, you know the story is going to be bad. This one was even worse than usual.
For no real reason at all, the Animorphs had to shrink down to the size of the Helmacron to fight them. But something went wrong and they all became even smaller.
Then they had a battle inside Marco.
During this time, Marco was bitten by a dog.
A pitbull.
A rabid pitbull.
Sigh.
The writing was even worse than usual. For example:
Tseeew!
"l have been hit!" Ax.
KER-SPLASH!
Tseeew!
"Cassie, watch out!" Tobias called.
KER-SPLASH!
Tseeew!
KER-SPLASH!
"Aaaaahhhhh!" Cassie yelled.
"Aaaaahhhhh!" Jake yelled.
"Aaaaahhhhh!" Tobias yelled.
The sound effects and yells weren't even rewritten, just copy/pasted. The story was AWFUL. The writing was no better. This late in the series, it feels like such a waste to have a filler book. Nothing happened in this one, nothing lasting or important. It wasn't even entertaining to read.
July 23, 2022
I’m always anxious going into installments featuring Rachel.
In this story of the team desperately trying to stop a photo of them leaking to the press and Yeerk forces, we get a visit from a particularly odd group of aliens introduced in earlier installments.
And then the group shrinks down to enter Marco’s body.
It’s a gross, weird, and very blatantly Magic School Bus-inspired installment we see a clunky yet interesting example of why using they/them pronouns when speaking about a singular person is so helpful.
It’s a generally useless addition to the story that feels like a misplaced, kooky side quest.
Also this book isn’t even about Rachel, it’s about Marco 🧐
CW: violence, death
In this story of the team desperately trying to stop a photo of them leaking to the press and Yeerk forces, we get a visit from a particularly odd group of aliens introduced in earlier installments.
And then the group shrinks down to enter Marco’s body.
It’s a gross, weird, and very blatantly Magic School Bus-inspired installment we see a clunky yet interesting example of why using they/them pronouns when speaking about a singular person is so helpful.
It’s a generally useless addition to the story that feels like a misplaced, kooky side quest.
Also this book isn’t even about Rachel, it’s about Marco 🧐
CW: violence, death
February 10, 2025
Far and away the best Helmacron book, but that is not saying much. Animorphs tends toward accurate animal science, something that I adore about the series; this *human* science was so absurd it was painful. How. Can. They. See. Cells.
Again, the classic Animorphs quibble: the concept was awesome, but the execution was disappointing. This should have been the first Helmacron book, and more scientific.
Some moments shine through though. Marco's thoughts of writing a "little note." A horrifying encounter with acid. Multiple narrators.
Again, the classic Animorphs quibble: the concept was awesome, but the execution was disappointing. This should have been the first Helmacron book, and more scientific.
Some moments shine through though. Marco's thoughts of writing a "little note." A horrifying encounter with acid. Multiple narrators.
June 21, 2022
Really fucked up if true characterization, such as when Marco almost kills the group by morphing when they are in his bloodstream:
"My friends were still alive.
And they sounded terrified.
Good for them."
followed by
"This was good news. Marco wasn't dying and with this interesting piece of information I
could get him off the hook with Jake and the others.
I reached for the phone. Stopped.
Smirked. Maybe in the morning."
from Rachel, upon hearing that he had rabies. Marco and Rachel's relationship is generally teasing but this isn't teasing. It's not fun either! It's just messed up from either of them. I'm sure someone who's a fan of the horror in Animorphs will get plenty out of this, because a lot of the descriptions are disgusting. But I've never liked the "voyage through the human body" plotline, and the Helmacrons feel like Animorphs trying to do it all with sci-fi in a way which always feels like it has nothing to do with the rest of the series, its themes, or even the general vibes. The fact that this book is gross when it's not confusingly mean spirited is more than enough for me not to recommend it.
"My friends were still alive.
And they sounded terrified.
Good for them."
followed by
"This was good news. Marco wasn't dying and with this interesting piece of information I
could get him off the hook with Jake and the others.
I reached for the phone. Stopped.
Smirked. Maybe in the morning."
from Rachel, upon hearing that he had rabies. Marco and Rachel's relationship is generally teasing but this isn't teasing. It's not fun either! It's just messed up from either of them. I'm sure someone who's a fan of the horror in Animorphs will get plenty out of this, because a lot of the descriptions are disgusting. But I've never liked the "voyage through the human body" plotline, and the Helmacrons feel like Animorphs trying to do it all with sci-fi in a way which always feels like it has nothing to do with the rest of the series, its themes, or even the general vibes. The fact that this book is gross when it's not confusingly mean spirited is more than enough for me not to recommend it.
