“Big Mouth” Season 5 - Netflix Review

posted November 14, 2021 in CommRadio, Arts & Entertainment by Sophia D’Ovidio

The time to be “going through changes” has returned as Netflix’s hit animated series “Big Mouth” has released its fifth season this past Friday.

“Big Mouth” is an animated series that follows a group of middle-schoolers as they handle puberty and other changes that come with this difficult-to-navigate time in life.

However, in the “Big Mouth” universe, the kids are accompanied by many different creatures and monsters, each dedicated to a certain feeling or part of life. For the most part, these creatures can only be perceived by the characters they are a part of as they are seemingly a figment of their imagination.

While the concept initially started with just the Hormone Monsters but has evolved to include many characters, including the Shame Wizard, Depression Kitty, Tito the Anxiety Mosquito, Gratitoad and more.

This series is also known for its filthy humor. While it is an animated series about the lives of middle schoolers, at times, “Big Mouth” may be too inappropriate for kids the same age as the characters.

Although some may consider “Big Mouth’s” humor borderline disgusting, it has its devoted audience. They have dethroned the cultural phenomenon “Squid Games” as the number one show on Netflix.

Co-creator Nick Kroll is a famous comedian best known for “Kroll Show,” “The League,” and now “Big Mouth.” Kroll writes and produces “Big Mouth” and has voiced over 20 characters, most notably Nick Birch, Maury, and Coach Steve.

Kroll has enlisted many of his famous comedian friends to voice characters in the show, including; John Mulaney, Jordan Peele, Jason Mantzoukas, Fred Armisten and Maya Rudolph who has received two Emmy’s for her performance as Connie the Hormone Monstress.

Season five picks up right after season four as we see the characters take on eighth grade. The new characters that are added help establish the overarching theme of the season, which is love and hate.

Nick is initially introduced to Walter, a love bug, as he realizes he is in love with one of his best friends. However, as the season goes on, Walter transforms into a hate worm. Missy also has a hate-worm Rochelle.

Both Nick and Missy are some of the more grounded characters on the show, and it is interesting to see them lose themselves to the hate worms.

Along with this, season five has Jessi questioning her sexuality. As she tries to understand if her jealousy over Ali and her girlfriend is friendship-related or more than that.

This season also saw a lot of legitimate character development from Jay and Lola, characters typically utilized for comedic relief.

It was also interesting to see characters like Andrew be pushed to the B and C plots of the season. While Andrew is still one of the main characters, this season utilized him as comedic relief compared to the more fleshed-out arcs he received in the previous seasons.

However, this isn’t necessarily an issue with the season. As time goes on, characters like Andrew have become a little too absurd, even for “Big Mouth.”

Rather than ignoring some of the bizarre things Andrew has gotten into, using his character as comedic relief was a smart decision by the writers.

Season five did an excellent job expanding the “Big Mouth” universe. More and more characters are being added and becoming fully fleshed out. It is a true testament to the writers that they can keep up with the number of characters and do it well.

The voice acting in “Big Mouth'' is always excellent. Rudolph is a clear standout as she has been for the previous seasons as well. Mulaney also does an excellent job as Andrew despite his character getting seemingly less screen time this year.

Kroll’s ability to voice so many different characters that sound nothing alike is a testament to itself. However, his best work is when he performs as Maury.

New additions to the cast, Brandon Kyle Goodman and Keke Palmer, both did a great job as they brought in the new characters of Walter the Lovebug and Rochelle the hate worm, respectively.

Season five was an improvement from season four which is widely agreed upon as the show’s weakest season. While many agree that the first season remains the series best, season five was definitely up to par with the rest of the show.

“Big Mouth” is known for having difficult conversations about sex, puberty and growing up. While it does so comedically, the series will continue to be remembered for bringing many uncomfortable topics into the mainstream.

The final episode of the season helps subtly set up a spinoff series, “Human Resources,” which Kroll and many of the actors and writers have signed on for.

“Big Mouth” has been renewed for six seasons since the third one was released, and it will be interesting to see if the sixth season will be the show’s last.

It is important to note that “BoJack Horseman,” another one of Netflix’s successful animated series, ended after six seasons, so it wouldn’t be surprising if “Big Mouth” runs the same course.

“Big Mouth” season five was another great addition to one of Netflix’s best original series. Fans of the show will enjoy this new season, and anyone with a dirty sense of humor will as well.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Sophia D’Ovidio is a first-year majoring in communications. To contact her, email sgd5184@psu.edu.