Love animation to bits. It was a big part of my life as a child, especially Disney, Looney Tunes, Hanna Barbera and Tom and Jerry (with tastes broadening further getting older with Pixar, Studio Ghibli and some of the more mature animations out there), and still love it to this day as a young adult whether it's film, television or cartoons. Actually appreciate it even more now, with more knowledge of the different animation styles, directors, studios and what work went into them.
'Animaniacs' always was one of my favourite animated shows. So is its spin off 'Pinky and the Brain', which is on the same level and almost surpasses it. Found it brilliant, extremely well made, cute at times and very funny and actually hilarious frequently as a child. Still think all of that as an adult, and even more so with more knowledge of animation and understanding the humour more. 'Pinky and the Brain' is like 'Animaniacs', it has something for everybody and children and adults alike will love it, it is so much more than "just another kiddie show" and should never be dismissed as such.
"A Pinky and the Brain Christmas" is one of my favourite 'Pinky and the Brain' episodes. When it comes to Christmas specials on television series, this episode is an example of how to do it well, having all of the characteristics that makes the show so brilliant while showing more depth to Brain and his relationship with Pinky.
The animation quality is terrific, at this very early stage the animation is actually better than it was when 'Animaniacs' first started with the character designs being more attractive here. The setting is an atmospheric one, credit is due making a quite confined setting interesting which "A Pinky and the Brain Christmas", and the whole of 'Pinky and the Brain' for that matter, does really well. The characters designs are smooth and not stiff at all, the backgrounds are very rich in detail and the colours are a mix of vibrant and atmospheric (having been throwing this word a lot recently but can't help it).
Similarly great is the music. The scoring is dynamic and cleverly composed, adding to the actions, expressions and gestures and doing what good music scores in animation should do in enhancing them. Then there is the theme tune, which is hard not to forget.
'Pinky and the Brain' throughout its too short run was always superbly written. That can be seen here in "A Pinky and the Brain Christmas". It is such smart writing, at its worst it's very funny, at its best it's not just hilarious but riotous. It is full of zaniness, wit and surprising intelligence and has references that will delight adults especially as they are more likely to get them, while having some educational parts for children. The exchanges between Pinky and Brain are masterpieces of how their personalities and way of speaking contrast so well with each other.
While somewhat formulaic (all the stories in 'Pinky and the Brain' are, but in structure, the concept was actually very original), this and all the show's episodes is a not so common example of formulaic not being a bad thing and not mattering at all, because of the cleverness, creativity and idea variety of the writing and storytelling which are nowhere near as silly as one would think looking at the premise. One worries about repetition, no worries are needed because there is a lot of freshness and variety to stop that from happening. Some of the content here is outrageous, but endearingly so (the outrageousness and creativity of Brain's plan was part of the show's charm and intentional, as is not being surprised by the outcome of Brain's plan), but it is from start to finish very engaging, lively in pace, clever and always structured coherently, being not being too complicated for children and not too simplistic for adults. Being a Christmas special and having the Christmas spirit "A Pinky and the Brain Christmas" actually does stand out among the rest.
Other than the writing, especially good are the characters. Pinky and Brain were two of the best characters on 'Animaniacs', Brain stole the show whenever he appeared, and more than deserved their own show. For me they are even more interesting and defined and one can see that here already. It is hard not to endear to Pinky and his inane comments and actions, he is very stupid and one can see why he frustrates Brain. But he is one of the finest examples of stupid not falling into the trap of being obnoxious, a trap often fallen into, Pinky instead is very funny and often hysterically so and simply adorable, one has to admire his spirit and perseverance.
Brain is slightly more interesting, he is the infinitely smarter one of the two, a genius in fact, although also the meaner and more intricate one, a very large contrast. Somehow though he is still very lovable, it is impossible not to fall in love with his scheme here and how he goes about it, nor is it impossible not to love his deadpan personality and dark sarcasm. The two have such compellingly real personalities and one can see here even early on some development and there is more to them under the surface. The chemistry between the two is just a delight, fun and sometimes antagonistic but there is more substance to it than that, being essentially the heart of the episode and the show it was important for it to work and it has always been one of the greatest assets.
There is though a different side to both Brain and his relationship with Pinky. Loved how he shows a softer and caring side and that there is much more to their relationship/chemistry than is seen usually and that there is much more under the surface. Doing all that without distorting Brain's personality too much, actually giving him more dimension, or being too out of sorts with the show's premise. There is a lot of heart and warmth, and it is very charming and moving to watch. Didn't think it schmaltzy or overly-sentimental personally.
Rob Paulsen and Maurice LaMarche, two of the best and most prolific voice actors around that time and in the voice acting business overall, are flawless providing Pinky and Brain's voices. They sound like they were having a lot of fun and give Pinky and Brain so much life and also surprising depth, their voices suiting the characters and their personalities perfectly. If they recorded the voices together, one can really feel the bond between them. The other voice actors are also great.
In conclusion, absolutely wonderful. 10/10 Bethany Cox
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