July 16, 2017
Kinda a throw away book, with the Hemlacons back and as egomaniacal as ever. A needed break after the last to gut tearing last two books.
So, these crazy little aliens decide to take Marco prisoner from the inside. By going up his nose. Need I say more?
So, these crazy little aliens decide to take Marco prisoner from the inside. By going up his nose. Need I say more?
June 5, 2021
Woof. This one was bad.
April 24, 2022
Can we be done with Helmacrons already?
August 28, 2024
Waste of one of our precious few remaining Rachel books.
October 20, 2020
Original Review at Jaunts & Haunts
2/5
I gave this book two stars.
I'm extremely underwhelmed by this one. If I could get the time I invested in this back I would, believe me.
But before I trash this any more, let's get into why this book was such a stinker.
In this novel, Rachel/Marco share the spotlight in another Helmacron adventure. After a successful mission against the Yeerks, our animal-morphing friends go back to Cassie's barn when they are interrupted by the Helmacrons. Despite being thwarted, they are back and demanding the morphing cube Elfangor gave them. Through some more strange events, the Helmacrons end up in Marco's nose and the Animorphs give chase after using the shrinking ray, worried about his safety.
Alright, so not very much worked for me at all this time.
The strongest part was probably the first chapter that had nothing to do with the Helmacrons. The Animorphs were on a mission to stop mass production of Kandrona ray generators. Now that should've been the focus of this book! But alas, it wasn't.
The plot was flimsy at best. Obviously this journey is all about preventing the Helmacrons from hurting Marco internally, but it was disappointing given the state of the Yeerk invasion. The whole thing just felt like a bunch of filler and didn't evoke any emotion from me at all. Why even bother with this pointless side adventure?
There's a minimally-interesting side plot with Marco once the Animorphs are inside him, but the logic of it made no sense. Marco clearly had an opportunity to get what he was questing after but made up an excuse. Okayyy...
The characters had no progression and like I just mentioned, logic felt like a second thought.
Overall, I just really want to forget this disappointing experience and move on. Here's hoping the next one won't be as bad!
2/5
I gave this book two stars.
I'm extremely underwhelmed by this one. If I could get the time I invested in this back I would, believe me.
But before I trash this any more, let's get into why this book was such a stinker.
In this novel, Rachel/Marco share the spotlight in another Helmacron adventure. After a successful mission against the Yeerks, our animal-morphing friends go back to Cassie's barn when they are interrupted by the Helmacrons. Despite being thwarted, they are back and demanding the morphing cube Elfangor gave them. Through some more strange events, the Helmacrons end up in Marco's nose and the Animorphs give chase after using the shrinking ray, worried about his safety.
Alright, so not very much worked for me at all this time.
The strongest part was probably the first chapter that had nothing to do with the Helmacrons. The Animorphs were on a mission to stop mass production of Kandrona ray generators. Now that should've been the focus of this book! But alas, it wasn't.
The plot was flimsy at best. Obviously this journey is all about preventing the Helmacrons from hurting Marco internally, but it was disappointing given the state of the Yeerk invasion. The whole thing just felt like a bunch of filler and didn't evoke any emotion from me at all. Why even bother with this pointless side adventure?
There's a minimally-interesting side plot with Marco once the Animorphs are inside him, but the logic of it made no sense. Marco clearly had an opportunity to get what he was questing after but made up an excuse. Okayyy...
The characters had no progression and like I just mentioned, logic felt like a second thought.
Overall, I just really want to forget this disappointing experience and move on. Here's hoping the next one won't be as bad!
September 14, 2015
Jake: "If Helmacrons don't breathe, why do they have noses?"
Ax: "It is possible the organ has another use. Although it is hard to imagine what it would be."
Rachel: "This from a boy who eats with his feet."
Ax: "Eenie, meenie, minie, moe?"
Rachel: "You really have been on Earth too long. You'll never fit in on the Andalite home world now."
Ax: "I would miss Saturday morning cartoons."
"BRB@Marco's nose"
- Animorphs
XDDD :D :D :D
Btw we should talk about how Marco's so brave here. I mean he's always brave but he's alone here and that's a different kind of courage. :)
Ax: "It is possible the organ has another use. Although it is hard to imagine what it would be."
Rachel: "This from a boy who eats with his feet."
Ax: "Eenie, meenie, minie, moe?"
Rachel: "You really have been on Earth too long. You'll never fit in on the Andalite home world now."
Ax: "I would miss Saturday morning cartoons."
"BRB@Marco's nose"
- Animorphs
XDDD :D :D :D
Btw we should talk about how Marco's so brave here. I mean he's always brave but he's alone here and that's a different kind of courage. :)
August 24, 2016
Another fun volume in this series...and this one has a different twist.
