There's been a slight increase in more mature western animated television shows in the past few years, and Final Space is the latest to join the desolate genre in attempts to further revive it.
Released on TBS and Netflix, Final Space is set in the distant future and follows a nonsensical astronaut named Gary throughout his prison sentence, which is a result of his accidental, yet destructive behaviour a few years back while attempting to impress a girl.
Each episode starts off with a more serious tone: a counter. A minute of dialogue between Gary and his artificial intelligence, Hue, as he floats in space alongside the debris of a spaceship and corpses of various aliens and robots. It's set up as if Gary is accepting his fate, as if this is his end and his oxygen will soon run out, and we are slowly being told the story of how it all came to be through each episode.
It's a smart setup for the narrative, and I'm certainly a fan of the creative non-linear approach to storytelling, however, it often loses its touch by overstepping with the humour a bit. There are moments that have you rolling your eyes at the sheer amount of jokes that don't land, or seem particularly immature despite the overall tones of the narrative and that can be discouraging if you're wanting to be invested after the prologues to each episode.
Gary is nonsensical, he's dysfunctional, but overall a lovable protagonist. It's clear that he's no criminal, and certainly has this soft side, which ultimately leads to the story's progression. He stumbles across a little alien which he names Mooncake, after a small insect his astronaut father gave him as a child. But Mooncake is no ordinary alien, he's a weapon capable of destroying the universe, and bad figures want him.
There's nothing wrong with the overall structure of Final Space; its story's depth begins to kick in towards the last few episodes, and if feels as if that constant humour begins to drop off and begin to get smarter and more involved with the plot and character, rather than constant one-line pop-ups. It becomes this intricate story that has you wishing it was like that from the beginning. Its charm finally captures you and has you caring as the show begins to actually give you reasons to care about the characters and future of the universe.
While I'm not entirely a fan of the animation style itself, Final Space surprised me with its unexpected increase in overall quality towards the end; and I have to admit that I am looking forward to a second season.