A Child at Heart

I’ll be the first to admit that when it comes to television and movies, I’m all about animation. I’m an adult who adores cartoons, and the image above shows one of my all time favorite characters. Meet Bill. Bill Cipher to be precise. He’s the primary antagonist in a sonderful show called Gravity Falls, a show about a pair of twins experiencing the strange little town of Gravity Falls, Oregon. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it. It’s got a great storyline that arches over its two seasons. I promise you won’t guess where it is going.

Now, when I saw this challenge, I had to sit down and think. What did I love about this show so much? How could I use that to find other shows to watch?

The things that I loved most about this show was the mystery of it. Gravity Falls is full of strange phenomenon. Magic, supernatural creatures, and monsters to name a few. The show is also filled with snide humor, and witty characters. It’s also really smart in how it handles the growth of its characters. Each episode is mostly stand alone, until later in the second season, yet every episode adds something to the whole story. If you watch closely, you will pick up what is actually going on beyond each episodes antics.

I used these ideas to try and find something new, and let me tell you. I was successful. I found another wicked smart cartoon that is super fun to watch. Enter my new obsession: Infinity Train.

All aboard the Infinity Train. This show fit all of my favorite aspects of Gravity Falls. It is wicked smart for a children’s show. It originally aired on Cartoon Network, but now lives on HBO Max. The Infinity Train is a mysterious train riding through a wasteland filled with monsters. The monsters won’t bother you, assuming you don’t leave the train. The train itself is a mystery in and of itself. Each car is different, and each car contains its own world. If you find yourself on the train, you’re there to learn a lesson. What that lesson is, well that’s for you to discover.

The train is all about bettering yourself, and it really makes you think. This is a show that you can watch time and time again, and spot something new. As a bonus, it’s short. You can watch a whole season in just a couple of hours. A new season is due to come out soon, too. April 15th, if I’m correct. So now is the time to hop on board. I can tell you that watching this show has definitely made me go introspective at times. Each season focuses on a new character’s experience on the train. Obviously, everyone is different, so each character has something different they are supposed to be learing from the train.

There are plenty of other phenomenal cartoon shows that fit what I’m looking for, but these two are my highlights. I really hope that if you haven’t seen either, you’ll give them a chance. Both have pretty great messages about friendship and growth. Both definitely kept me attached to the screen. Most importantly, both have left plenty of open room for the viewer to make up their minds about what happens next. That doesn’t mean they are unsatisfactory in their endings. Quite the opposite. That’s why I love them so much. I hope you like them if you watch them, and happy viewing!

So to boil it down, using these two shows, I have created the following formula to pick out new shows for myself:

Cartoon (Optional) + Life Lessons + Smart Storytelling + Mystery + Magic = Excellent Show