August 18, 2022
This book felt like an episode of the magic school bus!
I really enjoyed seeing the human anatomy through various morphs and the body horror was crazy in this one! The dual POV was a nice touch, I do wish the animorphs used their telepathy a lot more tho 🙄
For instance, if you’re swimming (in blood or ocean) the Leeran morph would’ve been awesome! but i’m not entirely certain they still have that…
Anyways! Marco’s slow descent into madness was fun to witness, plus we really got to see how he’s changed as a character. He’s still smart and cunning and even had the foresight to hide the ship before leaving the barn. However, he also resisted morphing for 12 hours! There were so many chances for him to only be about himself but when it really mattered he came through for his friends. That being said plot armor totally kept him alive in this one.
Rachel was a good pick for this narration. I hate the helmacrons and she is a good portion of why i do. She was a lot more calculating in this book than I’ve given her credit for. The way she shut down at the end and moved the group forward feels like foreshadow. I’m sure if anyone ever really dies, she’ll stay on target. It’s actually interesting we got a rachel/marco book. They’re very similar and have become more like one another throughout the series. I hope we get to see more calculation behind rachel’s actions and a little more spontaneity from marco.
The rest of the animorphs just did as expected, Cassie once again was too good for this world and decided to spare the helmacrons, and that’s what really saved them. I’m a big cassie fan.
I really enjoyed seeing the human anatomy through various morphs and the body horror was crazy in this one! The dual POV was a nice touch, I do wish the animorphs used their telepathy a lot more tho 🙄
For instance, if you’re swimming (in blood or ocean) the Leeran morph would’ve been awesome! but i’m not entirely certain they still have that…
Anyways! Marco’s slow descent into madness was fun to witness, plus we really got to see how he’s changed as a character. He’s still smart and cunning and even had the foresight to hide the ship before leaving the barn. However, he also resisted morphing for 12 hours! There were so many chances for him to only be about himself but when it really mattered he came through for his friends. That being said plot armor totally kept him alive in this one.
Rachel was a good pick for this narration. I hate the helmacrons and she is a good portion of why i do. She was a lot more calculating in this book than I’ve given her credit for. The way she shut down at the end and moved the group forward feels like foreshadow. I’m sure if anyone ever really dies, she’ll stay on target. It’s actually interesting we got a rachel/marco book. They’re very similar and have become more like one another throughout the series. I hope we get to see more calculation behind rachel’s actions and a little more spontaneity from marco.
The rest of the animorphs just did as expected, Cassie once again was too good for this world and decided to spare the helmacrons, and that’s what really saved them. I’m a big cassie fan.
April 28, 2025
2.5. The Journey marks a new low for the Animorphs series. While it brings back the hilariously chaotic Helmacrons to tell another gimmick-heavy story, their return lacks the fun and charm of their previous appearance. The book stretches the suspension of disbelief I'd normally grant this series, and not in a way that benefits the storytelling. In the end, I found myself powering through—not because I was engrossed, but because I just wanted to move on to the next book.
What a stinker. Honestly, the only redeeming factor here is that it’s still an Animorphs book. The Helmacrons, once delightfully absurd in The Suspicion (Book 24), feel weak and uninspired here—just dumb, but not in the fun way. The premise of the Animorphs shrinking down to enter Marco’s body in a bizarre rescue mission is among the most farfetched ideas the series has attempted (and that’s saying something), but this time, it doesn’t work to its advantage. The shifting perspectives add little depth to characterization, and worst of all, it just wasn’t a fun read. Typically, even the most outlandish Animorphs plots manage to inject a sense of enjoyment. The Suspicion, ridiculous as it was, at least had that. Even In the Time of the Dinosaurs (Megamorphs 2), which I didn’t care for, had dinosaurs, which at least made parts of it entertaining. The Journey offers none of that.
So close to the end of the series, and this was bad. This is the first Animorphs book I genuinely regret wasting my time on. Let’s hope this final stretch isn’t more of the same.
49 down, 13 to go.
What a stinker. Honestly, the only redeeming factor here is that it’s still an Animorphs book. The Helmacrons, once delightfully absurd in The Suspicion (Book 24), feel weak and uninspired here—just dumb, but not in the fun way. The premise of the Animorphs shrinking down to enter Marco’s body in a bizarre rescue mission is among the most farfetched ideas the series has attempted (and that’s saying something), but this time, it doesn’t work to its advantage. The shifting perspectives add little depth to characterization, and worst of all, it just wasn’t a fun read. Typically, even the most outlandish Animorphs plots manage to inject a sense of enjoyment. The Suspicion, ridiculous as it was, at least had that. Even In the Time of the Dinosaurs (Megamorphs 2), which I didn’t care for, had dinosaurs, which at least made parts of it entertaining. The Journey offers none of that.
