After more than 60 years since Gumby was first created, we are brought back to the good times of the original, and my opinion the best of the iconic Gumby and Pokey characters. Gumby is all about fun and comedy. You watch Gumby not for drama or romance. There is lots of action and fantasy, since it is all about Gumby's fun adventures. Art Clokey (creator of Gumby) does a fantastic job writing fun and unique episodes.
I love each of the characters for the fun and silly adventures they undertake and how unique each one is. Even small characters have their own personality which I love. Not many shows today pay so much attention to each character. I think Art Clokey has done a mind blowing job making these shows. He created some cool special effect techniques such as one episode with a rocket ship where he has scratched each frame so it looks like flames. Techniques like this were used in films for decades afterwards. The stop motion animation itself is very smooth and impressive, particularly since it was made 60 years ago!
My favorite episode is the first one, when Gumby goes to the moon and his Dad needs to save him. I love it because it starts off Gumby's career and is kind of the birth of Gumby. This also includes the rocket special effects mentioned above. The episode is really a joy to watch, not to mention that it was so symbolic for those times when everything was about space travel.
People that enjoyed Gumby growing up will be happy to share their passion with a new generation. After all, Gumby is meant for kids. Ages seven to eighteen would probably enjoy the series more than younger kids and would be able appreciate the beauty of the clay animation. I give it five out of five stars because, what they did was way ahead of their time with the special effects, unique stories, wonderful characters and more. Can't wait to see what's next in store for Gumby! (They are creating some entirely new episodes)
Reviewed by Gerry O., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic. For more youth reviews, go to kidsfirst dot org.
