The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy

Ya know, I'm watching an episode of Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy right now where Billy has turned himself into chocolate. And now i realize how much I like this show. It's funny, weird, and good.

In my last review i did something very stupid and kept comparing this to another show. While I still think Billy and Mandy could use a darker, more twisted edge, the shows sweet weird edge is more than enough to make it better than most other cartoons. I repent! I really like this show! Forgive me!

Anyway, why do I like the show more now? Well I stopped trying to compare it to Invader zim. Zim's a great show, but it's not Billy and Mandy, and neither is Billy and Mandy Zim. I realized i needed to respect the show on it's own merits. I still may not love it as much as Zim, but man do i see the error of my ways and like the show for what it is: crazy, cool and funny!

I love this TV show. Its dark theme is such a nice alternative from all the other cartoons on Cartoon Network. The series follows Billy and Mandy as they torment the Grim Reaper after coming to 'own' him after he attempted to take away Billy's pet hamster.

The idea of taking something as harrowing as death itself and turning it into a kids cartoon is a really good one and works extremely well. The fact that this show could so easily have been chilling really benefits it. If the theme was taken the other way and told darker this show would make a great film.

The character of Mandy in particular is so refreshing. In comparison to Billy who is basically an identikit of every single other cartoon character on the channel; stupid, clumsy etc, Mandy is a sinister little girl and so entertaining to watch. She is the perfect match for the Grim Reaper. You can always can count on her to do one horribly twisted little thing each episode is hysterical.

I strongly recommend this cartoon, if only to see the deadpan little Mandy. Shes so evil.

The first title, "The Grimm Adventures of Grimm and Mandy", is a great humorous Fantasy, and I love it because I love that genre. Some folks just don't get Fantasy, and they'll hate this. If you saw "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey", and didn't laugh out load every time you heard Death speak with an Italian accent, then a grim reaper ("Grimm", for short) with a Jamaican accent probably won't be your cup of tea -- move along. If you're not already comfortable with the ideas of alternate dimensions, brain sucking aliens, jumping into other peoples bodies, and stopping time, you'll be too busy asking stupid questions to get any of the jokes! If, on the other hand, the very mention of the evil and terrible Yog Sothoth still makes the hairs stand up on the back of your neck, your disappointment at finding that he's merely a crashing bore will be tempered by the discovery that there is, indeed, still ONE thing that makes the Grimm Reaper himself tremble in fear -- his mom!!!

The second title "Evil...", is a pastiche of the 1960's superhero cartoons (such as "Underdog"). The villains were always the best part, and this has only villains, including the outrageous anti-hero, Hector Con Carne. Phil LaMarr's Hector is the funniest voice I've ever heard in a cartoon, yet the character's back-story, that comes though episode by episode, is well thought out, fascinating, and tragic.

This is all great stuff, that works great as a cartoon.

Since "The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy" has been spun off from "Grim and Evil", it is a much better show. This deserves to be on its own.

The premise is unusual. Billy (an idiotic little boy) and Mandy (a dark, sarcastic girl) trick Grim (aka Death), who has come for their gerbil, into being their "best friend forever". The show is a series of adventures of the two with their tall, dark and boney "friend".

This is apparently not everyone's cup of tea. The reaction to this show is very strong. Some hate it, some (like me) love it, especially with the rather morbid sense of humor that Mandy has. At the start of every show, Mandy gives a little comment, often relating to the episodes in the show. My favorite is "Evolution takes no prisoners". I'd like that on a bumper sticker!

My only complaint is...Why does Grim/Death have a Jamaican accent?

All in all, if you like "The Addams family", you'll get a kick out of this show.

I would say I am near obsessed with Billy and Mandy. This show is one of two, maybe three cartoons I ever turn straight to if it is on Cartoon Network at the time. I think the main reason I like it is because of Mandy; she makes Billy look like an even bigger idiot than he is, and makes the Grim Reaper look mediocre. She is smart, able to figure things out well, and her lines are especially funny due to her terse, deadpan attitude.

Grey DeLisle has got the best voice talents of anybody I've ever heard. She does such an outstanding job as Mandy, yet as Frankie Foster on Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, she sounds like a different person; it's amazing. The other actors do well also, and they do a much better job than those on some Anime cartoons currently playing.

One thing I wish they would cut out, though, is a good portion of crude humor. I'm sure 90 percent of cartoons today have crudeness that should be omitted. However, it is a small price to pay for the joy of watching such an original cartoon that is by no means generic. Every episode is completely distinct, unlike some cartoons whose episodes all follow two or three plots in an entire series.