So maybe I never wanted to take over the world and maybe I’m not a genetically enhanced mouse, but for some reason I was always partial to the titular characters of the show Pinky and the Brain. Despite their tiny bodies and giant heads, they seemed so realistic. Pinky’s naïveté and pure kindness and Brain’s ego and intellect gave them real human characteristics that allowed viewers to connect with them. They were truly humans in mouse form, not to mention they were absolutely hilarious. The wild antics of two mice attempting to take over the world—what more could you want from a TV show?

Every episode started with the classic exchange, “Gee, Brain, what do you want to do tonight?” “The same thing we do every night, Pinky—try to take over the world!” They would break out from their cage and from there, Pinky and Brain would attempt some ridiculous scheme in order to take over the world, always failing in the end. Yet the laughs are present from beginning to end, with every aspect of the plan going wrong, often by Pinky’s inability to understand Brain’s instructions or to complete them correctly.

Now don’t think this show was corrupting the children watching! I’m certainly not trying to take over the world. But I learned a lot from the two mice whose crazy lives I could sort of connect to. The show wasn’t so much about taking over the world as it was about going after your goals. Brain never gave up on his goal of taking over the world. Pinky really just wanted cheese. Perhaps they didn’t always accomplish these aims, but the point was that they tried. Maybe these two large-headed mice are just a giant metaphor for perseverance. Or maybe they are just two ridiculous mice that never get what they want and are forever doomed to TV’s requirement that they fail (so that there can be more episodes).

Either way, the show remained popular as long as it was on the air. Pinky and the Brain were originally characters on the show Animaniacs and, due to their popularity, were given their own show. While the show may not have a creative title, Pinky and the Brain always had creative stories. Except for the fact that they often stole plots from pop culture…. So let’s forget the creative storylines and stick to the creative characters. What’s that? Brain was based on Orson Welles? Well, at least Pinky is truly unique, with his adorable cockney accent and made-up words like “narf.” Besides the tributes to pop culture, the writing on the show was spot-on, never sparing the laughs and thought-out plot lines. There was a formulaic nature to the show that the writers always stayed loyal to: Brain and Pinky break out of cage, Brain and Pinky try to take over world, Brain and Pinky fail at taking over the world, Brain and Pinky return to cage and begin planning again.

Regardless of this repetitive nature, the formula never seemed to detract from the true genius of the writing, or at least so it appeared to an eight-year-old with an active imagination and a love for cartoons. Despite his evil nature, I feel I have always connected to Brain. He’s really just a guy who wants his opinions to be heard. Isn’t that what we all want, in the end? I think what makes Pinky and Brain such perfect characters, besides their humor, is their humanity. Each has both positive and negative qualities. Pinky may be naïve and not particularly intelligent, but his honesty and kindness shine through as traits that make him likeable and relatable. Brain, while incredibly intelligent and good at planning, is evil and often ignores the consequences of his decisions. These characteristics give the viewer an ability to connect with talking, genetically altered mice.

This show—sadly canceled back in 2001—will always be a timeless classic of animation. It may not be The Simpsons, Looney Toons, or any other classic series, but it holds a special value to me as the only animated television series about genetically altered mice. You want to know why the show is truly awesome? ‘Cause “they’re Pinky, they’re Pinky and the Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain. Narf!”