So close to the end of the series, and this was bad. This is the first Animorphs book I genuinely regret wasting my time on. Let’s hope this final stretch isn’t more of the same.
49 down, 13 to go.
March 14, 2023
Cruisin’ on down Main Street. You’re relaxed and morphin' good. Next thing that you know you’re inside of your best friend's heart preventing aliens from exploding it?! Surfin’ on a blood wave, Then you’re swingin’ through the veins, Take a left at your intestine, Take your second right past the brains. On The Magic Morph Bus, Navigate a nostril, Climb on The Magic Morph Bus, Spank a Helmicron, too, On our Magic Morph Bus (Raft a river of puke), On the Magic Morph Bus (Such a fine thing to do)!So strap your bones right to the seat, Come on in and don’t be shy Just to make your day complete You might get digested in a stomach! On The Magic Morph Bus, Step inside, it’s a wild ride! Come on! Ride on The Magic Morph Bus!
June 19, 2022
Ah my animorphs, it's been too long 🥲 Why does this one have to be stupid tho?
OK it wasn't that bad but the helmacrons are NOT my favorite. I also kept forgetting it was Rachel narrating - could have just as easily been Jake or Cassie.
OK it wasn't that bad but the helmacrons are NOT my favorite. I also kept forgetting it was Rachel narrating - could have just as easily been Jake or Cassie.
July 22, 2021
Not a big fan of the Helmacrons, who return in this one.
April 28, 2023
A very fun departure from the main plot. We needed some comic relief after the last couple of stories.
October 12, 2020
I didn’t care for this one at all
November 1, 2023
(originally reviewed at
thelibraryladies.com
)
Narrator: Rachel & Marco
Plot: We all know the story: a frizzle-haired teacher, a class of students, and a magical school bus that goes anywhere and makes even the most ridiculous things seem fun and cool. Sure, many of their adventures were legitimately cool on their own; who wouldn’t enjoy traveling to all of the planets! But some of them…definitely could have gone another way. And Animorphs is here to prove how!
I mean, I could get worked up. But like the Atlantis book, it’s just so wacky that why even bother?
The story starts off in the normal way: the team returning from yet another battle. But as they demorph in an alley, they are temporarily blinded by the flash of a camera. Some kid has taken a picture of them mid-morph! They chase after him, but he disappears into an apartment complex. The team sets up a state-out and agrees to meet up at Cassie’s barn the next day to discuss next steps.
And from there, it all goes haywire with the sudden reappearance of the Helmacrons. All together in Cassie’s barn, the tiny Helmacron ship reappears and, predictably, is again after the blue box that Cassie has hidden there. Rachel and Marco both lunge to grab the ship before it can get to the box, and in the process, Marco hits his head and falls to the ground. From there, Tobias gets to witness the truly terrible image of a group of Helmacrons marching straight up Marco’s nose.
Now the team is in a real pickle. The Helmacrons have their tiny lasers on them, and there’s a real concern over the amount of damage they could do to Marco if they should start firing inside of his body. So naturally, the only thing to be done is to go in after them! Jake strictly instructs Marco to lay low and not to morph, not knowing how morphing could affect them while inside Marco’s body. They use the Helmacrons’ ship to shrink themselves down to size, and Marco uses a bit of straw to deposit them in his nose.
Insert lovely scenes about snot and walking through snot and burying oneself in snot to avoid a sneeze. Lovely stuff. They eventually come upon the Helmacrons but quickly notice something is wrong: the Animorphs are much, much smaller than even the Helmacrons. They realize that they had been set up and fallen into the trap. Luckily, the Helmacrons are engaged in a bit of a civil war between the genders and aren’t making too much progress with whatever their plan is either. After a few mishaps, the Animorphs and the Helmacrons all end up falling down Marco’s throat and end up in his stomach.
Meanwhile, Marco is getting bored of waiting. He can’t speak to the team, and for some reason Ax is just not updating him on what’s going on. Restless, he decides to go check out the kid’s apartment and try and get a hold of the camera and film. Breaking in doesn’t go as planned and he ends up being bitten by the kid’s pit bull.
In Marco’s stomach, the team struggles to survive being eaten away by the acid, an all too familiar scenario for poor Rachel and Tobias. Cassie morphs a whale at one point and the team huddles on top of her to try and gather their bearings. From there, they witness several Helmacrons die in the acid themselves, but the others manage to slice a whole in Marco’s stomach and make their way out into his blood stream. The team figures that they must be capable of breathing “under water” and determine that the best way to follow would be in shark morph. They morph sharks and all struggle at first with the madness that their close proximity with blood inspires in the sharks’ minds. They follow the Helmacrons out into the arteries. Along the way, Cassie shares “body facts” about what they’re seeing.
