The appropriate word to describe the feelings evoked by this story doesn’t even exist in the English language. Hiraeth- a Welsh word which conveys a sense of belonging to a time or place in which you’ve never experienced, but which you are mysteriously called to. The memories of this past time are beyond familiar to me, almost real.
I rewatch this show every October, and every time find something new. This year's rewatch it struck me exactly *how many times* the show does a feint into deliberately misleading the audience. Making you think Jason Funderberker is going to be this typical high school football player jock or something when he's absolutely not that, Beatrice's motivations for trying to talk Wirt out of wanting to go home in episode 6, the entire Auntie Whispers episode...over and over the show deliberately misleads the audience into a certain expectation, only to invert it. I noticed that the first time I watched it, but this time for some reason it just hit me more exactly how prevalent the storytelling technique is in this show. It's such an amazing series, I could gush about it for hours...
Jason's case also shows ssomething about Wirt. It's his insecurities and paranoia in seeing everything around him. We think wirt's crush is gonna be a hot blonde popular girl and when he looks for her going to the shed theres a jock in a baseball jacket that i thought would be jason waiting for the girl to go out with him. What actually happens is the jock is actually pretty nice to Wirt and is not interest in talking to wirts love interest (also he currently is talking to another girl) . It's also Halloween so the guy probably issnt even a football pro but just a teenager. then we meet wirt's friends and Jason and well... they're nothing like we thought they will be. They're just like Wirt and they invite him to the party and are very friendly but Wirt t hinks hes an awkward poet with a shitty cassete tape and that they all hate him and that jason is a hot guy thats gonna steal his girl. it's even funnier because Funderberker is 1000 times more awkward and would never get a girl but he thinks hes a casanova and is confident about his flirting skills. Wirt changes his way of thinking and develops as a person afterr he gets out of the unkown with his little brother and the frog named jason Funderberker.
I see this comment constantly....about watching it in October. I adore this show on a profound level....clearly it's not a movie about autumn or Halloween related. It *is* set in autumn that's obvious. Anyhow I watch it whenever I want and through out the year....with anything, a movie etc I absolutely deeply love I can't just wait a year to see it but watch when I feel like it or am sad or feeling . 🤷🏼♀️overwhelmed
This analysis is much better than the idea that “the loveliest lies of all” straight-up pertains to death. Events, it seems, are merely events-the loveliest lies might be the notion of destinies, and the shaping of them, and how they shape you.
You mention fairytales and American folklore but for me the whole coming-of-age journey through the woods plants OTGW firmly within the Romantic Kunstmärchen sub-genre, more specifically the Bildungsromane. These are stories in which a (male) protagonist's journey from boy to man is paralleled by a journey through nature and all of its dangers. He learns to become more responsible and "manly", and at the end of the story he will always become worthy of the love of a previously introduced love interest. In most of the well-known examples of the genre the protagonist is a poet or writer, and chapters will often feature lyrical or poetic asides. I would even go further and say that the relationship between Wirt and Greg parallels the struggle between enlightened thinking (seen in Wirt's favour for the rational) and the more faith-based romantic approach (Greg). It was a very popular genre in the 18th and 19th centuries and many of the writers were contemporaries of the Grimms. One of my favourite bits of trivia is that the "tra la la la" song that the Beast sings multiple times (called "The Jolly Woodsman" on the soundtrack) is actually a more minor-key translation of a song from the German opera Hänsel und Gretel: th-cam.com/video/izLMW5QzNsw/w-d-xo.html.
I also want to add that the transitions and visuals of this video are really fantastically well done and I'm looking forward to hearing more of your thoughts in the future; normally I just listen to these kinds of analysis videos but I was really engaged by your video in its own right.
Thank you very much for your comments! I didn't realise the Bildungsroman was so specific. It certainly fits OTGW very well! I assume you've probably already seen the Idea Channel video about the series in relation to faith, but thought I'd mention it here for the benefit of anyone scrolling through the comments who might not have come across it yet, as it's very good! Thanks again, I'm glad you enjoyed the video. :)
7:25 "...Just as you think you may know your path, something prevents you from moving forward." As a leaf blowing in the wind gets caught on the fence. NICE!!! A very thoughtful & well made video containing good observations & editing!
I appreciate that you mentioned the nostalgic Americana. That’s part of why I find this series so memorable and important to me as I grew up in a setting just like the Unknown.
Over the garden wall provokes that same feeling of nostalgia and warmth that you get for a time period of before you were born. As if you were born in the 90s/00s but feel nostalgic for the 50s/80s or even farther back from that. And the uncertainty of the time period in the unknown and Wirt and Greg's home town plays on that even more. Playing on freedoms and adventures you couldn't have had for a multitude of reasons.
Well, Wirt recorded a cassette, so that can give you a +/- near idea of their time period. Pretty lightweight clue tho, maybe he's just a fan of vintage
I read a storybook when I was very young about two boys going out into the garden late at night to find that the vegetables were preparing for a harvest moon ball. To this day I cannot remember the name and have had no luck in finding it. When I saw OVTGW, I thought for sure the creators took some inspiration from that book, or at least from the original fairytale that inspired it in turn. To anyone who might know what it is, there was also a part about a turtle with a barbeque and a dolphin with silver eyes, I think? It got pretty fantastical near the end.
YEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSS, I actually have been wondering that it would b such an amazing thing, and to be honest I been thinking in trying make a script or at least try to adapt it into a play, but i obviously dont have the necessary someone with more experience needs to do that
My God, I didn't even consider that! I would be amazing. Btw +J.I.M, that sounds like a great idea, I'd encourage you to try regardless of experience. If you try to put it out there and maybe appeal to someone who has more experience, it would inspire them to write a legitimate one
Cool stuff. And i gotta praise you for matching what is on screen with what you say, not many youtube essayists have the patience to do that nowadays. Godspeed. Subbed.
