Fanboy & Chum Chum

Title: Fanboy & Chum Chum
Episodes: "Wizboy" & "Trading Day"
Network: Nickelodeon

Premiere: Friday, November 6th at 9:00pm (ET)
Regular Air Dates: Saturdays at 10:30am

Official Website: at at Nick.com

"What is a Chum Chum?

"He is a snow day when you've got a spelling test.... he's the marshmallows in your hot chocolate and the sludge that forms on the bottom.... he's the smell of ham right after you've take it out of the dryer.... he's a pudding pie that steals into a French fry battle and escalates into a fish stick war...." --Fanboy

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Sobbing, Fanboy regales a layperson the value of a true friend, no doubt modeled after his longtime pal, Chum Chum. Fanboy, a scrawny kid whose spindly arms, giant ears, and purple cape, is one well-versed in the art and science of the superhero playdate and needs little motivation to have a good time. In Fanboy & Chum Chum, every day is an adventure -- no exceptions; and every person Fanboy and his tubby sidekick Chum Chum meet, are undoubtedly new or recurring characters in this grand play -- again, no exceptions.

Fanboy & Chum Chum is a hilarious little romp about boys-being-boys, with little desire or need to be anything else. One kid dresses in lime-green spandex with a purple mask and gloves, while his friend dons something similar with varying shades of yellow, orange, and black -- each sporting his tighty-whities on the outside.

Fanboy is the leader of the two, with Chum Chum (and his love of sugary snacks, pudding and marshmallow cakes included) never far behind.

Neither of the two are under any real delusion, believe it or not: it's all role-play. Ninja, robots, spacemen, bog monsters, wizards, you name it; to them, Fanboy and Chum Chum are a sort of catch-all superhero duo who cares not for the limit of their imagination, because chances are good something cooler, bigger, and better will come along tomorrow.

Chock full of boundless energy, Fanboy and Chum Chum sure do talk a lot. Fanboy's high-pitched inquisitiveness noticeably irritates those around him (such as his sleepy classmates or jaded homeroom teacher, Mr. Mufflin). Similarly, I presume, Chum Chum's squeaky little voice does little to drive fear into him and his partner's opponents. Regardless, these two kids who never change costume and almost never break character are at the center of this cartoon; their bond is as tight as their spandex, as they say.

One interesting note is although Fanboy & Chum Chum relies on its characters' imagination, this facet of the series isn't a plot device the boys consciously angle for.

To clarify, while a host of cartoons produced in the past five years have had specific episodes emphasizing the need to use your creativity, the characters in Fanboy & Chum Chum don't think, they just do.

Fanboy doesn't inquire what will happen if he read's his perturbed wizard friend Kyle's Necronomicon without asking, and summons a griffin.... he just does it. Chum Chum won't think twice about stepping in as the right-hand man for any number of faux-magic tricks his partner will pull.... he just does. And neither of the two need motivation to ponder what the latest and greatest action figure will do for their never-ending fantasy adventures.... they just do. By far the greatest charm of Nickelodeon's Fanboy & Chum Chum lies in its eagerness to simply be.