Disenchantment is a Netflix original series created by Matt Groening who famously created The Simpsons and Futurama. Disenchantment deals with Princess Bean, an alcoholic, fun-loving and careless princess who is out to seek adventure. Along the way she makes a couple of friends, noticeably an Elf and a demon. The show includes the voice talents of Abbi Jacobson, Eric Andre, Nat Faxon, John DiMaggio among many others.
I heard about this show when the teaser came out but I didn’t really pay any attention. When the show eventually came out and people saw it. I was curious but when most of the reviews called it an average and boring show, I decided not to watch it, at least not then. However I checked it last week and I finished it the day after. I was genuinely surprised by this show and I was a bit confused as to why it got such mediocre reviews.
The best thing I can say about Disenchantment is that it has a great set of characters with even better casting choices. I love Bean, Elfo and Luci. They are amazing together, they are the kind of character that would make a boring episode worth watching. That is mostly due to the fantastic voice acting. Their voices match their characters so incredibly well. However while I absolutely love those three, my favourite character has to be King Zog played by DiMaggio. He is hilarious as Zog, he has the best lines and he delivers them perfectly.
However this show does have it’s flaws. For example it takes off with a slow start. The show really started to grow on me after episode 3. Also it does get a bit predictable near the end. That being said, there was a twist or two that were unexpected. There is a main plot to the show but it ignores it for most of the episodes. Most of the episodes are Bean, Elfo and Luci getting drunk and having fun which is entertaining to see but when it comes to tone and overall quality the show changes a bit drastically when it focuses on the actual plot. Also this is a rather small flaw but the show has some horrible looking CGI for the landscape. It’s like a videogame from the early 2000’s.
I read that Netflix ordered only twenty episodes for Disenchantment and if that’s the case and the show will be over by season two then to be honest I wouldn’t suggest making time to watch it. It’s not really worth it. It’s not a bad show by any means but it’s not a must-watch either. This is the perfect show to put on while you’re doing something else. You don’t need to pay attention all the time, it’s funny and it’s entertaining.
Overall the first season of Disenchantment proves to have a lot of potential with a stellar cast of voice actors and likeable characters. It isn’t the next Simpsons or Futurama but it’s a solid addition to Groening’s resume.
owen is a filmaholic 