Animation
Jentry Chau vs. the Underworld
Netflix’s Jentry Chau vs. the Underworld isn’t your typical fantasy-horror blend, with a mix of Chinese mythology, Daoism and a whole lotta violence.
A regular game of cat and mouse–to the extreme.
This is part of Tom and Jerry’s everyday adventures.
This feisty cat and bashful but mischievous mouse spend their days trying to trap (or, in Tom’s case, eat) the other. Sure, they may come to a truce with one another occasionally, but it’s only when they’re in pursuit of the same thing.
But don’t let their momentary, unified missions fool you. These two wiley frenemies are on each other’s scent from sun up ‘til sun down. Every. Single. Day.
We’ll start by taking a walk down history lane, back to when Tom the cat and Jerry the mouse made their theatrical debut in 1940, thanks to MGM animators William Hanna and Joseph Barbera.
Since their origin, Tom and Jerry have rarely, if ever, said a word. But they’ve provided families with laughs, gasps, violence and, generally, a romping good time. That’s continued with Netflix’s Tom and Jerry Tales.
The iteration that we’re talking about here came out in September of 2006–not quite as old as Tom and Jerry themselves, but old enough. But as of this 2023 writing, it’s currently sitting in the top 10 of Netflix shows. Which means that, although it’s dated, people are still loving it.
So let’s see why.
According to my 5-year-old son, this show is hysterical. They’re constantly setting traps, bonking one another on the head, getting electrically shocked and getting into trouble. Some may not find this funny, but my kid thinks it’s hysterical (just so long as he doesn’t practice these stunts on his younger siblings).
There’s no profanity and no suggestive content. However, a few episodes include witches and monsters and, just like normal, there’s plenty of silly pranks and mild violence. (The Simpsons’ uber-violent characters Itchy and Scratchy are a satirical take on the violence we see in old Tom and Jerry cartoons.) It’s probably a little less violent than the 1940s and ‘50s cartoons that inspired it–but not by much.
Certainly, we don’t want our kids copying this behavior. But if they don’t, you may find that this show is acceptable for you and yours.
Jerry dreams that Tom is scared of him; Jerry and Tom attempt to babysit their nephews; Jerry and Tom go fishing for the same catfish.
A woman exclaims “are you off your cheese?” to Jerry. As is expected, Jerry and Tom get into fights multiple times. Tom and Jerry both get bonked in the head, shocked, hit, run over and mildly abused in every episode.
Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).
Netflix’s Jentry Chau vs. the Underworld isn’t your typical fantasy-horror blend, with a mix of Chinese mythology, Daoism and a whole lotta violence.
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