In these times of nostalgia worship and a thriving enthusiasm for all things absurd, fantastical, and almost purposely bad, it honestly takes me by surprise that more people haven’t heard of the enchanting experience that is the animated 1990’s show, Moomin. When it was released to English speaking audiences by the CBBC in 1991, it reached its final form as the slapdash cultural dogpile of an English dub of a Japanese animation based on a series of Finnish comic strips.  And from this, one of the most tonally discordant, awkward, and utterly enjoyable cartoons is now available for you to add to list of things to binge watch.

The show is set in the fiction land of Moomin Valley, where several kinds of somewhat human resembling characters live in near absolute bliss and harmony. It centers on the lives the Moomin Family, who reside in a large round several storied house known to all who visit as Moomin House. The family consists of three large, round, adorable white fluffy hippo type creatures. The show’s main character, Moomintroll (or just Moomin for short) is the bright, kind, adventurous son of Moominpapa and Moominmama. Along with them come a cast of many other characters, some of whom are arguable more popular than the show’s title character. Their adventures together over the series range from being some of the most wholesome and stress reliving examples of goodness and simplicity to some dark twists and ongoing mystery that fits in among the most iconic upsetting episodes of classic cartoon moments we all remember from growing up.

The wonder begins with the show’s classic hand drawn animation. From the very first second of watching, the art style alone dates the show and sets it apart from the kind of animation we are used to seeing today. There’s a traditional opening song that is just as obnoxious as it is catchy. It’s energetic and goes on for way longer than what feels necessary, and is of course muddled somewhat by the audio quality. In the English version, the song is played over mostly recycled clips from the episodes. Why the CBBC didn’t just use the Japanese version, with its soft, calming tune and a more coherent opening credit type organization is beyond me, but it’s one of many decisions that adds to glorious oddity that endears me so. The animation for the show itself is mostly consistent, but the longer you watch the more you begin to see times where the frames bounce around and where small blips and age sprinkle across the sweeping evergreen backgrounds. These are the quirks that always hit me with wave after wave of memories of the kinds of movies on VHS I loved to watch growing up, of times when you had to sit and wait for the movie to manually rewind before you could watch it for the 3^rd or 5^th time in a day so long as the player didn’t overheat, of when the movie was actually on a tape reel and nothing was digital. 

The English version also contains several awkward cuts and disjointed transitions between story lines and events, and some moments of some truly awful voice acting that never fail to spark joy. At times, it even falls into the same vein of entertainment as the English dub of the 1980’s Voltron TV series, or the 1990’s Mega Man show, or the absolute flawlessness that is Tommy Wiseau’s The Room. Of course, that’s before you also notice moments of the strange audio distortions that sprout up here and there. For these little charms alone, 1990’s Moomin takes on some of the greatest qualities that I can remember being what made the kind of shows I used to watch growing up feel so different to what we see airing on TV today.

As for the content of the show, you will watch on to find a wealth of story after story made of pure wholesome gold. Moomin Valley is a place that exists without electricity. It exists almost entirely without evil or hatred, poverty or crime. The doors are always unlocked, everyone in valley knows and cares about one another. Children run through the woods and mountains and caves and go on adventures with no thought to worry of abduction or getting hurt. Moomin House specifically is implied to be renowned as a bastion for the weary, and was built by Moominpapa himself to have extra rooms and beds for anyone who require them. It’s commonplace for the shows more reoccurring characters to practically move in with the family and stay for every meal, there is always enough, and there is never any worry of overstaying the Moomin Family’s welcome.

The Moomins themselves are an endlessly loving and supportive family, both to each other and to everyone they meet. The family and their friends constantly look out for one another and think nothing of taking on exhausting, tedious tasks for the sake of making someone else feel happy. Examples of this are almost endless, but to name a few, the crew help build workshops and homes for people, they house and protect two small guests on the run from something that terrifies them, and expect nothing in return. In one episode, they even use hundreds of flowers to create a portrait of Moominmama that is so large it can only be seen in full from above to surprise her.

