Adventure Time: Side Quests resets the show’s early charm

Adventure Time grew from a whimsical kids' show about a boy and his magic dog into a series that explored dark, multiversal storylines. Side Quests, a spinoff created by Nate Cash, deliberately returns to the lighter, self-contained tone of the show's early seasons, setting its stories in “the cracks of seasons 1 and 2” and favoring quick, 11-minute comedies.

Each episode stands on its own: Finn bungles a crossbow tournament in one, and in another he must act like a gentleman to represent a high-society bug. The spinoff recasts Finn with 17-year-old Sasha Knight while John DiMaggio returns as Jake, and the creative aim was to reset Finn to a more naive, 12-year-old energy.

adventure time, side quests, nate cash, finn, jake, sasha knight, john dimaggio, spinoff, season 1, short episodes