pvtfunkyduck
Honestly, upon first watching this show, it was hard to dig into, yet my brother seemed to have some sort of interest in it, so i had no other choice but to watch it, and I was impressed!To start off, the animation of "The Mighty B!" is really not that bad, compared to other cartoons out there now days. (And of course excluding Japanese animes and American spin-offs of the genre.) Anyone who has been around long enough to remember good cartoons from the past like "Dexter's Laboratory" or "Rugrats" will see a very strong resemblance to the cartoon "Ren and Stimpy" The introduction to each episode is nothing less of catchy and strikes the viewer with a happy tone, a great way to start up a great show. As for the song at the credits, they are eerie, given the time that they usually broadcast episodes regularly in my area. (5:00 AM)The plots of each episode are very funny and creative. Rather it's the main character, Bessie Higgenbottom, struggling to earn another badge and become one step closer to transforming into this "The Mighty B" figure or it's finding out her dog has a history in a Russian Special Operations group, the viewer will always find themselves wanting more.Truly this isn't the "best" cartoon out there today, but it's up there. For Nickelodeon, it is a step in the right direction, something to get away from the terrible shows they are putting out now days.
OffTheLeft
I was rather surprised at the fairly low average user rating that The Mighty B! has received. Some of the negative reviews I read are generally wrapped around the show's resemblance to Nick's older cartoons, perceived clichés, Bessie's speech impediment, her high amount of energy, and the occasional gross-out humor that is used. To me these sound like opinions of someone who has seen just one or two episodes, because even I wasn't quite sure what to think after seeing it for the first time. I had to give it an honest effort (just like a few other shows such as Invader Zim, Foster's Home or Billy & Mandy), which really led me to like it a lot as I continued to watch it.So one point of contention seems to be the crude humor. To me, this show is a bit rough around the edges, but is not hard to handle compared to Family Guy, later episodes of Billy & Mandy and some earlier Nick toons I've seen. Only a little scene in one episode (not saying which one) made me grimace when I saw it, while many parts of Family Guy and Billy & Mandy made me change the channel. So the crudeness is unnecessary, but not by any means overbearing.And why do some viewers seem to think this show is unoriginal, unless that is their attempt to support their negative opinions? In the case of Gwen and Portia, respectively a stereotypical hipster and valley girl, I believe they fill a role that places Bessie in her proper place, as they continually try to degrade her without a glimpse of success, adding a lot to the humor put forth by Bessie's antics. As far as Penny's stereotype is concerned, the only other character she could even relate to is Patrick Star, but their personalities are still much different and Penny is hilarious. The air-headed blonde girl Millie also cracks me up.Even in spite of characters like Portia & Gwen, this is Bessie's show. Unlike any other female cartoon character I've seen, she is so full of energy, completely oblivious to her own popularity & appearance, and quite sharp-minded. Every other cartoon I've seen on Nick that's worth watching involves male comical characters, and any females that hold a primary role are usually not at all funny or antagonistic, since they are restrained to cynicism or being "miss perfect." I love how Bessie steps far outside this area; she's hilarious and adorable in every respect, including her silly lisp, which only adds to her personality.
John Cassidy (ryuuseipro)
I don't know about the many detractors of this series, but I really love and must show support for THE MIGHTY B!, one of Nickelodeon's latest shows, and the network's best new show, in my opinion. After almost a whole decade of cartoons that got unfortunately canceled by Nickelodeon, including INVADER ZIM, MY LIFE AS A TEENAGE ROBOT, THE X's, and EL TIGRE: THE ADVENTURES OF MANNY RIVERA, I'm just glad to see yet another good show that isn't SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS, a show which is just okay, but Nick seems to treat it as the Center of the Universe (like RUGRATS before it). I just hope they don't cancel THE MIGHTY B! after one season like the aforementioned shows (although MLAATR lasted for three, and IZ a season-and-a-half), just to make room for *more* SPONGEBOB! (And face it, AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER is gracefully finished and done with, so leave it alone!)Having seen this series since last year, I thought of it as the girl scouts version of REN & STIMPY, as it's got the same animation style, same selection of vintage library music, and even the same kind of gross-out humor. Yes, gross-out humor in a girls' cartoon! That's something you don't see every day. Erik Wiese, one of the three creators of this show, was a former John Kricfalusi animator. In fact, John K seems to have given this series his blessing, as he was featured in the "Special Thanks" credit in the first episode! He was definitely with this series in spirit.Series co-creator and UPRIGHT CITIZENS BRIGADE/Saturday NIGHT LIVE alumni Amy Poehler voices the titular character, Bessie Higgenbottom, a hilariously spastic and high-strung, but altruistic and lovable girl scout; she's a member of the San Francisco Honeybee Scouts. Other members include Bessie's obese friend Penny Lefkowitz (Dannah Feinglass), and her snobbish frenemies Portia Gibbons (Grey Delisle) and Gwen Wu (Jessica DiCicco). Portia's mother Mary Francis Gibbons (Sarah Thyre) is the Honeybees' bourgeois troop leader, and, like her daughter, has a love-hate thing for Bessie (because she wants Portia to succeed). Other supporting characters include Bessie's single mother, Hillary (Megan Canavagh), her little brother Ben (Andy Richter), her rock band friend Rocky Rhodes (Nickelodeon vet/Poehler's SNL colleague Kenan Thompson), and last but not least, her reluctant but loyal pet dog Happy (Dee Bradley Baker). Bessie's goal is to collect every single Honeybee badge, so that, as said in the Honeybee Handbook, she will become a superhero called the "Mighty Bee," which Bessie envisions as her imaginary superhero alter-ego with a tall, muscular body.Poehler's performance of Bessie is, as expected of her, irrepressible, and it also adds to Bessie's outcast status. You know she's considered an annoying outcast, but she's also funny and lovable at it, and some can actually empathize with her. Poehler based her Bessie character on a similar character she played in UCB, a girl scout named Cassie. (One would probably go on about how this series is an UCB spin off!) I'm also impressed with Dee Bradley Baker as Happy! He was so convincing, sounding like a real dog trying to talk. One such golden moment in the series is in the episode "Sweet Sixteenth," in which Bessie and Happy do "vocal warm ups" on a roller-coaster ride! It was just so funny and cute at the same time. The other voice talents are equally well done, including Delisle as the snobbish Portia. The theme song by Amy Miles and Michael Robertson, as well as the accompanying main title sequence, are among the craziest ever, and captures the essence of Bessie's adrenaline rush.At this writing, a full half-hour special episode, "Dragonflies," premiered just a week ago, and I can say that it was the most exciting episode yet! Plenty of non-stop action throughout.Yes, I can handle gross humor, as well as loudmouth humor, as long as the cartoon is *good*, which I think THE MIGHTY B! is. For me, it nostalgically hearkens back to the glory days of REN & STIMPY, and has become one of my favorite cartoons. In closing, I highly recommend this series to everyone, especially fans of R&S and thereabouts! Otherwise, those expecting SPONGEBOB and AVATAR may as well stay away, or at least *try* to enjoy it!
