The Lion Guard is a fun show that is a treat for the eyes and which tickles the nostalgia bone for those who grew up watching The Lion King. Just don't expect any heavy gravitas from the show's script.
As a huge fan of the original Lion King (and to a lesser degree its direct sequel) I viewed The Lion Guard with a hefty bit of cynicism, yet it happily surprised me. The animation in the series is stellar. No animated television series is going to deliver the quality of a film, but TLG does such a good job of 'fudging' the style of the original Lion King that I hardly notice the occasional animation flub.
While the episodic plots of the show thus far have been rote kid's show fare the writing is usually snappy and clever enough to string me along. The show even delivers some surprisingly 'heavy' and dark themes for a young kid's show to the point of showing a dead character on screen.
I'd say the show's weakest point of the show is some of the performances. Now, overall the voice acting in the series is pretty top notch. The actors of Kiara, the hyenas, and Kion (who also voice acted Sherman in Dreamworks' Mr. Peabody & Sherman) are very good. However the actors who portray Ono and Fuli are 'average' to be generous. Ono's voice is particularly grating and it takes me out of the show every time he speaks.
As for the convtroversial aspects of the show: I am in the minority of people who enjoys Bunga the honeybadger I suppose. I enjoy carefree characters like him. The way he fearlessly jumps into situations that SHOULD kill him makes me laugh. The show's musical numbers are not bad honestly. Some of them get caught in my head and I am totally fine with that.
Pretty Enjoyable Overall!
The Lion Guard is a fun show that is a treat for the eyes and which tickles the nostalgia bone for those who grew up watching The Lion King. Just don't expect any heavy gravitas from the show's script.
As a huge fan of the original Lion King (and to a lesser degree its direct sequel) I viewed The Lion Guard with a hefty bit of cynicism, yet it happily surprised me. The animation in the series is stellar. No animated television series is going to deliver the quality of a film, but TLG does such a good job of 'fudging' the style of the original Lion King that I hardly notice the occasional animation flub.
While the episodic plots of the show thus far have been rote kid's show fare the writing is usually snappy and clever enough to string me along. The show even delivers some surprisingly 'heavy' and dark themes for a young kid's show to the point of showing a dead character on screen.
I'd say the show's weakest point of the show is some of the performances. Now, overall the voice acting in the series is pretty top notch. The actors of Kiara, the hyenas, and Kion (who also voice acted Sherman in Dreamworks' Mr. Peabody & Sherman) are very good. However the actors who portray Ono and Fuli are 'average' to be generous. Ono's voice is particularly grating and it takes me out of the show every time he speaks.
As for the convtroversial aspects of the show: I am in the minority of people who enjoys Bunga the honeybadger I suppose. I enjoy carefree characters like him. The way he fearlessly jumps into situations that SHOULD kill him makes me laugh. The show's musical numbers are not bad honestly. Some of them get caught in my head and I am totally fine with that.
Overall I'd give it a Strong 7/10. Check it out!