Back in Marco’s perspective, things are not going well. He has begun to feel strange, reckless and anxious. He decides to go back to the kid’s apartment once more and try again to get the camera. Once there, he decides that he needs to morph a cockroach. He proceeds to morph.
Inside Marco, the others realize that Marco is morphing and frantically wonder what is going on that would force him to take such a reckless action. They all manage to survive the morph, and immediately thought speak to Marco asking him why he felt the need to risk their lives morphing. Marco responds in a very petulant manner and Rachel begins to wonder what is going on. She knows that it’s not a great situation for Marco, but that he’s never stupid, and morphing with them in his body was stupid.
They finally catch up with the Helmacrons, but they won’t be reasoned with and start firing their guns. Marco goes still. The others are convinced that he has been killed by the internal damage. They manage to get a hold of the laser guns from the Helmacrons and force them to give in. They cut a hole in cockroach!Marco and make their way out. Outside his body, Cassie begins to theorize that it seems strange that Marco would have died as a cockroach, since they are practically unkillable. The team takes turns trying to wake him up before the two hour deadlines expires. At the last minute, he comes to. He morphs a gull, the team climbs on, still holding the Helmacrons hostage, and Marco grabs the camera in his beak on the way out.
Xena, Warrior Princess: Like the Atlantis book was for Jake, and the first Helmacrons book was for Cassie, these books that veer all the way into crazyland tend to be rather dud-like as far as any real character growth goes. But, on the other hand, the last several Rachel books have been more damaging to her character than anything, so maybe I should count this as a lucky miss that there’s practically nothing worth discussing for her here. Sure, there are a couple of moments where we see her dive head first into the action, but even those instances are pretty restrained and not too notable. Towards the end, there are a couple of moments that reflect the deeper understanding of Marco’s character that she has gained from being an Animorph with him. Before, I imagine, he was just her cousin Jake’s annoying friend. Now, she knows him well enough to notice that his defensive and weirdly aggressive responses to why he morphed when Jake had expressly told him not to were out of character for him. She notes that while he can be annoying, he is anything but stupid, and morphing in this instance was stupid. It not only risked the other Animorphs’ lives, but Marco’s own.
Our Fearless Leader: Jake has a few comical moments when he tries to mimic the Helmacrons’ grandiose way of speaking in an attempt to convince them to leave Marco and give up their quest for the blue box. He also shows how comfortable he has become giving members of the team orders, noting in the end that he still needs to talk to Marco about why exactly Marco disobeyed a direct order. This is definitely the type of comment that we’d not expect to hear from early-series Jake who was still struggling to accept his role as a leader, especially when it comes to laying down laws on his best friend.
A Hawk’s Life: Not much from Tobias in this book, which is always a bummer on its own, but is worse in Rachel books where we stand a better chance of getting more from him.
Peace, Love, and Animals: Cassie plays the role of “Ms. Frizzle” in this book and is pretty much giving them a tour of Marco’s insides throughout the story. At one point, she is so caught up in this role that she is essentially evaluating the state of Marco’s immune system instead of paying attention to anything else that is going on. It’s pretty bizarre, frankly. But with a book like this, which is essentially setting out to accomplish exactly the same thing that the Magic School Bus episode was, to teach kids about the body’s inner workings, we would need a character like this along the way, and Cassie makes the most sense. She’s also the one to realize that Marco is likely not dead in the end, noting how difficult it is to truly kill a cockroach.
The Comic Relief: This is a strange book in that it’s another one where we get weird insert of POV chapters from another character’s point of view. Rachel is one of my favorite characters and, not only do I think she gets short-changed in a lot of books, other than Jake, she has potentially the most interesting arc throughout the series to follow. So with that in mind, it’s a bit unfortunate to see one of her books divided between her and another character. But, if I was going to have to pick that character, Marco’s always a good choice. Of course, he’s also weirdly written for most of this as he is suffering from rabies-induced mania for much of it. Even without Rachel noting Marco’s strange behavior, fans of the series, especially this late in the game, are sure to raise an eyebrow at much of the out-of-character decision making we see from Marco here.
E.T./Ax Phone Home: Also not much from Ax. On and off, he serves as a communication point to Marco as one of the few members of group who can use thought-speak. But…yeah, other than that.
