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For the song, see A Father Should Be (song).

A Father Should Be... is the twelfth episode of the third season, and the 65th and final episode overall, of the Jem animated series.

Synopsis[]

Ba Nee's depression grows as her search for her father continues with no results. Jerrica takes matters into her own hands and does everything in her power to track down Ba Nee's long lost father.

Plot[]

Jem - A Father Should Be..

Jem and The Holograms (with help from Riot and his father) search for Ba Nee's father. The Holograms travel to different parts of the country using information provided by Riot and speak to three men they think might be Ba Nee's father: Leonard Martin, Andy Martin and Martin O'Carolan. At first, the Holograms are tricked by a deadbeat gambler named Andy Martin who kidnaps Ba Nee and tries to extort one million dollars from Jem by keeping her hostage at an abandoned zoo. Ba Nee's true father, Martin O'Carolan, turns out to be an amnesiac Vietnam veteran and a very gifted artist who has no memory of her.

Jem - A Father Should Be..

Ba Nee's father comes back to Starlight Mansion and upon hearing about the kidnapping, he and Jem go to the rescue. While searching for Ba Nee's whereabouts, he regains his lost memories in flashbacks and the two finally reunite. Jem then sends Andy into a panic by asking Synergy to project holograms of angry gorillas, driving Andy toward Martin, who then angrily pushes him and locks him up into the monkey cage.

Jem - A Father Should Be..

At Starlight Mansion, the Holograms and the Starlight Girls, as well as the Stingers, throw a goodbye party for Ba Nee. The Misfits arrive with going away presents as well and make peace with the Holograms. Ba Nee says goodbye to Jerrica and they affirm their love for each other.

Songs featured[]

Quotes[]

Jerrica: Hoo, we've got three possible names.
Kimber: Wow! Riot really came through!
Jerrica: Kimber, you and Aja check out Martin O'Carolan. Raya, take Rio and check out Leonard Martin, he lives in Nebraska. And, Shana, you and I'll go and see Andy Martin in Las Vegas. We're not giving up until we find Ba Nee's father.

Gallery[]

Goofs[]

  • When Jem and Martin are looking for Ba Nee at the old abandoned zoo, Martin has a flashback from the day he first met Kieu Chinh. In this scene, Kieu Chinh is shown to be barefooted, but in the next she's wearing sandals.
  • The words "Good Bye" are misspelled as "Good By" on the banner at the end of the episode, and Ba Nee's name is written together as "Banee".

Trivia[]

  • In this episode, it is revealed that Ba Nee's mother, Kieu Chinh, was from An Lộc, Vietnam.
  • Ba Nee is revealed to be 9 years old in this episode and that she goes to the city elementary school. This might be due to how long the show was on for, since in Starbright (Part 2) it was said she was 8 years old.
    • According to the music video for "Family Is", Ba Nee also had a birthday recently.
  • According to her art teacher, Hope London, Ba Nee has a real talent for art, although she always gives red hair to all men appearing in her paintings.
  • Jerrica and The Holograms knew that Ba Nee's father was a soldier in Vietnam in 1976 and that he married Ba Nee's mother, Kieu Chinh, who died some years later after reaching America, but before that, the name she gave for her father was "Martin". Ba Nee's mother told her that her father had red hair.
  • After Ba Nee's parents married in Vietnam in the middle of the war, Martin made Kieu Chinh go away to a safer place and that was the last time they saw each other. Ba Nee's father was a prisoner of war and was brought to the Veterans Administration Hospital to recover. He was in bad shape and had long-term amnesia.
  • Ba Nee's father, Martin O'Carolan, is a painter. He made a portrait of Ba Nee's mother by seeing her face in his dreams.
  • Martin O'Carolan, is named after a Celtic musician Christy Marx is a fan of.
  • This is the third appearance of Randy James, who only appeared in previous episodes written by Christy Marx.
  • Eric Raymond and Synergy are the only major characters to not appear in this episode (with the latter only being mentioned).
  • Pizzazz and Riot can actually be seen rehearsing together at Stingers Sound.
  • Riot's father was an officer in the Army's intelligence.
  • Some of the books in Ba Nee's bookshelf are: The Fox, Pach Peach, Omnibus, Mimiko, Popo, Autumn, Spring, The Fairies, Robin Hood and Sherlock Holmes.
  • This is the second time Ba Nee is trapped in an animal cage in a zoo. The previous time was in the episode The Jem Jam (Part 2), also written by Christy Marx.
  • The Misfits and The Holograms call a truce.
    • In fact, it is Pizzazz the one who proposes the idea.
  • Rio has a singing line in the song "This Is Farewell" by Jem and The Holograms, The Misfits and The Stingers.
  • The song "A Father Should Be" by Ba Nee is reused. It previously appeared in the episode "The Jem Jam (Part 1)".
  • This is the final episode of the series.
  • It is unknown whether if after this point Jem ever revealed her true identity to Rio.
  • When rerun on the Hub Network (now Discovery Family), this episode was rated TV-PG; all other episodes were rated TV-Y7.
Episodes
Season 1
The BeginningDisasterKimber's RebellionFrame UpThe Battle of the BandsStarbright (Part 1): Falling StarStarbright (Part 2): Colliding StarsStarbright (Part 3): Rising StarThe World Hunger ShindigAdventure in ChinaLast ResortsIn StitchesThe Music Awards (Part 1)The Music Awards (Part 2)The Rock Fashion BookBroadway MagicIn Search of the Stolen AlbumHot Time in HawaiiThe Princess and the SingerIsland of DeceptionOld Meets NewIntrigue at the Indy 500The Jem Jam (Part 1)The Jem Jam (Part 2)Culture ClashGlitter and Gold
Season 2
The Talent Search (Part 1)The Talent Search (Part 2)ScandalOne Jem Too ManyThe Bands Break UpThe FanFather's DayTreasure HuntAztec EnchantmentMusic is MagicThe Jazz PlayerDanse TimeRoxy RumblesAlone AgainKJEMTrick or TechratThe Presidential DilemmaRock n' Roll ExpressMardi GrasThe Middle of NowhereRenaissance WomanJourney to Shangri-LaJourney Through TimeBritrockOut of the PastHollywood Jem (Part 1): For Your ConsiderationHollywood Jem (Part 2): And the Winner Is...
Season 3
The Stingers Hit Town (Part 1)The Stingers Hit Town (Part 2)Video WarsBeauty and the Rock PromoterHomeland, HeartlandMidsummer Night's MadnessThe Day the Music DiedThat Old Houdini MagicStraight from the HeartA Change of HeartRiot's HopeA Father Should Be...
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