10/22/2025
Season 3 episode 2 of Smiling Friends, Le Voyage Incroyable De Monsieur Grenouille, is a beautifully rendered Buddhist parable. Let's talk about it.
When we first met Mister Frog in season 1, it was with exactly three lines: I'm Mister Frog/This is my show/I eat the bug. And that's exactly who Mister Frog is. The rest of that episode deals with his celebrity (this is my show) and appetites (I eat the bug). His storyline ends up being something of a redemption, with his appetites healthily reoriented and ambitions soaring ever higher. He even gets elected President.
Where we meet Mister Frog in season 3, however, he already has everything the world has to offer. He's Siddhartha in the palace, experiencing the form of suffering in which you get what you want but are ultimately dissatisfied with it. Realizing this, he gives up the presidency and falls into depression. It's in this state that he encounters the titular Smiling Friends, whose mission to bring joy in an absurd world full of despair rings Sangha/Kalyanamitra bells. They first try giving him goals, but he succeeds without effort. Ultimately, they remind him of his family and that's the route he takes. He makes the voyage home, where he gets lit into by his father, powerfully played in live action by The Office's Creed Bratton.
After being kicked out by his father, Mister Frog goes into the swamp and throws a tantrum. Once he's let out all of his pent up emotions, he takes his seat on a lilypad (Bodhi tree, anyone?). After taking a moment to appreciate the silence, Mister Frog closes his eyes and discovers an inner Bug of Knowledge. After some typical Smiling Friends realistic banter, Mister Frog eats the bug. His life flashes before our eyes and we are left with an image of a real frog.
That leaves us with a powerful moral, and one which aligns with ancient insight: your Suffering is what makes you Real.