Best (?) Body Horror Moment: Really, most of this book. Unlike the cartoon-y take we get from Magic School Bus, this book tears that cutesy band-aid off right away with overly disgusting descriptions of the Animorphs having to bury themselves in snot to avoid getting sneezed out. It’s pretty disgusting and vaults this book up next to the “Andalite toilet” book as far as catering to middle grade body humor goes. I did not enjoy a return to this level of “entertainment.”
Couples Watch!: Ugh, practically nothing! There was literally one line where Tobias privately thought-spoke to Rachel when they were in Marco’s stomach telling her to morph quickly when she was stuck in the stomach acid. Which can also be attributed to the fact that the two of them already had a close encounter with potentially being digested back in Megamorphs #2. So yeah, as far as romance goes, a pretty big let down here. It’s all the more sad to see knowing how close we are getting to the end.
If Only Visser Three had Mustache to Twirl: No Visser Three in this book! The Animorphs note a few times that they can’t be sure that the Helmacrons aren’t working with the Yeerks, so this is meant to add another level of urgency to their mission, though I’m never quite sure their reasoning makes sense.
Adult Ugly Crying at a Middle Grade Book: Again, I cry at the return of childish body-humor as a form of entertainment. Just…no.
What a Terrible Plan, Guys!: Kind of the whole thing? I don’t understand what the Helmacrons’ endgame was. How was getting the Animorphs to follow them into Marco really going to accomplish anything? I’m not convinced that all of the Animorphs going in after them was wise, rather than just a few of them. And why oh why the group then chooses to keep Marco completely out of the loop the entire time is beyond strange. Ax should have been updating him the entire time and then when they all morph sharks, they definitely should have been letting him know what was going on. You could make the case that Marco wouldn’t have felt compelled to go after the camera in the first place had he been more in the loop with what the others were up to. Beyond that, I’m pretty skeptical of the whole rabies subplot. How exactly did someone’s pet pitbull end up with rabies? It’s pretty rare for that disease to be found in household pets since most are vaccinated and then rarely would come into contact with the wild animals that would need to give it to them in the first place. And there’s no mention of the fact that, hey, some kid and his family are now LIVING WITH A RABID ANIMAL! And Rachel thinks it’s more important to let Marco question his own sanity for another night than, I don’t know, warn this poor family about this life-threatening situation.
Favorite Quote:
TRUTH:
“You know,” Jake said thoughtfully. “I think this is the most disgusting mission we’ve ever done.”
Scorecard: Yeerks 11, Animorphs 15
No change!
Rating: All in all, a pretty “meh” book. It didn’t enrage me, but I also kind of buzzed through it, not caring at all what was going on. I didn’t enjoy the return of body humor and I was sad to see another book where Rachel doesn’t really have much character progression. For all that we hear about her deteriorating mindset from other characters in their books, it’s a real shame that we don’t see more of it from Rachel herself and how she is coping with these changes. The potential here is gold and it’s so, so wasted. Plus, the whole story was stock full of ridiculous scenarios that don’t make much sense. From the very beginning, it’s clear that this is just a “concept” book that derived from a wacky idea. There’s no good reason for the Helmacrons to be back, or for them to take the actions they do, or for them to give up in the end really and agree to leave. If I think about it too much, I could probably get frustrated with the laziness, but as it is, I’m happy enough just letting this one slide back into cool indifference, lost to memory eventually.
Narrator: Rachel & Marco
Plot: We all know the story: a frizzle-haired teacher, a class of students, and a magical school bus that goes anywhere and makes even the most ridiculous things seem fun and cool. Sure, many of their adventures were legitimately cool on their own; who wouldn’t enjoy traveling to all of the planets! But some of them…definitely could have gone another way. And Animorphs is here to prove how!
I mean, I could get worked up. But like the Atlantis book, it’s just so wacky that why even bother?
The story starts off in the normal way: the team returning from yet another battle. But as they demorph in an alley, they are temporarily blinded by the flash of a camera. Some kid has taken a picture of them mid-morph! They chase after him, but he disappears into an apartment complex. The team sets up a state-out and agrees to meet up at Cassie’s barn the next day to discuss next steps.
And from there, it all goes haywire with the sudden reappearance of the Helmacrons. All together in Cassie’s barn, the tiny Helmacron ship reappears and, predictably, is again after the blue box that Cassie has hidden there. Rachel and Marco both lunge to grab the ship before it can get to the box, and in the process, Marco hits his head and falls to the ground. From there, Tobias gets to witness the truly terrible image of a group of Helmacrons marching straight up Marco’s nose.
Now the team is in a real pickle. The Helmacrons have their tiny lasers on them, and there’s a real concern over the amount of damage they could do to Marco if they should start firing inside of his body. So naturally, the only thing to be done is to go in after them! Jake strictly instructs Marco to lay low and not to morph, not knowing how morphing could affect them while inside Marco’s body. They use the Helmacrons’ ship to shrink themselves down to size, and Marco uses a bit of straw to deposit them in his nose.
