After rewatching the surprisingly really good 7 Little Monsters, I figured Maggie and The Ferocious Beast would be another underrated gem from the early 2000s. What I got instead was a good solid kids show that focuses more on the characters exploring their unique world and the inhabitants within. While not out right bad, it does help remind me that most kid's shows are just good and that's perfectly okay.
Created by Michael Paraskevas and his mother, Betty, the show follows the adventures of a young girl named Maggie, her anthropomorphic pig friend, Hamilton and the Ferocious Beast himself as they play games and explore all of Nowhere Land. Each episode is divided into 3 7 minute segments and this creates the biggest problem with the show: the stories are too short. Ordinarily a kid's show would have 11 minute segments or be a full 22 minutes, but this show opts to make it's segments really short in runtime. This means that the conflict of each episode is kept really small in scale and it kinda makes me wish that they did something more. Then again, they make up for the short run time with some genuinely funny moments such as clever puns and Hamilton making a pig like sqeal every time he's surprised. Occasionally they well sing songs, which while not the best, are very well written and catchy such as Hamilton's Song and Mr. Moon Don't Be Blue. Most importantly, it teaches good lessons for kids such as learning to ask for help, teamwork and the value of friendship.
The characters also make up for the limited runtime of each segment as they all leave a lasting impression. Starting with Maggie, she's a smart and adventurous little girl who comes up with great ideas to have fun in Nowhere Land. Hamilton Hocks is the anxious but well mannered pig that makes exquisite dishes and likes to keep things neat and tidy. Then there's the Ferocious Beast, who's basically the little brother of the trio. While he can be impatient an unintentionally rude, he does have a good heart and loves having fun with Maggie and Hamilton. The other inhabitants of Nowhere Land also have unique personalities that make them instantly memorable. Nedley feels like he walked off the pages of Dr. Seuss as he typically speaks in rhymes and is very friendly. Rudy maybe small and his hat and boots are glued to his head and feet but he's very helpful and resourceful given the opportunity. The Moo Sister sing in beautiful harmony, B.B. Katz has a smooth jazz singer personality and Sidestep is a reasonable crab who gets along with Maggie and her friends very well despite being (pardon the pun) inherently crabby. The only character I don't like is Reggie, the Beast's snobbish and rude cousin. He feels like an unnecessary evil clone of the Beast and he never apologizes for his behavior. Thankfully, unlike Mitch Williams from Glitch Techs, he's only in 2 episodes which can be easily skipped over.
Visually, the show looks very colorful and vibrant. Nowhere Land feels like a beautiful mix between Alice in Wonderland and the world of Dr. Seuss with lucious landscapes, bendy trees and fantastical creatures. The character designs are very well crafted, with Maggie's frizzy orange hair making her stand out from the rest of the cast. Hamilton has a very unique design for an anthropomorphic pig as he has 3 fingers, 3 hairs on his head and is typically seen with a sweat with his initial on. The Beast looks to be the size of an elephant hand has an appealing face with 3 horns on his head. The character animation flows naturally and fluidly, and the Beast feels as big as he looks given that he's able to lift heavy objects and pull them up steep hills.
Lastly the voice acting is not too shabby as each of the actors give very distinct voices to the characters and memorable performances. Kristen Bone makes Maggie sound like the fun older sister who still a little girl at the end of the day. Michael Caruanna perfectly captures the anxiousness of Hamilton and has a wonderful singing voice. Stephen Ouimette makes the Beast sound like a man with the child like innocence of a little brother, kinda like Dan Russell does when voicing Richard in The Amazing World of Gumball. Dwayne Hill give a very memorable performance as Nedley, giving him a natural nasally tone that compliments his character. And John McGrath makes Rudy sound cute yet very determined.
Overall Maggie and The Ferocious Beast is a fun little cartoon with memorable characters, colorful animation and some genuinely funny moments. The short runtime of each segment holds it back from being really great, but it's still perfectly acceptable for children.
