Cartoon Networks edgy Adult Swim programs have always been somewhat uneven in quality. For me, while Aqua Teen Hunger Force seemed to be the darling of the network, my personal favorites included Sea Lab: 2021 and The Venture Bros. While both have been successful, neither have been well treated by CN. Like Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Large, both Sea Lab and Venture Bros. became the Redheaded stepchild of the line-up.
With Sea Lab now gone, along with Harvey Birdman (not to mention the always hilarious Space Ghost: Coast to Coast) the only real thing left to watch for me, is The Venture Bros.
The best part of the trio was that the people who were making them were plundering the childhood most of audience that Adult Swim was targeting grew up with. Sea Lab 2021 is based on the short-lived NBC series Sealab 2020. The series was about an underwater research base and had an environmental theme. Sealab 2021 is set one year after the time frame; during which, the crew has slowly gone crazy and now spends more time goofing off in various ways rather than doing any serious work.
Meanwhile, where Sea Lab took the old animation and reworked it with new dialogue, The Venture Bros. actually is hand drawn the old fashion way -though digital rendering, really- and pays homage to such classic Hanna-Barbera action series as Jonny Quest and often parodies The Hardy Boys mysteries and other comic super heroes. Twins Hank and Dean - who think they are gifted but they’re really idiots - are the sons of Dr. Venture, a caricature of Dr. Benton Quest. Disappointed in his kids and failed career as a scientist, Venture pops diet pills to ease his pain. Also on tap is Brock Samson, a sort of testosterone-loaded, extremely violent take on Race Bannon.
Venture has a recurring villain in the form of The Monarch, who is evil, yet incompetent. There has been little effort to explain why Monarch hates Venture, but hints have been dropped here and there. Over two seasons, meanwhile, Monarch’s evil nature has been supplemented with vanity and bravado.
As mentioned, due to the nature of The Venture Bros. animation -and Cartoon Networks bizarre way of operating; waiting to the last minute to renew the show - there was a year gap between season 1 and 2, as there will be nearly another extra long gap between season two and three, which should debut in late 2007. Fortunately, CN has picked up the show for a fourth season of 13 episodes. So, with 26 more episodes to come, I can hope that this brilliant, weird series continues to make me laugh out loud.
With Sea Lab now gone, along with Harvey Birdman (not to mention the always hilarious Space Ghost: Coast to Coast) the only real thing left to watch for me, is The Venture Bros.
The best part of the trio was that the people who were making them were plundering the childhood most of audience that Adult Swim was targeting grew up with. Sea Lab 2021 is based on the short-lived NBC series Sealab 2020. The series was about an underwater research base and had an environmental theme. Sealab 2021 is set one year after the time frame; during which, the crew has slowly gone crazy and now spends more time goofing off in various ways rather than doing any serious work.
Meanwhile, where Sea Lab took the old animation and reworked it with new dialogue, The Venture Bros. actually is hand drawn the old fashion way -though digital rendering, really- and pays homage to such classic Hanna-Barbera action series as Jonny Quest and often parodies The Hardy Boys mysteries and other comic super heroes. Twins Hank and Dean - who think they are gifted but they’re really idiots - are the sons of Dr. Venture, a caricature of Dr. Benton Quest. Disappointed in his kids and failed career as a scientist, Venture pops diet pills to ease his pain. Also on tap is Brock Samson, a sort of testosterone-loaded, extremely violent take on Race Bannon.
Venture has a recurring villain in the form of The Monarch, who is evil, yet incompetent. There has been little effort to explain why Monarch hates Venture, but hints have been dropped here and there. Over two seasons, meanwhile, Monarch’s evil nature has been supplemented with vanity and bravado.
As mentioned, due to the nature of The Venture Bros. animation -and Cartoon Networks bizarre way of operating; waiting to the last minute to renew the show - there was a year gap between season 1 and 2, as there will be nearly another extra long gap between season two and three, which should debut in late 2007. Fortunately, CN has picked up the show for a fourth season of 13 episodes. So, with 26 more episodes to come, I can hope that this brilliant, weird series continues to make me laugh out loud.
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