One of the most popular episodes of the series, however, is “The Invisible Child”; the story of an invisible girl who is brought to the Moomin House in desperate need of love. It’s a touching three part tale that still pulls the heart strings and deeply connects to even its modern day viewers. In short, it’s tells the story of Ninny, a girl so neglected by her nasty aunt that she loses her voice and can no longer be seen by anyone. In her time at Moomin House, and under the constant but gentle encouragement and care of the Moomins and friends, Ninny slowly comes out of her shell and moves through her trauma. There are set backs, but the kindness and patience of her support network never wavers, and she eventually is able to leave Moomin Valley a bright, bold, vivacious girl. These episodes have gone on to become the foundation for several fundraising events and organization partnerships to help victims of abuse, and many viewers will watch it again and again to recapture the feelings of love, safety, and hope throughout.

Which, of course, leads me briefly celebrate the character that is Moominmama. While at first she may seem to be little more than an agreeable housewife, she is truly the embodiment of every fuzzy feeling the show has to offer. Of all the characters, she is the cornerstone that keeps everything together. Her meals are legendary, her sweet demeanor unflinching, her empathy limitless. She commonly refers her talents to a book passed down by the women in her family from her grandmother, the book everyone in the valley considers to be the keeper of the cures to all ailments and invaluable knowledge found nowhere else. In “The Invisible Child”, it is mostly by following the example of Moominmama that the characters are able to help Ninny.

Moominmama isn’t the only character worthy of individual note, though. Viewers everywhere have certainly latched onto a couple of others that have become as recognizable and beloved as the Moomins. There is a nomadic boy of indeterminate age named Snufkin, Moomintroll’s best friend. He is popular for being very worldly, having unique and wise advice for his friends, and his mature and easy going manner. He values spending time alone as much as he values the people he cares for, and finds the greatest joy in his simple uncomplicated lifestyle. He is the kind of person who would turn down the offer to earn money for an afternoon fishing in the summer sun, and a steady home for the freedom of being able to pack up what he can carry on his back and explore the world around him whenever he feels the need to. In fact, in both the show and the comics, it seems that the only unfailing constant in Snufkin’s life is his promise to always return to his friend Moomin, who in return cares very deeply for Snufkin misses him horribly when he leaves every winter to see the world. There are many theories about the relationship between the two, but nothing romantic has ever been confirmed.

The other fan favorite is a small woman named Little My. She is unnaturally tiny for her age, the smallest character on the show, but nothing about that seems to dim her larger than life personality. Little My is bossy, loud, nosy and headstrong, but she is also resourceful, brave, and practically indestructible. To her enemies, she is a terror. Time and time again through the show, she boldly takes on challenges fearlessly and somehow always finds a way to come out on top. She is a great foil to other female characters like Moominmama, or another fuzzy white hippo creature named Snorkmaiden, who are tamer and traditionally feminine. While they might content to be cooking and homemaking, Little My is sure to follow the boys out into the wilderness to inset herself into the thick of whatever adventure unfolds.

Now, there is some darkness that lurks in stories that come sprout up over the one hundred some episodes. Not to say that is in any way a turn off for most. Some of the creepiest moments from the more recognizable titles of our youth are also some of the most cherished and favored. Articles web-wide and gathered lists of them, from the violent antics of Tom and Jerry, the freakish apocalyptic future episode of The Power Puff Girls, or even the eldritch nightmares that feature in several episodes of Courage the Cowardly Dog. Moomin has more than its fair share of these episodes as well. For examples, seek no further than the first few episodes of the show. In the first episode, a magical hat turns Moomin from his cute round self into a pink and red hairy, lanky gremlin type creature with beady yellow eyes and wide mouth. We the viewers watch Moomin have a full panicking breakdown as none of his friends or family believe who he says he is as the terror of his new form dawns on him. 

