This week’s blog post is about that crazy cartoon that had you whistling one of the catchiest theme songs from an animated series and craving jawbreakers, Ed, Edd n Eddy.

This slapstick comedy cartoon series follows three friends with similar nicknames, Ed, Edd and Eddy, who live in a cul-de-sac in the fictional town of Peach Creek. The series follows the trio’s never-ending quest for jawbreakers and the crazy situations they manage to get themselves into.

I watched this series as a kid and sat down this past weekend to re-watch some episodes and I have to say, this cartoon still holds up as a great series! Ed, Edd n Eddy is Cartoon Network’s longest running original animated series running for 10 years! That doesn’t seem real to me. This cartoon was around for much of my childhood. Sadly, Cartoon Network has discontinued re-runs of Ed, Edd n Eddy, excluding holiday specials.

There’s not much of an overall story to this series. Like I said before, this is a slapstick comedy cartoon show. The trio goes around attempting to swindle the other children in the cul-de-sac out of their quarters so that they can buy jawbreakers. When that’s not happening, the trio is trying to get along with the other kids, which leads to awkward situations due to their reputation. Another theme is the reoccurrence of Eddy mentioning his brother. Though Eddy’s brother never makes an appearance until the very end of the series, it is apparent that Eddy’s brother is a “legend” to the other kids.

When re-watching this series, I found no significant flaws. The series produced great humor that can be shared by audiences of all ages. There were a few jokes that could be interpreted as adult humor. An example of this can be seen early in season one when the trio is in Eddy’s attic and Double Dee stumbles upon a magazine which folds out into a spread, such as a pornographic magazine. A seductive music score starts and when the photograph is show, it’s a detailed photo of a preying mantis, which Double Dee studies. The only thing that I really questioned, as a kid and even now, was the absence of the parents. The parents never make an appearance in the series, but maybe that was the point. Maybe the whole series takes place during the kids’ summer vacation. Either way, that observation quickly became of no real concern.

That last paragraph just reminded me, THE MUSIC. I swear this cartoon has the best music score. The improv jazz that flows throughout every episode and the theme song is perfect. I’m pretty sure that the only reason I learned to whistle was so I could whistle the theme song.

What came as a slight disappointment were the last two seasons. I say “slight” because it wasn’t necessarily a bad transition, but it left me with the feeling that something was missing. Seasons 5 and 6 took place at Peach Creek Jr. High. (Side note: I’m not entirely sure there is a season 6. From my research there is only one episode affiliated with season 6. (What’s up with that?) This change in background gave the viewer a new look at the life of the trio and fellow kids of the cul-de-sac, but didn’t live up to pervious episodes that took place in and around the cul-de-sac. Most of the antics took place in the school and did away with some of the recognizable backgrounds such as Ed’s room/basement, Double Dee’s house, Eddy’s room, Raulf’s farm, etc.

The end of the series takes place as “Ed, Edd n Eddy’s Big Picture Show.” I remember watching this when it first premiered on Cartoon Network. It was pretty sad to see the end of this series but exciting to finally see Eddy’s infamous brother. Though it wasn’t the happy reunion one had hoped for, a happy ending where the other kids finally accept the trio made up for it. I felt that an addition of Ed, Edd, and Eddy finally getting jawbreakers should have been added, but still a 9/10 in my book.

There are many theories about the plot behind Ed, Edd n Eddy that can be found online. I, for one, don’t agree with them, but they are still pretty entertaining to read.

With 10 years of airtime, four series specials and a film, Ed, Edd n Eddy remains one of the biggest cartoon series to exist. With great humor and music, which is exactly what a great cartoon should be built around, I would recommend Ed, Edd n Eddy to all ages of cartoon enthusiasts.

Be sure to be on the lookout for the next post where I talk about The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy. Till then, stay tooned.