This show is unlike anything I've seen before, and probably unlike anything I'll ever see again. It's the ambiguity that really keeps the feeling intact. There's no explanation, only hints. The Unknown may be the Underworld or the Purgatory, or it may not. A lot of weird things happen in the Unknown, and it's not explained. It just happens. It's rare that anything can invoke this sense of déja vu in a person.
Every time I see this episodes I feel my childhood. The autumn, bluebird, bird scissors, black creature, garden, flowers and more. Maybe its called the unknown becose its somehow filled with our memories and that makes this land misterious. Its like....do some of you know about peacock feathers? Its bad luck. And this cartoon hide so many superstitions from past like lets say... 1965? Something like that. Btw this is the reason why I LOVE this cartoon ;)
The timelessness of the story is really intriguing. The story appears to be set in the 1800s. But then questions are raised when you see the steamboat and its revealed to be set only a few decades ago. There's also the allusions to the River Styx, Dante Inferno, and Latin singing. The actual art and music of the show evokes old Disney or Christmas movies which are not only staples in animation history, but most of our childhoods. I think the point of the series is to show that while death is the greatest unknown, it is still something we're all intimately familiar with.
@@anet3605 If you haven't seen them yet, I would recommend studio Ghibli films. They aren't completely the same as OTGW, but imo they evoke a whimsical and nostalgic feeling sometimes similar to OTGW.
I'd love to see another animated series explore a rich mix of classical Germanic fairytales, wiccan, witches and good'ole Americana folk lore and ghost stories! The whole thing was both charming and harrowing! **sighs** Maybe some day...
i can’t even describe how much i love OTGW, the beautiful yet macabre art/visuals of the show tickle that art part of my brain that seems to always be curious of the uneasy. the way that the show depicts “change” is so comforting to me. i can’t even describe how obsessed i am with this show, i genuinely believe this is the deepest most thoughtfully put together show, that i will never get sick of
Watching this series was one of the most bizzare blissful experiences in my life. While watching it i got this odd surge of nostalgia like it relates to other things ive seen or experienced before. I whole heartedly love this show, it will remain one of the most and best bizzare experiences ive been through forever. I always keep coming back to this video for some reason.
This series made me have lots of emotions, but specifically one that can't be described. And never NEVER a series has made that to me. It's strange to make me have that kind of emotions. The only time I liked a series a lot because of the sensations was Fullmetal Alchemist. Well, now I have a new one.
i got so frustrated that when you say the highway man, you didn't let the highway man say I'm the highway man. my hope was too high and it came crushing down with a gruntled groan. but dear oh dear you hit some splendid notes there. i adore over the garden wall so so much and u did uncover something that has been bugging my mind but I can't put into words.
Another thing I thought about when watching this was that you can see Quincy Endecott's Tombstone in the cemetery where Wirt "spies" on Sara in the episode "into the unknown". It's the one next to the tombstone that Wirt hides behind.
I've never believed they were drowning the whole time but rather found a portal to the unknown. As both the brothers remember their adventure, the frog still has the bell, and we get endings for alot of the characters post plot.
In many mythologies there is places like The Unknown where everything is different, time flows backwards, death is alive and alive is death. Some of them can be entered thorough the bottom of a bottomless lake.
I think that’s what makes them great. The novelty has yet to wane, stories are left untold. Just as you begin to feel comfortable in the Unknown, the series ends, and you feel a longing to return.
woah i really like this. the influence of a fantasy or story on a life might not be founded in reality, but it sure feels real. the stories make real memories
I'm so excited to watch this show again this October! I've made it a tradition for a few years now to watch an episode a day for the last ten days of the month, and it brings me great comfort
I always thought it was beautiful how ambiguous the series is with the nature or truth of The Unknown. And how the final song almost hints at us saying "Dancing in a swirl of golden memories, the Loveliest lies of all". It made me think what if all is a lie, well, it was a damn beautiful one.
Found this channel today and will be rewatching this over again with captions because that was some seriously intense writing prowess and your super in-depth analyses are much appreciated!
Yes! And I'm brazilian, I usually understand english but in the first phrases I couldn't even say what language she (she?) was speaking (and that's not bad, it just impressed me).
I wish there were more short series like this. It kinda reminds me of Infinity train. I could have seen more stories set with different characters in this series but it would probably be a bit ruined knowing they were in the afterlife of some sort. The story of over the garden wall has that creepy but familiar tone like you said. It reminds me of the feeling of playing Limbo though I feel it’s more subtle than that one.
i really liked your analysis and your point of view about the message or the sensations the series awakes on its viewers. i been watching flim and series analysis for quite a while now and it felt pretty good to finally find a woman that makes them, maybe its a bit random to say it but i feel like its important to acknowledge something like that. really love your channel
this was incredible to watch, the parallels and the emotions involved are really thought provoking and well thought out, it rounded up the story in a different way with a different answer with what happened, and this seems like it really fits, the contrast of what the unknown is, is just so powerful, life and death, lies and truth, reality and fantasy, known and unknown. The vibe that this show had was just so strong, it left out enough for us to still have to scrape for details but that series made it feel like we were almost missing nothing, with how familiar the aesthetic and setting and the issues they dealt with were, it was familiar with a sense of originality. You've totally shown that in this video, great job dude, this video was incredible
What an amazing interpretation! The show itself is full of ambiguous references alongside creatively designed characters and story arcs - the beast being the most interesting to me. The way you managed to seemingly create a coherent purpose and slight understanding of the unknown really shows your well-honed ability to pick up on nuances and acting on them well enough to make connections such as the ones mentioned in this video essay. Really good work!
it took me too long but i finally watched the show and came back here to rewatch this immediately. already was fond of this essay but now i Get it. hope you're well, thanks for all your work 💕
That analysis was absolute stellar, love the presentation, points raised and how easily digestible it all was. Truly one of a kind show and now it got a video essay on par with it. Thank you
ah i love this! really articulated how and what the show is borrowing, fairytales , cartoons, etc. and shows how it builds up that idea of identity and growing up and facing the real unknown like Wurt has to do at the end - the future
Fantasy and reality do NOT equal 'lies vs truth.' Fantasies can reveal truth. They are a reflection. And cold hard reality if misinterpreted can led to false conclusions.
