A cozy show I have been waiting to watch for way too long. This was watched over multiple days, but all watched in January.
Over the Garden Wall is a masterclass in vibes. It's one of those once in a blue moon shows that we just don't see that often anymore, back then when Cartoon Network dared a little, experimented and produced this gem that I have been waiting to watch for no reason. I feel in love with the world, atmosphere, characters and just the folklore vibe. It is a show that can feel a bit too allover the place at times, but the overall themes, especially when you get to later episodes, really are amazing!
We follow two brothers, Wirt and Gregory, as they traverse a dark forest full of creatures in order to return home.
What this show does the best is having a modern feeling of folklore. The world we travel through feels random and not making much sense, yet every story feels like a small, contained folk tail that could be handed down. From the first beat episode, to animals in school, to the frog boat, to the entire premise of the beast. It all creates this incredible universe you just want to watch so much more of to see what else is happening in this world. Sure, some of the stories aren't as strong as others and the show has some filler feeling episodes, but they are all still entertaining at least with a very digestible runtime around 10 minutes per episode.
The animation is absolutely breathtaking. It reminds me of old fairy tale books, and some of the backgrounds have so much incredible detailing you had to just say something, like "wow". It's only on-screen for a few seconds sometime but has this impactful look to it. While the characters aren't as detailed, they become iconic in their own right, with new and exiting people turning up every episode. Our main characters are incredible. The serious but nervous nature of Wirt and the carefree nature of Gregory really work well together to make great comedy and just a friendship and brotherhood you just really believe if you have any siblings.
Having these contained episodes really helps the show in my opinion. It feels like reading the next chapter in a book of folklore. Sure, some are better than other, but together with the last couple of episodes, I think it makes the whole journey worth it.
The soundtrack is so pleasant and also so vibey and mood feeling. It sounds incredible, and especially the opening to all the episodes and the ending is now ingrained into my mind. The songs get more and more space along the way, and there are some wonderful songs here. I found it a bit distracting to begin with, but later feel in love with the songs. This is a bit of a musical, and the music fits whatever is going on pretty well.
There are so many characters I remember from this show. They are all so memorable because of the impact they do for their own story. The main boys, Beatrice the bird, the woodsman, the beast, the pumpkin man, the school teacher, the frog with many names, they are all so memorable and fits their own small contained universe so well. This is also helped by the incredible voice acting, kids and adults alike. Elijah Wood as Wirt and Collin Dean as the main characters are absolutely incredible. I was surprised by the all star cast, Christopher Lloyd, John Cleese, Tim Curry and many, many more really lift their performances to the next level.
Now this is a fun little adventure until the last two episodes hit. They recontextualize the show a bit in the best way possible. I would say it can take a bit away from the forementioned thing I liked about the show the most, but I think works to really create a strong sense of urgency to a slow and steady adventure.
Over the Garden Wall blew my expectations away! I knew it would be good, but I expected to like it and not love it as I did. It will only grow in rating over time no doubt as I just thought about my immediate thoughts after finishing the show, but this will be rewatched, this will be remembered, and I will go through all the frog names again got dammit!
Over the Garden Wall is a masterclass in vibes. It's one of those once in a blue moon shows that we just don't see that often anymore, back then when Cartoon Network dared a little, experimented and produced this gem that I have been waiting to watch for no reason. I feel in love with the world, atmosphere, characters and just the folklore vibe. It is a show that can feel a bit too allover the place at times, but the overall themes, especially when you get to later episodes, really are amazing!
We follow two brothers, Wirt and Gregory, as they traverse a dark forest full of creatures in order to return home.
What this show does the best is having a modern feeling of folklore. The world we travel through feels random and not making much sense, yet every story feels like a small, contained folk tail that could be handed down. From the first beat episode, to animals in school, to the frog boat, to the entire premise of the beast. It all creates this incredible universe you just want to watch so much more of to see what else is happening in this world. Sure, some of the stories aren't as strong as others and the show has some filler feeling episodes, but they are all still entertaining at least with a very digestible runtime around 10 minutes per episode.
The animation is absolutely breathtaking. It reminds me of old fairy tale books, and some of the backgrounds have so much incredible detailing you had to just say something, like "wow". It's only on-screen for a few seconds sometime but has this impactful look to it. While the characters aren't as detailed, they become iconic in their own right, with new and exiting people turning up every episode. Our main characters are incredible. The serious but nervous nature of Wirt and the carefree nature of Gregory really work well together to make great comedy and just a friendship and brotherhood you just really believe if you have any siblings.
Having these contained episodes really helps the show in my opinion. It feels like reading the next chapter in a book of folklore. Sure, some are better than other, but together with the last couple of episodes, I think it makes the whole journey worth it.
The soundtrack is so pleasant and also so vibey and mood feeling. It sounds incredible, and especially the opening to all the episodes and the ending is now ingrained into my mind. The songs get more and more space along the way, and there are some wonderful songs here. I found it a bit distracting to begin with, but later feel in love with the songs. This is a bit of a musical, and the music fits whatever is going on pretty well.
There are so many characters I remember from this show. They are all so memorable because of the impact they do for their own story. The main boys, Beatrice the bird, the woodsman, the beast, the pumpkin man, the school teacher, the frog with many names, they are all so memorable and fits their own small contained universe so well. This is also helped by the incredible voice acting, kids and adults alike. Elijah Wood as Wirt and Collin Dean as the main characters are absolutely incredible. I was surprised by the all star cast, Christopher Lloyd, John Cleese, Tim Curry and many, many more really lift their performances to the next level.
Now this is a fun little adventure until the last two episodes hit. They recontextualize the show a bit in the best way possible. I would say it can take a bit away from the forementioned thing I liked about the show the most, but I think works to really create a strong sense of urgency to a slow and steady adventure.
Over the Garden Wall blew my expectations away! I knew it would be good, but I expected to like it and not love it as I did. It will only grow in rating over time no doubt as I just thought about my immediate thoughts after finishing the show, but this will be rewatched, this will be remembered, and I will go through all the frog names again got dammit!