12-year-old Finn the Human wandered around the Land of Ooo with his magical dog, Jake, for eight seasons. Between the vibrant color palette, fun music and bacon pancakes, “Adventure Time” was a success.
“Fionna and Cake” has been a delightful and nostalgic adventure back to the Land of Ooo. The pair are the gender-swapped versions of Finn and Jake. They were first introduced in “Adventure Time” in season three episode nine and returned Aug. 31, 2023.
The limited series is 10 episodes long and can be watched on the streaming service Max. “Adventure Time” and the show “Distant Lands” are also available to watch on the service. It’s recommended to watch both series to understand all of the show’s lore before diving into “Fionna and Cake.”
Long live the “Adventure Time” introduction song and the “Come Along with Me” credits. The new spin-off features a glimpse of our team’s everyday life accompanied by a new fun tune, “Not Myself,” in the first episode.
The official introduction to the show features a bunch of chaotic cut scenes from Fionna and Cake’s adventures. We also see familiar lands such as Finn and Jake’s worn treehouse. We see old characters, like Prismo the Wishmaker.
Episode one introduces us to the duo in a dream. Quickly, the dream ends and we see the somewhat relatable reality of Fionna – a tired working girl living with her cat. Deprived of the magic and the Land of Ooo, Fionna is working as a tour guide in efforts to afford her messy apartment.
The debut of Fionna’s personal life streams an awful morning that manages to get worse. After Fionna wakes from a vivid dream, Cake begins to display abnormal behavior. Cake’s change in attitude eventually results in her running away into a glowy portal.
The Land of Ooo is back again along with vibrant colors, goofy characters and a smashing playlist. The episodes are accompanied with fun jams. We also get to hear Candy Queen’s “Baked with Love” in an alternate universe, which was an adventure with cursed Princess Bubblegum.
The limited series follows Fionna and Cake through their adventure through the multiverse while also following along with the journey of Simon Petrikov, formerly known as the Ice King.
They traveled together, but each learned new lessons for themselves.
Ice King was a crazy king with a lot of backstory attached to him in the original “Adventure Time.” In the 10 episodes Simon spent with Fionna and Cake, we were provided more of his lore along with an exciting romantic story from his past.
Although I am still left with questions such as how Beth became what she is, and when, I am satisfied with where the show ended.
The banana guards make an entrance into the show, but as enemies to our heroines. The show also gifts us with the gender-flipped, human version of Lumpy Space Princess, Ellis P, with a purple-themed outfit.
The creators present LGBTQ+ representation through Marshall Lee and Gary Prince’s relationship after a perfect meet-cute. Both pairs are relationship goals, especially when Gary stands up for his beau Marshall, and Marshall shows support for Gary’s dreams in baking.
Princess Bubblegum and Marceline were also referenced in “The Star,” commenting, “they are always written as each other’s romantic destinies.” This had me squealing like a teenage girl after all these years of cheering for #Bubbline.
Although Jake is gone – I’m not crying, you are – we still see Finn in different variations in the multiverse adventure. We see him with grown out facial hair and as an adorable diaper baby.
The series is a little over four hours of nostalgia. The creators also sprinkled in some scenes of little marceline with Simon to make me go “aww” and some lore about our old bro Prismo, who was pleasant to see again.
Four hours of “Fionna and Cake” is perfect for fans of “Adventure Time.” It is also great for winding down after a long shift at work. Relax and get your favorite comfort food while the pastel color palette of the cartoon lights up your room.