But does that mean such "false conclusions" are always malicious (in intent) or bad though? Seems like an awfully pessimistic way of looking at it, don't get me wrong I'm just curious about weather such lovey lies are always such a bad thing, didn't want to assume anything.
There a bad thing because things can be built on the foundations of lovely lies. And once that lie gives way to truth, everything built on top of it will come crashing down. The truth is like bed rock, whatever is built upon it is stable. It doesn't give way because its all there is, the issue is that its often crude and harsh. And we collectively as a species regardless of who or where we are do not like the truth. We except some of it and immediately build up lovely lies to hide others. In a way it keeps some of us going, in the face of the truth when we are left without a cohesive explanation for what is presented we tend to spiral out of order into chaos.
As a HUGE fan of the Fantasy genre, I *LOVE* THIS SERIES!!!! I know all of the subgenres of Fantasy, including Urban Fantasy and Over the Garden Wall definitely classifies as an Urban Fantasy story, not only being a mashup between magical realms and our normal familiar world, but is also an interesting take on taking what we already know and using/telling it in a different and unique way we never would've thought of before. Stories like OTGW count as Urban Fantasy in many ways, but one of them is because, unlike Wizard of Oz or Narnia, the main characters don't get too distracted by the fantasy surroundings/adventure and keep their main goal in mind and focus: *To get back home!* While, in Wizard of Oz/Narnia, the characters seem to get in awe with the other worlds too much, not getting stressed about getting home at all. Ergo, don't count as Urban Fantasy. Plus, in the subgenre known as 'Historical Fantasy', this show pulls off the showing of numerous people from different eras of the past, which were times in OUR WORLD, being the familiar in this unfamiliar world. Same thing can be said for the cultures, lands, clothes, songs and all. That is what makes Over the Garden Wall is SO PERFECT!!!
This is REALLY good at getting toward the center of some of these super nuanced and fundamental themes. I'm working on a video for the MUSIC in this show and I'm learning just how much you can't separate hardly any aspect of this from its central themes. I don't k ow how you were able to word these thoughts so well, I hope to be able to say it so clean. OTGW gives me hope for shows and story telling because so often now people are so much more into how the fiction works rather than why the story works, and the unknown is definitely a fictional world that someone could get sucked into theorizing about, but more instead i see people talking about its central story and themes and that does so much more for me. I'm rambling. Bravo bravo, this is an amazing video. Amazing video, i hope to be able to have the brevity you have here, I've already learned so much more about the show and met some interesting people from the show 🙊. Amazing video
I think it's important to understand that the 19th century was in and of itself a transitory moment for the United States. Gripped in the energies of not just the Industrial Revolution, but the persistent debate over slavery, states rights, and the role of the federal government; the United States in the era that OTGW seeks to invoke was itself trying to find its own identity and role in the world. So there is a theme there as well, no different than using the era of Julius Caesar to signify corruption and devolution in politics or the American frontier to signify both cultural and personal freedom and self-reliance. The setting itself is a character.
I kept wondering how to describe the Unknown. While I might never find the perfect words, this is what I have. It’s an unknown home that you know. I know that makes no sense, but it’s a place you’ve technically never been before but feels familiar. It’s creepy and strange, but comforting and beautiful. It’s a compelling hiraeth, and the fact that it’s in between life and death, as well as the present and future makes my explanation make sense. We know life and present, but not death and the future. This is why it feels familiar but unknown.
Oooh, I really like that! Especially your reasoning. I think it's a similar reason to why a lot of people feel nostalgia for times when they weren't yet alive.
Oh wow, I love OTGW, but could never fully express why, why did it feel so familiar and comforting even in its eeriness. This analysis put into words a bit of it. Thank you for sharing this!
Thank you for explaining this to me! I was just baffled as to why a series that was relatively recent made me so nostalgic about my childhood. Like I actually gave it deep thought. That was some brilliant writing.
This was beautifully made, my god. The narrative and the narrator seemed as if I was watching a missing scene from Over the Garden Wall that I just didn't remember. Nice work!
I'm so late to this series, and this video. Loved your analysis Grace; it really gave me a better insight into the motifs and intentions that went into the show. You earned yourself a subscriber.
What an incredible video! Thank you for sharing this analysis with us, it is so interesting and eloquently put together. I'm glad I found your channel!
After initially watching Over the Garden Wall, I knew I was missing something and tried to read up on it. A couple years later, watching this video has actually shed a lot on the things I felt I was still missing in the show. Thanks for posting, and great job!
