'Adventure Time: Distant Lands' Episode 1 Review: BMO-centric special is a nostalgic treat for fans of the show
After breaking fans' hearts with its open-ended finale, the Cartoon Network series 'Adventure Time!' made a return as an HBO Max spin-off in the form of four hour-long specials that fall under the title 'Adventure Time: Distant Lands'. The first episode is BMO-centric, as the cute little robot finds itself thrown to the farthest end of the galaxy after a deadly space emergency. It lands in a rather battered alien world, that is on the verge of extinction soon. It decides to wear a Sheriff's hat and goes on this bizarre quest, and decides to help the citizens. Along the way, we meet another protagonist, by the name of Y4, a rabbit humanoid who becomes close to BMO and risks being estranged from its people, by following BMO, wherever it goes. Despite all its quirkiness and colorful animation, the show has a tendency to display its dark side and this comes out when you're least expecting it. Yet, it is easy to see why the original show 'Adventure Time' had such an astounding fan-base in the first place at all.
'Adventure Time: Distant Lands' is of the same vibrant quality that was shown in the original show, interspersed with some hard-hitting emotional moments as well. The showrunners brought back the endearing magic of the show, with a nostalgic twist. BMO is an oddball, as always, and is the life of the entertaining special. However, there wasn't enough promise for Y4, so ideally, when her grand reunion with her parents happened in the end, it didn't have the emotional impact that it was intended to have. Apart from BMO, it was a challenge to form a strong bond with the rest of the characters in the episode. Nevertheless, it was a treacly sweet conclusion. BMO returns to that old treehouse, and sees a different version of Finn and Jake, from the one we remember, thus serving as a prequel to all the adventures. The next few episodes deal with Marceline, Princess Bubblegum and Peppermint Butler. It will be exciting to see what each of these characters have been up to since we last saw them.
Catch 'Adventure Time: Distant Lands' on HBO Max.