11-18-2014, 10:56 PM | #1 |
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Over the Garden Wall
"Over the Garden Wall is a dramedy miniseries created by Patrick McHale for Cartoon Network. The series centers around two brothers, Wirt and Greg, who become lost in a strange forest called the Unknown. In order to find their way home, the two must travel across the forest, apparently magic. Along the way, they meet a variety of odd characters and are accompanied by an irritable bluebird named Beatrice." -adapted from Wikipedia I recently saw recommendations for this series floating around tumblr. Seeing as it's so short (10 episodes, each 11 minutes long), I decided to breeze through it out of curiosity. It's a very charming little story that's difficult to describe without giving away spoilers, and I would recommend avoiding any before watching it. The surprises are simple, but add to the overall experience. The best summary I can come up with is that it feels like Gravity Falls meets MLP. Sounds like a strange combination, but I mean it in the sense that it takes the creepy fantastical atmosphere of GF and balances it with the endearing innocence of MLP, including some nice little musical numbers. It's neither as comedic nor as focused on drama/character development as the other two - considering it's a mini-series - but the straightforward direction gives it a childlike touch nostalgic of fairytale books. It's not trying to be witty or edgy, it's just a magical journey into imagination. I expected it to be a lot more random/hyperactive, have pop culture references, etc. Instead it felt like I got transported into an old timeless classic. It doesn't seem like something made for modern TV at all, and yet it is. Even the silly Mabel-like character (the younger sibling in this case), wasn't too overbearing. (As an aside, I liked how the brothers' relationship wasn't portrayed as particularly close off the bat.) It's not an amazing groundbreaking work or anything, but a nice little trip back in time for a few hours. My only complaint is that the ending is sadly a little rushed. I think this could've worked well as a short film or something. Still, it's just really adorable and enjoyable. Feel free to check it out if you've got a chance.
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11-19-2014, 09:53 PM | #2 |
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I found all the episodes uploaded to YT on this channel. They're unfortunately cropped a bit, but the sound quality is fine. Also note that each video is the same episode repeated twice, so they're not actually 20 minutes long.
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11-19-2014, 11:41 PM | #3 |
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This reminds me of what I liked about Frozen.
I just finished Episode 8. This series is NOT to be taken lightly, no matter how silly it seemed to be at first, and it really starts to pick up mid-Episode 5. The references to culture are subtle (yet present - the 40's-50's cartoony style in Episode 8, the Mad Hatter in #5, the distinctly Betty Boopy tavern-keeper) but not current, which is part of what gives it a timeless feel; the story borrows not just from elements of American culture but some of its essential cornerstones while telling an impressive story. I love the animation techniques used in this. In Ep. 8 Spoiler: show
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11-20-2014, 12:18 AM | #5 | |
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Quote:
Spoiler: show Edit- Some comments on episode 09: Spoiler: show Also about mid-ep 05: Spoiler: show
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Last edited by lilboocorsola; 11-20-2014 at 12:33 AM. |
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11-20-2014, 12:40 AM | #6 |
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Alright done.
Spoiler: show My favorite parts: Episode 6 Spoiler: show Episode 8 Spoiler: show Episode 9 Spoiler: show This is what a miniseries should be. Everything was done very well. I wish I could unwatch it just to enjoy each twist again. EDIT: Beatrice was easily the funniest character. All of the characters were really well done. Very different from more "classic" fairy tale stories which are really overscripted and super perfect while OtGW was more of a "let's throw these chips of characters and settings and let them fall where they naturally will." ep10 Spoiler: show
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Last edited by Shuckle; 11-20-2014 at 12:45 AM. |
11-20-2014, 01:40 AM | #7 | |
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Quote:
Spoiler: show My favorite parts: Episode 04: Spoiler: show (Already mentioned the ones in 05.) 06: Spoiler: show Episode 08: Spoiler: show Echoing that Episode 09 was great overall. Another random thing I liked: Spoiler: show And in episode 10: Spoiler: show
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11-20-2014, 12:03 PM | #9 |
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I rewatched this today with my mother and we both agreed that 7 was our favorite episode. 8 and 9 are both amazing and the "best" episodes but 7 was just our favorite.