Over the garden wall is one of my favorite shows of all time, I remember stumbling upon it randomly on tv what feels like so many years ago and I was instantly captivated, firstly by the artstyle but then as I kept watching I was only drawn closer in, the characters, the ambiance, the plot all just kept my eyes stuck to the show. I still feel the same milkshake of emotions now as I did back then while watching it. You did an amazing job with this video dude honestly! I loved it! You're so eloquent I'm jealous! I can't imagine how much work must go into a video like this but it's definitely worth it! How does one get so good at video essays?
the idea of this sense of familiarity we feel towards the unknown is something i unknowingly experienced the very first time i saw an episode of this show. it was a few years ago now and i don’t even think i watched more than a few minutes, yet i still remember that my first thought was , have i seen this show before. keeping in mind that i was probably only 12 or 13, it goes to show how effective this series conveys its basic concepts without the individual needing to have a complex understanding of literary techniques
I will always come back to this series this time of the year, during that transition, that journey towards something mysterious while being in an oddly familiar place. It gIves me a sharp melancholy. Thank you for this video, i bloody love your narration, it fits nicely with the essence of Over the garden wall.
during the second episode i didn't find it weird at all seeing "people" wearing vegetable costumes for a harvest celebration because where i live there are lots of small towns and they all have their fun little quirks and celebrations so on the flip side it really caught me off guard finding out they were all dead.
Watched your latest David Lynch vid, subscribed, then I found this video, and you're now officially my newest favorite channel on TH-cam. OTGW is one of my favorite cartoons ever, and this captured the genius of it brilliantly. Thanks for providing some new context and keep up the great work!
6:40 "instill a fantastical narrative into Mundane objects-" A concept lost on many fantasy worldbuilders, *not in a "high fantasy" sense but more of a "filling in the details" type deal, whimsical imaginations that give real world context to the myths, folklore and legends used to explain the mundane.*
Over The Garden Wall is well done and too smart to be over looked, but What's so great about it? is the knowledge we see, but we never see until outlined by the narrator. Wonderfully done, thought provoking, and always worth more than one watch is the content upon this channel.
"Something weird might just be something familiar viewed from a different angle" - Adventure Time
I feel like that quote fits perfectly here
It does! Man, I miss Adventure Time...
In which episode and season is this said? I would like to know. :)
No not really like at all
@@DaniloInderWildi marcelines backstory, somewhere in season 7
And the creator of Adventure Time made Over The Garden Wall.
The appropriate word to describe the feelings evoked by this story doesn’t even exist in the English language. Hiraeth- a Welsh word which conveys a sense of belonging to a time or place in which you’ve never experienced, but which you are mysteriously called to. The memories of this past time are beyond familiar to me, almost real.
I've been looking for a word like this! Thank you!
That's deep🖒.
That's a great word to describe my relationship with Synthwave and this series.
Yitzhak ShekelSteinGoldBerg Beautiful description
so nostalgia
I rewatch this show every October, and every time find something new. This year's rewatch it struck me exactly *how many times* the show does a feint into deliberately misleading the audience. Making you think Jason Funderberker is going to be this typical high school football player jock or something when he's absolutely not that, Beatrice's motivations for trying to talk Wirt out of wanting to go home in episode 6, the entire Auntie Whispers episode...over and over the show deliberately misleads the audience into a certain expectation, only to invert it. I noticed that the first time I watched it, but this time for some reason it just hit me more exactly how prevalent the storytelling technique is in this show.
It's such an amazing series, I could gush about it for hours...
You're right! I hadn't thought about that beyond the usual bait and switch storytelling conventions. Definitely fits with the show's themes.
Jason's case also shows ssomething about Wirt. It's his insecurities and paranoia in seeing everything around him. We think wirt's crush is gonna be a hot blonde popular girl and when he looks for her going to the shed theres a jock in a baseball jacket that i thought would be jason waiting for the girl to go out with him. What actually happens is the jock is actually pretty nice to Wirt and is not interest in talking to wirts love interest (also he currently is talking to another girl) . It's also Halloween so the guy probably issnt even a football pro but just a teenager. then we meet wirt's friends and Jason and well... they're nothing like we thought they will be. They're just like Wirt and they invite him to the party and are very friendly but Wirt t hinks hes an awkward poet with a shitty cassete tape and that they all hate him and that jason is a hot guy thats gonna steal his girl. it's even funnier because Funderberker is 1000 times more awkward and would never get a girl but he thinks hes a casanova and is confident about his flirting skills. Wirt changes his way of thinking and develops as a person afterr he gets out of the unkown with his little brother and the frog named jason Funderberker.
Hmmmm, almost like a...garden path sentence... ;)
I see this comment constantly....about watching it in October.
I adore this show on a profound level....clearly it's not a movie about autumn or Halloween related. It *is* set in autumn that's obvious.
Anyhow I watch it whenever I want and through out the year....with anything, a movie etc I absolutely deeply love I can't just wait a year to see it but watch when I feel like it or am sad or feeling . 🤷🏼♀️overwhelmed
It’s fall so time to rewatch this masterpiece again
❤
My thoughts exactly. I can't believe it's been four years. Doesn't seem real.
Rudy Simmons eh, to each their own. I think Greg’s wackiness is cute and childlike (which he is)
I always rewatch it when I go camping in the summer. It's the wrong season but it's nice to watch it outside in the forest :P
It has come time again
I've heard Over the Garden Wall described as "Alice in Wonderland, if it had been written by Mark Twain."
Toozday's Child that's painfully accurate
i'd describe it as wizard of oz but goth
Hehehe that’s funny. Whenever I try to sell it, I tell people it’s Alice in Wonderland meets Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
I call it comforting nightmare fuel
@@nyx.8254 That's a perfect description.
This analysis is much better than the idea that “the loveliest lies of all” straight-up pertains to death.
Events, it seems, are merely events-the loveliest lies might be the notion of destinies, and the shaping of them, and how they shape you.
Michiko Yeung like it’s not hard to understand that a lovely lie= a fantasy. Who said it meant death? Lol
@@Ojo10 you'd be surprised how popular that conclusion is.
