Pros: colorful and non-scary depiction of a post-apocalyptic world; Main characters; harmless and funny jokes Cons: in some ways, the animation and plot may seem simple “The Last Kids on Earth” / The Last Kids on Earth
Adventure genre
Creators Max Bralier, Scott Peterson
Starring: Nick Wolfhard (Jack), Garland Witt (Quint), Charles Demer (Dirk), Montse Hernandez (June del Toro), etc.
Netflix channel
Year of release 2019
Episode 1
IMDb website
The Last Kids on Earth can be considered an animated series, but at the moment there is only one special available for viewing on Netflix. It lasts 67 minutes and reflects the events of the first book by author Max Bralier (he, by the way, was involved in the project as one of the executive producers).
The special episode takes place in a post-apocalyptic world. The earth has been captured by giant monsters and crowds of zombies. The main character, 13-year-old Jack, quickly learned to adapt to extreme conditions. He lives in a tree house, makes quick forays into supermarkets and records vlogs showing off his exploits on camera. Jack turns what is happening into a game of achievements, but this cannot always brighten up his loneliness. The hero hopes to get in touch with his best friend and save his school sweetheart. However, there are not many living people left in the city, and Jack’s company is sometimes not the one he was thinking about all this time.
Usually, when it comes to a zombie apocalypse, even in animation, you can expect a dark and sometimes trashy spectacle. In The Last Kids on Earth, it’s just the opposite. This is a very colorful cartoon, in which both night and day events are saturated with color. The constantly appearing monsters here are interesting in their own way, but not frightening in any way.
The creators did not strive for a realistic depiction of people or otherworldly creatures, but still used a combination of 2D and 3D animation (including for game effects). The result was successful, although at first glance at the footage from The Last Kids on Earth it may seem that the animation was done quite simply. It is precisely because of this that it attracts, evoking associations with other animated series that are radically different from the pretentious projects of Walt Disney.
The target audience of The Last Kids on Earth is school-age children who appreciate the jokes of teenagers. Despite the fact that the heroes of this story are teenagers, the humor here is completely harmless and really funny. Thanks to the relaxed dialogue that accompanies encounters with zombies, adults will also enjoy it.
It is worth noting that the cartoon has an extremely successful main character. Jack’s story is quite sad – he is an orphan who lived with foster parents before the zombie apocalypse. However, the creators of The Last Kids on Earth do not push for pity, but use the boy’s past to show how he finds a real family among his friends. Jack gets a chance to get rid of the feeling of abandonment and have a lot of fun.
There is also a quality to Jack’s character that many will appreciate. It’s a habit of presenting one’s exploits in exaggerated detail, which, of course, always turns into an amusing series of expectations and reality, voiced by Nick Wolfhard (older brother of Stranger Things’s Finn Wolfhard).
The sequel, which retells Max Bralier’s other books in the series, will feature the voices of actress Catherine O’Hara (Home Alone) and actor Mark Hamill (Star Wars). The new episode should be released in 2020, but there is no exact release date yet.
Apparently, further developments in The Last Kids on Earth will be interesting. At least, special is perceived easily and with pleasure. Moreover, the age of the audience does not matter, so the whole family can watch the cartoon.
Conclusion:
The Last Kids on Earth is for kids, but adults will love it too
