Nom de code: Kids Next Door

Young or old, if you enjoy cartoons and animation, then you'll enjoy Kids Next Door. The show's concept is relatively simple: a secret agency composed of ten year-olds fights evil adults; the result is a imaginative world that is both inspired by several genres and movies and creates a distinct universe. The comedy is wide-ranging in the ages it appeals to, the action is entertaining despite the show not being the pinnacle of animation, and the plots are original while paying homage to it's sources: many of the episodes are homages with a KND spin that works extremely well. The characters that make up this rich universes might seem like stereotypes at first, but they grow into completely three-dimensional beings that can be both fun and poignant.

Hands down, KND is one of the best original shows on Cartoon Network, keeping with the explosion of comic creativity in the channel that is leagues ahead of most other kid-oriented channels (Nick and Disney come to mind).

I saw the pilot to this series way back in 2001, now a couple of years later, Cartoon Network have come back with a full-blown series of this show.

To be honest, this is one of the most original and funny shows that I have ever seen, to spoil it would be crazy, go and find out for yourself!

I don't think it is the best Cartoon Network cartoon though, Dexter's Laboratory was definitely the most consistent, smartest and most engaging of all their shows put together. While some episodes are very repetitive and there are later episodes that meander quite considerably, Codename:Kids Next Door is one of the funnier and original recent Cartoon Network cartoon shows with a great concept. The story lines are creative, the writing is intelligent and funny, the animation is done in a unique visual style, the theme tune is memorable and the characters are likable with unique personalities, Numbah 1 being the smartest and Numbah 3 being the cutest. The voice acting isn't necessarily award worthy but it is solid and delivers the dialogue perfectly. Overall, funny and original, even if like Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy it lost its way in the later episodes. 8/10 Bethany Cox

The KND series is without a doubt excellent! The stories and sub plot twists are all integrated into a nice package every time. The artwork is clean & sweet also. Unlike other cartoons that are thrown together and just a lot of messy abstract junky scratches with no real storyline either. But Kids Next Door deliver every time! The 2x4 technology totally rocks! And the Rainbow Monkeys rule!

The animation & cinematography flows perfect in KND and the sf/music meshes perfectly to the action at hand. And there is an endless supply of writing creativity! My favorite cartoon since Sailor Moon.

JP

I love this show! My favorite character as you can probably tell, is Numbuh 1.I can't help it, he's just so cool! Love the accent! Although I think he can do a lot better than Lizzie for a girlfriend. Him and Numbuh 86 should be together, like Jimmy and Cindy on Jimmy Neutron; Boy Genius. I especially love the way he tries to bring justice to kids everywhere.

Observe with this quote;

Numbuh 1: How many times do we have to tell you parents, cleaning closets is deadly work. (so true*sigh*)

But seriously, I love basically all the K.N.D.