Despicable Me funnies and nothing to suggest a sequel, which is probably wise." Tasha Robinson of "The A.V. Club" gave the film a B, saying, "Until the "creep + orphans = happy family" formula starts demanding abrupt, unconvincing character mutations, "Despicable Me" is a giddy joy." Marjorie Baumgarten of "The Austin Chronicle" gave the film three out of five stars, saying, "Everyone knows that the villains are usually the most interesting characters in any movie. So the makers of "Despicable Me" were wise to cut to the chase and make the megalomaniacal Gru the central character in this animated film." Released on
Despicable Me 2 which guarantees plenty of laughs. But what it doesn't have is an edge." Peter Howell of the "Toronto Star" gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "It feels at times as if "Despicable Me 2" actually is "The Minions Movie". Coffin and Renaud and returning screenwriters Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio haven't managed to come up with a dastardly plot to rival the shrinking and stealing of the moon from the previous film." Stephen Holden of "The New York Times" gave the film two and a half stars out of five, saying "It is consistently