Algebraic!: My Thoughts on Adventure Time

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Adventure Time created by Pendleton Ward

It's been a while since I got hooked to an animated show (whether the Japanese Anime or the Western Cartoon). I've actually been searching for a new one to follow when I stumbled upon Cartoon Network and this new series called Adventure Time. At first, I was already hooked. The approach of the show may look child-like, but its story is actually quite mature. No, it does not reference anything explicitly taboo, but it appears more like a satirical show, allegorical, even.

First, a retrospection. According to my quick research - Wikipedia helped a lot *wink* - Adventure Time is created by Pendleton Ward (@buenothebear on Twitter) and produced by Frederator Studios. As I've mentioned, it's currently being shown on Cartoon Network. Weird though is that this show actually started from a Random! Cartoons feature in Nickelodeon. After it became a sensation over the Interwebs, Cartoon Network seized the opportunity and decided to show a full-length series for it.

The show centers on its two main characters, Finn the Human and Jake the Dog. Finn, as described by its creator, is a "fiery little kid with strong morals" and if I may add, a guy who knows so little and has the same amount of appreciation for math. He and his powerful dog-friend travel through the post-apocalyptic land of Ooo (Oooh... Aaah...) fighting evil monsters, defending princesses from an old, evil king and helping other creatures while having fun and dancing along the way.

As I've said, it may sound child-like at first, but it is actually quite mature in nature. It talks about many different subject matters that may edge over adult world, so much so that CN rater it TV-PG. Themes like love, jealousy, hate and the fight of good against evil are recurring themes of the series, and they are depicted rather allegorically. There's this one episode when Finn had injured his foot and clown doctors came in to heal him and his dog, who weirdly had the same injury. The clown doctors said that kissing the feet is the ONLY way to heal the wound and that they know what they're doing while Finn doesn't. Finn, who grew awkward to the treatment, sought to find his own way of treating his own injury. Sure enough, he did find a solution. The presentation is rather comical, but the message is rather enlightening.

Adventure Time, with its witty delivery and diverse setting, has gained a good following over the years, and I've become one of them. Truly, its hard not to fall in love with this show once you get to watch an episode or to of it. I'm so in love of the show I've managed to er, persuade, my little sister to do a cover of Adventure Time's ending song, "Island Song" by Ashley Eriksson. The video of her cover can be found below (and here's a link to her YouTube channel: natashaelouise)

To those who haven't watched this yet, then now you should. Adventure Time will give you a ton of laughs. Enjoy watching Adventure Time! I know I did, and still do! :)