First Thoughts: HAMSTER & GRETEL is Another Animated Show Fun for the Whole Family from Dan Povenmire
Over the weekend, Disney Channel premiered Hamster & Gretel from Dan Povenmire (Phineas and Ferb). Disney Channel also was kind enough to send me the first two episodes to watch. I was grateful since I don’t have cable. As the show has officially premiered with new episodes on Saturdays at 9:30 AM ET/PT, I thought I’d share my thoughts on the first two episodes. If you are like me and don’t have cable, you can catch the first 5 episodes on Disney+ starting August 17!
Episode 101 "Empower Failure/Oakey Dokey"
"Empower Failure" – Hamster and Gretel get superpowers from aliens while Kevin grapples with being "superhero adjacent."
"Oakey Dokey" – Kevin and Gretel disagree over how to stop a meteor.
Episode 102 "Recipe for Disaster/Math Punch"
"Recipe for Disaster" – Kevin and Gretel have to rescue Family Dinner Night.
"Math Punch" – Gretel faces off against a lightning-powered cowboy as Dave struggles to get Carolina the perfect anniversary gift.
Two episodes is hardly enough to judge an entire series. I typically give a show 3-5 episodes before I decide whether I’ll continue. However, I will say that if you like Povenmire’s other work like Phineas and Ferb and Milo Murphy’s Law, you’re probably going to love Hamster & Gretel. It’s new characters, a new storyline, a new location, etc. but the feeling is the same. It feels like his work and it has the same charm and humor as his other shows. I personally really enjoy this. It’s great family-friendly entertainment that I’ll turn on sometimes even when my kids aren’t home.
Like I said, I’ve only seen two episodes and they’re the first two. That means that we’re still very much establishing characters and relationships. Kevin has to learn how to be a big brother to a superhero, Gretel is learning to have super powers and when it’s appropriate to use them, and Hamster hasn’t really had much time yet. I’m definitely excited to watch the first 5 episodes later this week, and I would recommend that you watch them too. It’s good family-friendly fun that doesn’t feel mind numbing.
"Hamster & Gretel" introduces Kevin and his younger sister Gretel, who are about to be bestowed superpowers by space aliens. But something goes awry, and it's Gretel and her pet hamster (named Hamster) who suddenly have new abilities. Now, protective older brother Kevin must figure out how to work with both Gretel and her pet Hamster to protect their city from mysterious dangers.
Hamster & Gretel stars Meli Povenmire as Gretel, Michael Cimino (Love, Victor) as Kevin, Beck Bennett (SNL) as Hamster, Joey King (Kissing Booth) as Fred, Matt Jones (Bob Hearts Abishola) as Dave, and Carolina Ravassa (Maya and the Three) as Carolina. If you have cable, you can watch new episodes every Saturday at 9:30 AM ET/PT.