One of the many cartoons that ran into problems because it was geared towards an older audience, most people have heard of the show and almost anyone can tell you the synopsis (Brain [Maurice LaMarche] tries to take over the world, Pinky [Rob Paulsen] says "Narf" a lot), but a much smaller percentage of the population has ever really watched it.
I didn't ever like this show when I was little. It seems lately that if I want to see a good show, I should just watch something I didn't like as a kid. Like most others, I didn't like it because I didn't get it. There is so much political humor, so many jokes that, if you're not up on events that were current when the show was in production or you don't understand some of the language, you just don't get them. With even the lowly Pinky popping such lines off, you can begin to feel like a total moron when you're unfamiliar with the topic.
I tend to lump Pinky and the Brain together with Angry Beavers, CatDog, and El Dorado, as all of these star a pair of guys (one being rather intelligent, the other a little less than) whose personalities play very well off of each other. But the one thing that this duo has over the others, IMHO, is the fact that Pinky realizes he's an idiot and is able to laugh at himself. I've always held the conviction that there are too many Daggetts in the world and there should be more Pinkys. The other major thing that sets Pinky & The Brain apart from the others is that I prefer Pinky to Brain. But that's another story.
My favorite thing about the show is the incredibly smart writing. It's got a rather laughable plot, but the reparte between the characters really makes the show. The parodies are also quite enjoyable, my absolute favorite episode being the Brainie the Pooh one.
This page would not be complete with out applauding the cast (Ha! Thought you were going to be able to read something on this site that didn't mention VAs, didn't you? :-P). Amazing performances by Rob Paulsen, Maurice LaMarche, Tress MacNeille, and Roddy McDowall, with occasional appearances by several other voicing greats truly complete the show.
Pinky and the Brain was produced by Steven Spielberg from 1995 to 1998. Reruns are aired on Nickelodeon weekdays at 6:00 PM EST and weekends from 2:00 to 3:00 PM EST.
