User blog:Angryman8000/My thoughts on the voice actors

First, let me introduce myself. Hi, I'm Angryman8000. I've been somewhat active on the Gumball subreddit for a while now, and have been thinking about becoming more active in the community. This is my first time posting on the Gumball wiki, or Wikia in general, so if I do something glaringly wrong I hope you'll tell me. Anyways, enough rambling. Let's begin.

What are you talking about today?
I'm glad you asked, hypothetical-person-who-apparently-didn't-read-the-title! I'm sharing my thoughts on the voice actors, specifically the voice actors for Gumball and Darwin. I always like when shows choose to use child voice actors for children, as it gives the characters a more genuine voice.



However, if the show lasts more than a few seasons, you have to make a decision on what to do when the kids hit puberty. You have to either age the character up or replace the voice actors. While some shows were able to do the former, Gumball chose the latter, and for good reason. The style of the show wouldn't work with late-teen Gumball and Darwin, and Gumball just isn't a continuity-heavy show.

Season 1
Logan and Kwesi in season 1 were just right for the roles at the time. Gumball's voice was "Average kid," while Darwin's voice was "Little brother." Nothing spectacular, but that was what those characters were at the time. I never found myself annoyed by the voices in season 1. The voices gave the feeling of childhood innocence, a strong theme of the show in season 1. Gumball's voice was also remarkably flexible. Yelling, whispering, laughing, crying, happy, angry, Gumball's voice just ''always sounded good. ''Darwin's voice was less flexible (which posed a problem later) but seeing as he wasn't in the action as much as Gumball, that was less of a problem.

Season 2


Logan and Kwesi started hitting puberty pretty much as soon as season 2 started. While Logan improved, Kwesi got worse. Logan's voice grew deeper, suiting Gumball's more mature nature. His voice was also a bit raspy when he yelled, suiting Gumball's wittiness. Kwesi's voice strayed off from "little brother" to "Awkward black teen." His voice started to sound kind of strained, and always cracked when he raised his voice. Listening to season 2 Darwin was occasionally a bit of a pain.

The Kids


I love this episode. It set the tone for the series season 3 onwards and features  one of my favorite songs my favorite song in the show. This isn't a review of the episode though, it's about the voice actors. Logan's voice still sounds great in this episode (albeit much too old,) showing just how flexible his voice is. Kwesi sounds even more strained, but oddly better due to him nearing the tail end of puberty by this point. I appreciate the episode for letting Logan and Kwesi's mature voices shine in one last spectacular musical number that just wouldn't have been as good had their voices been higher.

Jacob Hopkins and Terrell Ransom Jr.


Alright, before I talk about Jacob and Terrell's voices, I want to talk for a bit about the controversy in 2014 when the switch happened. I've seen a lot of people saying that they were unhappy about the change, that they should have kept Logan and Kwesi, and that they stopped watching after the change. It's fine if you preferred the old voices, but keeping them just wasn't an option. The whole purpose of "The Kids" was to demonstrate this. I really don't think these people even gave Jacob and Terrell a chance. Anyway, I think pretty much all of you agree with me on this, seeing as the people who left the fandom... left the fandom. Let's actually talk about Jacob and Terrell now, shall we?

Season 3


If I were to describe Jacob and Terrell's voices, I would say this: "Take Logan's season 1 voice, make it a little rougher, maybe make it a bit higher, you've got Jacob's. Take Kwesi's season 1 voice, make it softer and squeakier, you have Terrell's." Their voices better fit their season 3 onward personalities, Gumball being a witty, slightly cynical preteen, and Darwin being a kind voice of reason and younger brother. They sounded slightly too young at the beginning of the season but grew right into their roles as it went on. Jacob also had a fantastic singing voice in "The Downer " and "The Money," prompting the writers to insert more songs for him to sing in season 4.

Season 4


Unlike Logan and Kwesi, Jacob and Terrell didn't hit puberty until quite late in season 4. Most people (including me) noticed Gumball's voice changing in "The Night," 31 episodes into the season. Puberty hit quickly though, and soon enough, Logan and Kwesi were undergoing puberty. Although their voices got deeper, not much else changed. Gumball stayed just as rough, Darwin stayed just as soft. Neither had to strain their voice, so they both sounded just as natural. I'd say that Gumball actually improved (an early-pubescent voice just suits him).

Season 5
By the time season 5 rolled around, Jacob and Terrell were at that point. Not quite "The Kids," but past "The Finale." Their voices were a little distracting. If they had gone on longer than they did, it would only have gotten worse. They had to bring it to an end in "The Copycats." Although it was a bit abrupt, I appreciate them not rehashing "The Kids," and also giving Jacob and Terrell one last musical number with "Be your own you."

Nicolas Cantu and Donielle T. Hansely Jr.


Alright, now let's talk about the new  new voices and why they're my least favorite. Nicolas is completely lacking the roughness that made Jacob so good. Similarly, Donielle is missing the softness that made Terrell so good. Although it was jarring during a few episodes, I will admit it's gotten slightly better throughout season 5. That doesn't stop it from distracting me when they speak their first lines in an episode though. I don't think this is just unwillingness to accept change either. I easily adjusted to Jacob and Terrell after only a few episodes, but my brain still can't accept these as the voices of Gumball and Darwin. I hope puberty is kind to Nicolas and Donielle in season 6. I'm sorry if I came off as slightly mean. I have no ill will towards Nicolas and Donielle. They're doing a fine job voicing the characters, it's just that their voices aren't as suited for the roles as their predecessors. Nor do I have any ill will towards the people who made the call to pick these voice actors, I trust they chose the best candidates. Nobody is to blame here, I just find it a bit unfortunate that there weren't better candidates.

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Thanks for reading! I might post again in the future. If you have any suggestions on how to improve this, (formatting and stuff) please let me know in the comments. I'd like to know how you feel about the voice actors, as I haven't seen much discussion since the change first happened.=====