This Cartoon Network mini-series is one for the books; quite literally, “Over The Garden Wall” follows along with fairytale-like storytelling and brings out the inner child in any adult watching. On that same wave, however, it fills the audience with questions on life and death that are difficult to swallow.
Wirt and Greg are our cartoon protagonists; the show follows two brothers on their adventure home after stumbling into the Unknown: a hauntingly handsome realm full of magical creatures, unprecedented dangers and imagination stirring animations. There are dancing skeletons wearing pumpkin costumes, a sassy bluebird named Beatrice, a mysterious woodsman chopping down trees to light his lantern and more creative, head scratching characters that allow your mind to imagine and wander.
Everything about the show feels slightly off-kilter. Its creepy dark vintage animation, original soundtrack and plots revolve around interesting folk tale-esque situations. The excellence of the show comes in the slow delivery of information, as the audience is given such small tidbits of exposition sprinkled throughout each episode.The overall theme isn’t apparent until the very end, and even then you’re still left wondering. The expertise of Patrick McHale, the show’s creator, gives us existential and inquisitive characters geared towards children that ask adult questions and face adult issues, which is the best part about watching intently for the content as well as the comedy.
The music is beautiful and drags you into the spooky world around our clever boys. Every detail of the show is intentional, important and interesting to chew on well after the episodes and season are over. The show is also slightly star-studded, with voices like Elijah Wood as Wirt and Christopher Lloyd as the Woodsman.
Overall, the 10 episode mini-series is heartfelt and heart-wrenching, while simultaneously being playful and cute. It brings you back to childhood through the adorable antics of teapot-wearing Greg yet keeps you guessing and tearing up as you dive deeper into the Wirt’s past, the history of the brothers and the scary depths of the Unknown. You can check out this one of a kind show on Hulu, and that’s a rock fact!
