I Remember You

Synopsis
Ice King visits Marceline and they bond over memories.

Plot
The episode begins with the Ice King performing his version of Marceline's Fry Song to Gunter. He then decides to ask Marceline to help him write a song to impress princesses. He rips some pages from his scrapbook so he can use them as inspiration for lyrics and then flies to Marceline's house. Finn and Jake notice him and think that he is up to no good. As Ice King makes his way to Marceline's house, they set out to catch him.

Ice King arrives at Marceline's house and asks for her to write a song for him. She refuses, and he flies into the house. He tries to let her hear what he has so far for the song, but when he tries to setup his instruments he gets tangled up in the cord. Finn and Jake arrive, and try to fight him, but Marceline tells them to leave. They perform the song, which is about Princess Bubblegum and the other various princesses of Ooo, and how the Ice King is alone. He starts freaking out, and shooting ice bolts at the ceiling, when Marceline tackles him, and tells him to stop acting crazy. He goes into the kitchen, and sits on the fridge. Marceline goes in the kitchen and sings about how Ice King is crazy, and how she is too. She also reveals that she likes him, to which he asks for a hug. She hugs him, then he mistakes it for flirting and tries to kiss her, but she rejects it and tells him he doesn't remember about his past or who he is and calls him Simon.

The Ice King then takes out piles of papers while proclaiming he knows he's a lyricist. Marceline looks at a few of the documents and shows him a newspaper clipping with a photo of himself before he was the Ice King, saying this is what he was like "before the war". Marceline then finds a photo of herself in the pile, which she insists he took, though he can't remember any of this. However, Marceline then looks at the back of the photo of herself and finds a message from Simon directed at Marceline, apologizing for his deteriorating mind. Ice King then tells her to sing the message, mistaking them for lyrics, as he continues playing the drums, which Marceline does reluctantly. They continue singing message after message, with the Ice King not actually knowing what they originally meant as Marceline starts crying. As they continue singing, Finn and Jake look onward through binoculars outside the house, not knowing what's going on. A flashback reveals a ruined city in the aftermath of the Great Mushroom War, and a young Marceline standing alone in the wreckage crying. A not-yet-fully transformed Simon runs to her to wipe her tears away and goes to a toystore to give her a stuffed animal.

Major characters

 * Ice King
 * Marceline

Minor characters

 * Finn
 * Jake
 * Gunter
 * Snail

Mentioned

 * Slime Princess
 * Flame Princess
 * Wildberry Princess
 * Princess Bubblegum
 * Jay T. Dawgzone

Songs

 * Fry Song (Gunter's version)
 * Oh Bubblegum
 * Remember You

Trivia

 * Betty is seen in the car while Simon was holding the Enchiridion.
 * This is the second episode where Flame Princess is mentioned but does not appear. It is also the first time the Ice King has mentioned her.
 * There is a newspaper clipping with Simon Petrikov discovering the Enchiridion.
 * Ice King is revealed to know Flame Princess probably hearing about her from Finn.
 * Marceline is the third person to call Ice King 'Simon' with the others being Finn and Ricardio.
 * This is one of the few episodes where Marceline cries.
 * This is the first time Marceline is barefoot throughout the entire episode.
 * This is the second time that Finn sees his binoculars. The first time he wore it was in "The Chamber of Frozen Blades".
 * The effect of the Mushroom War can be seen in the last part of the episode.

Cultural references

 * Marceline is wearing a No Smoking T-shirt.
 * The shop that Simon grabs the toy from has a broken sign starting with "TOYS" and may be a reference to the Toys-'R-Us consumer brand.
 * Ice King mentions prog (progressive) rock. A genre of music that became popular in the 70's. The popularity decreased but gained a cult following. Innovative Progressive rock bands include Rush, Pink Floyd, Yes, Genesis, King Crimson and Emerson, Lake and Palmer. The music was characterised by abrupt changes of tempo, key and time signature, very complex rhythms and long songs.

Episode connections

 * Ice King sings a variation of the Fry Song in this episode; he was revealed to know of the song in "Holly Jolly Secrets Part II."
 * During the flash back to the Great Mushroom War, it's seen that Ice King was the one who gave Marceline her stuffed bear, Hambo, who was earlier seen in "Memory of a Memory."
 * Ice King is seen holding the Enchiridion in an image when he was still human.
 * The crown that Simon Petrikov found, and relied upon for survival as revealed by the videos in "Holly Jolly Secrets Part II" is mentioned again in the notes that Marceline and Ice King use in the song as driving Simon crazy but keeping him alive. Marceline also confused to as why Ice King does not remember her or his notes, suggesting that she does not fully understand the power of the crown, nor does Ice King (anymore), as his memory is only in able to help him remember some things of the past, but not comprehend what actually happened.
 * The book Mind Games by Jay T. Dawgzone from "Reign of Gunters" appears again advising Ice King that "Chicks dig bros with tortured pasts."
 * In one scene, Ice King's ruined bass drum from "The Chamber of Frozen Blades" can be seen.
 * A sign that appears outside of the diner in "Memory of a Memory" makes an appearance in the Ice King's "The Past" room.
 * In "Memory of a Memory," Marceline states to Hambo that it is her only friend. When Ice King gets mad at Marceline, she knows that she is not friends with him anymore.

Production notes

 * The original title for this episode was "Help."

Storyline analysis

 * Apparently Ice King always eventually finds Marceline no matter how many times she moves which may explain her many homes.
 * This is the first time Marceline and Ice King are seen interacting in the series.
 * It appears that Simon Petrikov cared for Marceline as a child.
 * It is revealed that Hambo was given to Marceline by the Ice King (as Simon Petrikov).
 * We also see Hambo's original coloring (red) before he became weathered with age.
 * Ice King wrote "Remember You" knowing Marceline would some day read it and understand why he does not remember her, that it was the crown that made him crazy, but kept him alive.
 * Although the Ice King is normally quite oblivious to the tragedy of his own madness, it is implied that during fleeting moments of lucidity that he is aware of who he once was and feels the gravity of his past. For instance near the start of this episode the Ice King is seen rumaging through his boxes of keepsakes and as he comes across a scrap book filled with poignant reminders of who he once was he absent-mindedly describes it as "wet with tears" indicating that he must have been recently crying over it even though he no longer appears to remember doing so.
 * This episode's title card depicts the Ice King looking into the mirror at a sad reflection of himself with the vestiges of who he once was peaking out from behind the cracked glasses he wore as Simmon Petrikov. Given the illustration, it is likely "I Remember You" isn't refering to Marceline remembering her childhood with the Ice King but rather the Ice King remembering glimpses of the soft spoken antiquarian he once was before the power of the crown consumed him.

Videos
Adventure Time - I remember you (short preview)|Short preview. Adventure Time - I Remember You (long preview)|Long preview. "I Remember You" Animatic|Animatic.