Oh. My. Glob. But it had to happen, right? I mean logically, it had to come to an end at some point, maybe? Maybe not? Why am I tearing up? Because Adventure Time is one of the greatest TV shows ever made? Peppermint Butler, bring me a handkerchief please! Cartoon Network has announced that its beloved, Emmy-winning series is coming to an end after Season 9.
Season 9 also happens to currently be in production, which means that the series won't actually finish up until 2018. There will also be specials and more that will air until the series takes its bow, so we have time to prepare. Also it will have left us with 142 episodes by that point (plus the comics and more). But still ...!
Rob Sorcher, chief content officer for Cartoon Network, spoke of the show's legacy:
Image via Cartoon Network
"Adventure Time changed the definition of what a kids’ TV series could be, and it’s had a resounding impact upon popular culture around the world. Cartoon Network Studios is proud to have brought together this group of brilliant artists and animators who helped make Adventure Time one of the most critically acclaimed TV series of a generation."
Creator Pendleton Ward added,
"Adventure Time was a passion project for the people on the crew who poured their heart into the art and stories. We tried to put into every episode something genuine and telling from our lives, and make a show that was personal to us, and that had jokes too! I'm really happy that it connected with an audience for so long. It’s a special thing, I think."
Perhaps The Simpsons already knew the end was nigh, as they recently paid homage to Adventure Time's opening in the Season 28 couch gag. Or it was just one great animated series paying its respects to another. Adventure Time is a kids show ... kinda ... but its dark themes and its emotional dialogue and its completely wonderfully surreal visual style makes it one of the few shows that can appeal broadly to just about anyone. (Emily Nussbaum of The New Yorker wrote about it as "gorgeously existential funk").
If you're like me and have gotten lax about keeping up with the latest episode, be sure to do so, and get your emotional affairs in order, as well. And if you haven't started, well, what are you waiting for?!
