When Adventure Time ended its original series run in 2018, fans were heartbroken. It was a beautifully surreal show with genuinely likable characters and enough lore behind the scenes to satisfy both adults and children alike. Though the series eventually got a proper sendoff in the form of the limited series Adventure Time: Distant Lands, four hour-long specials that debuted on Max in 2020 and 2021.
But for the longest time, it seemed that would be the end of the story of Finn the Human (Jeremy Shada) and Jake the Dog (John DiMaggio) and the rest of the folks in the Land of Ooo. Luckily, the adventures continue with Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake, a series-sized journey that brings gender-swapped versions of the show’s cast together to tell a unique multiverse-tinged story.
And while it could suffer from the pitfalls of sequelitis, faltering by not giving fans enough of what made the original story so heartfelt and exciting, it does the opposite and hits all the high notes fans have been waiting for. This is how you bring back a show people like.
Opening Shot: A rat-shaped bus jumps along buildings and skyscrapers against a backdrop of pastel Tokyo. Fionna Campbell (Madeleine Martin), clad in a Sailor Moon-like outfit, chases after the runaway bus with cat companion Cake (Roz Ryan) in tow.
The Gist: Fionna is your average young woman who’s just about had it with the curveballs life’s thrown at her. She has a dead-end job as a tour bus guide that she hates. She can’t hold down a job to save her life beyond that. And she’s having dreams of a strange Ice Prince every single night. As luck would have it, her cat Cake seems to be sick out of nowhere, too, seemingly attracted to tons of ice in her home and outside of it.
Fionna tries to take Cake to the vet, but has to work that day, so it’s on the tour bus she and Cake goes. After a mishap with her ill kitty that gets her fired, a desperate Fionna searches for a way to cure her feline friend. Her friend Marshall Lee the Vampire King (Donald Glover) suggests she take her pet to Ellis P. (Pendleton Ward) to see if he can fix her up. Unfortunately, while Ellis is in the middle of trying to “help” Cake, the cat runs off to jump into a shining blue portal. To where? We’ll have to wait and see.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Writer and artist Natasha Allegri created Fionna and Cake as they appeared in the original Adventure Time series. Her influence can be felt all through this standalone show, and as such it has echoes of Allegri’s work Bee and PuppyCat, right down to the way Fionna behaves and the locations she visits in the real world. There are also parallels between Fionna and Bee as well as Cake and PuppyCat. If you enjoyed that series or the original shorts, you’ll feel right at home here.
Our Take: Adventure Time always felt like it was created for adults to enjoy, but with plenty of funny moments and likable characters for kids to get into by happenstance. In Fionna and Cake, it can finally morph into the adult-centric series it’s always felt like it should be, with some much-needed changes to reflect its new audience. There’s a little bit of malaise, a tiny bit of adult language, and more complicated concepts that older viewers will undoubtedly appreciate: like feeling lost in a life that’s not as interesting as you hoped it would be as an adult.
Most importantly for fans, there’s a deep connection to the original series that runs through every single fiber of the show’s being. There are Easter eggs abound, from recognizable side characters to exciting new personalities for some of the familiar flipped characters. Though Adventure Time typically relied on mostly standalone episodes, there’s the distinct feeling that each episode will build on the previous in this story. And it’s going to be an exciting trip, seeing what’s become of everyone we used to know in the show’s original run.
Sex and Skin: None to be found here.
Parting Shot: While Marshall’s friend Ellis P. (Pendleton Ward) attempts to “diagnose” Cake’s mysterious ailment, Cake runs off after seeing a vision of a portal elsewhere in an ice cream cart. She dives into the cart and vanishes into a blue portal.
Sleeper Star: Donald Glover is excellent as he returns from the original Adventure Time as Marshall Lee, the Vampire King. He’s effortlessly sly and cool, even when he isn’t especially helping Fionna through her rough spots. He even has a chance to show off his pipes in the episode with a quick cut to him busking on the street. Glover’s musical chops, which we typically hear from his project Childish Gambino, feel right at home in this song-filled episode.
Most Pilot-y Line: Fionna wakes up from her fanciful dream and ponders on what it could mean for her, not knowing that it’s about to set the stage for the rest of the series. “It’s the third night in a row that I’ve dreamed about a mysterious ice prince,” Fionna tells Cake. “And you were there too. And you could talk! And stretch! I know, it sounds nuts. But also…awesome.”
Our Call: STREAM IT. This is the triumphant return to the world of Adventure Time fans have been waiting for, and it sets the stage for one of the most interesting concepts the show has seen in some time. Whether you’re holding out to see where your favorite heroes are in this timeline or how things will shake out for our new heroines, it’s well worth settling into every week as it hits Max.
Brittany Vincent has been covering video games and tech for over a decade for publications like G4, Popular Science, Playboy, Variety, IGN, GamesRadar, Polygon, Kotaku, Maxim, GameSpot, and more. When she’s not writing or gaming, she’s collecting retro consoles and tech. Follow her on Twitter: @MolotovCupcake.