Don't you hate it when men argue?
Bert and Cedric hear that the Mammoth Mudhens are looking for new baseball talent, but there's only one contract on offer, so Bert and Cedric get into a feud, show off and try to sabotage each other (while Cyril tries to sabotage Bert). This is the first episode animated at Hinton Animation studios, and aesthetically it's rather different. The colours are slightly brighter, the inking lines not as sketchy. Some scenes look off model but others have really nice flourishes.
One scene shows that as nice as Bert is, he once again inadvertently engages in casual sexism ("What would *you* know about baseball?" he asks the raccoon who's proven herself to be a star athlete), and as 'A Night to Remember' showed before, Cedric, despite being very timid, is physically stronger than he appears.
The ending is somewhat predictable, but very sweet.
This show portrays fragile masculinity really well. Both Bert and Cedric, for all of their respective kindness and modesty, are victims of it, while Melissa is the responsible one trying to get the team to work together. Out of the female characters on the show, Melissa is the most "straight" one. Sophia has the distinction of being a slight airhead but also very sporty and outdoorsy, and Lisa, Ralph's niece, proves to be a compelling character in her own right.
A show that gets men and women exactly right is one worth watching.
Susan Roman replaces Linda Feige as Melissa and her voice is clearer and stronger than Feige's.
I feel like besides her, Len Carlson is the best actor of the ensemble. Other actors just put on funny voices, but Carlson is actually getting into a role and making an effort to perform. He adds an extra dimension to Bert and makes him feel real, a talent Rick Jones (Mr. Mammoth's assistant) also possesses.