When Cartoon Network's new line of programming is brought up, people think of the following: Adventure Time for its unbridled imagery, Regular Show for its surrealism intertwined with realism and Steven Universe for its world-building and thematic storytelling/writing.
The Amazing World of Gumball, courtesy of Cartoon Network Studios Europe, is a show that can be classified in any of the categories alongside its American contemporaries. What started as a charming project between the UK and America that was rough around the edges eventually blossomed into a show that is on the same league as the above mentioned shows.
Helmed by former in-house development artist Ben Bocquelet, Gumball chronicles the escapades of the titular blue cat, Gumball Watterson, and his chaotic yet still close-knit family; pet-goldfish-turned-brother Darwin, child prodigy youngest sister Anais, overbearing and overworked mother Nicole and deadbeat, stay-at-home father Richard. They're admittedly character archetypes that we've seen many times in the past, but the way these archetypes are played with is what makes them truly memorable.
Right off the bat, the most obvious draw to the show is its art style, which is undoubtedly one of the most creative in recent memory. It's a hodgepodge of individual styles put together (hand-drawn, claymation, 8-bit, stop-motion, live-action, CGI, puppets, and so forth) to create the vibrant and illustrious town of Elmore, the show's setting, as well as the vastly diverse cast of characters. And in an odd yet refreshing way, these styles manage to compliment each other and not look like a slapdash college project.
Speaking of the characters, Elmore is inhabited by a very charming ensemble with their own separate quirks to distinguish themselves from each other. This is aided by the fact that many of them get their own time in the spotlight as opposed to just being an afterthought.
Gumball's comedy is the deal-breaker here. Is it funny? Yes. Yes, it is. As is the standard fare for Western Animation, the humor has something for every age bracket. The show still retains a family-oriented atmosphere, but it's not afraid to throw in the occasional joke that flies over kids' heads but adults will completely understand. Season 2's "The Job" and "The Storm" have two fantastic examples that I'll let you see for yourself; it's too good to just tell you.
Bolstering the humor are the solid writing and voice work. Jacob Hopkins (Gumball) and Terrell Ransem Jr. (Darwin), and their predecessors before them, Logan Grove and Kwesi Boyake, bring the youthful energy that you can expect from their characters' ages. The rest of the main cast (Teresa Gallagher as Nicole, Kyla Rae Kowaleski as Anais and Dan Russell as Richard) also do a bang-up job with their roles.
Now, when I say that the show was initially rough around the edges, that applies more to the first season, which was definitely a good outing for Mr. Bocquelet. However, it's set back by some tired and quite frankly annoying characterization, mainly from the protagonist, Gumball. Depending on the writer, he's either helplessly idiotic, not-as-idiotic but still something of a loser, or an outright punching bag, physically and emotionally. Not helped is the frequency of mean-spirited episodes in the first season such as "The Gi", "The Robot" and (arguably) "The Curse", or episodes with mind-numbing plots like "The Picnic" and "The Genius".
And that's not to say that the rest of Elmore leaves scott-free. Elmore as a whole is usually the biggest contributor to the mean-spiritedness that I mentioned. Richard Watterson, however, is arguably the worst of them all. He's more or less Homer Simpson if he were an overgrown pink bunny rabbit, except with NONE of Homer's endearing qualities.
Thankfully, the second season on-wards have seen a tremendous improvement in the show's quality, the writing more competent, the characters more consistent, the plots more engaging and mature, and the art style cleaner. And the show has only seen improvement since then.
The point about the art style is kind of subjective in the fandom. A handful of fans preferred the less-defined, less-shadowed and swifter animation from season one, which gave it a rugged appeal, while another school of thought prefer the subsequent 'cleaner' style with more defined shapes, thicker lines, shadows and slower, slightly-stilted movement. I personally go with the latter.
And that is all I have to say about The Amazing World of Gumball. It's an amazing (redundancy not intended) cartoon series that will appeal to a wide demographic much like its contemporaries and predecessors before them, thanks to its writing, its art and its characters. As of late, I actually hold both Gumball and Steven Universe in higher regard than any other show in Cartoon Network's new line-up, and that includes the other two powerhouses Adventure Time and Regular Show.
For new viewers getting into Gumball, I'd recommend the following: "The Painting", "The Meddler", "The Job", "The Third"
This show gets a ten out of ten from me, and damn right is it deserving of it.
Thank you, Ben Bocquelet, for this marvel of a show, and thank you, Cartoon Network, for your continued support of the show.
