It’s a shame The Gaslight District and Knights of Guinevere aren’t as popular as their Glitch contemporaries but I can see why.
TGD is self-explanatory, it’s a proudly grody art style that isn’t as widely appealing. As for KoG…
Something that stood out to me is how it definitely comes across as a more adult, mature story. It’s definitely a slower-paced pilot with a quieter tone, but that also gives it time to breathe and gives us time to really set up Frankie and Andi and let their motivations speak for themselves. I think most pilots would’ve had Guinevere speak, but by saving her active role in the story as a cliffhanger, it lets the show build up this mystique to Guinevere and who she is from the lens of multiple characters, and like a Rorschach test, how they feel reflects something about them.
There’s also the fact that the show feels less… marketable if I’m being honest. Guinevere is the only design really conducive to that and even then she’s more a pastiche of marketability. Otherwise we have Frankie and Andi who are humans drawn with physical imperfections, conventionally unattractive but that also means they garner a niche yet dedicated fanbase.
It’s also definitely a pilot with more of a setup to like, themes and character arcs I feel. We start off by establishing that our main protagonists are morally mediocre people who ultimately mean well, and there’s more of an emphasis on mundane human situations like with Andi’s introductory rant.
Speaking of, that’s the kind of thing that’s less for kids. Other pilots like TADC and Gameoverse are definitely not difficult for younger kids to keep up with, sure there might be a more adult edge to them sometimes but in the end it’s not infeasible and you can see it reflected in the fanbase at times. Whereas KoG, Andi’s establishing character moment about misapplying class solidarity to avoid being the target of a boycott is definitely something more for teenagers and upwards to comprehend, not younger kids.
Even the heart of the story feels aimed at a certain type of “Disney Adult” and I don’t mean just literally but also any kind of adult who infantilizes themselves by not expanding their tastes. Obviously the creators don’t think there’s anything wrong in engaging with kids cartoons, part of the reason people watched is because their veteran viewers know that fact about the writers well.
But it’s kinda like what I’ve said about how fandoms neglect PoC; It’s not that it’s illegal to watch kid cartoons, it’s that sometimes people act as if it’s illegal to watch anything else. And so on top of the Disney Bad takeaway being kinda reductive, some of it comes across as a bit Hit Dogs Holler, not just in terms of people who openly like Disney but also. This discomfort on how the pilot comes from a place of understanding in nevertheless speaking about the retreat to childhood nostalgia and how it has its potential dangers.
But you can’t speak to a child of nostalgia for an era they’re currently still exploring; Again, this is a story for adults, for older people. We get an F-bomb. But it’s not just swearing, KoG does feel like more adult and somber story. It’s got a bit of a heavier weight to it in terms of its politics, how it quickly starts off with the question of your place in the world, what can you do to excuse it, how are you trying to find joy in a somber existence and it’s much more close to home and hard hitting about its setting; In the end this really is just our world but with higher technology.
And so while KoG isn’t the most difficult thing to watch or understand, it’s not as easy of a story compared to its contemporaries; The gore is probably the least discomforting thing for viewers in that sense. So between its target audience based on its message but also a heavier, serious tone and slower, grounded storytelling that feels more what you’d read in a novel than a typical cartoon, KoG is definitely less of a Fandom type of show. But I also find that quality makes refreshing amidst its contemporaries and I appreciate it.
