REVIEW: ‘Animaniacs’ Season 3 Ends On A Scattershot Note

The Animaniacs reboot launches its third and final season this week, coming at a rather interesting time. Reboots and revivals have become even more commonplace in the world of streaming services, with varying results. Animaniacs fell on the better end of the spectrum due to some sharp writing and the involvement of the original cast. But in Animaniacs Season 3, a great deal of the satire has lost its edge, and the show suffers from it.

The show picks up in the aftermath of Season 2‘s finale, where Warner Bros. (WB) has fallen under new management. Namely, that of the dim-witted Ralph, the security guard (Frank Welker). At her wits’ end, former WB CEO Nora Norita (Stephanie Escajeda) enlists Yakko (Rob Paulsen), Wakko (Jess Harnell), and Dot Warner (Tress MacNeille) to spread their trademark brand of chaos. All the while,  Pinky (Paulsen) and the Brain (Maurice LaMarche) pursue their goal of world domination.

Watching this latest batch of episodes, I couldn’t help but feel that something was off. And then, around the third episode, it hit me: it was the satire. In the first season of the Animaniacs revival, the humor was pretty much on par with the original series. Some pretty clever jokes also doubled as commentary on the state of media. There was even a musical number about reboots that ended with the Warner siblings accepting a massive check from Hulu! But in Season 3, most of that subtext becomes plain text. And it leads to primarily hit-and-miss jokes. Hit: a sly dig at Warner Bros. being cash-strapped in the wake of the Discovery merger. Yakko even says that the Warners subscribed to HBO Max. Miss: an episode about the pitfalls of pre-teen stardom, which feels like warmed-over Hannah Montana leftovers.

And after three seasons, I’m still struggling to get invested in the Cindy & Starblox shorts. On paper, the idea of a diminutive alien conqueror becoming the unwitting plaything of a little girl sounds good. But the execution is just…meh. It boils down to Starblox trying to escape and Cindy unwittingly foiling said escape, and there’s minimal variation on that theme. However, these shorts certainly look impressive, as they boast a messy yet charming style that feels like a child’s chalk drawings come to life.

The animation continues to be one of the best parts of the series. Various animation houses, including Titmouse and Tiger Animation, contributed to Animaniacs, and the results are gorgeous. The Warners’ bodies stretch and bend like rubber bands and get in some good visual gags. The premiere is especially good at this, stacking a multitude of homages within the space of ten to fifteen minutes. Seriously, film fans will have a blast picking them out. And as for the voice acting, everyone continues to bring their A-game. Paulsen, MacNeille, Harnell, and LaMarche slip back into their roles like comfortable coats, delivering some rapid-fire zingers. Paulsen should especially be commended as he’s pulling double duty as Pinky and Wakko and makes them sound like separate characters. Wakko also gets the best lines, including a dig at Chuck Lorre that had me howling with laughter.

The strongest element of the revival has always been the Pinky and the Brain segments. In fact, exploring the titular duo’s dynamic leads to one of the best segments yet in this season. Brain has built a door and asks Pinky not to open it. Pinky, naturally, opens it. What he finds is surprising—not just to him but to the audience as well. Because the segment dares to pose the question: “What if the Brain wasn’t focused on world conquest?” The answers may surprise you or leave you furious that this is the final season—or both.

Animaniacs Season 3 ends the revival on a scattershot note, as the sly humor that was the show’s driving force slowly erodes. For what it’s worth, there have been worse attempts to revive an IP. I just wish the series ended as strongly as it began.

All episodes of Animaniacs are now available to stream on Hulu.