Big Mouth (TV series)


Big Mouth is an American animated sitcom created by Nick Kroll, Andrew Goldberg, Mark Levin, and Jennifer Flackett featuring teens based on Kroll and Goldberg's upbringing in suburban New York, with Kroll voicing his fictional younger self.
The first season that consisted of ten episodes premiered on Netflix on September 29, 2017, and the second season was released on October 5, 2018. The third season was preceded by a Valentine's Day special episode on February 8, 2019, and the rest of the third season was released on October 4, 2019. In July 2019, Netflix renewed the series through to a sixth season.

Plot

The series follows a group of 7th graders, including best friends Nick Birch and Andrew Glouberman, as they navigate their way through puberty with struggles like masturbation and sexual arousal all in the suburbs of New York City. Acting as over-sexualized shoulder angels are the hormone monsters: Maurice, Connie—the hormone monstress and Mona. Throughout the series, the kids interact with people and objects who are often personified and offer helpful, yet confusing, advice in their puberty-filled lives including the ghost of Duke Ellington, a French-accented Statue of Liberty, a pillow capable of getting pregnant, a bar of Adderall, and even Jessi's own vulva. They seek out their destiny as puberty destroys them mentally and physically.

Cast and characters

Main

Season 1 (2017)

Season 2 (2018)

Season 3 (2019)

Production

TV writer Andrew Goldberg and screenwriter-directors Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin approached Nick Kroll, Goldberg's best friend since childhood, with the idea to develop a show about going through puberty. Kroll and Goldberg used their divergent pubertal experiences as a centerpiece of the show, because Kroll was a late bloomer while Goldberg went through the physical changes of puberty very early. Many of their lived experiences are featured in the show, such as Kroll's first kiss, and Goldberg's parents waxing his mustache. The show also includes an experience of their childhood friend, Lizzie, who the character of Jessi is based on, getting her first period on a school trip to the Statue of Liberty. According to Kroll in an interview on NPR, Big Mouth "takes an equal look at what it's like for girls and women, the process of going through puberty, which I think has not been quite as explored in most popular culture." Netflix announced they had picked up Big Mouth in June 2016.
In July 2019, the series was renewed for a fourth, fifth and sixth season.
On June 24, 2020, it was announced that Jenny Slate would no longer be voicing Missy Foreman-Greenwald due to the recast being in favor of an African-American actress in the wake of the George Floyd protests. Slate's final time voicing Missy will be in the fourth season as she recorded her lines in advance.

Music

The first soundtrack album of songs from the TV series was released alongside season three on October 4, 2019.
All songs written by Mark Rivers except where indicated.

Release

The first season consisting of ten episodes premiered on Netflix on September 29, 2017. On October 24, 2017, it was confirmed that a second season had been ordered, which was released on October 5, 2018. On November 17, 2018, Netflix announced that Big Mouth had been renewed for a third season. The third season was preceded by a Valentine's Day special episode on February 8, 2019. On July 26, 2019, Netflix renewed the series through to a sixth season. On August 21, 2019, it was reported that the third season was set to be released on October 4, 2019.

Reception

Critical response

Big Mouth has received critical acclaim since its release. On Rotten Tomatoes, Season 1 has an approval rating of 100% based on 22 reviews, with the critical consensus reading, "Big Mouth's simplistic animation and scatological humor belie its finely sketched characters and smart, empathetic approach to the messiness of adolescence." At Metacritic, the show currently holds a rating of 80 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Rotten Tomatoes gave Season 2 a rating of 100% based on 30 reviews, with the critical consensus reading "Poignantly repulsive, Big Mouth continues to confront the awkwardness of adolescence with foul-mouthed glee and an added layer of maturity." Metacritic holds a rating 90 out of 100 for the second season, based on 9 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
Season 3 has received critical acclaim. Rotten Tomatoes gave Season 3 a rating of 100% based on 30 reviews, with the critical consensus reading "Like the characters at its center, Big Mouth's third season continues to grow, taking on complicated new issues with the same gross-but-utterly-empathetic eye that made it so lovable in the first place."
Vox described the show as sharp and jarring depicting the awkwardness of pubescence, post-pubescence and pre-pubescence. Erik Adams from The A.V. Club awarded the second season an 'A-'. Adams praised the cast, especially Thewlis, and the experimentation of this season, commenting that "it's shown that it deserves to be included in any conversation about TV's animated greats."

Accolades

Spin-off

On October 3, 2019, Netflix announced a straight-to-series order for a spin-off series titled Human Resources, set within the show's universe. Kroll, Goldberg, Levin, Flackett and Kelly Galuska will produce.