Mr. Bean

 Mr. Bean

This cartoon version of the hit live action TV series, "Mr. Bean", certainly hasn't managed to match its predecessor's wide appeal, and has disappointed certain fans, but it has managed to impress some viewers, including me. I saw just a little bit of an episode on TV a few years ago, but didn't actually sit down to watch any episodes until a while later, when I rented the first of the three DVD sets. Like the original series, it made me laugh, that's for sure. This year, I've finally seen every episode, and while it is somewhat inferior to the live action series, it has still given me plenty of laughs, and I would say it's superior to both of the movies.

Mr. Bean is still the same kind of person he's known to be. He is still a goofy, naive, self-centred loner, constantly struggling with life, with his Teddy as his best friend. Having the mind of a child, he keeps getting himself into trouble and finding himself on little adventures, thinking of bizarre ways to try and solve his problems! This time, however, he is in cartoon form. Some episodes also feature Irma Gobb, Bean's girlfriend from the live action series, and like before, the couple certainly doesn't have the most steady relationship. The show also introduces some new characters who were not in the live action show, most notably Bean's wrathful landlady, Mrs. Wicket, and her vicious cat, Scrapper! Bean sometimes gets in trouble with his landlady, and Scrapper sometimes adds more challenges to his life as well!

There are some clear differences between live action and animated "Mr. Bean" material, which is not a bad thing. "Mr. Bean: The Animated Series" has less of the realistic sitcom style that the original series has, and sometimes has more of a fantasy touch to it, an example being the episodes involving Bean having encounters with animals, definitely cartoon-style animals. Since this is a cartoon, it makes sense that it has more cartoon-style qualities. The show also has different theme music (piano music instead of choir music this time). The two also have their similarities. Like before, the humour here is pretty visual. The animated Mr. Bean does make more sounds and mumble more than the original live action version of the character does, but it's still mostly about the visual humour, and as a fan of the original series, I've gotten some big laughs from this cartoon, though not quite as consistently. Mrs. Wicket's aggressive tendencies, with her shouting and fits, also tend to be funny, sometimes hilarious, so when it comes to the humour of the show, she definitely helps when she appears.

Overall, this animated remake of a hit comedy series is not as consistent (some of the gags might be just a bit TOO simple, and the show may sometimes seem a bit more childish than the original), and may have some lacklustre episodes, but with all the laughs I've gotten from it (more than I've ever gotten from "Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie" and "Mr. Bean's Holiday", though they both have their moments), and the impressive animation, I certainly can't complain too much. "Mr. Bean: The Animated Series" is polarizing with fans of the original "Mr. Bean", but I think they did a decent job bringing Rowan Atkinson's world-famous antisocial buffoon to a different format (with Atkinson still providing the voice, of course). If you can't stand the character, you should obviously avoid this show, since he's not much different here. For fans, well, don't expect the exact same thing, but hopefully, you will get a decent number of laughs.