This 100% Fresh Soft Reboot Feels Like Unearthing Lost 'Adventure Time' Episodes From the Vault

It's been eight years since Adventure Time said goodbye, leaving behind an incredible legacy. Over the course of ten seasons, Finn and Jake evolved from carefree adventurers into grown-up heroes who confronted the inevitability of change and existential questions.

This year, the creators returned to the world of Ooo with Adventure Time: Side Quests, not to continue the adult story, but to take a step back to a simpler time.

What Is 'Adventure Time: Side Quests' About?

Adventure Time: Side Quests invites viewers to revisit the show's early days, when Finn was twelve and Jake saw every problem as an opportunity to play a prank.

The new project isn't a direct continuation of the original, rather, it's a collection of lost episodes from Finn and Jake's early years. Each episode is a standalone adventure that doesn't require in-depth knowledge of the series' mythology.

Finn and Jake compete in ridiculous challenges, help strangers, rescue princesses, travel through cemeteries, and explore the inner workings of their own bodies.

'Adventure Time: Side Quests' Captures the Authentic Atmosphere of the Original's Early Seasons

The main strength of Side Quests is the creators' remarkable ability to recreate the atmosphere of the original show's early seasons, which many fans consider to be the best.

The show strings together one ridiculous gag after another, never giving us a moment's respite: Jake's eyes turn to stone, and he befriends a ghost, an entire civilization is discovered inside a stretching dog, and retired women master martial arts to confront a serial killer.

This is precisely the kind of crazy, uninhibited humor that made Adventure Time a cult show in the first place. At the same time, the writers don't forget the show's signature technique of playing with morality, which often remains unspoken.

Many episodes seem to be moving toward a moral conclusion, only to veer off into another absurdity at the last moment.

A team with deep knowledge of the universe developed the project, led by veteran Adventure Time showrunner and Over the Garden Wall director Nate Cash. Also, the project features an episode written by Pendleton Ward, the creator of the universe.

At the Same Time, 'Side Quests' Updates Its Visual Aesthetic and Opts for a Lighter Tone

Rather than simply copying the original's visual style, the creators made changes to modernize and energize the show – for example, they ditched the signature black outline, making the image softer and more fluid.

The characters' faces stretch beyond recognition as they constantly change their expressions, which enhances the comic impact of each scene. Side Quests looks fresh yet is instantly recognizable to fans of the original.

The most important thing this spin-off offers, however, is the opportunity to temporarily forget about growing up, a central topic of the later seasons of the original.

While the original Adventure Time taught us to embrace change and move on after losing loved ones, Side Quests allows us to get stuck in a timeless space where tomorrow never comes and any problem can easily be solved with a prank.

What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'Adventure Time: Side Quests'?

• Adventure Time: Side Quests has 100% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.

• On IMDb, the series has a score of 7.4/10.

Where to Watch 'Adventure Time: Side Quests'?

Adventure Time: Side Quests is available to stream on Disney+ and Hulu.