I doubt there’s a single person who has never watched an episode of any cartoon created by Matt Groening. My childhood and a lot of my young adult years have been spent immersing myself in the multiverse he created. The Simpsons is one of the longest running animated series in television history and it’s still one of my favourite series from Groening. While I never really took to Futurama, I’m hopeful about Groening’s future creations. This installment of “For Your Consideration” will focus on his most recent series, Disenchantment.
The Premise
Disenchantment follows the life of the less-than-charming, constantly drunk princess Bean as she fails to live up to her father’s expectations and her royal duties in the dilapidated kingdom of Dreamland. From the get-go, her daily shenanigans are debated between, but ultimately supported by, her two mythical companions, an elf named Elfo and her personal demon Luci. Elfo is an overly optimistic elf who leaves his hometown where elves are forced to show only one emotion: happiness.
He sets off on his own adventure to discover the world outside of the one he’s always known and ends up at the doors of Dreamland. After a short fray with the kingdom he ends up being one of the princess’ closest companions. While Bean welcomes Elfo’s companionship, she initially tries to rid herself of Luci. After realizing that Luci isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, she reluctantly allows him to be one of her supporting characters and the instigator of many of her wrongdoings. The trio focus their energy on getting drunk and finding ways to get out of trouble that they usually bring upon themselves.
Why You Should Watch
After dabbling in the present and future, Groening tries his hand at the past with Disenchantment and it is absolutely delightful. At first, the series seemed to be lacking in humour, but as the plot thickens and the audience gets accustomed to the characters, the banter between Elfo and Luci becomes funnier. Bean’s comebacks become even more well-timed. Many people are speculating that Bean shares the same universe as the characters from Futurama. While it would be interesting to see them do a cross-over episode, I’d prefer that the speculations are wrong. I’m way more curious about the possibilities of this new universe that Groening is attempting to make.
It takes a few episodes to get used to Bean’s attitude but she can easily be seen as the teenage female version of Bart Simpson. I love the fact that, much like Groening’s other animated series, the show doesn’t take itself too seriously. Yet, there’s an underlining plot that’s slowly being developed. The finale episode for part one of the series leaves so many questions that hopefully part two will answer.
If you’re a fan of Groening’s animations and up for a new adventure, I’d suggest binge-watching Disenchantment on Netflix.
Advertisement