So, in my generation, Gravity Falls goes under a couple different categories:
“It’s one of those ‘weird’ cartoons don’t watch it.”
A childhood favorite
Okay there’s probably an in-between or something.
While it might’ve been a possible childhood show of mine, I never actually watched it as a kid (Ok, that’s a lie I saw it a few times but since I barely remember it doesn’t count). I was brought up in a way that insinuated that cartoons in that drawing style had the great potential to be weird or inappropriate. Except Phineas and Ferb, which was an exception.
This isn’t exactly wrong. But my perception of “weird cartoons” was that they were dumb. I quickly realized after watching a few episodes of Gravity Falls that this was quite possibly one of the greatest Disney channel cartoons ever. Okay, that might be overstepping it, but… maybe not?
Gravity falls had a few different things that really brought me in:
Okay this is a big one: Continuity
This show was one of the few kids cartoons I’d seen that had continuity. Since I’m really comparing this to Phineas and Ferb (let’s be honest here), Gravity Falls is full of continuity. Mabel gets Waddles The Pig one episode, and then the next episode—he’s still there! WHAT?! And then the overarching plot from the BEGINNING? Most shows seem to like to take their time before getting to the good stuff like character development and plot reveals. This was something I’d been wanting from Phineas and Ferb but never really received. My inner child was fulfilled. Yes, I have seen shows with continuity, but not nearly enough. I will be talking about continuity in further reviews.
It was weird, but it wasn’t that weird.
The “weirdest” thing in Gravity Falls was probably Mabel, aside from wacky monsters, etc. But after the first half of season one-ish, she’s less obnoxious and more endearing as a character, and you love her anyway.
It was short and sweet.
In Josh Sippie’s recent review of Ayashimon, he talks about brevity, and short form content. I felt this applied to Gravity Falls as well. Gravity Falls is only 2 seasons, but it has full character arcs, and a complete storyline that makes you want more. I know I wanted more. I nearly cried when it ended. You come to love the cast and all the jokes.
So, with all that said, Gravity Falls is a wonderful show and I recommend watching it if you haven’t! I laughed out loud multiple times. Don’t be surprised if I end up cosplaying Grunkle Stan at some point. I’m happy I could commemorate this wonderful show in a post. Also, if anyone is listening *cough* Alex Hirsch —GRAVITY FALLS SEQUEL MOVIE. Big City Greens did it!
Thanks for reading! Have you watched Gravity Falls? Drop a comment on what you thought of it!
Want more pop culture rants among other things? Consider subscribing!