Some of my personal favorite moments of the show come from plot lines like this that seem so absurd and freakish that it’s impossible for me to recap them with friends without sounding like I’m rambling through some sort of fever dream. There is a man called The Hobgoblin who appears several times, for instance. He is a mysterious person, drawn with enormous eyes and eyelashes and no eyebrows. He wears all black except for his flowing cape, which is red. He can grant wishes and use magic, and he travels the world on the back of his flying black panther. If you’re hoping for any more information about him than that, you won’t get it, at least, not from the show. In his first appearance, he comes to Moomin Valley to find that Moomin House is being quickly overgrown by a magic tree. With a large wave his cape, the world turns blood red and the regular cast look on in awe as within moments the tree withers and dies. After that, they return to him his fancy hat, and he goes sprinting off into the sky.

There is another character called The Groke, an enormous dark figure with two unblinking eyes and large shinning teeth that lurks in the night, especially in the winter. She is feared by all residents of the Valley. Everything she touches turns to ice and dies, and though what little we know about her is that she is terribly lonely and always seeking friendship and warmth, she is always rejected and avoided, and her powers put even lingering near a campfire forever out of her reach. Very rarely does anyone hear her speak, but on the occasion that they do, it comes as a terrible wail that comes on the harsh cold winds from far away. Her song on the Moomin soundtrack is easily the most anxious and creepy, designed to make your hairs stand on end. She appears several times throughout the series, including the nightmares of the characters.

Easily the best demonstration of the discordant tones clashing in the series comes from an episode about a pirate ship that sinks near to Moomin Valley that’s soon overwhelmed with the crew. On one hand, Snorkmaiden is taken hostage by the captain after the rest of his crew is captured. He holds a knife to her throat, spends most of the episode engaged in a standoff with police, and shouts several threats of hurting or killing Snorkmaiden to the crowd outside, and also makes comments that sound more sexual in nature. On the other, the voice acting is fantastically awful in the best of ways, the captain also tells Snorkmaiden that his claims are all a bluff, and the incompetence of the police chief and townspeople is hilarious as they try to resolve the situation. It’s an episode that definitely feels like it was meant to be fun and lighthearted, but the execution completely missed the mark.  

Though, I would say that there’s more to the creepiness than just scripted baddies lurking in the night. As previously mentioned, there are some odd cuts and strange dialogue moments throughout that go unremarked by the characters and makes you wonder if they’re meant to be unnerving at all. There are tigers with more human like faces that can speak who come to Moomin Valley and try to eat the Moomins, that is, until one nearly drowns while his tiger-wife looks on in horror. There’s a confrontation in a winter episode where Little My and Moomin realize in horror that they are being watched by the cold stare of the Groke from the distance, entirely isolated in the woods, that’s immediately cut to a new scene where they are back safe at the house, no mention of the run in again. On a similar note, in a story line where The Groke wants something from inside the house, she vows to return after she fails to get it. As one episode closes, the narrator wonders if the Moomins will be as able to stay safe next night she comes, when they are all sleeping. These examples combined with the myriad of questions about the world that the show poses and then never answers leaves viewers guessing at how pure the land of Moomin Valley truly is, and where the implications made in the show actually lead. 

And now, I hope I have convinced you to at least give it a shot. It’s also worth mentioning that if you’re entertaining the idea, but you just not into older cartoons, the BBC has recently released an updated, beautiful CG animated retelling called Moomin Valley. There are two seasons out now, and they have done, I feel, an excellent job of capturing the purest of the magic of the old show. The creep factor is way toned down, and the voice acting is excellent, but it’s still such a pleasure regardless. There’s even a wonderful new soundtrack that features several popular artists from the UK, and there are some new ideas being brought to life as well as some of the best and most memorable old episodes re-imagined. I’m also very pleased to tell you that if either the new or old shows have captured your interest, you can find the full episodes of the old show on Youtube by the official Moomin account, and a quick google search can help you watch the new show online for free as well. Happy watching, everyone, and feel free to leave comments about what you think about the show!