You mention fairytales and American folklore but for me the whole coming-of-age journey through the woods plants OTGW firmly within the Romantic Kunstmärchen sub-genre, more specifically the Bildungsromane. These are stories in which a (male) protagonist's journey from boy to man is paralleled by a journey through nature and all of its dangers. He learns to become more responsible and "manly", and at the end of the story he will always become worthy of the love of a previously introduced love interest. In most of the well-known examples of the genre the protagonist is a poet or writer, and chapters will often feature lyrical or poetic asides. I would even go further and say that the relationship between Wirt and Greg parallels the struggle between enlightened thinking (seen in Wirt's favour for the rational) and the more faith-based romantic approach (Greg).
It was a very popular genre in the 18th and 19th centuries and many of the writers were contemporaries of the Grimms.
One of my favourite bits of trivia is that the "tra la la la" song that the Beast sings multiple times (called "The Jolly Woodsman" on the soundtrack) is actually a more minor-key translation of a song from the German opera Hänsel und Gretel: th-cam.com/video/izLMW5QzNsw/w-d-xo.html.
I also want to add that the transitions and visuals of this video are really fantastically well done and I'm looking forward to hearing more of your thoughts in the future; normally I just listen to these kinds of analysis videos but I was really engaged by your video in its own right.
Thank you very much for your comments! I didn't realise the Bildungsroman was so specific. It certainly fits OTGW very well!
I assume you've probably already seen the Idea Channel video about the series in relation to faith, but thought I'd mention it here for the benefit of anyone scrolling through the comments who might not have come across it yet, as it's very good!
Thanks again, I'm glad you enjoyed the video. :)
7:25 "...Just as you think you may know your path, something prevents you from moving forward." As a leaf blowing in the wind gets caught on the fence. NICE!!! A very thoughtful & well made video containing good observations & editing!
Thank you!
I appreciate that you mentioned the nostalgic Americana. That’s part of why I find this series so memorable and important to me as I grew up in a setting just like the Unknown.
Before I watched this *LITERALLY BLESSED* show, I had a dream that was terrifyingly close to over the garden wall.
Interesting
Maybe you actually saw it when you were younger, but you didn't realise it, or it was just playing in the background
Over the garden wall showed us that CN can still make great shows but choose not to
Cartoon Network doesn’t write the shows
2010s had arguably the strongest lineup the network had
Heyyy WB Steven universe
Adventure time, regular show, gumball, infinity train, and more
@@manicstatic370 three of those came out before otgw
this video perfectly encapsulates my love of otgw. its nostalgic, but new, and feels familiar in the way a dream does.
Over the garden wall provokes that same feeling of nostalgia and warmth that you get for a time period of before you were born. As if you were born in the 90s/00s but feel nostalgic for the 50s/80s or even farther back from that. And the uncertainty of the time period in the unknown and Wirt and Greg's home town plays on that even more. Playing on freedoms and adventures you couldn't have had for a multitude of reasons.
Well, Wirt recorded a cassette, so that can give you a +/- near idea of their time period. Pretty lightweight clue tho, maybe he's just a fan of vintage
Ambrosia - the feeling of nostalgia for something you’ve never seen before
I read a storybook when I was very young about two boys going out into the garden late at night to find that the vegetables were preparing for a harvest moon ball. To this day I cannot remember the name and have had no luck in finding it. When I saw OVTGW, I thought for sure the creators took some inspiration from that book, or at least from the original fairytale that inspired it in turn.
To anyone who might know what it is, there was also a part about a turtle with a barbeque and a dolphin with silver eyes, I think? It got pretty fantastical near the end.
Taylor Jeanne Do you know it now? It sounds like a cool story.
I'd also like to know
Me three! A book with sentient vegetables as characters is defs worth reading :D
Wow thats really close the pilot of otgw had the same vibe as that story! Now i wanna know the name too
By the Light of the Harvest Moon?
Okay the real question here is... Can we make OTGW into a stage play?
That would be amazing!
YEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSS, I actually have been wondering that it would b such an amazing thing, and to be honest I been thinking in trying make a script or at least try to adapt it into a play, but i obviously dont have the necessary someone with more experience needs to do that
My God, I didn't even consider that! I would be amazing. Btw +J.I.M, that sounds like a great idea, I'd encourage you to try regardless of experience. If you try to put it out there and maybe appeal to someone who has more experience, it would inspire them to write a legitimate one
I can really see this, but would it be a musical
I call Wirt! That's how it works, I call dibs.
Cool stuff. And i gotta praise you for matching what is on screen with what you say, not many youtube essayists have the patience to do that nowadays. Godspeed. Subbed.
Thank you very much! Matching the video is my favourite part. :)
This show is unlike anything I've seen before, and probably unlike anything I'll ever see again. It's the ambiguity that really keeps the feeling intact. There's no explanation, only hints. The Unknown may be the Underworld or the Purgatory, or it may not. A lot of weird things happen in the Unknown, and it's not explained. It just happens. It's rare that anything can invoke this sense of déja vu in a person.
You have no idea how much this video is important to me.
❤️
Every time I see this episodes I feel my childhood. The autumn, bluebird, bird scissors, black creature, garden, flowers and more. Maybe its called the unknown becose its somehow filled with our memories and that makes this land misterious. Its like....do some of you know about peacock feathers? Its bad luck. And this cartoon hide so many superstitions from past like lets say... 1965? Something like that. Btw this is the reason why I LOVE this cartoon ;)
ʙᴜᴛᴛᴇʀᴄᴜᴘғøx no probably like 1940
Nigga what
Buttercupfox Naw bruh most of the stuff in the show is from like the 1850s to the 1920s
This video is simply a masterpiece. I came back to it after years and it never fails to move me and make me tear up. Simply delicious content.
