User blog comment:Mattalamode/A Second Opinion: The Oracle/@comment-24972567-20170524161029/@comment-31194372-20170524231140

I generally hate nudity as humor too - it's just a lazy fallback - but that "The Oracle" was able to turn the concept into an actual plot device instead of being some pointless filler is commendable in its own right, I should think. It's just that the approach is much more different and mature.

And when I say "respectable," I don't mean in terms of him being a nice character; I'm thinking in terms of the construction of the character itself, in the kind of thought that went into how he was conceived for the show. In this regard, Season 1 was a complete nightmare, leaving Gumball as oblivious, aloof, and undeniably oafish, whereas Season 2 sought to see how tedious they could make him, a move that no doubt gave him personality but at the expense of almost everything else. Season 3 was essentially a perfect equilibrium: Gumball had a nice, snarky edge, but he was able to see over himself for the greater good when the situation called for it.

Also, I know that humor comes down to taste, but you have to be able to appreciate that the show isn't afraid to be negative and dramatic. That's why the show is so refreshing to me - it shows Elmore and its inhabitants as just as plagued by society's ills as the real world, contrary to the frenetic idealism that other cartoons like to coast on. Things don't always work out, and TAWOG isn't afraid to show that there's a grim reality to everything, regardless of Elmore's cheerful facade.