Before I start the review of this show, I need to warn you that this will contain light to moderate spoilers, however, nothing too major will be spoiled. In addition, there will be spoilers for “Adventure Time” as they’re related.
“Fionna and Cake” is a sequel and a spinoff of the extremely popular TV show “Adventure Time.” It follows three main characters, Cake, Fionna and Simon, as they go on many adventures together.
One thing the show didn’t do the best job of was giving context for episodes.
For example, if you did not watch “Adventure Time,” most things would not make sense. Normally it would make sense to watch the original show, however, someone could possibly get away with not watching “Adventure Time.” The show does give brief overviews of the events going on in the world but not enough to completely understand what is going on. In one of the episodes, Cake, Fionna and Simon see a character that was only in a few episodes of “Adventure Time.” While they briefly introduce the audience to them it’s not enough to make sense without watching the original show.
Another thing to note about “Fionna and Cake” (which is my only true problem with the show) is that it’s not long enough and feels a little rushed. The show goes at a fast pace which leaves me wanting more. During the adventure, Cake, Fionna and Simon go to different places and check them out.
Here is where the biggest spoiler is.
At one point the group goes to a world where the vampires rule and the candy people have a small resistance. At the start of the episode, they show context. However, it is not enough, and it leads to viewers being confused. In addition, it goes at a crazy fast pace, arriving in the world and going on a mission all within a 30-minute episode. Throughout the show, I am led to want more episodes to explore the world more deeply.
I personally think they should have had more than one episode for most of the places.
Every place they go to is different from the last, however, when they visit the places, it goes by fast. I think that each adventure in a new place should have multiple episodes to be stronger. “Fionna and Cake” is a rather small show only having ten episodes. This leads to a lot of the plot and locations feeling unfinished or speedy. Overall, “Fionna and Cake’s” pacing and episode amount should be somewhat longer than ten episodes.
On the other hand, “Fionna and Cake” does so many things right that it is hard to pick just one thing to talk about. What I personally liked most about the show was the characters. While for them to make sense you need to watch “Adventure Time,” they did such an amazing job of showing their personalities and making the characters feel very real. Cake, Fionna and Simon don’t always get along and it really makes the show brilliant.
It’s not like a lot of shows where they try to make everyone friends, sometimes bad things happen. It just makes the show way more relatable than it would have been otherwise. Overall, would I recommend the show to someone? The answer is yes; while it has some minor problems it is one of the best shows I have watched. I would recommend watching “Adventure Time” before watching it, so it makes more sense and I would say the first two seasons should cover most things but not all.