Insert lovely scenes about snot and walking through snot and burying oneself in snot to avoid a sneeze. Lovely stuff. They eventually come upon the Helmacrons but quickly notice something is wrong: the Animorphs are much, much smaller than even the Helmacrons. They realize that they had been set up and fallen into the trap. Luckily, the Helmacrons are engaged in a bit of a civil war between the genders and aren’t making too much progress with whatever their plan is either. After a few mishaps, the Animorphs and the Helmacrons all end up falling down Marco’s throat and end up in his stomach.
Meanwhile, Marco is getting bored of waiting. He can’t speak to the team, and for some reason Ax is just not updating him on what’s going on. Restless, he decides to go check out the kid’s apartment and try and get a hold of the camera and film. Breaking in doesn’t go as planned and he ends up being bitten by the kid’s pit bull.
In Marco’s stomach, the team struggles to survive being eaten away by the acid, an all too familiar scenario for poor Rachel and Tobias. Cassie morphs a whale at one point and the team huddles on top of her to try and gather their bearings. From there, they witness several Helmacrons die in the acid themselves, but the others manage to slice a whole in Marco’s stomach and make their way out into his blood stream. The team figures that they must be capable of breathing “under water” and determine that the best way to follow would be in shark morph. They morph sharks and all struggle at first with the madness that their close proximity with blood inspires in the sharks’ minds. They follow the Helmacrons out into the arteries. Along the way, Cassie shares “body facts” about what they’re seeing.
Back in Marco’s perspective, things are not going well. He has begun to feel strange, reckless and anxious. He decides to go back to the kid’s apartment once more and try again to get the camera. Once there, he decides that he needs to morph a cockroach. He proceeds to morph.
Inside Marco, the others realize that Marco is morphing and frantically wonder what is going on that would force him to take such a reckless action. They all manage to survive the morph, and immediately thought speak to Marco asking him why he felt the need to risk their lives morphing. Marco responds in a very petulant manner and Rachel begins to wonder what is going on. She knows that it’s not a great situation for Marco, but that he’s never stupid, and morphing with them in his body was stupid.
They finally catch up with the Helmacrons, but they won’t be reasoned with and start firing their guns. Marco goes still. The others are convinced that he has been killed by the internal damage. They manage to get a hold of the laser guns from the Helmacrons and force them to give in. They cut a hole in cockroach!Marco and make their way out. Outside his body, Cassie begins to theorize that it seems strange that Marco would have died as a cockroach, since they are practically unkillable. The team takes turns trying to wake him up before the two hour deadlines expires. At the last minute, he comes to. He morphs a gull, the team climbs on, still holding the Helmacrons hostage, and Marco grabs the camera in his beak on the way out.
Xena, Warrior Princess: Like the Atlantis book was for Jake, and the first Helmacrons book was for Cassie, these books that veer all the way into crazyland tend to be rather dud-like as far as any real character growth goes. But, on the other hand, the last several Rachel books have been more damaging to her character than anything, so maybe I should count this as a lucky miss that there’s practically nothing worth discussing for her here. Sure, there are a couple of moments where we see her dive head first into the action, but even those instances are pretty restrained and not too notable. Towards the end, there are a couple of moments that reflect the deeper understanding of Marco’s character that she has gained from being an Animorph with him. Before, I imagine, he was just her cousin Jake’s annoying friend. Now, she knows him well enough to notice that his defensive and weirdly aggressive responses to why he morphed when Jake had expressly told him not to were out of character for him. She notes that while he can be annoying, he is anything but stupid, and morphing in this instance was stupid. It not only risked the other Animorphs’ lives, but Marco’s own.
Our Fearless Leader: Jake has a few comical moments when he tries to mimic the Helmacrons’ grandiose way of speaking in an attempt to convince them to leave Marco and give up their quest for the blue box. He also shows how comfortable he has become giving members of the team orders, noting in the end that he still needs to talk to Marco about why exactly Marco disobeyed a direct order. This is definitely the type of comment that we’d not expect to hear from early-series Jake who was still struggling to accept his role as a leader, especially when it comes to laying down laws on his best friend.
A Hawk’s Life: Not much from Tobias in this book, which is always a bummer on its own, but is worse in Rachel books where we stand a better chance of getting more from him.
