"Big Mouth" season 3 is big success

The popular Netflix Original Series “Big Mouth” returned with a third season on Oct. 4. This landmark animated series follows two adolescent boys, Nick and Andrew (voiced by Nick Kroll and John Mullaney respectively), through their struggles with middle school and puberty. By using animation, “Big Mouth” takes the ubiquitous school drama coming of age story and tells smart stories centered around complex social issues that make this comedy a must watch. The newest season continues using animation to stray further and further from the expectations of a TV show set in middle school. The most obvious way “Big Mouth” stands out is through its use of “hormone monsters.” These characters are literal monsters that represent the biological and emotional changes of puberty; they are a constant source of dirty jokes about puberty that any Samo student can relate to. Initially, it seems like the hormone monsters are the only part of the show that is clearly fantastical. However, the third season adds and embellishes these elements by increasing the amount of musical numbers and anthropomorphic objects including talking pillow cases and turkeys. However, this can make “Big Mouth” sometimes seem quite random. For example, there are entire storylines based around the character “The Ghost of Duke Ellington” (voiced by Jordan Peele). The increased addition of often surreal scenes and devices can be ridiculous and quite funny, but they occasionally drag the focus away from the core characters and human story. “Big Mouth” stands out because it tackles many issues like sexism, sexuality, family drama and the central idea of growing up in the modern world. It is incredibly admirable that the show can discuss these issues in a creative and humorous way, while still prompting critical thinking and reflection. For example, the second episode is based around a sexist dress code; the show manages to probe the sensitive topic of sexism without becoming somber and remains enjoyable to watch.    The new season also features several celebrities. The largest feature is an entire episode based on another Netflix TV show, “Queer Eye”. “Queer Eye” is a show about five gay men, known as the “Fab Five”, giving people total life makeovers and the entire “Big Mouth” episode is based around the structure of “Queer Eye”. Another episode features comedian Ali Wong as a student in the school. The peppering of celebrities works as a smart addition to an already all-star cast. Overall, the newest season of “Big Mouth” is a delight. Even though the more ridiculous scenes occasionally detract from the focus of the show, “Big Mouth” is rapidly becoming a staple of Netflix’s catalogue as well as that of pop culture.