Adored By The Network! Advertised on every commercial break! Hated by TV Tropes reviewers! It's . . . JOHNNY TEST! (guitarriff.mp3)

Expectations not to have of this show:

- That it's worthy of CN's adoration

- That it's complex

- That it tries to appeal to adults beyond pointing out cliches (and still playing them straight), and the occasional jokes completely lost on the TV-Y7 audience (like mocking the snobby owners of pedigree dogs)

That's out of the way! Let's watch the show.

First, we notice that there is no Continuity Lockout. New viewers have no trouble picking up the show's basics.

We also notice that the characters are fully one-dimensional. This incites troper rage like nothing else. Yes, each one is a walking cliche. There's the foolish, immature, and somehow-manipulative Johnny, whose impulses cause most of his problems (similar to Timmy Turner's skills at wishing). There's the animal sidekick, Dukey, who is supposed to be saner than Johnny, while still being his friend. There are his twin genius sisters, who lose all their intelligence when faced with their shared crush, Gil (a stock moron). Then there are the parents, who seem to neglect their son, and yet still love him.

So in essence, this show has to be situation-based comedy at its purest. And for variety, the premise is perfect.

So is it funny?

That depends on the viewer. I find it amusing, but it never seems truly hilarious. Its writing could be done by anyone who was given the characters and told to make something up. Not too much care seems put into it; the most obvious jokes for the situation and/or Running Gags take up most of the humor. Occasional parodies of other things or Getting Crap Past The Radar provide most of the real comic value. For example, one episode focuses on Johnny cross-dressing as a Girl Scout, and his parents' reaction is very funny just because Johnny doesn't properly explain why he's doing so. The kiddies will enjoy the screaming, action, and recycled slapstick gags.

It's not good compared to the best kids' shows that appeal to adults. We've seen this all before, the writing and characters are bad compared to some kids' shows, and it really is aimed at 7-10 year olds. If you lose any unrealistic expectations and just watch it as a quick diversion, it can be fun. If you watched it as much as CN showed it, you'd die.

The one main reason that makes me dislike this show so much (aside from the many other reasons) is that it can't calm the hell down. It NEVER takes a break. Every scene has to have some sort of over-the-top preformance, obnoxiously loud guitar riffs, half-assed action scenes riddled with cliches, or a flimsy attempt to tug at my heartstrings.

That being said, there are other reasons that make me dislike this show. One of them being character development. In that there is none. The characters are one-dimensional, bland, and mostly stereotypes (super-secret government agents wearing black suits, geeky science nerds wearing glasses, etc.). The characters aren't just bland, though, they're also unlikeable. Johnny is a little prick who deliberatley does bad things without any remorse (or consequences). His dog Dukey tries way too hard to be a comic foil and just comes off as being annoying. Johnny's sisters constantly oogle over Gil (even though he's got the mental capacity of a squirrel) when they could be using their science skills to do something like, oh I don't know, find a cure for cancer. Johnny's dad is a ponce to the point where he has to reassure himself that he probably loves his son. Johnny's mom seems to be the only sane character in the series, and she's not even used that much.

You know when I said the show flimsily tries to tug at my heartstrings? I wasn't kidding about that. Occasionally the show will have a "sad" moment where reused guitar stings pluck quietly in the background and the characters make an unemotional speech about the moral or something. When these scenes happen, I can't help but sit back and laugh because of how little emotion the characters put into their speech.

In conclusion, I'm disappointed. I know that Cartoon Network can do better than this, because they have, several times. Though I am happy with the new shows coming out like Regular Show and Adventure Time, and look forward to new episodes of those.

If I were to describe Johnny Test in seven words, it would be "the cancer that is killing Cartoon Network."

First, let us talk about presentation. The show is yet another Canadian Flash cartoon, which becomes obvious with the lazy tweening and sub-par animation, as if the show was made on a $20 budget. However, sound effects apparently do not cost a dime, seeing as how electric guitar riffs, stock sounds ripped from 90s-era websites, and whip cracks dominate every scene.

Now for the main cast. Every character in Johnny Test is one-dimensional and bland: Johnny is your regular 11-year-old asshole who never gets karmic retribution for his douchy actions, Dukey is his equally boring foil, and Mary and Susan are supposed teen geniuses who lose all intelligence when staring at their next-door neighbor. Everybody else follows the same pattern (one of Johnny's teachers is actually called Mr. Teacherman, as if his entire life revolved around being a mean teacher), but one thing holds the same for every character: they panic. A lot. Seriously, it is like the voice actors were instructed to scream or use loud tones in every other sentence for fear of losing the minuscule attention spans of the show's audience.

At this point, I would delve into the show's plot. The problem is that none exists. Every single episode is made of cliches crudely held together with the characters mentioned above. For the most part, Johnny wants to do something cool, he asks his sisters to invent something to help him, things spiral out of control, and Johnny saves the day so that he can be a dick again tomorrow. Yeah, there are some other plots (generic villain team-up episode, Johnny squaring off against Bling-Bling Boy for the billionth time, etc.), but they are hardly worth mentioning.

Normally, I would not have paid any attention to this pitiful excuse for entertainment if Cartoon Network had not adopted it and aired it every waking hour. But they did, and I suffered for it. Since I am running out of word space here, I will summarize: this show is bad. Stay away from it. If you have nothing else to watch but this show, then read a goddamn book instead. Dostoevsky and Tolstoy may not be exciting, but at least they can write.

P.S. I would write a Big Time Rush review, but it would just be copying and pasting this one.

Well,I just dislike this show for so many reasons.The main character is not only a idiot but is also a jerkass to nearly everyone around him,he's your typical unlikeable and simple character,the other characters aren't much different.This show is repetitive,cliche,and is constantly referencing something or is just having a bland and boring plot.If you like this show that's okay,but I don't.The only good thing about this show is its okay voice acting,and even then that's not enough.If you hate this show like me,go watch something like Adventure Time or Regular Show.

What a terrific combo this show has going for it! Ripping off both Johnny Bravo & Dexter's Lab, with a tad smidge of Ed, Edd n' Eddy thrown in for "good" measure (the title puns, anyone?). The sisters bug me, considering we've seen them before—the dog is the only thing that made me watch this show in the first place. The parents annoy me as well: they have no characterization other than copies of Dexter's parents aside from the meatloaf obsession Johnny's dad has and the once-in-a-blue-moon Mama Bear persona that Lila Test has—other than that, the characters and supporting characters are dull as sticks. Johnny tries to be what he isn't—a cool little brother rather than an annoying selfish pest.