‘Over The Garden Wall’ – A New Classic Animation?

Led through the mist

By the milk light of moon

All that was lost, is revealed

Or so sings Jack Jones, in the opening lines of ‘Over The Garden Wall’s  theme song. In essence, the show is about re-finding that which was lost,  an experience shared by the viewer, provided of course, that they’re  looking to find a forgotten feeling from childhood, or maybe the beat of  adventure, or the intrigue of mystery.

Or if you’re looking for the revival of fantastic, character-filled  animation, it has you covered there too.

‘Over the Garden Wall’ is a 2014 American animated miniseries created  by Patrick McHale, previously known for his work as a writer and  creative director of ‘Adventure Time’.

It follows the journey of two siblings, Wirt, the neurotic and worrisome elder brother, voiced by Elijah Wood, and Greg, the carefree and easily distracted younger brother, voiced by relative newcomer to the voice acting scene, nine year old Colin Dean.

The series starts with the brothers lost in a strange forest, with minimum ungainly exposition. Bits and pieces of the brothers past is eventually revealed, but initially the show just expects you to accept that they’re lost, and are trying to find their way home. This is perfectly fine, because the joy of this show doesn’t stem from complicated back-story or motivation, but instead comes from the amazing union between art-direction, musical score and an atmosphere dripping with character and intrigue.

McHale seems to have drawn a lot of inspiration from old America – A sort of, old-timey, wistful feeling permeates the show, harking back to a simpler time. However, while this folksiness creates a peaceful aesthetic, a lot of the show’s joy comes from Wirt’s obvious uneasiness with the people and situations they find themselves in. This is a feeling often shared by the viewer, because underlying it all is a creepy, backwoods vibe that while occasionally bubbling to the surface, seems content to just quietly lurking the background.

Throughout their journey they’re joined by Beatrice, a talking bluebird with her own motivations. I can see she was there to add a personality counter-part to the brothers, as she is both spunky and strong-willed, but I found her seeming immediate irrational hatred of Wirt to mostly come across as unnecessary forced drama. BUT, as their characters develop and they become better friends, I began to enjoy the dynamic a bit more though.

Overall all the episodes are strong, besides maybe one that is partially let down by a lack of strong direction, and another near the end with what I saw as an unnecessarily long and arduous musical number.

However, these niggles aren’t drastic, and every other facet of the show redeems it momentously. I’d heartily recommend it to anyone, and, for such a small amount of time investment, it leaves a fantastic lingering impression.