How The Uncomfortable Humor of Big Mouth Made “US” Laugh

Big Mouth…the first animated comedy for adult couples?

There is a tradition in the adult animation industry of using shock as a source of humour. From Homer Simpson choking his son on primetime television to a pilot episode of South Park that featured grade school children using swear words, some adults had never even heard before.  It has long been evident that these cartoons could get away with much more than their live-action counterparts.  The nature of animation as a media provides a disconnect from reality opening a doorway to the freedom of shock value.  But, what happens when these worlds are blended, taking real-life taboo situations, and putting them at the forefront of a cartoons theme.

Big Mouth delivered a new type of shock humor when it debuted on Netflix in September of this year.  The series followed an animated version of Nick Kroll as a child during a time that is difficult for any youth.  Puberty.  We can all resonate with those awkward ‘tweenage’ years when bodies go through changes, and children begin navigating adult issues.  Big Mouth made those crude years its focus, bringing back memories we all share but, have longed to forget.

I had watched this series along with my partner (Jenn).  The first episode was full of laughs for me.  Focusing on masturbation, episode one is more true to reality than many of us would like to acknowledge- right down to the demon (played by Jason Mantzoukas) whispering in our ear.  As the episode concluded, I was happy to bounce into the next one.  Jenn was less so; the show had opened some facts about male puberty that most women do not know about or choose to ignore.  She reluctantly agreed to watch, not without saying “I hope it’s your turn to squirm”.  Sure enough, the next episode was all about Missy (Jenny Slate) having her first period in horribly awkward fashion.

The series continued to hit one taboo topic after another forcing audiences to deal with anything from bi-curiosity to porn addiction.  We would like to say that the show was entertaining because it dealt with these topics in an over-the-top fashion.  But, most of us wouldn’t be honest with ourselves if we said that Big Mouth was not eerily close to reality.  Episodes like “The Sleepover: A Harrowing Ordeal of Emotional Brutality” is dangerously close to the mark when the boys get into a testosterone-fueled battle, and the girls let their cruelty show.  The series brought up old memories in all of us that we could resonate with whether we liked it or not.

As much as I loved Big Mouth, and as entertaining it is to have a show focus on the worst parts of growing up, I don’t think I can handle another season.  There are so many uncomfortable moments to deal with.  But, something will bring me back, like a car crash you need to watch.  The worst part of dealing with this humoristic look at puberty hit me after Jenn, and I had concluded the series, when both of us turned to each other and realized, our children are going to go through this!  Suddenly ejaculation and menstruation were no longer as funny.

Read our season review for Big Mouth here.