Timmy Turner – Tara Strong,

Wanda/Mom – Susanne Blakeslee,

Cosmo/Dad – Daran Norris,

Vicky/Medusa/Artemis – Grey Griffin, 

Mr. Crocker – Carlos Alazraqui,

Zeus – Kevin Michael Richardson, 

Poseidon/Dionysus – S. Scott Bullock. 

Among others: 

The Fairly Oddparents… 

… Enter the Cleft! – Game Boy Advanced (2002).

…Breakin’ da Rules – Game Boy Advanced, Game Cube, Play Station 2, Xbox, Windows – exclusively in North America (2003).

…Shadow Showdown – Game Boy Advanced, Game Cube, Play Station 2, Windows (2004).

…Clash with the Anti-World – Game Boy Advanced (2005).

Previous episode (4a): Bad Heir Day.

The following episode (5a): Micecapades.

The premise of the series is as follows: Timmy Tuner is a 10-year old only child living with his parents on the suburbs of Dimmsdale, a fictional town somewhere in California. Every time Mom and Dad (we don’t know their names) go out, they leave him with the evil 16 year-old-babysitter, Vicky. The life with dull parents (they are clueless most of the time and have rather stupid ideas) and a wicked teenager changes when the Fairly OddParents, Wanda and Cosmo, appear out of nowhere to grant the boy’s wishes. Almost every time they get Timmy in trouble and ultimately teach him a valuable life lesson. The show is kept in a humorous, sometimes even absurd, style

In the episode Freaks & Greeks Mom and Dad are leaving for a Toga Party to eat traditional – according to them – Greek food, French fries. Before they leave, Mom instructs Timmy to keep an eye on the collection of glass figurines she preserves in her precious cabinet. As usual, the parents leave Timmy with Vicky, someone who is so mean that she brings snakes to babysit the child. Luckily for the boy, Cosmo and Wanda come to help and send the teenager to a basement. Now Timmy can have a toga party of his own. 

The boy and his OddParents go to Mount Olympus, where the party never stops. Here they meet the king of parties, Zeus, and other gods known from Greek mythology. The party resembles college affairs, with a lot of crazy games and no sense of responsibility. Unfortunately, the fun is disrupted by the appearance of Medusa. As one of the gods states: “She’s pure evil! She turns people to stone but worse of all, she double dips!”. In panic, Timmy accidentally destroys Olympus (columns falling like dominos resemble the scene from Disney’s Hercules). Now, the gods have to move the party somewhere else – and they choose Timmy’s house. 

The party is now led by Elvis the centaur. The human world fascinates the gods: Zeus loves the toaster, Poseidon the toilet, and Artemis the TV. Ultimately, the Olympic gods seem rather dull and shallow, as all they care to do is to party. Not being very responsible, they almost destroy Mom’s cabinet, which drives Timmy crazy. Finally, the gods are scared off by Vicky, who escapes from the basement. With snakes in her hair, she resembles Medusa. The gods go back to Olympus (renovated thanks to Wanda’s magical skills and taste) and Vicky once again disappears in another floor trap. When Mom and Dad come back, Timmy sighs with relief – and with his breath destroys fragile glass figurines. Luckily, Mom is not mad, on the contrary, she is thrilled that now she can collect other pointless items – the shattered glass pieces.

Freaks & Greeks is a light take on the popular idea of Greek mythology. Gods and goddesses presented in the episode are clueless, shallow, and gregarious. Their powers serve them only to have fun, not to legitimise their authority over humans (potentially, they could interfere with human’s lives, they just do not care that much). The life on Olympus is an endless, crazy party. But wasn’t it, in a way, also the case of the already existing pop-cultural “prototype”? 

The cartoon representation of the ancient world suggests that mythical gods and goddesses created dramatic situations, engaged in scandalous romances, and behaved irresponsibly mainly in order to relieve boredom of immortal life. When divine creatures are in Timmy’s house, they are fascinated by everything surrounding them – but it is all a party for them. The gods, just like Timmy’s parents, are not accountable or wise – they are more immature than the 10-year old protagonist. Freaks & Greeks not only presents a satirical view of mythological “reality,” but also of adulthood in general indulging in its own ridiculous activities – like for instance, pointless collecting useless items. 

In the episode we observe also a very stereotypical depiction of Medusa. In the mythical universe the archetypical monster is clearly an antagonist who threatens the Olympic party. On earth, the role of Medusa is assumed by Vicky, the series’ antagonist. The Gorgon in the cartoon is a ‘party pooper’, not necessarily a horrific beast. Maybe due to the cartoon style of animation, with plenty of slap-stick jokes and rather basic humour, it was not possible to present this character in a different light. Cartoons have rather fast pace, while the alternative forms of animation, like Mythopolis by Alexandra Májová have the ability to explore the Medusa’s character in more in-depth manner. 

Bignell, Jonathan, Postmodern Media Culture, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2000. 

Kelen, Christopher and Björn Sundmark, eds., Child Autonomy and Child Governance in Children’s Literature: Where Children Rule, London, New York, NY: Routledge, 2017. 

Parandowski, Jan, Mitologia. Wierzenia i podania Greków i Rzymian [Mythology. Beliefs and Legends of Greeks and Romans], Poznań: Wydawnictwo Poznańskie, 1989 (ed. pr. 1924). 

Singer, Dorothy G. and Jerome L. Singer, eds., Handbook of Children and the Media, Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publication, Inc., 2012. 

Translations: multiple languages