I think it might be Spoiler: show
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11-20-2014, 12:33 PM | #11 | |
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Quote:
Spoiler: show There are still some things that seem to be glossed over/don't make sense, but overall I thought it was neat how they managed to slip little clues here and there. As an aside, the entrance of Auntie Whispers is another preview I saw on YT before watching. I also watched the "Lorna's Chores" scene (somehow the music still didn't register). From it I expected: Spoiler: show Btw, if I were to do a stream of the series later, would people be interested? It's only a couple hours after all.
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11-20-2014, 12:49 PM | #13 | |
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Quote:
I don't mind using a different website, which is where I first watched it in high-quality. Just figured YT was safer.
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11-20-2014, 01:01 PM | #14 |
Barghest Barghest Barghe-
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I would be interested in a stream, but not today.
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11-24-2014, 10:15 AM | #15 |
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CN apparently wrote full versions of some songs.
Spoiler: show I just love this series so much and I have so much respect for them doing this. On the official CN youtube channel, each song has a different letter in the center, starting with Over the Garden Wall and proceeding from there to spell "THE UNKNOWN." These guys are on point. I think I might learn how to play the intro song since it's such a beautiful piano piece and isn't too terribly difficult.
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Last edited by Shuckle; 11-24-2014 at 10:53 AM. |
11-28-2014, 05:24 PM | #16 | |
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Quote:
Would love to hear you play the intro. On that note, how does tomorrow night sound for a stream (after karaoke)? Anyone available? I also wanted to share this comic, since I think it kinda fits with your expectations of the ending. (WARNING: AU, BUT SPOILERS) The artist does some really cute work, for Gravity Falls as well. They're even currently doing a crossover comic. (As an aside, seems they're also behind a webcomic I started reading at one point. Small world.)
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11-30-2014, 04:16 AM | #17 |
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Was able to finish this tonight after watching the first episode last night. At first I was just going to watch until the halfway mark, but that obviously didn't happen and now it's 3 AM. This is really great, and it definitely had a great atmosphere that I haven't gotten from many things. It really draws you in. I'm honestly not sure whether I'm perfectly fine with some of the things left vague, or if I want to know everything. Not sure whether that's good or bad, but right now I think that's a good place to be. I thought the ending was alright, but the ending episode as a whole was pretty fantastic. Not gonna say too much though because 3 AM. Really great miniseries though.
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11-30-2014, 06:29 PM | #18 |
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The channel got busted pretty hard.
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11-30-2014, 06:36 PM | #19 |
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Ouch. =/
Well, I'm still willing to stream via other sites. Let me know when's a good time for you guys. (I'm going to be pretty busy soon though.)
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01-02-2015, 12:29 AM | #20 |
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First off: Thanks to everyone who attended the stream(s). Hope you all enjoyed, and I'm always willing to host again in the future if folks are interested.
Anyway, I promised to share some stuff, so apologies for being late. First is this interesting theory I found regarding the Beast. (It's long and the text is hard to read, but there's a tl;dr at the end.) Another intriguing thing to note is the headstone in episode 09. Spoiler: show Just some cool speculation fuel I found. The other thing I really wanted to share is a crossover comic with Gravity Falls. (It's actually a continuation of the comic I posted before.) Prologue: 1, 2 Main Story: 1, extra, 2, 3, extra, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, extra A little explanation regarding 7 for those who haven't seen S2 of GF and don't mind spoilers: Spoiler: show It's still ongoing so I'll continue updating as more are released~
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Last edited by lilboocorsola; 01-02-2015 at 12:34 AM. |
01-04-2015, 10:47 PM | #21 |
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Small update to the comic. There's only one more left apparently. 8<
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01-07-2015, 09:00 PM | #23 |
Barghest Barghest Barghe-
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omg that's so great
*cries*
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01-07-2015, 10:07 PM | #24 |
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OH MAN OH MAN OH MAN
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01-16-2015, 07:37 PM | #25 |
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!!! Super-happy and proud for the artist. \o/ This definitely deserves the recognition~ (I should read more of her Hell Kitchen webcomic. Stumbled on it by accident a long time ago. This post alone gives me feels and I never even knew the two characters shared a backstory. ;; )
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