There’s something magical about watching a show with your kids and realizing you’re the person having the best time.
The first time we binged Gumball together, they actually paused the episode and said, “Mom, you’re enjoying this a little too much.” And they were right. I absolutely was. Because Gumball has always had this way of slipping jokes into scenes that hit adults right in the funny bone while the kids sit there happily clueless.
This new season keeps that energy alive. It’s sharper, weirder, and full of references my boys aren’t old enough to recognize. At one point, they were cracking up at a simple gag while I was laughing at a joke that needed twenty years of internet culture experience to understand.
That’s the magic of Gumball. Two different shows wrapped into one. Kids get the bright colors, the chaos, the silliness. Adults get the meta humor, the absurdity, the commentary, and the feeling that the writers have lived the same exact digital life we have.
What I love most about this new batch of episodes is the confidence it carries. You can feel that the writers know exactly who is sitting on the couch. They know there are parents watching who desperately want something that won’t make them feel like their brain is melting.
They know there are jokes that only land if you’ve lived long enough to have existential crises triggered by grocery store self-checkout. They know that adults watching kids’ TV often crave something smarter than the usual cartoon fluff.
And Gumball has always delivered that. The mix of animation styles, the way the comedy shifts from ridiculous to clever in a heartbeat, and the little nods to everything from classic cinema to meme culture. Even when the plot is completely unhinged, the writing feels intentional. It’s a kids' show that respects adults and a comedy show that respects kids.
Watching this new season with my kids honestly reminded me why so many adults fell in love with Gumball in the first place. It’s genuinely funny, well-crafted, and clever. It never talks down to the viewer, no matter the age, and that’s why it works. My kids laugh at one layer. I laugh at five.
I’ve seen a lot of animated shows, and only a handful ever manage that balance. Gumball makes parenting slightly easier because it gives you thirty minutes where everyone is watching the same thing for totally different reasons. And somehow it still brings you together.
So yes, the new season is great. Yes, it’s still one of the smartest animated comedies ever made. And yes, I will continue laughing louder than my kids. They’ll survive the embarrassment. I survived the dancing Elmo era. We’re even.