Thank you so much! :D
The timelessness of the story is really intriguing. The story appears to be set in the 1800s. But then questions are raised when you see the steamboat and its revealed to be set only a few decades ago. There's also the allusions to the River Styx, Dante Inferno, and Latin singing. The actual art and music of the show evokes old Disney or Christmas movies which are not only staples in animation history, but most of our childhoods. I think the point of the series is to show that while death is the greatest unknown, it is still something we're all intimately familiar with.
over the garden wall is one of the best, if not the best cartoon series to have ever been made. no one can deny that
Y E S i've been searching for smthg similar but cant find anything really
@@anet3605 If you haven't seen them yet, I would recommend studio Ghibli films. They aren't completely the same as OTGW, but imo they evoke a whimsical and nostalgic feeling sometimes similar to OTGW.
I'd love to see another animated series explore a rich mix of classical Germanic fairytales, wiccan, witches and good'ole Americana folk lore and ghost stories! The whole thing was both charming and harrowing! **sighs** Maybe some day...
i can’t even describe how much i love OTGW, the beautiful yet macabre art/visuals of the show tickle that art part of my brain that seems to always be curious of the uneasy. the way that the show depicts “change” is so comforting to me. i can’t even describe how obsessed i am with this show, i genuinely believe this is the deepest most thoughtfully put together show, that i will never get sick of
May i please know where you watched its full series?
October the fourth here, I feel as if TH-cam knew just what I wanted to see as an opener for the season of fear
TH-cam always knows...
Watching this series was one of the most bizzare blissful experiences in my life.
While watching it i got this odd surge of nostalgia like it relates to other things ive seen or experienced before.
I whole heartedly love this show, it will remain one of the most and best bizzare experiences ive been through forever.
I always keep coming back to this video for some reason.
This series made me have lots of emotions, but specifically one that can't be described. And never NEVER a series has made that to me. It's strange to make me have that kind of emotions. The only time I liked a series a lot because of the sensations was Fullmetal Alchemist. Well, now I have a new one.
i got so frustrated that when you say the highway man, you didn't let the highway man say I'm the highway man. my hope was too high and it came crushing down with a gruntled groan. but dear oh dear you hit some splendid notes there. i adore over the garden wall so so much and u did uncover something that has been bugging my mind but I can't put into words.
Ah, you're right! Missed opportunity!
Glad you liked the video anyway. :D
Another thing I thought about when watching this was that you can see Quincy Endecott's Tombstone in the cemetery where Wirt "spies" on Sara in the episode "into the unknown". It's the one next to the tombstone that Wirt hides behind.
*Waits for Dante reference*
*keeps waiting*
*realizes Dante reference is not actually coming*
*is sad*
I think there have been enough OTGW/Dante comparisons to last a lifetime! You want more?! :O
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat Only forever :P
I've never believed they were drowning the whole time but rather found a portal to the unknown. As both the brothers remember their adventure, the frog still has the bell, and we get endings for alot of the characters post plot.
In many mythologies there is places like The Unknown where everything is different, time flows backwards, death is alive and alive is death. Some of them can be entered thorough the bottom of a bottomless lake.
It's always the best shows that are too short or cancelled
I think that’s what makes them great. The novelty has yet to wane, stories are left untold. Just as you begin to feel comfortable in the Unknown, the series ends, and you feel a longing to return.
this series is really one of the most nuanced cartoons ive ever watched
woah i really like this. the influence of a fantasy or story on a life might not be founded in reality, but it sure feels real. the stories make real memories
"Something weird might just be something familiar fro. a different angle" -Adventure Time
I feel like that quote fits perfectly here
I'm so excited to watch this show again this October! I've made it a tradition for a few years now to watch an episode a day for the last ten days of the month, and it brings me great comfort
The first time I watched this series, all the songs and the music felt so familiar it felt like I’d heard them all before, even though I hadn’t
From my view, it's like an American version of Alice in Wonderland. Just another one of the many reasons I love it.
The boundary between reality and fantasy (and whether there is one) is a recurring theme in your videos. I really enjoy them!
Thanks! it certainly is. I worry that I'm just making the same video over and over again, haha.
What's So Great About That? Haha not at all, it's by no means the ONLY theme. Your content is rich, this idea stands out for me.
"Anemoia - Nostalgia for a time you've never known"
One of my favourites discussing one of my favourites. Life is good.
And nice touch putting it out on the first quarter moon.
Thank you! I was mostly just trying to get it out before Halloween, haha.
I always thought it was beautiful how ambiguous the series is with the nature or truth of The Unknown. And how the final song almost hints at us saying "Dancing in a swirl of golden memories, the Loveliest lies of all".
It made me think what if all is a lie, well, it was a damn beautiful one.
"She was never in the lantern, was she, beast. IT WAS YOOOOUUUUUU!!!!"
My favorite deleted scene
Found this channel today and will be rewatching this over again with captions because that was some seriously intense writing prowess and your super in-depth analyses are much appreciated!
Thank you very much! :D
Yes!
And I'm brazilian, I usually understand english but in the first phrases I couldn't even say what language she (she?) was speaking (and that's not bad, it just impressed me).
i don't know why, but i ended up crying with this video. It's beautifully done, congratulations!