Peace, Love, and Animals: Cassie plays the role of “Ms. Frizzle” in this book and is pretty much giving them a tour of Marco’s insides throughout the story. At one point, she is so caught up in this role that she is essentially evaluating the state of Marco’s immune system instead of paying attention to anything else that is going on. It’s pretty bizarre, frankly. But with a book like this, which is essentially setting out to accomplish exactly the same thing that the Magic School Bus episode was, to teach kids about the body’s inner workings, we would need a character like this along the way, and Cassie makes the most sense. She’s also the one to realize that Marco is likely not dead in the end, noting how difficult it is to truly kill a cockroach.
The Comic Relief: This is a strange book in that it’s another one where we get weird insert of POV chapters from another character’s point of view. Rachel is one of my favorite characters and, not only do I think she gets short-changed in a lot of books, other than Jake, she has potentially the most interesting arc throughout the series to follow. So with that in mind, it’s a bit unfortunate to see one of her books divided between her and another character. But, if I was going to have to pick that character, Marco’s always a good choice. Of course, he’s also weirdly written for most of this as he is suffering from rabies-induced mania for much of it. Even without Rachel noting Marco’s strange behavior, fans of the series, especially this late in the game, are sure to raise an eyebrow at much of the out-of-character decision making we see from Marco here.
E.T./Ax Phone Home: Also not much from Ax. On and off, he serves as a communication point to Marco as one of the few members of group who can use thought-speak. But…yeah, other than that.
Best (?) Body Horror Moment: Really, most of this book. Unlike the cartoon-y take we get from Magic School Bus, this book tears that cutesy band-aid off right away with overly disgusting descriptions of the Animorphs having to bury themselves in snot to avoid getting sneezed out. It’s pretty disgusting and vaults this book up next to the “Andalite toilet” book as far as catering to middle grade body humor goes. I did not enjoy a return to this level of “entertainment.”
Couples Watch!: Ugh, practically nothing! There was literally one line where Tobias privately thought-spoke to Rachel when they were in Marco’s stomach telling her to morph quickly when she was stuck in the stomach acid. Which can also be attributed to the fact that the two of them already had a close encounter with potentially being digested back in Megamorphs #2. So yeah, as far as romance goes, a pretty big let down here. It’s all the more sad to see knowing how close we are getting to the end.
If Only Visser Three had Mustache to Twirl: No Visser Three in this book! The Animorphs note a few times that they can’t be sure that the Helmacrons aren’t working with the Yeerks, so this is meant to add another level of urgency to their mission, though I’m never quite sure their reasoning makes sense.
Adult Ugly Crying at a Middle Grade Book: Again, I cry at the return of childish body-humor as a form of entertainment. Just…no.
What a Terrible Plan, Guys!: Kind of the whole thing? I don’t understand what the Helmacrons’ endgame was. How was getting the Animorphs to follow them into Marco really going to accomplish anything? I’m not convinced that all of the Animorphs going in after them was wise, rather than just a few of them. And why oh why the group then chooses to keep Marco completely out of the loop the entire time is beyond strange. Ax should have been updating him the entire time and then when they all morph sharks, they definitely should have been letting him know what was going on. You could make the case that Marco wouldn’t have felt compelled to go after the camera in the first place had he been more in the loop with what the others were up to. Beyond that, I’m pretty skeptical of the whole rabies subplot. How exactly did someone’s pet pitbull end up with rabies? It’s pretty rare for that disease to be found in household pets since most are vaccinated and then rarely would come into contact with the wild animals that would need to give it to them in the first place. And there’s no mention of the fact that, hey, some kid and his family are now LIVING WITH A RABID ANIMAL! And Rachel thinks it’s more important to let Marco question his own sanity for another night than, I don’t know, warn this poor family about this life-threatening situation.
Favorite Quote:
TRUTH:
“You know,” Jake said thoughtfully. “I think this is the most disgusting mission we’ve ever done.”
Scorecard: Yeerks 11, Animorphs 15
No change!
Rating: All in all, a pretty “meh” book. It didn’t enrage me, but I also kind of buzzed through it, not caring at all what was going on. I didn’t enjoy the return of body humor and I was sad to see another book where Rachel doesn’t really have much character progression. For all that we hear about her deteriorating mindset from other characters in their books, it’s a real shame that we don’t see more of it from Rachel herself and how she is coping with these changes. The potential here is gold and it’s so, so wasted. Plus, the whole story was stock full of ridiculous scenarios that don’t make much sense. From the very beginning, it’s clear that this is just a “concept” book that derived from a wacky idea. There’s no good reason for the Helmacrons to be back, or for them to take the actions they do, or for them to give up in the end really and agree to leave. If I think about it too much, I could probably get frustrated with the laziness, but as it is, I’m happy enough just letting this one slide back into cool indifference, lost to memory eventually.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 151 reviews