From the get-go, animation giant Matt Groening's spirited stab at high fantasy, Disenchantment, fell short of the expectations set by The Simpsons' and Futurama's creative heights. It’s a shame, too, because there are elements of the series that the writers immediately nailed. Groening's appreciation for fantasy is present not in the characters or the slew of subplots, but in the construction and reinforcement of Dreamland as a layered, lived-in place. There's plenty of commendably complex lore for both Groening stalwarts and fans of the genre, and the series-capping Part 5 delivers on previous seasons' world building in silly, offbeat, and sporadically fun ways. Will it convert skeptics into diehards? Probably not, but those eager to see the story through should walk away satisfied.
More than anything else, Part 5 feels like a watered-down version of itself. There's so much happening: Queen Dagmar (Sharon Horgan) tightens her grip on Dreamland while her daughter, Princess Bean (Abbi Jacobson), preps for their impending confrontation. And yet, even as the perpetually horny Elfo (Nat Faxon), the high-on-schadenfreude demon Luci (Eric André), and the enigmatic Mop Girl (Lauren Tom) rally reinforcements, this conclusion feels woefully light on the qualities that elevate Groening's work. The acerbic wit evident in lines like “How dare you bring logic into God's house?” has vanished, and even the visual gags – staples of Groening's work – feel more haphazard than ever. All that’s left is its story, which is never as engrossing as it could be.
To Disenchantment’s credit, the path to this point was clear and deliberate. Dagmar’s heel turn was foreshadowed since season 1, and the creative team hasn’t strayed from that idea or given us any reason to suspect a misdirect. The problem? Its trajectory isn't exciting, intriguing, or dependent on stakes we can feel. For any of this to matter, characters have to resonate – or at the very least make an impression.
Almost none of them do, and the truth behind why is harsh but impossible to ignore: The wacky denizens of Dreamland simply aren't likable. King Zøg (John DiMaggio),with his kooky antics and unwavering acceptance of his daughter's romance with the mermaid Mora (Meredith Hagner), is the occasional exception, but his diminished role in Part 5 means the series' best character plays second banana to nearly everything else on its plate. Zøg is the only character whose growth feels organic; his evolution from emotionally unavailable monarch to doting father is one of the few arcs that redeems the show's clumsy storytelling.
It’s difficult to greet Disenchantment’s final episodes with anything other than a chuckle and a shrug. Groening’s latest creation has always inspired faint praise: occasionally amusing but never funny. Sporadically interesting but never thrilling. Part 5 doesn’t overcome the previous season’s shortcomings but as a conclusion to a story so diligently laid out, it’s serviceable.