I wish there were more short series like this. It kinda reminds me of Infinity train. I could have seen more stories set with different characters in this series but it would probably be a bit ruined knowing they were in the afterlife of some sort. The story of over the garden wall has that creepy but familiar tone like you said. It reminds me of the feeling of playing Limbo though I feel it’s more subtle than that one.
i really liked your analysis and your point of view about the message or the sensations the series awakes on its viewers. i been watching flim and series analysis for quite a while now and it felt pretty good to finally find a woman that makes them, maybe its a bit random to say it but i feel like its important to acknowledge something like that.
really love your channel
this was incredible to watch, the parallels and the emotions involved are really thought provoking and well thought out, it rounded up the story in a different way with a different answer with what happened, and this seems like it really fits, the contrast of what the unknown is, is just so powerful, life and death, lies and truth, reality and fantasy, known and unknown. The vibe that this show had was just so strong, it left out enough for us to still have to scrape for details but that series made it feel like we were almost missing nothing, with how familiar the aesthetic and setting and the issues they dealt with were, it was familiar with a sense of originality.
You've totally shown that in this video, great job dude, this video was incredible
Thank you very much!
What an amazing interpretation! The show itself is full of ambiguous references alongside creatively designed characters and story arcs - the beast being the most interesting to me. The way you managed to seemingly create a coherent purpose and slight understanding of the unknown really shows your well-honed ability to pick up on nuances and acting on them well enough to make connections such as the ones mentioned in this video essay. Really good work!
it took me too long but i finally watched the show and came back here to rewatch this immediately. already was fond of this essay but now i Get it. hope you're well, thanks for all your work 💕
Thank you! I am well thanks, hope you are too!
That analysis was absolute stellar, love the presentation, points raised and how easily digestible it all was. Truly one of a kind show and now it got a video essay on par with it. Thank you
your analysis and editing are brilliant
Thank you!
ah i love this! really articulated how and what the show is borrowing, fairytales , cartoons, etc. and shows how it builds up that idea of identity and growing up and facing the real unknown like Wurt has to do at the end - the future
Thank you!
Fantasy and reality do NOT equal 'lies vs truth.'
Fantasies can reveal truth. They are a reflection.
And cold hard reality if misinterpreted can led to false conclusions.
But does that mean such "false conclusions" are always malicious (in intent) or bad though? Seems like an awfully pessimistic way of looking at it, don't get me wrong I'm just curious about weather such lovey lies are always such a bad thing, didn't want to assume anything.
*vigorously snaps fingers in approval*
captured danganronpa v3 in a bit
AnD thAtS A roCk fAcT
There a bad thing because things can be built on the foundations of lovely lies. And once that lie gives way to truth, everything built on top of it will come crashing down.
The truth is like bed rock, whatever is built upon it is stable. It doesn't give way because its all there is, the issue is that its often crude and harsh. And we collectively as a species regardless of who or where we are do not like the truth. We except some of it and immediately build up lovely lies to hide others. In a way it keeps some of us going, in the face of the truth when we are left without a cohesive explanation for what is presented we tend to spiral out of order into chaos.
As a HUGE fan of the Fantasy genre, I *LOVE* THIS SERIES!!!!
I know all of the subgenres of Fantasy, including Urban Fantasy and Over the Garden Wall definitely classifies as an Urban Fantasy story, not only being a mashup between magical realms and our normal familiar world, but is also an interesting take on taking what we already know and using/telling it in a different and unique way we never would've thought of before.
Stories like OTGW count as Urban Fantasy in many ways, but one of them is because, unlike Wizard of Oz or Narnia, the main characters don't get too distracted by the fantasy surroundings/adventure and keep their main goal in mind and focus: *To get back home!* While, in Wizard of Oz/Narnia, the characters seem to get in awe with the other worlds too much, not getting stressed about getting home at all. Ergo, don't count as Urban Fantasy.
Plus, in the subgenre known as 'Historical Fantasy', this show pulls off the showing of numerous people from different eras of the past, which were times in OUR WORLD, being the familiar in this unfamiliar world. Same thing can be said for the cultures, lands, clothes, songs and all.
That is what makes Over the Garden Wall is SO PERFECT!!!
Agreed!
I dunno, I thought it felt more like Portal Fantasy. But obviously there can be overlap.
This is REALLY good at getting toward the center of some of these super nuanced and fundamental themes. I'm working on a video for the MUSIC in this show and I'm learning just how much you can't separate hardly any aspect of this from its central themes. I don't k ow how you were able to word these thoughts so well, I hope to be able to say it so clean. OTGW gives me hope for shows and story telling because so often now people are so much more into how the fiction works rather than why the story works, and the unknown is definitely a fictional world that someone could get sucked into theorizing about, but more instead i see people talking about its central story and themes and that does so much more for me. I'm rambling. Bravo bravo, this is an amazing video. Amazing video, i hope to be able to have the brevity you have here, I've already learned so much more about the show and met some interesting people from the show 🙊. Amazing video
Thank you! :D I do love brevity, anything that even slightly bores me gets cut, that's my method lol
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat What if it's NECESSARY though! 😫😵😬
I think it's important to understand that the 19th century was in and of itself a transitory moment for the United States. Gripped in the energies of not just the Industrial Revolution, but the persistent debate over slavery, states rights, and the role of the federal government; the United States in the era that OTGW seeks to invoke was itself trying to find its own identity and role in the world. So there is a theme there as well, no different than using the era of Julius Caesar to signify corruption and devolution in politics or the American frontier to signify both cultural and personal freedom and self-reliance. The setting itself is a character.
The entire show smells like grandmas house in fall. Pumpkins and candles, oranges and yellows.
I hope your channel grows large one day
You always bring something new to the table
Love your work thank you for doing videos like this
Thank you very much! :D
Agreed!
This is by far the best over the garden wall video I've seen! Thank you for making it ❤
Thank you very much!
