Reviews WesternAnimation / Spliced

Easily among Teletoon's best

I remember seeing Spliced on Teletoon as a kid (during the heyday of Total Drama and Johnny Test), but I only saw the first few episodes because outside things prevented me from watching much Teletoon afterwards. I remember liking the series but not thinking much of it beyond that. I decided to catch up on the series again not too long ago, and man did I miss out, because this series is fantastic.

First of all, Spliced is hilarious. The creators have said that during writing sessions they would always throw in whatever they thought was funniest, and the results speak for itself. This show does not stop with its jokes and is unafraid of getting too absurd or too wacky, which ultimately works in its favor, because the series has a brilliantly surreal sense of humor - nothing is too weird for Spliced. There's also plenty of well-done slapstick and almost all the other jokes hit the mark. It even kinda had some edge at times, with stuff that I don't think many American cartoons now and then would have been allowed to have. This is very much a Gag Series, and while some might not like that style of storytelling, I think Spliced does a pretty good job with it because of how out-there the show is. However, I should warn people that there are some gross episodes, namely "Bite, Shuffle, and Moan" and "Cleaning Up", so if you don't like that stuff, feel free to skip those episodes.

Another highlight of the series is its characters. The show presents itself as an ensemble show, but it's pretty clear the central characters are Peri and Entree. The two are your classic "moronic duo whom everyone else would be better off without" - a formula that has been done by many cartoons with results generally ranging from mediocre to horrendous - but Peri and Entree are fun to watch, because unlike most others they actually have distinguishing personalities. Whereas Peri is a Nice Guy who expresses remorse when he realizes they've gone too far, Entree is an unrepentant Jerkass. Additionally, I've noticed that both are rarely ever Karma Houdinis, with Entree almost always getting it worse than Peri. That said, the other characters on the show are pretty colorful and entertaining as well, with my favorites being Two-Legs Joe, Patricia, and Mister Smarty-Smarts.

Some other major strengths of this series are its visuals and its music. Spliced has a distinct and appealing artstyle very different from your typical digitally-animated Canadian cartoon (I believe this show uses ToonBoom). It also has some nicely designed title cards clearly inspired by older cartoons which complement the solid and fluid animation. And the music is super catchy; seriously, its theme song is one of all-time favorites.

While I don't think if Spliced is a show for everyone, it is still a finely-produced series in its own right, with its unabashedly wacky, hilariously insane, colorfully creative, and even surprisingly daring take on things. If you like cartoons that feel like they came straight from a Saturday morning in the 90s or want evidence that there's more to Canadian animation or Teletoon than Johnny Test, Spliced is the show for you.