Okay I know I connect literally everything to Ed Edd n Eddy but I think I'm onto something when I say the last episode of Smiling Friends had serious parallels to Big Picture Show.
To be clear I'm not trying to say SF was directly inspired by EEnE, I just noticed they were similar and I wanted to write about it lol
In case anyone cares about Smiling Friends spoilers (or BPS spoilers? idfk) I am hiding these comparisons within the section below
So in the final act of BPS, Eddy and his best friends seek out Eddy's brother, a mysterious unseen relative who is mentioned offhandedly in a number of episodes. They find Eddy's bro living in a run-down coastal residence. It quickly becomes apparent to Eddy's peers and the audience that his Bro is an abusive lowlife who takes advantage of Eddy. When Bro attacks Edd for trying to intervene, Eddy finally recognizes his idol for the monster he is. The dude with yellow skin then beats the crap out of the bad guy and our protagonists walk away victoriously.
(sorry for the image quality lmao these are screenshots from a youtube upload of the fight)
In the final episode of Smiling Friends, Charlie and his best friend seek out Charlie's uncle, a mysterious unseen relative who is mentioned offhandedly in a number of episodes. They find Charlie's uncle Bilbert living in a run-down coastal residence. It quickly becomes apparent to Pim and the audience that his uncle is an abusive lowlife who takes advantage of Charlie. When Bilbert attacks Pim for trying to intervene, Charlie finally recognizes his idol for the monster he is. The dude with yellow skin then beats the crap out of the bad guy and our protagonists walk away victoriously.
(No pics from the Smiling Friends ep sadly because it is so new and I don't have the energy to dig for illegal uploads to take screenshots)
Additional parallels:
- These both serve as series finales.
- Charlie's uncle Bilbert is a notorious sex offender, addict, and involved in other criminal activity like illegal gambling. Since EEnE is a kids' show they couldn't outright say that Eddy's bro is on drugs or anything of that nature, but many fans headcanon that he's a drug user/dealer, actual scam artist, womanizer, and/or creeps on children. If you've seen the movie, or been in the fandom for more than two days, I doubt you need me to explain why that is.
- Pure coincidence here: Bro plays "uncle" with Eddy (the last thing Bro says before he passes out is "uncle.") If you haven't noticed, Bilbert...is Charlie's uncle.
- Eddy and Charlie are both chubby and associated with the colour yellow. Definitely the most damning similarity. There has never been another fat cartoon character known for wearing or being yellow. I've never heard of the Simpsons. What is that?
In conclusion, this is A Thing I Noticed™. Also I enjoyed them both so much! I really wasn't expecting the last episode of SF to take any of the characters' emotions seriously while keeping up the same ridiculous tone. I suppose the same could be said for EEnE since it's very zany in its own right, but it looks quaint and grounded in comparison to SF, so I really didn't know what to expect from the latter's send-off. I couldn't have asked for a more fitting end. And as many people have said, the show ending is sad, though I think it is for the best. If they kept it going I think the show would've gotten worse. Zach and Michael admitted they were suffering from burnout. That's the sort of thing that could've easily led to a half-hearted fourth season. Better to go out on top, y'know?
But man it kind of sucks extra hard for me because I became a fan literally only a week before they announced it was wrapping up. Most fans had 6 lovely years enjoying the show in real time, meanwhile I got attached just as it ended. Ah well.