Anyone felt like tearing up with joy and acceptance for the beautiful master piece of a ending
I kept wondering how to describe the Unknown. While I might never find the perfect words, this is what I have. It’s an unknown home that you know. I know that makes no sense, but it’s a place you’ve technically never been before but feels familiar. It’s creepy and strange, but comforting and beautiful. It’s a compelling hiraeth, and the fact that it’s in between life and death, as well as the present and future makes my explanation make sense. We know life and present, but not death and the future. This is why it feels familiar but unknown.
Oooh, I really like that! Especially your reasoning. I think it's a similar reason to why a lot of people feel nostalgia for times when they weren't yet alive.
Ah, so THAT'S why I loved that show. Thanks, talky-person.
The quality of this video is stunning. You are so skilled! Loved this
You should make a video about why Hilda's supernatural work so well in the show
Oh wow, I love OTGW, but could never fully express why, why did it feel so familiar and comforting even in its eeriness. This analysis put into words a bit of it. Thank you for sharing this!
Thank you!
Pinocchio(1940) gives me a similar feeling.
This was really well written and spoken, really made me think about the tons of different layers that are incorporated into this show.
Thank you!
What a lovely essay. I need to watch this series again.
Thank you!
I love the depth in which you've analysed this series, over the garden wall is such a beautiful show.
Thank you! It sure is! :D
Thank you for explaining this to me! I was just baffled as to why a series that was relatively recent made me so nostalgic about my childhood. Like I actually gave it deep thought. That was some brilliant writing.
This was beautifully made, my god. The narrative and the narrator seemed as if I was watching a missing scene from Over the Garden Wall that I just didn't remember. Nice work!
Thank you very much! :D
I'm so late to this series, and this video. Loved your analysis Grace; it really gave me a better insight into the motifs and intentions that went into the show. You earned yourself a subscriber.
Thank you very much! :D
What an incredible video! Thank you for sharing this analysis with us, it is so interesting and eloquently put together. I'm glad I found your channel!
:D
I am now certain I made a good decision when I subscribed to your channel two days ago. Thank you for a well made video for such a lovely series.
Thank you very much! :)
It almost reminds of the old pioneer villages and towns I would visit as kid in rural Ohio, that’s what gave me a strange nostalgic feeling
This so one of the best video essays I’ve ever seen! Such a beautiful analysis of one of my favorite shows! Thank you for making this!!
:D
After initially watching Over the Garden Wall, I knew I was missing something and tried to read up on it. A couple years later, watching this video has actually shed a lot on the things I felt I was still missing in the show. Thanks for posting, and great job!
Thank you, I'm glad this video helped! :D
Over the garden wall is one of my favorite shows of all time, I remember stumbling upon it randomly on tv what feels like so many years ago and I was instantly captivated, firstly by the artstyle but then as I kept watching I was only drawn closer in, the characters, the ambiance, the plot all just kept my eyes stuck to the show. I still feel the same milkshake of emotions now as I did back then while watching it.
You did an amazing job with this video dude honestly! I loved it! You're so eloquent I'm jealous! I can't imagine how much work must go into a video like this but it's definitely worth it! How does one get so good at video essays?
the idea of this sense of familiarity we feel towards the unknown is something i unknowingly experienced the very first time i saw an episode of this show. it was a few years ago now and i don’t even think i watched more than a few minutes, yet i still remember that my first thought was , have i seen this show before. keeping in mind that i was probably only 12 or 13, it goes to show how effective this series conveys its basic concepts without the individual needing to have a complex understanding of literary techniques
dude you and beyond ghibli put so much effort into your videos thats inspiring honesty
Thank you! :D
Amazing work as always!
Thank you!
Grace this was beautifully done video! well edited, and very comprehensive.
Thank you! :D
You are a transition god! The editing on this is so good!
Thank you! :D
I will always come back to this series this time of the year, during that transition, that journey towards something mysterious while being in an oddly familiar place. It gIves me a sharp melancholy. Thank you for this video, i bloody love your narration, it fits nicely with the essence of Over the garden wall.
Thank you!
This is great! Thank you for making it.
Also, your voice is lovely.
Thank you very much!
What's So Great About That? You're welcome! 😊
during the second episode i didn't find it weird at all seeing "people" wearing vegetable costumes for a harvest celebration because where i live there are lots of small towns and they all have their fun little quirks and celebrations so on the flip side it really caught me off guard finding out they were all dead.
Can we talk about how good the editing in this video is
❤
1:25. that transition is beautiful, pure perfection.
An excellent video! The theme of identity is so central to the series, and you articulate it so well. Keep up the good work :)
Great editing and transitions!
Thanks!
I dont know if anyone has mentioned it yet, but your editing is great! The shots you chose, and the masking you did worked really well!
Thank you!
Watched your latest David Lynch vid, subscribed, then I found this video, and you're now officially my newest favorite channel on TH-cam. OTGW is one of my favorite cartoons ever, and this captured the genius of it brilliantly. Thanks for providing some new context and keep up the great work!
Thank you very much! :D
Fantastic video! That's a lot to think about when I'm rewatching the series
This gave me chills. Awesome interpretation, and there are so many good insights in the comments as well. I love this.
Thank you very much!
6:40 "instill a fantastical narrative into Mundane objects-" A concept lost on many fantasy worldbuilders, *not in a "high fantasy" sense but more of a "filling in the details" type deal, whimsical imaginations that give real world context to the myths, folklore and legends used to explain the mundane.*
Over the Garden Wall is such a nostalgic thing without even experiencing it in the past
Over The Garden Wall is well done and too smart to be over looked, but What's so great about it? is the knowledge we see, but we never see until outlined by the narrator. Wonderfully done, thought provoking, and always worth more than one watch is the content upon this channel.
Someone finally has made a video on this I've been feeling it this whole time but I haven't been able to explain why it's familiar