Happy SummerWeen!
Today is Summerween! What is that? It’s a Halloween celebration in June as invented by Gravity Falls in the October 2012 episode called, well, “Summerween.” If you’re not familiar with Gravity Falls, then you are in for a treat. It is currently streaming on Disney+ and available on Blu-ray—and it’s the perfect summertime viewing.
Created by Alex Hirsch, and running from June 2012 to February 2016, Gravity Falls concerns the Pine Twins, Dipper and Mabel (voiced by Jason Ritter and Kristen Schaal, respectively), staying with their great uncle (or “grunkle”) Stan (voiced by Hirsch) in Gravity Falls, Oregon. The town is full of mysterious creatures and lore, plus hilarity and adventures. While it was clearly pitched at children, the show is legitimately good viewing for people of all ages. There are solid jokes that everyone can enjoy and just the right mix of danger and comfort to help younger viewers navigate the horror elements. But there’s also some horrific imagery…
Not to mention references to all sorts of media that most children probably wouldn’t get like The X-Files, Lovecraftian mythos, Lost, and even Twin Peaks.
Even though it is a Disney production, Hirsch and company found ways to push the limits on creature design and fright (but again, never to a nightmare-inducing degree for kids). But that doesn’t mean Gravity Falls didn’t face its own set of problems with its studio. It was recently the 10th Anniversary of the show and, as a treat, Hirsch released actually correspondence between Standards & Practices (S&P) over specific lines and imagery that had to be altered lest someone somewhere freaked out about it possibly:
The show homages multiple works, but also has found itself the subject of references. Shows like Amphibia, Rick And Morty, The Owl House, Star Vs. The Forces Of Evil, Steven Universe, and more have included nods overt and subtle to Hirsch’s terrific series. Most of the creators of these are good friends and love to put in these easter eggs for each other (and guest star on each other’s shows).
Those Rick And Morty connections actually go both ways with Gravity Falls having plenty of involvement with Justin Roiland’s Adult Swim show (including a direct link between episodes of each other). Here’s a more in depth look at how these two animated programs were in a sort of conversation with each other:
Gravity Falls is a tremendous achievement in storytelling and animation. The fact it takes place over one crazy summer makes it perfect to watch now and be amazed at the inventiveness of the characters and brilliant levels of bizarre the cast and crew were able to inject into each episode. Gravity Falls is streaming on Disney+ and available on Blu-ray—what better way to celebrate Halloween in the summer than diving (or revisiting) this unique and beautiful creation?