this is some good shit
Synopsis: Opposite gender twin siblings Dipper and Mabel are spending the summer with their great uncle Stan in a little town called Gravity Falls...but, not all is as it seems. Boy-crazy Mabel seems to have fallen in love, but, Dipper is convinced that her new boyfriend is actually a zombie. Will she be rescued in time?
The Good: Excellent animation, great voice work, plenty of cute moments...this is, in some ways, typical Disney fare, except...
The Bad: This seemed a bit edgier than I'm used to from Disney. Growing up, I much preferred the live-action Disney shows, such as Lizzie McGuire, to the cartoons, i.e., Kim Possible. While this is better than the old-school animated fare, it's still not exactly a favorite of mine.
Content Concerns:
Sex: A girl is asked to marry a thousand gnomes; she doesn't, however. Also, flirting is present.
Nudity: None.
Language: Use of terms such as "butt".
Violence: Mostly cartoon slapstick, though a presumed zombie is shown having blood on his face.
Drugs: None.
Frightening/Intense Scenes: Talk of a zombie eating a girl's brains out; scary monster; emotional intensity.
Other: Otherworldly creatures, such as gnomes, zombies, and werewolves, are seen or mentioned throughout.
Dipper Pines: Known for their pale skin and bad attitudes, these creatures are often mistaken for teenagers
This show is so funny
Kids shows are so weird.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2022-07-05T04:09:59Z
[7.5/10] Let’s start with the premise of the show. I like the idea of a couple of siblings sent to live with their weird great uncle in a strange part of the Pacific Northwest. (As Twin Peaks fans will tell you, weird things are known to happen up there.) The combination of a mysterious woods, the “gruncle’s” curio shop/tourist attraction, and a deeper mystery involving secret journals and hidden entrances provides plenty of intrigue. More to the point, there’s a relatable core to it, of kids being forced to “get outside”, visit relatives over the summer, only to find themselves having adventures.
I’m also a fan of the show’s sense of humor so far. There’s a casual absurdity to the vibe here. Little bits like Great Uncle Stan thinking he’s going crazy and hearing things when Dipper yells “zombie!” or Soos backing away solemnly when called to do a dirty job sport a fun mix of the fantastical and the loony. If the first episode’s any indication, there’s plenty of laughs here for the grown-ups, with a lightly ironic tone.
The characters have potential oto. Dipper being more skeptical and Mabel being more optimistic gives them a good dynamic. Great Uncle Stan being a bit of a kook and a huckster, but one who seems to genuinely care for the kids in his care, gives you plenty of places to go. And Soos and Wendy round things out nicely as the underappreciated fixit man and undermotivated teenage employee respectively.
Apart from the table-setting, the actual story here is good too. I like the low-key Twilight parody, where Mabel is dating some supernatural creature. Dipper assuming it’s a zombie and trying to get proof would have been a fun dose of shtick on its own.
I love the left turn this one takes though. The reveal that the boyfriend is actually a bunch of gnomes stacked within people clothes, who want Mabel to be their queen is a ridiculous place to take the threat. Them combining to form one giant attacking gnome makes for a good chase set piece, and the setup and payoff of Mabel and the leaf blower being the trick to defeating them is good writing.
The theme of this one is solid too. While Dipper learning to trust his sister even though his mysterious book warns against trusting anyone in Gravity Falls is a touch trite, but still wholesome. And the two settling into their new temporary home with this adventure, replete with Uncle Grandpa Stan giving each the chance to pick out a gift from his shop is a nice way to signal that they, and the show, has arrived.
Overall, this didn’t blow me away out of the gates, but there’s plenty to enjoy here, with some good humor, nice character setups, and some portentous hints for the audience to chew on.