The Best Books, Movies, Video Games, and Podcasts to Check Out After Watching 'Adventure Time'[html]
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Adventure Time changes you. A show that starts off as a silly cartoon about a kid wearing a bear hat and his shape-shifting adoptive brother Jake the dog hides some of the deepest, darkest lore in entertainment history. The show deals with existential issues in hilarious, sometimes disturbing ways, and once you lock onto its frequency, you realize it might be one of the best shows of all time. If you want to extend that vibe, you’ve probably already burned through all the similar shows you can find, so here are the books, movies, video games, and podcasts that can give you just a little more Adventure Time in your day.
The best books like "Adventure Time"
Few shows have as much going on under the surface as Adventure Time, making books an ideal way to replicate the experience. Here are some books that will remind you of Finn the Human and Jake the Dog’s adventures.
The Complete Calvin and Hobbes, by Bill Watterson
Matching the chaotic dynamic and imaginary energy of Adventure Time isn’t easy, but Calvin and Hobbes is as close as you can get. This comic series about a little kid with a universe-sized imagination and his stuffed tiger (who comes to life only for him) as they go on adventures (in the real world as well as in Calvin’s lush fantasy life) might as well be a prequel to the show. Just like Adventure Time, Calvin and Hobbes often lets the real world and its dangers infect the whimsical romps of its protagonists, and you’ll find yourself once again bonding emotionally with a little kid and his real-to-him companion.
The Buried Giant, by Kazuo Ishiguro
One aspect of Adventure Time that makes the show so special is the low-key melancholy that suffuses it, and one of the main ingredients for that is the implied backstory of destruction and loss due to the Mushroom War that left civilization in shreds centuries before Finn and Jake’s story. If that’s your jam, The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro is the perfect read. Set in Britain some time after King Arthur’s days, the story follows an elderly man on a quest for his past, and delivers a dreamy, myth-soaked mood that fans of the show will savor.
Tales of the Dying Earth, by Jack Vance
The apocalypse that led to the world of Adventure Time is glimpsed here and there in the background—the remnants of what is recognizably our world. The slow winding down of civilization and the literal death of our planet are powerful themes the show weaves into many of its stories, and makes them hauntingly beautiful. There’s a whole Dying Earth sub-genre of sci-fi you can dive into, but start with the originator, Tales of the Dying Earth, by Jack Vance, set in a far future where the Sun is fading and magic has reasserted itself after technology’s collapse.
A Psalm for the Wild-Built, by Becky Chambers
If you want more of the dynamic between Finn and Jake, check out A Psalm for the Wild-Built, by Becky Chambers. On the moon Panga, sentient robots left human society long ago, retreating to their own enclave. Humanity remade society in a more sustainable and less techno-centric way, and no human has seen a robot since. Dex, a tea monk, travels around listening to people’s fears and misgivings. One day, Dex travels into the wilderness and happens upon a robot named Splendid Speckled Mosscap, and the two begin traveling together. It’s a beautiful, slow burn of a story, and Dex and Mosscap’s relationship will remind you of Finn and Jake in many ways.
The Hike, by Drew Magary
If the high weirdness and loopy humor of Adventure Time is what sticks with you, Drew Magary’s The Hike is a great choice. Ben arrives at his hotel for a meeting and decides to take a walk. Almost immediately, he finds himself lost in a surreal predicament, pursued by killers and monsters and accompanied by a talking blue crab named, well, Crab. As Ben’s experiences get increasingly strange (and threatening), he learns he must find a powerful entity called The Producer if he wants to escape alive. His interactions with Crab and the oddly ominous nature of his new reality will definitely resonate with fans of Adventure Time.
The best movies like "Adventure Time"
Adventure Time is cinematic, in its way—those visuals are eye candy, and the scope of its narrative arc is actually kind of stealth-epic. If you want movies that scratch a similar itch, there are plenty to choose from (including, unexpectedly, the 1979 comedy Meatballs, because Bill Murray’s performance as Tripper in that film directly inspired the character of Jake in Adventure Time.)
Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
Adventure Time and Where the Wild Things Are are so thematically similar you can find endless mashups of them online. Max, who wears a wolf costume like Finn wears a bear hat, is sent to bed, sulking, without supper. He finds himself transported to a magical jungle, where the native monsters—the Wild Things—try to frighten him, but then make him their king and take him on adventures. As with the show, this story has a dark core and a thread of melancholy to it. Stream Where the Wild Things Are on The Roku Channel or rent it on Prime Video.
The Dark Crystal (1982)
The combination of adult themes and a strikingly designed universe marks Adventure Time as something special, and the same goes for The Dark Crystal, Frank Oz’s triumph of puppetry. The story of two Gelflings, Jen and Kira, as they seek to heal a magical crystal and save their world from eternal darkness and tyranny is a visual treat. Like the show, the film is ostensibly aimed at kids, but deals with a lot of heavy, adult-level themes along the way. Stream The Dark Crystal on Kanopy or rent it on Prime Video.
Spirited Away (2001)
Another film frequently mashed up with Adventure Time is Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away. Although the animation style is quite different, the story of a young girl, Sen, who accidentally enters the spirit world and then must find a way to save her parents after they are transformed into pigs by a witch has the surrealist flair and dark vein of sadness fans of the show will recognize. It’s a visually dazzling story that explores the crossover from childhood to adulthood through a Japanese cultural lens and playful visuals that yield new surprises each time you watch. Rent Spirited Away on Prime Video.
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