The Cartoon Channel scored big with this lovely little cartoon. The stories and characters are very wonderful. The macabre stories take their cues from earlier and equally good children's cartoons, such as "The Real Ghostbusters" and "Ahh! Real Monsters," as well as from such eclectic sources as the stories of H.P. Lovecraft and Harry Potter and even from the Kustom Kulture artwork that featured Rat Fink. I've only seen a few episodes, but the cartoonists and voice actors have really made an enjoyable cartoon that mixes the supernatural with goofy comedy.
I do have some quibbles with this cartoon, and I'm sure that there are many people who agree with me. The animation style is part of a trend that focuses on deliberate crudity and outrageousness. The characters' personalities are manifest in the way they are drawn, which is surrealistic and crude, with thick lines and sharp edges; cartoonist Christopher Hart calls these types of 'toons "edgy 'toons." I know it's a hip style that the Cartoon Channel seems absolutely ape for, but, having been raised on the classic and complex styles of Disney and the Looney Toons, the crudeness of the animation style edgy 'toons doesn't quite win me over. I get the impression that the "Grim and Evil" cartoonists simply don't put in as much effort as their predecessors did in the days of yore. I also don't like that Cartoon Channel is marketing "Grim and Evil" towards young children, when the humor---again, much in the vein of the wild and crazy "edgy 'toons"---- is gross enough to be considered adult. "Grim and Evil" out-Ren-and-Stimpys "Ren and Stimpy" with its constant and explicit discussions and demonstrations of bodily functions, like boogers and bathroom humor. One episode featured one of the children stating that his mother was undergoing menopause. I think this is a little too adult for the demographic the Cartoon Channel is looking for. This cartoon is great for teenagers and adults, though; they are also the ones who may actually understand the homages to horror writers or older cartoons that may go over the heads of little kids.
Overall, this is a decent cartoon. Be sure to watch it, but if you're a parent, exercise caution if you have young ones.
I do have some quibbles with this cartoon, and I'm sure that there are many people who agree with me. The animation style is part of a trend that focuses on deliberate crudity and outrageousness. The characters' personalities are manifest in the way they are drawn, which is surrealistic and crude, with thick lines and sharp edges; cartoonist Christopher Hart calls these types of 'toons "edgy 'toons." I know it's a hip style that the Cartoon Channel seems absolutely ape for, but, having been raised on the classic and complex styles of Disney and the Looney Toons, the crudeness of the animation style edgy 'toons doesn't quite win me over. I get the impression that the "Grim and Evil" cartoonists simply don't put in as much effort as their predecessors did in the days of yore. I also don't like that Cartoon Channel is marketing "Grim and Evil" towards young children, when the humor---again, much in the vein of the wild and crazy "edgy 'toons"---- is gross enough to be considered adult. "Grim and Evil" out-Ren-and-Stimpys "Ren and Stimpy" with its constant and explicit discussions and demonstrations of bodily functions, like boogers and bathroom humor. One episode featured one of the children stating that his mother was undergoing menopause. I think this is a little too adult for the demographic the Cartoon Channel is looking for. This cartoon is great for teenagers and adults, though; they are also the ones who may actually understand the homages to horror writers or older cartoons that may go over the heads of little kids.
Overall, this is a decent cartoon. Be sure to watch it, but if you're a parent, exercise caution if you have young ones.